Existing law, until January 1, 2017, allows a credit under the Personal Income Tax Law, the Corporation Tax Law, and a credit against the tax imposed on an insurer in an amount equal to 20% of a qualified investment, as defined, made into a community development financial institution, as defined, but not to exceed, in the aggregate amount under all those laws, $50,000,000 per year, and authorizes the California Organized Investment Network to certify investments for the credit until January 1, 2017. This bill would extend the provisions relating to the authorization of the credits and certification by the Department of Insurance and the California Organized Investment Network until January 1, 2027. The bill would also increase the aggregate amount under all those laws of qualified investments allowed to be certified by the California Organized Investment Network for the credits to $120,000,000 per year. This bill would take effect immediately as a tax levy.
Sponsored bills
The California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 designates the State Air Resources Board as the state agency charged with monitoring and regulating sources of emissions of greenhouse gases. The act authorizes the state board to include the use of market-based compliance mechanisms. Existing law requires all moneys, except for fines and penalties, collected by the state board as part of a market-based compliance mechanism to be deposited in the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund and to be available upon appropriation. Existing law requires the Department of Finance to annually submit a report to the appropriate committees of the Legislature on the status of the projects funded with moneys in the fund. This bill would require the department to include additional data in that annual report, as specified.
The California Renewables Portfolio Standard Program requires the Public Utilities Commission to establish a renewables portfolio standard requiring all retail sellers, as defined, to procure a minimum quantity of electricity products from eligible renewable energy resources, as defined, at specified percentages of the total kilowatthours sold to their retail end-use customers during specified compliance periods. The program additionally requires each local publicly owned electric utility, as defined, to procure a minimum quantity of electricity products from eligible renewable energy resources to achieve the targets established by the program. The program, consistent with the goals of procuring the least-cost and best-fit eligible renewable energy resources that meet project viability principles, requires that all retail sellers procure a balanced portfolio of electricity products from eligible renewable energy resources, as specified, referred to as the portfolio content requirements. The program requires the commission to authorize the use of renewable energy credits to satisfy the renewables portfolio standard procurement requirements, subject to specified conditions and limitations for unbundled renewable energy credits. One condition placed on renewable energy credits is that they not be created for electricity generated under any electricity purchase contract executed after January 1, 2005, pursuant to the federal Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978, also known as PURPA. This bill would require that renewable energy credits be created for electricity generated under an electricity purchase contract executed after January 1, 2017, pursuant to PURPA, with those credits being owned by the owner of the eligible renewable energy resource unless otherwise agreed to by the owner. The bill would prohibit the commission from requiring, as a condition of entering into an electricity purchase contract pursuant to PURPA, that the generator sell its renewable energy credits to the electrical corporation pursuant to the contract. The bill would provide that when electricity products and the renewable energy credits associated with those electricity products are sold to the same electrical corporation pursuant to 2 or more separate purchase contracts with identical start and end dates, the credits and electricity products would be treated as bundled. Under existing law, a violation of the Public Utilities Act or any order, decision, rule, direction, demand, or requirement of the commission is a crime. Because the provisions of this bill would be a part of the act and because a violation of an order or decision of the commission implementing its requirements would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program by creating a new crime. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.
Existing law creates the California Environmental Protection Agency, consisting of various boards, offices, and departments, including the State Air Resources Board and the Department of Toxic Substances Control. The California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 designates the State Air Resources Board as the state agency charged with monitoring and regulating sources of emissions of greenhouse gases. The act authorizes the state board to include the use of market-based compliance mechanisms. Existing law requires all moneys, except for fines and penalties, collected by the state board as part of a market-based compliance mechanism to be deposited in the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund and to be available upon appropriation. Existing law requires the California Environmental Protection Agency to identify disadvantaged communities and requires the Department of Finance, in consultation with the state board and any other relevant state agency, to develop, as specified, a 3-year investment plan for the moneys deposited in the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund. This bill would establish the Green Assistance Program within the California Environmental Protection Agency to, among other things, assist small businesses and small nonprofit organizations in applying for moneys from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund. This bill would also establish the California Green Business Program within the California Environmental Protection Agency to provide support and assistance to green business certification programs operated by local governments that certify small- and medium-sized businesses that voluntarily adopt environmentally preferable business practices, including, but not limited to, increased energy efficiency, reduced greenhouse gas emissions, water conservation, and waste reduction, as specified. The bill would delete an existing authorization for the Department of Toxic Substances Control to create a similar program. The bill would appropriate an unspecified amount annually to each program from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund.
Existing law establishes the Labor and Workforce Development Agency overseen by the Secretary of Labor and Workforce Development and provides that the agency consists of, among other entities, the California Workforce Investment Board, the Employment Development Department, and the Employment Training Panel. The California Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act establishes the California Workforce Development Board as the body responsible for assisting the Governor in the development, oversight, and continuous improvement of California's workforce investment system and the alignment of the education and workforce investment systems to the needs of the 21st century economy and workforce. That act requires the establishment of a local workforce development board in each local workforce development area of the state to, among other things, carry out analyses of the economic conditions in the local region. This bill would enact the Removing Barriers to Employment Act, which would establish the Breaking Barriers to Employment Initiative within the Labor and Workforce Development Agency. The bill would require the initiative to be led by the Secretary of Labor and Workforce Development and authorizes the secretary to assign all or part of the administration of the initiative to one or more entities within the agency's oversight, or to authorize another state agency, under specified conditions, to administer a portion of the initiative. The bill would specify that the purpose of the initiative is to create a grant program to assist individuals who have multiple barriers to employment to receive the remedial education and work readiness skills that will help those individuals to successfully participate in training, apprenticeship, or employment opportunities that enhance skill development that will lead to self-sufficiency and economic stability, and would set forth the goals of the initiative. The bill would require the secretary to develop criteria for the selection of grant recipients, as specified, and would require the secretary, by January 1, 2018, and annually thereafter, to post a report on the agency's Internet Web site that provides a status report on the implementation of the initiative and aggregates information provided by grant recipients. The bill would authorize the secretary, when implementing the initiative, to fund a project that uses a model that was previously funded as a pilot project under certain programs if specified criteria are met. The bill would make the funding of the initiative subject to an appropriation by the Legislature for that purpose and would make implementation of the initiative contingent on the secretary notifying the Department of Finance that sufficient moneys have been appropriated.
The California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 designates the State Air Resources Board as the state agency charged with monitoring and regulating sources of emissions of greenhouse gases. The act authorizes the state board to include the use of market-based compliance mechanisms. Existing law requires all moneys, except for fines and penalties, collected by the state board as part of a market-based compliance mechanism to be deposited in the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund and to be available upon appropriation by the Legislature. The California Clean Truck, Bus, and Off-Road Vehicle and Equipment Technology Program, upon appropriation from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, funds zero- and near-zero-emission truck, bus, and off-road vehicle and equipment technologies and related projects, as specified, with priority given to certain projects, including projects that benefit disadvantaged communities, as defined. The program, until January 1, 2018, requires no less than 20% of the funding made available for the purposes of technology development, demonstration, precommercial pilots, and early commercial deployments of zero- and near-zero-emission medium- and heavy-duty truck technology support early commercial deployment of existing zero- and near-zero-emission heavy-duty truck technology. The program requires the state board to ensure that the results of emissions reductions or benefits can be measured or quantified. This bill, between January 2, 2018, and January 1, 2023, would require no less than 50% of the moneys allocated each year for technology development, demonstration, precommercial pilots, and early commercial deployments of zero- and near-zero-emission medium- and heavy-duty truck technology be allocated and spent to support the commercial deployment of existing zero- and near-zero-emission heavy-duty truck and heavy-duty bus technology that meets or exceeds a specified emission standard, with at least 23 of these funds to be allocated to heavy-duty truck projects. The bill would authorize the state board to increase those emission standards based on specified findings. The bill would require the state board to limit the incentives that may be allocated to any one vehicle or engine manufacturer in each year under these provisions to 49% of the moneys available for allocation in that year. The bill would require allocations under these provisions to be made for projects that are shown to achieve the greatest greenhouse gas emissions reductions, as specified. The bill also would require the state board to post on its Internet Web site the results of emissions reductions or benefits.
This measure would declare the month of April 2016 as Financial Aid and Literacy Month, with the theme of "Prosperity Through Education," to raise public awareness about the continuing need for increased financial literacy.
This measure would recognize May 2016 as National Mental Health Awareness Month in California to enhance public awareness of mental illness.