Asm. Das Williams

Existing law provides that the county boards of supervisors may establish and maintain, within their respective counties, county free libraries pursuant to specified provisions of law. Existing law provides that the board of trustees, common council, or other legislative body of any city or the board of trustees of any library district may, on or before January 1 of any year, notify the county board of supervisors that the city or library district no longer desires to be a part of the county free library system, as specified. Existing law imposes specified requirements on the board of trustees, common council, or other legislative body of a city or the board of trustees of a library district that intends to withdraw from the county free library system and operate the city's or library district's library or libraries with a private contractor that will employ library staff to achieve cost savings, subject to specified exceptions. These requirements, until January 1, 2019, include, but are not limited to, clearly demonstrating that the contract will result in actual overall cost savings to the city or library district for the duration of the entire contract, and prohibiting the contract from causing existing city or library district employees to incur a loss of employment or specified benefits or an involuntary transfer. This bill would instead provide, until January 1, 2019, that a board of trustees, common council, or other legislative body of a city or the board of trustees of a library district in which a withdrawal from the county free library system becomes effective on or after January 1, 2012, shall comply with the above-described requirements before entering into a contract to operate the city's or library district's library or libraries with a private contractor that will employ library staff to achieve cost savings. The bill would make conforming and nonsubstantive changes.

(1) Existing law provides for the Medi-Cal program, which is administered by the State Department of Health Care Services, under which qualified low-income individuals receive health care services. The Medi-Cal program is, in part, governed and funded by federal Medicaid Program provisions. Under existing law, one of the methods by which Medi-Cal services are provided is through contracts with various types of managed care plans. Existing law imposes a tax at a specified rate on the gross premiums of an insurer, as defined, and, until July 1, 2012, on the total operating revenue, as specified, of a Medi-Cal managed care plan, as defined. Existing law exempts from that tax the total operating revenue of a Medi-Cal managed care plan, if specified events occur before July, 1, 2012. Existing law continuously appropriates the revenues derived from the tax on Medi-Cal managed care plans for specified purposes. This bill would extend the imposition of the tax on the total operating revenue of Medi-Cal managed care plans until July 1, 2014, and would make other conforming changes. This bill also would authorize the Controller to loan funds in the Children's Health and Human Services Special Fund to the General Fund, as provided, until July 1, 2013. By extending the imposition of a tax whose revenues are continuously appropriated, this bill would make an appropriation. (2) Existing law requires, until July 1, 2012, every return required to be filed with the Insurance Commissioner pursuant to provisions governing taxes on the total operating revenue of Medi-Cal managed care plans to be signed by the insurer or the Medi-Cal managed care plan or an executive officer of the insurer or the plan and to be made under oath or contain a written declaration that is made under penalty of perjury. This bill would instead apply this signature requirement until July 1, 2013. By expanding the crime of perjury, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (3) Existing law creates the Healthy Families Program, administered by the Managed Risk Medical Insurance Board (MRMIB) , to arrange for the provision of health, vision, and dental benefits to eligible children pursuant to a federal program, the Children's Health Insurance Program. Under existing law, the Director of Health Care Services may contract with any qualified individual, organization, or entity to provide services to, arrange for, or case manage the care of Medi-Cal beneficiaries, subject to specified requirements. Existing law requires a Medi-Cal applicant or beneficiary to be informed of the managed care and fee-for-service options available regarding methods of receiving Medi-Cal benefits. Existing law provides for the transition of specified enrollees of the Healthy Families Program to the Medi-Cal program, to the extent that those individuals are otherwise eligible, no sooner than January 1, 2013. Existing law requires this transition to take place in 4 phases, as prescribed. This bill would repeal the provisions requiring the transfer of Healthy Families Program enrollees into the Medi-Cal program. (4) Section 92 of Chapter 11 of the First Extraordinary Session of the Statutes of 2011 provides that act becomes inoperative if any of its provisions are amended or repealed. This bill would repeal that provision and would provide that, notwithstanding Section 92 of Chapter 11 of the First Extraordinary Session of the Statutes of 2011, the provisions of Chapter 11 of the First Extraordinary Session of the Statutes of 2011 do not become inoperative upon the amendment or repeal of any provision of that chapter made by this bill. (5) This bill would include a change in state statute that would result in a taxpayer paying a higher tax within the meaning of Section 3 of Article XIIIA of the California Constitution, and thus would require for passage the approval of 23 of the membership of each house of the Legislature. (6) 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.

(1) Existing law provides for the Medi-Cal program, which is administered by the State Department of Health Care Services, under which qualified low-income individuals receive health care services. The Medi-Cal program is, in part, governed and funded by federal Medicaid Program provisions. Under existing law, one of the methods by which Medi-Cal services are provided is through contracts with various types of managed care plans. Existing law imposes a tax at a specified rate on the gross premiums of an insurer, as defined, and, until July 1, 2012, on the total operating revenue, as specified, of a Medi-Cal managed care plan, as defined. Existing law exempts from that tax the total operating revenue of a Medi-Cal managed care plan, if specified events occur before July, 1, 2012. Existing law continuously appropriates the revenues derived from the tax on Medi-Cal managed care plans for specified purposes. This bill would extend the imposition of the tax on the total operating revenue of Medi-Cal managed care plans until July 1, 2014, and would make other conforming changes. This bill also would authorize the Controller to loan funds in the Children's Health and Human Services Special Fund to the General Fund, as provided, until July 1, 2013. By extending the imposition of a tax whose revenues are continuously appropriated, this bill would make an appropriation. (2) Existing law requires, until July 1, 2012, every return required to be filed with the Insurance Commissioner pursuant to provisions governing taxes on the total operating revenue of Medi-Cal managed care plans to be signed by the insurer or the Medi-Cal managed care plan or an executive officer of the insurer or the plan and to be made under oath or contain a written declaration that is made under penalty of perjury. This bill would instead apply this signature requirement until July 1, 2013. By expanding the crime of perjury, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (3) Existing law creates the Healthy Families Program, administered by the Managed Risk Medical Insurance Board (MRMIB) , to arrange for the provision of health, vision, and dental benefits to eligible children pursuant to a federal program, the Children's Health Insurance Program. Under existing law, the Director of Health Care Services may contract with any qualified individual, organization, or entity to provide services to, arrange for, or case manage the care of Medi-Cal beneficiaries, subject to specified requirements. Existing law requires a Medi-Cal applicant or beneficiary to be informed of the managed care and fee-for-service options available regarding methods of receiving Medi-Cal benefits. Existing law provides for the transition of specified enrollees of the Healthy Families Program to the Medi-Cal program, to the extent that those individuals are otherwise eligible, no sooner than January 1, 2013. Existing law requires this transition to take place in 4 phases, as prescribed. This bill would repeal the provisions requiring the transfer of Healthy Families Program enrollees into the Medi-Cal program. (4) Existing law requires the State Department of Health Care Services to impose a uniform quality assurance fee on each skilled nursing facility, with certain exceptions, in accordance with a prescribed formula. The formula is based on the determination of the projected net revenues, as defined, of skilled nursing facilities. Under existing law, the charge will cease to be assessed after July 31, 2013, and these provisions will be repealed on January 1, 2014. Existing law, the Medi-Cal Long-Term Care Reimbursement Act, requires the department to implement a facility-specific reimbursement ratesetting system for certain skilled nursing facilities. Reimbursement rates for freestanding skilled nursing facilities are funded by a combination of federal funds and moneys collected pursuant to the skilled nursing uniform quality assurance fee. Existing law also establishes the Skilled Nursing Facility Quality and Accountability Special Fund in the State Treasury, which is a continuously appropriated fund that contains moneys from the assessment of specified administrative penalties and set asides of General Fund moneys, for the purposes of making quality and accountability payments. Existing law provides that this rate methodology shall cease to be implemented after July 31, 2013, and that these provisions shall be repealed on January 1, 2014. This bill would modify the calculation of rates under the above-referenced rate methodology, and would extend the assessment of the charge, implementation of the rate methodology, and implementation of related provisions until July 31, 2015. By extending the period of time during which transfers are made to the Skilled Nursing Facility Quality and Accountability Special Fund, this bill would make an appropriation. This bill would also modify the amount of moneys to be deposited into the Skilled Nursing Facility Quality and Accountability Special Fund, by, among other things, requiring that specified set-asides under the rate methodology remain in the General Fund instead of transferring to the Skilled Nursing Facility Quality and Accountability Special Fund and increasing the amount of certain set-asides to be transferred to the fund. This bill would instead require that the quality and accountability payments be made beginning with the 2013–14 rate year. (5) Existing federal Medicaid law requires nursing facilities, as defined, to perform an assessment of each resident's functional capacity that is based on a uniform minimum data set, as specified. This bill would require nursing facilities, the State Department of Health Care Services, and the State Department of Public Health to perform various duties with respect to the federal government's nursing home quality initiative and this assessment. (6) Section 92 of Chapter 11 of the First Extraordinary Session of the Statutes of 2011 provides that act becomes inoperative if any of its provisions are amended or repealed. This bill would repeal that provision and would provide that, notwithstanding Section 92 of Chapter 11 of the First Extraordinary Session of the Statutes of 2011, the provisions of Chapter 11 of the First Extraordinary Session of the Statutes of 2011 do not become inoperative upon the amendment or repeal of any provision of that chapter made by this bill. (7) 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. (8) This bill would include a change in state statute that would result in a taxpayer paying a higher tax within the meaning of Section 3 of Article XIIIA of the California Constitution, and thus would require for passage the approval of 23 of the membership of each house of the Legislature.

The California Integrated Waste Management Act of 1989, which is administered by the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, establishes an integrated waste management program. Existing law also requires local jurisdictions to implement a commercial solid waste recycling program designed to divert commercial solid waste from businesses that generate 4 cubic yards or more of commercial solid waste per week or is a multifamily residential dwelling of 5 units or more. Existing law requires a commercial waste generator to take one of specified actions that include, among other things, subscribing to a recycling service that may include mixed waste processing that yields diversion results comparable to source separation. This bill would require the department, on or before January 1, 2018, to adopt specified regulations to require a large-quantity commercial organics generator to arrange for separate organics collection and recycling services that may include, but are not limited to, self-hauling, consistent with state or local laws or requirements, as specified. The bill would authorize the department, on a case-by-case basis, to delay the recycling of organics in rural areas if it determines that the infrastructure to provide these services does not exist and are not reasonably available from a local service provider. The bill would redefine "commercial solid waste" for these purposes and define "large-quantity commercial organics generator."

This measure would recognize June 12, 2012, as the 114th Anniversary of Philippine Independence, and would call upon the people of the state to observe the month of June with appropriate ceremonies, programs, and activities.

This measure would commemorate and honor the service and sacrifice of the members of the United States Armed Forces who supported the operations in Iraq, and their families, as the official combat mission in Iraq draws to a close. This measure would encourage mayors and communities across the State of California to honor veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan on November 11, 2012, in Veterans Day parades, ceremonies, and other displays of our state's gratitude for their service and sacrifice. This measure would also request that the Department of General Services work with appropriate 3rd parties to advise and oversee the creation of a memorial for the California veterans who fought and served in Iraq and, upon receiving donations from nonstate sources covering the design, construction, and maintenance costs and ensuring that the memorial is in the best interest of the State Capitol Park, erect that memorial, in accordance with California law, in the State Capitol Park. This measure would state the intent of the Legislature to enact future legislation authorizing the creation of a larger memorial commemorating and thanking those who served in both Iraq and Afghanistan.

This measure would designate the week of September 8 through September 15, 2012, and the 2nd week of September every year thereafter as California Coastal Protection Week and would urge all Californians to observe that week as California Costal Protection Week.

(1) The existing California Integrated Waste Management Act of 1989, which is administered by the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, establishes an integrated waste management program. Existing law requires each city, county, and regional agency, if any, to develop a source reduction and recycling element of an integrated waste management plan. The act requires the source reduction and recycling element to divert from disposal 50% of all solid waste subject to the element through source reduction, recycling, and composting activities, with specified exceptions. Under the act, the use of solid waste for beneficial reuse in the construction and operation of a solid waste landfill, including the use of alternative daily cover, constitutes diversion through recycling and is not considered disposal. This bill would require the department to adopt regulations to provide that, on and after January 1, 2020, the use of green material as alternative daily cover or alternative intermediate cover does not constitute diversion through recycling and would be considered disposal for purposes of the act. The bill would authorize the department to delay the effective date of this requirement, as specified. The bill would impose a state-mandated local program by imposing new duties upon local agencies with regard to the diversion of solid waste. This bill would require the department, by January 1, 2014, to conduct an analysis of the use of residual fines from material recovery facilities and materials left over from the composting process for use as alternative daily cover and other forms of beneficial use in the design and operation of a solid waste landfill. The bill would require the department to adopt regulations, by July 1, 2014, based on this analysis, if the department makes a specified determination that residual fines from material recovery facilities and materials left over from the composting process would serve as adequate daily cover. (2) The act requires rigid plastic packaging containers that are sold or offered for sale in this state to meet, on average, one of specified criteria and defines terms for purposes of those requirements. One of those criteria that a rigid plastic packaging container may meet to satisfy this requirement is that the container be source reduced. The act provides for the enforcement of these requirements by the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery and provides that an entity making a false certification pursuant to those requirements is subject to a violation for fraud. This bill would revise the definitions of the various terms used in the those requirements, including revising the definition of the term "source reduced" to impose new requirements, thereby imposing a state-mandated local program by changing the definition of a crime. (3) The act requires a business, which is defined as a commercial or public entity, that generates more than 4 cubic yards of commercial solid waste per week or is a multifamily residential dwelling of 5 units or more, to arrange for recycling services. Existing law also requires jurisdictions to implement a commercial solid waste recycling program meeting specified elements. Existing law defines the term "commercial solid waste" by reference to a specified regulation. This bill would instead define commercial solid waste in statute to include all types of solid waste generated by a store, office, or other commercial or public entity source, including a business or a multifamily dwelling of 5 or more units, thereby imposing a state-mandated local program by imposing new requirements upon local jurisdictions. The bill would define the term "large-quantity commercial organics generator" as a business that generates significant amounts of organic waste, including food waste and green material, that is traditionally disposed of in a solid waste landfill, as determined by the department. The bill would require the department to adopt, by January 1, 2017, regulations to require a large-quantity commercial organics generator to arrange for separate organics collection and recycling services, except as specified. The bill would impose a state-mandated local program by imposing new duties upon local agencies with regard to the commercial solid waste program required to be implemented by local agencies. (4) The act requires the department to adopt regulations setting forth standards for solid waste handling. A violation of the provisions regulating solid waste facilities is a crime. This bill would require a solid waste facility that accepts solid waste from the public or self-haulers to establish a separate collection area for segregated green material and nonhazardous woody material. The bill would prohibit the disposal of this material, but would allow its use for beneficial reuse in the construction and operation of a solid waste landfill, including as alternative daily cover. Since a violation of this requirement would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (5) 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 specified reasons.