Asm. Dante Acosta

This measure would recognize the Lunar New Year Celebration.

This measure would proclaim the month of January 2018 as National Mentoring Month.

This measure would declare the week of January 7 to January 13, 2018, as California Fitness Week and would encourage Californians to enrich their lives through proper nutrition and exercise.

This measure would proclaim January 13, 2018, as Korean American Day.

This measure would honor the late Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and commemorate Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.

This measure would designate the month of January 2018 as Gang Awareness and Prevention Month in the State of California and would encourage cities and constituents across the state to observe the month with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities to prevent future gang activity and honor those who lost their lives due to gang activity.

Existing law generally protects employees who disclose illegal or improper workplace activities by prohibiting interference with, and retaliation for, making such disclosures. Existing law provides procedures for a person to file a complaint alleging violations of legislative ethics. Existing law also authorizes each house of the Legislature to adopt rules for its proceedings and to select committees necessary for the conduct of its business. This bill would impose criminal and civil liability on a Member of the Legislature or legislative employee, as defined, who interferes with, or retaliates against, a legislative employee's exercise of the right to make a protected disclosure, which is defined as a good faith allegation made by a legislative employee to specified entities that a Member of the Legislature or a legislative employee has engaged in, or will engage in, activity that may constitute a violation of law, including sexual harassment, or a violation of a legislative standard of conduct. The bill would also impose civil liability on an entity that interferes with, or retaliates against, a legislative employee's exercise of the right to make a protected disclosure, as specified. By creating new crimes, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. 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. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

The Surface Mining and Reclamation Act of 1975 prohibits a person, with exceptions, from conducting surface mining operations unless, among other things, a permit is obtained from, a specified reclamation plan is submitted to and approved by, and financial assurances for reclamation have been approved by the lead agency for the operation of the surface mining operation. This bill would make technical, nonsubstantive changes to those provisions

Existing law defines the term "state agency" for purposes relating to the state government of California, to include every state office, officer, department, division, bureau, board, and commission, except as otherwise provided. This bill would state the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation regarding federal access to state agency databases.

(1) Existing law, the Horse Racing Law, requires the California Horse Racing Board to provide a method for estimating the aggregate handle for each association's proposed race meeting and provides that estimates may be revised during the course of the meeting. Existing law requires each association, based upon that estimate, to pay its license fee weekly, and requires that purses be reasonably allocated over the period of the association's anticipated race meeting pursuant to a purse program developed by the association in consultation with the horsemen's organization contracting with the association with respect to the conduct of racing meetings subject to approval of the board. Existing law requires an association to pay any license fee theretofore unpaid, or to have refunded to it any excess license fee theretofore paid, within 7 days after the close of a race meeting. This bill would specify that the payment of the license fee or refund of any excess license fee payment shall be made within 7 business days after the close of a race meeting.