Under existing law, the Public Utilities Commission has regulatory authority over public utilities, including telephone corporations. Existing law establishes, among other funds related to telecommunications, the California Advanced Services Fund (CASF) in the State Treasury. Existing law requires the commission to develop, implement, and administer the CASF to encourage deployment of high-quality advanced communications services to all Californians that will promote economic growth, job creation, and the substantial social benefits of advanced information and communications technologies, as provided in specified decisions of the commission and in the CASF statute. Existing law requires the commission to give priority to projects that provide last-mile broadband access to households that are unserved by an existing facility-based broadband provider. Existing law establishes that the goal of the program is, no later than December 31, 2015, to approve funding for infrastructure projects that will provide broadband access to no less than 98% of California households. Existing law authorizes the commission to collect a surcharge for deposit into the CASF not to exceed $315,000,000 in total and authorizes the surcharge until 2020. Existing law establishes 4 accounts, the Broadband Infrastructure Grant Account, the Rural and Urban Regional Broadband Consortia Grant Account, the Broadband Infrastructure and Revolving Loan Account, and the Broadband Public Housing Account, within the CASF and specifies the amount of moneys to be deposited into each account. This bill would revise the goal of the program to provide that its goal is to approve funding by December 31, 2022, for infrastructure projects that will provide broadband access to no less than 98% of California households in each consortia region, as identified by the commission on or before January 1, 2017. The bill would eliminate the Broadband Infrastructure and Revolving Loan Account and would require the transfer of the remaining unencumbered moneys in that account as of January 1, 2018, and the deposit of moneys collected that would be owed to that account into the Broadband Infrastructure Grant Account. The bill would establish within the CASF the Broadband Adoption Account and would require specified amounts of moneys to be deposited into this new account, the Broadband Infrastructure Grant Account, and the Rural and Urban Regional Broadband Consortia Grant Account. The bill repeals the current authorization to collect up to $315,000,000 for deposit in the CASF at a rate of up to $25,000,000 per year through the 2020 calendar year, and instead would authorize the commission to collect $330,000,000 for deposit into the CASF beginning January 1, 2018, and continuing through the 2022 calendar year. The bill would revise the eligibility requirements for projects and project applicants for grants funded from the Broadband Infrastructure Grant Account. The bill would make moneys from the Rural and Urban Regional Broadband Consortia Grant Account available to facilitate the deployment of broadband infrastructure by assisting infrastructure grant applicants in the project development or grant application process. The bill would require recipients of those moneys to conduct an annual audit and to submit to the commission an annual report regarding activities funded by those moneys. The bill would make available moneys in the Broadband Adoption Account to specified entities for digital literacy training, public education, and outreach programs to increase broadband adoption by consumers. Existing law requires the commission to conduct and report to the Legislature, by April 1, 2021, a final financial audit and a final performance audit of the CASF. This bill would require the commission to conduct and report to the Legislature, by April 1, 2020, an interim financial audit and an interim performance audit. The bill would delay the date for the submission of the final audits to April 1, 2023. Existing law requires the commission to annually report specified information relative to the CASF to the Legislature. Existing law repeals these reporting requirements on January 1, 2022. This bill would revise the information specified for inclusion in the report. The bill would repeal these reporting requirements on January 1, 2024. The bill would require the commission to identify unserved areas and delineate the areas in the annual reports. The bill would require the commission to consult regional consortia, stakeholders, and consumers regarding priority areas and cost-effective strategies to achieve the broadband access goal through public workshops conducted at least annually no later than April 30 of each year. 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 a violation of an order or decision of the commission implementing the bill's requirements would be a crime, this 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. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Sponsored bills
Under existing law, programs have been established pursuant to bond acts for, among other things, the development and enhancement of state and local parks and recreational facilities. Existing law, the Water Quality, Supply, and Infrastructure Improvement Act of 2014, approved by the voters as Proposition 1 at the November 4, 2014, statewide general election, authorizes the issuance of general obligation bonds in the amount of $7,545,000,000 to finance a water quality, supply, and infrastructure improvement program. Existing law, the Safe Drinking Water, Water Quality and Supply, Flood Control, River and Coastal Protection Bond Act of 2006, an initiative measure approved by the voters as Proposition 84 at the November 7, 2006, statewide general election, authorizes the issuance of bonds in the amount of $5,388,000,000 for the purposes of financing safe drinking water, water quality and supply, flood control, natural resource protection, and park improvements. Existing law, the California Clean Water, Clean Air, Safe Neighborhood Parks, and Coastal Protection Act of 2002, approved by the voters as Proposition 40 at the March 5, 2002, statewide primary election, authorizes the issuance of bonds in the amount of $2,600,000,000, for the purpose of financing a program for the acquisition, development, restoration, protection, rehabilitation, stabilization, reconstruction, preservation, and interpretation of park, coastal, agricultural land, air, and historical resources. This bill would enact the California Drought, Water, Parks, Climate, Coastal Protection, and Outdoor Access For All Act of 2018, which, if approved by the voters, would authorize the issuance of bonds in an amount of $4,000,000,000 pursuant to the State General Obligation Bond Law to finance a drought, water, parks, climate, coastal protection, and outdoor access for all program. The bill, upon voter approval, would reallocate $100,000,000 of the unissued bonds authorized for the purposes of Propositions 1, 40, and 84 to finance the purposes of a drought, water, parks, climate, coastal protection, and outdoor access for all program. The bill would provide for the submission of these provisions to the voters at the June 5, 2018, statewide primary direct election. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Existing law, the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) , prohibits an employer from engaging in various defined forms of discriminatory employment practices. Existing law prohibits an employer, whether a public agency or private individual or corporation, from asking an applicant for employment to disclose, or from utilizing as a factor in determining any condition of employment, information concerning an arrest or detention that did not result in a conviction, or information concerning a referral or participation in, any pretrial or posttrial diversion program, except as specified. Existing law also prohibits a state or local agency from asking an applicant for employment to disclose information regarding a criminal conviction, except as specified, until the agency has determined the applicant meets the minimum employment qualifications for the position. This bill would repeal the prohibition on a state or local agency from asking an applicant for employment to disclose information regarding a criminal conviction, as described above. The bill would, instead, provide it is an unlawful employment practice under FEHA for an employer with 5 or more employees to include on any application for employment any question that seeks the disclosure of an applicant's conviction history, to inquire into or consider the conviction history of an applicant until that applicant has received a conditional offer, and, when conducting a conviction history background check, to consider, distribute, or disseminate information related to specified prior arrests, diversions, and convictions. This bill would also require an employer who intends to deny an applicant a position of employment solely or in part because of the applicant's conviction history to make an individualized assessment of whether the applicant's conviction history has a direct and adverse relationship with the specific duties of the job, and to consider certain topics when making that assessment. The bill would require an employer who makes a preliminary decision to deny employment based on that individualized assessment to provide the applicant written notification of the decision. The bill would require the notification to contain specified information. The bill would grant an applicant 5 business days to respond to that notification before the employer may make a final decision. If the applicant notifies the employer in writing that he or she disputes the accuracy of the conviction history and is obtaining evidence to support that assertion, the bill would grant the applicant an additional 5 business days to respond to the notice. The bill would require an employer to consider information submitted by the applicant before making a final decision. The bill would require an employer who has made a final decision to deny employment to the applicant to notify the applicant in writing of specified topics. The bill would exempt specified positions of employment from the provisions of the bill.
Existing law creates the California Transportation Commission, with various powers and duties relative to the programming of transportation capital projects and allocation of funds to those projects pursuant to the state transportation improvement program and various other transportation funding programs. Under existing law, the commission consists of 13 members, 9 of whom are to be appointed by the Governor in consultation with the Senate. Existing law requires the Governor, in appointing members, to use every effort to ensure geographic balance of representation. This bill would additionally require the Governor, in appointing members, to use every effort to ensure that the commission has a diverse membership with expertise in transportation issues, taking into consideration factors including, but not limited to, socioeconomic background and professional experience, which may include experience working in, or representing, disadvantaged communities. This bill would require the commission and the State Air Resources Board to hold at least 2 joint meetings per calendar year to coordinate their implementation of transportation policies.
(1) Existing law establishes the California State University and the California Community Colleges as 2 of the segments of public postsecondary education in this state. Existing law also establishes the Higher Education Outreach and Assistance Act for Emancipated Foster Youth. The act imposes various requirements on the Trustees of the California State University and the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges relating to outreach and retention services for foster youth in order to encourage their enrollment and retention at a campus of either segment. More specifically, the act requires the State Department of Social Services and county welfare departments, in coordination with the California State University and the California Community Colleges, to communicate with foster youth at 2 grade levels designated jointly by the 2 segments in order to facilitate the outreach and technical assistance efforts for those prospective students. This bill would change the name of the act to the Higher Education Outreach and Assistance Act for Foster Youth. The bill would also require the State Department of Social Services and county welfare departments, in coordination with the California State University and the California Community Colleges, to coordinate with staff of several designated entities, as appropriate, to verify eligibility of foster youth for participation in programs and other benefits. The bill would require each campus of the California Community Colleges, upon admission of a foster youth, and each campus of the California State University, upon determination, through receipt of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid or through another means, that a student enrolled at, or applying to, that campus is a current or former foster youth and is eligible for financial aid, to notify that student about appropriate campus support programs, as specified, notify that student of his or her eligibility for financial aid, and provide that student with instructions for accessing the benefits for which he or she has qualified. The bill would specify that notification of students pursuant to this provision may be accomplished by methods including, but not necessarily limited to, inclusion of information in the letters of acceptance sent to foster youth who have been admitted to those campuses. To the extent that this bill would impose new duties on community college districts and county welfare departments, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (2) 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, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.
Existing law establishes a workers' compensation system, administered by the Administrative Director of the Division of Workers' Compensation, to compensate an employee for injuries sustained in the course of his or her employment. Under existing law, an employer must provide reasonably required treatments, including, but not limited to, medical and surgical treatment, to cure or relieve an employee's injuries sustained in the course of his or her employment. This bill would require employers to provide immediate support from a nurse case manager to employees injured in the course of employment by an act of domestic terrorism, as defined, would require employer-appointed nurse case managers to assist claimants to obtain medically necessary medical treatments, as specified, and would require an employer to provide a prescribed notice to claimants, as specified. The bill would make its provisions applicable only if the Governor declares a state of emergency, as defined, in connection with the act of domestic terrorism. This bill would make related legislative findings and declarations.
Existing law, the Los Angeles County Flood Control Act, establishes the Los Angeles County Flood Control District and authorizes the district to control and conserve the flood, storm, and other wastewater of the district. Existing law authorizes the district to impose a fee or charge, in compliance with Article XIIID of the California Constitution, to pay the costs and expenses of carrying out projects and providing services to improve water quality and reduce stormwater and urban runoff pollution in the district in accordance with specified criteria. The act requires that any fees imposed be levied and collected together with taxes for county purposes, and the revenues paid into the county treasury to the credit of the district, and requires the county board of supervisors to expend the funds to pay for those costs and expenses, to be allocated as prescribed. This bill would authorize the district to levy a tax, in compliance with the applicable provisions of Article XIIIC of the California Constitution, or impose a fee or charge, in compliance with the applicable provisions of Article XIIID of the California Constitution, to pay the costs and expenses of carrying out projects and programs to increase stormwater capture and reduce stormwater and urban runoff pollution in the district, and would specify that projects funded by the revenues from the tax, fee, or charge may include projects providing multiple benefits that increase water supply, improve water quality, and, where appropriate, provide community enhancements, as prescribed. The bill would revise certain provisions prescribing the allocation of those revenues derived from any tax, fee, or charge imposed pursuant to the above-described provisions for those water projects and programs.
Under existing law, the Lanterman Developmental Disabilities Services Act, the State Department of Developmental Services is authorized to contract with regional centers to provide services and supports to individuals with developmental disabilities. Existing law requires a regional center to include specified information on its Internet Web site for the purpose of promoting transparency and access to public information, including, among other things, reports on all prior fiscal year expenditures from the regional center operations budget for all administrative services. This bill would require the State Department of Developmental Services to establish and maintain a page on its Internet Web site that includes a list of services purchased or provided to consumers by regional centers and descriptions of those services. The bill would require a regional center to also include on its Internet Web site a link to that page on the department's Internet Web site. Existing law states the right of individuals with developmental disabilities to make choices in their own lives, and requires public or private agencies that receive state funds to serve persons with developmental disabilities to respect the choices made by consumers and provide consumers with understandable information to aid in their choices. Existing law also grants these rights to consumers' parents, legal guardians, or conservators. This bill would extend the right to make choices and have those choices respected to consumers' authorized representatives. The bill would require regional centers to provide information to a consumer or his or her parents, legal guardian, conservator, or authorized representative in a manner that is culturally and linguistically appropriate, as specified.
This measure would recognize September 11, 2017, as a day of solemn commemoration and extend the Legislature's deepest sympathies to the victims of the September 11, 2001 attacks.
This measure would urge the Congress of the United States to not enact S. 446, H.R. 38, or any other similar "concealed carry reciprocity" legislation that would require the State of California to recognize the concealed carry standards of every other state.