The California Constitution requires that the water resources of the state be put to beneficial use to the fullest extent of which they are capable and that the waste or unreasonable use or unreasonable method of use of water be prevented. Existing law, the Water Conservation in Landscaping Act, requires the Department of Water Resources to update its model water-efficient landscape ordinance by regulation and prescribes various requirements for the updated model ordinance. Existing law requires each local agency to adopt either the updated model water-efficient landscape ordinance or an ordinance that is at least as effective in conserving water as the updated model ordinance. If the local agency does not make a selection, the model ordinance shall apply within the jurisdiction of the local agency. This bill would require the department, upon identification of a funding source, to create the California Water Efficient Landscaping Program for the purpose of encouraging local agencies and water purveyors to use economic incentives that promote the efficient use of water, promote the benefits of consistent landscape ordinances, and support and enhance water inefficient grass replacement. This bill would create the Water Efficient Landscaping Fund and provide that moneys in the fund are available, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to the department for certain purposes.
Sponsored bills
Existing law authorizes the governing board of a community college district to enter into a College and Career Access Pathways (CCAP) partnership with the governing board of a school district with the goal of developing seamless pathways from high school to community college for career technical education or preparation for transfer, improving high school graduation rates, or helping high school pupils achieve college and career readiness. Existing law requires the partnership agreement to outline the terms of the partnership, as specified, and to establish protocols for information sharing, joint facilities use, and parental consent for high school pupils to enroll in community college courses. These provisions are repealed on January 1, 2022. This bill would establish the California College Promise Grant Program, until January 1, 2022, to be administered by the Superintendent of Public Instruction and the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges, subject to an appropriation in the annual Budget Act for this purpose, to provide planning grants to eligible school districts and community college districts to establish CCAP partnerships. The bill would authorize the Superintendent and the chancellor to establish the grant application process and the criteria for determining the amount of each grant. The bill would set the maximum grant amount under this program at $25,000.
Existing law establishes the Secretary of State as the custodian of the public archives of the State and requires him or her to maintain and properly equip safe and secure vaults for the preservation, indexing, and use of the archives. Existing law authorizes the Secretary of State to receive into the archives any item that he or she deems to be of historical value. This bill would require the Secretary of State to establish an Online Archives Program to be administered by the State Archives for the purpose of providing public access to state records and other records and items of historical and archival value, as specified. The bill would require the program to include, among other things, development, administration, and maintenance of an archival standards-based digital records preservation system for secure intake of, preservation of, indexing of, and public access to, public records.
Existing law establishes the Office of Planning and Research within the office of the Governor and further establishes, within the Office of Planning and Research, the Planning Advisory and Assistance Council. Existing law requires the Office of Planning and Research to, among other duties, assist the council engage in the formulation, evaluation, and updating of long-range goals and policies for land use, population growth and distribution, urban expansion, development, open space, resource preservation and utilization, air and water quality, and other factors that shape statewide development patterns and significantly influence the quality of the state's environment. This bill would establish, within the Office of Planning and Research, the Board of Infrastructure Planning, Development, and Finance, to be composed of the Governor, Treasurer, Controller, Secretary of Transportation, Director of General Services, or their designee, one member appointed by the President pro Tempore of the Senate, and one member appointed by the Speaker of the Assembly. The bill would require the board to categorize and recommend the priority of the state's infrastructure needs and develop funding to finance those projects.
This measure would commend Muslim Americans for their economic, political, and cultural impact on California and the United States. This measure would call upon Members of the United States Congress to respect the First Amendment, and to speak out against and reject efforts to monitor mosques, efforts to police and profile Muslim Americans, and efforts to prohibit Muslims from immigrating to the United States, and to speak out against and reject any efforts to pursue an immigration policy based on religion.
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.
The measure would urge the Members of Congress to work to recognize Mexican American families' needs to visit family members in Mexico and increase commerce between our nations by reducing border delays through a more open border and to speak out against and to reject efforts to build a wall along the United States-Mexico border.