(1) Under existing law, every air pollution control district or air quality management district governing board, except as specified, is required to establish by regulation a system by which all reductions in the emission of air contaminants that are to be used to offset certain future increases in the emission of air contaminants are required to be banked prior to use to offset future increases in emissions, as provided. The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of, an environmental impact report (EIR) on a project that it proposes to carry out or approve that may have a significant effect on the environment or to adopt a negative declaration if it finds that the project will not have that effect. CEQA also requires a lead agency to prepare a mitigated negative declaration for a project that may have a significant effect on the environment if revisions in the project would avoid or mitigate that effect and there is no substantial evidence that the project, as revised, would have a significant effect on the environment. CEQA exempts certain specified projects from its requirements. This bill would require the executive officer of the South Coast Air Quality Management District, upon making a specified finding, to transfer emission reduction credits for certain pollutants from the south coast district's internal emission credit accounts to eligible electrical generating facilities, as described. By imposing these duties on the South Coast Air Quality Management District, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would exempt from CEQA certain actions of the district undertaken pursuant to the bill. These provisions would be repealed on January 1, 2012. The bill would require the State Air Resources Board, in consultation with specified agencies, to prepare and submit to the Governor and the Legislature a report that evaluates the electrical system reliability needs of the South Coast Air Basin and recommends the most effective and efficient means of meeting those needs while ensuring compliance with state and federal law. (2) This bill would state the findings and declarations of the Legislature concerning the need for special legislation. (3) 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.
Sponsored bills
Existing law prohibits designated officers and employees of the Board of Administration of the Public Employees' Retirement System (PERS) and the Teachers' Retirement Board of the State Teachers' Retirement System (STRS) , who served in those positions for less than 5 years, from taking any specified action on behalf of any person, other than the state, to influence certain actions by the retirement boards or systems within 2 years after leaving that position. The County Employees Retirement Law of 1937 prohibits a member or employee of a retirement board from becoming an endorser, surety, or obligor on, or from having any personal interest in the making of an investment for the board, or in the gains or profits that accrue from those investments, except as specified. That law also prohibits a member or employee of a retirement board or board of investments from selling or providing any investment product that would be considered an asset of the retirement fund to a retirement system established under that law. This bill would include a member of the board, a deputy executive officer, and an assistant executive officer among those positions subject to the 2-year postemployment restriction, and would delete the qualification that the person have served in that position for less than 5 years. The bill also would make that postemployment restriction applicable to designated officers and employees, board members, and administrators of county retirement systems and specified employees of other public pension and retirement systems. This bill would require the retirement boards of each public pension or retirement system to develop and implement, on or before June 30, 2010, a policy requiring the disclosure of payments to placement agents, as defined, in connection with system investments in or through external managers, as defined. The bill would prohibit an external manager or placement agent that violates that policy from soliciting new investments from the system for 5 years after the violation was committed, but would provide for the reduction of that prohibition as specified. The bill also would prohibit the system from entering into any agreement with an external manager that does not agree in writing to comply with the policy. The bill would require a placement agent, prior to acting as a placement agent in connection with any potential system investment, to disclose to the board all campaign contributions made by the placement agent to any elected member of the board, and all gifts given to any member of the board, during the prior 24-month period, and to disclose any subsequent campaign contribution made by the placement agent to an elected member of the board, or a subsequent gift given to any member of the board, during the time the placement agent is receiving compensation in connection with a system investment. The bill would prohibit a member or employee of the board from, directly or indirectly, by himself or herself, or as an agent, partner, or employee of a person or entity other than the board, selling or providing any investment product that would be considered an asset of the fund to any public retirement system in California. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Existing law authorizes the Commission on Teacher Credentialing, among other things, to establish professional standards, assessments, and examinations for entry and advancement in the education process. The commission is authorized to issue an eminence credential to any person who has achieved eminence in a field of endeavor taught, or service practiced, in the public schools of California. This bill would require the commission, upon recommendation by a tribal government of a federally recognized Indian tribe in California, to issue an American Indian languages credential to a candidate who has demonstrated fluency in that tribal language, and met other requirements. The bill would authorize the holder of an American Indian languages credential to teach the American Indian language for which the credential was issued in California public schools in preschool, kindergarten, grades 1 to 12, inclusive, and in adult education courses, and would make the holder of that credential eligible for a professional clear teaching credential upon completion of a specified period of time and application and consultation as specified. The bill would encourage each federally recognized American Indian tribe to develop a written and oral assessment that should be successfully completed before an applicant is recommended for an American Indian languages credential.
Existing law authorizes the Director of General Services to acquire and dispose of state real property under specified conditions. This bill would authorize the department to dispose of 3 specified parcels of real property pursuant to certain provisions.
Existing law authorizes the legislative body of any city, defined as a city, county, or city and county, to determine that it would be convenient and advantageous to designate an area within which authorized city officials and free and willing property owners may enter into contractual assessments and make arrangements to finance public improvements to specified lots or parcels or to finance the installation of distributed generation renewable energy sources or energy efficiency improvements that are permanently fixed to real property, as specified. Existing law requires the legislative body to make these determinations by adopting a resolution indicating its intention to do so and requires the resolution to include certain specified information. This bill would expand these provisions to authorize the legislative body of any public agency, as defined, to determine that it would be in the public interest to designate an area within which authorized city officials and free and willing property owners may enter into contractual assessments to finance the installation of water efficiency improvements that are permanently fixed to real property, as specified. The bill would also, with respect to all of its provisions, modify its definitions and require a legislative body to perform additional record keeping duties and provide specified notice to any entity that provides energy or water within the boundaries of the area within which contractual assessments may be entered into. This bill would also require additional specified disclosures for a transfer of real property subject to a contractual assessment. The bill would declare the intent of the Legislature in regard to these provisions. This bill would make technical, nonsubstantive changes to these provisions.
Existing law, the Contractors' State License Law, provides for the licensure and regulation of contractors by the Contractors' State License Board. Existing law makes it a misdemeanor for a person to engage in the business or act in the capacity of a contractor without having a license and makes a first offense punishable by imprisonment in the county jail for no more than 6 months, or by a fine not exceeding $1,000, or both. Existing law requires a court to impose upon a person who has been previously convicted of that offense a fine of 20% of the price of the contract, as specified, or $4,500, whichever is greater, and imprisonment in the county jail for at least 90 days, except as specified. Existing law specifies that a 3rd or subsequent conviction is punishable by a fine of not less than $4,500 nor more than the greater of $10,000 or 20% of the contract price or by imprisonment in the county jail, as specified, or both, and applies those penalty provisions to a person who is named on a revoked license and is held responsible for the act or omission resulting in the revocation. Existing law requires a court to order a defendant convicted of a crime under those provisions, or under provisions related to the offering or performance of repairs caused by a natural disaster, to pay restitution to the victim, as specified. This bill would make a first conviction punishable by a fine not exceeding $5,000 or by imprisonment in a county jail for no more than 6 months, as specified, or both. The bill would require that the fine for a 2nd conviction be the greater of 20% of the contract price, 20% of the aggregate payments made to, or at the direction of, the unlicensed contractor, or $5,000. In addition, the bill would require that a 3rd or subsequent conviction be punishable by both a fine and imprisonment in a county jail, as specified, and would require that the fine be no less than $5,000 and no more than the greater of $10,000, 20% of the contract price, or 20% of the aggregate payments made to, or at the direction of, the unlicensed contractor. By requiring 3rd or subsequent convictions to be punishable by imprisonment in a county jail, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. Under the provisions described above, the bill would also provide that a person who used the services of an unlicensed contractor is a victim of crime and eligible for restitution for economic losses, regardless of whether that person had knowledge that the contractor was unlicensed. 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 measure would recognize the pioneering work of promotores and community health workers in delivering vital and cost-effective health care services in communities throughout California and declare October 2009 as California Promotores Month.
This measure would make various statements regarding the importance of New United Motor Manufacturing, Inc. (NUMMI) to the California economy and would declare the necessity for the Legislature to utilize its vested powers to keep NUMMI in California.
This measure would proclaim October 23 to October 31, 2009, inclusive, as Red Ribbon Week, and would encourage all Californians to help build drug-free communities and participate in drug prevention activities.
This measure would recognize the importance of California Native American Day, celebrated this year on September 25, 2009, and the concurrent California Indian Cultural Awareness Conference to the enhancement of awareness of California Indian culture.