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. Existing law exempts from CEQA a rezoning that implements the schedule of actions contained in an approved housing element, as specified, except, among other things, a rezoning that would allow for the construction of a distribution center or for oil and gas infrastructure. This bill would instead exempt a rezoning to the extent that it is necessary to implement a schedule of actions contained in an approved housing element, except, among other things, a rezoning that would allow for the construction of a distribution center, for a tourism facility, as defined, or for oil and gas infrastructure. Existing law, for a proposed housing development project, as defined, that would otherwise be exempt from CEQA pursuant to a statutory exemption or specified categorical exemptions, but for a single condition, limits the application of CEQA to the effects upon the environment that are caused by that single condition, except as provided. This bill, for purposes of those provisions, would modify the definition of housing development project to exclude a project that has any portion of the project designated for use as a tourism facility, as defined. To the extent that this would create new duties for a lead agency, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. Existing law exempts specified projects from CEQA, including a project that consists exclusively of a facility for advanced manufacturing, as defined, if the project is located on a site zoned exclusively for industrial uses. Existing law excludes projects located on natural and protected lands, as defined, from these exemptions, as provided. Existing law includes in the definition of natural and protected lands, lands protected as preserve areas or reserve lands pursuant to an adopted natural community conservation plan or habitat conservation plan, as specified. This bill would instead include, for that portion of the definition of natural and protected lands, lands identified for conservation in an adopted natural community conservation plan, habitat conservation plan, or other adopted natural resource protection plan, as specified. The bill would also expand the definition of natural and protected lands to include habitat for protected species, as specified, fully protected species, or species protected by the federal Endangered Species Act of 1973, the California Endangered Species Act, or the Native Plant Protection Act. The bill would eliminate the exemption from CEQA for advanced manufacturing projects. The bill would instead exempt from CEQA, until January 1, 2030, a project that consists exclusively of a facility for semiconductor manufacturing if the project is located on a site that was zoned exclusively for heavy industrial use on or before August 1, 2025, and meets specified criteria, including, among other things, that the project does not involve the storage, use, or discharge of extremely hazardous gases or chemicals above California's accidental release program reporting thresholds, the project applicant demonstrates high road employment standards and certifies to the lead agency that it will maintain those standards in the development, construction, and operation of the facility, and the project applicant has provided a legally binding commitment to comply with specified labor-related requirements with respect to the initial construction of the facility and subsequent maintenance that is contracted out to a contractor in the construction industry, as specified. Because a lead agency would be required to determine the applicability of this exemption, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would require the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission to develop and make available to lead agencies guidelines for evaluating whether a project applicant demonstrates high road employment standards. The bill would require the Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation, on or before January 1, 2029, to report to the Legislature on projects that were exempted from CEQA pursuant to the above exemption, as provided, and require the report to include a list of the projects for semiconductor manufacturing facilities that have been approved for development in the state, as specified. CEQA requires in an action or proceeding to attack, review, set aside, void, or annul certain acts or decisions of a public agency to be commenced according to a specified process and requires the record of proceedings to contain specified information, including all internal agency communications, except as specified. Existing law provides that for those projects that do not include a distribution center or oil and gas infrastructure, internal agency communication does not include staff notes and electronic internal agency communications, including emails, that were not presented to the final decisionmaking body, other than those communications and documents consulted, or reviewed by the lead agency executive or a local agency executive, as provided, thereby limiting what the record of proceeding is required to contain for these projects. This bill would eliminate the above-described limitation on internal agency communication required to be included in the record of proceedings for those projects that do not include a distribution center or oil and gas infrastructure, thereby requiring additional information to be included in the record of proceeding. By imposing new duties on a lead agency in order to comply with this provision, the bill would create 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.
Sponsored bills
Existing law, the Knox-Keene Health Care Service Plan Act of 1975, provides for the licensure and regulation of health care service plans by the Department of Managed Health Care, and makes a willful violation of the act a crime. Existing law provides for the regulation of health insurers by the Department of Insurance. Existing law sets forth specified prior authorization limitations for health care service plans and health insurers. This bill would prohibit a health care service plan contract or health insurance policy issued, amended, or renewed on or after January 1, 2027, that provides coverage for physical therapy from imposing prior authorization for the initial 12 physical therapy treatment visits for a new condition. The bill would authorize prior authorization for physical therapy for a recurring condition, as specified. The bill would require a physical therapy provider to verify an enrollee's or an insured's coverage and disclose their share of the cost of care, as specified. The bill would require a physical therapy provider to obtain separate written consent for costs that may not be covered by the enrollee's or insured's plan contract or policy, that includes a written estimate of the cost of care for which the enrollee or insured is responsible if coverage is denied or otherwise not applicable. With respect to health care service plans, the bill would specify that its provisions do not apply to Medi-Cal managed care plan contracts. Because a willful violation of this provision by a health care service plan would be a crime, 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.
Existing law establishes the Independent System Operator (ISO) as a nonprofit, public benefit corporation and requires the ISO, among other duties, to ensure the efficient use and reliable operation of the transmission grid consistent with the achievement of planning and operating reserve criteria, as provided. This bill would require the ISO to integrate surplus interconnection service considerations into its long-term transmission planning and enhance transparency around surplus interconnection service opportunities, as specified. Existing law vests the Public Utilities Commission with regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations, while local publicly owned electric utilities are under the direction of their governing boards. Existing law requires the commission to adopt a process for each load-serving entity to file an integrated resource plan, adopt a schedule for periodic updates to the plan, and ensure each load-serving entity take specified actions, as specified. Existing law also requires the governing board of each local publicly owned electric utility with an annual electrical demand exceeding 700 gigawatthours to adopt an integrated resource plan and a process for updating the plan at least once every 5 years to ensure the utility achieves certain goals, as specified. This bill would require each electrical corporation, and each local publicly owned utility with an annual electrical demand exceeding 700 gigawatthours, to require the evaluation of surplus interconnection service options and to consider surplus interconnection service options, for purposes of its integrated resource plan. This bill would also require each electrical corporation or local publicly owned electric utility to use available grid infrastructure through surplus interconnection service to use any available interconnection capacity, as specified. 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 certain provisions of this bill would be part of the act and a violation of a commission action implementing the bill's requirements would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. Additionally, by imposing new duties on local publicly owned electric utilities, 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 specified reasons.
Existing law establishes the Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) and sets forth its powers and duties, including updating and revising the California Statewide Housing Plan, as provided. Existing law establishes the Office of Emergency Services (OES) , which is responsible for the state's emergency and disaster response services for natural, technological, or human-induced disasters and emergencies, including responsibility for activities necessary to prevent, respond to, recover from, and mitigate the effects of emergencies and disasters on people and property. This bill would require HCD to convene a state-led County of Los Angeles disaster housing task force, as specified, for the purpose of coordinating and streamlining efforts between HCD, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, OES, and local governments to rebuild housing in communities impacted by the wildfires that began on January 7, 2025, in the County of Los Angeles. The bill would require the task force to appoint a state disaster housing coordinator to accelerate the delivery of resources to communities impacted by the wildfires, and report to the Legislature on the status of rebuilding housing in communities impacted by the wildfires on April 1, 2026, and annually thereafter, as specified. The bill would repeal these provisions on June 30, 2028. This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the Counties of Los Angeles and Ventura. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Existing law, the California Farmland Conservancy Program Act, establishes within the Department of Conservation the California Farmland Conservancy Program. Existing law authorizes the program to offer financial assistance, including grants or contracts, for projects and activities on agricultural lands, as defined, that support agricultural conservation and sustainable land management. This bill would require the department, in collaboration with the California Agricultural Land Equity Task Force, to establish the Farmland Access and Conservation for Thriving Communities Program in the department to provide financial and technical assistance to support agricultural land acquisition and protection. The bill would require the department, subject to specified requirements, to provide financial assistance under the program to qualified entities for the purpose of acquiring agricultural lands to transfer or provide long-term leases to qualified farmer participants, as specified. The bill would establish the Farmland Access Fund in the State Treasury and would make moneys in the fund available, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to the department for program expenditures. The bill would authorize the department to contract with one or more nonprofit organizations to administer the program. The bill would make the operation of the program contingent upon the Legislature making an appropriation for purposes of the program.
Maddy summaryThis bill establishes January as National Human Trafficking Awareness Month in California to raise public awareness about human trafficking. The resolution recognizes the severity of human trafficking as a felony crime and highlights statistics showing its prevalence across the country and specific challenges with identifying male victims and labor trafficking cases. It aims to educate the public and encourage reporting and support for victims during this designated month.
Existing law provides generally for the regulation of wells, pumping plants, conduits, and streams. Existing law requires the State Fire Marshal to identify areas in the state as moderate, high, and very high fire hazard severity zones based on consistent statewide criteria and based on the severity of fire hazard that is expected to prevail in those areas. This bill would, beginning July 1, 2030, require a water supplier, as defined, to have access to sufficient backup energy sources to operate critical fire suppression infrastructure, as defined, needed to supply water for at least 24 hours for the purpose of fire suppression in high or very high fire hazard severity zones in the County of Ventura, or to have access to alternative sources of water supplied by a different water supplier or agency that can serve this same purpose of supplying backup water to critical wells and water pumps for 24 hours, as provided. The bill would require the water supplier to take various actions, including annually inspecting critical fire suppression infrastructure and backup energy sources and notifying the Ventura County Office of Emergency Services within 3 business days of any reduction in its water delivery capacity that could substantially hinder firefighting operations or significantly delay the replenishment of reservoirs. The bill would require, if any fire damages and makes uninhabitable more than 10 residential dwellings within the service area of a water supplier, a report be made by the Ventura County Fire Department in cooperation with the water supplier, as specified. By levying new requirements on the Ventura County Fire Department, this bill would create a state-mandated local program. This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for County of Ventura. 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 grants to a depicted individual a cause of action against a person who creates and intentionally discloses sexually explicit material if the person knows, or reasonably should have known, that the depicted individual in that material did not consent to its creation or disclosure or who intentionally discloses sexually explicit material that the person did not create if the person knows the depicted individual in that material did not consent to the creation of the sexually explicit material. Existing law defines "sexually explicit material" for purposes of that provision to mean any portion of an audiovisual work that shows the depicted individual performing in the nude or appearing to engage in, or being subjected to, sexual conduct and defines "depicted individual" to mean an individual who appears, as a result of digitization, to be giving a performance the individual did not actually perform or to be performing in an altered depiction. Existing law authorizes a plaintiff to recover, among other relief, statutory damages of not less than $1,500 but not more than $30,000, or $150,000 for a malicious violation, as prescribed. This bill would revise and recast the provision described above to additionally grant to a depicted individual a cause of action against a person who knows, or reasonably should know, that the depicted individual was a minor when the digitized sexually explicit material was created and would additionally grant a cause of action to that depicted individual against a person who knowingly facilitates or recklessly aids or abets conduct prohibited by that provision. The bill would define "digitized sexually explicit material" to mean any portion of a visual or audiovisual work created or substantially altered through digitization, including an image, that shows the depicted individual in the nude or appearing to engage in, or being subjected to, sexual conduct. This bill would make a person that provides a service that enables the ongoing operation of a deepfake pornography service presumed to be engaged in knowing facilitation or reckless aiding or abetting, as described above, if a depicted individual or public prosecutor provides the person with evidence sufficient to demonstrate that the person is providing services that enable the ongoing operation of a deepfake pornography service that engages in conduct described in the provisions described above, and the person fails to take all necessary steps to stop providing services that enable the ongoing operation of a deepfake pornography service within 30 days of receiving that evidence, as specified. This bill would increase the maximum statutory damages available to a depicted individual to $50,000 if the violation was not malicious and $250,000 for a malicious violation and would authorize certain public attorneys to bring a civil action to enforce these provisions, as specified.
Existing law prohibits public funds from being used in connection with any athletic program conducted under the auspices of a school district governing board or any student organization within the district, which does not provide equal opportunity to both sexes for participation and for use of facilities. Existing law prohibits a city, county, city and county, or special district from discriminating against any person on the basis of gender in the operation, conduct, or administration of community youth athletics programs, as defined, or in the allocation of parks and recreation facilities and resources, as defined, that support or enable these programs. Existing law creates an independent right to bring a civil action for a violation of this prohibition for equitable and monetary relief, as specified. This bill would instead prohibit a city, county, city and county, special district, school district, county office of education, or charter school from discriminating against a person on the basis of sex or gender in the operation, conduct, or administration of community youth athletics programs, or in the allocation of parks and recreation facilities and resources or school and recreation facilities and resources that support or enable these programs. The bill would define various terms for these purposes and make related conforming changes. By imposing a new duties on local agencies, 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, 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 authorizes the Public Utilities Commission to fix the rates and charges for public utilities, including electrical corporations and gas corporations, and requires those rates and charges to be just and reasonable. Under existing law, a regulated public utility is prohibited from using ratepayer funds for advocacy-related activities that are political or do not otherwise benefit ratepayers. This bill would prohibit, except as provided, each electrical corporation or gas corporation from recording to accounts that contain expenses that the electrical corporation or gas corporation recovers from ratepayers, or otherwise recovering from ratepayers, various expenses, including those associated with political influence activities or promotional advertising, as specified. The bill would require each electrical corporation or gas corporation to clearly and conspicuously disclose in all of its public messages whether the costs of the public messages are paid for by the corporation's shareholders or ratepayers. The bill would require each electrical corporation or gas corporation, on or before May 31, 2026, and annually thereafter, to report, as part of a specified statement to the commission, certain related information. The bill would require the commission to make the reports publicly available, as provided. This bill would require the commission to assess a civil penalty, based on the severity of the violation, against an electrical corporation or gas corporation that violates the prohibition described above, or that neglects to comply with any part or provision of any order, decision, decree, rule, direction, demand, or requirement of the commission related to implementing that prohibition, as provided. 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 the above provisions would be part of the act and a violation of a commission action implementing this bill's requirements would be a crime, 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.