Asm. Mike Feuer

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. Under existing law, no change in premium rates or coverage in a health care service plan or a health insurance policy may become effective without prior written notification of the change to the contractholder or policyholder. Existing law prohibits a health care service plan or health insurer during the term of a group plan contract or policy from changing the rate of the premium, copayment, coinsurance, or deductible during specified time periods. Existing law requires a health care service plan or health insurer that issues individual or group contracts or policies to file with the Department of Managed Health Care or the Department of Insurance specified rate information at least 60 days prior to the effective date of any rate change. This bill would further require a health care service plan or health insurer that issues individual or group contracts or policies to file with the Department of Managed Health Care or the Department of Insurance, on and after January 1, 2012, a complete rate application for any proposed rate, as defined, or rate change, and would prohibit the Department of Managed Health Care or the Department of Insurance from approving any rate or rate change that is found to be excessive, inadequate, or unfairly discriminatory. The bill would require the rate application to include certain rate information. The bill would authorize the Department of Managed Health Care or the Department of Insurance to approve, deny, or modify any proposed rate or rate change, and would authorize the Department of Managed Health Care and the Department of Insurance to review any rate or rate change that went into effect between January 1, 2011, and January 1, 2012, and to order refunds, subject to these provisions. The bill would authorize the imposition of fees on health care service plans and health insurers for purposes of implementation, for deposit into newly created funds, subject to appropriation. The bill would impose civil penalties on a health care service plan or health insurer, and subject a health care service plan to discipline, for a violation of these provisions, as specified. The bill would establish proceedings for the review of any action taken under those provisions related to rate applications and would require the Department of Managed Health Care and the Department of Insurance, and plans and insurers, to disclose specified information on the Internet pertaining to rate applications and those proceedings. The bill would require the Department of Managed Health Care or the Department of Insurance, or the court, to award reasonable advocate's fees, including expert witness fees, and other reasonable costs in those proceedings under specified circumstances, to be paid by the plan or insurer. Because a willful violation of these provisions 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, the Cortese-Knox-Hertzberg Local Government Reorganization Act of 2000, sets forth the procedures for incorporations and changes of organizations of cities, including procedures for disincorporation. This bill would provide that every city with a population of less than 150 people as of January 1, 2010, would be disincorporated into that city's respective county as of 91 days after the effective date of the bill, unless a county board of supervisors determines, by majority vote within the 90-day period following enactment of these provisions, that continuing such a city within that county's boundaries would serve a public purpose if the board of supervisors determines that the city is in an isolated rural location that makes it impractical for the residents of the community to organize in another form of local governance. The bill would also require the local agency formation commission within the county to oversee the terms and conditions of the disincorporation of the city, as specified. The bill would become operative only if AB 781 of the 2011–12 Regular Session is enacted.

Existing law continuously appropriates the amounts specified in the annual Budget Act as having been deposited in the State Highway Account from federal transportation funds, and pledged by the California Transportation Commission, to the Treasurer for the purposes of issuing federal highway grant anticipation notes, commonly known as GARVEE bonds, to fund transportation projects selected by the commission. Existing law defines an "eligible project" for these purposes as the federally funded portion of a highway or other transportation project that has been designated for accelerated construction by the commission, and increases the capacity, reduces the travel time, or provides long-life rehabilitation of the key bridges and roadways of a corridor or gateway for interregional travel and movement of goods. Existing law prohibits the Treasurer from authorizing the issuance of the notes if the annual repayment obligations of all outstanding notes in any fiscal year would exceed 15% of the total amount of federal transportation funds deposited in the account for any consecutive 12-month period within the preceding 24 months. This bill would provide that an "eligible project" may include projects programmed by a regional transportation planning agency using its share of apportionments of federal regional surface transportation program funds or congestion mitigation and air quality funds, as specified. The bill would authorize no more than 50% of bonding capacity of GARVEE bonds from being made available for these projects and would require the commission to require a regional transportation planning agency to commit to repaying the state for debt service if that agency's share of federal regional surface transportation program funds or federal congestion mitigation and air quality funds is insufficient to repay the GARVEE bonds or if a portion of the project costs is ineligible for federal funding. The bill would, for such a repayment by a regional transportation planning agency, authorize the commission to amend into the State Transportation Improvement Program some or all of the funds necessary for the repayment to be counted against the county share of State Transportation Improvement Program funds for the county in which the project is located. By expanding the types of projects for which GARVEE bonds may be used, the bill would make an appropriation.

This measure would proclaim May 2011 as Buy California Small Business First Month.

This measure would proclaim July 27, 2011, as Korean War Veterans Armistice Day. It would urge Californians to remember the Korean War and those who fought against communism. It would also urge Governor Jerry Brown to proclaim July 27, 2011, as Korean War Armistice Day and instruct all state departments, agencies, interested groups, organizations, and individuals to fly the United States flag at half-mast on July 27, 2011, in memory of the veterans who died as a result of their service in Korea.

This measure would memorialize the Legislature's support for the school-based health center program authorized by the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, an appropriation by the United States Congress to fund this program, policies that include school-based health centers as a partner in creating a medical home for all children, and the inclusion of school-based health centers in the reauthorization of the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act.

This measure would urge the President and the Congress of the United States to enact federal legislation to modernize the federal Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976 by strengthening chemical management through specified policy reforms.

This measure would memorialize the Legislature's support of the proposed federal Large Capacity Ammunition Feeding Device Act.