Existing law requires each campaign committee formed or existing primarily to support or oppose a statewide ballot measure to file with the Secretary of State periodic reports identifying the sources and amounts of contributions received during specified periods. Existing law, including the Political Reform Act of 1974, also specifies information required to be included in the state ballot pamphlet for each statewide ballot measure to be voted upon. This bill would require the Secretary of State to create an Internet Web site, or use other available technology, to consolidate information about each ballot measure in a manner that is easy for voters to access and understand. The Internet Web site would be required to include a summary of each ballot measure, the total amount of reported contributions made to support or oppose a ballot measure, and a list of a committee's top 10 contributors, as specified. The bill would require the state ballot pamphlet to include for each ballot measure a printed statement that refers voters to the Secretary of State's Internet Web site for a list of committees primarily formed to support or oppose a ballot measure, and information on how to access the committee's top 10 contributors. This bill would incorporate additional changes in Section 9082.7 of the Elections Code proposed by SB 1253, that would become operative only if SB 1253 and this bill are both chaptered and become effective on or before January 1, 2015, and this bill is chaptered last. The bill would, contingent upon the enactment of SB 1442, incorporate additional changes. The Political Reform Act of 1974, an initiative measure, generally provides that the Legislature may amend the act to further the act's purposes upon a 23 vote of each house and compliance with specified procedural requirements. The act also provides that, notwithstanding this requirement, the Legislature may add to the ballot pamphlet information regarding candidates or other information. This bill, which would permit or require additional information to be included in the ballot pamphlet, would therefore require a majority vote.
Sponsored bills
Existing law authorizes use of the Emergency Alert System to inform the public of local, state, and national emergencies. Existing law requires a law enforcement agency to activate the Emergency Alert System within the appropriate area if that agency determines that a child 17 years of age or younger, or an individual with a proven mental or physical disability, has been abducted and is in imminent danger of serious bodily injury or death, and there is information available that, if disseminated to the general public, could assist in the safe recovery of that person. Existing law also authorizes the issuance and coordination of a Blue Alert following an attack upon a law enforcement officer or a Silver Alert relating to a person who is 65 years of age or older who is reported missing. This bill would authorize a law enforcement agency to issue a Yellow Alert if a person has been killed or has suffered serious bodily injury due to a hit-and-run incident and the law enforcement agency has specified information concerning the suspect or the suspect's vehicle. The bill would require the California Highway Patrol to activate a Yellow Alert within the requested geographic area upon request if it concurs with the law enforcement agency that specified requirements are met.
The Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Act requires a mandated reporter, which includes a teacher or one of certain other types of school employees, to report whenever he or she, in his or her professional capacity or within the scope of his or her employment, has knowledge of or has observed a child whom the mandated reporter knows or reasonably suspects has been the victim of child abuse or neglect. Existing law requires the State Department of Education to develop staff development seminars and any other appropriate means of instructing school personnel in the detection of child abuse and neglect and the proper action that school personnel should take in suspected cases of child abuse and neglect. Existing law requires school districts that do not train their employees in the duties of mandated reporters under the child abuse reporting laws to report to the State Department of Education the reasons why this training is not provided. This bill would require the State Department of Education, in consultation with the Office of Child Abuse Prevention in the State Department of Social Services, to develop and disseminate information to all school districts, county offices of education, state special schools and diagnostic centers operated by the State Department of Education, and charter schools, and their school personnel in California, regarding the detection and reporting of child abuse, to provide statewide guidance on the responsibilities of mandated reporters, and to develop appropriate means of instructing school personnel in the detection of child abuse and neglect and the proper action that school personnel should take in suspected cases of child abuse and neglect, including, but not limited to, an online training module to be provided by the State Department of Social Services. The bill would require school districts, county offices of education, state special schools and diagnostic centers operated by the State Department of Education, and charter schools to do both of the following: (1) annually train, using the online training module provided by the State Department of Social Services, or other training, as specified, employees and persons working on their behalf who are mandated reporters on the mandated reporting requirements, as specified; and (2) develop a process for all persons required to receive training under the bill to provide proof of completing this training within the first 6 weeks of each school year or within 6 weeks of that person's employment. By imposing these additional duties on local educational agencies, this 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 these statutory provisions.
Existing law authorizes the Department of General Services to carry out various powers and duties relating to assisting a state agency in the management and development of intellectual property developed by state employees or with state funding, including, among other duties, developing a database of state-owned intellectual property using specified data. Existing law authorizes state agencies and departments to, upon request, share records and information related to intellectual property generated by state employees or with state funding with the department. Existing law also imposes certain restrictions on employees and former employees of the department with respect to divulging certain information provided by state agencies and departments regarding intellectual property. Existing law requires the State Department of Public Health to issue research grants for various purposes, including cancer research, vaccines, and spinal cord injuries. This bill would enact, until January 1, 2020, the California Taxpayer Access to Publicly Funded Research Act. The bill would establish publication requirements for a grantee receiving funding, in whole or in part, in the form of a research grant from the State Department of Public Health. The bill would require the department to include specified terms and conditions in a research grant that are required to be adhered to as a condition of the grantee receiving the research grant. The bill would require the grantee to provide for public access to any publication of a department-funded invention or department-funded technology, as specified, including ensuring that electronic version of the peer-reviewed manuscript is available to the department on an appropriate publicly accessible database approved by the department, to be made publicly available not later than 12 months after the official date of publication. The bill would provide that this act does not apply to a grantee that receives funding from the department if there is an existing publication requirement that meets or exceeds the requirements of this bill and that the provisions do not apply to research grants issued prior to January 1, 2015.
The California Constitution requires the reasonable and beneficial use of water. This bill would establish the CalConserve Water Use Efficiency Revolving Fund and provide that the moneys in the fund are available to the Department of Water Resources, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for the purpose of water use efficiency projects. This bill would require moneys in the fund to be used for purposes that include, but are not limited to, at or below market interest rate loans to local agencies, as defined, and would permit the department to enter into agreements with local agencies that provide water or recycled water service to provide loans. Existing law, the Costa-Machado Water Act of 2000, a bond act approved by the voters as Proposition 13 at the March 7, 2000, statewide primary election, authorizes the issuance of general obligation bonds in the amount of $1,970,000,000 for grants, loans, and direct expenditures for the purposes of financing a safe drinking water, clean water, watershed protection, and flood protection program. This bill would transfer to the CalConserve Water Use Efficiency Revolving Fund from the bond act specified bond proceeds issued and available for agricultural water projects. This bill would require the department to use these moneys for loans and grants to local agencies to acquire and construct agricultural water conservation projects consistent with provisions of the bond act.
Existing law requires school districts to establish, maintain, and destroy pupil records according to regulations adopted by the State Board of Education. This bill would, notwithstanding that provision, require a school district, county office of education, or charter school that considers a program to gather or maintain in its records any information obtained from social media, as defined, of any pupil enrolled in the school district, county office of education, or charter school to first notify pupils and their parents or guardians about the proposed program, and to provide an opportunity for public comment at a regularly scheduled public meeting before the adoption of the program. The bill would require a school district, county office of education, or charter school that adopts a program pursuant to these provisions to, among other things, gather and maintain only information that pertains directly to school safety or to pupil safety, provide a pupil with access to any information about the pupil obtained from social media, and destroy the information gathered from social media and maintained in its records, as provided. If a school district, county office of education, or charter school contracts with a 3rd party to gather information from social media on an enrolled pupil, the bill would prohibit the 3rd party from using the information for purposes other than to satisfy the terms of the contract, prohibit the 3rd party from selling or sharing the information with any person or entity, except as provided, and would provide additional restrictions on the destruction of the information by the 3rd party, as specified.
Existing law requires the governing board of each community college district, the Trustees of the California State University, the Board of Directors of the Hastings College of the Law, the Regents of the University of California, and the governing boards of postsecondary educational institutions receiving public funds for student financial assistance to require the appropriate officials at each campus to compile records of specified crimes and noncriminal acts reported to campus police, campus security personnel, campus safety authorities, or designated campus authorities. This provision does not apply to the governing boards of private postsecondary educational institutions with fewer than 1,000 students, or to campuses of public postsecondary educational systems with 1,000 or fewer students. This provision also does not apply to the California Community Colleges unless and until the Legislature makes funds available to the California Community Colleges for purposes of this provision. Existing law, the Ortiz-Pacheco-Poochigian-Vasconcellos Cal Grant Program (Cal Grant Program) , establishes the Cal Grant A and B Entitlement Awards, the California Community College Transfer Cal Grant Entitlement Awards, the Competitive Cal Grant A and B Awards, the Cal Grant C Awards, and the Cal Grant T Awards under the administration of the Student Aid Commission, and establishes eligibility requirements for awards under these programs for participating students attending qualifying institutions. This bill would, as a condition for participation in the Cal Grant Program, require any report by a victim of a Part 1 violent crime, sexual assault, or hate crime, as defined, received by a campus security authority and made by the victim for purposes of notifying the institution or law enforcement, to be immediately, or as soon as practicably possible, disclosed to the appropriate local law enforcement agency without identifying the victim, unless the victim consents to being identified after the victim has been informed of his or her right to have his or her personally identifying information withheld. The bill would prohibit a report to a local law enforcement agency from identifying the alleged assailant if the victim does not consent to being identified. The bill would provide that these requirements do not constitute a waiver of, or exception to, any law providing for the confidentiality of information. This bill would, as a condition for participation in the Cal Grant Program, provide that the governing board of each community college district, the Trustees of the California State University, the Regents of the University of California, and the governing board of each private and independent postsecondary institution shall, on or before July 1, 2015, adopt and implement written policies and procedures to ensure that any report of a Part 1 violent crime, sexual assault, or hate crime, committed on or off campus, as defined, received by a campus security authority, as defined, and made by the victim for purposes of notifying the institution or law enforcement, is immediately, or as soon as practicably possible, forwarded to the appropriate law enforcement agency, as provided. The bill would require that the report be forwarded to the appropriate law enforcement agency without identifying the victim, unless the victim consents to being identified after the victim has been informed of his or her right to have his or her personally identifying information withheld. The bill would provide that these requirements do not constitute a waiver of, or exception to, any law providing for the confidentiality of information. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Existing law requires the State Water Resources Control Board to establish uniform statewide recycling criteria for each varying type of use of recycled water where the use involves the protection of public health. This bill would require, by December 31, 2016, the state board, in consultation with impacted state agencies, to determine whether the use of disinfected tertiary treated recycled water for the purpose of providing water to animals, as defined, would not pose a significant risk to public and animal health. This bill would require the state board to establish uniform statewide recycling criteria for the use of recycled water for the purpose of providing water to animals if the state board determines that the use of disinfected tertiary treated recycled water for this purpose would pose a significant risk to public or animal health. The bill would authorize the state board to approve the use of disinfected tertiary treated recycled water for this purpose if the state board determines that its use would not pose a significant risk to public or animal health but would prohibit the use of disinfected tertiary treated recycled water in the water supply for dairy animals that are currently producing dairy products for human consumption.
Existing law requires that an initiative petition contain specified language advising the public of its right to determine whether the person circulating the petition is a paid signature gatherer or a volunteer. This bill would require a state or local initiative, referendum, or recall petition circulated by a paid circulator, as defined, who is paid by a committee to include a disclosure statement identifying the persons from whom the committee received the 5 largest cumulative contributions of $10,000 or more in support of the measure and the name of their employer, if 2 or more of these contributors have the same employer. The bill would require this disclosure statement to be updated within 7 days of any change in the 5 largest cumulative contributors. The bill would require a committee that employs one or more paid circulators for the purpose of circulating an initiative, referendum, or recall petition to submit the disclosure statement, and any updates to it, to the Secretary of State for posting on his or her Internet Web site.
(1) Under existing law, the text of a proposed initiative measure is required to be submitted to the Attorney General for preparation of a circulating title and summary before the petition may be circulated for signatures. Existing law requires the Department of Finance and the Joint Legislative Budget Committee to jointly develop an estimate of the fiscal impact of the initiative measure and to deliver that fiscal estimate to the Attorney General within 25 working days, except as specified, for inclusion in the circulating title and summary. Existing law further requires the Secretary of State, upon request of the proponents of an initiative measure, to review the provisions of the initiative measure and to comment on the provisions of the measure with respect to form and language clarity. This bill would require the Attorney General, upon receipt of a request to prepare the circulating title and summary, to initiate a 30-day public review process for the proposed initiative measure, as specified. The bill would require that the fiscal estimate be prepared jointly by the Department of Finance and the Legislative Analyst. The bill would require the estimate to be delivered to the Attorney General within 50 days of the date of receipt of the proposed initiative measure by the Attorney General instead of 25 working days from the receipt of the final version of the proposed initiative measure. (2) Existing law prohibits a petition for a proposed initiative or referendum measure from being circulated prior to the official summary date, and prohibits a petition with signatures on a proposed initiative measure from being filed with the county elections official later than 150 days from the official summary date. This bill would extend the date that a petition with signatures on a proposed initiative measure is required to be filed with the county elections official to not later than 180 days from the official summary date. (3) Existing law requires the Secretary of State to notify the proponents, and immediately transmit to the elections official or registrar of voters of every county or city and county in the state a certificate, when the Secretary of State has received from one or more elections officials or registrars a petition certified to have been signed by the requisite number of qualified voters. This bill would instead require the Secretary of State to issue a notice directing that signature verification be terminated. The bill would require the Secretary of State to identify the date of the next statewide election and, on the 131st day prior to that election, to issue a certificate of qualification certifying that the initiative measure is qualified for the ballot at that election. The bill would provide that, upon the issuance of that certification, the initiative measure would be deemed qualified for the ballot for purposes of specified provisions of the California Constitution. (4) Under existing law, the Secretary of State is required to transmit copies of an initiative measure and its circulating title and summary to the Senate and the Assembly after the measure is certified to appear on the ballot for consideration by the voters. Existing law requires that each house of the Legislature assign the initiative measure to its appropriate committees, and that the committees hold joint public hearings on the subject of the proposed measure prior to the date of the election at which the measure is to be voted upon, as specified. This bill would require the Secretary of State to transmit copies of the initiative measure and circulating title and summary to the Legislature after receiving a certification from the initiative proponents, signed under penalty of perjury, that they have collected 25% of the number of signatures needed to qualify the initiative measure for the ballot. The bill would require the appropriate committees of the Senate and Assembly to hold the joint public hearing on the subject of the measure not later than 131 days prior to the date of the election at which the measure is to be voted upon. (5) Existing law requires the Secretary of State to disseminate the complete state ballot pamphlet over the Internet and to establish a process to enable a voter to opt out of receiving the state ballot pamphlet by mail. Existing law requires the Secretary of State to develop a program to utilize modern communications and information processing technology to enhance the availability and accessibility of information on statewide candidates and ballot initiatives, including making information available online as well as through other information processing technology. This bill would require the Secretary of State to establish processes to enable a voter to receive the state ballot pamphlet in an electronic format instead of by mail. The bill would also require the Secretary of State to create an Internet Web site, or use other available technology, to consolidate information about each ballot measure in a manner that is easy for voters to access and understand. The Internet Web site would be required to include a summary of each ballot measure and to identify the donors and other sources of funding for the campaigns for and against each ballot measure. (6) Existing law authorizes the proponents of a statewide initiative or referendum measure to withdraw the measure at any time before filing the petition with the appropriate elections official. Existing law also requires that state initiative petitions circulated for signature include a prescribed notice to the public. This bill would authorize the proponents of a statewide initiative or referendum measure to have the measure withdrawn from the ballot at any time before the measure qualifies for the ballot. The bill would require a petition for a statewide initiative measure to contain additional prescribed language in its notice to the public describing the right of proponents to withdraw the measure from the ballot, as specified. (7) Existing law makes certain activities relating to the circulation of an initiative, referendum, or recall petition a criminal offense. This bill would make it a crime for a proponent of a statewide initiative measure to seek, solicit, bargain for, or obtain any money or thing of value of or from any person, firm, or corporation for the purpose of withdrawing an initiative petition after filing it with the appropriate elections official. By establishing a new crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (8) This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 9031 of the Elections Code proposed by AB 2219 that would become operative if this bill and AB 2219 are both enacted and this bill is enacted last. The bill would also incorporate additional changes in Section 9082.7 of the Elections Code proposed by SB 844 that would become operative only if SB 844 and this bill are both enacted and this bill is enacted last. The bill would also incorporate additional changes to Section 18621 of the Elections Code proposed by SB 1043 that would become operative if this bill and SB 1043 are both enacted and this bill is enacted last. (9) 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.