(1) Under existing law, the State Water Resources Control Board (state board) and the California regional water quality control boards prescribe waste discharge requirements for the discharge of stormwater in accordance with the national pollutant discharge elimination system (NPDES) permit program and the Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act. Existing law authorizes a city, county, or special district to develop, jointly or individually, stormwater resource plans that meet certain standards. This bill would enact the Rainwater Capture Act of 2011, which would authorize residential, commercial, and governmental landowners to install, maintain, and operate rain barrel systems, as defined, and rainwater capture systems, as defined, for specified purposes, provided that the systems comply with specified requirements. The bill would require a local agency to provide notification to the operator of a public water system, as defined, if the local agency chooses to adopt a permitting program for rainwater capture systems and approves a permit for a rainwater capture system connected to the public water system. (2) Existing law, the Contractors' State License Law, creates the Contractors' State License Board within the Department of Consumer Affairs and provides for the licensing and regulation of contractors. Existing law authorizes a landscape contractor working within the classification of his or her license to enter into a prime contract for the construction of a swimming pool, spa, or hot tub, an outdoor cooking center, or an outdoor fireplace, if certain conditions are met. Under existing law, a violation of these provisions and related provisions of existing law is grounds for disciplinary action. This bill would additionally authorize a landscape contractor working within the classification of his or her license to enter into a prime contract for the construction of a rainwater capture system, as defined, if the system is used exclusively for landscape irrigation. The bill would authorize a landscape contractor holding a specified classification to design and install all exterior components of a rainwater capture system that are not a part of, or attached to, a structure.
Sponsored bills
Existing law requires the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission (Energy Commission) , on a biennial basis beginning in 2003, to adopt an integrated energy policy report providing information on specified subjects related to energy. Existing law establishes the Renewable Resource Trust Fund, a continuously appropriated fund appropriated to the Energy Commission, for the purposes of funding programs designed to foster the development of new in-state renewable electricity generation technology facilities. This bill would require the Energy Commission to conduct research on generating electricity using piezoelectric transducers under roadways or railways. The bill would require the Energy Commission to establish pilot projects that would employ piezoelectric-based energy-harvesting technology, if the Energy Commission determines that the technology has the potential to generate electricity with performance, reliability, and cost projections that are comparable to existing or emerging renewable energy sources. The bill would require the Energy Commission to collaborate with the Department of Transportation and would require the department to conduct research on the piezoelectric-based energy-harvesting technology according to the department's usual research protocol if the pilot project is conducted in a facility that is part of the state highway or rail system under the department's jurisdiction. The bill would authorize the Energy Commission to expend the moneys in the Renewable Resource Trust Fund, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to implement this research. The Energy Commission would be required to report its findings in the integrated energy policy report adopted in 2013. These provisions would be repealed on January 1, 2015.
Existing law authorizes a city, county, or other local agency to adopt, after a public hearing and enactment of an ordinance or resolution, building standards that prohibit entirely the use of graywater, or building standards that are more restrictive than the graywater building standards adopted by the Department of Housing and Community Development and published in the California Building Standards Code. This bill would repeal the authority of a city, county, or other local agency to adopt building standards that prohibit entirely the use of graywater and instead authorize the adoption, under specified requirements, of standards that are more restrictive than that adopted pursuant to state requirements. The bill would require that an ordinance enacted pursuant to this authority include the local climatic, geological, topographical, or public health conditions requiring different building standards. The bill would also require a city, county, or other local agency to seek consultation with the local public health department prior to commencing the issuance of permits for indoor graywater systems, as specified.
Existing law sets forth various requirements for the issuance of diplomas conferred upon a pupil as evidence of graduation from high school. Statutory provisions establish the Golden State Seal Merit Diploma for the purpose of recognizing pupils who have mastered the high school curriculum. This bill would establish the State Seal of Biliteracy to recognize high school graduates who have attained a high level of proficiency in speaking, reading, and writing in one or more languages in addition to English. The State Seal of Biliteracy would be awarded by the Superintendent of Public Instruction in accordance with specified criteria. The Superintendent would be required to prepare and deliver to participating school districts the seal insignia. Participating school districts would be required to maintain records in order to identify pupils who have earned a State Seal of Biliteracy and to affix an appropriate insignia to the diploma or transcript of pupils who earn a State Seal of Biliteracy. The bill would make an appropriation by authorizing the Superintendent to use money appropriated for purposes of the Golden State Seal Merit Diploma program to develop an Internet Web site for electronic delivery of the seals for both the Golden State Seal Merit Diploma and State Seal of Biliteracy programs to school districts.
(1) The Charter Schools Act of 1992 permits teachers and parents to petition the governing board of a school district to approve a charter school to operate independently from the existing school district structure as a method of accomplishing, among other things, improved pupil learning. Existing law prohibits the governing board of a school district from denying a petition for the establishment of a charter school unless the governing board finds that the petition does not contain specified information, including admission requirements, as applicable, and the governance structure of the school, including, but not limited to, the process to be followed by the school to ensure parental involvement. This bill would revise the provision relating to admission requirements so that admission policies and procedures, as specified, are to be included in a petition. The bill would authorize a charter school to encourage parental involvement, but would require the charter school to notify parents and guardians of applicant pupils and currently enrolled pupils that parental involvement is not a requirement for acceptance or continued enrollment at the school. To the extent that this notification requirement would create additional duties for charter schools, it would impose a state-mandated local program. (2) Existing law requires, if the number of pupils who wish to attend a charter school exceeds its capacity, preference to be extended to pupils currently attending the charter school and pupils who reside in the school district. This bill would additionally require preference for siblings of pupils attending the charter school and children of employees at the charter school. Existing law authorizes other preferences to be extended, on an individual school basis, if consistent with the law. This bill would delete the authorization for other preferences to be extended, and would instead authorize preference to be extended, on an individual school basis, provided that the type of preference is approved at a public hearing, as specified, the preferences are consistent with federal law and the California Constitution, and the preferences ensure access for pupils with disabilities, academically low-achieving pupils, English learners, and low-income pupils, as specified. (3) This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 47605 of the Education Code proposed by AB 86 that would become operative if this bill and AB 86 are enacted, and this bill is enacted last. (4) 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.
(1) The Lempert-Keene-Seastrand Oil Spill Prevention and Response Act generally requires the administrator for oil spill response, acting at the direction of the Governor, to implement activities relating to oil spill response, including drills and preparedness, and oil spill containment and cleanup, and to represent the state in any coordinated response efforts with the federal government. The act requires the administrator to periodically carry out announced and unannounced drills to test response and cleanup operations, equipment, contingency plans, and procedures. This bill would require the administrator to develop and implement a screening mechanism and a comprehensive risk-based monitoring program for inspecting the bunkering and lightering operations of vessels at anchor and alongside a dock. The bill also would require that the administrator identify bunkering and lightering operations that pose the highest risk of a pollution incident and coordinate with the United States Coast Guard to routinely monitor and inspect those operations. The bill would require the administrator to establish regulations to provide for the best achievable protection during bunkering and lightering operations in the marine environment. The bill would repeal these provisions on January 1, 2015. (2) Existing law imposes an oil spill prevention and administration fee in an amount determined by the administrator to be sufficient to implement oil spill prevention activities, but not to exceed $0.05 per barrel of crude oil or petroleum products, on persons owning crude oil or petroleum products at a marine terminal. The fee is deposited into the Oil Spill Prevention and Administration Fund in the State Treasury. Upon appropriation by the Legislature, moneys in the fund are available for specified purposes. This bill would, beginning January 1, 2012, revise that fee to an amount not to exceed $0.065 per barrel of crude oil or petroleum products and, beginning January 1, 2015, to an amount not to exceed $0.05. (3) Existing law requires the Department of Fish and Game to contract with the Department of Finance to prepare and submit to the Governor and the Legislature, on or before January 1, 2005, a detailed report on the financial basis and programmatic effectiveness of the state's oil spill prevention, response, and preparedness program. This bill would require the Department of Fish and Game and the State Lands Commission, independently, to contract with the Department of Finance to prepare and submit that report to the Governor and the Legislature, on or before January 1, 2013, and no less than once every 4 years thereafter. (4) Under existing law, the State Lands Commission has jurisdiction over state lands and ungranted tidelands and submerged lands owned by the state. This bill would require the State Lands Commission, on or before March 1, 2012, in consultation with the Department of Conservation, to report to the Legislature on regulatory action, pending or already taken, and statutory recommendations for the Legislature to ensure maximum safety and prevention of harm during offshore oil drilling. This provision would be repealed on January 1, 2016.
Existing law authorizes the Trustees of the California State University to enter into agreements for the performance of acts or for the furnishing of services, facilities, materials, goods, supplies, or equipment, under certain conditions. The trustees are required to prescribe policies and procedures for the acquisition of services, facilities, materials, goods, supplies, or equipment, subject to specified criteria. This bill would require the policies and procedures for the acquisition of food services to ensure a service contractor fully discloses to the campus, auxiliary organization, or other unit of the California State University all discounts, rebates, allowances, and incentives received by the service contractor from its suppliers, as specified, and to disclose and pay to the campus, auxiliary organization, or other unit of the university the full amount of the discount, rebate, or applicable credit, as specified. This bill would require the policies and procedures for the acquisition of services be available for review as part of any audit conducted under specified provisions. The bill would require any necessary changes to the policies and procedures for the acquisition of services be implemented upon the renewal, extension, or amendment of an existing agreement or as part of any new service agreement.
(1) Existing law requires the Department of Transportation, after consultation with local agencies and public hearings, to adopt rules and regulations prescribing uniform standards and specifications for all official traffic control devices and setting of speed limits. Existing law makes it a crime for a driver to fail to obey a sign or signal, defined as regulatory in the California Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (Manual) , or a Department of Transportation-approved supplement to that manual. This bill would require the Department of Transportation to revise the Manual, as it read on January 1, 2012, to require the department or a local authority to round speed limits to within 5 miles per hour of the 85th-percentile speed of free-flowing traffic. The bill would allow, in cases in which the speed limit needs to be rounded up to the nearest 5 miles per hour increment of the 85th-percentile speed, the department or a local authority to decide to instead round down the speed limit to the lower 5 miles per hour increment, but then the department or a local authority would be prohibited from reducing the speed limit any further for any reason. (2) This bill would incorporate changes to Section 21400 of the Vehicle Code proposed by both this bill and AB 345, which would become operative only if both bills are enacted and become effective on or before January 1, 2012, and this bill is chaptered last.
The Political Reform Act of 1974 requires the Legislative Analyst to prepare an impartial analysis of each initiative measure to appear on the ballot, and provides that the Legislative Analyst is solely responsible for determining the content of the analysis. The act requires the Legislative Analyst to prepare an unbiased fiscal analysis of a measure that is included in the ballot pamphlet stating whether the measure would increase or decrease any revenue or cost to state or local government. Existing law also requires the Legislative Analyst to prepare for inclusion in the ballot pamphlet a summary statement regarding the general meaning and effect of "yes" and "no" votes on each state measure. The Political Reform Act of 1974, an initiative statute, 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 without restriction amend specified provisions of the act to add to the ballot pamphlet information regarding candidates or other information. This bill would, except as specified, require, if a fiscal analysis prepared by the Legislative Analyst determines that a measure would provide an increase in revenues to fund new or existing programs, that specified language be added at the end of the "yes" and "no" summary statement in the ballot pamphlet advising that the revenue generated by the measure will be forever dedicated to the purposes specified in the measure unless the measure is changed by a future measure approved by the voters. The bill also would contain a finding and declaration of the Legislature that the bill permits or requires additional information to be included in the ballot pamphlet in accordance with the provision of the Political Reform Act of 1974 described above that authorizes the Legislature to add information to the ballot pamphlet.
Existing law, part of the hazardous waste control law, requires the Department of Toxic Substances Control to adopt regulations to establish a process by which chemicals or chemical ingredients in products may be identified and prioritized for consideration as being chemicals of concern and to adopt regulations to establish a process by which chemicals of concern may be evaluated. The department is prohibited from duplicating or adopting conflicting regulations for regulated product categories. A violation of the hazardous waste control law is a crime. The bill would enact the Toxin-Free Infants and Toddlers Act, which would, except as specified, prohibit, on and after July 1, 2013, the manufacture, sale, or distribution in commerce of any bottle or cup that contains bisphenol A, at a detectable level above 0.1 parts per billion (ppb) , if the bottle or cup is designed or intended to be filled with any liquid, food, or beverage intended primarily for consumption by children 3 years of age or younger. This prohibition would not apply to a product subject to a regulatory response by the department, on the date that a prescribed notice is posted regarding the department's adoption of the regulatory response. The bill would also require manufacturers to use the least toxic alternative when replacing bisphenolA in containers in accordance with this bill.