Rep. Gilbert Cedillo

This measure would declare the week of June 4, 2012, to June 10, 2012, inclusive, as Fire Safety and Disaster Preparedness Week.

(1) Existing law generally requires secondhand dealers and coin dealers, as defined, to report specified transactions involving tangible personal property, on forms provided or approved by the Department of Justice, to the local law enforcement agency where their businesses are located. Existing law defines "tangible personal property" for these purposes, and excludes from that definition, among other items, commercial grade ingots defined to include, among other items, 0.99 fine ingots of gold, silver, or platinum. This bill would revise the definition of commercial grade ingots to include 0.99 fine or finer ingots of gold, silver, palladium, or platinum. Under existing law, secondhand dealers and coin dealers are required to report the information described above using an electronic reporting system 12 months after the Department of Justice develops that system. This bill would eliminate the electronic filing requirements for coin dealers, and would instead require that secondhand dealers report this information using the single, statewide, uniform electronic reporting system on and after the date that the system is implemented, as specified. (2) Existing law requires a local law enforcement agency to issue a license to engage in the business of a secondhand dealer or pawnbroker to an applicant who meets designated criteria. Existing law authorizes the local licensing authority and the Department of Justice to charge an initial licensure fee and a renewal fee, as specified. This bill would require the Department of Justice to charge a licensure fee and a renewal fee of no more than $300, as specified. The bill would also require licensees issued a license before the effective date of this bill to pay an additional fee of no more than $288 for the purpose of funding the single, statewide, uniform electronic reporting system, with payment due within 120 days of the enactment of this bill. The bill would require that the fees assessed by the department be deposited in the Secondhand Dealer and Pawnbroker Fund, which the bill would create in the State Treasury. The bill would require that the money in the fund be used by the department, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for the purpose of paying for specified regulatory costs, including the cost of implementing, operating, and maintaining the single, statewide, uniform electronic reporting system. The bill would also require applicants for a license to submit fingerprint images relative to a required criminal background check, with associated fee revenue to be deposited in the Fingerprint Fee Account, and would make those revenues available to the Department of Justice, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for these purposes. This bill would make findings and declarations of the Legislature, and state the intent of the Legislature, with regard to these matters. The bill would make other related conforming changes. The bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

This measure would recognize National Flag Day on June 14, 2012, honor the 52nd anniversary of the flying of the current American flag, and encourage all Californians to celebrate the occasion with appropriate activities.

Existing law provides for protection, care, and assistance for people of the state, and the promotion of the welfare and happiness of all people in the state by providing appropriate aid and services to the needy and distressed. Programs established for this purpose include CalWORKs, which provides cash assistance and other social services to needy families, using federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block grant program, state, and county funds, and CalFresh, whereby nutrition assistance benefits allocated to the state by the federal government are distributed to eligible individuals by each county. Counties administer the CalWORKs and CalFresh programs. This bill, the Social Services Modernization Act of 2012, would require a final operational state plan submitted by any department administered by the Secretary of California Health and Human Services state agency to a federal agency in the context of providing public social services to be electronically available on the relevant department's Internet Web site, as specified. This bill would, pending approval of any necessary federal waivers, require the State Department of Social Services to promulgate regulations to authorize applicants for and recipients of aid to electronically access notices and communications pertaining to eligibility and benefit issuance, as specified. The bill would authorize applicants and recipients to opt out of receiving electronic notice, and would provide for the confidentiality of an applicant's or recipient's electronic information, as specified. This bill would prohibit a county from requiring an applicant or recipient for public benefits to verify information provided to the county, except when the verification is required by federal law, or is necessary to determine eligibility for aid or to compute the amount of aid. If the verification is inconsistent with other verified information, this bill would require a county eligibility worker to provide to the applicant or recipient a notice of action specifying the type of verification required to verify eligibility, as specified. This bill would require county human services departments to maximize use of electronic means of verifying applicant and recipient information, and would require the state to work with counties to develop a protocol enabling statewide use by applicants and recipients of public social services programs of a specified electronic database developed to verify eligibility information for the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010. This bill would provide that the identity of, or certain information relating to, an applicant or recipient shall be considered to be verified under prescribed circumstances. This bill would revise procedures relating to public social services application and recertification interviews to require these interviews to be conducted in person, by telephone, or by other electronic means, to promote administrative efficiency and reduce costs to applicants and recipients. Existing law, with certain exceptions, requires every individual, as a condition of eligibility for aid under the CalWORKs program, to participate in welfare-to-work activities. This bill would deem an adult CalWORKs recipient to be in compliance with existing welfare-to-work requirements if he or she meets the minimum federal welfare-to-work requirements. The bill would provide that a person satisfying these requirements would be eligible for specified support services, and would not be subject to sanction for failure or refusal to comply with program requirements, as specified. Existing law prohibits an applicant from being granted public assistance, as specified, until he or she is personally interviewed by the county welfare department or state hospital staff. This bill would no longer require these interviews to be conducted personally, and would require the county to conduct the interview on the same day of the initial application, to the extent it is cost effective and administratively possible for the department. This bill would apply these provisions to applicants for CalFresh benefits. Existing law requires a county welfare department, to the extent provided by federal law, to provide CalFresh benefits on an expedited basis to certain households. This bill would require the department, to the extent allowed by federal law and any federal waivers secured by the department, to postpone expedited service interviews that have been attempted and require that the interviews be conducted at the same time as the interview for issuance of regular CalFresh benefits, as specified, and to issue expedited service to any applicant who meets expedited service eligibility requirements and whose identity has been verified, as specified. Existing law requires county welfare departments to provide transitional CalFresh benefits to households terminating their participation in the CalWORKs program, to the maximum extent allowable by federal law. This bill would require the State Department of Social Services to implement the above requirement so as to maximize continued enrollment of eligible recipients, pursuant to a specified federal regulation. This bill would authorize the State Department of Social Services to implement the bill by means of all-county letters or similar instructions, by January 1, 2013. Existing law continuously appropriates moneys from the General Fund to defray a portion of county costs under the CalWORKs program. This bill would declare that no appropriation would be made for purposes of implementing the bill. Because this bill would increase duties of counties administering public social services programs, 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 these statutory provisions.

This measure would recognize August 8, 2012, as "Are You Dense?" Day 2012, to raise awareness of the risks associated with breast density and the potential benefits of other screening tools to supplement mammography.

This measure would urge the President and the Congress of the United States to pursue a comprehensive approach to stem the trafficking of illicit United States firearms and ammunition into Mexico, that includes, among other things, enhanced collaboration among local, state, and federal agencies, the allocation of a permanent source of federal funding to sustain local and state law enforcement operations to combat firearms and ammunition trafficking and other border-related crimes, the redirection of federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) , United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and United States Customs and Border Protection resources towards this effort, reenactment of a strong federal assault weapons ban, and stronger federal authority to crack down on corrupt gun dealers.

This measure would declare that the Legislature recognizes the importance of engaging with young people to influence decisions that affect their quality of life and well-being, and that the Student and Youth Bill of Rights serves as a framework to guide and inform the youth of the state in organizing and advocating policy issues on their own behalf.

This measure would commemorate the 40th anniversary of Title IX on June 23, 2012, commend the movement toward increased equality and fair treatment of female athletes, and praise the goal of greater opportunities in sports for girls and young women in California.

This measure would urge the Congress to enact and the President to sign the Los Angeles Residential Helicopter Noise Relief Act of 2011.