The Dixon-Zenovich-Maddy California Arts Act of 1975 establishes the Arts Council, consisting of 11 appointed members, sets forth the duties of the council, and authorizes the council to accept federal grants and unrestricted gifts, donations, bequests, or grants of funds from private sources and public agencies for the purposes of encouraging artistic awareness, promoting the employment of artists, and providing for the exhibition of art works in public buildings, among others. This bill would additionally require the Arts Council to establish criteria and guidelines for state-designated cultural districts, as defined. The bill would require the council to establish a competitive application system for certification, provide technical and promotional support for certified state-designated cultural districts, and collaborate with public agencies and private entities to maximize the benefits of state-designated cultural districts. The bill would provide that a geographical area within the state may be certified as a state-designated cultural district by applying to the council for certification, as provided. The bill would also provide that certification as a state-designated cultural district is effective for 5 years, after which the district may renew certification every 3 years. This bill would authorize the council to solicit and receive gifts, donations, bequests, grants of funds, or any other revenues, from public or private sources and to expend those moneys, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for a state-designated cultural district program and for any other purpose it deems necessary to implement these provisions.
Sponsored bills
Existing law subjects any person under 18 years of age who commits a crime to the jurisdiction of the juvenile court, which may adjudge the person to be a ward of the court, except as specified. Under existing law, a minor has the right to counsel of his or her own choice in proceedings to declare the minor a ward of the court. If the minor and his or her parents are indigent, the minor is entitled to appointed counsel. This bill would require counsel appointed in delinquency proceedings to, among other things, have sufficient contact with the minor to establish and maintain a meaningful and professional attorney-client relationship, including in the postdispositional phase of the proceedings. The bill would also require the Judicial Council, by July 1, 2016, to adopt rules of court regarding, among other things, the establishment of minimum hours of training and education, or sufficient recent experience in delinquency proceedings in which the attorney has demonstrated competence, necessary to be appointed as counsel in delinquency proceedings, the establishment of required training areas, and the encouragement of delinquency training provided by public defender offices and other agencies that represent minors in delinquency cases.
(1) Existing law authorizes certain persons, including, among others, any person 16 years of age or older, to have his or her proficiency in basic skills taught in public high schools verified according to criteria established by the State Department of Education. Existing law requires the State Board of Education to award a certificate of proficiency to persons who demonstrate that proficiency. Existing law requires the department to develop standards of competency in basic skills taught in public high schools and to provide for the administration of examinations prepared by, or with the approval of, the department to verify competency. Existing law authorizes the department to charge a fee for each examination application in an amount sufficient to recover the costs of administering the requirements of these provisions, but prohibits the fee from exceeding an amount equal to the cost of test renewal and administration per examination application. This bill would prohibit the department from charging the fee to a homeless child or youth who is under 25 years of age and can verify his or her status as a homeless child or youth. The bill would authorize a homeless services provider, as defined, that has knowledge of the examinee's housing status to verify the examinee's status for purposes of these provisions. The bill would provide that no additional state funds shall be appropriated for purposes of implementing the above provisions. The bill would authorize the state board to adopt emergency regulations for purposes of these provisions. (2) Existing law separately requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction to issue a high school equivalency certificate and an official score report, or an official score report only, to a person who has not completed high school and who meets specified requirements, including, among others, having taken all or a portion of a general education development test that has been approved by the state board and administered by a testing center approved by the department, with a score determined by the state board to be equal to the standard of performance expected from high school graduates. Existing law authorizes the Superintendent to charge an examinee a one-time fee to pay costs related to administering these provisions and issuing a certificate, as specified. Existing law limits the amount of the fee to $20 per person and requires each scoring contractor to forward that fee to the Superintendent. This bill would, for purposes of those provisions, prohibit a contractor or testing center that charges its own separate fee from charging that separate fee to a homeless child or youth who is under 25 years of age and can verify his or her status as a homeless child or youth. The bill would authorize a homeless services provider, as defined, that has knowledge of the examinee's housing status to verify the examinee's status for purposes of these provisions. The bill would provide that no additional state funds shall be appropriated for purposes of implementing these provisions, and would authorize the Superintendent to adopt emergency regulations for purposes of these provisions. (3) Existing law establishes in the State Treasury a Special Deposit Fund Account, which consists of certain fees, and is continuously appropriated for the support of the department to be used for purposes of the provisions above relating to high school equivalency tests. This bill would authorize the Superintendent, until July 1, 2019, to use surplus funds, as defined, in the Special Deposit Fund Account to reimburse contractors for the loss of fees, if any, pursuant to provisions above relating to high school equivalency tests. By authorizing the expenditure of money in a continuously appropriated fund for a new purpose, this bill would make an appropriation. The bill would require a contract executed by the department for the provision of those tests to require a contracting party to accept all examinees, including those entitled to a fee waiver pursuant to those provisions. The bill also would require the department to include a provision in all memorandums of understanding with contractors for purposes of providing a high school equivalency test, that if the surplus funds in the Special Deposit Fund Account are depleted, the ongoing costs of a fee waiver for an examinee deemed eligible for a waiver shall be absorbed by the contractor. (4) This bill also would require the department, on or before December 1, 2018, to submit 2 reports to the appropriate policy and fiscal committees of the Legislature, one relating to high school proficiency tests, and one relating to high school equivalency tests, that each include, among other things, the number of homeless youth that took a high school proficiency or equivalency test in each of the 2016, 2017, and 2018 calendar years, and the impact of the opportunity to take a high school proficiency or equivalency test at no cost on the number and percentage of homeless youth taking a high school proficiency or equivalency test.
This measure would proclaim April 12 through April 19, 2015, as California Holocaust Memorial Week and would urge Californians to observe these days of remembrance for the victims of the Holocaust in an appropriate manner.
This measure would establish the California Task Force on Family Caregiving, to meet, if a nonstate organization agrees to provide administrative support to the task force, to examine issues relative to the challenges faced by family caregivers and opportunities to improve caregiver support, review the current network and the services and supports available to caregivers, and make policy recommendations to the Legislature. The task force would be required to submit an interim report to the Legislature no later than January 1, 2017, and a final report no later than July 1, 2018.
This measure would recognize the California Association of County Veterans Service Officers for helping veterans secure their federal and state benefits over the past 70 years.
This measure would urge the Congress of the United States to permanently reauthorize and fully fund the federal Land and Water Conservation Fund in order to maintain and preserve land and water resources.
This measure would encourage citizens, businesses, groups, organizations, and public institutions to observe and participate in coastal protection activities, and proclaim September 19, 2015, as the 31st annual Coastal Cleanup Day.
This measure, among other things, would urge both private and public medical training institutions in the state to provide equal access to osteopathic and allopathic students to apply to training programs, would urge osteopathic medical schools, allopathic medical schools, and their training institutions to build on current successes of working toward greater collaboration and coordination of education and training for California's future physicians, and would urge efforts by training institutions and allopathic and osteopathic medical schools to work toward greater acceptance and integration of osteopathic and allopathic students.
This measure would call upon the President of the United States to encourage the Secretary of the United States Department of Health and Human Services to adopt policies to repeal the current and upcoming discriminatory donor suitability policies of the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regarding blood donations by men who have had sex with another man and, instead, direct the FDA to develop science-based policies such as criteria based on risky behavior in lieu of sexual orientation.