Existing law imposes taxes upon income and real property, as well as taxes upon certain transactions and excise taxes. This bill would, for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2024, and before January 1, 2026, impose an annual tax at a rate of 1.5% of a resident of this state's worldwide net worth in excess of $1,000,000,000, or in excess of $500,000,000 in the case of a married taxpayer filing separately. The bill would, for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2026, impose an annual tax at a rate of 1% of a resident's worldwide net worth in excess of $50,000,000, or in excess of $25,000,000 in the case of a married taxpayer filing separately. The bill would also impose, for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2026, an additional tax at a rate of 0.5% of a resident's worldwide net worth in excess of $1,000,000,000, or in excess of $500,000,000 in the case of a married taxpayer filing separately. The bill would describe worldwide net worth with reference to specific federal provisions and would provide that worldwide net worth does not include specific assets, including personal property situated out of state, directly held real property, or liabilities related to directly held real property. The bill would also authorize the Franchise Tax Board to adopt regulations to carry out these provisions, including regulations regarding the valuation of certain assets that are not publicly traded. The bill would require new certifications by taxpayers, made under penalty of perjury. By expanding the crime of perjury, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. This bill would establish the Wealth Tax Advisory Council. The bill would require the council to determine an adequate level of annual funding and staffing for the administration and collection of the wealth tax imposed by this bill. The bill would provide specific guidelines for what constitutes adequate levels of annual funding and staffing for the administration and collection of a wealth tax. The bill would establish 2 continuously appropriated funds in the State Treasury to cover the expenses of the administration and collection of the wealth tax. Under the bill, the funds would be funded by the greater of either a specified amount or a certain percentage of revenues estimated to be generated by the wealth tax. By establishing new continuously appropriated funds, this bill would make an appropriation. Existing law, the False Claims Act, provides that any person who commits specified acts, including, but not limited to, knowingly presenting a false or fraudulent claim for payment or approval or knowingly making or using a false record or statement material to a false or fraudulent claim, is liable to the state or to the political subdivision for 3 times the amount of damages that the state or political subdivision sustained because of the act and for the costs of a civil action brought to recover any penalties or damages, and is subject to a civil penalty. That act requires the Attorney General or the prosecuting authority of a political subdivision to diligently investigate violations of those specific acts involving state funds or political subdivision funds, respectively, and authorizes the Attorney General, the prosecuting authority, or a qui tam plaintiff to bring a civil action against a person who commits those acts. That act does not apply to claims, records, or statements made under the Revenue and Taxation Code. This bill would apply the provisions of the False Claims Act to claims, records, or statements made in relation to the wealth tax imposed by the bill, as specified. Existing law generally makes it a misdemeanor for specified persons, including, among others, officers or employees of the state or its political subdivisions, to disclose information set forth or disclosed in returns, reports, or documents required to be filed under the franchise and income tax laws. This bill would create an exception to these rules in the case of information related to the Wealth Tax, as requested by the University of California or the Wealth Tax Advisory Council, so long as specified information privacy protections are in place, and the request is for a specified purpose. This bill would specify that the tax imposed by the bill shall only become operative if a specified constitutional amendment is approved by the voters and takes effect. This bill would include a change in state statute that would result in a taxpayer paying a higher tax within the meaning of Section 3 of Article XIIIA of the California Constitution, and thus would require for passage the approval of 23 of the membership of each house of the Legislature. Existing constitutional provisions require that a statute that limits the right of access to the meetings of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies be adopted with findings demonstrating the interest protected by the limitation and the need for protecting that interest. This bill would make legislative findings to that effect. 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.
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Existing law requires the State Department of Social Services to establish and supervise a county- or county consortia-administered program to provide cash assistance for aged, blind, or disabled legal immigrants who are not citizens who, due to their immigration status, are not eligible for the Supplemental Security Income/State Supplementary Program for the Aged, Blind, and Disabled, also known as SSI/SSP benefits. Under existing law, an individual is eligible for this program if their immigration status meets SSI/SSP eligibility criteria but they are not eligible for those benefits solely due to their immigration status, as specified. Existing law also requires any person who is found to be eligible by the department for federally funded SSI to apply for SSI benefits. This bill would expand eligibility for that program to aged, blind, and disabled individuals regardless of immigration status if the individual meets the eligibility criteria for the program and is not eligible solely due to their immigration status. This bill would exempt individuals who are not qualified immigrants, as specified, from having to apply for SSI in order to receive benefits. The bill would also delete several inoperative provisions. The bill would make the implementation of these substantive changes contingent upon an appropriation for its express purposes. By expanding county duties under the program, 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 the statutory provisions noted above.
Existing law establishes the Office of Health Care Affordability within the Department of Health Care Access and Information to analyze the health care market for cost trends and drivers of spending, develop data-informed policies for lowering health care costs for consumers and purchasers, and create a state strategy for controlling the cost of health care. Existing law requires the office to collect data and other information it deems necessary from health care entities to carry out the functions of the office, and requires the office to require providers and physician organizations to submit audited financial reports or comprehensive financial statements, as specified. Existing law requires those reports and statements to be kept confidential, and specifies that they are not required to be disclosed under the California Public Records Act. Existing law requires the office to obtain information about health care service plans from the Department of Managed Health Care. Existing law requires a contract between a health care service plan and a risk-bearing organization to include provisions concerning the risk-bearing organization's administrative and financial capacity. Existing law requires the director of the Department of Managed Health Care to adopt regulations regarding, among other things, periodic reports from a health care service plan that include information concerning the risk-bearing organizations and the type and amount of financial risk they have assumed. Existing law establishes, within the office, the Health Care Affordability Board, composed of 8 members, appointed as prescribed. This bill, the Medical Group Financial Transparency Act, would authorize the disclosure of audited financial reports and comprehensive financial statements of providers and physician organizations collected by the Office of Health Care Affordability and financial and other records of risk-bearing organizations made available to the Department of Managed Health Care. This bill would authorize the board, members of the board, the office, the department, and the employees, contractors, and advisors of the office and the department to use confidential audited financial reports and comprehensive financial statements only as necessary to carry out functions of the office. The bill would also require certain physician organizations, as specified, to produce or disclose audited financial reports and comprehensive financial statements to the office, subject to these provisions. The bill would require the audited financial reports and comprehensive financial statements produced or disclosed to the office to be made available to the public, by the office, as specified. The bill would also make related findings and declarations.
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. Existing law requires the trustees 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 trustees, for each food service contract and participation in a hotel development project, to require the person contracting with the trustees and each food service employer or hotel employer, to be party to a labor peace agreement under that contract or participation with any labor organization that represents or seeks to represent the employees performing work under the food service contract or hotel employees at the hotel development project, as specified. The bill would extend that requirement to any food service contract or hotel development project in which the California State University or the State of California has a proprietary interest and that is performed pursuant to a contract entered into or awarded by a California State University auxiliary organization.
Existing law, until December 31, 2024, requires an employer, as defined, to offer certain employees laid off due to the COVID-19 pandemic specified information about job positions that become available for which the laid-off employees are qualified, and to offer positions to those laid-off employees based on a preference system, in accordance with specified timelines and procedures. Existing law requires an employer that declines to recall a laid-off employee on the grounds of lack of qualifications and instead hires someone other than a laid-off employee to provide the laid-off employee a written notice within 30 days including specified reasons for the decision, and other information on those hired. Existing law prohibits an employer from taking adverse action against any laid-off employee for seeking to enforce their rights under existing law. Existing law gives the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement jurisdiction over enforcement of these provisions and prescribes enforcement, remedies, and civil penalties for violations. Existing law prohibits the imposition of criminal penalties for a violation of these provisions. Existing law authorizes the division to promulgate and enforce rules and regulations, and issue determinations and interpretations concerning existing law. This bill would require a chain employer to provide each covered worker and their exclusive representative, if any, a displacement notice at least 60 days before the expected date of closure of a covered establishment. The bill would define terms for its purposes, including defining a "covered establishment" as a chain establishment that is subject to closure resulting in layoffs of workers, a "chain" as a business in this state that consists of 100 or more establishments nationally that share a common brand and are owned and operated by the same parent company, and a "chain employer" as any person, including a corporate officer or executive, who directly or indirectly or through an agent or any other person, owns or operates a chain and employs or exercises control over the wages, hours, or working conditions of workers. A "chain employer" would also include a franchisee that owns and operates 100 or more establishments nationally under an agreement with one franchisor. This bill would require a chain employer, for a year after the closure of a covered establishment, to provide to all covered workers the opportunity to transfer to a location of the chain within 25 miles of the covered establishment subject to closure as positions become available. A franchisee subject to the bill would only be required to make an offer of transfer to a covered worker to a location within 25 miles of the covered location that the franchisee owns and operates under an agreement with one franchisor. The bill would require the chain employer to maintain a preferential transfer list of covered workers. The bill would require a chain employer to make offers of transfer to qualified covered workers based on length of service, as specified. The bill would require a covered worker who is offered a position to be given at least 5 business days, from the date of receipt, to accept or decline the offer. The bill would require a chain employer to retain for a minimum of 3 years prescribed records relating to the closure and offers of employment. The bill would prohibit a chain employer from taking adverse action against a covered worker for asserting their rights under the bill. Under the bill, the division would have jurisdiction over enforcement of these provisions. The bill would prescribe enforcement, remedies, and civil penalties for violations. The bill would prohibit the imposition of criminal penalties for a violation of these provisions. The bill would authorize the division to promulgate and enforce rules and regulations, and issue determinations and interpretations concerning existing law.
Existing law requires the city council for a charter city that elects its city council using district-based elections to adopt new city council district boundaries following each federal decennial census. Existing law requires the city council to adopt the new boundaries using specified criteria, and by a specified deadline, unless the charter city has adopted different redistricting criteria or a different deadline by ordinance or in its city charter. This bill would require a charter city with a population of at least 2,500,000 people to establish an independent redistricting commission to adjust the district boundaries for the city council if the city's charter does not establish an independent redistricting commission that meets specified criteria. The bill would require the commission to adjust the boundaries of the city council districts in accordance with specified criteria and deadlines. By increasing the duties on local officials, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for charter cities with a population of at least 2,500,000 people. 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 the statutory provisions noted above.
Existing law provides for the payment of unemployment compensation benefits and extended benefits to eligible individuals who meet specified requirements. Under existing law, unemployment benefits are paid from the Unemployment Fund, which is continuously appropriated for these purposes. Existing law makes an employee ineligible for benefits if the employee left work because of a trade dispute and specifies that the employee remains ineligible for the duration of the trade dispute. Existing case law holds that employees who left work due to a lockout by the employer, even if it was in anticipation of a trade dispute, are eligible for benefits. This bill would restore eligibility after the first 2 weeks for an employee who left work because of a trade dispute. The bill would codify specified case law that holds that employees who left work due to a lockout by the employer, even if it was in anticipation of a trade dispute, are eligible for benefits. The bill would specify that the bill's provisions do not diminish eligibility for benefits of individuals deprived of work due to an employer lockout or similar action, as specified. Because this bill would expand the categories of people eligible to receive benefits from a continuously appropriated fund, it would make an appropriation.