Existing law, notwithstanding the requirement that each person between 6 and 18 years of age who is not otherwise exempted is subject to compulsory full-time education, requires a pupil to be excused from school for specified types of absences, including, among others, if the absence was due to the pupil's illness. This bill would include as another type of required excused absence an absence that is for the benefit of the mental or behavioral health of the pupil. To the extent that this bill would impose additional duties on local educational entities, 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 the statutory provisions noted above.
Sponsored bills
(1) Existing law requires the Secretary of State to coordinate with voter registration agencies in order to facilitate compliance with the federal National Voter Registration Act of 1993 and promote the exercise of the right to vote by eligible voters. The federal act requires a voter registration agency to distribute mail voter registration application forms, assist applicants in completing voter registration application forms, and accept completed voter registration application forms. This bill would require a county or a city and county that operates a jail facility to allow organizations to conduct in-person voter registration activities, including, but not limited to, the provision of vote-by-mail applications, in each county jail facility. The bill would require a county or city and county to establish policies and criteria governing the admittance of individuals from those organizations into jail facilities, including procedures for notifying an individual of the basis for denial of admittance and the opportunity to appeal a denial of admittance. The bill would require the sheriff of the county or city and county in which a jail facility is located to publish those procedures on the sheriff's internet website, as specified. (2) Existing law requires the clerk of the superior court of each county to periodically furnish the Secretary of State and county elections official with certain information regarding persons who have been committed to state prison for a felony conviction. Existing law requires the Secretary of State or the county elections official to cancel the affidavit of voter registration of persons who are currently imprisoned or on parole for the conviction of a felony. This bill would repeal those provisions and instead require the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, on a weekly basis, to provide the Secretary of State with specified identifying information for persons imprisoned for the conviction of a felony, persons on parole with the department for the conviction of a felony, and persons released from that imprisonment or parole. The bill would require the Secretary of State to provide county elections officials with that information. The bill would require county elections officials to cancel the affidavits of voter registration of persons who are imprisoned or on parole conviction of a felony, and to notify persons who have been released from imprisonment or parole that their voting rights are restored, that they may register to vote, and of the procedures for registering to vote. By increasing the duties of county and city and county officials, 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 the statutory provisions noted above.
Existing law provides that a child may be adjudged to be a dependent of the juvenile court because of abuse or neglect, and that after this determination, the court is required to hear evidence on the question of the proper disposition to be made of the child. Existing law requires that before determining the appropriate disposition, the court receive in evidence, among other things, the social study of the child made by the social worker and evaluation made by a child advocate appointed by the court. Existing law further prescribes the information that is required to be included in that social study or evaluation, including the appropriateness of any relative placement. Existing law gives preferential consideration to a request by a relative of a dependent child for placement of the child with the relative, and requires the county social worker and the court to consider certain factors in determining whether placement with a relative is appropriate, including, among others, the best interest of the child and the safety of the relative's home. Existing law prohibits the consideration and investigation of a relative placement from being good cause for continuance of the dispositional hearing. Existing law defines relative for these purposes to mean an adult who is related to the child by blood, adoption, or affinity within the 5th degree of kinship, among others. This bill would, among other things, extend the definition of relative to include caregivers of minor siblings who are in a permanent plan of adoption, legal guardianship, or placement with a fit and willing relative, and would delete that provision prohibiting the consideration and investigation of a relative placement from being a cause for continuance of the dispositional hearing. The bill would also require, if a relative or any party requests a hearing regarding a request for relative placement, the court to set a hearing within 15 court days from the request for a hearing. The bill would require, on or before July 1, 2021, the Judicial Council to develop and implement standards, and develop and adopt appropriate forms, necessary to implement that provision. To the extent that the bill imposes new requirements on county officials, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. Existing law states the intent of the Legislature for siblings to be placed in foster care together, unless it has been determined that placement together is contrary to the safety or well-being of any sibling, and requires the responsible local agency to make a diligent effort in all out-of-home placements of dependent children and wards in foster care, including those with relatives, to place siblings together in the same placement, and to develop and maintain sibling relationships. Existing law requires the State Department of Social Services to implement a resource family approval process, and directs counties and foster family agencies to approve resource families in lieu of licensing and certifying foster homes. Existing law requires the department to adopt standards pertaining to the home environment assessment, including a requirement that the total number of children residing in the home of a resource family shall be no more than the total number of children the resource family can properly care for, and not to exceed 6 children, unless exceptional circumstances exist to permit a resource family to care for more children, including the need to place siblings together. This bill would provide that the size and space of the placement home shall not be the sole reason to find that placement of siblings together is contrary to the safety or well-being of any sibling. The bill would declare the intent of the Legislature that siblings should be placed together regardless of the size and space of the placement home, and would require the department, on or before July 1, 2021, to update the written directives and any other regulation that administers the approval of a resource family home or foster family home to reflect this intent. The bill would also require that a resource family be determined to have the size and space to care for more than the number of children described above when necessary to place siblings together. 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.
Existing law allows a child who is sexually trafficked, or who receives food or shelter in exchange for, or who is paid to perform, sexual acts, and whose parent or guardian has failed or was unable to protect the child, to be adjudged a dependent of the juvenile court. This bill would explicitly authorize a child who is or was a victim of labor trafficking, and whose parent or guardian has failed or was unable to protect the child, to be adjudged a dependent of the juvenile court. The bill would make various related changes to reflect this expansion, including, among other things, a requirement that the case plan for a child nonminor dependent who is, or who is at risk of becoming, the victim of labor trafficking, document the services provided to address that issue. By expanding county duties, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. Existing law authorizes a social worker, in specified circumstances, to take temporary custody of a child who is or may be subject to the dependency jurisdiction of the court. The bill would generally prohibit a social worker from taking temporary custody of a child who is the victim of human trafficking if the child's parent or guardian has not participated, either directly or indirectly, in the child's trafficking. Existing law establishes the Commercially Sexually Exploited Children Program, which is administered by the State Department of Social Services. The program requires the department to provide funds to participating counties to provide training to county children's services workers to identify, intervene, and provide case management services to children who are victims of commercial sexual exploitation and trafficking and to foster caregivers for the prevention and identification of potential victims. Existing law requires the department to provide specified information to the Legislature regarding the implementation of these provisions, including the number of victims served by each county and the types of services provided, no later than April 1, 2017. This bill would change the name of the program to the Human Trafficked Children Program and revise all parts of the program to include children who are victims of labor trafficking. The bill would require the department to provide and update information provided to the Legislature regarding implementation of these provisions and to provide additional information relating to serving child victims of labor trafficking. 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 the Legislature finds there is no mandate contained in the bill that will result in costs incurred by a local agency or school district for a new program or higher level of service which require reimbursement pursuant to these constitutional and statutory provisions.
Existing law requires the State Department of Social Services to develop a payment system for foster family agencies that provide treatment, intensive treatment, and therapeutic foster care programs. Existing law commencing July 1, 2019, requires that the rates paid to foster family agencies, except for the rate paid to a certified family home or resource family agency, be 4.15% higher than the rates paid to foster family agencies in the 2018–19 fiscal year. This bill would, commencing July 1, 2021, require that the rates paid to foster family agencies be adjusted annually by an amount equal to the California Necessities Index, rounded to the nearest dollar. The bill would require the department to convene a workgroup with concerned stakeholders to establish a foster family agency rate structure to provide adequate funding for foster family agency social workers in order to reduce foster family agency social worker turnover and to improve permanency outcomes for foster children and youth. The bill would require the department, based on the findings of the workgroup, to submit specific recommendations to the Legislature, on or before December 31, 2022, to establish a foster family agency rate structure that ensures that foster family agency social workers are adequately compensated. The bill would require the rate adjustment described above to remain in effect until the date that the department submits those recommendations to the Legislature and the department establishes a foster family agency rate structure to ensure that foster family agency social workers are adequately compensated.
Existing law, the Uniform Anatomical Gift Act, authorizes the creation of a not-for-profit entity to be designated as the California Organ and Tissue Donor Registrar and requires that entity to establish and maintain the Donate Life California Organ and Tissue Donor Registry for persons who have identified themselves as organ and tissue donors upon their death. Existing law requires the Department of Motor Vehicles, upon issuance of a new driver's license or a renewal of a driver's license or the issuance of an identification card, to provide information on organ and tissue donation. Existing law requires an application for an original or renewal driver's license or identification card to contain a space for the applicant to enroll in the Donate Life California Organ and Tissue Donor Registry and requires the application to include specified check boxes for an applicant to indicate whether to add the applicant's name to the registry. Existing law requires the back of the application to include a specified disclosure statement informing the applicant that by marking 'Yes' in the check boxes the applicant is legally authorizing the recovery of organs and tissues in the event of their death. This bill would require the back of the application to contain a statement informing the applicant that by registering as an organ donor or changing a prior donor decision, they are consenting to the department electronically transmitting the applicant's information, as specified, to Donate Life California.
Existing state sales and use tax laws impose a tax on retailers measured by the gross receipts from the sale of tangible personal property sold at retail in this state, or on the storage, use, or other consumption in this state of tangible personal property purchased from a retailer for storage, use, or other consumption in this state. Existing law defines "sale" and "purchase" for these purposes and provides certain exclusions from those definitions. Existing law, until January 1, 2022, excludes the transfer of vested property by a pawnbroker to a person who pledged the property to the pawnbroker as security for a loan, if specified requirements are met, from the definition of "sale" and "purchase," thus excluding that transfer from imposition of sales and use tax. This bill would extend the exclusion of the transfer of vested property by a pawnbroker to the person who pledged it, as described above, until January 1, 2027. The Bradley-Burns Uniform Local Sales and Use Tax Law authorizes counties and cities to impose local sales and use taxes in conformity with the Sales and Use Tax Law, and existing laws authorize districts, as specified, to impose transactions and use taxes in accordance with the Transactions and Use Tax Law, which generally conforms to the Sales and Use Tax Law. Amendments to the Sales and Use Tax Law are automatically incorporated into the local tax laws. Existing law requires the state to reimburse counties and cities for revenue losses caused by the enactment of sales and use tax exemptions. This bill would provide that, notwithstanding Section 2230 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, no appropriation is made and the state shall not reimburse any local agencies for sales and use tax revenues lost by them pursuant to this bill. This bill would take effect immediately as a tax levy.
This measure would declare March 5, 2020, as Family Justice Center Day in California and would recognize the lifesaving and hope-giving work of the California Family Justice Center Network and its member Family Justice Centers as they work with rape crisis centers, domestic violence shelters, human trafficking agencies, prosecutors' offices, law enforcement agencies, and other professionals and community-based organizations to ensure that adult and child survivors of trauma can access all of their services in one setting.