Asm. Mike Gipson

This measure would recognize May 2018 as National Mental Health Awareness Month in California to enhance public awareness of mental illness.

Existing law requires the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and the Department of Motor Vehicles to ensure that all eligible inmates released from state prisons have valid identification cards issued by the Department of Motor Vehicles. Existing law defines "eligible inmate" for those purposes. This bill would require the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and the Department of Motor Vehicles to ensure that all eligible inmates, as defined, have the privilege to operate a motor vehicle upon release from state prison. The bill would require the Department of Motor Vehicles and the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to provide an eligible inmate with a specified form to renew his or her driver's license by mail, upon request. The bill would provide that if a person has a suspended driver's license as a result of delinquent court-ordered debt that would otherwise be required to be paid before issuance of a driver's license, the Department of Motor Vehicles is required to issue a restricted driver's license only allowing, among other things, necessary travel to and from work, to attend school, or to comply with conditions of release. The bill would require the person to make payments to eliminate or reduce any delinquent court-ordered debt during the time that his or her driver's license is restricted and would provide that the restriction would be lifted once the person has paid the amount due for delinquent court-ordered debt. The bill would prohibit a penalty fee from being assessed to obtain a restricted driver's license pursuant to these provisions.

The Personal Income Tax Law and the Corporation Tax Law allow various credits against the taxes imposed by those laws. This bill would allow a credit against those taxes for each taxable year beginning on or after January 1, 2019, and before January 1, 2024, to a taxpayer in an amount equal to 50% of the amount contributed by the taxpayer to a qualified developer for the development of a qualified project, as defined, but that does not exceed a specified amount per taxpayer per qualified project. The bill would also limit the aggregate amount of the credit, as specified. This bill would take effect immediately as a tax levy.

Existing law, the Emergency Medical Services System and the Prehospital Emergency Medical Care Personnel Act, establishes the Emergency Medical Services Authority, which is responsible for the coordination and integration of all state agencies concerning emergency medical services. Among other duties, the authority is required to develop planning and implementation guidelines for emergency medical services systems, provide technical assistance to existing agencies, counties, and cities for the purpose of developing the components of emergency medical services systems, and receive plans for the implementation of emergency medical services and trauma care systems from local EMS agencies. The act also authorizes each county to develop an emergency medical services program and requires local EMS agencies to plan, implement, and evaluate an emergency medical services system. Existing law requires local EMS agencies to be responsible for the implementation of advanced life support systems, limited advanced life support systems, and for the monitoring of specified training programs for emergency personnel. Existing law defines advanced life support as special services designed to provide definitive prehospital emergency medical care, as specified, at the scene of an emergency, during transport to an acute care hospital, during interfacility transfer, and while in the emergency department of an acute care hospital until responsibility is assumed by that hospital. Existing law makes it a crime to violate the act, or the rules or regulations adopted under the act. This bill would authorize a local emergency medical services agency to submit, as part of its emergency medical services plan, a plan to transport specified patients who meet triage criteria to a behavioral health facility or a sobering center, as defined. The bill would make conforming changes to the definition of advanced life support to include prehospital emergency care provided during transport to a behavioral health facility or a sobering center. The bill would authorize a city, county, or city and county to designate, and contract with, a sobering center to receive patients, and would establish standards that apply to sobering centers, as specified. This bill would also require the authority to adopt guidelines for the triage criteria and assessment procedures by July 1, 2020, and would require the authority to annually analyze the administration of the local plans and to issue certain reports, as specified. By expanding an existing crime, 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 no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

Existing law, the Uniform Anatomical Gift Act, authorizes the making of a donation of all or part of a human body or a pacemaker to take effect upon or after death, as specified. Existing law also requires each general acute care hospital to develop a protocol for identifying potential organ and tissue donors. 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. Existing law required the State Department of Health Services to consult with the Legislature, on or before December 31, 1991, to evaluate and make recommendations to improve the effectiveness of organ transplantation for the general public and in minority communities and low-income communities in California, as specified. This bill would require the State Department of Public Health to convene a working group to evaluate ways to provide organ transplants to uninsured or undocumented residents of the state who are ineligible for organ transplants due to financial hardship. The bill would require the working group to submit its findings and recommendations to the Legislature on or before January 1, 2020, as specified. The bill would require the working group to be comprised of representatives from certain entities, including, among others, community-based immigrant rights and health organizations. The bill would require the working group to evaluate relevant data, including, but not limited to, the number of organ donors who are undocumented residents of the state and the percentage of organ transplant recipients who are medically insured. The bill would repeal these provisions on January 1, 2020. The bill would make legislative findings and declarations in support of its provisions.

Existing law establishes a system of public elementary and secondary schools in this state and authorizes local educational agencies throughout the state to operate schools and provide instruction to pupils in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive. Existing law establishes in the State Department of Education a division known as the California State Library. This bill would create the California Student Author Project as a grant program for the benefit of public school pupils from extremely low-income communities. The bill would appropriate $1,000,000 from the General Fund to the California State Library in the 2018–19 fiscal year for purposes of providing grant awards to nonprofit organizations for purposes of the program, as specified. The bill would require a grant recipient, during the 2019–20 and 2020–21 school years, to establish a pupil author book publishing program for public school pupils in grades 6 to 12, inclusive, from a housing development operated under a city or county public housing program that is subsidized by the federal government and provides affordable housing. The bill would require a grant recipient to provide the participating public school pupils an opportunity to write, edit, and promote a short story, and would require a grant recipient to operate weekly pupil author workshops, as provided. The bill would require the California State Library, not later than January 1, 2022, to report to the Legislature on the outcomes of the California Student Author Project.

This measure would declare the support of the Legislature for the expansion of sensory-friendly movie screenings and similar programs for people with autism, and would encourage families to attend a sensory-friendly movie screening during April 2018, which is National Autism Awareness Month.

This measure would, among other things, designate the year 2018 as "State of California Year of Commemoration of the Anniversary of the Armenian Genocide of 1915–1923," would designate April 24, 2018, as "State of California Day of Commemoration of the 103rd Anniversary of the Armenian Genocide of 1915–1923," and would call upon the President of the United States and the United States Congress to formally and consistently reaffirm the historical truth that the atrocities committed against the Armenian people constituted genocide.

This measure would proclaim April 16, 2018, as California Holocaust Memorial Day and would urge all Californians to observe this day of remembrance for the victims of the Holocaust in an appropriate manner.