Asm. Jim Silva

Existing law, the Administrative Procedure Act, governs the procedure for the adoption, amendment, or repeal of regulations by state agencies and for the review of those regulatory actions by the Office of Administrative Law. This bill would require an agency to mail a notice of proposed action to adopt, amend, or repeal a regulation to local government agencies or local government agency representatives that the agency believes may be interested in, or impacted by, the proposed action, as prescribed. This bill would require the office, for purposes of this notice, to create, maintain, and make available to a requesting agency, a notification list of local government agency representatives, as prescribed.

This measure would congratulate and commend the Boy Scouts of America on their 100th anniversary and centennial celebration, and recognize the achievements and impacts the scouting program has had on youth.

Existing law, the Nonprofit Mutual Benefit Corporation Law, authorizes formation of a corporation under the Nonprofit Mutual Benefit Corporation Law for any lawful purpose, except if all the corporation's assets are irrevocably dedicated to charitable, religious, or public purposes, as specified. This bill would make a nonsubstantive change to these provisions.

The County Employees Retirement Law of 1937 authorizes counties and districts to provide retirement benefits to their employees. This bill would authorize the board of supervisors of Orange County to establish an optional SMART retirement plan for its general members under an executed memorandum of understanding with employee representatives, if the board of supervisors, by a majority vote, adopts a resolution providing that the provisions of this bill shall be applicable. This bill would not require members to make contributions to the SMART retirement plan.

The California Public Records Act requires state and local agencies to make their records available for public inspection and to make copies available upon request and payment of a fee unless those records are exempt from disclosure. This bill would require specified entities to comply with the act, but would not require these entities to disclose information obtained in the process of soliciting potential donors that has actual or potential independent economic value because it is not generally known to the public or because the individuals can obtain economic value from its disclosure or use. This bill would specify that it is not the intent of the Legislature to designate specified organizations as state agencies by subjecting these organizations to the requirements of the act. The bill would exempt from disclosure under the act the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of persons who volunteer services or donate to specified entities if those persons request anonymity. However, the bill would provide that this exemption does not apply if a volunteer or donor meets specified conditions. This bill would also provide that it is the intent of the Legislature to reject the court's interpretation of state law regarding the application of the act to auxiliary organizations, such as the CSU Fresno Association, at issue in California State University, Fresno Assn., Inc. v. Superior Court (2001) 90 Cal.App.4th 810.

This measure would recognize the week of April 18, 2010, through April 24, 2010, as Crime Victims' Rights Week.

California income tax laws generally provide that taxes may be assessed up to 4 years after the information or return required by the taxpayer is provided to the Franchise Tax Board, including a 4-year statute of limitations for the assessment of taxes with regard to information required to be provided to the Franchise Tax Board by foreign-owned corporations. This bill would make a nonsubstantive change to this provision.

(1) The Administrative Procedure Act generally sets forth the requirements for the adoption, publication, review, and implementation of regulations by state agencies. An agency that is considering adopting, amending, or repealing a regulation is authorized to consult with interested persons before initiating regulatory action, and requires an agency to do so when the regulation involves complex or numerous proposals. This bill would require the agency, if it does not, or is unable to, consult with these parties to inform in writing the Office of Small Business Advocate and the Department of Finance of its decision and the reasons for not consulting the impacted businesses. (2) The act requires every state agency subject to the act to submit, with the notice of the proposed adoption, amendment, or repeal of a regulation, an initial statement of reasons for proposing the adoption, amendment, or repeal of a regulation, which is required to include, among other things, a description of any reasonable alternatives that would lessen any adverse impact on small business and the agency's reasons for rejecting those reasonable alternatives. The act specifies the agency is not required, in this initial statement, to artificially construct alternatives, describe unreasonable alternatives, or justify why it has not described alternatives. This bill would require the agency to describe the agency's reasons for rejecting each specific alternative, and would delete the specification that an agency is not required to artificially construct alternatives, describe unreasonable alternatives, or justify why it has not described alternatives. (3) The act requires a state agency to assess the potential of a proposal to adopt, amend, or repeal a regulation to adversely affect business enterprises and individuals. This bill would also require an agency to submit an economic impact statement that makes that assessment and would also require an agency, before submitting a proposal, to prepare a small business economic impact statement that contains specified information. (4) Under the act, the agency must issue a notice of proposed action that includes prescribed information, including, if a state agency makes an initial determination that the adoption, amendment, or repeal of a regulation will not have a significant statewide adverse economic impact directly affecting business, a declaration of that determination. This bill would delete that requirement and instead require, if an agency declares that it is not aware of any cost impact, that the notice of proposed action include a statement describing how a private person or business could comply with the proposed regulation without incurring a cost. This bill would also require that the notice of proposed action include the small business economic impact statement that this bill requires an agency to prepare. (5) The act also requires the Department of Finance to adopt and update, as necessary, instructions for inclusion in the State Administrative Manual prescribing the methods that any agency is required to use in making the determinations relating to mandates on local agencies or school districts, as specified. This bill would also require the Department of Finance to adopt and update, as necessary, instructions prescribing the methods that any agency is required to use in making the determinations relating to significant, statewide adverse economic impacts directly affecting business, as specified. (6) The act requires the Office of Administrative Law to review and approve regulations that are adopted, amended, or repealed, using prescribed standards. The act requires that the office reject a proposed regulation in specified circumstances. This bill would require that the office reject a proposed regulation if the adopting agency does not provide specified information relating to the small business economic impact statement. (7) The act authorizes any interested person to obtain a judicial declaration as to the validity of specified regulations or orders of repeal, by bringing an action for declaratory relief in the superior court in accordance with the Code of Civil Procedure. This bill would specify that an interested person includes, but is not limited to, a small business or an organization or trade association that represents small businesses and whose members are affected by the regulation. (8) The bill would also make conforming changes to the act.

(1) Existing law authorizes a county board of supervisors to provide by ordinance for the reassessment of property that is damaged or destroyed, without fault on the part of the assessee, by a major misfortune or calamity, upon the application of the assessee or upon the action of the county assessor with the board's approval. With respect to certain counties that have adopted reassessment ordinances and have been declared by the Governor to be in a state of emergency as a result of certain events, existing law provides for state allocations of the estimated amounts of the reductions in property tax revenues resulting in certain fiscal years from reassessments under those ordinances. Existing law also continuously appropriates, without regard to fiscal years, moneys in the Special Fund for Economic Uncertainties for purposes of funding these state allocations. This bill would provide for similar state allocations with respect to property tax revenue reductions resulting from a reassessment for damages incurred within the Counties of Orange, Riverside, and San Bernardino, which were declared by the Governor to be in a state of emergency due to the wildfires that commenced in November 2008. By requiring moneys continuously appropriated from the Special Fund for Economic Uncertainties to be allocated for the new purpose of reimbursing the Counties of Orange, Riverside, and San Bernardino for these property tax revenue reductions, this bill would make an appropriation. (2) Existing property tax law provides, pursuant to a specified provision of the California Constitution, for a homeowners' property tax exemption in the amount of $7,000 of the full value of a "dwelling," as defined. This bill would also provide that any dwelling that qualified for the exemption prior to the commencement dates of the wildfires listed in the Governor's disaster proclamations of November 15, 2008, and November 17, 2008, that was damaged or destroyed by the wildfires in the Counties of Orange and Riverside, as declared by the Governor in November 2008, and that has not changed ownership since the commencement dates of these disasters as listed in the proclamations, may not be denied the exemption solely on the basis that the dwelling was temporarily damaged or destroyed or was being reconstructed by the owner, or was temporarily uninhabited as a result of restricted access to the property due to wildfires. The California Constitution requires the Legislature, in each fiscal year, to reimburse local governments for the revenue losses incurred by those governments in that fiscal year as a result of the homeowners' property tax exemption. This bill would state the intent of the Legislature to make this required reimbursement in the annual Budget Act. By requiring local tax officials to implement new exemption criteria, 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 these statutory provisions. (3) The Personal Income Tax Law and the Corporation Tax Law provide for the carryover to specified taxable years of specified losses sustained as a result of certain disasters occurring in California in an area determined by the President of the United States to warrant specified federal assistance, or proclaimed by the Governor to be in a state of emergency. This bill would extend these provisions to losses sustained in the Counties of Orange, Riverside, and San Bernardino as a result of the wildfires that commenced in November 2008. This bill would authorize a taxpayer to make an election to claim a deduction for those losses on the tax return for the preceding year. (4) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

This measure would proclaim the month of May to be Women Veterans Recognition Month.