Asm. Sharon Quirk-Silva

Under existing law, the administering agency for the California Disabled Veteran Business Enterprise Program is the Department of General Services, except in the case of contracts for professional bond services. Existing law requires the Director of General Services to adopt written policies and guidelines establishing a uniform process for state contracting to provide a disabled veteran business enterprise (DVBE) participation incentive to bidders, which all state agencies are required to use when awarding contracts. Existing law requires the Department of Veterans Affairs to perform designated activities in connection with the California Disabled Veteran Business Enterprise Program, including maintaining complete records of its promotional efforts, and tracking the effectiveness of its efforts to promote the program with periodic surveys of newly certified DVBEs to determine specified information about the DVBE's experience with the program. This bill would require the records of the department's promotional efforts to include specified information about the business attending or participating in those promotional efforts. The bill would delete the periodic survey requirement and instead would require the department to compare a list of businesses that participate in promotional efforts with a list of those businesses that become newly certified DVBEs, and those that become prime contractors or subcontractors with the state. Existing law requires an awarding department, upon completion of an awarded contract for which a commitment to achieve a DVBE goal was made, to require the prime contractor that entered into a subcontract with a DVBE to certify to the awarding department specified information relating to amounts paid under the contract, as specified. This bill would require an awarding department to maintain all records of the information provided by the prime contractor pursuant to those provisions and to retain the records for a minimum of 6 years after collection. The bill would establish appropriate review procedures for those records to ensure the accuracy and completeness of the award amounts and paid amounts reported.

(1) Existing law requires the governing board of a school district, and the governing board of a community college district, to provide for a leave of absence from duty for a certificated employee, or an academic employee, of the district who is required to be absent from duties because of pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, and recovery therefrom. Existing law, the Charter Schools Act of 1992, provides for the establishment and operation of charter schools, and exempts charter schools from the laws governing school districts, except as specified. This bill would require the governing board of a school district, the governing body of a charter school, and the governing board of a community college district to provide at least 6 weeks of a leave of absence with full pay for a certificated employee, or an academic employee, of the district or charter school who is required to be absent from duties because of pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, and recovery therefrom. The bill would authorize the paid leave to begin before and continue after childbirth, provided that the employee is actually disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, or a related condition. (2) Existing law authorizes the governing board of a school district, and the governing board of a community college district, to provide for such leave of absence from duty as it deems appropriate for a female employee in the classified service of the district who is required to absent herself from her duties because of pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, and recovery therefrom. Existing law authorizes the governing board of a school district, and the governing board of a community college district, to adopt rules and regulations prescribing the manner of proof of pregnancy, the time during pregnancy at which the leave of absence shall be taken, and the length of time for which the leave of absence shall continue after birth of the child. Existing law also authorizes the governing board of a school district, and the governing board of a community college district, to provide in the rules and regulations whether the leave granted shall be with or without pay, as provided. This bill would instead require the governing board of a school district, the governing body of a charter school, and the governing board of a community college district to provide for such leave of absence from duty as it deems appropriate for a female employee in the classified service of the district or charter school who is required to absent herself from her duties because of pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, and recovery therefrom. The bill would require the governing board of a school district, the governing body of a charter school, and the governing board of a community college district to adopt rules and regulations prescribing the manner of proof of pregnancy and the duration of the leave of absence, provided that at least 6 weeks of the leave of absence shall be with full pay. The bill would also require the governing board of a school district, the governing body of a charter school, and the governing board of a community college district to provide in the rules and regulations that at least 6 weeks of the leave granted shall be with full pay. (3) This bill would prohibit these provisions from diminishing the right of an employee of a school district, charter school, or community college district to take, or be compensated during, other leaves of absence, as provided. (4) This bill would also make various nonsubstantive changes to these provisions.

The Government Claims Act governs the liability and immunity of public entities and their officers and employees, claims and actions against public entities and their officers and employees, insurance indemnification, and the defense of public officers and employees. This bill would express the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation that would require an elected official to reimburse a public entity that pays any compromise or settlement of a claim or action involving conduct that constitutes sexual harassment, if an investigation reveals evidence supporting the claim of sexual harassment against the elected official.

This measure would recognize August 6, 2017, as the 52nd anniversary of the signing of the federal Voting Rights Act of 1965.

This measure would proclaim the period of October 23, 2017, to October 31, 2017, inclusive, as Red Ribbon Week and would encourage all Californians to help build drug-free communities and to participate in drug prevention activities.

Existing law, the California Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, establishes the California Workforce Development Board as the body responsible for assisting the Governor in the development, oversight, and continuous improvement of California's workforce investment system and the alignment of the education and workforce investment systems to the needs of the 21st century economy and workforce. That act requires the establishment of a local workforce development board in each local workforce development area of the state to, among other things, carry out analyses of the economic conditions in the local region. This bill would enact the Removing Barriers to Employment Act, which would establish the Breaking Barriers to Employment Initiative administered by the California Workforce Development Board. The bill would specify that the purpose of the initiative is to create a grant program to provide individuals with barriers to employment the services they need to enter, participate in, and complete broader workforce preparation, training, and education programs aligned with regional labor market needs. The bill would specify that people completing these programs should have the skills and competencies to successfully enter the labor market, retain employment, and earn wages that lead to self-sufficiency and economic security. The bill would require the board to develop criteria for the selection of grant recipients, as specified. The bill also would specify the criteria by which grants are required to be evaluated, the populations that are eligible to be served by grants, and the activities eligible for grant funding. The bill would make the funding of the initiative subject to an appropriation by the Legislature for that purpose and would make implementation of the initiative contingent on the board notifying the Department of Finance that sufficient moneys have been appropriated. The bill would create the Breaking Barriers to Employment Initiative Fund, as specified, in the State Treasury for the purpose of carrying out its provisions.

Existing law generally regulates formation and enforcement of contracts, including what constitutes an unlawful contract. Under existing law, a contract is unlawful if it is contrary to an express provision of law, contrary to the policy of express law, though not expressly prohibited, or otherwise contrary to good morals. Existing law, the Unruh Act, provides for the regulation of retail installment contracts, as defined. Existing law, the Karnette Rental-Purchase Act, provides for the regulation of rental-purchase agreements, as defined. Existing law regulates the sale of dogs and cats in this state, including provisions governing the retail sale of dogs and cats. This bill would declare a contract entered into on or after January 1, 2018, to transfer ownership of a dog or cat in which ownership is contingent upon the making of payments over a period of time subsequent to the transfer of possession of the dog or cat void as against public policy unless those payments are on an unsecured loan for the purchase of that animal. This bill would also declare a contract entered into on or after January 1, 2018, for the lease of a dog or cat that provides for or offers the option of transferring ownership of the dog or cat at the end of the lease term void as against public policy. The bill would require that the consumer taking possession of a dog or cat transferred under one of these contracts be deemed the owner of the dog or cat and be entitled to the return of all amounts paid under the contract.

Existing law establishes the California Community Colleges, under the administration of the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges, as one of the segments of public postsecondary education in this state. Existing law authorizes the establishment of community college districts under the administration of community college governing boards, and authorizes these districts to provide instruction at community college campuses throughout the state. Existing law requires community college district governing boards to charge students an enrollment fee of $46 per unit per semester. Existing law requires the board of governors to waive this fee for students meeting prescribed requirements. This bill would establish the California College Promise, to be administered by the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges, which shall distribute funding, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to each community college meeting prescribed requirements to be used to, among other things, accomplish specified policy goals and waive fees for one academic year for first-time students who are enrolled in 12 or more semester units or the equivalent at the college and complete and submit either a Free Application for Federal Student Aid or a California Dream Act application.

The Child Care and Development Services Act, administered by the State Department of Education, requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction to administer child care and development programs that offer a full range of services to eligible children from infancy to 13 years of age, inclusive. The act requires the department to contract with local contracting agencies to provide for alternative payment programs, and authorizes alternative payments to be made for child care services, as provided. The act requires child care providers authorized to provide services to submit to the alternative payment program a monthly attendance record or invoice for each child who received services, as provided. Existing law requires alternative payment programs to reimburse licensed child care providers in accordance with a biennial market rate survey, as provided. This bill would require, on or before July 1, 2019, an alternative payment program to establish a program of electronic banking for payments made to licensed or license-exempt child care providers that have a contract with that alternative payment program, as provided. The bill would require, commencing July 1, 2019, alternative payment programs to provide notice to a child care provider of any changes to service, as provided.

Existing law, until July 1, 2018, establishes the Doctor of Nursing Practice Degree Pilot Program, under which the California State University is authorized to establish a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree pilot program at 3 campuses to award Doctor of Nursing Practice degrees, subject to specified program and enrollment requirements. This bill would repeal those provisions and would authorize the California State University to establish Doctor of Nursing Practice degree programs that offer Doctor of Nursing Practice degrees, subject to specified program and enrollment requirements. The bill would require the California State University to provide initial funding from within existing budgets, as specified, and would express the Legislature's intent that the California State University seek private donations or other nonstate funds to fund startup costs for the programs.