Asm. Avelino Valencia

Existing law requires the Governor to appoint every office whose mode of appointment is not prescribed by law. Existing law also prescribes the manner of the Governor's appointment of those officers. This bill would require the office of the Governor, commencing January 1, 2025, to maintain on its internet website a list of every state board and commission that includes, for each state board or commission, the membership list, stated purpose, duties, meeting frequency, internet website, and vacancies in the membership. The bill would require the office of the Governor, on or before January 1, 2026, and annually thereafter, to create and publish on its internet website a report containing aggregate demographic information of appointments made by the office during the prior calendar year, as specified.

Existing law establishes various requirements for ex parte communication between the Public Utilities Commission and interested parties for ratesetting cases and catastrophic wildfire proceedings and, among other things, authorizes the commission, by order or rule, to prohibit ex parte communications. Existing law authorizes written ex parte communications by an interested person to be permitted in ratesetting cases and catastrophic wildfire proceedings if copies of the communication are transmitted to all parties on the same day as the original communication, and requires the commission to establish a quiet period during the 3 business days before the commission's scheduled vote on a decision in ratesetting cases and catastrophic wildfire proceedings, during which oral and written ex parte communications are prohibited. This bill would authorize the commission, by order or rule, to prohibit oral ex parte communications, rather than all ex parte communications, in ratesetting cases and catastrophic wildfire proceedings. The bill would expressly authorize a written ex parte communication to occur at any time before the 3 business days before the commission's scheduled vote on a decision without restriction during ratesetting cases and catastrophic wildfire proceedings if copies of the communication are transmitted to all parties on the same day as the original communication. The bill would delete the prohibition on written ex parte communications during the quiet periods of ratesetting cases and catastrophic wildfire proceedings, and would instead authorize an interested person to submit a written ex parte communication during the 3 business days before the commission's scheduled vote on a proposed decision in a ratesetting case or catastrophic wildfire proceeding if the commission materially modifies the proposed decision during that time period, as specified.

Existing law requires the governing board of each school district to hold a public hearing on the proposed budget of the school district in a school district facility, or some other place conveniently accessible to the residents of the school district, as specified. Existing law requires notification of the dates and location or locations at which the proposed budget may be inspected by the public, and the date, time, and location of the public hearing on the proposed budget, to be published by the county superintendent of schools in a newspaper of general circulation in the school district or, if there is no newspaper of general circulation in the school district, in any newspaper of general circulation in the county, at least 3 days before the availability of the proposed budget for public inspection. This bill, on January 1, 2027, would repeal the requirement to publish that information in a newspaper of general circulation and instead require the information to be posted prominently on the homepage of the internet website of the school district at least 3 days before the availability of the proposed budget for public inspection. The bill would require each county superintendent of schools to verify the posting or publishing requirement, as applicable, is met for all school districts in their jurisdiction. By imposing additional duties on local educational agency officials, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would require the State Department of Education to select 3 school districts that agree to provide information to the department regarding how the school district communicates with the school community within the school district, as provided. The bill would require the participating school districts to provide specified information to the department on or before December 31, 2024, on or before December 31, 2025, and on or before December 31, 2026. 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 California State University, under the administration of the Trustees of the California State University, as one of the segments of public postsecondary education in this state. The California State University comprises 23 institutions of higher education located throughout the state. The California Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act of 2001 requires all agencies and museums, which is defined to include higher education institutions, that receive state funding and have possession or control over collections of California Native American human remains and associated funerary objects to inventory those remains and objects for repatriation to the appropriate California Indian tribes, as specified. This bill would require the California State University to comply with various requirements regarding the handling, maintenance, and repatriation of Native American human remains and cultural items under the California Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act of 2001, including adopting and implementing systemwide policies that, among other things, prohibit the use of any Native American human remains or cultural items for purposes of teaching or research at the California State University while in the possession of a California State University campus or museum. The bill would make its provisions severable.

Existing law authorizes specified state departments and authorities, upon determination that an advance payment is essential for the effective implementation of a program, to advance to a community-based private nonprofit agency with which it has contracted for the delivery of services funds not exceeding 25% of the annual allocation to be made to the agency during the fiscal year. Existing law also establishes a pilot program, which is repealed on July 1, 2025, to explore possible improvements to the state's existing advance payment practices for state-funded assistance grants. Existing law authorizes an administering state agency of a grant program to advance a payment to a recipient entity, which means a local agency or a nongovernmental entity that is awarded a grant by an administering state agency and with whom the administering state agency has entered into a contract pursuant to that grant, in accordance with specified procedures. These procedures include stipulating an advance payment structure and request process within the grant agreement or contract and ensuring that the advance payment to the recipient entity does not exceed 25% of the total grant amount awarded to the recipient entity, except in specified circumstances. Existing law establishing the pilot program further authorizes an administering state agency to advance payment to a recipient state agency awarded a grant in accordance with specified procedures, including stipulating an advance payment structure and request process within the grant agreement or contract between the state agency administering the program and the recipient state agency and requiring the recipient state agency to provide an itemized budget, spending timeline, and workplan. This bill would declare the intent of the Legislature to improve and expand the state's existing advance payment practices for state grants and contracts with nonprofits. The bill would authorize an administering state agency to advance a payment to a recipient entity, defined to mean a private, nonprofit organization qualified under federal law, subject to meeting specified requirements. The bill would require the administering state agency to prioritize recipient entities and projects serving disadvantaged, low-income, and under-resourced communities, and to ensure an advance payment to the recipient entity does not exceed 25% of the total grant or contract amount. The bill would require the recipient entity to satisfy certain minimum requirements, including providing an itemized budget and submitting documentation, as required by the administering state agency, to support the need for advance payment. The bill would require the Department of Finance or its designee to audit a state agency subject to these provisions or any recipient or subrecipient that received an advance payment.

Existing law, the State Aeronautics Act, governs various matters relative to aviation in the state, and authorizes the Department of Transportation to adopt, administer, and enforce rules and regulations for the administration of the act. This bill would require the department to establish an advisory panel, to be known as the Advanced Air Mobility, Zero-Emission, and Electrification Aviation Advisory Panel, to assess the feasibility and readiness of existing infrastructure, the development of a 3-year prioritized workplan, and pathways for promoting equity of access to advanced air mobility infrastructure, as specified. The bill would provide for the appointment of the membership of the advisory panel. The bill would require the department to report, not later than January 1, 2025, to the Legislature on the infrastructure feasibility and readiness study and the 3-year prioritized workplan, as specified. The bill would exempt meetings of the advisory panel from the Bagley-Keene Open Meeting Act. The bill would repeal these provisions on January 1, 2026. 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.

Existing law, the Medical Practice Act, establishes the Medical Board of California within the Department of Consumer Affairs and sets forth its powers and duties relating to the licensure and regulation of physicians and surgeons. Existing law requires the board to adopt and administer standards for the continuing education of physicians and surgeons. Existing law provides that these standards may be met by educational activities that serve to maintain, develop, or increase the knowledge, skills, and professional performance that a physician and surgeon uses to provide care, or to improve the quality of care to patients, which may include educational activities that are designed to improve the physician-patient relationship. This bill would specify that these educational activities may also include activities that are designed to improve the quality of physician-patient communication. Existing law requires continuing education courses to contain curriculum that includes cultural and linguistic competency in the practice of medicine. Under existing law, associations that accredit continuing medical education courses are required to develop standards. Existing law authorizes the associations to update the standards, as needed, in conjunction with an advisory group that has expertise in cultural and linguistic competency issues. This bill would require the advisory group to be informed of federal and state threshold language requirements, as specified, and would require the authorized updates to be for the purpose of meeting the needs of California's changing demographics and properly addressing language disparities, as they emerge.

Existing law requires the board of supervisors, following a county's decision to elect its board using district-based elections or following each decennial federal census for a county whose board is already elected using district-based elections, by ordinance or resolution, to adjust the boundaries of all of the supervisorial districts of the county so that the districts are as nearly equal in population as possible and comply with applicable federal law, and specifies the procedures the board of supervisors must follow in adjusting those boundaries. Existing law establishes the Citizens Redistricting Commission in the County of Riverside and the Citizens Redistricting Commission in the County of Fresno, which are charged with adjusting the supervisorial district boundaries for their respective counties. This bill would establish the Citizens Redistricting Commission in the County of Orange, which would be charged with adjusting the boundary lines of the districts of the Board of Supervisors of the County of Orange in accordance with specified criteria. The commission would consist of 14 voting members and 2 nonvoting, alternate members who meet specified qualifications. The bill would require each commission member to attend all public hearings and meetings of the commission, except as specified, and would create specified procedures by which the commission may remove a member for substantial neglect of duty, gross misconduct of office, inability to discharge the duties of the office, or if it is later discovered that the commission member did not meet the required qualifications at the time of appointment or no longer meets those qualifications while serving on the commission. The bill would provide that if the commission is unable to act because it does not have nine voting members to constitute a quorum, then the Auditor-Controller of the County of Orange and the commission must fill the vacancies to bring the commission to nine voting members, as specified. By increasing the duties on local officials, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. If Assembly Bill 1248 of the 2023–24 Regular Session is enacted and takes effect on or before January 1, 2024, this bill would provide that the provisions of AB 1248 do not apply to the Citizens Redistricting Commission in the County of Orange, which instead would be governed by the provisions of this bill. If Assembly Bill 764 of the 2023–24 Regular Session is enacted and takes effect on or before January 1, 2024, this bill would make conforming changes as specified. This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the unique circumstances facing the County of Orange. 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 generally regulates the business of insurance in the state, including the conduct of insurance licensees. Existing law requires a specified licensee to include their license number in an email that involves an activity for which a license is required. Existing law requires the license number of an organizational licensee in an email to be included adjacent to or on the line below the organization's name. This bill, instead, would require the license number of an organizational licensee to appear adjacent to or on the line below the organization's name if the email is sent from the organization and not an individual licensee, and the communication involves an activity for which a license is required.