Existing law provides state financing for construction of county jails, subject to matching funds from counties, as specified. Existing law requires the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and the Corrections Standards Authority to give funding preference for those purposes to counties that assist the state in siting reentry facilities, as specified. This bill would require the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and the Corrections Standards Authority to give coequal funding preference to counties that assist the state in either siting reentry facilities or providing existing beds and program space in county jails for use as reentry facilities. The bill would provide that a county interested in providing reentry services to state inmates shall be required to enter into a long-term agreement with the department to provide those services and that the department shall certify that the proposed reentry services meet its approval.
Sponsored bills
Under existing law, the Office of Gang and Youth Violence Policy, which is in the Governor's Office of Emergency Services, is responsible for identifying and evaluating gang and youth violence programs and strategies, along with funding for those efforts. The Director of the Office of Gang and Youth Violence Policy is responsible for monitoring, assessing, and coordinating the state's gang and youth violence programs, as specified. This bill would require the director, subject to statutory limits and directives, to make recommendations to streamline existing state agency gang and youth violence grant programs with a goal toward giving priority to grant programs that employ evidence-based practices. It would require the director to create a working group consisting of representatives of state offices and representatives of other specified stakeholders to assist in this effort, with the director serving as the chairperson. The bill would require the working group to advise the office on the task of streamlining grant programs that address gang and youth violence, in accordance with certain procedures. The working group would be responsible for making recommendations to streamline existing state agency gang and youth violence grant programs, including recommending procedures and requirements for state agencies and departments administering grant programs to provide incentives for grant recipients to implement evidence-based practices. The bill would require the Office of Gang and Youth Violence Policy to report the findings of the working group to the Legislature and the Governor by June 1, 2010.
Existing law relating to the administration of personal income taxes authorizes individual taxpayers to contribute amounts in excess of their tax liability for the support of specified funds or accounts. This bill would allow individual taxpayers to designate on their tax returns, that a specified amount in excess of their tax liability be transferred to the Safely Surrendered Baby Fund, which would be created by this bill. This bill would provide that all moneys contributed to the fund, upon appropriation by the Legislature, be allocated to the Franchise Tax Board and the Controller for reimbursement of costs, as provided, and to the State Department of Social Services for programs to increase public awareness and outreach regarding the Safely Surrendered Baby Law, as specified. This bill would provide that these voluntary contribution provisions are repealed on either January 1 of the 5th taxable year following the taxable year the fund first appears on the personal income tax return or on January 1 of an earlier calendar year, if the Franchise Tax Board estimates that the annual contribution amount will be less than $250,000, or an adjusted amount, as specified, for subsequent taxable years.
Existing law establishes a motor vehicle inspection and maintenance (smog check) program, developed, implemented, and administered by the Department of Consumer Affairs. The duty of enforcing and administering the program is vested in the Chief of the Bureau of Automotive Repair within the department. Existing law provides for a repair assistance program available to an individual whose maximum income level is 185% of the federal poverty level, or 225% of the federal poverty level if a certain determination is made, and who is the owner of a motor vehicle that has failed a smog check inspection or received a notice to correct, or an individual who has failed a smog check inspection and is directed to a test-only facility. This bill would make the repair assistance program available only to low-income individuals whose income does not exceed 225% of the federal poverty level, as specified. The bill would make other conforming changes, and delete obsolete provisions of law.
The federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) , provides $4.3 billion for the State Incentive Grant Fund (Race to the Top Fund) , which is a competitive grant program designed to encourage and reward states that are implementing specified educational reforms in 4 specified areas: (1) achieving equity in teacher distribution, (2) improving collection and use of data, (3) implementing standards and assessments, and (4) supporting struggling schools. The ARRA requires a Governor to apply on behalf of a state seeking a Race to the Top grant, and requires the application to include specified information. The federal Secretary of Education has issued proposed regulations for the Race to the Top Fund. This bill would require the Governor, the Superintendent of Public Instruction, and the President of the State Board of Education to ensure that California's application for a grant under the Race to the Top Fund includes specified provisions, including, among others, a limit on the amount of grant funds that may be used for expenditures that occur at the State Department of Education and county offices of education, and for administrative costs of local educational agencies. The bill would require the application to include the 4 core elements identified in the Multiple Pathways approach to school reform, as specified. The bill would require participating local educational agencies, no later than January 1, 2011, to have their governing bodies approve an alternative performance-based incentive compensation package for certificated staff and school administrators, as specified. The bill would require the application to include provisions for the closure of failing schools, beginning in July 2012, and to include a commitment from the State Department of Education to have proposed a new, transparent process for funding California pupils based on a weighted formula. The bill would require the application to include provisions to redesign statewide tests, as specified.
Existing law establishes the Public School Performance Accountability Program, which consists of the state Academic Performance Index, the Immediate Intervention/Underperforming Schools Program, and the Governor's High Achieving/Improving Schools Program. This bill, on or before August 1, 2010, would require the State Board of Education to adopt a measure of annual academic achievement growth by cohort that can identify various performance levels of growth, to be incorporated into the Public School Performance Accountability Program, and be consistent with applicable provisions, or approved waivers of the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as specified.
Existing law, with certain exceptions, requires each person who diverts water after December 31, 1965, to file with the State Water Resources Control Board a prescribed statement of diversion and use. Existing law requires a statement to include specified information, including, on and after January 1, 2012, monthly records of water diversions. Under existing law, the monthly record requirement does not apply to a surface water diversion with a combined diversion capacity from a natural channel that is less than 50 cubic feet per second or to diverters using siphons in the tidal zone. Existing law subjects a person who makes a material misstatement in connection with the filing of the diversion and use statements to administratively imposed civil penalties in the amount of $500 for each violation. This bill would revise the types of water diversions for which the reporting requirement does not apply, including, among other diversions, a diversion that occurs before January 1, 2009, if certain requirements are met. The bill would delete exceptions to the monthly record requirement, and revise requirements relating to the contents of the statement of diversion and use. The bill would subject a person to civil liability if that person fails to file, as required, a diversion and use statement for a diversion or use that occurs after January 1, 2009, tampers with any measuring device, or makes a material misstatement in connection with the filing of a diversion and use statement. The board would be authorized to impose the civil liability in accordance with a specified schedule. The bill would authorize the board and the Department of Water Resources to adopt emergency regulations for the filing of reports of water diversion or use that are required to be filed by those respective state agencies under specified statutory provisions. The bill would make additional conforming changes and would set forth related legislative findings and declarations.
(1) The Enterprise Zone Act provides for the designation of enterprise zones by the Department of Community Housing and Development, based on the department's approval of applications from a city, county, or city and county with a geographic area meeting certain criteria. Certain entities within a designated enterprise zone may receive regulatory, tax, and other incentives for private investment and employment. Existing law provides that no more than 42 enterprise zones be designated at any one time pursuant to the act. Upon the expiration or termination of a designation, existing law authorizes the department to designate another enterprise zone to maintain a total of 42 enterprise zones. This bill would authorize the department to designate one special enterprise zone within the City of Fremont consisting of a geographical area encompassing a facility that manufactures automobiles and to designate, until January 1, 2010, an additional 10 special enterprise zones limited to one nonrenewable 15-year term. The bill would exclude these enterprise zones from the calculation of the overall number of enterprise zones authorized under the act. The bill would also make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute. (2) The California Alternative Energy and Advanced Transportation Financing Authority Act established the California Alternative Energy and Advanced Transportation Financing Authority. The authority is authorized to do all things necessary and convenient to carry out the purposes of the act. The authority is also required to establish a renewable energy program to provide financial assistance, as defined, to certain entities for projects to generate new and renewable energy sources, develop clean and efficient distributed generation, and demonstrate the economic feasibility of new technologies. Existing law provides that the transfer of title of tangible personal property constituting a project under the act to the authority by a participating party or the lease or transfer of tangible personal property constituting a project under the act by the authority to a participating party pursuant to the act is not a "sale" or "purchase" for the purposes of the Sales and Use Tax Law. This bill would include as a project, machinery, or equipment that is utilized for the design, technology transfer, manufacture, production, assembly, distribution, or service of an alternative source component. The bill would include as "financial assistance" for the purposes of the act purchases, sales, or lease arrangements that qualify for exclusion from the Sales and Use Tax Law. The bill would require the authority to consider specified criteria in approving a project for which the purchase, sale, or lease of tangible personal property qualifies for the sales and use tax exclusion. The bill would require, when the sales and use tax exclusion for projects approved by the authority exceed $100,000,000 annually, the authority to provide a 20-day notice to the Legislature for additional project approval. (3) The California Constitution authorizes the Governor to declare a fiscal emergency and to call the Legislature into special session for that purpose. The Governor issued a proclamation declaring a fiscal emergency, and calling a special session for this purpose, on December 19, 2008. This bill would state that it addresses the fiscal emergency declared by the Governor by proclamation issued on December 19, 2008, pursuant to the California Constitution.
(1) The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of, an environmental impact report on a project that it proposes to carry out or approve that may have a significant effect on the environment, as defined, or to adopt a negative declaration if it finds that the project will not have that effect, unless the project is exempt from the act. CEQA provides for various exemptions from its requirements. Existing law requires cities and counties to prepare, adopt, and amend general plans containing specified elements. This bill would exempt from CEQA any activity or approval, necessary or incidental to, the development, planning, design, site acquisition, subdivision, financing, leasing, construction, operation, or maintenance of a stadium complex and associated development included in the same project or approval together with any accessory roadway, utility, or other infrastructure improvement to that stadium complex and associated development, for which an application for the project or approval was submitted on or before January 31, 2009, to the City of Industry, if specified requirements are met. The bill would require the city to require the stadium complex and associated development to comply with those mitigation measures that are contained in a mitigation monitoring and reporting program that is adopted by the City of Industry in connection with the stadium complex and associated development. Because a lead agency would be required to determine the applicability of the exemption, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill also would exempt from any legal requirement concerning the content of a general plan or consistency with a general plan, and prohibit those requirements from resulting in the invalidation of, the city's approval of, and decisions regarding, specified actions taken with respect to the stadium complex and associated development included in the same project or approval and any accessory improvements to that stadium complex and associated development. The bill additionally would provide that a consistency determination is not required by the city for any decision with respect to those actions. (2) The bill would have retroactive application. (3) 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. (4) The California Constitution authorizes the Governor to declare a fiscal emergency and to call the Legislature into special session for that purpose. The Governor issued a proclamation declaring a fiscal emergency, and calling a special session for this purpose, on December 19, 2008. This bill would state that it addresses the fiscal emergency declared by the Governor by proclamation issued on December 19, 2008, pursuant to the California Constitution.
Existing law requires a mortgage guaranty insurer to maintain a policyholders surplus at all times in an amount not less than that determined pursuant to specified provisions, and defines "face amount of an insured mortgage" for these purposes. Existing law requires a mortgage guaranty insurer to cease new business if the insurer does not have the amount of policyholders surplus required, as specified. This bill would revise the definition of "face amount of an insured mortgage" to exclude the outstanding principal balance of any loan that is in default and for which the insurer has established a loss reserve, as specified. The bill would provide that if a mortgage guaranty insurer will not have the amount of policyholders surplus required, it shall cease transacting new business, as specified, until its policyholders surplus is in compliance. The bill requires that the insurer notify the commissioner at least 60 days prior to the time the policyholders surplus is estimated to fall below the amount required and may at that time request a waiver of the requirements. If the commissioner fails to issue an order in response to the waiver request within 60 days, the insurer may continue transacting new business in California until the commissioner issues an order. The insurer would bear the commissioner's cost of retaining consultants reasonably necessary to evaluate the waiver request, and reimburse the commissioner for the cost of a hearing held, as specified.