Asm. Cottie Petrie-Norris

Existing law, the Economic Revitalization Act, establishes the Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development, also known as "GO-Biz," in state government within the Governor's office under the control of a director. The act requires GO-Biz to serve as the Governor's lead entity for economic strategy and the marketing of California on issues relating to business development, private sector investment, and economic growth. Existing law creates the Office of Small Business Advocate (the office) within GO-Biz to be led by the Small Business Advocate, who is appointed by, and serves at the pleasure of, the Governor. Existing law requires the Small Business Advocate to, among other things, counsel small businesses on how to resolve questions and problems concerning the relationship of small business to state government. Existing law requires the Small Business Advocate to prepare and submit a written annual report to the Governor and to the Legislature that describes the activities and recommendations of the office regarding small business development, as prescribed. This bill would enact the One-Stop Capital Shop Act of 2022, to require the office to serve as the lead state government entity for helping California small businesses become finance-ready relative to state programs utilizing certain federal funds. The bill would also require the office, on or before July 1, 2023, to launch a "one-stop capital shop" online platform to assist small businesses in accessing safe funding opportunities and to reduce barriers in access to affordable capital. The bill would require the one-stop capital shop platform to include certain elements, including a small business loan marketplace that allows small businesses and technical and financial assistance providers to access information on public and private loan products and credit enhancement opportunities. The bill would also require the office to include a summary of the activities it has undertaken pursuant to the bill in the report to the Legislature and the Governor described above.

Existing law, the California Uniform Controlled Substances Act, classifies controlled substances into 5 schedules and places the greatest restrictions and penalties on the use of those substances placed in Schedule I. The act classifies the drug fentanyl in Schedule II. Existing law prohibits a person from possessing for sale or purchasing for purposes of sale, specified controlled substances, including fentanyl, and provides for imprisonment in a county jail for 2, 3, or 4 years for a violation of this provision. Existing law also requires a local health officer to assume that the fentanyl manufacturing process has led to some degree of chemical contamination and take action, as prescribed, if a fentanyl laboratory activity has taken place at a property. This bill would establish the California Fentanyl Abuse Task Force to undertake various duties relating to fentanyl abuse including, among others, collecting and organizing data on the nature and extent of fentanyl abuse in California and evaluating approaches to increase public awareness of fentanyl abuse. The bill would require the task force to be chaired by the Attorney General, or their designee, and would specify the membership of the task force. The bill would require the first meeting of the task force to take place no later than March 1, 2023, and would require the task force to meet at least once every 2 months. The bill would require the task force to report its findings and recommendations to the Attorney General, the Governor, and the Legislature by July 1, 2024. The bill would repeal these provisions on January 1, 2025.

The Personal Income Tax Law and the Corporation Tax Law allow various credits against the taxes imposed by those laws. This bill, for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2023, and before January 1, 2028, would allow a credit against those taxes to a taxpayer that is transferred, and allocated, credits pursuant to the sale of a specified multifamily rental housing development to a qualified developer, that has received a credit reservation from the California Tax Credit Allocation Committee, in specified amounts. The bill would define a qualified developer for purposes of this bill, in part, as a specified entity that commits, at application to the committee and under penalty of perjury, to employing a tax credit reservation allowed by the bill in the acquisition of a qualified development. By expanding the crime of perjury, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would require the credits to be reserved on a first-come-first-served basis. The bill would limit the aggregate amount of credit that may be allocated by the committee, as provided. The bill would also provide that the credit amount shall be $0 for each taxable year beginning on or after January 1, 2023, and before January 1, 2028, unless otherwise specified in a bill providing for appropriations related to the Budget Act. Existing law requires that any bill introduced on or after January 1, 2020, that would authorize certain tax expenditures, as defined, or tax exemptions contain, among other things, specific goals, purposes, and objectives that the tax expenditure or exemption will achieve, detailed performance indicators, and data collection requirements. This bill would include additional information required for any bill authorizing a new tax expenditure. 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. This bill would take effect immediately as a tax levy.

Under existing law, the Stop Tobacco Access to Kids Enforcement Act, an enforcing agency, as defined, may assess civil penalties against any person, firm, or corporation that sells, gives, or furnishes specified tobacco and cigarette related items, including cigarette papers, to a person who is under 21 years of age, except as specified. The existing civil penalties range from $400 to $600 for a first violation, up to $5,000 to $6,000 for a 5th violation within a 5-year period. Existing law prohibits the sale, distribution, or nonsale distribution of tobacco products directly or indirectly to any person under 21 years of age through the United States Postal Service or other public or private postal or package delivery service. Under existing law, a district attorney, city attorney, or the Attorney General may assess civil penalties against a violator of not less than $1,000 or more than $2,000 for the first violation and up to $10,000 for a 5th or subsequent violation within a 5-year period. Under existing law, every person, firm, or corporation that knowingly or under circumstances in which it has knowledge, or should otherwise have grounds for knowledge, sells, gives, or furnishes a cigarette, among other specified items, to another person who is under 21 years of age is, except as specified, subject to either a criminal action for a misdemeanor or to a civil action brought by a city attorney, a county counsel, or a district attorney, punishable by a fine of $200 for the first offense, $500 for the 2nd offense, and $1,000 for the 3rd offense. This bill would prohibit a person or entity from selling, giving, or furnishing to another person of any age in this state a single-use electronic cigarette, as defined, except as specified. The bill would prohibit that selling, giving, or furnishing, whether conducted directly or indirectly through an in-person transaction, or by means of any public or private method of shipment or delivery to an address in this state. This bill would authorize a city attorney, county counsel, or district attorney to assess a $500 civil fine against each person determined to have violated those prohibitions in a proceeding conducted pursuant to the procedures of the enforcing agency, as specified. This bill would make its provisions operative on January 1, 2024.

This measure would respectfully memorialize the President of the United States and the Congress of the United States to take action to restore honor to Bernard B. James, and to take the necessary actions to ensure the treatment of Bernard B. James is rectified by a full exoneration, including having the military record of Bernard B. James cleared of any court judgment and less-than-honorable discharge.

This measure would designate a specified portion of Interstate Highway Route 405 in the County of Los Angeles as the Officer Tommy Scott Memorial Highway. The measure would request that the Department of Transportation determine the cost of appropriate signs showing this special designation and, upon receiving donations from nonstate sources covering that cost, erect those signs.

This measure would declare March 13, 2022, to April 15, 2022, as Deaf History Month.

This measure would recognize the value of all women's contributions to agriculture and resolve to help realize their success as leaders on the land.