Asm. Cottie Petrie-Norris

Existing law provides for the licensure and regulation by the State Department of Health Care Services of adult alcoholism and drug abuse recovery and treatment facilities for adults. Existing law defines a facility for those purposes to mean a premise, place, or building that provides residential nonmedical services to adults who are recovering from drug or alcohol abuse or who need drug or alcohol recovery treatment or detoxification services. This bill would establish, and require the department to adopt and implement, minimum standards for counties receiving public funding for recovery residences, as defined. This bill would require the department, prior to finalizing minimum standards, to conduct a review with stakeholders, as specified. The bill would also require a state affiliate of the National Alliance for Recovery Residences (NARR) to deny an application for, or deny or revoke the recognition, registration, or certification of, and require a county behavioral health department to terminate a contract with, a recovery residence under certain circumstances, including if the recovery residence fails to meet the minimum standards. The bill would authorize a county to require a recovery residence to provide proof of certification by a state affiliate of NARR, in lieu of otherwise demonstrating eligibility to enter into a contract. The bill would also require a county behavioral health administrator that has documented evidence that a recovery residence under contract is not operating in compliance with NARR standards or a specified federal standard, as described, to report these findings to the department and to the NARR affiliate. The bill would further require that a county behavioral health department report to the department and NARR affiliate when it has documentary evidence suggesting fraud. By increasing the duties of county behavioral health administrators, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would require the department to report to the Legislature, on or before January 1, 2025, the number and types of complaints received by the county behavioral health department and the department, the status of complaints received, and the geographic concentration of reported complaints. The bill would also include legislative findings and declarations. 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 sales and use tax laws impose a tax on retailers measured by the gross receipts from the sale of tangible personal property sold at retail in this state, or on the storage, use, or other consumption in this state of tangible personal property purchased from a retailer for storage, use, or other consumption in this state. Those laws provide various exemptions from those taxes, including, until July 1, 2023, an exemption for the sale of, or the storage, use, or other consumption of, menstrual hygiene products, defined as tampons, specified sanitary napkins, menstrual sponges, and menstrual cups. Existing law requires the Department of Finance, beginning on May 15, 2020, to estimate the total dollar amount of revenue that would have been credited to the Local Revenue Fund 2011 if not otherwise exempted under the sales and use tax exemption for menstrual hygiene products and requires the Controller to transfer that amount from the General Fund to the Local Revenue Fund 2011, a continuously appropriated fund, no later than June 30 of each fiscal year. This bill would establish a similar exemption for the sale of, or the storage, use, or other consumption of, menstrual hygiene products beginning July 1, 2023, and would define menstrual hygiene products to additionally include menstrual underwear. The bill would provide that the Department of Finance is required to calculate, and the Controller is required to transfer, the total dollar amount of revenue prior to January 1, 2024, that would have been credited to the Local Revenue Fund 2011 if not otherwise exempted under the sales and use tax with respect to menstrual hygiene products, as specified. The Bradley-Burns Uniform Local Sales and Use Tax Law authorizes counties and cities to impose local sales and use taxes in conformity with the Sales and Use Tax Law, and existing laws authorize districts, as specified, to impose transactions and use taxes in accordance with the Transactions and Use Tax Law, which generally conforms to the Sales and Use Tax Law. Amendments to the Sales and Use Tax Law are automatically incorporated into the local tax laws. Existing law requires the state to reimburse counties and cities for revenue losses caused by the enactment of sales and use tax exemptions. This bill would provide that, notwithstanding Section 2230 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, no appropriation is made and the state shall not reimburse any local agencies for sales and use tax revenues lost by them pursuant to this bill. This bill would take effect immediately as a tax levy.

(1) The Planning and Zoning Law requires that the housing element of a city's or county's general plan consist of an identification and analysis of existing and projected housing needs and a statement of goals, policies, quantified objectives, financial resources, and scheduled programs for the preservation, improvement, and development of housing. The law requires the Department of Housing and Community Development to determine the existing and projected need for housing for each region, as specified. The law also requires that the housing element include an inventory of land suitable for residential development and requires that inventory to be used to identify sites that can be developed for housing within the planning period and that are sufficient to provide for the city's or county's share of the regional housing need. Existing law requires the planning agency of a city or county to submit a draft element or draft amendment to the department prior to adoption, as specified. Existing law requires the department to determine whether the draft element or draft amendment substantially complies with the provisions of the Planning and Zoning Law relating to housing elements. Existing law authorizes the department, in evaluating a proposed or adopted housing element for substantial compliance with the provisions of the Planning and Zoning Law relating to housing elements, to allow a city or county to identify adequate sites by a variety of methods, as specified. Existing law authorizes the department to allow a city or county to identify sites for accessory dwelling units based on the number of accessory dwelling units developed in the prior housing element planning period whether or not the units are permitted by right, the need for these units in the community, those units in the community, the resources or incentives available for their development, and any other relevant factors, as determined by the department. This bill would, instead, require the department, in making that evaluation, to allow a city or county to identify adequate sites by a variety of methods, as specified. The bill would require the department to allow a city or county to identify sites for potential accessory dwelling units based on existing zoning standards and the demonstrated potential capacity to accommodate accessory dwelling units and junior accessory dwelling units, as determined by the city or county. If the combination of potential accessory dwelling units and junior accessory dwelling units constitutes greater than 50% of the units identified to meet the city's or county's share of the regional need for affordable housing for lower income households, the bill would require the housing element to provide supplementary policies, programs, and actions that further encourage or incentivize the development of accessory dwelling units and junior accessory dwelling units for lower income households. The bill would require the department to determine the affordability of a potential accessory dwelling unit or a junior accessory dwelling unit by taking into account relevant factors justified by the city or county, as specified. The bill would require the department to presume that very low and low-income renter households would occupy accessory units in a proportion greater than or equal to the proportion of very low and low- income renter households to all renter households in the city or county, as specified. Existing law authorizes the department to allow a city or county to substitute the provision of units for up to 25% of the city's or county's obligation to identify adequate sites for any income category if the city or county includes in its housing element a program committing the city or county to provide qualifying units in that income category within the city or county that will be made available through the provision of committed assistance, as specified. Under existing law, units qualify for inclusion in the program providing committed assistance if the units, among other requirements, are located either on foreclosed property or in a multifamily rental or ownership housing complex of 3 or more units, and have long-term affordability covenants and restrictions that require the units to be affordable to persons of low- or very low income for not less than 55 years. Under existing law, units also qualify for inclusion in the program if the units, among other requirements, have long-term affordability covenants and restrictions that require the unit to be affordable to, and reserved for occupancy by, persons of the same or lower income group as the current occupants for a period of at least 40 years, and the city or county finds that the units are eligible, and are reasonably expected, to change from housing affordable to low- and very low income households to any other use during the next 5 years due to specified events. This bill, instead, would authorize the department to allow a city or county to substitute the provision of units for up to 50% of the city's or county's obligation to identify adequate sites for any income category if the city or county includes in its housing element a program that either commits the city or county to provide, or requires a private entity to provide, specified units in that income category within the city or county that will be made available through the provision of committed assistance, as specified. The bill would revise the qualifications for inclusion in the program for both types of units described above by reducing the minimum period of time for the affordability covenants and restrictions to 20 years unless a longer period is required by other supplementary financial assistance. The bill would also revise the qualifications for the latter type of units by extending the period of time within which the city or county is required to find the units are eligible, and are reasonably expected, to change to another use to 10 years. Existing law requires a city or county that has included in its housing element a qualified program providing units with committed assistance to provide a progress report to the legislative body and to the department in the 3rd year of the planning period, as specified. If the city or county has not entered into an enforceable agreement of committed assistance for all units specified in those programs by July 1 of the 3rd year of the planning period, existing law requires the city or county to adopt an amended housing element identifying additional adequate sites sufficient to accommodate the number of units for which committed assistance was not provided not later than July 1 of the 4th year of the planning period. This bill would instead require the city or county to provide that report in the 5th year of the planning period. If the city or county has not entered into that agreement of committed assistance by July 1 of the 5th year of the planning period, the bill would require the city or county to adopt that amended housing element not later than July 1 of the 6th year of the planning period. Under existing law, the above-described provisions governing the substitution of adequate site identification with the provision of units do not apply to a city or county that, during the current or immediately prior planning period, has not met any of its share of the regional need for affordable housing for low- and very low income households. This bill would remove that exclusion. (2) The Planning and Zoning Law also requires the inventory of land suitable for residential development in the housing element to include, among other things, a description of the existing use of each property on nonvacant sites. Existing law requires the city or county to specify the additional development potential for each nonvacant site within the planning period and to provide an explanation of the methodology to determine that potential. If a city or county relies on nonvacant sites to accommodate 50% or more of its housing need for lower income households, existing law requires that methodology to demonstrate that the existing use does not constitute an impediment to additional development during the period covered by the housing element. Existing law requires an existing use to be presumed to impede additional residential development, absent findings based on substantial evidence that the use is likely to be discontinued during the planning period. This bill would deem certain conditions to be substantial evidence that an existing use is likely to be discontinued during the planning period. (3) The Planning and Zoning Law requires a planning agency to submit its draft housing element or amendment to the housing element and, after adoption by the legislative body, a copy of the adopted housing element or amendment to the Department of Housing and Community Development for review. If the department finds that the housing element or amendment does not substantially comply with specified law, existing law requires the department to notify the city, county, or city and county, and authorizes the department to notify the Attorney General, that the city, county, or city and county is in violation of state law. Existing law authorizes the Attorney General, in an action relating to housing element compliance pursuant to a notice or referral from the department, to request that the court issue an order or judgment directing the jurisdiction to bring its housing element in substantial compliance and authorizes the court to impose fines and order specified other remedies under certain circumstances. This bill, for the 6th and each subsequent revision of the housing element, if an affected local government has submitted the revision of its housing element to the voters for approval before the applicable due date but the voters have not yet voted on the housing element revision, would exempt that local government from the above-described fines or other penalties for failure to adopt its housing element by the applicable due date. The bill, for the 6th and each subsequent revision of the housing element, if the affected local government has submitted the applicable revision of its housing element to the voters for approval before the applicable due date and the voters have rejected the housing element, would similarly exempt the affected local government from the above-described fines or penalties for failure to adopt its housing element by the applicable due date, but would authorize the court in an action brought by the Attorney General to order specified remedies under which the agent of the court may take all governmental actions necessary to bring the jurisdiction's housing element into substantial compliance in order to remedy identified deficiencies. The bill would define "affected local government" for these purposes to mean a local government that is subject to a requirement that the adoption or amendment of the housing element be approved by the voters of that local government and that has submitted a draft of the applicable proposed revision of its housing element to the department.

Existing law establishes the Department of Veterans Affairs. The department, among other services, provides veterans and their dependents and survivors with assistance in processing service-related disability claims, assistance in obtaining affordable housing, and information about health ailments associated with military service. This bill would require the department to establish a program to fund, upon appropriation by the Legislature, an academic study of mental health among women veterans in California, as specified. The bill would require the department to submit a report summarizing the findings and recommendations of the study to the Legislature no later than July 31, 2022. This bill would make these provisions inoperative on July 31, 2023, and would repeal them as of January 1, 2024.

This measure would proclaim the week of March 1, 2020, to March 7, 2020, inclusive, as Women in Construction Week.

This measure would proclaim March 2, 2020, to March 6, 2020, inclusive, as School Breakfast Week.

Under the Sales and Use Tax Law, the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration is authorized to relieve a person from the payment of sales and use taxes, penalties, and interest if the department finds that a person's failure to make a timely return or payment is due to that person's reasonable reliance on written advice from the department, as specified. This bill would require the department to confirm receipt of a request by a person for written advice from the department other than presentation of a taxpayer's books and records for audit by sending a letter or email within 30 days from the date of receipt of the request. The bill would require the department to provide a response within 180 days from the date the request by a person for written advice from the department is received by the department, except as specified. The bill would make the changes to the written advice provisions apply to written requests received by the department on or after January 1, 2021. Under existing law, the Katz-Harris Taxpayers' Bill of Rights Act, the Franchise Tax Board is authorized to relieve a person from the payment of taxes under the Personal Income Tax Law and the Corporation Tax Law, interest, additions to those taxes, or penalties if the Franchise Tax Board finds that a person's failure to make a timely return or payment is due to that person's reasonable reliance on written advice from the board or written advice of a legal ruling by the Chief Counsel of the Franchise Tax Board, as specified. Existing law requires chief counsel rulings to be issued as provided in published guidelines. This bill would require the chief counsel to confirm receipt of a request by a person fora chief counsel ruling by sending a letter or email within 30 days of the date of receipt of the request for a chief counsel ruling. The bill would require the chief counsel to provide a response within 180 days from the date the request by a person for a chief counsel ruling is received. Under the bill, all published guidelines issued pursuant to the chief counsel rulings provisions in effect on December 31, 2020, would remain in effect and be fully enforceable unless and until modified or superseded by the board. The bill would make the changes to the chief counsel rulings provisions apply to a written request for a chief counsel ruling received on or after January 1, 2021.

This measure would declare the week of February 17 to February 21, 2020, inclusive, as California Fitness Week, and would encourage Californians to enrich their lives through proper nutrition and exercise.

This measure would proclaim February 20, 2020, as Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day.

This measure would recognize February 2020 as Black History Month, urge all citizens to join in celebrating the accomplishments of African Americans during Black History Month, encourage the people of California to recognize the many talents of African Americans and the achievements and contributions they make to their communities to create equity and equality for education, economics, and social justice, and recognize the significance in protecting citizens' right to vote and remedying racial discrimination in voting.