Existing law includes provisions criminalizing conduct involving obscene matter and child pornography, including making the distribution of this material criminal. Existing law defines the term "distribute" for purposes of crimes relating to obscene matter. This bill would include within this definition of "distribute" making available for access or possession over the Internet. The bill would also provide that nothing in the provisions criminalizing conduct involving obscene matter and child pornography shall be construed to permit an action against an interactive computer service, electronic communication service, or remote computing service, as defined, that is inconsistent with specified provisions of federal law. By revising the definition of existing crimes to expand their application, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. 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.
Sponsored bills
Existing law authorizes the Governor to appoint and fix the salaries of assistants and other personnel as the Governor deems necessary for his or her office. This bill would require the Governor to create, within the Office of the Governor, the position of Director of California Biotechnology Retention and Recruitment, as specified. The bill would make the director responsible for serving as an informational resource for biotechnology, life science, and medical companies, as specified.
This measure would designate that January 18, 2010, be observed as the official memorial of the late Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s birth, commemorate Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, the work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Civil Rights Movement in changing public policy in California and in the United States of America.
The Sales and Use Tax Law imposes 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. That law provides various exemptions from those taxes. This bill would, until January 1, 2017, exempt from those taxes the sale of, and the storage, use, or other consumption in this state, of tangible personal property, as defined, purchased for use by a qualified person, as defined, primarily in any stage of manufacturing, processing, refining, fabricating, or recycling of property; in research and development; to maintain, repair, measure, or test specified property; and for use by a contractor purchasing that property as an agent or for the contractor's own account and subsequent resale for use in a construction contract, 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 the Transactions and Use Tax Law authorizes districts, as specified, to impose transactions and use taxes in conformity with the Sales and Use Tax Law. Exemptions from state sales and use taxes are incorporated in these laws. This bill would specify that this exemption does not apply to local sales and use taxes, transactions and use taxes, and specified state taxes. This bill would take effect immediately as a tax levy.
The Public Employees' Retirement Law (PERL) creates the Public Employees' Retirement System (PERS) , which provides a defined benefit to its members based on age at retirement, service, credit, and final compensation. PERL defines final compensation variously based on different member classifications, bargaining units, and dates of hire. PERL generally provides for a definition of final compensation based on the highest annual average compensation earnable by the member during a designated 12-month or 36-month period. This bill would provide that final compensation for a person who becomes a state member of the system on or after January 1, 2011, and who is represented by State Bargaining Unit 5, 6, 8, 9, or is a peace officer/firefighter member of State Bargaining Unit 7, means the highest annual average compensation earnable by the member during a designated 36-month period. The bill would also apply this definition of final compensation to a state employee who is excepted from the definition of state employee for purposes of state labor relations, as specified, or an officer or employee of the executive branch of state government who is not a member of the civil service, who is employed by the state for the first time and becomes a state member of the system on or after January 1, 2011.
(1) The Personal Income Tax Law, in modified conformity to specified provisions of the federal Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act of 2007, allows an exclusion from a taxpayer's income for the discharge of qualified principal residence indebtedness, as defined, if that debt is discharged after January 1, 2007, and before January 1, 2009, as provided. The Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 extended the operation of those federal provisions to debt that is discharged before January 1, 2013. This bill would provide further conformity to those federal acts, including allowance of the exclusion for debt that is discharged before 2013, as provided. (2) This bill would take effect immediately as a tax levy.
Existing law permits voters to propose statutes and amendments to the Constitution, and to adopt or reject them, through the initiative process. This measure would require an initiative measure that would authorize the issuance of state general obligation bonds in a total amount exceeding $1 billion to either provide additional tax or fee revenues, the elimination of existing programs, or both, as necessary to fully fund the bonds, as determined by the Legislative Analyst, in order to be submitted to the voters or have any effect.
The California Coastal Act of 1976 provides for the planning and regulation of development, under a coastal development permit process, within the coastal zone. Existing law defines development for these purposes. This bill would provide that "development" does not include a fireworks display conducted by a public entity. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
This measure would memorialize the Congress and the President of the United States to uphold protections of women's equality and to encourage all Americans to participate in the celebration of Women's Equality Day on August 26, 2010, the 90th anniversary of the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which gave women the right to vote.
Existing law requires the Attorney General, upon preparation of the circulating title and summary of an initiative measure, to transmit the text to the Senate and Assembly so that public hearings may be held. This bill would make a nonsubstantive change to these provisions.