Existing law, the Williamson Act, authorizes a city or county to enter into 10-year contracts with owners of land devoted to agricultural use, whereby the owners agree to continue using the property for that purpose, and the city or county agrees to value the land accordingly for purposes of property taxation. Existing law sets forth procedures for reimbursing cities and counties for property tax revenues not received as a result of these contracts. This bill would, beginning January 1, 2011, and until January 1, 2016, authorize a county, in any fiscal year in which payments authorized for reimbursement to a county for lost revenue are less than12 of the participating county's actual foregone general fund property tax revenue, to revise the term for newly renewed and new contracts and require the assessor to value the property, as specified, based on the revised contract term. The bill would provide that a landowner may choose to nonrenew and begin the cancellation process. The bill would also provide that any increased revenues generated by properties under a new contract shall be paid to the county. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Sponsored bills
Existing law requires the Board of Parole Hearings to give notice of a parole suitability hearing for a prisoner, upon request, to a victim or next of kin, if the victim has died. Under existing law, the victim, members of the victim's immediate family, representatives designated by the victim, and specified prosecutors have a right to appear at the hearing in person, and may appear at the hearing by means of videoconferencing, as defined, if videoconferencing is available at the hearing site. This bill would provide that these individuals may also appear at any parole suitability hearing by means of audioconferencing, as defined, if audioconferencing is available at the hearing site.
This measure would recognize May 2011 as Asian and Pacific Islander American Heritage Month.
This measure declares that Sundays are "Eat Local, Buy California Grown Day," and encourages families, restaurants, and grocers to buy California-grown floriculture, fiber, and foods.
This resolution would declare February 6, 2011, as Ronald Reagan Day.
This measure would designate the week of April 18 to 24, 2011, as "California Week of Remembrance for the Armenian Genocide of 1915–1923," and would memorialize the Congress and the President of the United States to observe the California Week of Remembrance for the Armenian Genocide by participating in the Armenian Genocide Commemorative Project.
This measure would declare the week of April 10, 2011, to April 16, 2011, inclusive, as Crime Victims' Rights Week.
Existing law, with certain exceptions, establishes 8 hours as a day's work and a 40-hour workweek, and requires payment of prescribed overtime compensation for additional hours worked. Existing law authorizes the adoption by 23 of employees in a work unit of alternative workweek schedules providing for workdays no longer than 10 hours within a 40-hour workweek. This bill would permit an individual nonexempt employee to request an employee-selected flexible work schedule providing for workdays up to 10 hours per day within a 40-hour workweek, and would allow an employer to implement this schedule without the obligation to pay overtime compensation for those additional hours in a workday. The bill would require the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement in the Department of Industrial Relations to enforce this provision and adopt regulations.
This measure would declare the week of June 6 through June 12, 2011, to be Dropout Recovery Week and would state the Legislature's intent to encourage the support of dropout recovery high schools with creative teaching strategies, alternative assessments, and adequate resources.