Existing law authorizes the Department of Fish and Game to enter into contracts for fish and wildlife habitat preservation, restoration, and enhancement with public and private entities whenever the department finds that the contracts will assist in meeting the department's duty to preserve, protect, and restore fish and wildlife. The Wildlife Conservation Law of 1947 specifically authorizes the Wildlife Conservation Board to authorize the Department of Fish and Game to acquire real property, including easements, for the benefit of wildlife. This bill would require the department to allow compatible hunting, fishing, and other recreational activities, on land subject to a wildlife conservation easement or a fish and wildlife habitat contract, except as specifically prohibited in the applicable easement, contract, or memorandum of understanding, or by other applicable law.
Sponsored bills
(1) The California Constitution establishes a full-time Legislature. The Constitution authorizes the California Citizens Compensation Commission to determine the annual salary and the medical, dental, insurance, and other similar benefits of state officers, including Members of the Legislature. This measure would instead provide for a part-time Legislature and set the annual salary for Members of the Legislature at $24,000, to be adjusted thereafter by the commission consistent with the Consumer Price Index. (2) The California Constitution requires the Legislature to convene on the first Monday of December of each even-numbered year and adjourn on November 30 of the following even-numbered year. This measure would set specific time periods in which the Legislature must complete its work. The bill would require the Legislature to organize and swear in its Members on the first Monday of December of each even-numbered year and reconvene not later than January 7 for a duration of not more than 120 consecutive calendar days in odd-numbered years, and not more than 60 consecutive calendar days in even-numbered years. The measure would require that any legislation introduced in an odd-numbered year be passed within the 120-day period and any legislation introduced in an even-numbered year be passed within the 60-day period. The measure would allow the Legislature to convene for an additional 7 consecutive calendar days for the sole purpose of considering bills vetoed by the Governor, and items of appropriation reduced or eliminated by the Governor. The measure would make other conforming changes. (3) The California Constitution authorizes the Governor, by proclamation, to cause the Legislature to assemble in special session and prohibits the Legislature from legislating on subjects not specified in the proclamation when so assembled. This measure would limit a special session to 30 days in duration and make other related changes. (4) The California Constitution authorizes the Governor, following the enactment of the Budget Bill, to issue a proclamation declaring a fiscal emergency if the Governor determines that General Fund revenues will decline substantially below, or that General Fund expenditures will increase substantially above, the estimate of General Fund revenues upon which the Budget Bill, as enacted, was based. The California Constitution provides that if the Legislature fails to pass and send to the Governor a bill or bills to address the fiscal emergency by the 45th day following the issuance of the proclamation, the Legislature may not act on any other bill until that bill or those bills addressing the fiscal emergency have been passed and sent to the Governor. This measure would specify that the prohibited actions include acting upon or taking any action on any other bill, including casting a vote on any other bill in either a policy or fiscal committee, or on the floor of the Assembly or Senate. (5) The California Constitution requires the Governor to submit to the Legislature a budget for the ensuing fiscal year within the first 10 days of each calendar year and requires the Legislature to pass the Budget Bill by midnight on June 15 of each year. This measure would instead require the Governor to submit a biennial budget within the first 7 days of each odd-numbered year and require the Legislature to pass the Budget Bill within 120 days, as specified, and would make conforming changes to other provisions of the California Constitution relating to the biennial budget. This measure would authorize the Governor to propose changes to an enacted biennial state budget when the Legislature is not in session, which changes would become law upon approval by resolution adopted by the Joint Legislative Budget Committee. (6) The California Constitution requires that travel and living expenses for Members of the Legislature in connection with their official duties be prescribed by statute passed by rollcall vote, 23 of the membership of each house concurring. This measure would limit these expenses in amount to the per diem rates established by the United States General Services Administration for federal employees. (7) The California Constitution provides that the aggregate expenditures for the compensation of Members and employees of, and the operating expenses and equipment for, the Legislature may not exceed a specified amount. This measure would additionally require that the annual budget amounts for a Member of either house be equal to that of other Members of the same house. (8) The California Constitution provides that no bill may be passed until the bill with amendments has been printed and distributed to the Members. This measure would instead require that each bill with amendments be distributed to the Members at least 72 hours prior to passage. (9) The California Constitution provides that the Legislature or either house may by resolution provide for the selection of committees necessary for the conduct of its business. This measure would require that every political party represented in a house of the Legislature be, to the greatest extent possible, proportionately represented in each legislative committee of that house. The measure would additionally specify membership requirements for the Joint Legislative Budget Committee.
This measure would commemorate the 40th anniversary of Title IX on June 23, 2012, commend the movement toward increased equality and fair treatment of female athletes, and praise the goal of greater opportunities in sports for girls and young women in California.
This measure would proclaim June 2012 as Scleroderma Awareness Month.
This measure would make various statements regarding the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) , would request the President and the United States Congress to repeal PPACA, and would encourage federal, state, and local officials to enact health care reform that, among other things, puts the citizen and his or her family at the center of the health care system, as specified. The measure would also request the United States Congress to, among other things, reform federal tax laws, allow Americans to buy health care coverage across state lines, allow businesses to create association health plans, and lift restrictions on employers so they can offer lower premiums to employees who practice healthy lifestyles, and would request the Legislature to enact reforms consistent with those changes, as specified.
Existing law requires each department to maintain an office and the director of each department who is a member of the Governor's council to reside in Sacramento. This bill would require, on or before January 1, 2025, every state agency, as defined, to have its primary administrative office located within the Sacramento metropolitan area, and the Supreme Court to only hear cases in the Sacramento metropolitan area. This bill would also require the Director of General Services, on or before December 31, 2015, to coordinate with the heads of every state agency to establish a plan to relocate facilities to the Sacramento metropolitan area.
Existing law, the California High-Speed Rail Act, creates the High-Speed Rail Authority to develop and implement a high-speed rail system in the state, with specified powers and duties. Existing law, pursuant to the Safe, Reliable High-Speed Passenger Train Bond Act for the 21st Century, approved by the voters as Proposition 1A at the November 4, 2008, general election, provides for the issuance of $9 billion in general obligation bonds for high-speed rail purposes and $950 million for other related rail purposes. Article XVI of the California Constitution authorizes the Legislature, at any time after the approval of a general obligation bond act by the people, to reduce the amount of the indebtedness authorized by the act to an amount not less than the amount contracted at the time of the reduction or to repeal the act if no debt has been contracted. This bill would reduce the amount of general obligation debt authorized for high-speed rail purposes pursuant to the Safe, Reliable High-Speed Passenger Train Bond Act for the 21st Century to the amount contracted as of January 1, 2013.
(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 (EIR) on a project that it proposes to carry out or approve that may have a significant effect on the environment or to adopt a negative declaration if it finds that the project will not have that effect. CEQA also requires a lead agency to prepare a mitigated negative declaration for a project that may have a significant effect on the environment if revisions in the project would avoid or mitigate that effect and there is no substantial evidence that the project, as revised, would have a significant effect on the environment. CEQA requires the Office of Planning and Research to prepare and the Secretary of the Natural Resources Agency to certify and adopt guidelines for the implementation of CEQA and requires the guidelines to include a list of classes of projects which have been determined not to have a significant effect on the environment and exempts those classes of projects from the requirements of CEQA (categorical exemption) . This bill would authorize a lead agency to grant, on an annual basis, one categorical exemption per specified site for a fireworks display held annually on a public site or large venue. Because a lead agency would be prohibited from granting more than one specified categorical exemption per site for a fireworks display, this bill would increase the level of services provided by a local agency and thereby impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would authorize the office to identify potential environmental issues related to fireworks displays and to develop guidelines to assist local agencies regarding fireworks displays. (2) 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.
Existing law authorizes the Director of General Services to dispose of state surplus property, subject to specified conditions, including authorization by the Legislature. This bill would authorize the director to enter into an agreement with the City of Carlsbad for the exchange of specified parcels of real property subject to certain conditions.