Asm. Tasha Boerner

Existing law, the Stop Tobacco Access to Kids Enforcement (STAKE) Act, prohibits a person from selling or otherwise furnishing tobacco products, as defined, to a person under 21 years of age. Existing law also prohibits the use of tobacco products in county offices of education, on charter school or school district property, or near a playground or youth sports event, as specified. This bill would prohibit a tobacco retailer, or any of the tobacco retailer's agents or employees, from selling, offering for sale, or possessing with the intent to sell or offer for sale, a flavored tobacco product or a tobacco product flavor enhancer, as those terms are defined, except as specified. The bill would make a violation of this prohibition an infraction punishable by a fine of $250 for each violation. The bill would state the intent of the Legislature that these provisions do not preempt or prohibit the adoption and implementation of local ordinances that impose greater restrictions on the access to tobacco products than the restrictions imposed by the bill, as specified. The bill would state that its provisions are severable. By creating a new crime, the 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.

The Bergeson-Peace Infrastructure and Economic Development Bank Act establishes the California Infrastructure and Economic Development Bank (I-Bank) . Among other things, the act authorizes I-Bank to make loans, issue bonds, and provide financial assistance to economic development or public development facilities. Under existing law, the Disaster Assistance Fund is continuously appropriated, without regard to fiscal year, for purposes of the California Disaster Assistance Act. That act provides that when funds are available for purposes of the act, the Governor may allocate the funds, in connection with relief provided, in affected areas during the period of federal disaster relief, to the Small Business Expansion Fund for use by the California Infrastructure and Economic Development Bank (I-Bank) , to provide guarantees for low-interest interim loans to be made by lending institutions for the purpose of providing interim financing to enable small businesses that have suffered actual physical damage or significant economic losses, as a result of the disaster or state of emergency for which funding is made available. This bill would enact the California Manufacturing Emergency Preparedness Act of 2020, which would authorize I-Bank to establish the California Manufacturing Disaster Loan and Loan Guarantee Program for the purpose of attracting, retaining, retooling, establishing, and expanding manufacturing and logistics capacity in the state, and would require I-Bank to establish guidelines for the implementation and oversight of the program. The bill would prohibit I-Bank from commencing the program until it adopts a resolution finding that there is sufficient funding in the account to cover the costs of implementing the program and that the I-Bank has sufficient direction from the Director of the Office of Emergency Services, as provided. The bill would require I-Bank to provide for the development and administration of the program, as specified, and would require program applicants to demonstrate satisfaction of specified requirements. The bill would also require each applicant to pay a nonrefundable application fee, as provided. The bill would create the Manufacturing Program Account within the California Infrastructure and Economic Development Bank Fund. The bill would authorize the Governor to allocate disaster relief funds, including funds in the Disaster Assistance Fund, to the Manufacturing Program Account for use by I-Bank, to cover the costs of administering the program and to provide direct loans or guarantees, or both, made by lending institutions, and to forgive those loans in appropriate circumstances, for the purpose of providing financing to enable the manufacturing and logistics sectors to support the emergency needs of Californians. The bill would provide that the moneys in the account be made available to I-Bank, upon a transfer of funds by the Director of Finance pursuant to an allocation by the Governor under the California Disaster Assistance Act, for specified purposes. The bill would authorize moneys in the account to be allocated to a lending institution or financial company that will act as trustee of the funds, with the approval of the Department of Finance. The bill would authorize I-Bank to create subaccounts in the account for specified purposes. Because this bill would expand the purposes for which a continuously appropriated fund is expended and would deposit moneys and fees into a new, continuously appropriated account, the bill would make an appropriation. The bill would require I-Bank to annually report, commencing with January 1, 2022, to the Governor and the Legislature on program activity, as specified, in any fiscal year that the program receives funding or has active loans. The bill would further provide that the above described provisions will be implemented only to the extent that sufficient moneys are available to I-Bank to implement the California Manufacturing Disaster Loan and Loan Guarantee Program. The bill would permit these provisions to be used to respond to, and recover from, the conditions arising from the state of emergency declared by the Governor on March 4, 2020, related to the COVID-19 virus. The bill would prohibit I-Bank from entering into loans or loan guarantees pursuant to the bill's provisions on or after January 1, 2026. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

Existing law makes it a crime to maliciously and intentionally maim, mutilate, torture, wound, or kill a living animal. If a defendant is granted probation for a conviction of this offense, existing law requires the court to order the defendant to complete counseling designed to evaluate and treat behavior or conduct disorders. This bill would delete the requirement that a defendant granted probation complete counseling and would instead require a defendant convicted of specified offenses against animals and granted probation to undergo a mental health evaluation by an evaluator chosen by the court. The court would require the defendant to complete mandatory counseling if, upon evaluation of the defendant, the mental health professional deems it necessary. The court would require the defendant to pay for the mental health evaluation and any subsequent treatment, but would authorize the court to establish a sliding fee schedule based on the defendant's ability to pay. The bill would additionally make records related to this evaluation and treatment confidential, as specified. Existing constitutional provisions require that a statute that limits the right of access to the meetings of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies be adopted with findings demonstrating the interest protected by the limitation and the need for protecting that interest. This bill would make legislative findings to that effect.

Existing law regulates the wages, hours, and working conditions of any worker employed in any occupation, trade, or industry, whether compensation is measured by time, piece, or otherwise, except as specified. This bill, among other things, would authorize any nonexempt employee working from home who is not under the physical control of the employer to choose when to take any meal or rest period during the workday, if the employer has not already scheduled a meal or rest period within the requirements of the law. The bill would require an employer to only pay one additional hour of pay for each day that the employer fails to notify the employee of the employee's right to take a break or requires an employee to work without a meal or rest period. The bill would also authorize an employee working from home to receive legally required notices and postings electronically and sign certain documents electronically. Existing law requires an employer to indemnify an employee for all necessary expenditures or losses incurred by the employee in direct consequence of the discharge of their duties, or of their obedience to the directions of the employer. This bill would require an employer, unless the employer provides the equipment, to reimburse or indemnify an employee working from home for all physical equipment in the home reasonably necessary to perform the employee's work duties, including, but not limited to, a computer, a printer, and a scanner. The bill would require an employer to reimburse or indemnify an employee who works from home for a reasonable percentage of the employee's monthly internet and telephone costs to the extent those costs are necessary for performance of their work duties, as provided. The bill would prohibit an employer from retaliating against an employee who seeks reimbursement or indemnification for the allowable expenses.

Existing law establishes a system of public elementary and secondary schools in the state, and authorizes local educational agencies throughout the state to operate schools and provide instruction to pupils in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive. Existing law provides that no monetary liability and no cause of action arises against specified entities for certain conduct, including, except for specified damages, for a hospital for any action taken upon the recommendation of its medical staff, or against any other person or organization for any action taken, or restriction imposed, which is required to be reported, if that action or restriction is reported, as specified. This bill would require, during the COVID-19 pandemic, as defined, the governing board of a local educational agency, as defined, or its designee, to establish health and safety policies and procedures for operating programs and facilities in a manner consistent with applicable federal, state, and local requirements and COVID-19-related guidelines published by the State Department of Public Health. The bill would require the governing boards of local educational agencies, or their designees, to ensure that reasonable efforts are undertaken to implement those policies and procedures. The bill would exempt a local educational agency, and its officers or employees, that meet these requirements from monetary liability and damages for injury relating to COVID-19 infection, transmission, or specified policies and procedures established pursuant to the bill, any condition in existence because of the COVID-19 pandemic, or any act or omission by the local educational agency, its officers, or its employees in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, as provided, with specified exceptions. By imposing new duties on local educational agencies, 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, 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.

Existing law requires the Natural Resources Agency every 3 years to update the state's climate adaptation strategy, known as the Safeguard California Plan (plan) , including addressing certain topics. As part of the update, existing law requires the agency to coordinate with other state agencies to identify a lead agency or group of agencies to lead adaptation efforts in each sector. Existing law requires state agencies to work to maximize specified objectives related to climate change. Existing law establishes the Office of Planning and Research (office) in state government in the Governor's office. Existing law establishes the Integrated Climate Adaptation and Resiliency Program (ICARP) , to be administered by the office, to coordinate regional and local efforts with state climate adaptation strategies to adapt to the impacts of climate change, as prescribed. Existing law establishes the Strategic Growth Council (council) in state government and assigns to the council certain duties, including providing funding and distributing data and information to local governments and regional agencies that will assist in the development and planning of sustainable communities. This bill would require the office, by July 1, 2021, to convene a climate science advisory team to provide independent, timely, and science-based advice on the state's climate adaptation and climate-related hazard mitigation efforts and to, among other things, provide input to improve climate adaptation and climate-related hazard mitigation planning across state agencies, including the plan. The bill would require the team to serve as a working group of a specified ICARP advisory group. The bill would require the team to provide recommendations to inform certain activities of the council regarding climate change. The bill would require, by January 1, 2022, the office to produce, in consultation with the team and relevant state agencies, regional governments, and local governments, an evidence-based list of recommended existing projects and potential projects of statewide significance and urgency that should be prioritized in order to advance the state's climate resilience, including projects that improve community resilience and climate-related hazard mitigation through natural infrastructure. The bill would require the office, by July 1, 2024, to submit to the relevant policy and fiscal committees of the Legislature a report summarizing the actions of the team, the team's contribution to climate resiliency and adaptation planning, and the office's recommendations to improve the effectiveness of the team.

The California Constitution authorizes any person who is a United States citizen, at least 18 years of age, and a resident of the state to vote. This measure, in addition, would authorize a United States citizen who is 17 years of age, is a resident of the state, and will be at least 18 years of age at the time of the next general election to vote in any primary or special election that occurs before the next general election in which the citizen would be eligible to vote if at least 18 years of age.