This measure would designate Monday, May 2, 2016, as California Peace Officers' Memorial Day, and would urge all Californians to honor those individuals who have given their lives for our safety and express appreciation to those who continue to dedicate themselves to making California a safer place in which to live and raise our families.
This measure would recognize and honor the men and women of California agriculture for their dedication and productivity by observing March 15, 2016, as National Agriculture Day, and designating March 16, 2016, as California Agriculture Day.
(1) Existing law makes it a misdemeanor to engage in disorderly conduct that delays or prevents a fire from being timely extinguished or to resist or interfere with the lawful efforts of a firefighter in the discharge of an official duty. Existing law makes it a misdemeanor to impede police officers, firefighters, emergency personnel, or military personnel in the performance of their duties in coping with an emergency. This bill would make it unlawful to knowingly, intentionally, or recklessly operate an unmanned aircraft or unmanned aircraft system, as defined, in a manner that prevents or delays the extinguishment of a fire, or in any way interferes with the efforts of firefighters to control, contain, or extinguish a fire. The bill would make a violation of this prohibition punishable by imprisonment in a county jail not to exceed 6 months, by a fine not to exceed $5,000, or by both that fine and imprisonment. By creating a new crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (2) Existing law provides certain individuals with immunity from civil liability under specific circumstances, including, among others, limiting the civil liability of a person who in good faith, and not for compensation, renders emergency medical or nonmedical care at the scene of an emergency, as specified. This bill would further limit the exposure to civil liability of an emergency responder, defined as an unpaid volunteer or private entity acting within the scope of authority implicitly or expressly provided by a public entity or a public employee to provide emergency services, for damages to an unmanned aircraft or unmanned aircraft system, if the damage was caused while the emergency responder was performing specific emergency services and the unmanned aircraft or unmanned aircraft system was interfering with the provision of those emergency services. (3) The Government Claims Act sets forth the general procedure for the presentation of a claim as a prerequisite to the commencement of an action for money or damages against a "public entity" or a "public employee," and defines those terms for its purposes. The act prohibits liability against a public entity or public employee for, among other things, certain acts relating to the provision of fire protection and police and correctional activities, as specified. This bill would further limit the exposure to civil liability of a public entity or public employee for damage to an unmanned aircraft or unmanned aircraft system, if the damage was caused while the public entity or public employee was performing specific emergency services and the unmanned aircraft or unmanned aircraft system was interfering with the provision of those emergency services. (4) 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. (5) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Existing law establishes the California State University, under the administration of the Trustees of the California State University, and the California Community Colleges, under the administration of the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges, as 2 of the segments of public postsecondary education in this state. This bill would establish the California Promise, which would require the trustees and the board of governors to establish a program that authorizes a campus of the California State University and the California Community Colleges to enter into a pledge with a student who satisfies specified criteria to support the student in obtaining an associate degree within 2 academic years, or a baccalaureate degree within 4 academic years, of freshman admission. The bill would prohibit systemwide tuition charged to a California State University student who participates in a California Promise program for an academic year from exceeding the amount of tuition charged to the student for the academic year of the student's freshman admission, and would prohibit tuition of a community college transfer student from exceeding a specified amount. By imposing new duties on community college districts, 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 these statutory provisions.
Existing law authorizes the Department of Transportation to contract with Amtrak for intercity rail passenger services and provides funding for these services from the Public Transportation Account. Existing law authorizes the department, subject to approval of the Secretary of Transportation, to enter into an interagency transfer agreement under which a joint powers board assumes responsibility for administering the state-funded intercity rail service in a particular corridor and associated feeder bus services. Existing law defines the boundaries of 3 intercity rail corridors, and requires the preparation of an annual business plan for the corridor by each participating joint powers board. This bill, at any time after an interagency transfer agreement between the department and a joint powers board has been entered into, would authorize the amendment of the agreement to provide for the extension of the affected rail corridor to provide intercity rail service beyond the defined boundaries of the corridor. The bill would require a proposed extension to first be recommended and justified in the business plan adopted by the joint powers board, and then would require the approval of the Secretary of Transportation.
The California Constitution provides for the delegation to the Fish and Game Commission powers relating to the protection and propagation of fish and game. Existing statutory law delegates to the commission the power to regulate the taking or possession of birds, mammals, fish, amphibians, and reptiles in accordance with prescribed laws. Under existing law, the Department of Fish and Wildlife exercises various functions with regard to the taking of fish and wildlife. Under existing law, a violation of the Fish and Game Code or of any rule, regulation, or order made or adopted under the code is a crime. Existing law, enacted as part of the Marine Life Management Act of 1998, generally establishes a comprehensive plan for the management of marine life resources. Existing law requires the Department of Fish and Wildlife to develop, and submit to the Fish and Game Commission for its approval, a fishery management master plan, and provides for the preparation and approval of fishery management plans, which form the primary basis for managing California's sport and commercial marine fisheries. Existing law authorizes regulations that the commission adopts to implement a fishery management plan or plan amendment for that fishery to make inoperative, in regard to that fishery, any fishery management statute that applies to that fishery. This bill would establish a similar process for the management of wildlife resources on land and the inland waters of the state. The bill would require the department to develop and submit, on or before September 1, 2018, to the Fish and Game Commission for its approval, a wildlife resources master plan, but would provide for the preparation and approval of wildlife management plans by the department, which would form the primary basis for managing these wildlife resources. The bill would authorize regulations that the department adopts to implement a wildlife management plan or amendment to make inoperative, in regard to the resource, any wildlife management statute that applies to the resource. Because a violation of a regulation adopted by the department would be a crime, 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.
Existing law establishes the Veterans' Home of California, under the administration of the Department of Veterans Affairs, including homes in Yountville and Barstow. Existing law also authorizes the Department of General Services, on behalf of the Department of Veterans Affairs, to acquire, design, equip, construct, and establish additional veterans' homes in other locations, including Fresno. This bill would rename the veterans' home in the County of Fresno as the Dr. Charlie Waters Memorial Veterans' Home and would make specified findings of the Legislature regarding Dr. Waters' life.
The Professional Engineers Act and the Professional Land Surveyors' Act establish the Board for Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors, and Geologists within the Department of Consumer Affairs for the licensure and regulation of professional engineers and land surveyors, respectively, and require any person practicing, or offering to practice, civil engineering or land surveying, respectively, in the state to submit evidence that he or she is qualified to practice and to be licensed under the respective act. Existing law makes it a misdemeanor to practice civil engineering or land surveying without legal authorization. This bill would expand the definitions of civil engineering and land surveying to include laying out through the use of mathematics or geometric measurements the alignment or elevation for specified items, determining the configuration or contour of the benthic surface below water bodies or the measuring for volumetric calculations of earthwork, as specified, and making specified determinations by applying the principles of remote sensing. The bill would also amend the definition of geodetic surveying. By expanding the scope of a 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 California Environmental Quality Act requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of, an environmental impact report 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. The act 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. The act establishes a procedure by which a person may seek judicial review of the decision of the lead agency made pursuant to the act. This bill would prohibit the court, in an action or proceeding alleging a violation of the act, from staying or enjoining the construction or operation of the Temperance Flat Reservoir unless the court makes certain findings. This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the Temperance Flat Reservoir.
