Existing law, the State Civil Service Act, requires the Department of Human Resources to administer the Personnel Classification Plan of the State of California, including allocating every position to the appropriate class. Existing law requires the allocation of a position to a class be derived from, and determined by, ascertaining the duties and responsibilities of the position, and be based on the principle that all positions are to be included in the same class if certain qualifications apply, including, but not limited to, that the positions are sufficiently similar in respect to duties and responsibilities that the same descriptive title may be used, and substantially the same requirements as to education, experience, knowledge, and ability are demanded of incumbents. Existing law also prescribes a comprehensive civil service personnel system for the state and specifically provides certain preferences for veterans. Existing law grants to a person retired from the United States military, honorably discharged from active military duty with a service-connected disability, or honorably discharged from active duty eligibility for civil service examinations for which they meet the minimum qualifications for the classification. Existing law requires that, in evaluating minimum qualifications, related military experience be considered state civil service experience in a comparable class, based on the duties and responsibilities assigned. This bill would require the department, on or before January 1, 2026, to review the department Personnel Classification Plan of the State of California and identify which classes are compatible with creating a waiver for a bachelor's degree requirement for a veteran, as defined, who has served at the level of E-6 or higher for more than 2 years. For a class identified by the department, where a bachelor's degree is required as a minimum qualification for a civil service examination, the bill would require the department to, commencing July 1, 2026, waive the bachelor's degree requirement for a veteran who has served at the level of E-6 or higher for more than 2 years.
Sponsored bills
The Personal Income Tax Law allows various credits against the tax imposed by that law. Existing law requires any bill authorizing a new tax credit to contain, among other things, specific goals, purposes, and objectives that the tax credit will achieve, detailed performance indicators, and data collection requirements. This bill would allow credits against the tax imposed by the Personal Income Tax Law for each taxable year beginning on or after January 1, 2025, and before January 1, 2030, to a qualified taxpayer for qualified costs relating to qualified home hardening, as defined, and for qualified costs relating to qualified vegetation management, as defined, in specified amounts, not to exceed an aggregate amount of $500,000,000 per taxable year. The bill would require a qualified taxpayer to reserve a credit for qualified costs relating to qualified home hardening or qualified vegetation management to be eligible for the above-described credits and provide all necessary information for this purpose, as specified. This bill also would include additional information required for any bill authorizing a new income tax credit and would require the Legislative Analyst's Office to prepare a written report regarding the credits, as provided. This bill would take effect immediately as a tax levy.
The Personal Income Tax Law, in modified conformity with federal law, generally defines "gross income" as income from whatever source derived, except as specifically excluded, and provides various exclusions from gross income for purposes of computing tax liability. Existing law requires any bill authorizing a new tax expenditure to contain, among other things, specific goals, purposes, and objectives that the tax expenditure will achieve, detailed performance indicators, and data collection requirements. This bill, for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2025, and before January 1, 2035, would provide an exclusion from gross income for survivor benefits or payments, not to exceed $20,000 per taxable year, received during the taxable year under the federal Survivor Benefit Plan. Existing law requires any bill authorizing a new tax expenditure to contain, among other things, specific goals that the tax expenditure will achieve, detailed performance indicators, and data collection requirements. This bill would include additional information required for any bill authorizing a new tax expenditure. This bill would take effect immediately as a tax levy.
Existing law requires the Department of General Services, beginning no later than the 2024–25 fiscal year, to ensure that at least 50% of the light-duty vehicles purchased for the state vehicle fleet each fiscal year are zero-emission vehicles, except as provided. This bill would require the department to require a supplier of zero-emission vehicles purchased for the state vehicle fleet to certify that any raw materials used in the manufacturing of the zero-emission vehicles, including, but not limited to, cobalt and lithium, come from mining operations that are free of child labor.
The California Constitution entitles the victim of a crime to restitution. Existing law requires the court to order a person who is convicted of a crime to pay restitution to the victim or victims for the full amount of economic loss. Existing law also requires that order to include noneconomic losses, including, but not limited to, psychological harm, for felony violations of specified crimes relating to child sexual abuse. This bill would expand those provisions to also include noneconomic losses from felony violations of the crime of human trafficking, as specified.
Existing law makes it a crime to solicit or encourage a minor to commit specified crimes relating to controlled substances, to hire or employ a minor to transport or sell controlled substances, or to sell or give controlled substances to minors and imposes a punishment of imprisonment for a period of 3, 6, or 9 years. Existing law makes a person who is 18 years of age or older who violates these provisions with respect to heroin, cocaine, or cocaine base on the grounds of, or within certain locations, such as a church, synagogue, or a public swimming pool, among others, or on the grounds of, or within 1,000 feet of, public or private schools, as specified, subject to punishment with an additional enhancement in the state prison of one or 2 years. This bill would make the above-described enhancement applicable to offenses involving fentanyl if the person had knowledge that the specific controlled substance involved was fentanyl. By increasing the penalties for a crime, this bill would create 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 allows memorial districts to be established and maintained for the purposes of providing and maintaining memorial halls, assembly halls, buildings, or meeting places, together with suitable indoor and outdoor park and recreation facilities, primarily for the use of veterans and veterans' organizations. To this end, existing law allows a memorial district to levy special taxes and to incur bonded indebtedness. Existing law requires the secretary of a memorial district to annually prepare a financial report of all the district's assets, liabilities, receipts, disbursements, and obligations. Existing law requires the county auditor to draw warrants against the memorial district fund and against the memorial district bond fund in payment of the district's law claims. Existing law allows the county treasurer to pay moneys out of the district's several funds only upon warrants drawn by the county auditor. This bill would, notwithstanding existing law, authorize the Clovis Veterans Memorial District in the County of Fresno to withdraw its funds from the control of the county treasurer. If it does so, the bill would require the board of directors of the Clovis Veterans Memorial District to adopt a resolution that includes, among other things, a procedure for the appointment of a memorial district treasurer. The bill would require the board and the board of supervisors of the principal county to determine a mutually acceptable date for the withdrawal of the memorial district's funds from the county treasury that does not exceed 15 months from the date on which the board adopts its resolution. The bill would require the memorial district treasurer to make annual or more frequent written reports to the board, as the board determines, regarding the receipts, disbursements, and balances in the accounts controlled by the memorial district treasurer. This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the Clovis Veterans Memorial District in the County of Fresno.
(1) Existing law establishes a system of elementary and secondary education in this state. This system consists of the public and private schools that provide instruction in kindergarten and in grades 1 to 12, inclusive. This bill would enact the Education Flex Account Act of 2024 and establish the Education Flex Account (EFA) Trust, to be known as the EFA Trust, as a fund within the State Treasury to be administered by the EFA Trust Board. During the first 4 school years following the operative date of the act, the bill would authorize certain children eligible to be enrolled in kindergarten, or in an elementary or secondary school, in any of grades 1 to 12, inclusive, to establish an EFA or Special Education Flex Account (SEFA) , based on parent or guardian income. The bill would remove these income eligibility limits after 4 school years following the operative date of the act, thereby entitling every child eligible to be enrolled in kindergarten, or in an elementary or secondary school, in any of grades 1 to 12, inclusive, to establish an EFA or SEFA. The bill would specify that every child enrolled in an eligible school shall be entitled, pursuant to this act, to a credit to the child's account for tuition and elementary and secondary eligible education expenses, as defined. Commencing with the first fiscal year following the operative date of the act, the bill would require the Department of Finance to determine, on July 1 of each year, the annual EFA and SEFA deposit amounts for the upcoming school year. The bill would specify the procedure for calculating the EFA and SEFA deposit amounts and would require the Controller to transfer an amount of money from the General Fund to the EFA Trust equal to the sum of (1) the EFA deposit amount multiplied by the number of EFAs established, and (2) the SEFA deposit amount multiplied by the number of SEFAs established, as provided. The bill would require any unused funds remaining in an EFA or SEFA account on June 30 to be returned to the state for the benefit of elementary and secondary education, upon appropriation by the Legislature. The bill would require the EFA Trust Board to be composed of specified members and would vest the EFA Trust Board with certain powers and duties. The bill would establish 2 accounts within the EFA Trust, the EFA Trust Program Account and the EFA Trust Administrative Account, and would continuously appropriate the moneys in the program account to the EFA Trust Board for purposes of the bill, thereby making an appropriation. The bill would require the Superintendent of Public Instruction to establish a procedure for the parents and legal guardians of eligible students to apply to establish an EFA or SEFA and submit an executed participation agreement. The bill would authorize the EFA Trust Board to disburse funds from EFAs or SEFAs to eligible schools, defined as full-time private schools. The bill would specify the procedures for participating eligible schools to receive funds disbursed by the EFA Trust Board. (2) The Classroom Instructional Improvement and Accountability Act, an initiative approved by the voters as Proposition 98 at the November 8, 1988, statewide general election, amended the California Constitution to, among other things, set forth a formula for computing the minimum amount of revenues that the state is required to appropriate for the support of school districts and community college districts based on one of 3 tests in any given fiscal year, one of which is based on the percentage of General Fund revenues appropriated for school districts and community college districts, respectively, in the 1986–87 fiscal year, and 2 of which are based on, among other things, changes in enrollment. This bill would require the Legislature to recalculate that minimum education funding guarantee by including eligible students not enrolled in a public elementary or secondary school before the operative date of the act in those minimum funding guarantee calculations based on average daily attendance, as provided. The bill would also require the costs of providing EFA and SEFA deposit amounts for eligible students to be apportioned between the General Fund and the public school district in which those eligible students reside in the same ratio of General Fund and local property tax revenue that would have been used to educate those eligible students in their public school district. (3) The Personal Income Tax Law, in modified conformity with federal law, generally defines "gross income" as income from whatever source derived, except as specifically excluded, and provides various exclusions from gross income for purposes of computing tax liability. This bill would, for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2025, exclude from gross income any amounts received as distribution from an EFA or SEFA, as defined, as part of a participation agreement. Existing law requires a bill authorizing a new tax expenditure to contain, among other things, specific goals, purposes, and objectives the tax expenditure will achieve, detailed performance indicators, and data collection requirements. This bill would include additional information required for any bill authorizing a new tax expenditure. (4) These provisions would become operative on January 1, 2025, only if Senate Constitutional Amendment ____ of the 2023–24 Regular Session is approved by the voters at the statewide general election on November 5, 2024.
Existing law vests the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) with regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations. Existing law authorizes the commission to adopt new, or expand existing, fixed charges, as defined, for the purpose of collecting a reasonable portion of the fixed costs of providing electrical service to residential customers. Under existing law, the commission may authorize fixed charges for any rate schedule applicable to a residential customer account, and is required, no later than July 1, 2024, to authorize a fixed charge for default residential rates. Existing law requires these fixed charges to be established on an income-graduated basis, with no fewer than 3 income thresholds, so that low-income ratepayers in each baseline territory would realize a lower average monthly bill without making any changes in usage. Existing law requires the PUC to continue the California Alternative Rates for Energy (CARE) program to provide assistance to low-income electric and gas customers with annual household incomes that are no greater than 200% of the federal poverty guideline levels, as specified. This bill would require the PUC to require each electrical corporation to offer default rates to residential customers with at least 2 usage tiers, as provided. The bill would eliminate the requirement that the fixed charges be established on an income-graduated basis as described above, repeal related findings and declarations of the Legislature, and authorize the commission to instead authorize fixed charges that, as of January 1, 2015, do not exceed $10 per residential customer account per month for customers not enrolled in the CARE program and $5 per residential customer account per month for customers enrolled in the CARE program. The bill would authorize the maximum allowable fixed charge to be adjusted by no more than the annual percentage increase in the Consumer Price Index for the prior calendar year, as specified. Under existing law, a violation of the Public Utilities Act or any order, decision, rule, direction, demand, or requirement of the commission is a crime. Because certain provisions of this bill would be a part of the act and a violation of a commission action implementing the above-described requirements would be 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. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.