Existing law requires the state to have the primary financial responsibility for preventing and suppressing fires in areas that the State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection has determined are state responsibility areas, as defined. Existing law requires the State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection, by September 1, 2011, to adopt emergency regulations to establish a fire prevention fee in an amount not to exceed $150 to be charged on each habitable structure on a parcel that is within a state responsibility area. Existing law authorizes the State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection, on July 1, 2013, and annually thereafter, to adjust the fire prevention fee, as specified. Existing law requires the fire prevention fee to be collected annually by the State Board of Equalization, in accordance with specified procedures, and specifies that the annual fee shall be due and payable 30 days from the date of assessment by the state board. Existing law authorizes a petition for redetermination of the fee to be filed within 30 days after service of a notice of determination, as specified. This bill would require the State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection, by July 1, 2016, to amend those emergency regulations to establish a fire prevention fee in an amount not to exceed $152.33 and would authorize the board, on July 1, 2017, and annually thereafter, to adjust the fire prevention fee, as specified. The bill would extend the time when the fire prevention fee is due and payable from 30 to 60 days from the date of assessment by the State Board of Equalization and would authorize the petition for redetermination to be filed within 60 days after service of the notice of determination, as specified.
Sponsored bills
The California Constitution authorizes the Legislature to exempt from taxation property that is used exclusively for religious, hospital, or charitable purposes, and is owned or held in trust by a nonprofit entity. Pursuant to this constitutional authority, existing law partially exempts from property taxation property used exclusively for rental housing and related facilities, if specified criteria are met, including, except in the case of a limited partnership in which the managing general partner is a nonprofit corporation eligible for the exemption, that 90% or more of the occupants of the property are lower income households whose rent does not exceed the rent limits prescribed by a specified law. Existing law limits the total exemption amount allowed to a taxpayer, with respect to a single property or multiple properties for any fiscal year on the sole basis of the application of this criterion, to $20,000 of tax. This bill would increase that total exemption amount allowed to $100,000 of tax, with respect to lien dates occurring on and after January 1, 2017. This bill would require any outstanding qualified ad valorem tax in excess of the $20,000 limitation, and related interest or penalty, which was levied or imposed on and after January 1, 2014, and before January 1, 2017, with respect to qualified property for which a qualified claim was filed, to be cancelled, and any such qualified ad valorem tax, and related interest or penalty levied or imposed that was paid on or before January 1, 2017, to be refunded, to the extent that the amount cancelled or refunded does not result in a total exemption amount in excess of $100,000 of tax being allowed to a qualified taxpayer with respect to a single property or multiple properties for any fiscal year. The bill would, on and after January 1, 2017, prohibit an escape assessment from being levied on qualified property if that amount would be subject to cancellation or refund pursuant to this bill. This bill would make legislative findings and declarations regarding the public purpose served by the bill. By imposing new duties upon county tax officials with respect to the refund of these property tax payments, 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. Section 2229 of the Revenue and Taxation Code requires the Legislature to reimburse local agencies annually for certain property tax revenues lost as a result of any exemption or classification of property for purposes of ad valorem property taxation. This bill would provide that, notwithstanding Section 2229 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, no appropriation is made and the state shall not reimburse local agencies for property tax revenues lost by them pursuant to the bill.
Existing law provides specified requirements in awarding certain public contracts. This bill would authorize the Governor to sign agreements required by the United States Olympic Committee as part of the bid process for the City of Los Angeles or the City and County of San Francisco to become the United States applicant city and candidate city for the 2024 Olympic Games and Paralympic Games. This bill would make legislative findings and declarations that, among other things, the endorsing municipality, as defined, has developed a self-sufficient bid for financing the games. This bill would authorize the Governor to enter into an agreement for the state to be jointly liable, not to exceed a specified amount, with the Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games (OCOG) , as specified, for obligations of the OCOG, and for any financial deficit relating to the games, as provided. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Existing law requires a driver facing a steady circular red signal alone to stop at a marked limit line, but if none, before entering the crosswalk on the near side of the intersection or, if none, then before entering the intersection, and to remain stopped until an indication to proceed is shown, except as specified. A violation of this provision is an infraction punishable by a fine of $100. This bill would recast those provisions, and instead would require that a violation of this provision for a right turn or a left turn from a one-way street onto a one-way street is punishable by a fine of $35.
Under existing law, there are programs providing assistance for, among other things, emergency housing, multifamily housing, farmworker housing, homeownership for very low and low-income households, and downpayment assistance for first-time homebuyers. Existing law also authorizes the issuance of bonds in specified amounts pursuant to the State General Obligation Bond Law. Existing law requires that proceeds from the sale of these bonds be used to finance various existing housing programs, capital outlay related to infill development, brownfield cleanup that promotes infill development, and housing-related parks. This bill would enact the Building Homes and Jobs Act. The bill would make legislative findings and declarations relating to the need for establishing permanent, ongoing sources of funding dedicated to affordable housing development. The bill would impose a fee, except as provided, of $75 to be paid at the time of the recording of every real estate instrument, paper, or notice required or permitted by law to be recorded, per each single transaction per single parcel of real property, not to exceed $225. By imposing new duties on counties with respect to the imposition of the recording fee, the bill would create a state-mandated local program. The bill would require that revenues from this fee, after deduction of any actual and necessary administrative costs incurred by the county recorder, be sent quarterly to the Department of Housing and Community Development for deposit in the Building Homes and Jobs Fund, which the bill would create within the State Treasury. The bill would, upon appropriation by the Legislature, require that 20% of the moneys in the fund be expended for affordable owner-occupied workforce housing, 10% of the moneys for housing purposes related to agricultural workers and their families, and would authorize the remainder of the moneys in the fund to be expended to support affordable housing, homeownership opportunities, and other housing-related programs, as specified. The bill would impose certain auditing and reporting requirements and would establish the Building Homes and Jobs Trust Fund Governing Board that would, among other things, review and approve recommendations made by the Department of Housing and Community Development for the distribution of moneys from the fund. This bill would state the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation that would create the Secretary of Housing within state government to oversee all activities related to housing in the state. 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.
Under existing law, various measures have been approved by the voters to provide funds for park, river, and coastal protections and programs. This bill would enact the Safe Neighborhood Parks, Rivers, and Coastal Protection Bond Act of 2016, which, if adopted by the voters at the November 8, 2016, statewide general election, would authorize the issuance of bonds in the total amount of $2,450,000,000 pursuant to the State General Obligation Bond Law to finance a safe neighborhood parks, rivers, and coastal protection program. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Existing law regulates certain behavior related to recreational activities and public safety, including, among other things, playgrounds and wooden playground equipment. The bill would, until January 1, 2020, require a public or private school or local government, before installing, contracting for the installation of, or soliciting bids for a new artificial turf field containing crumb rubber infill, as defined, within the boundaries of a public or private school, or public recreational park to do certain things, including gathering information from companies that offer artificial turf products that do not use crumb rubber infill.
Existing law authorizes cities and counties, and, if specifically authorized, other local governmental entities, subject to certain limitations and approval requirements, to levy a transactions and use tax for general purposes, in accordance with the procedures and requirements set forth in the Transactions and Use Tax Law, including a requirement that the combined rate of all taxes imposed in accordance with that law in the county not exceed 2%. This bill would increase that maximum combined rate to 3%.
Existing law provides various programs to expand access to persons with disabilities and promote compliance with the federal Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. Existing law establishes the Capital Access Loan Program, which is administered by the California Pollution Control Financing Authority (authority) to assist small businesses to finance the costs of complying with environmental mandates and the remediation of contamination on their properties. This bill would establish the California Americans with Disabilities Act Small Business Capital Access Loan Program within the Capital Access Loan Program, to create a self-sustaining program to provide loans to assist small businesses in financing the costs of projects that alter or retrofit existing small business facilities, meeting specified criteria, to comply with the federal Americans with Disabilities Act. This bill would authorize the authority to administer the program, including adopting regulations, and controlling funds appropriated for the program, as specified. This bill would establish the California Americans with Disabilities Act Small Business Capital Access Loan Program Fund, as a continuously appropriated fund, and require the authority to use the fund for all its purposes. This bill would also transfer $10,000,000 from the General Fund to the California Americans with Disabilities Act Small Business Capital Access Loan Program Fund.
Existing law creates, within the office of the Governor, the Office of Emergency Services which, under the Director of Emergency Services, coordinates disaster response, emergency planning, emergency preparedness, disaster recovery, disaster mitigation, and homeland security activities. Existing law requires, subject to the identification of funding by January 1, 2016, various entities, including the Office of Emergency Services, through a public-private partnership, to develop a comprehensive statewide earthquake early warning system in California that includes certain features, including the installation of field sensors. Existing law repeals this early warning system requirement on January 1, 2016, if the funding is not identified. It also requires the office to file with the Secretary of State a determination that funding was not identified by January 1, 2016. This bill would instead require the identification of funding for the earthquake early warning system to occur by July 1, 2016, and would make conforming changes. This bill would create the California Earthquake Safety Fund and would require moneys in the fund, upon appropriation by the Legislature, be used for seismic safety and earthquake-related programs, including the earthquake early warning system described above. The bill would authorize the fund to accept federal funds, funds from revenue bonds, local funds, and funds from private sources for purposes of carrying out its provisions, and would make conforming changes.