Existing law provides that the Public Utilities Commission has certain responsibilities for the inspection, surveillance, and investigation of the rights-of-way, facilities, equipment, and operations of railroads, including public mass transit guideways, and for enforcement of state and federal laws, regulations, orders, and directives relative to rail safety. The Natural Gas Pipeline Safety Act of 2011 designates the commission as the state authority responsible for regulating and enforcing federal law with respect to intrastate gas pipeline transportation and pipeline facilities. When the federal National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) submits a safety recommendation letter concerning gas pipeline safety to the commission, the act requires the commission, within 90 days, to provide the NTSB with a formal written response to each recommendation, as specified. When the NTSB issues a safety recommendation letter concerning any commission-regulated gas pipeline facility to the United States Department of Transportation, the federal Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) , a gas corporation, or to the commission, or the PHMSA issues an advisory bulletin concerning any commission-regulated gas pipeline facility, the act requires the commission to determine if implementation of the recommendation or advisory is appropriate and requires the commission, in that case, to issue orders or adopt rules to implement the safety recommendations or advisory as soon as practical and to consider whether specified alternatives exist to address the safety issue that the recommendation or advisory addresses. The act additionally requires the commission to include a detailed description of any action taken on the recommendations or advisory in a specified annual report to the Legislature. This bill would enact similar provisions applicable to NTSB safety recommendations and Federal Transit Administration (FTA) safety advisories concerning rail facilities. With respect to natural gas pipelines, if the commission receives a correspondence from the NTSB that indicates that a recommendation of the NTSB has been closed following an action that the NTSB finds unacceptable, the bill would require this fact to be noted in the annual report submitted to the Legislature. Under existing law, a violation of an order, decision, rule, direction, demand, or requirement of the commission is a crime. Because this bill would require the commission to issue orders or adopt rules to implement any safety recommendation of the NTSB and safety advisories of the FTA relative to rail facilities that the commission determines to be appropriate, and a violation of those orders or rules 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.
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The California Constitution establishes the Public Utilities Commission, with jurisdiction over all public utilities, and provides that the Legislature may remove a commissioner for incompetence, neglect of duty, or corruption, 23 of the membership of each house concurring. Existing law prohibits the commission, by order, decision, motion, settlement, or other action, from establishing a nonstate entity, as defined, with any moneys other than those moneys that would otherwise belong to the public utility's shareholders. That law prohibits the commission from entering into a contract with any nonstate entity in which a person serves as an owner, director, or officer while serving as a commissioner. That law additionally provides that, beginning June 1, 2014, a commissioner who acts as an owner, director, or officer of a nonstate entity that was established prior to January 1, 2014, as a result of an order, decision, motion, settlement, or other action by the Public Utilities Commission in which the commissioner participated, neglects his or her duty and may be removed pursuant to the California Constitution. This bill would provide that, beginning June 1, 2014, a commissioner who acts as an owner, director, or officer of a nonstate entity that was established as a result of an order, decision, motion, settlement, or other action by the Public Utilities Commission in which the commissioner participated, neglects his or her duty and may be removed pursuant to the California Constitution, irrespective of when the nonstate entity was established.
Under existing law, the Public Utilities Commission has regulatory authority over public utilities, as defined. Existing law authorizes the commission to fix the rates and charges for every public utility and authorizes the commission to establish rules for all public utilities, subject to control by the Legislature. If the commission finds after a hearing that the rules, practices, equipment, appliances, facilities, or service of any public utility, or the methods of manufacture, distribution, transmission, storage, or supply employed by the public utility, are unjust, unreasonable, unsafe, improper, inadequate, or insufficient, the Public Utilities Act requires that the commission determine and, by order or rule, fix the rules, practices, equipment, appliances, facilities, service, or methods to be observed, furnished, constructed, enforced, or employed. Existing law states it is the intent of the Legislature that the commission assess the economic effects or other consequences of its decisions as a part of each ratemaking, rulemaking, or other proceeding. This bill would require the commission to develop formal procedures, as specified, to consider safety in a rate case application by an electrical corporation or gas corporation. The bill would require the commission to take actions to assess the economic effects of its decisions and to assess and mitigate the impacts of its decisions on customer, public, and employee safety.
Existing law requires the Office of Emergency Services to implement regulations establishing minimum standards for business plans and area plans relating to the handling and release or threatened release of hazardous materials. Existing law requires the establishment of a statewide environmental reporting system for these plans. This bill would require a rail carrier, as defined, to report specified information regarding the transportation of hazardous materials, beginning no later than January 31, 2015, to the office on a quarterly basis. The bill would require a rail carrier to prospectively estimate and submit to the office notification of the weekly movements of trains through a county, as specified. The bill would require a rail carrier to update that notification once every 6 months. The bill also would require a rail carrier to update and notify the office within 30 days of the rail carrier determining that there will be a material change in the estimated volume of Bakken oil, as defined, plus or minus 25% per week relative to the most recent estimate previously submitted to the office. The bill would require each rail carrier to maintain a response management communications center, as specified. The bill would require the office to disseminate information necessary for developing emergency response plans from the reports it receives pursuant to this act to each unified program agency, as defined, when the office determines a unified program agency area of responsibility may be impacted by a hazardous material or oil cargo spill. The bill would require each rail carrier to provide the office with a summary of the rail carrier's hazardous materials emergency response plan, as specified. The bill would require the office to provide a copy of each summary report of a rail carrier's hazardous materials emergency response plan to each unified program agency when the office determines a unified program agency area of responsibility may be impacted by a rail carrier spill of hazardous material or oil cargo, as specified. The bill would prohibit a recipient of the reports and hazardous materials emergency response plan from divulging or making known that information to unauthorized recipients, as specified.
The California Constitution establishes the Public Utilities Commission with regulatory authority over public utilities, authorizes the commission to establish its own procedures, subject to statutory limitations or directions and constitutional requirements of due process, and authorizes the commission to fix rates and establish rules for all public utilities, subject to control by the Legislature. The Natural Gas Pipeline Safety Act of 2011, within the Public Utilities Act, designates the commission as the state authority responsible for regulating and enforcing intrastate gas pipeline transportation and pipeline facilities pursuant to federal law, including the development, submission, and administration of a state pipeline safety program certification for natural gas pipelines. The act requires each gas corporation to develop a plan, as specified, for the safe and reliable operation of its commission-regulated gas pipeline facility, as defined. The act requires the commission to accept, modify, or reject the plan for each gas corporation by December 31, 2012, and to build into an approved plan sufficient flexibility to redirect activities to respond to safety requirements. The act requires that the plan be periodically reviewed and updated. The California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 requires the State Air Resources Board to adopt regulations to require the reporting and verification of emissions of greenhouse gases and to monitor and enforce compliance with the reporting and verification program, and requires the state board to adopt a statewide greenhouse gas emissions limit equivalent to the statewide greenhouse gas emissions level in 1990, to be achieved by 2020. This bill would require the commission, giving priority to safety, reliability, and affordability of service, to adopt rules and procedures governing the operation, maintenance, repair, and replacement of those commission-regulated gas pipeline facilities that are intrastate transmission and distribution lines to minimize leaks as a hazard to be mitigated pursuant to the Natural Gas Pipeline Safety Act of 2011, consistent with specified federal regulations, and a specified order of the commission, and to reduce emissions of natural gas from those facilities to the maximum extent feasible in order to advance the state's goals in reducing emissions of greenhouse gases pursuant to the California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006. The bill would require the commission to require gas corporations to file a report as soon as practicable, that includes a summary of utility leak management practices, a list of new methane leaks in 2013 by grade, a list of open leaks that are being monitored or are scheduled to be repaired, and a best estimate of gas loss due to leaks. The bill would require the commission to commence a proceeding by January 15, 2015, to adopt those rules and procedures, in consultation with the State Air Resources Board. The bill would require that the rules and procedures (1) provide for the maximum technologically feasible and cost-effective avoidance, reduction, and repair of leaks and leaking components in those commission-regulated gas pipeline facilities that are intrastate transmission and distribution lines within a reasonable time after discovery, (2) provide for the repair of leaks as soon as reasonably possible after discovery, consistent with established safety requirements and the goals of reducing air pollution and the climate change impacts of methane emissions, (3) evaluate the operations, maintenance, and repair practices for those facilities to determine whether existing practices are effective at reducing methane leaks and promoting public safety, achieve the goals of the bill, and whether alternative practices may be more effective at achieving the goals of the bill, (4) establish and require the use of best practices for leak surveys, patrols, leak survey technology, leak prevention, and leak reduction, (5) establish protocols and procedures for the development and use of metrics to quantify the volume of emissions from leaking gas pipeline facilities, and for evaluating and tracking leaks geographically and over time that may be incorporated into a gas corporation's plan for the safe and reliable operation of its commission-regulated gas pipeline facility, or into other state emissions tracking systems, or both, including regulations of the State Air Resources Board for the reporting of greenhouse gases, with the requirement that the metrics provide operators, the commission, and the public with accurate information about the number and severity of leaks and about the quantity of gas that is emitted to the atmosphere over time, and (6) to the extent feasible, require the owner of each commission-regulated gas pipeline facility that is an intrastate transmission or distribution line to calculate and report to the commission and the State Air Resources Board a baseline systemwide leak rate, to periodically update that systemwide leak rate calculation, and to annually report measures that will be taken in the following year to reduce the systemwide leak rate to achieve the goals of the bill. In order to achieve transparency and accountability for rate revenues and best value for ratepayers, the bill would require that the commission consider specified topics in a manner consistent with the commission's existing ratemaking procedures and authority to establish just and reasonable rates. 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 the provisions of this bill would be a part of the act and because a violation of an order or decision of the commission implementing its requirements would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program by creating a new crime. 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 makes it a crime to operate a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol or drugs, and sets forth the penalties for a violation of these provisions. Existing law provides that a person who is guilty of driving under the influence or driving under the influence causing injury, is subject to enhanced penalties if the current offense occurred within 10 years of a prior conviction that was punished as a felony for driving under the influence, driving under the influence causing injury, or vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence. This bill would instead authorize those enhanced penalties for a current conviction for driving under the influence or driving under the influence causing injury that occurs within 10 years of a separate conviction that was punished as a felony for driving under the influence, driving under the influence causing injury, or vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence. By changing the scope of penalties for existing crimes, 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.
The Donahoe Higher Education Act sets forth, among other things, the missions and functions of California's public and independent segments of higher education, and their respective institutions of higher education. Existing law establishes the University of California, under the administration of the Regents of the University of California, and the California State University, under the administration of the Trustees of the California State University, as 2 of the public segments of postsecondary education in this state. A provision of the act requires the California State University and requests the University of California to establish a uniform set of model academic standards for high school courses for pupils who wish to attend those institutions. Existing law establishes the Academic Content Standards Commission and requires the commission to develop internationally benchmarked academic content standards in language arts and mathematics, at least 85% of which are required to be the common core academic standards developed by the Common Core State Standards Initiative consortium or another specified interstate collaboration. This bill would express the Legislature's intent that the University of California and the California State University align their respective model academic standards for high school courses in language arts and mathematics to these academic content standards developed by the commission. The bill would require the trustees and would request the regents to develop guidelines for high school computer science courses to be approved for purposes of recognition for admission to the California State University and the University of California, respectively, and would encourage the University of California to ensure that computer science courses that satisfy the mathematics subject area requirements for admission build upon fundamental mathematics content provided in courses that align with the academic content standards developed by the commission.
Existing law provides for the licensure and regulation of various professionals who provide mental health-related services, including psychologists, marriage and family therapists, educational psychologists, professional clinical counselors, and clinical social workers. Under existing law, an applicant for licensure in these professions is required to complete certain coursework or training in order to be eligible for a license. Existing law also requires these professionals to participate in continuing education as a prerequisite for renewing their license. This bill would require a psychologist, marriage and family therapist, educational psychologist, professional clinical counselor, and clinical social worker who began graduate study on or after January 1, 2016, to complete a minimum of 15 contact hours of coursework in suicide assessment, treatment, and management before he or she may be issued a license. The bill would also require, commencing January 1, 2016, a person licensed in these professions or any applicant for licensure who began graduate study prior to January 1, 2016, to take a six-hour continuing education course in suicide assessment, treatment, and management in order to renew his or her license.
(1) Existing law authorizes a school district or county office of education to provide emergency epinephrine auto-injectors to trained personnel, and authorizes trained personnel to use epinephrine auto-injectors to provide emergency medical aid to persons suffering from an anaphylactic reaction. Existing law authorizes each public and private elementary and secondary school in the state to designate one or more school personnel on a voluntary basis to receive initial and annual refresher training regarding the storage and emergency use of an epinephrine auto-injector, as specified. Existing law authorizes a school nurse, or a person who has received the training described above if the school does not have a school nurse, to, among other things, obtain a prescription for epinephrine auto-injectors. This bill would instead require school districts, county offices of education, and charter schools to provide emergency epinephrine auto-injectors to school nurses and trained personnel who have volunteered, as specified, and would authorize school nurses and trained personnel to use epinephrine auto-injectors to provide emergency medical aid to persons suffering, or reasonably believed to be suffering, from an anaphylactic reaction. The bill would require school districts, county offices of education, and charter schools to distribute a notice requesting volunteers at least once a year. The bill would require a qualified supervisor of health or administrator at a school district, county office of education, or charter school to obtain the prescription for epinephrine auto-injectors from an authorizing physician and surgeon, as defined, and would authorize the prescription to be filled by local or mail order pharmacies or epinephrine auto-injector manufacturers. The bill would require epinephrine auto-injectors to be stocked and restocked by the qualified supervisor of health or administrator in accordance with specified provisions. By imposing additional duties on local educational agencies, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (2) Existing law requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction to establish minimum standards of training for the administration of epinephrine auto-injectors, as specified, and requires a school district or county office of education to create a plan relating to its use. This bill would delete the requirement for creating a plan, would revise the training requirements, and would require the Superintendent to review the minimum standards of training at least every 5 years. The bill would require a school district, county office of education, or charter school to ensure that each employee who volunteers is provided defense and indemnification by the school district, county office of education, or charter school for any and all civil liability, as specified. The bill would authorize a state agency, the State Department of Education, or a public school to accept gifts, grants, and donations from any source for the support of the public school carrying out these provisions. By requiring local educational agencies to perform additional duties related to epinephrine auto-injectors, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (3) Existing law authorizes a pharmacy to furnish epinephrine auto-injectors to a school district or county office of education if certain requirements are met. This bill would also authorize a pharmacy to furnish epinephrine auto-injectors to charter schools pursuant to those provisions. (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, 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 provides that a person who enters or remains on airport property owned by a city, county, or city and county, but located in another county, and sells, peddles, or offers for sale any goods, merchandise, property, or services of any kind whatsoever, including transportation services on or from the airport property, to members of the public without the express written consent of the governing board of the airport property, or its duly authorized representative, is guilty of a misdemeanor. This bill would additionally provide that a person who offers for sale transportation services to the airport property to members of the public without written consent is also guilty of that crime. The bill would also make technical, nonsubstantive changes to those provisions. By expanding the scope of an existing 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.