The State Contract Act governs state contracts for public works projects and, among other things, generally requires the award of a contract to the lowest responsible bidder, with specified alternative procurement procedures authorized in certain cases. This bill would require a state agency that enters into a public works contract with an estimated value of not less than $250,000 to decrease the bid amount of a bidder by 5%, for purposes of comparing the bid with competing bids, if the bidder is party to an apprenticeship agreement with an approved apprenticeship program. The bill would require the lowest responsive and responsible bidder, taking the apprenticeship preference into consideration, to be awarded the contract unless the solicitation provides for additional award criteria. The bill would require a contractor seeking such a decrease, at the time of submission of a bid for a public works contract, to furnish written proof of approval to train apprentices by an approved apprenticeship program for each apprenticeable trade the contractor intends to employ on the public works project, signed under penalty of perjury. By expanding the crime of perjury, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would require a contractor to which the contract is awarded as a result of the decrease to employ registered apprentices in accordance with specified law and standards. The bill would define terms for these purposes. 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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This measure would proclaim March 2022 as Visual and Performing Arts Education Month and urge all residents to become interested in and give full support to quality visual and performing arts education programs for children and youth.
Under existing law, whenever a school district or community college district vacancy occurs, or if a resignation has been filed with the county superintendent of schools creating a deferred effective date, the school district or community college district governing board is required, within 60 days of the vacancy or the filing of the deferred resignation, either to order an election or to make a provisional appointment. Existing law provides that if a provisional appointment is made, the registered voters of the district may, within 30 days, petition for a special election to fill the vacancy. Existing law requires that a special election be called if 1.5% of registered voters at the time of the last election, or 25 registered voters, whichever is greater, sign the petition, and other requirements for a petition calling for a special election are satisfied. In districts with less than 2,000 registered voters, existing law establishes the petition signature requirement as at least 5% of the number of registered voters of the district at the time of the last regular election, as provided. This bill would change those petition signature requirements to instead require the signatures of 10% of registered voters in districts with less than 10,000 registered voters, 5% of registered voters in districts with between 10,000 and 50,000 registered voters, and 2.5% of registered voters in districts with more than 50,000 registered voters, as provided. To the extent this change would require additional duties on local agencies or officials, 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, 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 law, the Alatorre-Zenovich-Dunlap-Berman Agricultural Labor Relations Act of 1975, grants agricultural employees the right to form and join labor organizations and engage in collective bargaining with respect to wages, terms of employment, and other employment conditions, and authorizes employees to elect exclusive bargaining representatives for these purposes. Existing law requires the Agricultural Labor Relations Board to certify the results of an election conducted by secret ballot of employees in a collective bargaining unit to designate a collective bargaining representative, unless the board determines there are sufficient grounds to refuse to do so. Existing law further provides that if the board refuses to certify an election because of employer misconduct that would render slight the chances of a new election reflecting the free and fair choice of employees, the labor organization shall be certified as the bargaining representative for the bargaining unit. This bill would refer to the secret ballot election as a polling place election. This bill would also permit agricultural employees, as an alternative election procedure, to select their labor representatives through a representation ballot card election by submitting a petition to the board supported by representation ballot cards signed by a majority of employees in the bargaining unit. This bill would require the board to conduct an immediate investigation regarding the validity of the petition and the supporting representation ballot cards and, within 5 days after receiving a petition, to make an administrative decision as to whether the petition meets certain requirements and as to whether the labor organization submitted the requisite number of cards. The bill would require the board to certify the labor organization as the exclusive bargaining representative if the board determines that the labor organization has submitted the required number of representation ballot cards and the cards meet specified criteria. Existing law authorizes a person aggrieved by the final order of the board granting or denying in whole or in part the relief sought for an unfair labor practice, to obtain a review of the order in a specified court of appeal by filing in the court a written petition requesting that the order of the board be modified or set aside. This bill would require an employer who appeals or petitions for a writ of review of any order of the board involving make-whole, backpay, or other monetary awards to employees, to post an appeal bond in the amount of the entire economic value of the order, as specified, and would provide for the bond to be forfeited under specified conditions. This bill would state that its provisions are severable.
(1) Existing law defines the crime of rape as an act of sexual intercourse accomplished with a person who is not the spouse of the perpetrator under specified circumstances. Existing law separately defines the crime of rape of a person who is the spouse of the perpetrator as an act of sexual intercourse under specified circumstances. Under existing law, an act of sexual intercourse in which a person is unconscious of the nature of the act because of the perpetrator's fraudulent representation that the sexual penetration served a professional purpose or in which a person submits under the belief that the person committing the act is someone known to the victim other than the accused both constitute rape, but do not constitute spousal rape. This bill would expand the definition of the crime of rape to include those acts when accomplished with a person who is a spouse of the perpetrator and would repeal the crime of spousal rape. By expanding the definition of a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (2) Existing law requires persons convicted of specified sex offenses to register with local law enforcement agencies while residing in the state or while attending school or working in the state. Willful failure to register is a crime. Existing law requires a person convicted of rape to register as a sex offender. Existing law requires a person convicted of spousal rape to register only if the act involved the use of force or violence for which the person was sentenced to state prison. This bill would require a person convicted of rape of a person who is the perpetrator's spouse to register as a sex offender under all circumstances defining rape. By imposing additional duties on local authorities, and by requiring additional persons to be registered as sex offenders, who, if they fail to do so commit a crime, this bill would create a state-mandated local program. (3) Existing law allows a defendant to plea bargain in response to an accusatory pleading charging a felony, except that certain crimes are excluded, including rape of an unconscious person who is not the spouse of the perpetrator. This bill would make this exception to the general authorization to plea bargain applicable to the rape of an unconscious person who is the spouse of the perpetrator. (4) The bill would make numerous conforming changes. (5) 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 with regard to certain mandates no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason. With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs so mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.
Existing law requires the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission to assess the potential for the state to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases from the state's residential and commercial building stock by at least 40% below 1990 levels by January 1, 2030. Existing law requires the commission to include in the 2021 edition of the integrated energy policy report and all subsequent integrated energy policy reports a report on the emissions of greenhouse gases associated with the supply of energy to residential and commercial buildings. This bill would, on or after January 1, 2022, prohibit a state agency from designing or constructing a state facility that is connected to the natural gas grid. The bill would require the department to develop the California State Building Decarbonization Plan that will lead to the operational carbon-neutrality of all state-owned buildings by January 1, 2035. The bill would, except as provided, prohibit state agencies from providing funding or other support for projects for the construction of residential and nonresidential buildings that are connected to the natural gas grid.
The Personal Income Tax Law, beginning on or after January 1, 2015, in modified conformity with federal income tax laws, allows an earned income tax credit against personal income tax, and a payment from the Tax Relief and Refund Account for an allowable credit in excess of tax liability, to an eligible individual that is equal to that portion of the earned income tax credit allowed by federal law as determined by the earned income tax credit adjustment factor, as specified. The law provides that the amount of the credit is calculated as a percentage of the eligible individual's earned income and is phased out above a specified amount as income increases. This bill, for each taxable year beginning on or after January 1, 2021, and before January 1, 2022, would authorize a taxpayer to elect to have the amount of the credit calculated based on the taxpayer's earned income for the taxable year beginning on or after January 1, 2019, and before January 1, 2020, the taxpayer's earned income for the taxable year beginning on or after January 1, 2020, and before January 1, 2021, or the taxpayer's earned income for the next taxable year beginning on or after January 1, 2021, and before January 1, 2022. Existing law establishes the continuously appropriated Tax Relief and Refund Account and provides that payments required to be made to taxpayers or other persons from the Personal Income Tax Fund are to be paid from that account, including any amount to be paid as an earned income tax credit in excess of any tax liabilities. By increasing the amount of the California Earned Income Tax Credit to be paid with funds from the Tax Relief and Refund Account, and thus, authorizing new payments from that account for additional amounts in excess of personal income tax liabilities, this bill would make an appropriation.
Existing law, the Ralph C. Dills Act (Dills Act) , governs collective bargaining between the state and recognized state public employee organizations. Existing law excludes certain employees from coverage under the Dills Act, including, among others, managerial employees, supervisory employees, and confidential employees, as defined. Existing law creates the Public Employment Relations Board and authorizes it, among other things, to determine appropriate state employee bargaining units, as specified. This bill would enact the Legislature Employer-Employee Relations Act, to provide employees of the Legislature, including some supervisory and managerial employees, the right to form, join, and participate in the activities of employee organizations of their own choosing for the purpose of representation on all matters of employer-employee relations. The bill would prescribe rights, duties, and prohibitions in this context that parallel those in the Dills Act. The bill would prohibit the Public Employment Relations Board from including employees of the Legislature in a bargaining unit that includes employees other than those of the Legislature. The bill would make it a misdemeanor for any person to willfully resist, prevent, impede, or interfere with any member of the board, or any of its agents, in the performance of duties pursuant to its provisions. By expanding the definition of a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would provide that the provisions of the Legislature Employer-Employee Relations Act are severable. 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, the California Tourism and Marketing Act, establishes a nonprofit mutual benefit corporation named the California Travel and Tourism Commission under the direction of a board of commissioners composed of 37 members, including the Director of the Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development. This bill, the California Tourism Recovery Act, would require the commission to, upon a determination by the State Department of Public Health that it is safe to resume travel in California, implement a strategic media and jobs recovery campaign known as the "Calling All Californians" program for the purpose of reversing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the travel and tourism industry in California, as specified. The bill would require the commission to report to the Legislature, on or before January 1, 2024, regarding the cost of the program and the impact of the program on the tourism industry in California. The bill would require, only upon appropriation by the Legislature, the Controller to transfer $45,000,000 to the commission for the purpose of implementing the "Calling All Californians" program.