Sen. Melissa Hurtado

Existing law establishes the University of California, under the administration of the Regents of the University of California. Existing law requires the Office of Emergency Services, in coordination with all interested state agencies with designated response roles in the state emergency plan and interested local emergency management agencies, to jointly establish by regulation a standardized emergency management system for use by all emergency response agencies, and to include specified components. Existing law requires the office to approve, adopt, and incorporate the California Animal Response Emergency System (CARES) program developed under the oversight of the Department of Food and Agriculture into the standardized emergency management system. This bill would require the University of California, Davis, School of Veterinary Medicine to develop a program called the California Veterinary Emergency Team, and would require the program to assist in the support and training of a network of government agencies, nongovernmental organizations, and individuals to assist in the veterinary care of household and domestic animals and livestock in emergencies, including disaster preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation. The bill would also require the program to conduct or support research on best practices for the evacuation and care of the animals in disasters. The bill would require the university, the Secretary of Food and Agriculture, and the Director of Emergency Services to develop a memorandum of understanding for the university to consult with the secretary and the director regarding the coordination of the program's activities with the state government's disaster response practices and the deployment of the program's participants during disasters. The bill would require these provisions to apply to the university only to the extent that the Regents of the University of California, by resolution, make any of these provisions applicable to the university. The bill would establish the California Veterinary Emergency Team Fund in the State Treasury to, upon appropriation, be used solely to support the program. The bill would specify that moneys in the fund are not to be considered offsets to any other state funds appropriated to the university.

Existing law establishes the California Community Colleges, under the administration of the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges, as one of the segments of public postsecondary education in this state. The board of governors consists of 18 members, including 2 community college students appointed by the Governor for 2-year terms. Existing law prohibits a student member from voting at a board meeting during the first year of the student member's term, except as specified. This bill would eliminate the prohibition against a student member voting during the student member's first year on the board.

(1) Existing law authorizes the governing board of any school district or community college district to order an election and submit to the electors of the district the question of whether the bonds of the district shall be issued and sold to raise money for specified purposes. Existing law generally requires, to pass a school bond measure, that either at least 23 of the votes cast on the proposition of issuing bonds be in favor of issuing the bonds to pass the measure, or, if certain conditions are met, at least 55% of the votes cast on the proposition of issuing bonds be in favor of issuing the bonds. Existing law prohibits the total amount of bonds issued by a school district or community college district from exceeding 1.25% of the taxable property of the district, as provided. This bill would raise that limit to 2%. (2) Existing law also authorizes a unified school district to issue bonds receiving at least 55% of the votes cast on the proposition of issuing the bonds that, in aggregation with bonds issued with a 23 favorable vote, do not exceed 2.5% of the taxable property of the district, as provided. This bill would raise that limit to 4%. The bill would make a similar percentage increase for community college districts. (3) The Leroy F. Greene School Facilities Act of 1998 provides for the adoption of rules, regulations, and procedures, under the administration of the Director of General Services, for the allocation of state funds by the State Allocation Board for the construction and modernization of public school facilities. This bill would, among other things, require a school district to submit to the Department of General Services a 5-year school facilities master plan or updated 5-year school facilities master plan, as provided, as a condition of participating in the school facilities program under the act, would require the school district to submit specified information in the school district's application for an apportionment of state funds, and would make other changes to requirements a school district is required to comply with before participating in programs under the act. The bill would require the department to process applications to participate in the program, as specified, and would make other changes to the method by which the board makes apportionments of moneys under the act. This bill would establish the 2022 State School Facilities Fund, and authorize the board to apportion, and make disbursements of, moneys in the fund, as provided. The bill would require, for bonds approved by voters in 2022 or thereafter, the board to adjust a school district's required local and state contribution, as specified. The bill would authorize new construction and modernization grants to be used for seismic mitigation purposes and, among other things, to establish schoolsite-based infrastructure to provide broadband internet access. The bill would also authorize modernization grants to be used, among other things, for the control, management, or abatement of lead and for the demolition and construction of a building on an existing schoolsite that meets specified conditions. The bill would prohibit the use of new construction and modernization grants for the purchase of portable electronic devices with a useful life of less than 3 years. This bill would authorize funding for health and safety projects by a school district, as provided. This bill would authorize the board to provide a grant to test for lead in water outlets used for drinking or preparing food on schoolsites serving kindergarten or any of grades 1 to 12, inclusive, as provided. The bill would specify procedures that small school districts, as defined, may use to obtain project and construction management, new construction grants, and modernization grants. The bill would also make conforming changes in, and remove inoperative provisions from, the act. (4) The act also requires the board to adopt regulations for determining the amount of funding and the eligibility and prioritization of funding that school districts with a financial hardship may receive from bond acts for construction, modernization, or relocation assistance. The act requires those regulations to include consideration of various factors, including whether the school district's total bonding capacity is $5,000,000 or less, in which case the school district shall be deemed eligible for financial hardship. This bill, for purposes of the regulations related to financial hardship eligibility, would increase the total bonding capacity cap to $15,000,000, to be adjusted as specified. (5) The California Constitution prohibits the Legislature from creating a debt or liability that singly or in the aggregate with any previous debts or liabilities exceeds the sum of $300,000, except by an act that (A) authorizes the debt for a single object or work specified in the act, (B) has been passed by a 23 vote of all the Members elected to each house of the Legislature, (C) has been submitted to the people at a statewide general or primary election, and (D) has received a majority of all the votes cast for and against it at that election. This bill would set forth the Public Preschool, K–12, and College Health and Safety Bond Act of 2022 as a state general obligation bond act that would provide $15,500,000,000 to construct and modernize education facilities, as specified. This bond act would become operative only if approved by the voters at the ____, 2022, statewide ____ election. The bill would also provide for the submission of the bond act to the voters at that election. (6) Existing law establishes the California State University, which is administered by the Board of Trustees of the California State University, and the University of California, under the administration of the Regents of the University of California, as segments of public postsecondary education in this state. This bill would require the Board of Trustees and the Regents to comply with certain conditions, as provided, before receiving funds from the 2022 University Capital Outlay Bond Fund established pursuant to the Public Preschool, K–12, and College Health and Safety Bond Act of 2022. (7) This bill would become effective upon the adoption of the Public Preschool, K–12, and College Health and Safety Bond Act of 2022 by the voters at the ____, 2022, statewide ____ election.

This measure would declare that the Legislature honors the life and legacy of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and proclaims March 15, 2021, as Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Day, a day of remembrance and education to ensure that all Californians always honor and remember a vibrant guardian of equality for all.

The Personal Income Tax Law and the Corporation Tax Law, in conformity with federal income tax law, generally define "gross income" as income from whatever source derived, except as specifically excluded, and provide various exclusions from gross income. Existing law, in conformity with the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) , and its subsequent amendments in the Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act and the Paycheck Protection Program Flexibility Act of 2020, among other things, excludes any amounts of covered loans forgiven under the CARES Act from gross income for purposes of the Personal Income Tax Law and the Corporation Tax Law. Existing law reduces the amount of any credit or deduction otherwise allowed under the Personal Income Tax and the Corporation Tax Law for any amount paid or incurred by the taxpayer upon which this exclusion is based by the amount of the exclusion allowed. Existing law requires any 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. Existing federal law, the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, prohibits reductions in tax deductions, denials of basis adjustments, and reductions in tax attributes for federal income tax purposes based on the exclusion from gross income provided in the federal CARES Act and its subsequent amendments. This bill would exclude, for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2019, from gross income any advance grant amount, as defined, issued pursuant to specified provisions of the CARES Act or the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, and covered loan amounts forgiven pursuant to the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021. This bill would adopt, except as provided, the provisions of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, prohibiting any reduction in tax deductions, denials of basis adjustments, and reductions in tax attributes based on the exclusion from gross income provided for any loan amount forgiven in modified conformity with the federal CARES Act and its subsequent amendments. This bill would provide findings to comply with the additional information requirement for any bill authorizing a new tax expenditure. This bill would also make findings and declarations related to a gift of public funds. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

This measure would proclaim the week of March 7, 2021, to March 13, 2021, inclusive, as Women in Construction Week.