Existing law, the Ralph M. Brown Act, requires, with specified exceptions, that all meetings of a legislative body, as defined, of a local agency be open and public and that all persons be permitted to attend and participate. The act generally requires for teleconferencing that the legislative body of a local agency that elects to use teleconferencing post agendas at all teleconference locations, identify each teleconference location in the notice and agenda of the meeting or proceeding, and have each teleconference location be accessible to the public. Existing law also requires that, during the teleconference, at least a quorum of the members of the legislative body participate from locations within the boundaries of the territory over which the local agency exercises jurisdiction. The act provides an exemption to the jurisdictional requirement for health authorities, as defined. Existing law, until January 1, 2026, authorizes the legislative body of a local agency to use alternative teleconferencing in specified circumstances if, during the teleconference meeting, at least a quorum of the members of the legislative body participates in person from a singular physical location clearly identified on the agenda that is open to the public and situated within the boundaries of the territory over which the local agency exercises jurisdiction, and the legislative body complies with prescribed requirements. Existing law imposes prescribed restrictions on remote participation by a member under these alternative teleconferencing provisions, including establishing limits on the number of meetings a member may participate in solely by teleconference from a remote location, prohibiting such participation for a period of more than 3 consecutive months or 20% of the regular meetings for the local agency within a calendar year, or more than 2 meetings if the legislative body regularly meets fewer than 10 times per calendar year. This bill would revise those limits, instead prohibiting such participation for more than a specified number of meetings per year, based on how frequently the legislative body regularly meets. The bill, for the purpose of counting meetings attended by teleconference, would define a "meeting" as any number of meetings of the legislative body of a local agency that begin on the same calendar day. The California Constitution requires local agencies, for the purpose of ensuring public access to the meetings of public bodies and the writings of public officials and agencies, to comply with a statutory enactment that amends or enacts laws relating to public records or open meetings and contains findings demonstrating that the enactment furthers the constitutional requirements relating to this purpose. This bill would make legislative findings to that effect.
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Under existing law, the California Emergency Services Act, the State Emergency Plan is the official document approved by the Governor that describes the principles and methods to be applied in carrying out emergency operations or rendering mutual aid during emergencies, and includes elements addressing continuity of government, the emergency services of governmental agencies, mobilization of resources, mutual aid, and public information. Existing law makes the State Emergency Plan effective in each political subdivision of the state, and requires the governing body of each political subdivision to take necessary actions to carry out its provisions. Existing law requires the Governor to coordinate the State Emergency Plan and those programs necessary for the mitigation of the effects of an emergency in this state and to coordinate the preparation of plans and programs for the mitigation of the effects of an emergency by the political subdivisions of this state, which are to be integrated into and coordinated with the State Emergency Plan and the plans and programs of the federal government and of other states to the fullest possible extent. Existing law establishes the Office of Emergency Services within the office of the Governor and requires the office to be responsible for the state's emergency and disaster response services for natural, technological, or manmade disasters and emergencies, including responsibility for activities necessary to prevent, respond to, recover from, and mitigate the effects of emergencies and disasters to people and property. Existing law requires the office to update the State Emergency Plan on or before January 1, 2019, and every 5 years thereafter, and, when updating the plan, to coordinate with specified representatives from the access and functional needs population regarding the integration of access and functional needs into the State Emergency Plan. Existing law also requires the office, on or before July 31, 2015, to update the State Emergency Plan to include proposed best practices for local governments and nongovernmental entities to use to mobilize and evacuate people with disabilities and others with access and functional needs during an emergency or natural disaster. This bill would require the office, as soon as possible, but no later than January 1, 2029, and every 5 years thereafter, to update the State Emergency Plan to include proposed policies and best practices for local government and nongovernmental entities to equitably serve lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, and plus (LGBTQ+) communities during an emergency or natural disaster. The bill would require the office to coordinate with specified representatives from LGBTQ+ communities in complying with this requirement and would make related findings and declarations.
The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of an environmental impact report (EIR) on a project that it proposes to carry out or approve that may have a significant effect on the environment or to adopt a negative declaration if it finds that the project will not have that effect. CEQA also requires a lead agency to prepare a mitigated negative declaration for a project that may have a significant effect on the environment if revisions in the project would avoid or mitigate that effect and there is no substantial evidence that the project, as revised, would have a significant effect on the environment. CEQA authorizes a lead agency for a later project, if a prior EIR has been prepared and certified for a program, plan, policy, or ordinance, commonly known as a "program EIR," to examine significant effects of the later project upon the environment by using a tiered EIR and provides that the tiered EIR is not required to examine effects that meet certain requirements. Existing law establishes a process for the certification of facilities related to clean energy infrastructure by the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission (Energy Commission) . This bill would authorize the Energy Commission to prepare a program EIR to analyze the development of a class or classes of facility related to clean energy infrastructure, as provided. The bill would authorize a public agency considering the approval of a specific facility that is within a class or classes of facility described in the program EIR prepared under these provisions to tier from that program EIR.
Existing law establishes a workers' compensation system, administered by the Administrative Director of the Division of Workers' Compensation, to compensate an employee, as defined, for injuries that arise out of, and in the course of, employment. Existing law requires employers to provide medical, surgical, chiropractic, acupuncture, licensed clinical social worker, and hospital treatment reasonably required to cure or relieve the injured worker from the effects of the injury. Existing law makes it a misdemeanor for an employer to discharge, threaten to discharge, or discriminate against, or for an insurer to advise, direct, or threaten an insured to discharge, an employee because they have filed or made known their intention to file a claim for compensation, or an application for adjudication, or because the employee has received a rating, award, or settlement, as specified. This bill would require an employee, when possible, to make a reasonable effort to schedule treatment outside of work hours. The bill would require the employee to provide notice if treatment occurs during work hours, as specified, and require the employer to provide this leave during work hours unless business necessity requires the treatment to occur at a different time or on a different day. The bill would require that the leave taken by an employee pursuant to these provisions run concurrently with leave taken pursuant to the federal Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 and the California Family Rights Act if the employee would have been eligible for that leave. If an employer denies an employee's request to attend scheduled treatment during regular work hours, the bill would make that denial a violation of the misdemeanor described above. By expanding the scope of 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.
This measure would urge the President and the Congress of the United States to address, with effective policies, the issue of servicemembers who were unjustly discharged under "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" or predecessor provisions, in order to unify efforts to upgrade discharges issued under the DADT policy, and to restore benefits.
Existing law establishes the California Sex Offender Management Board to, among other things, certify sex offender management professionals. Existing law establishes a State-Authorized Risk Assessment Tool for Sex Offenders (SARATSO) and requires every registered sex offender to be assessed with the SARATSO, as specified. Existing law requires a sex offender management professional to provide a person's score on the SARATSO to that person's parole agent or probation officer. Existing law also requires the person's parole agent or probation officer to send the person's SARATSO score to the Department of Justice within 5 working days of the assessment. This bill would, instead, require the sex offender management professional to send the person's SARATSO score to the Department of Justice within 30 days of the assessment, as specified.
Existing law vests the Department of Transportation with full possession and control of all state highways. Existing law authorizes the department to do any act necessary, convenient, or proper for the construction, improvement, maintenance, or use of all highways that are under its jurisdiction, possession, or control. This bill would establish the Memorial Highway Signage Fund in the State Treasury and would make moneys in the fund available, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to the department for the department's costs in erecting signage for memorial highway designations previously approved by the Legislature that memorialize individuals who have promoted racial and gender equity.
Maddy summarySenate Resolution 114 is a non-binding tribute from the California State Senate honoring President Joseph Biden for his extensive public service career. The resolution details his background, legislative achievements, and leadership roles as a senator, vice president, and president, specifically highlighting his work on infrastructure, climate action, and pandemic response. It concludes by formally thanking the President for stepping down to allow new leaders to take office and directs the Senate Secretary to distribute copies of the resolution.
Existing law establishes the Medi-Cal program, which is administered by the State Department of Health Care Services and under which qualified low-income individuals receive health care services, including certain dental services. The Medi-Cal program is, in part, governed and funded by federal Medicaid program provisions. Under existing law, early and periodic screening, diagnostic, and treatment (EPSDT) services are covered under Medi-Cal for an individual under 21 years of age in accordance with certain federal provisions. Under existing law, for persons 21 years of age or older, laboratory-processed crowns on posterior teeth are a covered benefit when medically necessary to restore a posterior tooth back to normal function based on the criteria specified in the Medi-Cal Dental Manual of Criteria. This bill, The Smile Act, for purposes of the above-described Medi-Cal coverage for laboratory-processed crowns, would remove the condition that the tooth be posterior and would apply the coverage to persons 13 years of age or older. The bill would also add, as a covered Medi-Cal benefit for persons of any age, subject to prior authorization, a dental implant if tooth extraction or removal is medically necessary or if the corresponding tooth is missing. The bill would condition this coverage on there being no other covered functional alternatives for prosthetic replacement to correct the person's dental condition, as specified, on the person being without medical conditions for which dental implant surgery would be contraindicated, on receipt of any necessary federal approvals, and on the availability of federal financial participation. Under the bill, the above-described provisions would not be construed to exclude Medi-Cal coverage for laboratory-processed crowns on teeth or dental implants if otherwise required under EPSDT services.
(1) The Personal Income Tax Law and the Corporation Tax Law allow various credits against the taxes imposed by those laws. This bill would, for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2025, and before January 1, 2030, allow a credit against the taxes imposed by those laws for portions of the costs for qualified services paid or incurred by a qualified taxpayer. The bill would define "qualified taxpayer" for this purpose to mean an eligible local news organization or a qualified broadcast station, as those terms are defined. The bill would require a taxpayer to request a tentative credit reservation from the Franchise Tax Board in the form and manner prescribed by the Franchise Tax Board, and would limit the amount of credit allocated by the Franchise Tax Board per calendar year. The bill would require the Franchise Tax Board to prioritize reservations by qualified small publications, as defined and specified. The bill would allow a payment from the continuously appropriated Tax Relief and Refund Account for an allowable credit in excess of tax liability to a qualified renter, as provided. By authorizing new payments from the Tax Relief and Refund Account in excess of personal income tax liabilities, the bill would make an appropriation. (2) The Personal Income Tax Law and Corporation Tax Law impose taxes measured by income. Those taxes are administered by the Franchise Tax Board pursuant to specified law, the violation of which is a crime. This bill, for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2026, and in addition to the taxes imposed under the Personal Income Tax Law and the Corporation Tax Law, would impose a tax upon gross receipts derived from data extraction transactions at a rate of 7.25% of those gross receipts in excess of $2,500,000,000. The bill would define a "data extraction transaction" for these purposes to mean a transaction where a person sells user information or access to users to advertisers and the person engages in a barter by providing services to a user in full or partial exchange for the ability to display advertisements to the user or collect data about the user, except as provided. The bill would exclude a news media entity, as defined, from the provisions of this tax as either a taxpayer or a user. The bill would establish the Data Extraction Mitigation Fee Fund in the State Treasury, and would direct all revenues from the tax, less refunds and reimbursements, be deposited into the fund, as specified. The bill would appropriate $15,000,000 for journalism fellowships, as specified, and would require the remaining moneys in the fund, except as provided, to be used, upon appropriation, for grants to eligible nonprofit local news organizations administered by the Franchise Tax Board, as specified. The bill would require the Franchise Tax Board to administer this tax in accordance with existing franchise and income tax law provisions, the violation of which is a crime. By expanding the crimes related to the franchise and income tax laws, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (3) The Personal Income Tax Law and Corporation Tax Law, in modified conformity with federal income tax laws, generally allow various deductions in computing the income that is subject to tax imposed under those laws, including miscellaneous itemized deductions that are allowed only to the extent that the aggregate amount of those deductions exceeds 2% of adjusted gross income. This bill, for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2026, would allow a deduction in computing the income that is subject to those laws equal to the amount of taxes paid by the taxpayer under the above-described data extraction transaction tax. (4) 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. (5) This bill would make findings and declarations related to a gift of public funds. (6) 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. (7) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.