Existing law provides for the Medi-Cal program, which is administered by the State Department of Health Care Services and under which qualified low-income persons receive health care benefits. The Medi-Cal program is, in part, governed and funded by federal Medicaid program provisions. Existing law also establishes the Family Planning, Access, Care, and Treatment (Family PACT) Program, administered by the Office of Family Planning within the department, under which comprehensive clinical family planning services are provided to a person who has a family income at or below 200% of the federal poverty level, and who is eligible to receive these services. Existing law provides that comprehensive clinical family planning services under the program includes preconception counseling, maternal and fetal health counseling, and general reproductive health care, among other things. This bill would expand comprehensive clinical family planning services under the program to include the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine for persons of reproductive age.
Sponsored bills
This measure would proclaim the week of February 8, 2020, to February 15, 2020, inclusive, as California Court Reporting and Captioning Week and request the Governor to issue a proclamation calling on the people of the great State of California to observe the week with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and educational activities.
Existing law authorizes victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, human trafficking, or elder or dependent adult abuse to complete an application to be approved by the Secretary of State for the purpose of enabling state and local agencies to respond to requests for public records without disclosing a program participant's residence address contained in any public record and otherwise provide for confidentiality of identity for that person, subject to specified conditions. Existing law requires the secretary to approve an application if it contains specified statements and evidence, including a designation of the secretary as agent for purposes of service of process. Existing law requires service on the secretary of any summons, writ, notice, demand, or process to be made by delivering to the address confidentiality program personnel of the secretary's office 2 copies of those documents. This bill would require service on the secretary to be made by delivering one copy instead of 2. Existing law requires the secretary, within 10 days after certifying an application, to notify the other parent or parents of the participant's minor child or children, as specified, of the designation of the secretary as agent for purposes of service of process and, unless there is a court order prohibiting contact, the address designated by the secretary for the program participant. This bill would require the secretary to provide the above-described notification unless there is a court order that prohibits contact between the other parent or parents and the minor child or children or the participant. Existing law authorizes the secretary to terminate a program participant's certification and invalidate their authorization card for specified reasons, including if the secretary has determined that false information was used in the application process to qualify as a program participant or that participation in the program is being used as a subterfuge to avoid detection of illegal or criminal activity or apprehension by law enforcement. This bill would instead authorize termination if the secretary is informed that another state agency made that determination. Existing law requires the secretary to notify in writing authorized personnel of the appropriate county clerk's office, county recording office, and state and local agencies of the program participant's certification withdrawal, invalidation, expiration, or termination. This bill would instead require the secretary to cooperate with authorized personnel of the appropriate county clerk's office, county recording office, and state and local agencies to verify the program participant's certification withdrawal, invalidation, expiration, or termination. Existing law prohibits the secretary from making a program participant's address, other than the address designated by the secretary, or a program participant's name change available for inspection or copying, except as provided, including if requested by a law enforcement agency, to the law enforcement agency, and if directed by a court order, to a person identified in the order. This bill would delete the exception for a request made by a law enforcement agency and would instead provide an exception if directed by court order, to a person identified in the order, regardless of whether the person identified in the order is affiliated with a law enforcement agency. This bill would also make various nonsubstantive changes to these provisions.
Existing law allows an incarcerated person who has been convicted of a felony to make a written motion for the performance of forensic deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) testing according to a specified procedure. Under existing law, if the court grants a motion for DNA testing and a profile of an unknown contributor is generated, the court is authorized to conduct a hearing to determine if the DNA profile should be uploaded into the State Index System, and if appropriate, the Federal DNA Index System, if certain conditions are met, as specified, and may issue an order for the DNA profile to be uploaded. Existing law requires a court to grant a subsequent motion for testing of the same evidence if, in addition to other criteria, the requested DNA test would provide results that are reasonably more discriminating and probative of the identity of the perpetrator or accomplice or have a reasonable probability of contradicting prior test results. This bill would require the court to issue an order for an unknown contributor DNA profile developed to be uploaded, if specified criteria are met, and would authorize the court to issue an order to upload an unknown contributor DNA profile developed pursuant to a subsequent request for DNA testing of evidence.
Existing federal law allows deductions from gross income for attorney fees and court costs in connection with an action involving a claim of specified provisions. The End Double Taxation of Successful Civil Claims Act would allow deductions from gross income for attorney fees and court costs in connection with any action. This measure would urge the Congress and the President of the United States to enact the End Double Taxation of Successful Civil Claims Act.
When a resident of a skilled nursing facility is prescribed or ordered a medical intervention that requires informed consent, the patient lacks capacity, and there is no person with legal authority to consent, existing law requires a skilled nursing facility to conduct an interdisciplinary team review of the prescribed medical intervention prior to the administration of the medical intervention, as specified. Existing case law requires notice and an opportunity to be heard before a patient is determined to lack capacity for this purpose. This bill would state the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation that would appropriately implement the decision in California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform v. Smith (2019) 38 Cal.App.5th 838, which required that nursing homes adopt, and the State Department of Public Health to enforce, notice and hearing requirements when determining medical incompetence for purposes of Section 1418.8 of the Health and Safety Code, as well as establishing requirements for the composition of interdisciplinary teams for incapacitated patients.
Existing law provides that it is unethical for an attorney to undertake the representation of both the prospective adoptive parents and the birth parents of a child in any negotiation or proceeding in connection with an adoption unless a written consent is obtained from both parties. Existing law requires a notice to the birth parents of their right to have an independent attorney and that the prospective adoptive parents may be required to pay the reasonable attorney's fees up to a maximum of $500. Existing law includes a statement of legislative findings regarding the rules of conduct for attorneys representing clients. This bill would require a birth parent of a child who is placed for adoption to be represented by an independent attorney unless written consent is obtained from the birth parent unless the court finds that a birth parent cannot be located after diligent effort. This bill would increase the reasonable attorney's fees that prospective adoptive parents may be required to pay up to a maximum of $1,500, as specified. The bill would make related findings.
The Personal Income Tax Law allows various credits against the tax imposed by that law. Existing law requires any bill authorizing a new tax credit to contain, among other things, specific goals, purposes, and objectives that the tax credit will achieve, detailed performance indicators, and data collection requirements. This bill would allow credits against the tax imposed by the Personal Income Tax Law for each taxable year beginning on or after January 1, 2021, and before January 1, 2026, to a qualified taxpayer for qualified costs relating to qualified home hardening, as defined, and for qualified costs relating to qualified vegetation management, as defined, in specified amounts, not to exceed an aggregate amount of $500,000,000 per taxable year. This bill would authorize a qualified taxpayer to reserve a credit for qualified costs relating to qualified home hardening or qualified vegetation management prior to incurring those costs, as specified. The bill would require a qualified taxpayer that reserved a credit to submit a copy of the receipts showing the total qualified costs incurred and a certification by the qualified taxpayer, signed under penalty of perjury, that the qualified taxpayer incurred the qualified costs claimed, as specified. By requiring qualified taxpayers to submit a certification under penalty of perjury, the bill would expand the crime of perjury and impose a state-mandated local program. The bill also would include additional information required for any bill authorizing a new income tax credit and would require the Legislative Analyst's Office to prepare a written report regarding the credits, as provided. 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 take effect immediately as a tax levy.
Existing law requires the State Department of Public Health to prepare and publish a brochure containing specified information for distribution to applicants for marriage licenses and persons who qualify as domestic partners. This bill would require the Judicial Council to prepare and annually update a brochure concerning marriage and domestic partnership rights and obligations, including property rights and spousal support obligations. On or before January 1, 2022, the bill would require the State Department of Public Health to post the brochure on its internet website and print the brochure with the department's next scheduled reprinting.
Existing law authorizes a county that is responsible for the cost of a trial or trials or any hearing of a person for the offense of homicide to apply to the Controller for reimbursement of excessive costs incurred by the county under specified circumstances. Under existing law, if the Controller determines that reimbursement is proper, the Controller is required to request the Director of Finance to include any amounts necessary to fulfill reimbursement in a request for deficiency appropriation. This bill would enact the Justice Act of 2019 for the Reimbursement of County Costs Arising from the Matter of the People v. Joseph DeAngelo, and would authorize the County of Sacramento and other California counties to be reimbursed for the reasonable and necessary costs, as specified, incurred in connection with the prosecution and defense of Joseph DeAngelo. The bill would require a county seeking reimbursement to send a statement of costs to the Controller for approval, and would require the Controller, within 60 days, to either pay approved costs or provide a written statement as to the reason for not making reimbursement at that time. The bill would create the Justice Act of 2019 Fund for these purposes.