Sen. Alex Padilla

(1) The California Alternative Energy and Advanced Transportation Financing Authority Act establishes the California Alternative Energy and Advanced Transportation Financing Authority and authorizes the authority to issue revenue bonds to provide industry with an alternative method of financing in providing and promoting the establishment of facilities utilizing alternative methods and sources of energy and facilities needed for the development and commercialization of advanced transportation technologies. Existing law authorizes a public agency and a property owner to enter into voluntary contractual assessments to finance the installation of distributed generation of renewable energy sources or energy or water efficiency improvements that are permanently affixed on real property. This bill would require the authority to establish a Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) Reserve program to assist local jurisdictions in financing the installation of distributed generation of renewable energy sources or energy or water efficiency improvements that are permanently affixed on real property through the use of a voluntary contractual assessment. The bill would, until January 1, 2015, appropriate up to $50,000,000 from the Renewable Resource Trust Fund to the authority for the purposes of the PACE Reserve program, thereby making an appropriation. The bill would require the authority, on March 31, 2011, and annually thereafter, to submit to the Legislature, a report containing specified information regarding the implementation of the above provisions. (2) Existing law vests the authority with specified powers in the implementation of the California Alternative Energy and Advanced Transportation Financing Authority Act. This bill would authorize the authority to purchase bonds issued by a public agency meeting specified criteria. The bill would authorize the authority to hold the purchased bonds or to sell the purchased bonds, in whole or in part, to public or private purchasers. (3) The California Constitution authorizes the Governor to declare a fiscal emergency and to call the Legislature into special session for that purpose. The Governor issued a proclamation declaring a fiscal emergency, and calling a special session for this purpose, on January 8, 2010. This bill would state that it addresses the fiscal emergency declared by the Governor by proclamation issued on January 8, 2010, pursuant to the California Constitution. (4) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

(1) Existing law establishes various grant, loan, and loan guarantee programs that are administered by the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission (Energy Commission) to provide assistance to private and public entities to maximize energy use savings in existing and planned buildings and facilities. Existing law requires the commission to administer federal funds allocated to, and received by, the state for energy-related projects pursuant to the federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 or related federal acts. 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. This bill would require the Energy Commission to award to the board of governors grants in the amount of $20,000,000 from the moneys appropriated to the Energy Commission under the 2009–2010 Budget Act that are received by the state pursuant to the federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 or related federal acts to the board of governors for purposes of implementing an energy management program including specified components. The bill would require the board of governors to ensure that prescribed requirements are met with respect to implementing the program. (2) The California Constitution authorizes the Governor to declare a fiscal emergency and to call the Legislature into special session for that purpose. The Governor issued a proclamation declaring a fiscal emergency, and calling a special session for this purpose, on January 8, 2010. This bill would state that it addresses the fiscal emergency declared by the Governor by proclamation issued on January 8, 2010, pursuant to the California Constitution.

The California Alternative Energy and Advanced Transportation Financing Authority Act established the California Alternative Energy and Advanced Transportation Financing Authority. The authority is authorized to do all things necessary and convenient to carry out the purposes of the act. The authority is also required to establish a renewable energy program to provide financial assistance, as defined, to certain entities for projects to generate new and renewable energy sources, develop clean and efficient distributed generation, and demonstrate the economic feasibility of new technologies. Existing law provides that the transfer of title of tangible personal property constituting a project under the act to the authority by a participating party or the lease or transfer of tangible personal property constituting a project under the act by the authority to a participating party pursuant to the act is not a "sale" or "purchase" for the purposes of the Sales and Use Tax Law. This bill would include as a project, machinery or equipment that is utilized for the design, technology transfer, manufacture, production, assembly, distribution, or service of an alternative source component. The bill would require the authority to consider specified criteria in approving a project for which the purchase, sale, or lease of tangible personal property qualifies for the sales and use tax exclusion. The California Constitution authorizes the Governor to declare a fiscal emergency and to call the Legislature into special session for that purpose. The Governor issued a proclamation declaring a fiscal emergency, and calling a special session for this purpose, on January 8, 2010. This bill would state that it addresses the fiscal emergency declared by the Governor by proclamation issued on January 8, 2010, pursuant to the California Constitution.

Existing law makes it unlawful to, among other things, remove a shopping cart or laundry cart with a specified sign from the premises or parking area of a retail establishment and to abandon those carts at a location other than the premises or parking area of the retail establishment, with the intent to deprive the owner or retailer possession of the cart. Under existing law, in civil proceedings, carts affixed with a specified sign establish a rebuttable presumption affecting the burden of producing evidence that the cart belongs to the person or business named in the specified sign. This bill would state that carts affixed with a specified electronic tag also establishe a rebuttable presumption.

Existing law requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction, on a cyclical basis, to coordinate the development of model curriculum standards for the prescribed course of study and of a career technical education course of study necessary to assist school districts with complying with their obligation to offer qualified pupils a course of study that provides an opportunity for pupils to attain entry-level employment skills in business or industry upon graduation from high school. Existing law requires the Superintendent, upon the adoption of these model curriculum standards, to develop a curriculum framework consistent with specified criteria that offers a blueprint for implementation of career and technical education. This bill would require the Superintendent, in coordinating the development of the next revision of this curriculum framework that is submitted to the State Board of Education for approval, to include guidance for adapting work-based learning for individuals with exceptional needs.

Existing law provides for the licensure and regulation of clinical laboratories and clinical laboratory personnel by the State Department of Public Health and makes a violation of these provisions a misdemeanor. Under existing law, only designated health care personnel are authorized to perform, under specified conditions, clinical laboratory tests or examinations that are classified as waived, moderate complexity, or high complexity under federal law. This bill would require an entity that provides post-CLIA bioinformatics services, as defined, to contract with a licensed clinical laboratory to process biological specimen collection kits, except as specified. The bill would require an entity that provides post-CLIA bioinformatics services to employ a specified expert for approval of the algorithms used in the interpretation of the biological data of a customer. The bill would further impose on an entity that provides post-CLIA bioinformatics services specified privacy, recordkeeping, disclosure, and audit requirements, and would impose specified duties on the State Department of Public Health in that regard. The bill would also subject those entities to specified provisions of existing law prohibiting unearned rebates, refunds, and discounts, a violation of which constitutes a crime. Because the bill would expand the scope of a 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.

The Personal Income Tax Law authorizes various credits against the taxes imposed by that law. Existing law authorizes a credit against those taxes in an amount equal to the lesser of 5% of the purchase price of a qualified principal residence, as defined, purchased on and after March 1, 2009, and before March 1, 2010, or $10,000, allocated by the Franchise Tax Board on a first-come-first-served basis. Existing law requires a taxpayer to provide the Franchise Tax Board with a certification from the seller of the qualified principal residence that the residence has never been previously occupied within one week of the sale of the residence and caps the total amount of the credit at $100,000,000. This bill would allow the tax credit for purchases of a qualified principal residence made before the date that is 12 months after the effective date of this bill, subject to specified restrictions. This bill would revise the certification requirements to provide that the taxpayer receive the certification no later than one week after the close of escrow on the qualified principal residence and that the Franchise Tax Board be provided with the certification upon request by the board. This bill would also remove the cap on the total credit amount allowed and the requirement that the tax credits be allocated on a first-come-first-served basis. This bill would take effect immediately as a tax levy.

(1) Existing law establishes the public school system in this state and, among other things, provides for the establishment of school districts throughout the state and for their provision of instruction at the public elementary and secondary schools they operate and maintain. Existing law authorizes school districts to establish and maintain a paper recycling program in all classrooms, administrative offices, and other areas owned or leased by the school district where a significant quality of wastepaper is generated or may be collected. Existing law requires the California Integrated Waste Management Board to develop and implement a source reduction and recycling program for schools in which schools are encouraged, but not required, to participate. This bill would express findings and declarations of the Legislature with respect to the potential benefits of school recycling programs. The bill would, until January 1, 2012, require each school district to establish a beverage container recycling program at each school campus and public office of that school district, but only to the extent that the district does not incur costs. Under the bill, a school district would be authorized to choose whether to operate its own beverage container recycling program, to contact its local Community Conservation Corps or another recycler to collect the beverage containers, to provide a beverage container collection program as a fundraising activity for the school district, or to continue a recycling program in existence on January 1, 2010. Because the bill would impose new duties on school districts, it would constitute a state-mandated local program. The bill would require the California Integrated Waste Management Board and the Department of Conservation to provide specified recycling supplies and materials to a school district to which the bill is applicable upon request of that district. The bill would authorize school districts to enter into an agreement or partnership with a public agency or private sector or nonprofit entity to obtain all or part of the supplies and information necessary for participation in the beverage container recycling program and to use the proceeds from the program for specified purposes. (2) 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.