(1) Under existing law, the Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act of 2014, an employee who, on or after July 1, 2015, works in California for the same employer for 30 or more days within a year from the commencement of employment is entitled to paid sick days, as specified. Existing law requires an employee to accrue paid sick days at the rate of not less than one hour per every 30 hours worked subject to specified use and accrual limitations. For the purposes of the act, an "employee" does not include a provider of in-home supportive services, as described. This bill, on and after July 1, 2018, would entitle a provider of in-home supportive services who works in California for 30 or more days within a year from the commencement of employment to paid sick days, subject to specified full amount of leave time amounts and that rate of accrual. The bill would require the State Department of Social Services, in consultation with stakeholders, to convene a workgroup to implement paid sick leave for in-home supportive services providers and to issue guidance in that regard by December 1, 2017. The bill would authorize the department to implement that paid sick leave without complying with the Administrative Procedure Act. (2) On and after July 1, 2014, existing law requires the minimum wage for all industries to be not less than $9 per hour. On and after January 1, 2016, existing law requires the minimum wage for all industries to be not less than $10 per hour. This bill would require the minimum wage for all industries to not be less than specified amounts to be increased from January 1, 2017, to January 1, 2022, inclusive, for employers employing 26 or more employees and from January 1, 2018, to January 1, 2023, inclusive, for employers employing 25 or fewer employees, except when the scheduled increases are temporarily suspended by the Governor, based on certain determinations. The bill would also require the Director of Finance, after the last scheduled minimum wage increase, to annually adjust the minimum wage under a specified formula. On or before July 28, 2017, and on or before every July 28 thereafter until the minimum wage is a specified amount for employers employing 26 or more employees, the bill would require the Director of Finance to annually determine, based on certain factors, whether economic conditions can support a scheduled minimum wage increase and certify that determination to the Governor and the Legislature. The bill would also require the State Board of Equalization to publish specified retail sales and use tax information on its Internet Web site to be used by the Director of Finance in making that determination. On or before July 28, 2017, and on or before every July 28 thereafter until the minimum wage is a specified amount for employers employing 26 or more employees, in order to ensure that the General Fund can support the next scheduled minimum wage increase, the bill would also require the Director of Finance to annually determine and certify to the Governor and the Legislature whether the General Fund would be in a deficit in the current fiscal year, or in either of the following 2 fiscal years.
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The Lanterman Developmental Disabilities Services Act requires the State Department of Developmental Services to contract with regional centers to provide services and supports to individuals with developmental disabilities. Under existing law, regional centers purchase needed services for individuals with developmental disabilities through approved service providers or arrange for those services through other publicly funded agencies. Existing law establishes specified rates and wages to be paid to certain service providers and the rates to be paid for certain developmental services. Existing law requires that rates to be paid to other developmental service providers either be set by the department or negotiated between the regional center and the service provider. Existing law establishes the Medi-Cal program, administered by the State Department of Health Care Services, under which basic health care services are provided to qualified low-income persons. The Medi-Cal program is, in part, governed and funded by federal Medicaid Program provisions. Existing law requires, except as otherwise provided, Medi-Cal provider payments to be reduced, as specified. This bill would appropriate a specified sum to the State Department of Developmental Services to, commencing July 1, 2016, among other things, increase rates and wages for certain developmental services providers and fund incentive payments for competitive integrated employment opportunities and internships for individuals with developmental disabilities. The bill would require the department to submit a rate study to specified committees of the Legislature on or before March 1, 2019, regarding community-based services for individuals with developmental disabilities. The bill would require each regional center to report specified information to the department regarding increased funding for regional center operations. The bill would, for dates of service on or after August 1, 2016, increase the payment rates for intermediate care facilities and skilled nursing facilities that provide services to developmentally disabled individuals under the Medi-Cal program, as specified. The bill would also prohibit the State Department of Health Care Services from seeking to retroactively implement certain Medi-Cal provider payment reductions and limitations with regards to reimbursements for services provided by skilled nursing facilities that are distinct parts of general acute care hospitals for dates of service on or after June 1, 2011, and on or before September 30, 2013, and from seeking to recoup overpayments, as specified. Existing law requires the department and regional centers to annually collaborate to compile specified data relating to purchase of service authorization, utilization, and expenditure by each regional center. Existing law requires each regional center to annually report to the department regarding the regional center's implementation of these requirements, including whether the data indicates a need to reduce disparities in the purchase of services among consumers in the regional center's catchment area and the regional center's recommendations and plan to promote equity, and reduce disparities, in the purchase of services. Existing law requires the department to consult with specified stakeholders to review the data, develop recommendations to help reduce disparities in purchase of service expenditures, and encourage development and expansion of culturally appropriate services, among other things, and to report the status of its efforts during the 2016–17 legislative budget subcommittee hearing process. The bill would also require the department, subject to available funding, to allocate funding to regional centers to assist in implementing specified recommendations and plans, including the recommendations and plans of the regional centers to promote equity, and reduce disparities, in the purchase of services. Existing law requires an entity that receives payments between $250,000 and $500,000 per year from one or more regional centers to obtain either an independent audit or an independent review report of its financial statements, and requires an entity that receives payments that are equal to or more than $500,000 per year to obtain an independent audit. This bill would instead require an entity that receives payments between $500,000 and $2,000,000 from one or more regional centers to obtain an independent review report of its financial statements, and would authorize these entities to apply for, and require the regional center to grant, a 2-year exemption from this requirement if the regional center does not find issues in the independent review report that have an impact on regional center services. The bill would require an entity that receives payments from one or more regional centers that are equal to or more than $2,000,000 to obtain an independent audit and would authorize these entities to apply for, and require the regional center to grant, a 2-year exemption from the audit requirement if the audit resulted in an unmodified opinion, an unmodified opinion with additional communication, or a qualified opinion with issues that are not material. The bill would require a regional center to annually report to the State Department of Developmental Services any exemptions granted pursuant to these provisions.
Existing law, the Sex Offender Registration Act, requires persons convicted of specified sex offenses to register with local authorities for life while residing, located, attending school, or working in California. Existing law, as adopted by the voters by the passage of Proposition 83 at the November 7, 2006, statewide general election, prohibits a person who is required to register as a sex offender from living in specified places, including within 2,000 feet of a school or park where children regularly gather. Existing law authorizes municipal jurisdictions to enact local ordinances that further restrict the residency of the registered sex offender. Existing law makes it a misdemeanor for a person who is on parole for specified sex offenses to enter any park where children regularly gather without express permission from the person's parole agent. This bill would state that a local agency is not preempted by state law from enacting and enforcing an ordinance that restricts a registered sex offender who is required to register for an offense committed against a minor from being present at schools, parks, day care centers, or other locations where children regularly gather within the local agency's jurisdiction. The bill would authorize a local agency to adopt ordinances, rules, or regulations that are more restrictive than state law relating to a registered sex offender's ability to be present at those locations within the local agency's jurisdiction if the person is required to register for an offense committed against a minor.
Existing law, with certain exceptions, establishes 8 hours as a day's work and a 40-hour workweek, and requires payment of prescribed overtime compensation for additional hours worked. Existing law establishes the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement in the Department of Industrial Relations for the enforcement of labor laws, including wage claims. Existing federal law provides for the allocation of federal funds through the federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block grant program to eligible states, with California's version of this program known as the California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) program. Under the CalWORKs program, each county provides cash assistance and other benefits to qualified low-income families and individuals, and is prohibited from applying sanctions upon a recipient of CalWORKs for a failure or refusal to comply with program requirements for reasons related to employment, an offer of employment, an activity, or other training for employment for specified reasons, including, but not limited to, that the employment, offer of employment, or work activity does not provide workers' compensation insurance. Existing law establishes a statewide program to enable eligible low-income persons to receive food stamps under the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) , known in California as CalFresh, and requires counties to implement the program. This bill would make legislative findings and declarations relating to work hour scheduling for employees of food and general retail establishments. The bill would require a food and general retail establishment, as defined, to provide its employees with at least 2 weeks' notice of their schedules. The bill would require a food and general retail establishment to pay those employees additional pay, as specified, for each previously scheduled shift that the food and general retail establishment moves to another date or time or cancels and each previously unscheduled shift that the food and general retail establishment requires an employee to work, and would also require a food and general retail establishment to pay those employees a specified amount for each on-call shift for which the employee is required to be available but is not called in to work. The bill would specify that these provisions do not apply in certain circumstances, including, but not limited to, when operations cannot begin or continue due to causes not within the food and general retail establishment's control. The bill would also require a food and general retail establishment to allow an employee to, upon request, be absent from work without pay for up to 8 hours twice a year to attend any required appointments at the county human services agency, provided that the employee gives reasonable advance notice to the employer of his or her intention to take time off, unless advance notice is not feasible. The bill would prohibit an employer from taking any action against an employee when an unscheduled absence occurs due to a required appointment at the county human services agency if that employee provides specified documentation from the county human services agency. The bill would require the Labor Commissioner to promulgate all regulations and rules of practice and procedure necessary to carry out these provisions. The bill would also prohibit sanctions from being applied upon a recipient of CalWORKs for failure or refusal to comply with CalWORKs program requirements if the employment or offer of employment fails to comply with these provisions. Existing law continuously appropriates moneys from the General Fund to defray a portion of county costs under the CalWORKs program. This bill would instead provide that the continuous appropriation would not be made for purposes of implementing the bill.
Existing law provides that a victim of a sexual assault has a privilege to refuse to disclose, and to prevent another from disclosing, a confidential communication between the victim and a sexual assault counselor if the privilege is claimed by the holder of the privilege, a person who is authorized to claim the privilege by the holder of the privilege, or the person who was the sexual assault counselor at the time of the confidential communication, except as specified. Existing law defines several terms for these purposes. This bill would modify the definition of the term "sexual assault counselor" for purposes of the sexual assault counselor-victim privilege.
Existing law defines "public works," for purposes of regulating public works contracts, to include, among other things, construction, alteration, demolition, installation, or repair work done under contract and paid for, in whole or in part, out of public funds. Existing law further requires that, except as specified, not less than the general prevailing rate of per diem wages be paid to workers employed on public works and imposes misdemeanor penalties for a violation of this requirement. This bill would expand the definition of "public works," for the purposes of the payment of prevailing wages, to also include any construction, alteration, demolition, installation, or repair work done under public or private contract that satisfies specified conditions related to the construction or maintenance of solar photovoltaic energy generating capacity, as prescribed. Because the violation of prevailing wage requirements would result in the imposition of misdemeanor penalties, 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 bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Existing law establishes the Building Equity and Growth in Neighborhoods (BEGIN) Program under the administration of the Department of Housing and Community Development for the purpose of making grants to cities and counties that provide incentives for, or reduce or remove regulatory barriers to, affordable housing. Existing law requires the department to assign points in the approval process to grant applications that meet certain criteria, and authorizes the department to assign additional points to applications meeting specified objectives, including, among others, the location of the project in specified job centers. This bill would expand those job centers to include the Riverside and San Bernardino metropolitan statistical area.
Under existing law, a person who for compensation knowingly makes a false or misleading material statement or assertion of fact, in the preparation of an immigration matter, that is detrimentally relied upon by another, is guilty of a misdemeanor, punishable by imprisonment, or by a fine, or both, as specified. Existing law provides that a person injured by that violation may recover the greater of his or her actual damages or $500, and the costs of the suit, including reasonable attorney's fees. This bill would make technical, nonsubstantive changes to the latter provision.
(1) Existing law, the Interagency School Safety Demonstration Act of 1985, among other things, requires school districts and county offices of education to be responsible for the overall development of comprehensive school safety plans for its schools operating kindergarten or any of grades 1 to 12, inclusive, and requires the schoolsite council of certain school districts to write and develop a comprehensive school safety plan. The act also requires the Department of Justice and the State Department of Education to contract with one or more professional trainers to provide training in the prevention of bullying. This bill would define adolescent relationship abuse and a dating partner for purposes of the act, and would make specified findings and declarations and state legislative intent regarding adolescent relationship abuse. The bill would, among other things, require a comprehensive school safety plan to include the development of procedures and policies to prevent and respond to adolescent relationship abuse in middle and high schools serving pupils in any of grades 6 to 12, inclusive, in collaboration with organizations with expertise in adolescent relationship abuse prevention and response. The bill would encourage a schoolsite council of a middle school or high school serving any of grades 6 to 12, inclusive, or a school safety planning committee, to consult with local, state, or national organizations with expertise in adolescent relationship abuse prevention and response in developing the adolescent relationship abuse procedures and policies of their comprehensive school safety plan. The bill would additionally require the Department of Justice and the State Department of Education to contract with one or more professional trainers to provide training in the prevention of adolescent relationship abuse. The bill would also update references to dating violence and teen relationship violence to refer to adolescent relationship abuse. By imposing new duties on schools and school districts regarding the development of adolescent relationship abuse procedures and policies, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (2) This bill also would require school districts to provide educational programs that promote healthy relationships and prevent adolescent relationship abuse to pupils in grades 6 to 12, inclusive, through specific curriculum, extracurricular activities, or school climate-improvement activities. The bill would authorize school districts to work in partnership with parents, caregivers, and youth, and with domestic violence, sexual assault, or other appropriate community-based organizations, as deemed appropriate by the school district, to provide these educational programs. The bill would require school districts to use research-based materials that are appropriate for pupils of all races, genders, sexual orientations, gender identities, and ethnic and cultural backgrounds, and for pupils with disabilities in providing educational programs that promote healthy relationships and prevent adolescent relationship abuse. The bill would require the Superintendent of Public Instruction to provide, and would authorize school districts to use, information on the State Department of Education's Internet Web site about policies, procedures, and curriculum that are designed to promote healthy relationships and prevent adolescent relationship abuse among pupils. By requiring school districts to provide educational programs that promote healthy relationships and prevent adolescent relationship abuse, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (3) This bill would make its provisions operative on July 1, 2016. The bill also would update references and make other nonsubstantive changes. (4) 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.
Existing law authorizes a county board of supervisors to create or otherwise designate local agencies, including a transportation authority that may impose a transportation sales tax subject to voter approval, a service authority for freeway emergencies, and a transportation congestion management agency, as specified. The Joint Exercise of Powers Act authorizes the legislative or other governing bodies of 2 or more public agencies to jointly exercise, by agreement, any power common to the contracting parties, as specified. The County Transportation Commissions Act provides for the creation of county transportation commissions in the Counties of Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, and Ventura, with various powers and duties relative to transportation planning and funding, as specified. This bill would create the San Bernardino County Transportation Authority as the successor agency to the powers, duties, revenues, debts, obligations, liabilities, immunities, and exemptions of the San Bernardino County Transportation Commission and San Bernardino County local transportation authority, service authority for freeway emergencies, and local congestion management agency, and of the San Bernardino Associated Governments, when it was acting on behalf, or in the capacity, of those agencies. By imposing new duties on local government associated with this consolidation, 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 these statutory provisions.