Sen. Scott Wilk

Existing law authorizes, to the extent permitted by federal law, members of the United States Military Reserve and National Guard who are called to active duty as a result of the Iraq or Afghanistan conflicts, to defer payments on mortgages, credit cards, retail installment accounts and contracts, real property taxes and assessments, and vehicle leases for the period of active duty, plus 60 calendar days, or 180 days, whichever is the lesser, as specified. Existing law also requires any entity that was providing any type of health care coverage to a member of the United States Military Reserve or National Guard who is called to active duty as a result of the Iraq or Afghanistan conflicts to reinstate the health care coverage without waiting periods or exclusion of coverage for preexisting conditions, and makes a violation of this requirement subject to enforcement under the Knox-Keene Health Care Service Plan Act of 1975, a willful violation of which is a crime. Existing law also provides that a spouse or legal dependent, or both, of a member is entitled to the benefits accorded to a member, if the member is eligible for those benefits. This bill would extend those deferral provisions and reinstatement of health care coverage provisions to a reservist, as defined, who is called to active duty on and after January 1, 2014, and to a spouse or legal dependent, as specified. This bill would also authorize the deferral of payments on any obligations owed to a utility company. The bill would limit the deferment period on financial obligations to not more than 180 days within a 365-day period. This bill would also require a copy of the activation or deployment orders and any other information that substantiates the duration of the service member's military service to be delivered to an obligor in order for an obligation of a reservist to be deferred, as provided. This bill would expand the scope of an existing crime by requiring a reservist to provide information under the penalty of perjury, and by making violations of the reinstatement of health care coverage for reservists requirement subject to enforcement under the Knox-Keene Health Care Service Plan Act of 1975, thereby imposing a state‑mandated local program. This bill would additionally impose a state‑mandated local program by imposing new duties upon local tax officials with respect to the deferral of any payment of property tax or any special assessment. 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 with regard to certain mandates no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason. With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs so mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.

This measure would proclaim September 23, 2013, as Restless Legs Syndrome/Willis-Ekbom Disease Awareness Day in California.

This measure would designate October 20, 2013, and each 20th day of October thereafter, as Leyte Landing Commemoration Day in recognition of the significance of the Leyte landing in liberating the Philippines from Japanese occupation, helping to establish the independence of the Philippines, and fostering closer ties between the Philippines and the United States.

Existing law authorizes specified entities to receive state summary criminal history information from the Department of Justice. Existing law also requires mandated reporters, as defined, to report child abuse and neglect to local law enforcement. This bill would authorize a community youth athletic program, as defined, to request state and federal level criminal offender record information and subsequent arrest notification. The bill would state that performing the background check does not remove or limit the liability of a mandated reporter.

Existing law generally prohibits the production, distribution, and production of any representation of information, data, or image, as specified, of any obscene matter that depicts a person under 18 years of age personally engaging in or personally simulating sexual conduct, as defined. Violations of these provisions are crimes. This bill would provide that every person who is convicted of a violation of specified offenses relating to obscene matter involving minors, as specified, in which the violation is committed on, or via, a government-owned computer or via a government-owned computer network, or in which the production, transportation, or distribution of which involves the use, possession, or control of government-owned property shall, in addition to any imprisonment of fine imposed for the commission of the underlying offense, be punished by a fine not exceeding $2,000, unless the court determines that the defendant does not have the ability to pay. The bill would provide that revenue from any fines collected would be transferred for deposit into a county fund established for that purpose and allocated for sexual assault investigator training, public agencies and nonprofit corporations that provide shelter, counseling, or other direct services for victims of human trafficking, and multidisciplinary teams involved in the prosecution of child abuse cases, as specified. Existing law allows for the release from all penalties and disabilities resulting from an offense for which the person was convicted if specified criteria are met. Existing law excludes certain sex offenses from these provisions. This bill would additionally exclude specified offenses relating to obscene matter involving minors from these provisions.

Existing law imposes a fee of $500 on every person who is granted probation for a crime of domestic violence. Two-thirds of the fee is deposited in the county's domestic violence programs special fund to be expended in support of domestic violence shelter programs, as specified. Existing law authorizes fines to be reduced, as specified, for time served. This bill would clarify that the $500 payment is a fee, not a fine, and that the fee is not subject to reduction for time served. The bill would also authorize 8% of the moneys deposited in the county domestic violence programs special fund to be used for administrative costs and would authorize the collection of the fee by the collecting agency or the agency's designee after the termination of the period of probation, whether probation is terminated by revocation or by completion of the term. The bill would provide that a county board of supervisors may request, on not more than a quarterly basis, an accounting of the special fund, as specified. The bill would also make related findings and declarations.

Existing law requires a school district, as part of its adopted course of study for grades 7 to 12, inclusive, to offer courses in specified areas of study, including, among others, social sciences, drawing upon the disciplines of anthropology, economics, geography, history, political science, psychology, and sociology. Existing law requires the State Board of Education, after January 1, 2003, and concurrently with, but not prior to, the next revision of textbooks or curriculum frameworks in the social sciences, health, and mathematics curricula, to ensure that these academic areas integrate components of human growth, human development, and human contribution to society, across the life course, and also financial preparedness. This bill would require the state board to integrate financial literacy, including, but not limited to, budgeting and managing credit, student loans, consumer debt, and identity theft security with those specified academic areas. The bill would also make conforming and nonsubstantive changes.

This measure would declare the week of August 4, 2013, to August 10, 2013, inclusive, to be Dropout Recovery Week, and would state the Legislature's intent to encourage the support of dropout recovery high schools with creative teaching strategies, alternative assessments, and adequate resources.