Sen. Bill Emmerson

This measure would urge the United States Congress and the President to establish new entrepreneur and science, technology, engineering, or mathematics-related visa categories for legal immigrants as part of comprehensive federal immigration reform, that would, among other things, create an Entrepreneur's Visa for legal immigrants, provide authorization to adjust the status of not more than 50,000 aliens who have earned a master's degree or a doctorate degree, as specified, to that of aliens conditionally admitted for permanent residence, and eliminate per-country caps for employment-based immigrant visas.

Existing law provides various circumstances that constitute rape, including an act of sexual intercourse accomplished with a person who is not the spouse of the perpetrator where the person submits under the belief that the person committing the act is the victim's spouse, and this belief is induced by artifice, pretense, or concealment practiced by the accused, with the intent to induce the belief. Existing law provides various circumstances that constitute sodomy against an individual's will, including an act accomplished with an individual who is not the spouse of the perpetrator where the individual submits under the belief that the individual committing the act is the victim's spouse, and this belief is induced by artifice, pretense, or concealment practiced by the accused, with the intent to induce the belief. This bill would instead provide that these types of rape and sodomy occur where the person submits under the belief that the person committing the act is someone known to the victim other than the accused. By expanding the definition 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 bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

Existing law, the Mello-Roos Community Facilities Act of 1982, authorizes a local agency, as defined, to initiate proceedings to establish a community facilities district for purposes of financing certain public capital facilities and services, especially in developing areas and areas undergoing rehabilitation. Existing law authorizes the authority for the governance of one or more community facilities districts to be transferred from the jurisdiction of a county to the jurisdiction of a city upon written agreement entered into between the governing boards of the county and the city and satisfaction of certain conditions. This bill would authorize the Hemet Unified School District Community Facilities District No. 2005-1 to be transferred from the jurisdiction of the Hemet Unified School District to the Temecula Valley Unified School District upon written agreement entered into between the governing boards of those school districts, as specified. This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for Hemet Unified School District Community Facilities District No. 2005-1. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

This measure would specify principles for repairing the nation's historically broken immigration system, and would urge Congress and the President of the United States to take a comprehensive and workable approach to improving the nation's immigration system using those principles.

Existing law provides for the civil commitment of criminal offenders who have been determined to be sexually violent predators for treatment in a secure state hospital facility, as specified. Existing law requires the Secretary of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to refer a prisoner for evaluation by the State Department of State Hospitals when the secretary determines that the person may be a sexually violent predator and specifies the judicial processes necessary for civil commitment as a sexually violent predator, including, but not limited to, the right to a jury trial. Existing law establishes provisions by which a committed person is annually reviewed to determine his or her status and by which the committed person may petition for conditional release or unconditional discharge. Proposition 83 of the November 7, 2006, statewide general election, made various changes to the sexually violent predator civil commitment process. Proposition 83 permits the Legislature to amend its provisions, either by a 23 vote of the membership of each house, or by a majority vote of the membership of each house if the amendments expand the scope of the application of the provisions of the proposition or increase the punishments or penalties provided in the proposition. This bill would clarify which provisions are to be used when a committed person petitions for conditional release and which provisions are to be used when a committed person petitions for unconditional discharge and would make nonsubstantive, organizational changes to the provisions. The bill would also require the community program director designated by the State Department of State Hospitals to submit a report to the court in response to the petition that makes a recommendation as to the appropriateness of placement of the person in a state-operated forensic conditional release program before a hearing can be held. The bill would require, as part of the conditional release hearing, that a designated attorney represent the state and have the committed person evaluated by experts chosen by the state, and would give the committed person the right to the appointment of experts, if he or she so requests. The bill would also prohibit, if unconditional discharge is denied, the committed person from petitioning for unconditional discharge for one year. Existing law places the burden of proof in a hearing for conditional release on the petitioner, by a preponderance of the evidence. This bill, when the annual report determines that conditional release to a less restrictive alternative is in the best interest of the person and that conditions can be imposed that would adequately protect the community, would shift the burden of proof to the state to show, by a preponderance of the evidence, that conditional release is not appropriate. Existing law prohibits action on a petition for conditional release that was not made by the director of the treatment facility to which the person is committed without first obtaining the written recommendation of the director of the treatment facility. This bill would, instead, prohibit action on a petition for conditional release that was not made with the consent of the director of the treatment facility without first obtaining the written recommendation of the director of the treatment facility.

Existing law authorizes the California Transportation Commission to adopt a location for a state highway alignment on routes authorized by law. Existing law provides that certain portions of authorized state highway routes are also within the state scenic highway system, subject to implementation through a corridor protection system designed to meet certain scenic highway standards. Existing law provides for the Department of Transportation to designate a particular state highway within the scenic highway system as an official state scenic highway upon determination by the department that a corridor protection program has been implemented, as specified. Existing law includes in the state scenic highway system the portion of State Highway Route 10 between Route 38 near Redlands and Route 62 near Whitewater in the Counties of San Bernardino and Riverside. This bill would delete this portion of State Highway Route 10 from the state scenic highway system.

Existing law provides immunity to a food facility that donates edible food for any damage or injury resulting from the consumption of the donated food, and to any nonprofit charitable organization or food bank that receives and distributes edible food for any injury or death due to the food, except as specified. This bill would limit the liability of a nonprofit charitable organization, or participating licensed optometrist, ophthalmologist, or volunteer working with a nonprofit charitable organization for any damage or injury resulting from the provision of vision screening and, if applicable, the provision of donated or recycled eyeglasses, if specified conditions are met. The bill would make the limitation of liability inapplicable if an action is brought by an officer of a state or local government pursuant to state or local law or if the conduct of the nonprofit charitable organization, optometrist, ophthalmologist, or volunteer includes specified types of misconduct.

Under the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) , each state is required, by January 1, 2014, to establish an American Health Benefit Exchange that makes available qualified health plans to qualified individuals and small employers. Existing state law establishes the California Health Benefit Exchange (Exchange) within state government, specifies the powers and duties of the board governing the Exchange, and requires the board to facilitate the purchase of qualified health plans through the Exchange by qualified individuals and small employers by January 1, 2014. Existing law requires the board to employ necessary staff and authorizes the board to enter into contracts. This bill would require all employees, prospective employees, contractors, subcontractors, and vendors, who facilitate enrollment of persons in a qualified health plan in the Exchange and who, in the course and scope of their employment, have access to the financial or medical information of enrollees or potential enrollees, to be fingerprinted, at appropriate locations determined by the board, for the purpose of obtaining criminal history information. The bill would prohibit a person who has been convicted of felony crimes of dishonesty or breach of trust in a state or federal jurisdiction or other specified crimes from being hired by or contracting with the Exchange for the purpose of facilitating enrollment of persons in a qualified health plan in the Exchange or for any position where, in the course and scope of his or her employment, he or she will have access to the financial or medical information of enrollees or potential enrollees of the Exchange. The bill would also require an applicant to notify the Exchange of any prescribed misdemeanor or felony convictions, filing of charges, or administrative actions. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

Under the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) , each state is required, by January 1, 2014, to establish an American Health Benefit Exchange that makes available qualified health plans to qualified individuals and small employers. Existing state law establishes the California Health Benefit Exchange (Exchange) within state government, specifies the powers and duties of the executive board governing the Exchange, and requires the board to facilitate the purchase of qualified health plans through the Exchange by qualified individuals and small employers by January 1, 2014. Existing law creates the California Health Trust Fund as a continuously appropriated fund for the administrative and operational expenses of the Exchange. This bill would require the board to submit to the Department of Justice fingerprint images and related information of employees, prospective employees, contractors, subcontractors, volunteers, or vendors whose duties include or would include access to specified information for the purposes of obtaining prescribed criminal history information. The bill would require the board to require any services contract, interagency agreement, or public entity agreement, that includes or would include access to those types of information to include a provision requiring the contractor to agree to criminal background checks on its employees, contractors, agents, and subcontractors who will have access to that information as part of their services contract, interagency agreement, or public entity agreement. The bill would require the department to forward to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) requests for federal summary criminal history information, and would require the department to review the information returned from the FBI and compile and disseminate a response to the board. The bill would require the department to charge a fee sufficient to cover the costs of processing requests pursuant to the bill. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.