Sen. María Elena Durazo

Existing law requires the State Department of Social Services to establish and supervise a county- or county consortia-administered program to provide cash assistance for aged, blind, or disabled legal immigrants who are not citizens who, due to their immigration status, are not eligible for the Supplemental Security Income/State Supplementary Program for the Aged, Blind, and Disabled, also known as SSI/SSP benefits. Under existing law, an individual is eligible for this program if their immigration status meets SSI/SSP eligibility criteria but they are not eligible for those benefits solely due to their immigration status, as specified. Existing law also requires any person who is found to be eligible by the department for federally funded SSI to apply for SSI benefits. This bill would expand eligibility for that program to aged, blind, and disabled individuals regardless of immigration status if the individual meets the eligibility criteria for the program and is not eligible solely due to their immigration status. This bill would exempt individuals who are not qualified immigrants, as specified, from having to apply for SSI in order to receive benefits. The bill would also delete several inoperative provisions. The bill would make the implementation of these substantive changes contingent upon an appropriation for its express purposes. By expanding county duties under the program, 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, 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 the statutory provisions noted above.

Existing law sets forth various programs relating to opioid overdose prevention and treatment, including, among others, standing orders for the distribution of an opioid antagonist, a naloxone grant program, and a grant program to reduce fentanyl overdoses and use throughout the state. Existing law establishes the Medi-Cal program, which is administered by the State Department of Health Care Services and under which qualified low-income individuals receive health care services. The Medi-Cal program is, in part, governed and funded by federal Medicaid program provisions. Under existing law, the pharmacist service of furnishing naloxone hydrochloride is a covered Medi-Cal benefit. The Medi-Cal program also covers certain medications to treat opioid use disorders as part of narcotic treatment program services, or as part of medication-assisted treatment services within the Drug Medi-Cal Treatment Program, as specified. Existing law, the Knox-Keene Health Care Service Plan Act of 1975, provides for the licensure and regulation of health care service plans by the Department of Managed Health Care and makes a willful violation of the act a crime. Existing law provides for the regulation of health insurers by the Department of Insurance. This bill would make legislative findings relating to the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approving a certain naloxone hydrochloride nasal spray for nonprescription use. Under the bill, prescription or nonprescription naloxone hydrochloride or another drug approved by the FDA for the complete or partial reversal of an opioid overdose would be a covered benefit under the Medi-Cal program. The bill would require a health care service plan contract or health insurance policy that provides coverage for prescription drugs and that is issued, amended, delivered, or renewed on or after January 1, 2025, to cover prescription and nonprescription naloxone hydrochloride and all other drugs or products approved by the FDA for the complete or partial reversal of an opioid overdose. The bill would prohibit a health care service plan contract or health insurance policy that provides coverage for prescription drugs from imposing any cost-sharing requirements for that coverage exceeding $10 per package of medication, as specified, would require point-of-sale coverage for over-the-counter, FDA-approved naloxone hydrochloride or another FDA-approved drug or product for the complete or partial reversal of an opioid overdose at in-network pharmacies, and would prohibit a high deductible health plan from imposing cost sharing, as specified. The bill would repeal these provisions on January 1, 2030. Because a willful violation of these provisions by a health care service plan would be 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.

Existing law, the California Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, establishes the California Workforce Development Board as the body responsible for assisting the Governor in the development, oversight, and continuous improvement of California's workforce investment system and the alignment of the education and workforce investment systems to the needs of the 21st century economy and workforce. Existing law requires the board to assist the Governor in promoting the development of a well-educated and highly skilled 21st century workforce, and the development of a high road economy that offers an educated and skilled workforce with fair compensation and treatment in the workplace. Existing law also requires the board to assist in developing standards, procedures, and criteria for high road employers, high road jobs, high road workforce development, and high road training partners, as specified. Existing law defines "high road" for these purposes to mean a set of economic and workforce development strategies to achieve economic growth, economic equity, shared prosperity, and a clean environment. This bill would require the Department of Industrial Relations and the California Workforce Development Board, within the Labor and Workforce Development Agency, to collectively be responsible for among other duties, creating high road evaluation metrics, consulting with stakeholders, and providing for meaningful public input on the development and evaluation of high road evaluation metrics. The bill would require the board to also assist in developing standards, procedures, and criteria for high road contracting and high road procurement, as specified. The bill would require, upon request by a state agency, the board to establish memorandums of understanding to incorporate high road evaluation metrics in the state agency's procurement processes, contracts, and incentive programs. The bill would make these provisions effective only until January 1, 2030, and repeal them as of that date. This bill would also require specified state agencies, by January 1, 2025, to enter into a memorandum of understanding with the California Workforce Development Board to incorporate high road evaluation metrics in the state agency's procurement processes, contracts, and incentive programs. The bill would require these agreements to draw upon the experience of the California Workforce Development Board to ensure the state has the workforce and industry-based training partnerships necessary to meet its broadband, clean energy, and clean transportation goals, as specified. The bill would require these agreements to include advice and recommendations to ensure state agency policies and regulated programs create or support high-quality jobs in the broadband, energy, resources, and transportation sectors and expand access to those jobs for priority populations through high-quality education and training.

Existing law authorizes the Trustees of the California State University to enter into agreements for the performance of acts or for the furnishing of services, facilities, materials, goods, supplies, or equipment under certain conditions. Existing law requires the trustees to prescribe policies and procedures for the acquisition of services, facilities, materials, goods, supplies, or equipment, subject to specified criteria. This bill would require the trustees, for each food service contract and participation in a hotel development project, to require the person contracting with the trustees and each food service employer or hotel employer, to be party to a labor peace agreement under that contract or participation with any labor organization that represents or seeks to represent the employees performing work under the food service contract or hotel employees at the hotel development project, as specified. The bill would extend that requirement to any food service contract or hotel development project in which the California State University or the State of California has a proprietary interest and that is performed pursuant to a contract entered into or awarded by a California State University auxiliary organization.

Existing law, until December 31, 2024, requires an employer, as defined, to offer certain employees laid off due to the COVID-19 pandemic specified information about job positions that become available for which the laid-off employees are qualified, and to offer positions to those laid-off employees based on a preference system, in accordance with specified timelines and procedures. Existing law requires an employer that declines to recall a laid-off employee on the grounds of lack of qualifications and instead hires someone other than a laid-off employee to provide the laid-off employee a written notice within 30 days including specified reasons for the decision, and other information on those hired. Existing law prohibits an employer from taking adverse action against any laid-off employee for seeking to enforce their rights under existing law. Existing law gives the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement jurisdiction over enforcement of these provisions and prescribes enforcement, remedies, and civil penalties for violations. Existing law prohibits the imposition of criminal penalties for a violation of these provisions. Existing law authorizes the division to promulgate and enforce rules and regulations, and issue determinations and interpretations concerning existing law. This bill would require a chain employer to provide each covered worker and their exclusive representative, if any, a displacement notice at least 60 days before the expected date of closure of a covered establishment. The bill would define terms for its purposes, including defining a "covered establishment" as a chain establishment that is subject to closure resulting in layoffs of workers, a "chain" as a business in this state that consists of 100 or more establishments nationally that share a common brand and are owned and operated by the same parent company, and a "chain employer" as any person, including a corporate officer or executive, who directly or indirectly or through an agent or any other person, owns or operates a chain and employs or exercises control over the wages, hours, or working conditions of workers. A "chain employer" would also include a franchisee that owns and operates 100 or more establishments nationally under an agreement with one franchisor. This bill would require a chain employer, for a year after the closure of a covered establishment, to provide to all covered workers the opportunity to transfer to a location of the chain within 25 miles of the covered establishment subject to closure as positions become available. A franchisee subject to the bill would only be required to make an offer of transfer to a covered worker to a location within 25 miles of the covered location that the franchisee owns and operates under an agreement with one franchisor. The bill would require the chain employer to maintain a preferential transfer list of covered workers. The bill would require a chain employer to make offers of transfer to qualified covered workers based on length of service, as specified. The bill would require a covered worker who is offered a position to be given at least 5 business days, from the date of receipt, to accept or decline the offer. The bill would require a chain employer to retain for a minimum of 3 years prescribed records relating to the closure and offers of employment. The bill would prohibit a chain employer from taking adverse action against a covered worker for asserting their rights under the bill. Under the bill, the division would have jurisdiction over enforcement of these provisions. The bill would prescribe enforcement, remedies, and civil penalties for violations. The bill would prohibit the imposition of criminal penalties for a violation of these provisions. The bill would authorize the division to promulgate and enforce rules and regulations, and issue determinations and interpretations concerning existing law.

Existing law requires the city council for a charter city that elects its city council using district-based elections to adopt new city council district boundaries following each federal decennial census. Existing law requires the city council to adopt the new boundaries using specified criteria, and by a specified deadline, unless the charter city has adopted different redistricting criteria or a different deadline by ordinance or in its city charter. This bill would require a charter city with a population of at least 2,500,000 people to establish an independent redistricting commission to adjust the district boundaries for the city council if the city's charter does not establish an independent redistricting commission that meets specified criteria. The bill would require the commission to adjust the boundaries of the city council districts in accordance with specified criteria and deadlines. By increasing the duties on local officials, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for charter cities with a population of at least 2,500,000 people. 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 the statutory provisions noted above.

Existing law establishes within the Department of Industrial Relations the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement and the Division of Occupational Safety and Health, with duties and powers, as prescribed. Existing law, the California Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1973, requires employers to comply with certain standards ensuring healthy and safe working conditions, as specified. The act charges the Division of Occupational Safety and Health with enforcement of the act, subject to oversight by the Chief of the Division of Occupational Safety and Health. The act excludes household domestic service from the definition of "employment." The act requires the chief, or a representative of the chief, to convene an advisory committee for the purposes of creating voluntary guidance and making recommendations to the department and the Legislature on policies the state may adopt to protect the health and safety of privately funded household domestic service employees, except publicly funded household domestic service and family daycare homes, as specified. The act requires the advisory committee to develop voluntary industry-specific occupational health and safety guidance relating to workplace hazards and the prevention or minimization of work-related injuries and illnesses. The act requires the advisory committee to make recommendations, as specified, on additional policies to protect the health and safety of household domestic service employees. Under specified circumstances, a violation of the act is a crime. Existing law requires the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement, upon appropriation of funding for this purpose, to establish and maintain an outreach and education program for the purpose of promoting awareness of, and compliance with, labor protections that affect the domestic work industry and fair and dignified labor standards in this industry and other low-wage industries. Existing law requires the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement to issue a competitive request to community-based organizations (CBOs) to provide education and outreach services in this connection and prescribes requirements for these organizations. Existing law makes CBOs responsible for developing and consulting with the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement regarding the core education and outreach materials, as specified. Existing law requires the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement and CBOs to meet at least biannually to coordinate efforts around outreach, education, and enforcement, including sharing information, in accordance with applicable privacy and confidentiality laws, that will shape and inform the overall enforcement strategy of the division regarding low-wage industries, including the domestic work industry. Existing law prohibits the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement from expending more than 5% of the budget allocation on the administration of the program. This bill would make CBOs responsible for developing and consulting with the Division of Occupational Safety and Health regarding the core education and outreach materials regarding health and safety standards, retaliation, and the division's workplace safety complaint and retaliation process, including specific issues that affect the domestic work industry differently. The bill would make CBOs responsible for all costs related to the development, printing, advertising, or distribution of the education and outreach materials. The bill would require the chief, representatives of the consultation services and enforcement branches of the Division of Occupational Safety and Health, and CBOs to meet periodically, as specified, to coordinate efforts around outreach, education, and enforcement. The bill would prohibit the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement and the Division of Occupational Safety and Health from expending more than 5% of the budget allocation on the administration of the program. This bill, for purposes of the California Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1973, commencing January 1, 2025, would narrow the exclusion of household domestic service from the definition of "employment" to exclude only publicly funded household domestic service and family daycare homes, as specified. The bill would require the Division of Occupational Safety and Health, by January 1, 2025, to adopt industry guidance to assist household domestic service employers on their legal obligations under existing occupational safety and health laws and regulations that apply to the work activity of household domestic service employees. The bill would require the guidance to be consistent with the voluntary industry guidelines established by the advisory committee. The bill would require a household domestic services employer, by January 1, 2025, to comply with, and adhere to, all applicable occupational safety and health regulations. The bill would require the Division of Occupational Safety and Health, if the division determines that additional industry-specific regulations are necessary, to propose those regulations to the standards board for its review, and would require the standards board to adopt regulations by January 1, 2026. By expanding the application of criminal penalties under the act to household domestic service employers, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would make related legislative findings and declarations. 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.

Existing law provides for the payment of unemployment compensation benefits and extended benefits to eligible individuals who meet specified requirements. Under existing law, unemployment benefits are paid from the Unemployment Fund, which is continuously appropriated for these purposes. Existing law makes an employee ineligible for benefits if the employee left work because of a trade dispute and specifies that the employee remains ineligible for the duration of the trade dispute. Existing case law holds that employees who left work due to a lockout by the employer, even if it was in anticipation of a trade dispute, are eligible for benefits. This bill would restore eligibility after the first 2 weeks for an employee who left work because of a trade dispute. The bill would codify specified case law that holds that employees who left work due to a lockout by the employer, even if it was in anticipation of a trade dispute, are eligible for benefits. The bill would specify that the bill's provisions do not diminish eligibility for benefits of individuals deprived of work due to an employer lockout or similar action, as specified. Because this bill would expand the categories of people eligible to receive benefits from a continuously appropriated fund, it would make an appropriation.

Existing law requires the Governor to appoint every office whose mode of appointment is not prescribed by law. Existing law also prescribes the manner of the Governor's appointment of those officers. This bill would require the office of the Governor, commencing January 1, 2025, to maintain on its internet website a list of every state board and commission that includes, for each state board or commission, the membership list, stated purpose, duties, meeting frequency, internet website, and vacancies in the membership. The bill would require the office of the Governor, on or before January 1, 2026, and annually thereafter, to create and publish on its internet website a report containing aggregate demographic information of appointments made by the office during the prior calendar year, as specified.

The California Constitution provides that a proposed constitutional amendment and a statewide initiative measure each take effect only if approved by a majority of the votes cast on the amendment or measure. This measure would further provide that an initiative measure that includes one or more provisions that would amend the Constitution to increase the voter approval requirement to adopt any state or local measure would be approved by the voters only if the proportion of votes cast in favor of the initiative measure is equal to or greater than the highest voter approval requirement that the initiative measure would impose. The measure would specify that this voter approval requirement would apply to statewide initiative measures that appear on the ballot on or after January 1, 2024. The California Constitution also permits initiative and referendum powers to be exercised by the voters of each city or county under procedures provided by the Legislature. This measure would expressly authorize a local governing body to hold an advisory vote concerning any issue of governance for the purpose of allowing voters within the jurisdiction to voice their opinions on the issue. The measure would specify that an advisory question is approved only if a majority of the votes cast on the question are in favor. This measure would further declare that its provisions are severable and that if any provision is held invalid, the other provisions of the act remain valid, as specified.