Existing law regulates investments made by public pension and retirement systems and defines the term "placement agent" to mean a person or entity hired, engaged, or retained by an external manager, as defined, to raise money or investment from a public retirement system in California. Existing law, the Political Reform Act of 1974, provides for the comprehensive regulation of the lobbying industry, including defining the term "lobbyist" and regulating the conduct of lobbyists. Among its provisions, the act requires lobbyists to register with the Secretary of State and to file periodic disclosure reports, and it prohibits lobbyists from engaging in certain activities, including accepting or agreeing to accept any payment in any way contingent upon the defeat, enactment, or outcome of any proposed legislative or administrative action, as defined. This bill would amend the existing definition of "placement agent" to mean a person, as defined, hired, engaged, or retained by, or serving for the benefit of or on behalf of, an external manager, as defined, to act as a finder, solicitor, marketer, consultant, broker, or other intermediary in connection with the offer or sale of the securities, assets, or services of an external manager to a public retirement system in California for compensation, and would exclude from that definition an employee, officer, director, equityholder, partner, member, or trustee of an external manager who spends 13 or more of his or her time, during a calendar year, managing the securities or assets owned, controlled, invested, or held by the external manager. The bill would define "placement agent" in a similar way for purposes of the Political Reform Act of 1974, except that the definition would be limited to an individual acting in connection with the offer or sale of the securities, assets, or services of an external manager to a state public retirement system in California and would not include employees, officers, or directors of specified external managers or of affiliates of those external managers. In addition, the bill would prohibit a person from acting as a placement agent in connection with any potential system investment made by a state public retirement system unless that person is registered as a lobbyist and is in full compliance with the Political Reform Act of 1974 as that act applies to lobbyists. The bill would also require a person acting as a placement agent in connection with any potential system investment made by a local public retirement system to file any applicable reports with a local government agency that requires lobbyists to register and file reports and to comply with any applicable requirements imposed by a local government agency. The bill would provide that an individual acting as a placement agent is a lobbyist for purposes of the Political Reform Act of 1974 and is thereby required to comply with all regulations and restrictions imposed on lobbyists by the act, and the bill would further expand the definition of "administrative action" for purposes of the act to include, with regard only to placement agents, the decision by any state agency to enter into a contract to invest state public retirement system assets on behalf of a state public retirement system. The bill would specify that a placement agent who is registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission and regulated by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority is permitted to receive a payment of fees for contractual services provided to an investment manager, except to the extent that payment of fees is prohibited by the proscription on contingency payments to placement agents. Additionally, the bill would require the Public Employees' Retirement System and the State Teachers' Retirement System to each provide to the Legislature, not later than August 1, 2012, a report on the use of placement agents in connection with investments made by those retirement systems. Existing law makes a knowing or willful violation of the Political Reform Act of 1974 a misdemeanor and subjects offenders to criminal penalties. This bill would impose a state-mandated local program by creating additional crimes. 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 Political Reform Act of 1974, an initiative measure, provides that the Legislature may amend the act to further the act's purposes upon a 23 vote of each house and compliance with specified procedural requirements. This bill would declare that it furthers the purposes of the act.
Sponsored bills
Existing law requires that write-in candidates submit a statement to the appropriate elections official containing specified information about their candidacy. This bill would require that a write-in candidate for the office of superior court judge include on the statement his or her compliance with certain eligibility provisions for a judge of a court of record. Existing law requires a petition to be signed by a certain number of qualified registered voters when a write-in campaign will be conducted for the office of superior court judge if only the incumbent files nomination papers. This bill would revise the number of qualified registered voter signatures required to be on these petitions. This bill would also incorporate changes to Section 8600 of the Elections Code made by SB 6, to become operative only if both this bill and SB 6 become operative. Because the bill would change the duties of local elections officials, it 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.
Existing law provides, subject to exceptions, that every person who overdrives, overloads, drives when overloaded, overworks, tortures, torments, deprives of necessary sustenance, drink, or shelter, cruelly beats, mutilates, or cruelly kills any animal, or causes or procures any animal to be so overdriven, overloaded, driven when overloaded, overworked, tortured, tormented, deprived of necessary sustenance, drink, shelter, or to be cruelly beaten, mutilated, or cruelly killed; and whoever, having the charge or custody of any animal, either as owner or otherwise, subjects any animal to needless suffering, or inflicts unnecessary cruelty upon the animal, or in any manner abuses any animal, or fails to provide the animal with proper food, drink, or shelter or protection from the weather, or who drives, rides, or otherwise uses the animal when unfit for labor, is guilty of a crime punishable as a misdemeanor or as a felony, or alternatively as a misdemeanor or a felony and a fine of not more than $20,000. This bill would revise the punishment for this offense to provide that it is punishable by imprisonment in a county jail for not more than one year, or in the state prison, or by a fine of not more than $20,000, or by both that fine and imprisonment. The bill would make other technical, nonsubstantive changes. By revising the penalty for an existing 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.
Existing law establishes the Carl Moyer Memorial Air Quality Standards Attainment Program, which provides grants to offset the incremental cost of projects that reduce covered emissions from covered sources. This bill would require the State Air Resources Board, by July 1, 2011, to revise project guidelines, for a project that reduces greenhouse gas emissions, to allow funds from specified programs and funding sources to be used for a project also funded under the Carl Moyer Memorial Air Quality Standards Attainment Program without those additional public funds being factored into the criteria emission reduction cost-effectiveness calculations under that program.
Existing civil rights provisions provide that all persons within the jurisdiction of this state have the right to be free from any violence, or intimidation by threat of violence, committed against their persons or property because of political affiliation, or on account of position in a labor dispute, or sex, race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, disability, or medical condition, or because another person perceives them to have one or more of those characteristics. Those civil rights provisions provide civil remedies for violations of their provisions. This bill would prohibit a person from requiring a waiver of the protections afforded under those provisions as a condition of entering into a contract for the provision of goods or services, including the right to file and pursue a civil action or complaint with, or otherwise notify, the Attorney General or any other public prosecutor, or law enforcement agency, the Department of Fair Employment and Housing, or any court or other governmental entity. This bill would require any waiver of the protections afforded under those provisions to be knowing and voluntary, and in writing, and expressly not made as a condition of entering into the contract or as a condition of providing or receiving goods or services. This bill would provide that any person seeking the enforcement of a waiver of the protections afforded under those civil rights provisions shall have the burden of proving that the waiver was knowing and voluntary and not made as a condition of the contract or of providing or receiving the goods or services. The bill's provisions would apply to contracts entered into, removed, altered, modified, or extended on and after January 1, 2011. This bill would provide that its provisions shall not be construed to negate other specified provisions. This bill would include legislative findings and declarations with respect to the public policy underlying its provisions. This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 51.7 of the Civil Code as proposed by AB 2706, to be operative only if AB 2706 and this bill are both enacted and become effective on or before January 1, 2011, both bills amend those sections, and this bill is enacted after AB 2706 is enacted.
Existing law defines human trafficking as the deprivation or violation of the personal liberty of another person with the intent to commit certain specified sex offenses with the person or to obtain forced labor or services, as specified. This bill would authorize real property used to facilitate the commission of that offense to be declared and treated as a nuisance, as specified.
Existing law establishes the California Tourism Marketing Act as a means of funding generic promotion of this state as a tourism destination. This bill would require any department, commission, office, agency, or other administrative entity of the state that produces, or contracts for the production of, a promotional commercial for the state or a product of the state, and finances that commercial in whole or in part with public funds, to film that commercial in this state. The bill would except from its provisions agreements to feature or promote California products in a program made by a private entity, as specified.
(1) Existing law makes it unlawful for a nongovernmental entity to solicit funds or information by means of a mailing, electronic message, or Internet Web site that contains a seal, insignia, trade, or brand name, or any other term or symbol that reasonably could be interpreted or construed as implying any state or local government connection, approval, or endorsement, unless the nongovernmental entity has an expressed connection with a state or local entity or unless the solicitation contains specified disclosures in conspicuous and legible type. Existing law requires a business to include the contact information for a referenced governmental agency in an unsolicited mailing that offers to assist the recipient in dealing with the governmental agency. A violation of these or other provisions related to advertising is a misdemeanor, punishable by imprisonment in the county jail not exceeding 6 months, a fine not exceeding $1,000, or both. This bill would additionally make it unlawful for a nongovernmental entity to solicit funds or information by any of those means that contains an emblem or content that reasonably could be interpreted or construed as implying any federal state, or local government connection, approval, or endorsement, unless the nongovernmental entity has an expressed connection with a federal, state or local entity or unless the solicitation contains the specified disclosures and meets other requirements. The bill would require the disclosures to be conspicuously displayed in specified locations, type, and manner. The bill would increase the maximum criminal fine for a violation of these provisions to $2,500 and would authorize a person to recover specified damages resulting from a violation of these provisions. The bill would delete the provisions requiring a business to include the contact information for a referenced governmental agency in an unsolicited mailing that offers to assist the recipient in dealing with the governmental agency. Existing law makes it unlawful for a person to make any untrue or misleading statements in any manner in connection with the offering or performance of an assessment reduction filing service. Existing law provides that an untrue or misleading statement includes representing that an offeror of an assessment reduction filing service is, or is affiliated with, any governmental entity by, among other things, the use of a business name including the word "appeal" or "tax" and any of a list of terms, including "agency," "bureau," or "department." This bill would provide that it is also an untrue or misleading statement in connection with the offering or performance of an assessment reduction filing service if the words "board" or "commission" are used with the word "appeal" or "tax" in the business name of an assessment reduction filing service. Because a violation of these provisions would be a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (2) Existing law authorizes proof of the execution of an instrument by certain persons and prescribes the form for that proof. Existing law prohibits a proof of the execution of any of several types of specified instruments, including a grant deed, mortgage, deed of trust, quitclaim deed, or security agreement. This bill would add a power of attorney to the types of instruments for which a proof of the execution is prohibited and would further prohibit a proof of the execution for any instrument requiring a notary public to obtain a thumbprint from the party signing the document in the notary public's journal. The bill would also revise the form of certificate that may be used for proof of execution. (3) Existing law prescribes the duties of a notary public, including the duty to demand acceptance and payment of foreign and inland bills of exchange, or promissory notes, to protest them for nonacceptance or nonpayment, and to exercise any other powers and duties that by the law of nations and according to commercial usages, or by the laws of any other state, government, or country, may be performed by notaries. Existing law provides that a protest is a certificate of dishonor of a negotiable instrument made by, among others, a notary public. Existing law provides that the protest of a notary public of a bill of exchange or promissory note for nonacceptance or nonpayment is prima facie evidence of the facts recited therein. The bill would limit the application of these provisions to a notary public employed by a financial institution, during the course and scope of the notary's employment with the financial institution. (4) Existing law prescribes the maximum fees a notary public may charge for specified services. The bill would delete the prescribed maximum fees for every protest for the nonpayment of a promissory note or for the nonpayment or nonacceptance of a bill of exchange, draft, or check, for serving every notice of nonpayment of a promissory note or of nonpayment or nonacceptance of a bill of exchange, order, draft, or check, and for recording every protest. (5) Existing law sets forth the fees the Secretary of State is authorized to charge for the provision of specified business services. The bill would authorize the Secretary of State's office to refuse to perform a service or refuse a filing based on a reasonable belief that the service or filing is being requested for any of a number of specified improper purposes. (6) 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 prescribes procedures for the issuance of registered warrants and provides that a registered warrant is acceptable and may be used as security for the performance of any public or private trust or obligation. This bill would, if the Controller makes a specified determination, require a state agency to accept, from a person or entity, a registered warrant issued by the Controller and endorsed by that payee, at full face value, for the payment of any obligations owed by that payee to that state agency. The bill would specify that its requirements do not apply to certain obligations and would require the Controller, on or before the September 1 following the conclusion of a fiscal year in which a state agency is required to accept registered warrants pursuant to these provisions, to submit a report to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee. The bill would make its provisions inoperative on July 1, 2012, and would repeal them on January 1, 2013. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Existing law, the California High-Speed Rail Act, creates the High-Speed Rail Authority to develop and implement a high-speed rail system in the state, with specified powers and duties. Existing law, pursuant to the Safe, Reliable High-Speed Passenger Train Bond Act for the 21st Century, approved by the voters as Proposition 1A at the November 4, 2008, general election, provides for the issuance of $9.95 billion in general obligation bonds for high-speed rail and related purposes. The federal Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act of 2008 (PRIIA) and the federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) provide funding for allocation nationally to high-speed rail projects. This bill would require federal high-speed rail funds received on a reimbursement basis from ARRA to be deposited in the federal trust fund. The bill would require certain ARRA funds to be used for planning and engineering, and for capital costs, for the high-speed train system consistent with federal law and regulations and specified provisions of SB 965 of the 2009–10 Regular Session. The bill would identify the corridors eligible for federal PRIIA funds. The above provisions would become operative only if SB 965 is also enacted and becomes operative. Existing law provides for appointment of an executive director by the authority, who is exempt from civil service and serves at the pleasure of the authority. Under existing law, the salary of the executive director is established by the authority and approved by the Department of Personnel Administration. This bill, for purposes of managing and administering the ongoing work of the authority in implementing the high-speed rail project, would authorize the Governor, upon recommendation of the executive director and subject to an appropriation, to appoint up to 6 additional executive staff exempt from civil service who would serve in specified positions at the pleasure of the executive director. The bill would require the authority to cause a salary survey to be conducted to determine the compensation for the executive director and additional exempt staff, and would require the salaries to be approved by the Department of Personnel Administration. The bill would state the intent of the Legislature to approve additional positions at the authority for purposes of creating an Office for Project Controls and Risk Management in the authority.