This measure would designate the month of April 2014 as Sexual Assault Awareness Month, and would recognize April 23, 2014, as Denim Day California.
Under existing law, the Division of Oil, Gas, and Geothermal Resources in the Department of Conservation regulates the drilling, operation, maintenance, stimulation, and abandonment of oil and gas wells in the state. The State Oil and Gas Supervisor, or supervisor, supervises the drilling, operation, maintenance, stimulation, and abandonment of wells and the operation, maintenance, and removal or abandonment of tanks and facilities related to oil and gas production within an oil and gas field regarding safety and environmental damage. Existing law requires an operator, prior to performing a well stimulating treatment, as defined, on a well, to obtain approval from the supervisor or district deputy. Under existing law, a person who violates any prohibition specific to the regulation of oil or gas operations is guilty of a misdemeanor. Existing law requires the Secretary of the Natural Resources Agency, on or before January 1, 2015, to cause to be conducted, and completed, an independent scientific study on well stimulation treatments, including acid well stimulation and hydraulic fracturing treatments. Existing law requires the division to finalize and implement regulations regulating well stimulation treatments by January 1, 2015. This bill would revise the definition of "well stimulation treatment." The bill would require the scientific study to be conducted and completed no later than June 30, 2016, and to consider additional elements, including, among other things, evaluating various potential direct, indirect, and cumulative health and environmental effects of onshore and offshore well stimulation and well stimulation treatment-related activities, as specified. The bill would also prohibit all well stimulation treatments until (1) the Secretary of the Natural Resources Agency convenes a committee to review the scientific study, as specified, (2) the Governor issues a determination that specific measures are in place to ensure that well stimulation treatments do not create adverse impacts to public and environmental health or, if the well stimulation treatments result in adverse impacts to public and environmental health, the impacts are identified and sufficiently mitigated to avoid significant adverse impacts to public and environmental health at the local, regional, or statewide level, and (3) the division prepares an environmental impact report, as provided. Because a violation of the bill's requirements would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. This bill would require the division to finalize the regulations regulating well stimulation treatments by June 30, 2015. 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 measure would proclaim the Legislature's support for the extension of the Emergency Unemployment Compensation program and would memorialize the United States Congress to promptly renew the extension of unemployment benefits.
This measure would recognize the week of March 23, 2014, to March 29, 2014, inclusive, as National Agriculture Week, and would designate March 19, 2014, as California Agriculture Day.
This measure would declare February 19, 2014, as a Day of Remembrance in order to increase public awareness of the events surrounding the internment of Americans of Japanese ancestry during World War II.
Existing law requires the Employment Development Department, in consultation and coordination with veterans' organizations and veteran service providers, to research the needs of veterans throughout the state and develop a profile of veterans' employment and training needs and to seek federal funding for those purposes. This bill would require the Employment Development Department and the Department of Consumer Affairs, on or before January 1, 2015, jointly to present a report to the Legislature containing best practices by state governments around the nation in facilitating the credentialing of veterans by using their documented military education and experience.
Existing law establishes the 7-member Workers' Compensation Appeals Board, and provides that the members of the appeals board are appointed by the Governor with the advice and consent of the Senate. Existing law requires that 5 of the 7 members of the board be experienced attorneys admitted to practice in the State of California, and provides that the other 2 members need not be attorneys. This bill would require that all 7 members of the board be experienced attorneys admitted to practice in the State of California. Existing law establishes a workers' compensation system, administered by the Administrative Director of the Division of Workers' Compensation, to compensate an employee for injuries sustained in the course of his or her employment. Existing law requires that medical, surgical, chiropractic, acupuncture, and hospital treatment that is reasonably required to relieve the injured worker from the effects of his or her injury be provided by the employer. Existing law prohibits a chiropractor from being a treating physician after the employee has received a certain number of chiropractic visits. This bill would correct an erroneous cross-reference with respect to these provisions. Existing law requires that a lien claimant is entitled to an order or award for reimbursement of a lien filing fee or lien activation fee, together with interest at the rate allowed on civil judgments, if certain conditions are satisfied. This bill would specify that these fees are to be paid by the employer. Existing law requires an order or award for payment of a lien for medical or hospital treatment, as specified, to be made for payment only to the person who was entitled to payment for the expenses for medical or hospital treatment at the time the expenses were incurred, and not to an assignee unless the person has ceased doing business in the capacity held at the time the expenses were incurred and has assigned all right, title, and interest in the remaining accounts receivable to the assignee. This bill would authorize an assignment of that payment if the assignment was completed prior to January 1, 2013, or if it was required by a contract that became enforceable and irrevocable prior to January 1, 2013. The bill would state that this provision is declarative of existing law. Existing law authorizes an injured worker to institute proceedings for the collection of compensation, including vocational rehabilitation services, within 5 years after the date of the injury upon the ground that the original injury has caused new and further disability or that providing vocational rehabilitation services has become feasible because the employee's medical condition has improved or because of other factors not capable of determination at the time the employer's liability for vocational rehabilitation services otherwise terminated. This bill would delete the provisions relating to vocational rehabilitation, but retain the authority of an injured worker to institute proceedings for the collection of compensation within 5 years after the date of the injury upon the ground that the original injury has caused new and further disability.
(1) Existing law, the Political Reform Act of 1974, provides for the comprehensive regulation of campaign financing, including requiring the reporting of campaign contributions and expenditures, as defined, and imposing other reporting and recordkeeping requirements on campaign committees, as defined. The act requires the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Fair Political Practices Commission, to develop online and electronic filing processes for specified entities. A violation of the act's provisions is punishable as a misdemeanor. This bill would revise the terms "late contribution" and "late independent expenditure," as defined in the act, to "election-cycle contribution" and "election-cycle independent expenditure," respectively, and would make conforming changes. The bill would also increase the fines and penalties imposed for campaign statements and reports that are filed late. This bill would declare the intent of the Legislature that the Secretary of State develop a single, statewide electronic filing system that consolidates the filing of all campaign committee statements and reports and all lobbyist, lobbying firm, and lobbyist employer reports. This bill would also require the Secretary of State to develop a feasibility study report for the electronic filing system by December 31, 2014, as specified. (2) The act requires each committee to have a designated treasurer who is identified in the statement of organization. A committee may not make an expenditure without the authorization of the treasurer. This bill would require a treasurer to complete an online training course, designed and administered by the Commission, that addresses the statutes and regulations governing the financing of campaigns and the duties and responsibilities of a treasurer within 20 business days after being designated as the treasurer. (3) By expanding the scope of 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. (4) 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.
