(1) Existing law establishes in state government the Transportation Agency, which includes various departments and state entities, including the California Transportation Commission. Existing law vests the California Transportation Commission with specified powers, duties, and functions relative to transportation matters. Existing law requires the commission to retain independent authority to perform the duties and functions prescribed to it under any provision of law. This bill would exclude the California Transportation Commission from the Transportation Agency, establish it as an entity in state government, and require it to act in an independent oversight role. The bill would also make conforming changes. (2) Existing law requires the Department of Transportation to prepare a state highway operation and protection program every other year for the expenditure of transportation capital improvement funds for projects that are necessary to preserve and protect the state highway system, excluding projects that add new traffic lanes. The program is required to be based on an asset management plan, as specified. Existing law requires the department to specify, for each project in the program, the capital and support budget and projected delivery date for various components of the project. Existing law provides for the California Transportation Commission to review and adopt the program, and authorizes the commission to decline to adopt the program if it determines that the program is not sufficiently consistent with the asset management plan. This bill would additionally require the department to program capital outlay support resources for each project in the program. The bill would provide that the commission is not required to approve the program in its entirety, as submitted by the department, and may approve or reject individual projects programmed by the department. The bill would require the department to submit any change in a programmed project's cost, scope, or schedule to the commission for its approval.
Sponsored bills
The Lanterman Developmental Disabilities Services Act requires the State Department of Developmental Services to contract with regional centers to provide services and supports to individuals with developmental disabilities. Under existing law, the regional centers purchase needed services for individuals with developmental disabilities through approved service providers or arrange for those services through other publicly funded agencies. Existing law establishes specified rates to be paid to certain service providers and the rates to be paid for certain developmental services. Existing law requires that rates to be paid to other developmental service providers either be set by the department or negotiated between the regional center and the service provider. Existing law prohibits certain provider rate increases, but authorizes increases to those rates as necessary to adjust employee wages to meet the state minimum wage law and to provide paid sick leave. Existing law establishes the Medi-Cal program, administered by the State Department of Health Care Services, under which basic health care services are provided to qualified low-income persons. The Medi-Cal program is, in part, governed and funded by federal Medicaid Program provisions. Existing law requires, except as otherwise provided, Medi-Cal provider payments to be reduced, as specified. This bill would, to the extent that General Fund revenues for the 2014–15 fiscal year exceed the revenues estimated for that fiscal year in the Budget Act of 2015 and that General Fund revenues for the 2015–16 fiscal year are expected to exceed the revenues estimated for that fiscal year in the Budget Act of 2015, appropriate certain sums to the State Department of Developmental Services to increase rates for certain developmental service providers and to increase regional center operating budgets, and appropriate certain sums to the State Department of Health Care Services for the purpose of increasing Medi-Cal provider rates for providers whose rates were reduced. The bill would require the Director of Finance to determine the percentage increases to be provided to developmental service providers, regional center operating budgets, and Medi-Cal providers based on the amount by which General Fund revenues exceed, or are expected to exceed, the revenues budgeted for the 2014–15 and 2015–16 fiscal years. The bill would make the rate increases, if any, retroactive to July 1, 2015.
This measure would recognize the Lunar New Year Celebration.
This measure would proclaim January 13, 2016, as Korean American Day.
The California Constitution prohibits a committee or either house of the Legislature from hearing or acting upon a bill until 31 days after it has been introduced, unless the house dispenses with this requirement by a rollcall vote with ¾ of the membership concurring. The California Constitution also prohibits either house from passing a bill until the bill with amendments has been printed and distributed to the Members of the Legislature. This measure would authorize a committee to hear or act upon a bill before 31 days have passed following the bill's introduction if the bill, in the form to be considered by the committee, has been in print and published on the Internet for at least 15 days. This measure would also prohibit either house of the Legislature from passing a bill until it has been made available to the public, in print and on the Internet, for at least 72 hours before a vote on the measure, except for certain bills that address a state of emergency declared by the Governor. The California Constitution provides that the Budget Bill and other bills providing for appropriations related to the Budget Bill may be passed by a majority vote in each house of the Legislature and shall take immediate effect upon being signed by the Governor. The California Constitution defines "other bills providing for appropriations related to the budget bill" to mean bills identified as related to the budget in the Budget Bill passed by the Legislature. The California Constitution requires that the Legislature pass the Budget Bill by midnight on June 15 of each year. If the Budget Bill is not passed by the deadline, the California Constitution prohibits an appropriation from the current budget or future budget to pay any salary or reimbursement for travel or living expenses for Members of the Legislature during any regular or special session for the period from midnight on June 15 until the day that the Budget Bill is presented to the Governor. This measure would require that the Budget Bill be enacted by midnight on June 15. The measure would require that other bills that provide for appropriations relating to the Budget Bill be necessary to implement the budget. The measure would provide that a Budget Bill or other bill providing for appropriations relating to the Budget Bill that is passed in each house by a majority vote shall not take effect if it is not enacted by midnight on June 15, thereby requiring a Budget Bill or other bill providing for appropriations relating to the Budget Bill that is enacted after midnight on June 15 to be passed by a 23 vote. The measure would prohibit an appropriation to pay any salary or reimbursement for travel or living expenses for Members of the Legislature and the Governor from midnight on June 15 until the Budget Bill and all other bills providing for appropriations related to the Budget Bill are enacted.
Existing law vests in the State Department of Developmental Services jurisdiction over state hospitals referred to as developmental centers for the provision of residential care to individuals with developmental disabilities. Existing law requires the department to comply with procedural requirements when closing a developmental center, including submitting a detailed plan to the Legislature and holding at least one public hearing. Under existing law, the department allocates funds to private nonprofit entities known as regional centers, which are required to provide, or arrange for the provision of, services and supports for persons with developmental disabilities. This bill would require the Department of Finance, upon the closure of the Sonoma Developmental Center, Fairview Developmental Center, or the nonsecured portion of the Porterville Developmental Center, to deposit the net savings from the closure of each center, as defined, into the Lanterman Act Community-Based Services Fund, s newly created fund. The bill would make the moneys in the fund available to the department, upon appropriation, to be used to supplement existing purchase-of-service funds used by regional centers to purchase services and supports for persons with developmental disabilities.
Existing law, the Uniform Supervision of International Student Exchange Visitor Placement Organizations Act of 1994, requires international student exchange visitor placement organizations to register with the Attorney General, meet certain requirements, and perform specified duties, including providing prescribed information to participating students, host families, and school districts. That act requires the Attorney General to establish and maintain the Registry of International Student Exchange Visitor Placement Organizations and to adopt regulations to establish standards and requirements for organizations in a manner consistent with specified federal regulations and for the administration of the act. The act establishes the Registry of International Student Exchange Visitor Placement Organizations Fund in the State Treasury and requires the deposit of all registration and renewal fees collected into that fund for the purposes of administering the act. The act authorizes a school district to require proof of registration with the Attorney General from any organization seeking to place an international student exchange visitor in the school district as a condition to agreeing to enroll that student. A violation of the act, including the failure to register, is a misdemeanor. This bill would establish specific fees relating to the schooling and care of a student that may be imposed on a student. The bill would require an organization to disclose all charges imposed on students to a prospective student and to submit a schedule of those charges to the Attorney General for publication on the Internet Web site for the registry. The bill would impose other restrictions on an organization's administration of student funds, including a requirement that an organization that has received tuition for schooling, if the student resigns, is expelled, or transfers from the school, refund within 15 days of the event a prorated amount of that tuition directly to the student. The bill would make such an organization, upon failure to comply with that last requirement, liable to the student for up to 10 times that prorated amount. The bill would require a school to publish, and provide upon request by a prospective student, a full listing of all the courses offered by the school, a proposed class schedule, and graduation requirement plan or worksheet. The bill would require a school to disclose to prospective students the percentage of foreign students at the school. The failure to comply with these publication and disclosure requirements would make a school liable for a full refund of fees and tuition to any student being expelled, transferring, or resigning from the school. The bill would impose other requirements on a school's administration of a student's tuition, travel permission, and documents, including a specific federal nonimmigrant student status form. The bill would provide for certain related fees and refunds, including a requirement that, if a student requests a transfer, and any required tuition and fees for services provided have been paid, a school transfer the records of the student and the student's federal nonimmigrant student status form within 3 business days of that request. The failure to comply with that requirement would subject a school to the requirement to refund to the student the total tuition and fees paid to that school by the student, and, if it does not comply with that refund requirement, make the school liable for up to 10 times the amount due to the student, plus attorney's fees. The bill would require an organization or other entity that provides or facilitates homestay for a student under the act to ensure that the host family complies with specific requirements. The bill would make a host family coresponsible with the school and a parent, relative, or any other individual or entity responsible for the overall welfare of the student and would require a host family to ensure that student transportation and nutrition needs are met. The bill would require unused portions of a host family charge imposed on a student no longer residing with the host family to be refunded to the student. By imposing new requirements under the act, the violation of which would be 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.
Existing law prohibits a television signal generated by the Assembly from being used for any political or commercial purpose, including, but not limited to, any campaign for elective public office or any campaign supporting or opposing a ballot proposition submitted to the electors. Existing law provides that a person or organization who violates this prohibition is guilty of a misdemeanor. This bill would delete the prohibition described above and would instead authorize the televised or other audiovisual recordings of the public proceedings of each house of the Legislature and the committees thereof to be used for any legitimate purpose and without the imposition of any fee due to the State or any public agency or public corporation thereof. Existing law requires the Legislative Counsel, with the advice of the Assembly Committee on Rules and the Senate Committee on Rules, to make certain information available to the public in electronic form, including, among other things, the text of each bill introduced in each current legislative session, including each amended, enrolled, and chaptered form of each bill. This bill would require the Legislative Counsel to also make available to the public in electronic form all audiovisual recordings of legislative proceedings that have been cause to be made by the Legislature, as specified, and would require each recording to remain accessible to the public through the Internet and available for download for a minimum of 20 years following the date on which the recording was made, after which the recording would be required to be archived in a secure format. Existing law provides that the Attorney General is the head of the Department of Justice and provides that the Attorney General has charge, as attorney, of all legal matters in which the state is interested, except as specified. This bill would require the Attorney General to defend against any action challenging the validity of the California Legislative Transparency Act. If the Attorney General were to decline to do so, this bill would require the Attorney General to take any actions necessary or appropriate to preserve the state's standing to defend the act, and would require the Legislature to continue to comply with the act until the act is declared unconstitutional pursuant to a final judgment of an appellate court. This bill would specify that it is contingent upon voter approval of the California Legislature Transparency Act at the November 8, 2016, statewide general election.
Existing law, the Uniform Supervision of International Student Exchange Visitor Placement Organizations Act of 1994, defines and regulates these organizations, which arrange the placement of international student exchange visitors for the purpose of providing the opportunity to attend a primary or secondary school in the United States. Existing law requires the Attorney General to maintain a registry of these organizations, with which these organizations are to register. Existing law prescribes fees for registration. This bill would make nonsubstantive, technical changes in the registration and fee provisions.