Existing law establishes the Department of Transportation in the Transportation Agency. Existing law authorizes the department subject to approval of the Secretary of Transportation, to enter into an interagency transfer agreement under which a joint powers board assumes responsibility for administering state-funded intercity rail service in certain rail corridors, including the LOSSAN Rail Corridor. Existing law defines the LOSSAN Rail Corridor as the intercity passenger rail corridor between San Diego, Los Angeles, and San Luis Obispo. Pursuant to this authority, the department entered into an interagency transfer agreement with the LOSSAN Rail Corridor Agency to administer intercity passenger rail service in the LOSSAN Rail Corridor. This bill would require the Secretary of Transportation to provide guidance and recommendations to, and coordination between, stakeholders as necessary to ensure the performance of the LOSSAN Rail Corridor, as specified. This bill would also require the Secretary of Transportation, with technical and subject matter assistance from the Secretary for Environmental Protection and the Secretary of the Natural Resources Agency, to submit a report to the Legislature regarding the LOSSAN Rail Corridor that includes specified information no later than 2 years after an appropriation is made by the Legislature for purposes of this report. The bill would also require the Secretary of Transportation, in coordination with stakeholders responsible for operating rail services along the LOSSAN Rail Corridor, to submit a report to the Legislature on the performance of the LOSSAN Rail Corridor no later than 3 years after an appropriation is made by the Legislature for purposes of this performance report and biennially thereafter. This bill would require the Secretary of Transportation to convene a working group composed of representatives of certain types of entities, including, among others, metropolitan planning organizations from specified counties. The bill would require the working group to submit consensus recommendations and feedback in a report to the Legislature on or before February 1, 2026, on various topics relating to rail service in the LOSSAN Rail Corridor. Before submitting the report to the Legislature, the bill would require the recommendations and feedback to be submitted to the LOSSAN Rail Corridor Agency, the Southern California Regional Rail Authority, and the North County Transit District for review and consideration. By adding to the duties of local agencies, 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 the LOSSAN Rail Corridor. 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.
Sponsored bills
Existing law, the Ralph Civil Rights Act of 1976, affords all persons within the jurisdiction of this state the right to be free from any violence, or intimidation by threat of violence, committed against their persons or property because of political affiliation, any specified personal characteristic, or position in a labor dispute, or because another person perceives them to have one or more of those characteristics. Existing law specifies that whoever denies this right, or aids, incites, or conspires in that denial, is liable for each and every offense for the actual damages suffered by any person denied that right and, in addition, exemplary damages, a civil penalty of $25,000, and attorney's fees. Existing law authorizes a person claiming to be aggrieved by an alleged unlawful practice in violation of this right to also file a verified complaint with the Civil Rights Department. Existing law defines the phrase "intimidation by threat of violence" for purposes of this provision. This bill would expand the definition of "intimidation by threat of violence" for purposes of these provisions to also include terrorizing the owner or occupant of private property with the distribution of materials on the private property, without authorization, with the purpose of terrorizing, as defined, the owner or occupant of that private property. The bill would prohibit speech alone from supporting an action brought pursuant to the Ralph Civil Rights Act of 1976 unless there is a showing that the speech itself threatens violence against a specific person or group of persons, the person or group of persons against whom the threat is directed reasonably fears that, because of the speech, violence will be committed against them or their property, and the person threatening violence is acting in reckless disregard for the threatening nature of their speech and has the apparent ability to carry out the threat. The bill would prohibit that restriction on speech alone supporting an action from being construed to negate or otherwise abrogate the requirements set forth in other specified provisions of the Ralph Civil Rights Act of 1976 to bring an action pursuant to that act. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
The Subdivision Map Act vests the authority to regulate and control the design and improvement of subdivisions in the legislative body of a local agency and sets forth procedures governing the local agency's processing, approval, conditional approval or disapproval, and filing of tentative, final, and parcel maps, and the modification of those maps. The act excludes various projects from its provisions, including the leasing of, or the granting of an easement to, a parcel of land, or any portion of the land, in conjunction with the financing, erection, and sale or lease of a solar electrical generation device on the land, if the project is subject to review under other local agency ordinances regulating design and improvement or if the project is subject to discretionary action by the advisory agency or legislative body. This bill would also exempt from the requirements of the Subdivision Map Act, the leasing of, or the granting of an easement to, a parcel of land or any portion of the land in conjunction with a hydrogen fueling station or an electric vehicle charging station, as those terms are defined, if the project is subject to discretionary action by the advisory agency or legislative body.
Existing law, the Planning and Zoning Law, requires every city, county, and city and county to administratively approve an application to install electric vehicle charging stations and hydrogen-fueling stations through the issuance of a building permit or similar nondiscretionary permit. Existing law, the Planning and Zoning Law, requires each city, county, and city and county to adopt an ordinance that creates an expedited, streamlined permitting process for electric vehicle charging stations. Existing law authorizes a city, county, or city and county developing an ordinance to refer to the recommendations contained in the most current version of the "Plug-In Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Permitting Checklist," as specified. Existing law requires a city, county, and city and county, in developing the expedited permitting process, to adopt a checklist of all requirements with which electric vehicle charging stations must comply to be eligible for expedited review. For these purposes, existing law defines "hydrogen-fueling station" to mean the equipment used to store and dispense hydrogen fuel to vehicles according to industry codes and standards that is open to the public. Existing law requires a hydrogen-fueling station to meet certain requirements, including any rules established by the State Air Resources Board, Energy Commission, or Department of Food and Agriculture regarding safety, reliability, weights, and measures. This bill would modify the definition of "hydrogen-fueling station" to mean the equipment and structural design components necessary to ensure the safety of the fueling station, including hydrogen-refueling canopies, that are used to store and dispense hydrogen fuel to vehicles according to industry codes and standards that are open to the public. This bill would modify the requirements a hydrogen-fueling station must meet to include all applicable state laws and regulations pertaining to hydrogen fueling, including any rules established by the State Air Resources Board, Energy Commission, or Department of Food and Agriculture regarding safety, reliability, weights, and measures. This bill would require every city, county, or city and county to adopt an ordinance that creates an expedited, streamlined permitting process for certain hydrogen-fueling stations, as specified. This bill would authorize a city, county, or city and county developing an ordinance to refer to the recommendations contained in the most current version of the "Electric Vehicle Charging Station Permitting Guidebook" or the "Hydrogen Station Permitting Guidebook," as specified. The bill would require a city, county, and city and county, in developing the expedited permitting process, to adopt a checklist of all requirements with which hydrogen-fueling stations must comply to be eligible for expedited review. The bill would require a city, county, or city and county with a population of 250,000 or more residents to comply with these provisions on or before September 30, 2025, and would require a city, county, or city and county with a population of fewer than 250,000 residents to comply with these provisions by September 30, 2028. By imposing additional duties on cities, counties, and cities and counties, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would repeal these provisions, except with regard to a city, county, or city and county being authorized to refer to the recommendations contained in the most current version of the "Electric Vehicle Charging Station Permitting Guidebook," on January 1, 2030. 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.
(1) The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires preparation of specified documentation before a public agency approves or carries out certain projects. Existing law authorizes the Governor to certify energy infrastructure projects meeting specified requirements for streamlining benefits related to CEQA. Existing law defines "energy infrastructure project" for these purposes to include eligible renewable energy resources under the California Renewables Portfolio Standard Program, excluding resources that use biomass fuels. Existing law also expressly excludes from that definition of "energy infrastructure project" any project using hydrogen as a fuel. This bill would instead exclude eligible renewable energy resources under the California Renewables Portfolio Standard Program that combust, rather than use, biomass fuels from the definition of "energy infrastructure project" for purposes of the above-described CEQA benefits. The bill would include hydrogen production facilities and associated onsite storage and processing facilities that do not derive hydrogen from a fossil fuel feedstock and that receive funding from specified state and federal programs within the definition of "energy infrastructure project." Because the bill would authorize the Governor to certify additional projects, thereby increasing the duties on lead agencies in conducting the environmental review of energy infrastructure projects certified by the Governor, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (2) Existing law authorizes persons proposing specified electrical generation, electrical transmission, and energy storage projects to apply, on or before June 30, 2029, to the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission (Energy Commission) to certify sites and related facilities as environmental leadership development projects, as specified. Existing law makes a site and related facility certified by the Energy Commission subject to streamlining benefits related to CEQA with no further action by the applicant or the Governor. Under existing law, the Energy Commission's certification is in lieu of any permit, certificate, or similar document required by any governmental agency and supersedes any applicable statute, ordinance, or regulation, except as specified. This bill would expand the types of facilities eligible to be certified as environmental leadership development projects by the Energy Commission to include hydrogen production facilities and associated onsite storage and processing facilities that do not derive hydrogen from a fossil fuel feedstock and that receive funding from specified state and federal programs. (3) 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 California Interagency Council on Homelessness to identify mainstream resources, benefits, and services that can be accessed to prevent and end homelessness in California by creating partnerships between federal, state, local, and nonprofit entities. Existing law requires a state agency or department that administers one or more state homelessness programs, upon request of the council, to participate in council activities, as specified, and to provide to the council any relevant information regarding those state homelessness programs. This bill would require, commencing September 1, 2025, a state agency or department that administers one or more state homelessness programs to report annually to the council cost and outcome data for each program the agency or department administers, and would require the council, in coordination with each agency or department required to report to the council, as specified, to develop data collection and reporting procedures for this purpose. The bill would require the council to compile the data reported by agencies and departments and, commencing April 1, 2026, annually make that data available to the public.
Existing law, subject to exceptions, provides that any person who has been convicted of certain misdemeanors may not, within 10 years of the conviction, own, purchase, receive, possess or have under their custody or control, any firearm and makes a violation of that prohibition punishable as a misdemeanor or a felony. Existing law, with certain exceptions, makes it a crime to maliciously and intentionally maim, mutilate, torture, wound, or kill a living animal. This bill would provide that any person convicted of a misdemeanor violation of the above-described crimes, on or after January 1, 2025, may not, within 10 years of the conviction, access a firearm as described above, and would make a violation of that prohibition a misdemeanor. Because a violation of these provisions would be a crime, and because this bill would expand the application of the crime to a larger class of potential offenders, 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, the Alfred E. Alquist Hospital Facilities Seismic Safety Act of 1983, establishes, under the jurisdiction of the Department of Health Care Access and Information, a program of seismic safety building standards for certain hospitals constructed on and after March 7, 1973. Existing law requires that, by January 1, 2030, owners of these hospitals must either demolish, replace, or change to nonacute care use all hospital buildings that are not in compliance with these standards or seismically retrofit all acute care inpatient hospital buildings so they are in substantial compliance with these standards, unless subject to an abeyance. This bill would authorize a hospital owner or operator to submit an application, by specified dates, to the department for additional extensions to the compliance deadline. The bill would require the department to grant or deny an extension of the deadline for substantial compliance with seismic safety regulations or standards up to January 1, 2035. The bill would require the application to contain a seismic compliance plan, a specified evaluation report, a financial plan, and an attestation to the department that the appropriate governing board of that hospital is aware that the hospital building is required to be in substantial compliance with the seismic safety regulations or standards. By imposing the above-described attestation, this bill would expand the crime of perjury and impose a state-mandated local program. This bill would require the hospital and the department to identify specified milestones that are used for determining whether the hospital is making progress towards meeting the hospital's seismic compliance deadline. The bill would require the hospital to demonstrate efforts to comply with the seismic compliance deadline by providing the department with a plan outlining how seismic construction costs and other financial responsibilities will be met and what funding sources will be used if the hospital fails to meet an agreed-upon milestone due to circumstances that were within the hospital owner's or operator's control. The bill would require the owner or operator of that hospital to submit to the department an attestation that the appropriate governing board of that hospital is aware of the hospital's responsibility to comply with the associated construction costs to meet the seismic compliance deadlines. By requiring the owner or operator of a hospital to submit to the department an attestation, this bill would expand the crime of perjury and impose a state-mandated local program. This bill would require the department, before granting an extension past January 1, 2030, to provide public notice of a hospital's request for an extension, provide copies, upon request, of any publicly available material submitted by the hospital in support of their extension to interested parties, and allow the public to submit written comments on the extension proposal, as specified. The bill would require the department, beginning January 1, 2027, to post on the department's internet website specified information, including, among other things, its decision to grant or deny any extension. The bill would require the department to notify the county board of supervisors, the city council, and the Assembly and Senate representative in writing and electronically if a hospital within their district has been granted or denied an extension. This bill would require the department, on or before January 1, 2026, to adopt regulations and standards or revise regulations and standards, or both, to extend the deadlines for meeting the structural performance and nonstructural performance requirements. The bill would specify that regulatory submissions made by the department to the California Building Standards Commission are deemed to be emergency regulations and that the adoption of these regulations are to be deemed an emergency and necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health and safety, and general welfare. Existing law requires, before January 1, 2024, the owner of an acute care inpatient hospital that includes a building that does not substantially comply with seismic safety regulations or standards to post in a lobby or waiting area generally accessible to patients or the public a notice provided by the department that the hospital is not in compliance with the seismic safety requirements the hospital is required to meet by January 1, 2030. Existing law requires, on or before January 1, 2024, and annually thereafter, the owner of an acute care inpatient hospital that includes a building that does not substantially comply with seismic safety regulations or standards to provide an annual status update on the Structural Performance Category ratings of the buildings and the services provided in each hospital building on the hospital campus to specified entities until each of the hospital buildings owned by that hospital building owner is compliant. This bill would require, before January 1, 2025, the owner or operator of an acute care inpatient hospital that includes a building that does not substantially comply with the seismic safety regulations or standards to post in any lobby or waiting area generally accessible to patients or the public the notice mentioned above. The bill would also require, on or before January 1, 2025, and annually thereafter, the owner or operator to provide an annual status update, as specified. This bill would specify that the provisions of this act are severable. 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 California Constitution provides that voters may recall a state officer by majority vote and, in the same election, elect a successor with a plurality of the vote. The Constitution prohibits an officer who is the subject of a recall election from being a candidate for successor. The Constitution provides that the Lieutenant Governor becomes Governor when a vacancy occurs in the office of Governor, and requires the Lieutenant Governor to act as Governor during the impeachment, absence from the state, or other temporary disability of the Governor or of a Governor-elect who fails to take office. When a recall of the Governor is initiated, the Constitution requires the Lieutenant Governor to perform the recall duties of the Governor. The Constitution requires the Governor to fill vacancies in certain judicial and executive offices by appointment, as specified. This measure would eliminate the successor election for a recalled state officer and instead provide, in the event an officer is removed in a recall election, that the office will remain vacant until it is filled in accordance with the Constitution and statute. The measure would repeal the prohibition against the officer subject to the recall being a candidate to fill the office in a special election, but would prohibit the appointment of the officer subject to the recall election to fill the vacancy. If the Governor is removed from office in a recall election, this measure would provide that the Lieutenant Governor will become Governor for the remainder of the unexpired term. If the Governor is removed from office by recall before the close of the nomination period for the next statewide election during the first two years of the Governor's term, the measure would provide for a special election to be held to replace the Governor for the remainder of the unexpired term, to be consolidated with the next statewide primary election and, if necessary, the subsequent statewide general election. The measure would require the Secretary of State to perform the recall duties of the Governor when a recall of the Governor is initiated. The measure would require the Controller to perform the recall duties of the Governor and Secretary of State if recalls of those two officers are initiated at the same time. If adopted by the Legislature, the measure would appear on the ballot at the November 3, 2026, statewide general election.
Existing law permits a candidate for nonpartisan elective office, and an officer whose recall is being sought, to file with the elections official a candidate's statement that includes a brief description of the candidate's education and qualifications. Existing law requires an elections official to include in the county voter information guide a candidate's statement from a candidate for nonpartisan elective office and from an officer whose recall is being sought. Existing law prohibits a candidate for nonpartisan elective office, or an incumbent in a recall election, to knowingly make a false statement of material fact in the candidate's statement with the intent to mislead the voters in connection with the candidate's campaign for nomination or election to an office. Violation of this prohibition is punishable by a fine not to exceed $1,000. This bill would increase the maximum fine amount to $5,000.