This resolution would respectfully request that the International Maritime Organization, a specialized agency of the United Nations, adopt the North American Emission Control Area, as proposed by the United States, Canada, and France at the 60th session of the Marine Environment Protection Committee, scheduled for March 2010.
This measure would urge various state and private entities to withhold financial support of Arizona businesses in response to recent Arizona state laws relating to illegal immigration.
(1) Existing law, the State Bar Act, provides for the licensure and regulation of attorneys by the State Bar of California, a public corporation. Existing law provides that it is the duty of an attorney to, among other things, never reject, for any consideration personal to himself or herself, the cause of the defenseless or oppressed. Existing law provides that a lawyer may fulfill his or her ethical commitment to provide pro bono services, in part, by providing financial support to organizations providing free legal services to persons of limited means. This bill would prohibit a person or organization that is not a specified type of legal aid organization, as defined, from using the term "legal aid," or any confusingly similar name in any firm name, trade name, fictitious business name, or other designation, or on any advertisement, letterhead, business card, or sign. The bill would subject a person or organization that violates this prohibition to specified civil liability. (2) Existing law provides that, in all general civil cases, as defined, a party who has provided notice may appear by telephone at certain conferences, hearings, and proceedings, except as specified. This bill would require the Judicial Council, on or before July 1, 2010, and periodically as appropriate, to enter into one or more master agreements with a vendor or vendors to provide for telephone appearances in civil cases under the provisions described above, or as otherwise permitted by law. The bill would impose requirements regarding those master agreements, including that the vendor charge a party for an appearance by telephone in an amount set by the Judicial Council, and that the vendor pay to the state $15 for each appearance by telephone and a proportionate share of an amount equal to the total revenue received from vendors by all courts for providing telephone appearances for the 2008–09 fiscal year. The bill would require those funds to be deposited in the Trial Court Trust Fund and used for specified purposes. (3) Existing law requires that, when a witness is incapable of understanding the English language or is incapable of expressing himself or herself in the English language so as to be understood directly by counsel, court, and jury, an interpreter be sworn to interpret for him or her. This bill would require the Judicial Council, by September 1, 2010, to establish a working group to review, identify, and develop best practices to provide interpreters in civil actions and proceedings, as specified. The bill would require the Judicial Council to select up to 5 courts to participate in a pilot project, to commence on July 1, 2011, to provide interpreters in civil proceedings. The bill would provide that the initial pilot courts shall participate until June 30, 2014, and would require the Judicial Council to consider whether a pilot court shall continue participating in the project and whether to select another court or additional courts. The pilot project would be funded from the revenue derived from the telephonic appearance fee described above. (4) Existing law requires the Judicial Council to conduct a study of language and interpreter use and need in court proceedings, with commentary, and to report its findings and recommendations to the Governor and to the Legislature every 5 years. Existing law requires that this study serve as the basis for determining the need to establish interpreter programs and certification and establishing these programs and examinations through the normal budgetary process. This bill would require, in addition, as of January 1, 2011, that the study described above serve as the basis of determining the need for and use of interpreters in civil and criminal court proceedings. The bill would require trial courts to collect and report the use of interpreters in all criminal and civil proceedings in the manner specified by the Judicial Council.
This measure would declare February 19, 2010, 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.
This measure would memorialize the President and the Congress of the United States to enact the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, which would make supplemental appropriations for job preservation and creation, infrastructure investment, energy efficiency and science, assistance to the unemployed, and state and local fiscal stabilization.
Pursuant to existing law, the federal Department of Transportation has adopted regulations, that became effective April 29, 2010, requiring air carriers, as defined, to do all of the following: (1) adopt contingency plans for lengthy tarmac delays that include specified passenger services and to publish those plans on their Internet Web site, (2) adopt a customer service plan that addresses specified matter and audit compliance with the plan, and (3) designate Advocates for Passengers' Interests and inform consumers how to file a complaint about scheduled service, acknowledge receipt of each complaint, and send a substantive response to each complainant. The regulations make an air carrier's failure to comply with its contingency plan for lengthy tarmac delays an unfair and deceptive practice subject to enforcement by the department. The regulations additionally make unrealistic scheduling of flights and the holding out of certain chronically delayed flights an unfair and deceptive practice and an unfair method of competition. Existing law requires the Public Utilities Commission to require every commercial air operator, as defined, to procure, and continue in effect, adequate protection against liability for personal bodily injuries and property damage as a result of an accident, that may be imposed by law upon the operator and upon any person using, operating, or renting an aircraft, as defined, with the permission of the operator. This bill would require, whenever passengers have boarded an aircraft, as defined, and departure of the aircraft from the airport, as defined, is delayed by more than 2 hours, or more than 2 hours have passed following landing of the aircraft and passengers have not disembarked from the aircraft, that the air carrier, as defined, provide passengers, as needed, with (1) electrical service that is sufficient to provide the passengers with fresh air and light, (2) waste removal service in order to service the holding tanks for onboard restrooms, and (3) adequate food and drinking water and other refreshment. This bill would require an air carrier to provide clear and conspicuous notice regarding passenger or consumer complaint contact information. The bill would authorize the commission to levy a civil penalty of up to $27,500 per passenger upon an air carrier for violation of the above-described requirements, if the federal Department of Transportation no longer has the authority to levy fines pursuant to its above-described regulations, along with interest upon any unpaid and delinquent penalty, and requires the commission to pay any moneys collected through the levy into the General Fund. The commission would be required to notify the Department of Finance and the relevant policy and fiscal committees of the Legislature if it determines the federal Department of Transportation no longer has the authority to levy fines and conditions the commission's exercise of its enforcement authority upon the Legislature making an appropriation for that purpose.
This measure would recognize February 2010 as Black History Month, urge all citizens to join in celebrating the accomplishments of African Americans during Black History Month, and encourage the people of California to recognize the many talents, achievements, and contributions that African Americans make to their communities.
Existing law requires the State Board of Education to direct the allocation and apportionment of federal funds to local school districts and other agencies entitled to receive those funds. This bill would define school districts for purposes of these provisions to include county offices of education, charter schools, and other agencies deemed eligible pursuant to state and federal law. The bill would also make technical changes.
The Public Employees' Retirement Law creates the Public Employees' Retirement System, which provides a defined benefit to its members based on age at retirement, service credit, and final compensation, as defined. The State Teachers' Retirement Law and the retirement laws for county employees and city employees also provide for a defined benefit based on age at retirement, service credit, and final compensation. Existing law requires the California Citizens Compensation Commission to establish the annual salary and the medical, dental, insurance, and other similar benefits of state officers. This bill would specify that, notwithstanding any other law, for the purposes of determining a retirement benefit paid to a person who first becomes a member of a public retirement system on or after January 1, 2011, the maximum salary or payrate upon which retirement benefits shall be based shall not exceed 125% of the salary recommended by the California Citizens Compensation Commission to be paid to the Governor of the State of California, effective December 7, 2009. The bill would require that this amount be adjusted annually based on changes in the All Urban California Consumer Price Index. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Existing law, the California Finance Lenders Law, provides for the licensure and regulation of finance lenders and brokers by the Commissioner of Corporations and makes a willful violation of its provisions a crime. Existing law regulates the charges a licensee may impose or receive on loans it makes and authorizes a licensee to contract for and receive specified alternative charges and administrative and delinquency fees. This bill, until January 1, 2015, would establish the Pilot Program for Affordable Credit-Building Opportunities for the purpose of increasing the availability of credit-building opportunities to underbanked individuals seeking low-dollar-value loans. The bill would require licensees to file an application with, and pay a fee to, the commissioner to participate in the program. The bill would authorize a licensee approved by the commissioner to participate in the program to impose specified alternative interest rates and charges, including an administrative fee and delinquency fees, on loans of at least $250 and less than $2,500, subject to certain requirements. This bill would also authorize licensees in the program to use the services of finders, defined as entities who, at the finder's physical location for business, bring licensees and prospective borrowers together for the purpose of negotiating loan contracts at the finder's location, subject to a written agreement meeting specified requirements. The bill would establish the services a finder is authorized and required to perform, and would require a finder to comply with the laws applicable to the licensee relative to information security. The bill would require a licensee to notify the commissioner within 15 days of entering into a contract with a finder, would require a licensee to pay an annual finder registration fee to the commissioner, and would require a licensee to submit an annual report to the commissioner on the licensee's relationship and business arrangements with a finder, as specified. The bill would authorize the commissioner to examine the operations of a licensee and a finder to ensure that the activities of the licensee and the finder are in compliance with these provisions. The bill would make a licensee that uses a finder responsible for a violation of these provisions by a finder or a finder's employee, and would authorize the commissioner to impose administrative penalties against a finder for a violation of these provisions. The bill would authorize the commissioner, upon a violation of these provisions, to disqualify a finder from performing services, bar a finder from performing services at one or more specific locations of the finder, terminate a written agreement between a licensee and a finder, and, under specified circumstances, prohibit the use of the finder by all licensees. This bill would require the commissioner to examine the performance of each licensee in the program at least once every 24 months, and would require the costs of examination to be paid by the licensee to the commissioner, as specified. The bill would also require the commissioner to conduct a random sample survey of borrowers under the program. The bill would require the commissioner to report to specified legislative committees, by January 1, 2014, summarizing utilization of the Pilot Program for Affordable Credit-Building Opportunities, as specified. Existing law prohibits a licensed finance lender or broker from using advertising copy after its use has been disapproved by the commissioner and the licensee is notified in writing of the disapproval. Existing law authorizes the commissioner to require a licensee to maintain a file of all advertising copy for a period of 90 days from the date of its use. This bill would authorize the commissioner to direct any licensee to submit advertising copy for review by the commissioner prior to its use. The bill would authorize the commissioner to require a licensee to maintain a file of all advertising copy for a period of 2 years from the date of its use. Because a willful violation of these provisions 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.
