This measure would urge Congress and the President of the United States to increase funding for specified law enforcement and crime prevention programs and to pay the full costs of incarcerating undocumented criminals, as provided.
This measure would congratulate the California State University system on the occasion of its 50th anniversary, commend the invaluable contributions it has made to the intellectual and social growth of its students, and extend best wishes for its continued success in the future.
This measure would recognize the month of November 2011 as Native American Heritage Month, would encourage Californians to participate in appropriate observances that celebrate and commemorate Native Americans, and would applaud and encourage the observance of California Indian nations for their outstanding contributions to this state.
(1) The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of, an environmental impact report (EIR) on a project that it proposes to carry out or approve that may have a significant effect on the environment or to adopt a negative declaration if it finds that the project will not have that effect. CEQA also requires a lead agency to prepare a mitigated negative declaration for a project that may have a significant effect on the environment if revisions in the project would avoid or mitigate that effect and there is no substantial evidence that the project, as revised, would have a significant effect on the environment. CEQA establishes administrative procedures for the review and certification of the EIR for a project and judicial review procedures for any action or proceeding brought to challenge the lead agency's decision to certify the EIR or to grant project approvals. This bill would establish specified administrative and judicial review procedures for the administrative and judicial review of the EIR and approvals granted for a project related to the development of a specified stadium in the City of Los Angeles. Because the lead agency would be required to use these alternative procedures for administrative review of the EIR if the project applicant so chooses, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would require the lead agency and applicant to implement specified measures, as a condition of approval of the project, to minimize traffic congestion and air quality impacts that may result from spectators driving to the stadium. (2) 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. (3) This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the development of a stadium in the City of Los Angeles.
(1) Existing law sets out the authority and duties of the State Auditor in conducting audits and surveys of specified entities, and of contracting for goods and services on behalf of the Bureau of State Audits. Existing law provides for reimbursement of the State Auditor by annual appropriation in the Budget Act, for specified costs incurred by the State Auditor in the performance of certain duties. Existing law authorizes and provides access to the State Auditor and his or her authorized representatives to examine and reproduce various records of any agency of the state. Existing law provides that any law providing for the confidentiality of any records or property will not prevent the State Auditor from having access to those records or property, unless the law specifically refers to and precludes the State Auditor from accessing those records or property. This bill would revise the provisions governing the scope and conduct of audits and surveys by the State Auditor and costs for which the State Audit Fund may be reimbursed. The bill would define the phrase "confidentiality of records or property" to mean, for the purposes of these provisions, that the record or property may lawfully be kept confidential as a result of a statutory or common law privilege or any other provision of law. This bill would also provide that providing confidential information to the State Auditor, including information subject to a privilege, does not constitute a waiver of that privilege. This bill would state that these changes are declaratory of existing law. (2) The California Whistleblower Protection Act requires the State Auditor to administer the act and to investigate and report on improper governmental activities, as defined. The act requires the State Auditor to establish a means of submitting allegations of improper governmental activity, and prohibits the State Auditor from disclosing the identity of a person who provides information that results in an investigation unless the person provides written permission to make that disclosure. This bill would instead prohibit the State Auditor from disclosing the identity of the person who provides information that results in an investigation without obtaining the person's express permission. This bill would revise the definition of improper governmental activities to include more activities, including actions that are a violation of an Executive order, a California Rule of Court, or any policy or procedure mandated by the State Administrative Manual or State Contracting Manual. (3) The act authorizes the State Auditor to request the assistance of any state department, agency, or employee in conducting any investigation required by the act. This bill would expand that authorization to also authorize the State Auditor to request assistance evaluating an allegation or conducting any investigation of an improper governmental activity as authorized by the act. (4) The act requires the State Auditor, if he or she determines that an employee or agency has engaged in improper governmental activity, to issue an investigative report regarding that employee's specific activities, for purposes of pursuing adverse action against that employee. The act also requires the State Auditor to report the nature and details of the activity to the head of the agency or the appropriate appointing power, and authorizes the report to include recommended actions to prevent the reoccurrence of the activity. This bill would revise those provisions to also authorize the State Auditor to report the findings of an investigation, and certain evidence to support that finding, to additional entities or individuals, including the head of any other agency that has direct oversight over the agency involved, a criminal law enforcement agency, an administrative law enforcement agency, or a licensing agency that has authority to investigate the matter. This bill would also provide that, as an alternative to conducting its own investigation, the State Auditor is authorized to, if the State Auditor makes a certain finding on an allegation of improper governmental activities, refer an allegation to the involved state agency, or to another state agency having direct oversight of the involved state agency, to conduct an investigation of the allegation under the State Auditor's supervision. This bill would similarly authorize the State Auditor to refer an allegation to a criminal or administrative law enforcement agency. (5) Existing law requires the State Auditor to prepare for state employees a written explanation of the California Whistleblower Protection Act that includes prescribed information. Existing law requires the State Auditor to provide a notice to state agencies, as defined, that includes the information contained in the written explanation. Existing law prohibits state agencies from modifying the text of the notice. This bill would, for purposes of these provisions, conform the definition of state agency to the definition used in the California Whistleblower Protection Act, to include the Supreme Court, Court of Appeal, superior courts, and the Administrative Office of the Courts. The bill would require any agency that posts or advertises the opportunity to submit whistleblower complaints through a program administered by the agency, to also disclose the opportunity to submit complaints to the State Auditor under the California Whistleblower Protection Act. (6) This bill would also delete various obsolete provisions of law.
The California Constitution provides for the election by the people of the Treasurer and the Controller. Existing law requires the Treasurer to receive and keep in the vaults of the treasury or to deposit in banks or credit unions all moneys belonging to the state, as specified. Existing law requires the Controller to superintend the fiscal concerns of the state. Existing law requires the Controller to audit all claims against the state, and authorizes the Controller to audit the disbursement of any state money, for correctness, legality, and for sufficient provisions of law for payment. This bill would establish the investment trust blue ribbon task force to consider the viability of establishing the California Investment Trust, which would be a state bank receiving deposits of state funds. The task force would be required to consider how the investment trust could strengthen economic and community development, provide financial stability to businesses, reduce the cost paid by state government for banking services, and provide for excess earnings of the trust to be used to supplement General Fund purposes. The bill would establish the membership of the task force, which would include the Secretary of Business, Transportation and Housing, or his or her designee, and specified individuals with a background in finance appointed by the Legislature, and the Governor, Controller, and Treasurer, or their designees, and would require the task force to be staffed by an organization selected by the task force that is a nonprofit corporation, or other private corporation that has specified expertise, including expertise in public finance and public institutions models. The bill would require the task force to report to the Legislature by December 1, 2012, on specified issues relative to the California Investment Trust, including, among other things, its recommendations relating to the viability of establishing the trust and its impact on state government services, as specified. The bill's provisions would become inoperative, and would be repealed, on January 1, 2017.
This measure would designate the month of September of every year as Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month throughout the State of California, and would encourage and promote efforts to educate the people and the health care practitioners of the state regarding ovarian cancer and its early detection and prevention, the risk factors involved in its development, and the early warning symptoms and signs.
This measure would proclaim May 2 through May 9, 2011, as Cinco de Mayo Week, and would urge all Californians to join in celebrating Cinco de Mayo.
(1) Existing law establishes the California State University under the administration of the Trustees of the California State University, and the University of California under the administration of the Regents of the University of California, as 2 of the segments of public postsecondary education in the state. This bill would prohibit the trustees from entering into or renewing, and would request the regents not to enter into or renew, a contract that provides for a compensation increase, as defined, for any administrator, as defined, using state moneys or moneys in a fiscal year from tuition or fees if the amount of General Fund moneys appropriated to the respective segment in the annual Budget Act is less than the amount of moneys appropriated to that segment in the annual Budget Act for the immediately preceding fiscal year, or if tuition or fees have been increased in the same fiscal year. This bill would prohibit the trustees from entering into, or renewing, a contract that provides for the compensation of a president of a campus of the California State University to exceed $300,000, as adjusted annually by the percentage of inflation, as specified. The bill would request the regents not to enter into, or renew, a contract that provides for the compensation of a chancellor of a campus of the University of California to exceed $326,000, as adjusted annually by the percentage of inflation, as specified. (2) The California Constitution authorizes the Governor to declare a fiscal emergency and to call the Legislature into special session for that purpose. Governor Schwarzenegger issued a proclamation declaring a fiscal emergency, and calling a special session for this purpose, on December 6, 2010. Governor Brown issued a proclamation on January 20, 2011, declaring and reaffirming that a fiscal emergency exists and stating that his proclamation supersedes the earlier proclamation for purposes of that constitutional provision. This bill would state that it addresses the fiscal emergency declared and reaffirmed by the Governor by proclamation issued on January 20, 2011, pursuant to the California Constitution.
Existing law, the Displaced Janitor Opportunity Act, requires contractors and subcontractors, that are awarded contracts or subcontracts by an awarding authority to provide janitorial or building maintenance services at a particular job site or sites, to retain, for a period of 60 days, certain employees who were employed at that site by the previous contractor or subcontractor. The act requires the successor contractors and subcontractors to offer continued employment to those employees retained for the 60-day period if their performance during that 60-day period is satisfactory. The act authorizes an employee who was not offered employment or who has been discharged in violation of these provisions by a successor contractor or successor subcontractor, or an agent of the employee, to bring an action against a successor contractor or successor subcontractor in any superior court of the state having jurisdiction over the successor contractor or successor subcontractor, as specified. This bill would rename the act the Displaced Property Service Employee Opportunity Act and make the provisions of the act applicable to property services, which would consist of licensed security, as defined, window cleaning, food cafeteria and dietary services, janitorial services, and building maintenance services. This bill would exclude from the definitions of "contractor" and "subcontractor" specified types of food service providers. The bill also would make conforming changes.
