Sen. Tom Umberg

This measure would proclaim the month of April 2021 as Black April Memorial Month, a special time for Californians to remember the countless lives lost during the Vietnam War era, and to hope for more justice and liberty for the people of Vietnam.

(1) Existing law establishes the Office of Small Business Advocate (CalOSBA) within the Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development, also known as GO-Biz, to advocate for causes of small business and to provide small businesses with the information they need to survive in the marketplace. Existing law prescribes the duties and functions of the Small Business Advocate, who is also the Director of the Office of Small Business Advocate. This bill would establish the California Small Business COVID-19 Relief Grant Program within CalOSBA to assist qualified small businesses affected by COVID-19 through administration of grants. The bill would require CalOSBA to provide grants to qualified small businesses, as defined, in accordance with specified criteria, including geographic distribution based on COVID-19 restrictions, industry sectors most impacted by the pandemic, and underserved small businesses. The bill would repeal these provisions on January 1, 2024. This bill would appropriate $2,075,000,000 from the General Fund to the Golden State Stimulus Emergency Fund to be transferred to the Office of Small Business Advocate for purposes of the program, and would allocate $50,000,000 of those funds for eligible nonprofit cultural institutions, as defined. (2) The Personal Income Tax Law and the Corporation Tax Law, in conformity with federal income tax law, generally define "gross income" as income from whatever source derived, except as specifically excluded, and provide various exclusions from gross income. This bill would exclude, for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2020, and before January 1, 2030, from gross income specified grant allocations, including grant allocations received by a taxpayer pursuant to a grant program funded by Executive Order No. 20/21-182 and pursuant to the California Small Business COVID-19 Relief Grant Program. The bill would authorize the Franchise Tax Board to adopt regulations that are necessary and appropriate to implement the exclusions, and would provide the Administrative Procedure Act does not apply to any regulation, standard, criterion, procedure, determination, rule, notice, guideline, or any other guidance established or issued by the board pursuant to the exclusions. The bill would also authorize the board to include in audits the grants that are excluded from gross income by the bill's provisions. The bill would set forth procedures for recapturing grant amounts if CalOSBA determines that the grantee has failed to meet the criteria for a qualified small business. (3) This bill would also make findings and declarations related to a gift of public funds. (4) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as a bill providing for appropriations related to the Budget Bill.

Existing law required county elections officials to mail a ballot to every registered voter for the November 3, 2020, statewide general election. Existing law, for the November 3, 2020, statewide general election, also required county elections officials to use a specified Secretary of State vote by mail tracking system or a system that meets the same specifications. This bill would extend these requirements to all elections proclaimed or conducted prior to January 1, 2022. By requiring county elections officials to mail a ballot to every registered voter, and to track those ballots, 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, 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. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

This measure designates Cara L. Jenkins as the Legislative Counsel of California.

(1) Existing law makes certain publications and communications, including certain communications in a legislative proceeding, judicial proceeding, any other official proceeding authorized by law, or in the initiation or course of any other proceeding authorized by law and reviewable pursuant to a writ of mandate, privileged, and therefore protected from civil action, subject to certain exceptions. These exceptions include any communication made in a judicial proceeding knowingly concealing the existence of an insurance policy or policies. This bill would additionally create an exception to the privilege provisions for any communication between a person and a law enforcement agency in which the person knowingly or recklessly makes a false report that another person has committed, or is in the act of committing, a criminal act or is engaged in an activity requiring law enforcement intervention. (2) Existing law, the Ralph Civil Rights Act of 1976, provides that all persons within the jurisdiction of this state have the right to be free from any violence, or intimidation by threat of violence, committed against their persons or property because of political affiliation, or on account of position in a labor dispute, or sex, race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sexual orientation, citizenship, primary language, or immigration status, or because another person perceives them to have one or more of those characteristics. Existing law provides civil remedies for violations of those provisions. This bill would provide that intimidation by threat of violence includes knowingly or recklessly making or threatening to make a false claim or report to a peace officer or law enforcement agency alleging that another person has engaged in unlawful activity or in an activity that requires law enforcement intervention. (3) Existing law makes it an infraction for a person to knowingly allow the use of or use the 911 emergency system for any reason other than because of an emergency. A violation of this prohibition is punishable by a warning for a first violation and specified, graduated fines for subsequent violations, including a fine of up to $250 for a 4th or subsequent violation. This bill would increase the penalty for a violation of that provision if a person knowingly allows the use of or uses the 911 emergency system for the purpose of harassing another. The bill would make a first violation of that prohibition an infraction punishable by a $250 fine or a misdemeanor punishable by up to 6 months in a county jail, a fine of up to $1,000, or both that imprisonment and fine. The bill would make a 2nd or subsequent violation a misdemeanor punishable by up to 6 months in a county jail, a fine of up to $1,000, or both that imprisonment and fine. The bill would also provide that if a person knowingly allows the use of or uses the 911 emergency system for the purpose of harassing a person and that act is a hate crime or other, specified crime committed against another person on the basis of the other person's actual or perceived characteristics, including race, religion, gender, or sexual orientation, the crime would be a misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in a county jail, a fine of not less than $500 nor more than $2,000, or both that imprisonment and fine. By increasing the penalty for certain crimes to make them punishable by imprisonment in a county jail, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (4) 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) Existing law sets out the various responsibilities of the Department of General Services and state agencies in overseeing and implementing state contracting procedures and policies. Existing law also provides that whenever any official advertising, notice, resolution, order, or other matter of any nature whatsoever is required by law to be published in a newspaper, the publication is required to be made only in a newspaper of general circulation, as specified. This bill would require the department to publish, on the department's internet website, an annual report by July 1 of each year containing specified information relating to payments for placement of marketing or outreach advertising material by each state agency. The bill would provide that these provisions are not intended to amend any of the above-described provisions relating to required publications of official advertising, notices, resolutions, orders, or other matters. The bill would make these provisions inoperative on July 1, 2023. (2) Existing law, as established in the case of Dynamex Operations W. v. Superior Court (2018) 4 Cal.5th 903 (Dynamex) , creates a presumption that a worker who performs services for a hirer is an employee for purposes of claims for wages and benefits arising under wage orders issued by the Industrial Welfare Commission. Existing law requires a 3-part test, commonly known as the "ABC" test, to determine if workers are employees or independent contractors for those purposes. Existing law establishes that, for purposes of the Labor Code, the Unemployment Insurance Code, and the wage orders of the Industrial Welfare Commission, a person providing labor or services for remuneration is considered an employee rather than an independent contractor unless the hiring entity demonstrates that the person is free from the control and direction of the hiring entity in connection with the performance of the work, the person performs work that is outside the usual course of the hiring entity's business, and the person is customarily engaged in an independently established trade, occupation, or business. This test is commonly known as the "ABC" test, as described above. Existing law charges the Labor Commissioner with the enforcement of labor laws, including worker classification. Existing law exempts specified occupations and business relationships from the application of Dynamex and the provisions described above. These exemptions include a temporary exemption for newspaper distributors working under contract with a newspaper publisher, and newspaper carriers working under contract either with a newspaper publisher or newspaper distributor, as those terms are defined, until January 1, 2021. This bill would expand the exemption applicable to newspaper carriers by deleting the condition that a newspaper carrier work under contract either with a newspaper publisher or newspaper distributor. The bill would extend the exemption period to January 1, 2022. (3) This bill would incorporate the changes to Section 2750.3 of the Labor Code proposed by this bill to Section 2783 of the Labor Code, as proposed to be added by AB 2257, to be operative only if this bill and AB 2257 are enacted and this bill is enacted last.

Existing law requires the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to establish parole reentry and assessment programs for inmates in state prison, in order to assess the inmate prior to release and to assist with the inmate's reentry into the community while on parole. Existing law establishes the California Reentry and Enrichment Grant Program to provide grants to community-based programs that provide rehabilitative services to incarcerated individuals. This bill would, subject to an appropriation by the Legislature for these purposes, establish the California Reentry Commission within the department, to be cochaired by the Secretary of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and a formerly incarcerated individual to be appointed to the commission by the Governor. The bill would specify the members of the commission and require the commission to meet once every 2 months. The bill would require the commission to prepare and develop a new health and safety agenda for those returning home from prison or jail, coordinate with the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and the Board of State and Community Corrections to develop a grant program to provide grants to reentry service providers, conduct a review of reentry barriers, review current state criminal justice policies, and report to the Legislature on the impact of COVID-19 on the reentry population, among other duties.

Existing law authorizes a peace officer to make an arrest pursuant to a warrant or based upon probable cause, as specified. Under existing law, an arrest is made by the actual restraint of the person or by submission to the custody of the arresting officer. Existing law authorizes a peace officer to use reasonable force to effect the arrest, to prevent escape, or to overcome resistance. Existing law requires law enforcement agencies to maintain a policy on the use of force, as specified. Existing law requires the Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training to implement courses of instruction for the regular and periodic training of law enforcement officers in the use of force. This bill would prohibit a law enforcement agency from authorizing the use of a carotid restraint or a choke hold, as defined. By requiring local agencies to amend use of force policies, 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, 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.