Existing law, as enacted by Proposition 115, an initiative statute adopted by the voters at the June 5, 1990, statewide primary election, requires a prosecuting attorney to disclose to the defendant specified items of discovery, including the names and addresses of any persons the prosecutor intends to call as witnesses, the felony convictions of specified material witnesses, and any exculpatory evidence. Existing law requires a party, before seeking court enforcement of these disclosures, to make an informal request of opposing counsel for the information. Existing law authorizes a party to seek a court order if the opposing counsel does not provide the information within 15 days. Existing law, as enacted by Proposition 115, states that those provisions should be interpreted to provide that no discovery in criminal cases is to occur except as provided by those provisions or as mandated by the Constitution of the United States. This bill would amend the initiative by additionally requiring the prosecuting attorney, in a felony case, to disclose that information to the defendant or their attorney before or at the preliminary hearing, as specified. The bill would authorize a party in a felony case in which the defendant has not waived the right to a preliminary hearing within 10 court days to seek a court order of disclosures if opposing counsel does not provide materials within 3 days. The bill would authorize a court, except as specified, to issue an order compelling discovery directed to prosecuting attorneys, law enforcement agencies that investigated or prepared the case against the defendant, or any other persons or agencies which the prosecuting attorney or investigating agency may have employed to assist them in performing their duties. The bill would require the court, when the court has issued an order compelling discovery, to, upon motion of the defendant, continue the preliminary hearing until all of the court-ordered discovery has been produced to the defendant. If the prosecutor requests a continuance to comply with discovery and the defendant has not waived the right to a timely preliminary hearing, the bill would also authorize the court to extend the time for the preliminary hearing, as specified, if the court finds good cause. By increasing the required discovery by the prosecution in a criminal case beyond that which was enumerated by Proposition 115 or that which is constitutionally required, this bill would amend the provision of Proposition 115. Proposition 115 allows its provisions to be amended by the Legislature only by a 23 vote of the membership of each house. Also, by increasing the duties of discovery on local prosecutors, 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.
Sponsored bills
This measure would urge the President and the Congress of the United States to address, with effective policies, the issue of servicemembers who were unjustly discharged under "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" or predecessor provisions, in order to unify efforts to upgrade discharges issued under the DADT policy, and to restore benefits.
Existing law, until January 1, 2026, makes a person guilty of organized retail theft, punishable as a misdemeanor or a felony, as specified, if the person acts in concert with one or more persons to steal merchandise from one or more merchant's premises or online marketplaces with the intent to sell or return the merchandise for value, acts in concert with 2 or more persons to receive, purchase, or possess merchandise knowing or believing it to have been stolen, acts as an agent of another to steal merchandise from one or more merchant's premises or online marketplaces as part of an organized plan to commit theft, or recruits, coordinates, organizes, supervises, directs, manages, or finances another to undertake acts of theft. This bill would extend the operation of the crime of organized retail theft indefinitely. By extending the operation of an existing 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 generally requires an online marketplace to require a high-volume third-party seller on the online marketplace to make certain disclosures. Existing law requires an online marketplace to suspend future sales activity of a high-volume third-party seller that is not in compliance with those information sharing requirements, as specified. Existing law imposes certain information retention and security requirements on an online marketplace and prohibits specified uses of that information. Existing law generally defines a "high-volume third-party seller," for purposes of the above-described provisions, as a third-party seller who has entered into a certain number of consumer product sales transactions through an online marketplace for which payment is processed by the online marketplace, as specified. Existing law defines an "online marketplace," for purposes of those provisions, as a consumer-directed, electronically accessed platform that includes features that allow for, facilitate, or enable, and are used by, a third-party seller to engage in the sale, purchase, payment, storage, shipment, or delivery of a consumer product and that has a contractual relationship with consumers governing their use of the platform to purchase consumer products. This bill would revise the types of transactions that qualify a third-party seller as a "high-volume third-party seller," for those purposes. Specifically, the bill would remove the conditions that the transactions be made through an online marketplace and that the online marketplace process the payment and, instead, would add the condition that the transactions were made utilizing an online marketplace. The bill would also revise the definition of "online marketplace" by removing the conditions that the above-described features be used by third-party sellers, and that the platform have the above-described contractual relationship with consumers. Existing law requires a high-volume third-party seller to disclose and certify to the online marketplace certain identification, contact, and payment information of the seller, as specified. This bill would require an online marketplace to establish and maintain a policy prohibiting the sale of stolen goods on the marketplace and to provide a mechanism to notify the marketplace of the sale of stolen goods, as specified. The bill would require an online marketplace to alert local, regional, or state law enforcement agencies in California if it knows or should know that a third-party seller is selling or attempting to sell stolen goods to a California resident, except as specified. Existing law requires a person or entity who violates the above-described provisions to be liable for a civil penalty not to exceed $10,000 for each violation and reasonable attorney's fees and costs and to be subject to preventive relief, as specified. Existing law limits recovery and relief to a civil action brought by the Attorney General, as specified. This bill would expand recovery and relief to a civil action brought by a district attorney in any county, a city attorney in any city or city and county, or a county counsel in any county. The bill would make these changes operative on July 1, 2025.
Existing law authorizes the Governor to appoint and commission individuals designated by a railroad company to serve as police officers. Existing law, until January 1, 2026, requires the Department of the California Highway Patrol to coordinate with the Department of Justice to convene a regional property crimes task force to identify geographic areas experiencing increased levels of property crimes and assist local law enforcement with resources, such as personnel and equipment. This bill would require the task force to assist railroad police and would specify cargo theft as a property crime for consideration by the regional property crimes task force. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Existing law makes it a crime to, among other things, possess any matter, representation of information, data, or image, including, but not limited to, any film, filmstrip, photograph, negative, slide, photocopy, videotape, video laser disc, computer hardware, computer software, computer floppy disc, data storage media, CD-ROM, or computer-generated equipment or any other computer-generated image that contains or incorporates in any manner, any film or filmstrip, the production of which involves the use of a person under 18 years of age, knowing that the matter depicts a person under 18 years of age personally engaging in or simulating sexual conduct. This bill would, for the purposes of those provisions, include an image generated through the use of artificial intelligence, as defined, as a computer-generated image. By expanding the scope of a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. Existing law imposes specified duties on the Department of Justice relating to the collection and analysis of criminal statistical data, including, among other things, a requirement to make information relating to criminal justice statistics available to the public through the department's OpenJustice internet portal. This bill would require the Department of Justice to include in its collection and analysis of criminal statistical data violations based on materials generated through the use of artificial intelligence. 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 Violence Intervention and Prevention Grant Program, administered by the Board of State and Community Corrections, to award competitive grants for the purpose of violence intervention and prevention. Existing law establishes the Youth Reinvestment Grant Program within the Board of State and Community Corrections to grant funds, upon appropriation, to local jurisdictions and Indian tribes for the purpose of implementing trauma-informed diversion programs for minors, as specified. Existing law requires the governing board of a school district to give diligent care to the health and physical development of pupils and authorizes the governing board of a school district to employ properly certified persons for the work. Existing law requires a school of a school district or county office of education and a charter school to notify pupils and parents or guardians of pupils no less than twice during the school year on how to initiate access to available pupil mental health services on campus or in the community, or both, as provided. Existing law requires the State Department of Public Health, in cooperation with the State Department of Education, to establish a Public School Health Center Support Program, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to assist school health centers, which are defined as centers or programs, located at or near local educational agencies, that provide age-appropriate health care services at the program site or through referrals, as specified. This bill would create the Community Violence Interdiction Grant Program to be administered by the California Health and Human Services Agency to provide funding to local community programs for community-driven solutions to decrease violence in neighborhoods and schools. The bill would specify the types of programs the grant funds may be used for, including, but not limited to, programs that create and enhance recreation- and health-based interventions for youth during peak times of violence and the creation and operation of school-based health centers. The bill would require the agency to develop an application process and criteria for funding and would require the agency to administer the grant program, as specified. The bill would require, beginning July 31, 2025, and annually thereafter, the Director of Finance and the Legislative Analyst's Office to calculate the savings to the state from the closure of state prisons, as specified, and would require the Director of Finance to certify the results of the calculation to the Controller no later than August 1 of each fiscal year. The bill would create the Community Violence Interdiction Grant Fund and would require moneys in the fund to be made available, only upon appropriation by the Legislature, to the agency for the purposes of the Community Violence Interdiction Grant Program. The bill would require that the Controller, before August 15, 2025, and annually thereafter, upon appropriation by the Legislature, transfer from the General Fund to the Community Violence Interdiction Grant Fund the total amount of savings from the closure of state prisons so calculated.
Maddy summarySenate Resolution 114 is a non-binding tribute from the California State Senate honoring President Joseph Biden for his extensive public service career. The resolution details his background, legislative achievements, and leadership roles as a senator, vice president, and president, specifically highlighting his work on infrastructure, climate action, and pandemic response. It concludes by formally thanking the President for stepping down to allow new leaders to take office and directs the Senate Secretary to distribute copies of the resolution.
Existing law establishes the Medi-Cal program, which is administered by the State Department of Health Care Services and under which qualified low-income individuals receive health care services, including certain dental services. The Medi-Cal program is, in part, governed and funded by federal Medicaid program provisions. Under existing law, early and periodic screening, diagnostic, and treatment (EPSDT) services are covered under Medi-Cal for an individual under 21 years of age in accordance with certain federal provisions. Under existing law, for persons 21 years of age or older, laboratory-processed crowns on posterior teeth are a covered benefit when medically necessary to restore a posterior tooth back to normal function based on the criteria specified in the Medi-Cal Dental Manual of Criteria. This bill, The Smile Act, for purposes of the above-described Medi-Cal coverage for laboratory-processed crowns, would remove the condition that the tooth be posterior and would apply the coverage to persons 13 years of age or older. The bill would also add, as a covered Medi-Cal benefit for persons of any age, subject to prior authorization, a dental implant if tooth extraction or removal is medically necessary or if the corresponding tooth is missing. The bill would condition this coverage on there being no other covered functional alternatives for prosthetic replacement to correct the person's dental condition, as specified, on the person being without medical conditions for which dental implant surgery would be contraindicated, on receipt of any necessary federal approvals, and on the availability of federal financial participation. Under the bill, the above-described provisions would not be construed to exclude Medi-Cal coverage for laboratory-processed crowns on teeth or dental implants if otherwise required under EPSDT services.
Maddy summaryThis Senate Resolution commemorates the 80th anniversary of the 1944 Port Chicago naval disaster, which was the deadliest homefront event of World War II. The measure acknowledges the tragic explosion that killed 710 people and highlights the subsequent wrongful convictions of 50 African American sailors who were punished for refusing to work in unsafe conditions. It formally recognizes the gross injustices these sailors faced and commends the U.S. Navy for recently exonerating them and restoring their honor. The resolution also directs the Secretary of the Senate to distribute copies of the document for appropriate distribution.