Existing law requires every motor vehicle subject to registration to be equipped with an adequate muffler in constant operation and properly maintained to prevent any excessive or unusual noise and prohibits a muffler or exhaust system from being equipped with a cutout, bypass, or similar device. Existing law further prohibits the modification of an exhaust system of a motor vehicle in a manner that will amplify or increase the noise emitted by the motor of the vehicle so that the vehicle exceeds existing noise limits when tested in accordance with specified standards. This bill would require the Department of the California Highway Patrol to evaluate the efficacy of sound-activated enforcement devices by evaluating devices from at least 3 different companies, and would require the department, on or before January 1, 2025, to prepare and submit its findings and recommendations from the evaluation in a report to the Legislature, as specified. Existing constitutional provisions require that a statute that limits the right of access to the meetings of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies be adopted with findings demonstrating the interest protected by the limitation and the need for protecting that interest. This bill would make legislative findings to that effect.
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Existing law establishes various offenses for a person who places or displays certain symbols, marks, signs, emblems, and other physical impressions, including, but not limited to, a Nazi swastika, hangs nooses, or burns or desecrates crosses or other religious symbols on private and nonprivate property, as specified, with the intent to terrorize a person, as specified. Existing law, for the first conviction, punishes a person who hangs a noose or places or displays a sign, mark, symbol, emblem, or other physical impression with the intent to terrorize a person, as specified, with imprisonment in county jail not to exceed one year, a fine not more than $5,000, or both the fine and imprisonment, and with imprisonment in county jail not to exceed one year, a fine not to exceed $15,000, or both the fine and imprisonment for a subsequent conviction. Existing law, for a person who engages in a pattern of conduct by placing or displaying certain symbols, as specified, allows a person's punishment to be increased to imprisonment of 16 months or 2 or 3 years, a fine not more than $10,000, or both. Existing law punishes a person convicted of burning or desecrating a religious symbol with imprisonment for 16 months or 2 or 3 years, by a fine of not more than $10,000, or by both the fine and imprisonment, or imprisonment in a county jail not to exceed one year, by a fine not to exceed $5,000, or both the fine and imprisonment for the first conviction, and the same punishment for a subsequent conviction except the misdemeanor fine increases to $15,000. This bill would expand these offenses to include hanging a noose, placing or displaying a sign, mark, symbol, emblem, or other physical impression, including, but not limited to, a Nazi swastika, and burning, desecrating, or destroying a religious symbol, such as a cross, at schools and public places, generally, as specified, for the purpose of terrorizing a person, as specified. The bill would, for the first conviction, punish a person who hangs a noose, places or displays certain symbols, or burns or desecrates a religious symbol, as specified, with imprisonment for 16 months or 2 or 3 years, by a fine of not more than $10,000, or both the fine and imprisonment, or by imprisonment in a county jail not to exceed one year, by a fine not to exceed $5,000, or by both the fine and imprisonment. For a 2nd or subsequent conviction under these provisions, the bill would punish a person with imprisonment for 16 months or 2 or 3 years, by a fine of not more than $15,000, or by both the fine and imprisonment, or by imprisonment in a county jail not to exceed one year, by a fine not to exceed $10,000, or by both the fine and imprisonment. This bill would state the intent of the Legislature is to criminalize, for the purpose of terrorizing a person, the display or placement of the Nazi swastika and not swastikas associated with Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism. By creating a new 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.
(1) The California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 designates the State Air Resources Board (state board) as the state agency charged with monitoring and regulating sources of emissions of greenhouse gases. The state board is required to ensure that statewide greenhouse gas emissions are reduced to at least 40% below the 1990 level by 2030. This bill would require the state board, in consultation with the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission (Energy Commission) and Public Utilities Commission (PUC) , to prepare an evaluation posted to the state board's internet website by June 1, 2024, that includes specified information relative to the deployment, development, and use of hydrogen. The bill would require the state board, in making this evaluation, to consult with the California Workforce Development Board and labor and workforce organizations. (2) Existing law requires the Energy Commission, beginning November 1, 2003, and every 2 years thereafter, to adopt an integrated energy policy report that includes an overview of major energy trends and issues facing the state. This bill would require the Energy Commission, as part of the 2023 and 2025 editions of the integrated energy policy report, to study and model potential growth for hydrogen and its role in decarbonizing, as defined, the electrical and transportation sectors of the economy, and helping to achieve specified goals. (3) Existing law requires the PUC, state board, and Energy Commission to consider green electrolytic hydrogen an eligible form of energy storage, and to consider other potential uses of green electrolytic hydrogen. This bill would require the PUC, state board, and Energy Commission to consider other potential uses of green electrolytic hydrogen specifically in all of their decarbonization strategies, as defined.
Existing law establishes the California State Summer School for Mathematics and Science to provide academic development to enable pupils, including pupils who are not California residents, with demonstrated academic excellence in mathematics and science who meet one of 3 specified enrollment criteria to receive intensive educational enrichment in these subjects and to provide an opportunity for pupils who wish to study mathematics or science or to pursue careers that require a high degree of skills in and knowledge of mathematics and science. Existing law requests the Regents of the University of California to operate the summer school. Existing law states the Legislature's intent that the Regents of the University of California adopt policies that will enable pupils who are not California residents, including residents of other countries, to be admitted to the summer school. This bill would limit the eligibility criteria to certain pupils from a California school and would delete provisions related to the admission of pupils who are not California residents to the summer school. Existing law, until January 1, 2023, requests the regents to develop and implement a statewide application procedure for the summer school, as specified, and requires that the cost of the application process be at least partially offset by charging each applicant a fee not to exceed $30. Existing law, until January 1, 2023, also requests the regents to set a tuition fee within a range that corresponds to actual program costs, up to but not exceeding $2,810 per session in 2012 and to increase this fee by an amount of up to 5% each year thereafter. This bill instead would set the application fee at $40 in 2023, and authorize this fee to be increased by an amount of up to 5% each year thereafter. The bill would request the regents to set a tuition fee for the summer school within a range that corresponds to actual program costs, up to but not exceeding $4,770 per session in 2023, and to increase this fee by an amount of up to 5% each year thereafter. The bill would extend these provisions until January 1, 2028.
Existing law governs the bidding and awarding of public contracts by public entities, as defined. Existing law makes it a crime for a public official, as specified, to ask, receive, or agree to receive, any bribe, upon an understanding that their official vote, opinion, judgment, or action will be influenced thereby. This bill would declare a contract voidable that was entered into because of an act that would constitute a violation of a state or federal crime relating to bribery of a public official, including a violation of the above-described crime. The bill would specify that these provisions apply to contracts executed on or after January 1, 2023, including contracts negotiated prior to that date.
(1) The California Cultural and Historical Endowment Act establishes the California Cultural and Historical Endowment in the Natural Resources Agency. Among other things, the act authorizes the endowment to make grants and loans on a competitive basis to public agencies and nonprofit organizations, as defined, to encourage development of California's historical and cultural resources. Existing law, to the extent funding is available, requires the endowment to establish a program to assist and enhance the services of California's museums and of other groups and institutions that undertake cultural projects that are deeply rooted in and reflective of previously underserved communities. Existing law requires the program to give priority to certain museum and cultural programs and projects, as provided. This bill would revise and recast those provisions to, among other things, instead require the endowment to establish a competitive grant program to assist and enhance the services of museums in the state that undertake programs and projects that are deeply rooted in and reflective of underserved communities. The bill would instead require the grant program to give priority to those programs and projects (A) serving pupils and teachers at schools eligible to be served under Title I, Part A of the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act, (B) serving children in low-income communities, (C) supporting a museum in engaging or collaborating with underserved communities, as specified, (D) advancing preservation of at-risk cultural and natural collections and historic buildings, as provided, (E) improving access to historic buildings, cultural sites, or museums, as specified, (F) supporting the ethical stewardship of culturally sensitive art and artifacts, as provided, or (G) educating the public about critical issues affecting Californians. (2) Existing law authorizes the California Cultural and Historical Endowment to create a specified competitive grant program to support, among other things, small capital projects in museums. Existing law requires funding for the grant program to only be made, upon appropriation by the Legislature, from certain collected funds. This bill would expand that authority to support capital projects in museums, without regard to size, and publications in museums. The bill would delete the funding limitation for the grant program.
Existing law declares that the fostering, continuance, and development of public transportation systems are a matter of state concern. Existing law authorizes the Department of Transportation to administer various programs and allocates moneys for various public transportation purposes. Upon the appropriation of moneys by the Legislature, this bill would create the Youth Transit Pass Pilot Program, administered by the department, for purposes of awarding grants to transit agencies for the costs of creating, designing, developing, advertising, distributing, and implementing free youth transit passes to persons attending certain educational institutions, providing free transit service to holders of those passes, and administering and participating in the program, as specified. The bill would authorize a transit agency to submit a grant application in partnership with one or more educational institutions and would also authorize grant funds to be used to maintain, subsidize, or expand an existing fare free program, as provided. The bill would authorize a transit agency with an existing fare free program that enables a person 18 years of age or younger to use a transit agency's bus and rail services without paying any additional fare or charge to submit an application without an educational institution partner, as provided. The bill would require the department to submit a report to specified committees of the Legislature on or before January 1, 2027, on, among other things, the outcomes of the program and the funding conditions associated with offering free youth transit passes, the status of transit pass programs statewide, and whether these provisions led to reductions in the emissions of greenhouse gases and vehicle miles traveled, as provided. The bill would repeal its provisions as of January 1, 2028.
Existing law creates various transit districts throughout the state, with specified powers and duties relative to providing public transit service. Existing law provides various provisions applicable to all public transit and transit districts. This bill would require the Mineta Transportation Institute at San Jose State University to, on or before December 31, 2023, develop and make available on its internet website a survey for the purpose of promoting consistency in the collection of specified survey data to inform efforts to improve the safety of riders and reduce street harassment on public transit.
Existing law, the Unruh Civil Rights Act, provides that all persons within the jurisdiction of this state are entitled to full and equal accommodations in all business establishments regardless of specified characteristics, including sex, race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sexual orientation, citizenship, primary language, or immigration status. Existing law, the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) , establishes the Civil Rights Department within the Business, Consumer Services, and Housing Agency and sets forth its powers and duties relating to enforcement of civil rights laws with respect to housing and employment and to protect and safeguard the right of all persons to obtain and hold employment without discrimination based on specified characteristics or status. Existing law prohibits an employer and other specified entities from harassing an employee, an applicant, an unpaid intern or volunteer, or a person providing services pursuant to a contract, because of race, religious creed, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, age, sexual orientation, or veteran or military status, if the entity, or its agents or supervisors, knows or should have known of that conduct and failed to take immediate and appropriate corrective action. This bill would require the department to establish a pilot program on or before January 1, 2025, to recognize businesses that create environments free from discrimination and harassment and would require the department to develop criteria to qualify for recognition, including, among other things, demonstrating compliance with the Unruh Civil Rights Act. The bill would require the department to provide a certificate to qualifying businesses and publish on its internet website a database of businesses receiving that certificate. The bill would require the department to evaluate whether that recognition is effective on or before January 1, 2028, as specified. The bill would provide that recognition under the pilot program does not establish and is not relevant to any defense of claims brought under existing law. The bill would repeal its provisions on July 1, 2028.
Existing law specifies the process by which a corporation may be converted into a domestic other business entity if specified conditions are met. This bill would instead provide that this process applies to the conversion of a corporation into a domestic other business entity, foreign other business entity, or foreign corporation, as specified. The bill would define terms for purposes of these provisions, make other conforming changes, and establish the means by which an obligation of a corporation that has converted to a foreign corporation or foreign other business entity may be enforced. Existing law requires a corporation that desires to convert to a domestic other business entity to approve a plan of conversion that includes, among other things, the jurisdiction of organization of the converted entity after conversion. This bill would require a corporation to also provide the name and form after conversion. Existing law authorizes the Secretary of State to charge a fee to an entity not exceeding $150 for its conversion made under these provisions. This bill would remove the authorization of the Secretary of State to charge a fee for corporate conversions.