Sen. Catherine Blakespear

Maddy summaryThis Senate Resolution (SR 16) designates December 29 as "President Jimmy Carter Day" in California to honor his humanitarian legacy, particularly his 35-year partnership with Habitat for Humanity building affordable housing. It commemorates his work with the Carter Work Project, which helped construct over 4,400 homes globally and inspired volunteerism. The resolution has no legal effect or policy changes - it is a ceremonial recognition of Carter's contributions to housing and community service. It was unanimously adopted by the California Senate on February 20, 2025.

Maddy summarySCR 10 is a California state resolution recognizing January 2025 as National Human Trafficking Awareness Month. It does not create new laws or policies but serves as a symbolic gesture to raise public awareness about human trafficking - a crime involving exploitation through force, fraud, or coercion. The resolution highlights the severity of trafficking through statistics on global and California victim numbers but does not directly affect any specific groups or alter legal frameworks. This non-binding measure aligns with broader efforts to combat trafficking through education and community engagement.

Maddy summaryThis resolution designates January 2025 as "School Board Recognition Month" in California to honor school board members and county education officials. It formally declares the state's appreciation for their work in guiding public schools and meeting students' academic and health needs. The resolution urges community members to recognize these locally elected officials and collaborate with them to support California's education system. As a non-binding resolution, it does not create new laws or policies.

Existing law authorizes a chief administrative officer of a postsecondary educational institution, or an officer or employee designated by the chief administrative officer to maintain order on the school campus or facility, that has a student who has suffered a credible threat of violence made off the school campus or facility from any individual which can reasonably be construed to be carried out or to have been carried out at the school campus or facility, to seek a temporary restraining order and an injunction on behalf of the student and, at the discretion of the court, any number of other students at the campus or facility, as specified. "Postsecondary educational institution" is defined for purposes of these provisions as a private institution of vocational, professional, or postsecondary education. This bill would, beginning January 1, 2026, expand the definition of postsecondary educational institution to include public institutions, expand the conduct for which a restraining order can be sought to include unlawful violence, as defined, and remove the requirements that such conduct occur off the school campus or facility and be construed to be carried out or to have been carried out at the campus or facility.

Under existing law, in any civil action that contains allegations of sexual harassment, sexual assault, or sexual battery, opinion evidence, reputation evidence, and evidence of specific instances of a plaintiff's sexual conduct with someone other than the alleged perpetrator, is not admissible by the defendant in order to prove consent by the plaintiff or the absence of injury to the plaintiff. This bill would also make the specified types of evidence inadmissible in such civil actions when being used to attack the credibility of the plaintiff's testimony on consent or absence of injury. Under existing law, in any sexual battery civil action involving a minor and an adult who is in a position of authority, as specified, evidence of the plaintiff minor's sexual conduct with the defendant adult is not admissible to prove consent by the plaintiff or the absence of injury to the plaintiff. Existing law authorizes evidence of the minor plaintiff's sexual conduct to be introduced only to attack the credibility of the plaintiff or to prove something other than consent by the plaintiff if, upon a hearing of the court out of the presence of the jury, the defendant proves that the probative value of that evidence outweighs the prejudice to the plaintiff, as specified. This bill would remove the requirement, in cases involving a minor and an adult who is in a position of authority, that prior to the introduction of specified types of evidence, a court hold a hearing out of the presence of the jury, where the defendant bears the burden to prove that the probative value of the evidence outweighs the prejudice. The introduction of evidence relating to the sexual conduct of the minor in such cases would be evaluated under procedures already in place under existing law.

(1) Under existing law, as part of the hazardous waste control laws, the Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) generally regulates the management and handling of hazardous waste and hazardous materials. Except as specified, a violation of the hazardous waste control laws is a crime. This bill would create a manufacturer responsibility program for the safe and proper management of marine flares. The bill would define "covered product" to include certain pyrotechnic devices that meet the criteria for household hazardous waste and that are used in conjunction with recreational activities. The bill would require a manufacturer of a covered product to develop and implement a manufacturer responsibility plan for the collection, transportation, and the safe and proper management of covered products, as specified. The bill would establish a process and timeline for DTSC to review and approve, disapprove, or conditionally approve a plan and for the implementation of an approved plan. The bill would require that an approved plan be published on DTSC's internet website, except for specified manufacturer data that would not be open to public inspection. The bill would prohibit DTSC from adopting regulations to implement the act with an effective date earlier than July 1, 2028. This bill would require a manufacturer to prepare and submit to DTSC and make publicly available an annual report describing the activities carried out pursuant to the plan. The bill would require the annual report to include an application for renewal of the manufacturer's responsibility plan. The bill would require all reports and records provided to DTSC pursuant to the act to be provided under the penalty of perjury. By expanding the scope of a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. This bill would require a manufacturer to pay DTSC the actual cost for DTSC to review its plan, annual report, and application to renew. The bill would establish the Marine Flare Recovery Fund in the State Treasury and would require the charges collected by DTSC to be deposited into that account for expenditure by DTSC, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to cover DTSC's cost to implement and enforce the act. This bill would prohibit a manufacturer, retailer, dealer, importer, or distributor from selling, distributing, offering for sale, or importing a covered product in or into the state that contains perchlorate. By adding new requirements to the hazardous waste control laws, this bill would expand the scope of a crime and would impose a state-mandated local program. (2) 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. (3) 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 requires, in conformance with federal law, that the Secretary of State and the Department of Motor Vehicles establish and implement the California New Motor Voter Program for the purpose of increasing opportunities for voter registration for qualified voters. Existing law requires the department to transmit to the Secretary of State specified information related to a person's eligibility to vote, which the person provides when applying for a driver's license or identification card or when the person notifies the department of an address change. Existing law requires that if this information transmitted to the Secretary of State constitutes a completed affidavit of registration, the Secretary of State must register or preregister the person to vote, as applicable, unless the person affirmatively declines to register or is ineligible to vote, as specified. This bill would require the Secretary of State and the department to develop a process for the department to use information from the statewide voter registration database to determine whether a person who submits a driver's license application is already registered or preregistered to vote in the state. The bill would require the department, based upon this determination, to transmit specified information provided by the person during their transaction with the department to the Secretary of State for the purpose of registering or preregistering that person to vote or to update their registration information. The bill would prohibit the department from providing a person the opportunity to attest to meeting voter eligibility requirements when they submit a driver's license application, if the person provides a document to the department during the transaction demonstrating that the person is not a United States citizen. The bill would permit the Secretary of State, upon a determination that sufficient technology infrastructure exists, to promulgate regulations concerning the establishment of a list of individuals who are eligible to be preapproved for voter registration, as specified. This bill would make these provisions operative on the earlier of January 1, 2030, or 5 days after the Secretary of State and the department certify that the information technology infrastructure necessary to substantially implement the bill is functional. The bill would permit the Secretary of State and the department, beginning on January 1, 2025, to perform administrative actions necessary to implement these provisions.

Existing law, the California Safe Drinking Water Act, requires the State Water Resources Control Board to administer provisions relating to the regulation of drinking water to protect public health. Existing law requires the state board to adopt a definition of microplastics in drinking water and to adopt a standard methodology to be used in the testing of drinking water for microplastics and requirements for 4 years of testing and reporting of microplastics in drinking water, including public disclosure of those results. This bill would require the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) to study the health effects of microplastics in drinking and bottled water to evaluate toxicity characteristics and levels of microplastics in water that are not anticipated to cause or contribute to adverse health effects, or to identify data gaps that would need to be addressed to establish those levels. The bill would require OEHHA to provide biennial status updates, and post a final report on its internet website. The bill would authorize the State Water Resources Control Board, after taking into consideration the findings of the report, to request that OEHHA prepare and publish a public health goal for microplastics in drinking water, as specified.

Existing law establishes the Department of Housing and Community Development within the Business, Consumer Services, and Housing Agency. Under existing law, the department is responsible for administering various housing programs throughout the state, including, among others, the California Emergency Solutions and Housing Program, which, among other things, provides rental assistance and housing relocation and stabilization services to ensure housing affordability for people who are experiencing homelessness or who are at risk of homelessness. Existing law, the Housing Authorities Law, creates a housing authority in each county and each city, which is authorized to transact business and exercise specified powers upon adoption of a resolution by the governing body of the county or city declaring that there is a need for the authority to function. Among other things, existing law authorizes a housing authority to provide leased housing to persons of low income. This bill would require all public housing authorities to report specified data, including their monthly success rates as of the first of each month, to the department beginning on July 1, 2025, and annually thereafter, as specified. Because the bill would require local housing authorities to perform additional duties, it would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would require the department to make the data publicly available, beginning on January 1, 2026, and each year thereafter. The bill would require the department, beginning on July 1, 2025, and bi-annually thereafter until June 30, 2027, to convene a group of public housing authorities to discuss factors that impact success rates and recommendations for state and local intervention. The bill would also require the department, in consultation with participants in the Housing Choice Voucher program and other stakeholders, to publish a report, which shall be made publicly available, with recommendations for state and local interventions to improve success rates, on or before July 1, 2026. 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.

Existing law requires the Secretary of State to furnish copies of the state voter information guide and the full text of all measures to various persons and places, as specified. This bill would limit the initial number of copies distributed to one copy of the state voter information guide and one copy of the full text of all measures to each person or place, as specified. The bill would also allow persons or places entitled to a copy of the voter information guide and the full text of all measures, as specified, to request and receive additional copies of those documents.