Existing law requires the county assessor to consider, when valuing real property for property taxation purposes, the effect of any enforceable restrictions to which the use of the land may be subjected. Under existing law these restrictions include, but are not limited to, zoning, recorded contracts with governmental agencies, and various other restrictions imposed by governments. This bill would require the county assessor to consider, when valuing real property for property taxation purposes, a recorded contract with a nonprofit corporation for the advancement of affordable housing that provides funding or land for affordable housing where the recorded contract restricts the use of the land for at least 30 years to housing available at affordable housing cost or affordable rent. By changing the manner in which county assessors assess property for property taxation purposes, 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 these statutory provisions.
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Existing law requires the State Board of Education and the State Department of Education to request that the Instructional Quality Commission review and revise, as necessary, the course requirements in the history-social science framework developed by the History-Social Science Curriculum Framework and Criteria Committee of the state board to ensure that minimum standards for courses in American government and civics include sufficient attention to teaching pupils how to interact, in a practical manner, with state and local governmental agencies and representatives to solve problems and to petition for changes in laws and procedures. This bill would also require that those minimum standards for courses in American government and civics include the teaching of the comparative differences between the rights of citizens in America and those in other countries, and the connection of civics and American government to western civilizations.
The Medi-Cal Act establishes the Medi-Cal program, which is administered by the State Department of Health Care Services, under which qualified low-income individuals receive health care services. The Medi-Cal program is, in part, governed and funded by federal Medicaid Program provisions. Existing law requires, except as otherwise provided, Medi-Cal provider payments to be reduced by 1% or 5%, and provider payments for specified non-Medi-Cal programs to be reduced by 1%, for dates of service on and after March 1, 2009, and until June 1, 2011. Existing law requires, except as otherwise provided, Medi-Cal provider payments and payments for specified non-Medi-Cal programs to be reduced by 10% for dates of service on and after June 1, 2011. This bill would instead require that, to the extent permitted by federal law, this payment reduction not apply to skilled nursing facilities or subacute care units that are a distinct part of a general acute care hospital, intermediate care or other specified facilities serving developmentally disabled individuals, or specified Medi-Cal provider payments for fee-for-service benefits, including payments to pharmacies, for dates of service on or after June 1, 2011. The bill would also provide that this payment reduction shall not apply to managed health care plans for dates of service after the effective date of the bill. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Existing law provides for the regulation of hazardous waste by the Department of Toxic Substances Control and makes a declaration of legislative intent regarding that regulation and maintaining authorization to administer a state program pursuant to the federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976. This bill would delete obsolete provisions from, and make nonsubstantive changes to, that declaration of legislative intent and state authorization.
The Personal Income Tax Law and the Corporation Tax Law, in modified conformity with federal income tax laws, allow a deduction for losses sustained during the taxable year and not compensated for by insurance or otherwise. Those state laws conform to specified revenue rulings and revenue procedures of the Internal Revenue Service regarding treatment of losses due to investment arrangements discovered to be criminally fraudulent, except that, among other things, net operating loss carrybacks and carryforwards are not allowed. This bill would provide a safe harbor for determining the year in which those losses attributable to criminal fraud occurred, as described in a specified revenue procedure of the Internal Revenue Service, and would allow a net operating loss carryover or carryback of any resulting deduction from the losses in conformity with federal income tax law. This bill would make a legislative finding and declaration relating to the public purpose served by the bill. This bill would take effect immediately as a tax levy.
Existing law requires the State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection, on or before September 1, 2011, to adopt emergency regulations to establish a fire prevention fee in an amount not to exceed $150 to be charged on each structure on a parcel that is within a state responsibility area, as defined, and requires that the fire prevention fee be adjusted annually using prescribed methods. Existing law requires the State Board of Equalization to collect the fire prevention fees, as prescribed, commencing with the 2011–12 fiscal year. Existing law establishes the State Responsibility Area Fire Prevention Fund and prohibits the collection of fire prevention fees if, commencing with the 2012–13 fiscal year, there are sufficient amounts of moneys in the fund to finance specified fire prevention activities for a fiscal year. Existing law requires that the fire prevention fees collected, except as provided, be deposited into the fund and be made available, to the board and the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection for certain specified fire protection activities that benefit the owners of structures in state responsibility areas who are required to pay the fee. Existing law further requires the board, on and after January 1, 2013, to submit an annual written report to the Legislature on specified topics. This bill would repeal the above provisions relating to the fire prevention fees.
Existing law, as of July 1, 2010, exempts the sale of, and the storage, use, or other consumption of, motor vehicle fuel from specified sales and use taxes and increases the excise tax on motor vehicle fuel, as provided. Existing law requires the State Board of Equalization to annually adjust the excise tax rate for the state's next fiscal year so that the revenues from the sales and use tax exemption and motor vehicle fuel excise tax increase are revenue neutral. This bill would eliminate the requirement that the State Board of Equalization adjust the rate of the excise tax on motor vehicle fuel, and instead would require the Department of Finance to annually calculate that rate and report that calculated rate to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee. The rate for the state's next fiscal year would remain the same as the rate of the current fiscal year or would decrease, as provided. This bill would further state that the rate may increase upon a further act by the Legislature. This bill would take effect immediately as a tax levy.
The California Environmental Quality Act, or CEQA, requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of, an environmental impact report, or 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. Existing law establishes regulations related to numerous environmental issues. This bill would enact the Sustainable Environmental Protection Act and would specify the environmental review required pursuant to CEQA for projects related to specified environmental topical areas. For a judicial action or proceeding filed challenging an action taken by a lead agency on the ground of noncompliance with CEQA, the bill would prohibit a cause of action that (1) relates any topical area or criteria for which compliance obligations are identified or (2) challenges the environmental document if: (A) the environmental document discloses compliance with applicable environmental law, (B) the project conforms with the use designation, density, or building intensity in an applicable plan, as defined, and (C) the project approval incorporates applicable mitigation requirements into the environmental document. The bill would provide that the Sustainable Environmental Protection Act only applies if the lead agency or project applicant has agreed to provide to the public in a readily accessible electronic format an annual compliance report prepared pursuant to the mitigation monitoring and reporting program. Because this bill would impose additional duties on local agencies, it 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) Existing law expresses the intent of the Legislature that governing boards of school districts establish a uniform system of evaluation and assessment of the performance of all certificated personnel of a school district, including schools conducted or maintained by county superintendents of education. This bill would instead require the governing board of a school district to establish an evaluation and assessment system for certificated employees that uses a multiple-measures evaluation system with multiple research-validated approaches to measuring effectiveness, as specified. The governing board would be required to establish the system by the 2015–16 school year and to fully implement the system by the 2016–17 school year. The bill would require a compliance audit to include the verification of the development and implementation of the evaluation system. Because the bill would increase the duties of school districts, it would impose a state-mandated local program. (2) Existing law provides that, when employees are terminated pursuant to a reduction in workforce, a school district is required to terminate the employees in order of seniority. Existing law further provides those employees with preferred right to reappointment and opportunity for substitute service in order of seniority. Existing law authorizes a school district to deviate from the order of seniority for those purposes for specified reasons, including compliance with constitutional requirements related to equal protection of the laws. This bill would provide additional reasons for which a school district may deviate from terminating employees in order of seniority, including authorizing school districts to terminate employees on the basis of performance evaluations and on the basis that the employee is assigned to a schoolsite that has been selected by the governing board for exemption from certificated reductions in force, based upon the needs of the educational program. The bill would provide an exception to this authorization for an employee who has 18 months or less from his or her date of retirement, or is on medical leave. The bill would specify that the equal protection exception to the general requirement that terminations and reappointments occur in order of seniority applies to equal protection as it relates to pupils. (3) Existing law generally requires school districts to adhere to certain requirements with respect to teacher and administrator employment, and requires charter school petitions to contain certain information relating to employment. This bill would authorize school districts, county offices of education, and charter schools to assign, reassign, and transfer teachers and administrators based on effectiveness and subject matter needs, without regard to years of service. (4) This bill would make various nonsubstantive and clarifying changes. (5) 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 these statutory provisions.
Existing law requires each school district that has one or more pupils who are English learners and, to the extent required by federal law, a county office of education and a charter school to assess the English language development of each of those pupils in order to determine their level of proficiency. Existing law requires annual assessments to continue until a pupil is redesignated as English proficient and requires the assessment to utilize primarily the English language development test identified or developed by the Superintendent of Public Instruction pursuant to specified provisions. The Leroy Greene California Assessment of Academic Achievement Act requires school districts, charter schools, and county offices of education to administer to each of their pupils in grades 2 to 11, inclusive, certain achievement tests, including the standards-based achievement tests that are part of the Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) Program. This bill would require that a pupil in any of grades 3 to 11, inclusive, be eligible to be reclassified as fluent English proficient if the pupil attains the proficient level of performance on the English language arts STAR test, a score of intermediate or above on all portions of the California English Language Development Test, and a 3.0 grade point average at the end of the school year, and, upon attainment of these requirements, would require the pupil to be reclassified as fluent English proficient upon verified approval submitted by the pupil's parent or legal guardian. To the extent this bill would require local educational agencies to perform additional duties regarding the reclassification of English learners, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would authorize a school district to continue to receive state funding designated for its English learners for up to 2 years after the pupil has been reclassified as fluent English proficient, and would state the intent of the Legislature that the school district use the funding for the purpose of monitoring pupils who have been reclassified as fluent English proficient for up to 2 years. The bill also would correct some cross-references. 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 these statutory provisions.