Sen. Christine Kehoe

This measure would designate a specified portion of State Highway Route 1 in the County of Los Angeles as the Honorable Jenny Oropeza Memorial Overcrossing. This measure would also request the Department of Transportation to determine the cost of appropriate signs showing this special designation and, upon receiving donations from nonstate sources covering those costs, to erect those signs.

This measure would designate the week of September 8 through September 15, 2012, and the 2nd week of September every year thereafter as California Coastal Protection Week and would urge all Californians to observe that week as California Costal Protection Week.

This measure would declare the week of June 4, 2012, to June 10, 2012, inclusive, as Fire Safety and Disaster Preparedness Week.

This measure would recognize June 15th as Justice for Janitors Day, a day to commemorate the struggle of janitors for affordable family health care and dignified wages.

(1) Existing law authorizes the Department of Parks and Recreation, with the consent of the Department of Finance, to acquire title to or any interest in real property that the department deems necessary or proper for the extension, improvement, or development of the state park system. Existing law also authorizes the department to accept monetary and real property gifts to be used in any connection with the state park system. This bill would, except as provided below, prohibit land acquired for the state park system, through public funds or gifts, from being disposed of or used for other purposes incompatible with state park system purposes without the substitution of other land. This bill would require the State Park and Recreation Commission, following a duly noticed public hearing, to certify that all requests to dispose of or use the land for those incompatible purposes provide for the substitution of other land meeting certain criteria. If lands that fully meet the substitution eligibility criteria cannot be acquired, the commission would be authorized, if certain conditions are met, to approve a combination of substitute park lands and monetary compensation to allow for the disposal or use of lands for those incompatible purposes. The bill would require that the commission consider requests only if the commission determines that all practical alternatives that avoid the proposed disposal or use of park lands for those incompatible purposes have been considered. This bill would provide that its provisions shall not apply to existing uses of state park lands that have been authorized on or before January 1, 2013, by written agreement with the Department of Parks and Recreation or by the general plan for a state park unit. (2) Existing law authorizes a reconfiguration of the Candlestick Point State Recreation Area (state recreation area) if certain requirements are met and authorizes the Director of the Department of Parks and Recreation to remove the land from the state recreation area and enter into an agreement to convey to the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency, or to the City of San Francisco, an interest in the state property, if the director makes certain findings. Existing law provides that these provisions govern an agreement entered into or convergence made pursuant to the agreement and supersede any other provision of law pertaining to the department's authority to acquire or transfer real property, or to enter into an agreement to acquire or transfer real property. This bill would provide that it does not amend, repeal, or limit the effect of this provision.

(1) Existing law requires the officer of each local agency who has charge of the financial records of the agency to furnish to the Controller a report of all the financial transactions of the local agency during the next preceding fiscal year within 90 days of the close of each fiscal year, as specified. Existing law defines local agency, for purposes of these financial reports to mean any city, county, district, and specified community redevelopment agencies. This bill would also include within the definition of local agency any joint powers agency and would require that joint powers agency to furnish the Controller with the required financial reports. (2) Existing law requires the Controller to annually compile and publish reports of the financial transactions of each county, city, and school district within the state, together with other matters he or she deems of public interest. This bill would additionally require the Controller to annually compile and publish reports of the financial transactions of each joint powers agency. (3) Existing law provides that if the county, city, or district reports are not made in a specified manner, or there is reason to believe that the report is false, the Controller is required to appoint a qualified accountant to make an investigation and to obtain the information required for the annual report of financial transactions. Existing law provides that if a similar investigation is made of any county, city, or district for 2 successive years, then a copy of the results of those investigations shall be transmitted to the grand jury of the county investigated or in which the local agency investigated is situated. Existing law requires any costs incurred by the Controller in carrying out those audits to be paid by the local agency. This bill would expand the above provisions to also include a special district or joint powers authority. This bill would also, until January 1, 2017, authorize the Controller to perform an audit or investigation of any county, city, special district, or joint powers authority, if the Controller has made findings that the local agency is not complying with the financial requirements in state law, state grant agreements, local charters, or local ordinances and require the Controller to prepare and file a report of the results of the audit or investigation, as specified. This bill would require that, until January 1, 2017, if the results of those audits determine that the financial report filed by the local agency did not contain false, incomplete, or incorrect information, then the Controller shall waive the costs of the investigation, and would authorize the Controller to establish a payment program to assist a local agency to pay for any costs that cannot be waived. This bill would additionally authorize the Controller, if requested by a local agency,. to convene a local agency financial review committee with a specified membership to provide assistance in reviewing and assessing its financial condition, as specified. (4) Existing law provides that an officer of a local agency who fails or refuses to make and file his or her financial report within 20 days after receipt of a written notice of the failure from the Controller forfeits to the state a specified amount depending on the amount of total revenue of that local agency. Existing law raises these amounts in the case of a community redevelopment agency and a joint powers agency that issues conduit revenue bonds in the 2nd and 3rd consecutive year. This bill would raise the forfeiture amounts for all local agencies, as specified. The bill would double these fines if the agency fails to submit the report to the Controller for 2 consecutive years, and would triple the fines if the agency fails to submit the report to the Controller for 3 consecutive years. The bill would also require the Controller to conduct an audit, as specified, of the local agency if the local agency fails to provide the financial reports for 3 consecutive years.

(1) Existing law requires the department to charge traffic violator school owners, operators, and instructors fees for certain activities related to traffic violator school programs, including the issuance of a branch or classroom location license. These fees are required to be set to defray the actual cost to the department to administer the traffic violator school program, except for the costs for routine monitoring of instruction. This bill, until January 1, 2015, would revise the activities for which the department is authorized to impose certain of these fees and would authorize the department to charge fees instead for an approval for a branch office or a classroom location or the renewal of an approved branch office or current classroom location. The bill would require all of these fees to be equal to the fees charged for the 2011–12 fiscal year, except the fee for the renewal of an approved current classroom location would be required to be set at $50 per year per location. The bill would, as of January 1, 2015, delete those proposed revisions and would reestablish the fee requirements imposed under existing law. (2) Existing law requires the court to collect a single administrative fee that is assessed against a driver traffic violator who attends traffic violator school, and requires the fee to include the cost of routine monitoring of traffic violator school instruction. This bill, until January 1, 2015, would instead require the amount of the administrative fee assessed and collected by the court to be set by the department at an amount sufficient to defray the actual costs to the department to administer the provisions regulating the traffic school violator program, except for the costs defrayed by the fees authorized for specific department activities described in (1) above. The bill would, as of January 1, 2015, delete that proposed change and would reestablish the fee amount required under existing law.

This measure would proclaim June 2012 as Scleroderma Awareness Month.

This measure would recognize the United States Navy for its contributions to California, its communities, and its citizens by proclaiming the week of July 16 to July 22, inclusive, as Navy Week Sacramento.