Sen. Toni Atkins

Existing law, the Mello-Granlund Older Californians Act, establishes the California Department of Aging and sets forth its mission to provide leadership to the area agencies on aging in developing systems of home- and community-based services that maintain individuals in their own homes or least restrictive homelike environments. Existing law requires the department, in allocating specified state and federal funding to area agencies on aging, to ensure that priority consideration is given to criteria that reflect the state's intent to target services to those in greatest economic or social need. Existing law defines "greatest social need" to mean the need caused by noneconomic factors, including physical and mental disabilities, that restrict an individual's ability to perform normal daily tasks or that threaten the individual's capacity to live independently. This bill would revise this definition to include human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) status as a specified noneconomic factor.

Existing law requires that each death be registered with the local registrar of births and deaths in the district in which the death was officially pronounced or the body was found. Existing law designates persons responsible for completing a certificate of death and the required contents of the certificate, including, but not limited to, the decedent's name, sex, race, and other relevant identifying and medical information. Certain violations of these requirements are a crime. Existing law requires a person completing the certificate of death to record the decedent's gender identity as reported by the informant, unless the person is presented with specified legal documents showing a different gender identity. Existing law requires the person completing the certificate of death to record the decedent's gender identity as indicated in the specified legal documents, or if the specified documents are not presented, as indicated by the person or a majority of persons with control over the disposition of the remains, as specified. This bill would authorize the decedent's gender identity to be recorded as female, male, or nonbinary.

Existing law, the Planning and Zoning Law, requires a city or county to adopt a general plan for land use development within its boundaries that includes, among other things, a housing element. That law requires the planning agency of a city or county to provide by April 1 of each year an annual report to, among other entities, the Department of Housing and Community Development. The law requires that the annual report include, among other specified information, the number of housing development applications received and the number of units approved and disapproved in the prior year. This bill would additionally require the planning agency include in the annual report whether the city or county is a party to a court action related to a violation of state housing law, and the disposition of that action. By requiring a planning agency to include additional information in its annual report, the 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 Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of an environmental impact report (EIR) on a project that the lead agency 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. The Jobs and Economic Improvement Through Environmental Leadership Act of 2011 (former leadership act) , which was repealed by its own terms on January 1, 2021, authorized the Governor, until January 1, 2020, to certify projects that meet certain requirements, including specified labor-related requirements and a requirement that the project applicant agrees to pay the costs of the court of appeal in hearing and deciding a case challenging a lead agency's action on a certified project, for streamlining benefits provided by the former leadership act related to CEQA. The former leadership act also required resolution, to the extent feasible, of judicial review of action taken by a lead agency within 270 days of the filing of the certified record of proceedings with the court. The former leadership act provided that if a lead agency fails to approve a project certified by the Governor before January 1, 2021, the certification expires and is no longer valid. The former leadership act required a lead agency to prepare the record of proceedings for the certified project concurrent with the preparation of the EIR. This bill would enact the Jobs and Economic Improvement Through Environmental Leadership Act of 2021, which would reenact the former leadership act, with certain changes, and would authorize the Governor, until January 1, 2024, to certify projects that meet specified requirements for streamlining benefits related to CEQA. The bill would additionally include housing development projects, as defined, meeting certain conditions as projects eligible for certification. The bill would, except for those housing development projects, require the quantification and mitigation of the impacts of a project from the emissions of greenhouse gases, as provided. The bill would revise and recast the labor-related requirements for projects undertaken by both public agencies and private entities. The bill would provide that the Governor is authorized to certify a project before the lead agency certifies the final EIR for the project. The bill would provide for the certification by the Governor of a project alternative described in an EIR for a certified project, as provided. The bill would additionally require an applicant for certification of a project for which the environmental review has begun to demonstrate that the record of proceedings for the project is being prepared concurrently with the administrative process. The bill would require the project applicant, as a condition of certification, to agree to pay the costs of the trial court in hearing and deciding a case challenging a lead agency's action on a certified project. The bill would authorize the Office of Planning and Research to charge a fee to an applicant seeking certification for costs incurred by the Governor's office in the implementation of the Jobs and Economic Improvement Through Environmental Leadership Act of 2021. The bill would require resolution, to the extent feasible, of judicial review of action taken by a lead agency within 270 days after the filing of the record of proceedings with the court. The bill would provide that if a lead agency fails to approve a project certified by the Governor under the Jobs and Economic Improvement Through Environmental Leadership Act of 2021 before January 1, 2025, the certification is no longer valid. The bill would repeal the Jobs and Economic Improvement Through Environmental Leadership Act of 2021 on January 1, 2026. Because the bill would require the lead agency to prepare concurrently the record of proceedings for projects that are certified by the Governor, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. This bill would further provide that projects certified by the Governor under the former leadership act before January 1, 2020, and that are approved by a lead agency on or before January 1, 2022, are entitled to the benefits of and are required to comply with the requirements set forth in the former leadership act as it read on January 1, 2020. (2) 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. (3) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

This measure would declare that the Legislature recognizes the week of May 9, 2021, to May 15, 2021, inclusive, as Hospital Week, and would recognize the life-saving contributions of hospitals in this state during the unprecedented coronavirus pandemic.

This measure would declare that the Legislature honors the life and legacy of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and proclaims March 15, 2021, as Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Day, a day of remembrance and education to ensure that all Californians always honor and remember a vibrant guardian of equality for all.

This measure would proclaim Wednesday, March 24, 2021, as Equal Pay Day in recognition of the need to eliminate the gender gap in earnings by women and to promote policies to ensure equal pay for all.