(1) Existing law creates the Department of Transportation with various powers and duties relative to the state highway system and other transportation programs. This bill would prohibit the department from using any nonrecurring funds, including, but not limited to, loan repayments, bond funds, or grant funds, to pay the salaries or benefits of any permanent civil service position within the department. (2) Article XXII of the California Constitution grants to the State of California and all other governmental entities the choice and authority to contract with qualified private entities for architectural and engineering services for all public works of improvement. This bill would require the Department of Transportation to contract with qualified private entities for architectural and engineering services with respect to public works of improvement undertaken by the department, with a minimum of 15% of the total annual value of these services to be contracted to qualified private entities beginning on July 1, 2016, and increasing each year to a minimum of 50% by July 1, 2023.
Sponsored bills
Existing law establishes the California Community Colleges, under the administration of the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges, as one of the segments of public postsecondary education in this state. Existing law specifies the duties of the board of governors, including, among other duties, establishing minimum standards for the formation of community colleges and districts. Under existing regulatory authority, the board of governors requires each community college to be accredited. Existing law requires the accrediting agency for the community colleges to report to the appropriate policy and budget subcommittees of the Legislature upon the issuance of a decision that affects the accreditation status of a community college and to report, on a biannual basis, any accreditation policy changes that affect the accreditation process or status for a community college. This bill would enact the California Community Colleges Fair Accreditation Act of 2015. The act would require that an appropriate percentage of each visiting accreditation team from the accrediting agency for the California Community Colleges be composed of academics, as defined. The bill would prohibit persons with conflicts of interest, as defined, from serving on a visiting accreditation team. The bill would require the accrediting agency to conduct meetings of its decisionmaking body to ensure the ability of members of the public to attend those meetings. The bill would require the accrediting agency to post the agenda of the meetings of its decisionmaking body on its Internet Web site, and to mail that agenda to specified officers of affected institutions, no less than 30 days before a public meeting of that body. The bill would require the accrediting agency to preserve all documents generated during an accreditation-related review, as specified. The bill would authorize the shortening of the time periods required by the bill with respect to certain actions of the agency only pursuant to a written declaration made, under penalty of perjury, by the chief executive officer of the agency, as specified. The bill would authorize an institution to submit an appeal of a decision by the accrediting agency to subject that institution to a sanction of probation or a more serious sanction. The bill would require a member of a panel that would hear one of these appeals to file a specified disclosure form under penalty of perjury. By expanding the scope of the crime of perjury, 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.
Existing law establishes the California Community Colleges, under the administration of the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges, as one of the segments of public postsecondary education in this state. Existing law specifies the duties of the board of governors, including, among other duties, establishing minimum standards for the formation of community colleges and districts. Under existing regulatory authority, the board of governors requires each community college to be accredited. This bill would prohibit the accrediting agency from imposing a special assessment on community colleges to pay for the accrediting agency's legal fees for any lawsuit unless there has been an affirmative vote of the majority of the chief executive officers, or their designees, of all of the community colleges. The bill would excuse compliance with this prohibition if the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges determines that the accrediting agency's compliance would violate federal law, as specified.
This measure would proclaim the month of October 2015 as "Breast Cancer Awareness and Prevention Month."
(1) Article XIX of the California Constitution restricts the expenditure of revenues from taxes imposed by the state on fuels used in motor vehicles upon public streets and highways to street and highway and certain mass transit purposes, and restricts the expenditure of revenues from fees and taxes imposed by the state upon vehicles or their use or operation to state administration and enforcement of laws regulating the use, operation, or registration of vehicles used upon the public streets and highways, as well as to street and highway and certain mass transit purposes. These restrictions do not apply to revenues from taxes or fees imposed under the Sales and Use Tax Law or the Vehicle License Fee Law. Article XIX prohibits the Legislature from borrowing revenues from taxes imposed by the state on fuels used in motor vehicles, and from using those revenues other than as specifically permitted by Article XIX. Article XIX provides that up to 25% of fuel tax revenues allocated to the state may be pledged or used for the payment of principal and interest on voter-approved transportation bonds issued for street and highway purposes on and after November 2, 2010, upon voter approval and appropriation by the Legislature. Article XIX provides that up to 25% of fuel tax revenues allocated to cities and counties may be pledged or used for the payment of principal and interest on voter-approved transportation bonds issued for street and highway purposes. However, in counties where voters have approved the use of fuel tax revenues for certain mass transit purposes, Article XIX provides that the Legislature may authorize any fuel tax revenues allocated to mass transit purposes to be pledged or used for payment of principal and interest on voter-approved bonds issued for those mass transit purposes. This measure would prohibit the Legislature from borrowing revenues from fees and taxes imposed by the state on vehicles or their use or operation, and from using those revenues other than as specifically permitted by Article XIX. The measure would also prohibit those revenues from being pledged or used for the payment of principal and interest on bonds or other indebtedness. The measure would delete the provision that provides for use of any fuel tax revenues allocated to mass transit purposes to be pledged or used for payment of principal and interest on voter-approved bonds issued for those mass transit purposes, and would instead subject those expenditures to the existing 25% limitation applicable to the use of fuel tax revenues for street and highway bond purposes. This measure would also restrict the expenditure of revenues from taxes imposed by the state on motor vehicle fuels used other than in motor vehicles upon public streets and highways, by requiring the use of those revenues for street and highway purposes, but only with respect to the portion of the affected revenues attributable to increases in tax rates that are effective on or after July 1, 2010. This restriction on expenditures would not apply if federal law requires another use of any portion of those revenues. The measure would also prohibit the Legislature from borrowing those revenues or pledging those revenues for debt service. (2) Article XI of the California Constitution requires the revenues derived under the Vehicle License Fee Law from a rate that does not exceed 0.65% of the market value of a vehicle to be allocated to cities and counties, and does not restrict expenditure of those revenues for a particular purpose. This measure would require revenues derived from that portion of the vehicle license fee rate that exceeds 0.65% of the market value of a vehicle to be used solely for street and highway purposes and would prohibit the Legislature from borrowing those revenues. The measure would also prohibit those revenues from being pledged or used for the payment of principal and interest on bonds or other indebtedness. (3) This measure would make other conforming changes.
This measure would commend AMVETS Department of California, also known as Team AMVETS, for providing benefits and services to veterans, and for playing an important role in the community for 70 years.
This measure would urge the Governor to proclaim the month of June 2015 as World War II Remembrance Month, and call upon all Californians to observe the 70th anniversary of the end of the war.
Existing law, the Respiratory Care Practice Act, provides for the licensure and regulation of the practice of respiratory therapy by the Respiratory Care Board of California. A violation of the act is a crime. Existing law declares it is the intent of the Legislature to recognize the existence of overlapping functions between physicians and surgeons, registered nurses, physical therapists, respiratory care practitioners, and other licensed health care personnel, and to permit additional sharing of functions within organized health care systems, as specified. Existing law also states that nothing in the act shall be construed to authorize a respiratory care practitioner to practice medicine, surgery, or any other form of healing, except as authorized by the act. This bill, for intent purposes, would define "overlapping functions" to include providing therapy, management, rehabilitation, diagnostic evaluation, and care for nonrespiratory-related diagnoses or conditions provided certain requirements are met. Under existing law, respiratory care as a practice means a health care profession employed under the supervision of a medical director in the therapy, management, rehabilitation, diagnostic evaluation, and care of patients with deficiencies and abnormalities which affect the pulmonary system and associated aspects of cardiopulmonary and other systems functions, and includes, among other things, direct and indirect pulmonary care services that are safe, aseptic, preventive, and restorative to the patient. Existing law provides for the registration and regulation of certified polysomnographic technologists by the Medical Board of California. Under existing law governing polysomnographic technologists, the practice of polysomnography is defined to include the treatment, management, diagnostic testing, control, education, and care of patients with sleep and wake disorders. Existing law governing polysomnographic technologists exempts from those provisions, among others, respiratory care practitioners working within the scope of practice of their license. This bill would provide that associated aspects of cardiopulmonary and other systems functions includes patients with deficiencies and abnormalities affecting the heart and cardiovascular system. The bill would further define the respiratory care practice to include, among other things, the administration of medical gases and pharmacological agents for the purpose of inducing conscious or deep sedation under specified supervision and direct orders, all forms of specified life support, and the treatment, management, diagnostic testing, control, education, and care of patients with sleep and wake disorders. By changing the definition of a crime, 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.
Existing law requires all moneys, except for fines and penalties, collected by the State Air Resources Board from the auction or sale of allowances as part of a market-based compliance mechanism relative to reduction of greenhouse gas emissions to be deposited in the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund. Existing law continuously appropriates 60% of the annual proceeds of the fund to various purposes, including high-speed rail, transit and intercity rail capital, low-carbon transit operations, and affordable housing and sustainable communities. This bill would exclude from allocation under these provisions the annual proceeds of the fund generated from the transportation fuels sector. The bill would instead provide that those annual proceeds shall be appropriated by the Legislature for transportation infrastructure, including public streets and highways, but excluding high-speed rail.
Existing law requires a state agency, department, officer, or other state governmental entity, to meet an annual statewide participation goal of not less than 3% for disabled veteran business enterprises for specified contracts entered into by the awarding department during the year. The administering agency for the California Disabled Veteran Business Enterprise Program is the Department of General Services. Existing law requires the Director of General Services to adopt written policies and guidelines establishing a uniform process for state contracting that provides a disabled veteran business enterprise participation incentive to bidders. This bill would require a greater participation incentive to be provided to a prime contractor who owns a disabled veteran business enterprise, as specified, and has not previously entered into any contracts with the state as a prime contractor, and to a disabled veteran business enterprise that employs a workforce that is more than 50% veterans or that has not previously entered into any contracts with the state. The bill would require an awarding department to consider whether greater disabled veteran business enterprise participation in excess of 3% should be required on its contracts. Existing law requires the Department of Veterans Affairs to maintain complete records of its promotional efforts to promote the program and to establish a system to track the effectiveness of its promotional efforts. This bill would require the department to maintain additional information relating to its promotional efforts, as specified. Existing law requires a prime contractor who entered into a subcontract with a disabled veteran business enterprise to make certain disclosures to the awarding department after completion of the contract. This bill would require the awarding department that receives this information to maintain those records for a minimum of 5 years, as specified. The bill would require every awarding department to establish a procedure to ensure the accuracy and completeness of those records. The bill would further require a contractor who subcontracts with disabled veteran business enterprises to comply with additional requirements when providing its certification of expenditures to an awarding department, as specified. Existing law requires each awarding department to appoint an agency Disabled Veteran Business Enterprise Program Advocate. Existing law requires the agency Disabled Veteran Business Enterprise Program Advocate to, among other things, assist certified disabled veteran business enterprises in participating in that agency's contracting process. This bill would additionally require the advocate to maintain records of the promotional efforts hosted or attended by the advocate, as specified. Existing law requires a department, as defined under the State Contract Act, to report on contracting activity containing specified information. This bill would require a department, as defined, to establish guidelines for reporting multiyear contracts. The bill would make other minor, technical changes to the reporting requirements under the program.