Sen. Brian Jones

Existing law establishes various environmental and economic policies and programs. This bill, upon appropriation by the Legislature, as provided, would establish the Nature and Parks Career Pathway and Community Resiliency and Equity Act of 2021, which would require state conservancies and the Wildlife Conservation Board to establish grant programs to fund climate mitigation, adaptation, or resilience, natural disaster, and other climate emergency projects, as specified.

Existing law, the Alcoholic Beverage Control Act, which is administered by the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, regulates the application, issuance, and suspension of alcoholic beverage licenses. Existing law establishes specified types of alcoholic beverage licenses and prescribes the rights and duties of the respective licensees. Existing law prohibits a person without the appropriate license from exercising a privilege or performing any act for which the license is required, and a violation of this prohibition is a misdemeanor or a felony, as specified. Existing law authorizes a licensed craft distiller to manufacture and produce distilled spirits, subject to specified conditions, including that the licensee manufacture no more than 150,000 gallons of distilled spirits per fiscal year and sell no more than 2.25 liters of prepackaged containers of the licensee's spirits per day per consumer. This bill would additionally authorize a licensed craft distiller to sell and ship distilled spirits directly to a California resident, who is at least 21 years of age, for the resident's personal use and not for resale, under specific conditions. This bill would also authorize a person currently licensed in another state as a craft distiller, or licensed in a similar manner, that obtains a distilled spirits direct shipper permit to sell and ship distilled spirits directly to a California resident, who is at least 21 years of age, for the resident's personal use and not for resale, under similar conditions. The bill would make a knowing violation of these provisions a misdemeanor. The bill would establish a new license type for a distilled spirits direct shipper permit (Type 89) and would set an application fee of $100 and an annual renewal fee of $25. By expanding the scope of an existing crime and creating a new crime, 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 State Department of State Hospitals and provides that the department has jurisdiction over the specified facilities, including, among others, Atascadero, Coalinga, Metropolitan, Napa, and Patton State Hospitals. Existing law, the Lanterman-Petris-Short Act, authorizes the appointment of a conservator of the person, or of the estate, or of the person and the estate, for any person who is gravely disabled as a result of mental disorder or impairment by chronic alcoholism. Existing law requires a conservator appointed pursuant to these provisions to place the conservatee according to specified requirements and authorizes the placement to include certain facilities, including, among others, a state hospital. This bill would require the department, on or before July 1, 2022, to develop a plan to expand the capacity of its facilities to reduce wait times for a person committed to a department facility pursuant to the Lanterman-Petris-Short Act to 60 days or less. The bill would require the department, on or before July 1, 2022, to submit to the Legislature a copy of the plan and a report regarding the anticipated cost of implementing the plan. The bill would require the department, on or before January 1, 2027, to implement that plan.

Existing law, the California Emergency Services Act, authorizes the Governor to proclaim a state of emergency, and local governments to proclaim a local emergency, when specified conditions of disaster or extreme peril to the safety of persons and property exist, and authorizes the Governor or the local government to exercise certain powers in response to that emergency. Existing law grants immunity to the state and its political subdivisions for any claim based upon the exercise or performance, or the failure to exercise or perform, a discretionary function or duty on the part of a state or local agency or any employee of the state or its political subdivisions in carrying out the California Emergency Services Act. Existing law establishes the State Department of Public Health, headed by the State Public Health Officer, and sets forth its powers and duties, including the administration of provisions relating to the prevention and control of communicable disease. Existing law authorizes the department to adopt and enforce regulations requiring strict or modified isolation, or quarantine, for any of the contagious, infectious, or communicable diseases, if in the opinion of the department the action is necessary for the protection of the public health. On March 4, 2020, the Governor proclaimed a state of emergency in response to the 2019 novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. Pursuant to specified provisions relating to the prevention and control, the State Public Health Officer ordered all individuals living in the state to stay home or at their place of residence except as needed to maintain continuity of operations of the federal critical infrastructure sectors, as outlined in the United States Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency's guidance on the essential critical infrastructure workforce. Pursuant to authority under specified provisions of the California Emergency Services Act, the Governor issued Executive Order No. N-33-20 requiring all residents to immediately heed those state public health directives. This bill, the Religion is Essential Act, would, during a state of emergency or local emergency, require the Governor or the local government to deem religious services to be an essential service and to be necessary and vital to the health and welfare of the public. The bill would prohibit the state and local government from taking a discriminatory action against a religious organization, as those terms are defined, and would require the state and local government to permit a religious organization to continue operating and engaging in religious services during a state of emergency to the same or greater extent that other organizations or businesses that provide essential services that are necessary and vital to the health and welfare of the public are permitted to operate. The bill would prohibit the state and local government from enforcing any health, safety, or occupancy requirement that imposes a substantial burden on a religious service unless the state or local government demonstrates that applying the burden to the religious service is essential to further a compelling governmental interest and is the least restrictive means of furthering that compelling governmental interest. This bill would authorize a religious organization to assert a violation of these provisions as a claim against the state or a local government in a judicial or administrative proceeding or as a defense in a judicial or administrative proceeding, as specified. The bill would entitle a religious organization that successfully asserts a claim or defense to certain relief, as specified. The bill would make related findings and declarations. By imposing additional duties on a local government in the exercise of emergency powers, 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 the statutory provisions noted above.

(1) The California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 (act) designates the State Air Resources Board as the state agency responsible for monitoring and regulating sources of emissions of greenhouse gases. The act authorizes the state board to include the use of market-based compliance mechanisms. Existing law requires all moneys, except for fines and penalties, collected by the state board from a market-based compliance mechanism to be deposited in the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund and to be available upon appropriation by the Legislature. Existing law states that a specified amount is to be annually appropriated, through the 2023–24 fiscal year, from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund to the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection in the annual Budget Act for specified healthy forest and fire prevention programs and projects. Existing law authorizes the department to administer various programs, including grant programs, relating to forest health and wildfire protection. This bill would prohibit the department from requiring applicants for a grant or other funds made available to the department from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund to consider the greenhouse gas emissions impacts of vegetation management projects pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) as a condition of applying for or receiving a grant or other funds from moneys made available to the department from the fund. The bill would define "vegetation management projects" as projects that improve forest health, reduce fuel loading, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions caused by uncontrolled wildfires that involve the thinning of overgrown brush and trees, as specified, by mechanical thinning, piling, pile burning, chipping, prescribed fire, cultural fire, or grazing. (2) CEQA requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of an environmental impact report 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 requires a lead agency to prepare a mitigated negative declaration for a project that may have a significant impact 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. CEQA requires a lead agency to make a good-faith effort, based to the extent possible on scientific and factual data, to describe, calculate, or estimate the amount of greenhouse gas emissions resulting from a project and determine the significance of a project's greenhouse gas emissions. This bill would prohibit a lead agency, in complying with CEQA, from considering the greenhouse gas emissions impacts of vegetation management projects, as defined above.

The Political Reform Act of 1974 imposes reporting and registration requirements for lobbyists, committees formed for political purposes, and other persons. The act requires specified committees and slate mailer organizations to file their original statements of organization with the Secretary of State and with their local filing officer. The act requires individual lobbyists, lobbying firms, lobbying coalitions, and lobbyist employers, as defined, to file registration statements, any amendments to the statements, and notices of termination with the Secretary of State, both by online or electronic means and physically in paper format. The act also provides that if the Secretary of State develops and certifies an online filing and disclosure system, as specified, a comprehensive system of online and electronic filing requirements will be imposed, under which specified committees, slate mailer organizations, lobbyists, and other persons are required to file specified documents online or electronically with the Secretary of State without an additional requirement that they be filed in physical form, except as specified. This bill would immediately impose the online and electronic filing system with respect to specified committees, slate mailer organizations, lobbyists, and other persons. The bill would also eliminate the requirement that individual lobbyists, lobbying firms, lobbying coalitions, and lobbyist employers, as defined, file their registration statements, any amendments, or notices of termination, in physical form with the Secretary of State. The Political Reform Act of 1974, an initiative measure, provides that the Legislature may amend the act to further the act's purposes upon a 23 vote of each house of the Legislature and compliance with specified procedural requirements. This bill would declare that it furthers the purposes of the act. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

Existing law provides for the licensure and regulation of various professions and vocations by boards within the Department of Consumer Affairs and provides for the denial, suspension, and revocation of licenses for specified conduct. Existing law provides for the regulation of healing arts by various boards. Existing law authorizes boards to impose fines or penalties, as provided. Existing law, the Alcoholic Beverage Control Act, which is administered by the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, regulates the application, issuance, and suspension of alcoholic beverage licenses. The act provides the grounds upon which the department may suspend or revoke licenses and impose fines and penalties, as provided. This bill would prohibit the Department of Consumer Affairs, a board within the Department of Consumer Affairs that does not regulate healing arts licensees, and the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control from revoking a license or imposing a fine or penalty for failure to comply with any COVID-19 state of emergency orders or COVID-19 stay-at-home orders, unless the board or department can prove that lack of compliance resulted in transmission of COVID-19. The bill would specify that the provisions do not preclude issuance of fines, penalties, or revoking a license for any action that is not related to the issuance of any COVID-19 state of emergency orders or COVID-19 stay-at-home order. The provisions of the bill would remain in effect until either the COVID-19 state of emergency is terminated or all COVID-19 stay-at-home orders are no longer in effect, whichever occurs later, but in no case would the provisions remain in effect after January 1, 2024. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

The Personal Income Tax Law, in modified conformity with federal law, generally defines "gross income" as income from whatever source derived, except as specifically excluded, and provides various exclusions from gross income for purposes of computing tax liability. Existing law requires any bill authorizing a new tax expenditure to contain, among other things, specific goals, purposes, and objectives that the tax expenditure will achieve, detailed performance indicators, and data collection requirements. This bill, for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2021, and before January 1, 2026, would provide an exclusion from gross income for all survivor benefits or payments received on or after January 1, 2021, and before January 1, 2026, under the federal Survivor Benefit Plan. The bill would require the Franchise Tax Board to submit, on or before December 1, 2025, a report to the Legislature on the income brackets of taxpayers who claimed this exclusion, and would provide findings and declarations relating to the goals, purposes, and objectives of this exclusion. This bill would take effect immediately as a tax levy.

Existing law, the California Emergency Services Act, authorizes the Governor to proclaim a state of emergency when specified conditions of disaster or extreme peril to the safety of persons and property exist, and authorizes the Governor to exercise certain powers in response to that emergency, including, but not limited to, suspending specified statutes, ordinances, orders, regulations, or rules. Existing law requires all of the powers granted the Governor by the California Emergency Services Act with respect to a state of emergency to terminate when the state of emergency has been terminated by proclamation of the Governor or by concurrent resolution of the Legislature declaring it at an end. This bill would require a state of emergency to terminate 60 days after the Governor's proclamation of the state of emergency unless the Legislature extends it by a concurrent resolution, as specified. The bill would prohibit a concurrent resolution from extending a state of emergency by more than 60 days, as specified.

Existing law authorizes cities and counties to license any kind of business, not prohibited by law, transacted and carried on within the limits of its jurisdiction. Cities and counties, pursuant to certain restrictions, may impose a license fee on those businesses. This bill would prohibit cities and counties, including charter cities and counties, from imposing or collecting license fees from restaurants from January 1, 2020, to December 31, 2021, as provided, and would require the city or county to refund to a restaurant any license fees collected during that period. By imposing new duties on cities and counties with respect to imposing or collecting specified license fees, and by requiring that the fees be refunded, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. Existing law, the Alcoholic Beverage Control Act, is administered by the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control and regulates the granting of licenses for the manufacture, distribution, and sale of alcoholic beverages within the state. Existing law imposes various assessments, including annual renewal fees for licenses and permit fees, depending on the type of license issued, and specified surcharges. Existing law authorizes an adjustment of the renewal fees, as provided, and requires these fees and surcharges to be deposited into various funds, including the Alcohol Beverage Control Fund, the Alcoholic Beverage Control Appeals Fund, and the Motor Vehicle Account in the State Transportation Fund. This bill would waive specified permanent license application fees, annual renewal fees, and associated surcharges for applications submitted on or after January 1, 2020, but before January 1, 2022, and would require the department to refund those fees if already paid. The bill would waive specified interim operating permit fees from January 1, 2020, to December 31, 2021, and would require the department to refund those fees if already paid. The bill would also authorize, subject to specified limitations, the department to adjust specified annual renewal fees on or after January 1, 2022, and each January 1 thereafter, as if the annual renewal fees were adjusted on January 1, 2020, and January 1, 2021. By requiring fees and surcharges to be refunded to licensees from the Alcohol Beverage Control Fund, the Alcoholic Beverage Control Appeals Fund, and the Motor Vehicle Account, this bill would make an appropriation. Existing law, the California Retail Food Code, establishes uniform health and sanitation standards for, and provides for regulation by the State Department of Public Health of, retail food facilities, as defined, and requires local health enforcement agencies to enforce these provisions. The code requires each food facility to have a valid permit to be open for business and requires any fee for the permit to be determined by the local governing body. This bill would require a local enforcement agency to waive or refund the fee, as applicable, for the issuance of a new permit or the renewal of an existing permit from January 1, 2020, to December 31, 2021. By imposing new duties on local law enforcement agencies with respect to waiving or refunding specified permit fees, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would include findings that changes proposed by this bill address a matter of statewide concern rather than a municipal affair and, therefore, apply to all cities and counties, including charter cities and counties. 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.