Existing federal law provides for the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) , known in California as CalFresh, formerly the Food Stamp Program, under which supplemental nutrition assistance benefits allocated to the state by the federal government are distributed to eligible individuals by each county. Under existing law, a person convicted of specified drug offenses, including transporting, selling, furnishing, administering, giving away, possessing for sale, purchasing for purpose of sale, or manufacturing a controlled substance, is ineligible to receive CalFresh benefits. Existing law authorizes the payment of CalFresh benefits to other convicted drug felons who have participated in, or are on the waiting list for, a drug treatment program, or who can show other evidence that the illegal use of controlled substances has ceased. This bill would authorize CalFresh benefits to be paid to an individual who is convicted in state or federal court after December 31, 1997, of any offense classified as a felony that has as an element the possession, use, or distribution of a controlled substance, as defined. If the person is on parole or probation or if he or she is a fleeing felon pursuant to federal law and guidance, he or she would be ineligible for CalFresh benefits during any period of revocation of parole or probation or while he or she is a fleeing felon pursuant to federal law and guidance. By requiring local agencies to provide a higher level of service, 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.
Sponsored bills
Existing law, the Political Reform Act of 1974, provides for the comprehensive regulation of campaign financing, including requiring the reporting of campaign contributions and expenditures and imposing other reporting and recordkeeping requirements on campaign committees. Existing law additionally imposes disclosure statement requirements with respect to advertisements supporting or opposing a candidate or ballot measure paid for by donors making contributions of specified amounts or by independent expenditures and defines several terms and phrases for these purposes. Existing law makes a knowing or willful violation of the Political Reform Act of 1974 a misdemeanor and subjects offenders to criminal penalties. This bill would repeal and recast several definitions. The bill would modify a committee identification requirement and a disclosure statement requirement relating to advertisements for or against any ballot measure paid for by a committee. The bill would impose new disclosure statement requirements for political advertisements regarding a ballot measure that are radio advertisements, prerecorded telephonic messages, television or video advertisements, or mass mailing or print advertisements that would require the identification of identifiable contributors, ballot measures, and other funding details, as specified. By introducing new disclosure requirements, the violation of which would be a misdemeanor, the bill would create a new crime, thereby imposing a state-mandated local program. Existing law creates the Fair Political Practices Commission, and gives it primary responsibility for the impartial, effective administration and implementation of the Political Reform Act of 1974. The bill would require the Fair Political Practices Commission to promulgate regulations related to identifying and reporting persons who are the original sources of funds transferred through committees or other persons to determine identifiable contributors by January 1, 2016. The bill would require the Commission to promulgate regulations prohibiting a recipient of funds transferred by an identifiable contributor from depositing the funds until required applicable reports have been received by the recipient. This bill would incorporate additional changes in Section 84511 of the Government Code proposed by A.B. 510, that would become operative only if A.B. 510 and this bill are both chaptered and become effective on or before January 1, 2015, and this bill is chaptered last. 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. 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 and compliance with specified procedural requirements. This bill would declare that it furthers the purposes of the act.
(1) Existing law creates the Safe, Clean, and Reliable Drinking Water Supply Act of 2012, which, if approved by the voters, would authorize the issuance of bonds in the amount of $11,140,000,000 pursuant to the State General Obligation Bond Law to finance a safe drinking water and water supply reliability program. Existing law provides for the submission of the bond act to the voters at the November 4, 2014, statewide general election. This bill would repeal these provisions. (2) Under existing law, various measures have been approved by the voters to provide funds for water supply and protection facilities and programs. This bill would enact the Safe Drinking Water, Water Quality, and Water Supply Act of 2014, which, if adopted by the voters, would authorize the issuance of bonds in the amount of $7,500,000,000 pursuant to the State General Obligation Bond Law to finance a safe drinking water, water quality, and water supply program. The bill would provide for the submission of the bond act to the voters at the November 4, 2014, statewide general election. (3) Existing law, the Water Conservation and Water Quality Bond Law of 1986, approved by the voters at the June 3, 1986, statewide primary election, authorizes the issuance of general obligation bonds in the amount of $150,000,000 for the Department of Water Resources to make prescribed loans to local agencies for the purposes of financing a water conservation and water quality program. Existing law, the Water Conservation Bond Law of 1988, approved by the voters at the November 8, 1988, statewide general election, authorizes the issuance of general obligation bonds in the amount of $60,000,000 for the Department of Water Resources to make prescribed loans to local agencies for the purposes of financing a water conservation program. Existing law, the Safe, Clean, Reliable Water Supply Act, a bond act approved by the voters as Proposition 204 at the November 5, 1996, statewide general election, authorizes the issuance of general obligation bonds in the amount of $995,000,000 for grants, loans, and direct expenditures for the purposes of financing a safe, clean, reliable water supply program. Existing law, the Costa-Machado Water Act of 2000, a bond act approved by the voters as Proposition 13 at the March 7, 2000, statewide primary election, authorizes the issuance of general obligation bonds in the amount of $1,970,000,000 for grants, loans, and direct expenditures for the purposes of financing a safe drinking water, clean water, watershed protection, and flood protection program. This bill would authorize the Legislature to appropriate any unencumbered proceeds of bonds from the above-described bond acts in their respective bond funds as of November 5, 2014, for prescribed purposes as described in the Safe Drinking Water, Water Quality, and Water Supply Act of 2014. This bill would provide for the submission of these provisions to the voters at the November 4, 2014, statewide general election. (4) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
The California Wild and Scenic Rivers Act includes specified rivers and segments thereof within the California Wild and Scenic Rivers system, which are subject to various protections under the act. Existing law requires the Natural Resources Agency to coordinate the activities of state agencies whose activities affect the rivers in the system, as specified, and to study and submit to the Governor and the Legislature reports on the suitability or nonsuitability of designated potential additions to the system. This bill would include within the system specified segments of the Mokelumne River, and would designate those segments as wild, scenic, or recreational.
The California Constitution conditions the imposition of a special tax by a local government upon the approval of 23 of the voters of the local government voting on that tax, and prohibits a local government from imposing an ad valorem tax on real property or a transactions tax or sales tax on the sale of real property. This measure would instead condition the imposition, extension, or increase of a special tax by a local government upon the approval of 55% of the voters voting on the proposition, if the proposition proposing the tax contains specified requirements. The measure would also make conforming and technical, nonsubstantive changes.
Existing law provides for 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 establishes the Medi-Cal Hospital/Uninsured Care Demonstration Project Act, which revises hospital supplemental payment methodologies under the Medi-Cal program in order to maximize the use of federal funds consistent with federal Medicaid law and to stabilize the distribution of funding for hospitals that provide care to Medi-Cal beneficiaries and uninsured patients. Existing law requires the department to seek a successor demonstration project or federal waiver of Medicaid law to implement specified objectives, which may include better care coordination for seniors, persons with disabilities, and children with special health care needs. Existing law provides that to the extent the provisions under the Medi-Cal Hospital/Uninsured Care Demonstration Project Act do not conflict with the provisions of, or the Special Terms and Conditions of, this demonstration project, the provisions of the Medi-Cal Hospital/Uninsured Care Demonstration Project Act apply. Existing law also defines designated public hospital for purposes of these provisions and requires that designated public hospitals be eligible for specified payments under the demonstration project. This bill would require the department to seek federal approval to add Doctors Medical Center, operated by West Contra Costa Healthcare District, to the list of designated public hospital for purposes of the demonstration project. The bill would provide that it is the intent of the Legislature that Doctors Medical Center be eligible for any funding available to designated public hospitals under the demonstration project. The bill would appropriate $3,000,000 from the General Fund to the West Contra Costa Healthcare District for support of the Doctors Medical Center. This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute relating to the Doctors Medical Center, operated by the West Contra Costa Healthcare District. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Existing law, the California Refinery and Chemical Plant Worker Safety Act of 1990 (act) , states that its purpose is to prevent or minimize the consequences of catastrophic releases of toxic, flammable, or explosive chemicals. Existing law provides for the adoption of specified process safety management standards for, among others, refineries that handle acutely hazardous material. Existing law declares the intent of the Legislature for, among others, the Division of Occupational Safety and Health, to promote worker safety through implementation of training and process safety management, as defined, in refineries and other facilities as deemed appropriate. A violation of the act is a crime. This bill would require a refinery employer to, every September 15, submit to the division a full schedule of planned turnarounds, meaning any instance of an industrial plant or unit being partially or totally taken offstream or offline for the purposes of maintenance, overhaul, repair, inspection, testing, or replacement of materials or equipment, for the following calendar year, as specified. Upon the request of the division, the bill would also require a refinery employer to provide the division with specified documentation relating to a planned turnaround within a certain period of time. Because a violation of the bill's requirements would be 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 generally provides for the programming and allocation of state and federal transportation capital improvement funds pursuant to the state transportation improvement program process administered by the California Transportation Commission. Existing law additionally requires the Department of Transportation to prepare a state highway operation and protection program for the expenditure of funds for major capital improvements that are necessary to preserve and protect the state highway system but that do not add a new traffic lane to the system. The state highway operation and protection program is based on a 10-year rehabilitation plan and a 5-year maintenance plan prepared by the department. Existing law provides for the program to be submitted to the commission for approval in every even-numbered year. Existing law authorizes the commission to review the program relative to its overall adequacy, level of annual funding needed to implement the program, and impact of those expenditures on the state transportation improvement program, but does not provide for the commission to allocate funds to specific projects in the state highway operation and protection program. This bill would require the commission to allocate funding for all capital and support costs for a project in the state highway operation and protection program. For a project that experiences increases in capital or support costs above the amount originally allocated, the bill would require the department to submit a supplemental project allocation request for approval by the commission. The bill would authorize the commission to establish guidelines to provide exceptions to the requirements relating to these supplemental project allocation requests that it determines may be necessary to ensure projects are not unnecessarily delayed.
Existing law authorizes Security Housing Units for segregation of certain prisoners for disciplinary or security purposes, and because of gang membership or association. This bill would require specified due process procedures for determining if an inmate is a security threat group affiliate. The bill would require the Office of the Inspector General, commencing January 1, 2016, to review every security threat group validation and revalidation completed on or after July 1, 2015, in which confidential information was used. Any documents pertaining to the review of security threat group validations would not be subject to a public records request or discovery. The bill would require an inmate subject to an indeterminate Security Housing Unit term as a result of a security threat group validation to be placed in a multistep program with the ultimate goal of returning the inmate back into the general prison population as rapidly as possible. The bill would require the department to prepare a reentry plan for every offender who will parole directly out of the Security Housing Unit or Psychiatric Services Unit into the community. The bill would require an inmate subject to a determinate Security Housing Unit term or an offender in the multistep program to be provided with promising or evidence-based programming that promotes successful assimilation back into the general prison population. The bill would require the department to prepare a reentry plan for every offender who will parole directly out of the Security Housing Unit or Psychiatric Services Unit into the community. The bill would require the Office of the Inspector General to review the department's compliance with the above provisions and to issue reports, no less than annually, to the Governor and the Legislature summarizing its review. The bill would require an inmate in a Security Housing Unit or Psychiatric Services Unit to have access to educational programming, to have access to radio or television, and the opportunity to earn additional specified privileges. The bill would require the department to employ 2 ombudsmen to act as offender resource specialists for Security Housing Units and Psychiatric Services Units, to be responsible for, among other things, assisting an inmate with concerns about the inmate's responsibilities and rights during confinement in one of those units, and responding to an inmate's family member's inquiries. The bill would require the department, commencing July 1, 2015, to the extent the data is already being collected, to collect specified data regarding inmates subject to a term in a Security Housing Unit. The bill would require the Office of the Inspector General, commencing January 1, 2017, and biennially thereafter, to use the data to prepare reports for the Legislature on specified criteria pertaining to inmates in a Security Housing Unit and a Psychiatric Services Unit. Existing law provides that an inmate placed in a Security Housing Unit for specified crimes or because of gang association or membership, or placed in a Psychiatric Services Unit, is ineligible to earn credits towards reducing his or her sentence during the time the inmate is in the Security Housing Unit. This bill would permit the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to establish regulations to allow specified inmates to earn credits, as specified. The bill would state findings and declarations by the Legislature relative to Security Housing Units. Existing constitutional provisions require that a statute that limits the right of access to the meetings of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies be adopted with findings demonstrating the interest protected by the limitation and the need for protecting that interest. This bill would make legislative findings to that effect.
Existing federal law provides for the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) , known in California as CalFresh, formerly the Food Stamp Program, under which supplemental nutrition assistance benefits allocated to the state by the federal government are distributed to eligible individuals by each county. Under existing law, a person convicted of specified drug offenses, including transporting, selling, furnishing, administering, giving away, possessing for sale, purchasing for purpose of sale, or manufacturing a controlled substance, is ineligible to receive CalFresh benefits. Existing law authorizes the payment of CalFresh benefits to other convicted drug felons who have participated in, or are on the waiting list for, a drug treatment program, or who can show other evidence that the illegal use of controlled substances has ceased. This bill would authorize CalFresh benefits to be paid to an individual who is convicted in state or federal court after December 31, 1997, of any offense classified as a felony that has as an element the possession, use, or distribution of a controlled substance, as defined. If the person is on supervised release, he or she would be ineligible for CalFresh benefits during any period of revocation of that supervised release where the revocation results in the individual's incarceration. The bill would authorize implementation and administration of these provisions by all-county letters or similar instructions from the Director of Social Services, developed in consultation with specified entities, and would, thereafter, require the State Department of Social Services to adopt regulations by January 1, 2015. Because counties administer CalFresh, this bill would increase county duties by potentially expanding the eligible population, and would thereby 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.