Existing law appropriates the sum of $402,000,000 from the General Fund to the Superintendent of Public Instruction for the 2009–10 fiscal year to be allocated to schoolsites selected to participate in the Quality Education Investment Act program, as specified. Existing law requires the Superintendent, for each school district and chartering authority receiving an allocation pursuant to these provisions, to reduce its revenue limit or its general purpose entitlement, as specified, for the 2009–10 school year by the amount of the allocation received pursuant to these provisions. This bill would condition this reduction upon certification by the Superintendent that an equivalent amount of additional federal or state funds that may be used by a school district or chartering authority for revenue limit or general purpose uses have been made available to the school district or chartering authority. The bill would require the Superintendent of Public Instruction and the Director of Finance to report to the Legislature by March 1, 2010, the amount of the reductions specified in the bill that will not be eligible for restoration with available federal funding. The bill would require the Superintendent of Public Instruction to use $64,872,000 in federal funds, as specified, in combination with other available funds, for the purpose of awarding grants to local educational agencies that participate in the Quality Education Investment Act Program in the 2009–10 fiscal year, thereby making an appropriation.
Sponsored bills
(1) The Mello-Roos Community Facilities Act of 1982 authorizes a community facilities district to finance the purchase, construction, expansion, improvement, or rehabilitation of certain facilities, including, among others, child care facilities, undergrounding of water transmission and distribution facilities, and the cleanup of hazardous materials. This bill would also authorize a community facilities district to finance and refinance the acquisition, installation, and improvement of energy efficiency, water conservation, and renewable energy improvements to or on real property and in buildings, as specified. (2) Existing law specifies the requirements for the establishment of a community facilities district, including, among other things, a petition, a hearing, establishment of the boundaries of the community facilities district, and an election on the question of establishment. This bill would authorize a separate procedure for establishing a community facilities district where the district initially consists solely of territory proposed for annexation to the community facilities district in the future, as specified, and would provide an alternate procedure for incurring bonded indebtedness for community facility districts established in this manner.
Existing law prohibits a voter from placing any mark upon a ballot that will make the ballot identifiable. Under existing law, a ballot that is not marked as provided by law or that is marked or signed by the voter so that the ballot can be identified by others is required to be rejected. If a ballot is marked in a manner so as to identify the voter, the ballot is required to be marked "Void" and placed in a container for void ballots. This bill would instead prohibit a voter from placing personal information, as defined, upon a ballot that identifies the voter. The bill would provide that a ballot that contains personal information is not invalid. The bill would delete the requirement that a ballot marked in a manner so as to identify the voter is void and instead require a ballot that contains personal information to be segregated in a specified manner and would require that a duplicate ballot be prepared. By changing the duties of local elections officials, 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, 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.
Existing law requires the Attorney General to maintain certain information reported to the Department of Justice in connection with handgun transactions. This bill would require the Attorney General to maintain certain information related to the date of delivery of handguns. Existing law generally regulates the transfer of firearms by firearms dealers. This bill would require that the dealer provide a copy of the record of transfer to the seller and purchaser of a firearm, as specified. The bill would also require the record of transfer to have the signatures of the purchaser and the dealer to acknowledge the date of transfer of a handgun. Existing law provides various exemptions from various requirements pertaining to firearms transactions for law enforcement agencies and other government entities. This bill would provide additional exemptions from certain requirements pertaining to the transfer or disposition of firearms for law enforcement agencies, as specified. This bill would incorporate additional changes to Sections 11106 and 12076 of the Penal Code proposed by AB 962, to become operative if this bill is enacted after AB 962. This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 12078 of the Penal Code proposed by SB 175, to become operative if this bill is enacted after SB 175.
(1) Existing law establishes the public school system in this state, and, among other things, provides for the establishment of school districts throughout the state and for their provision of instruction at the public elementary and secondary schools they operate and maintain. Existing law establishes a public school funding system that includes, among other elements, the provision of funding to local educational agencies through state apportionments, the proceeds of property taxes collected at the local level, and other sources. This bill would express findings and declarations of the Legislature with respect to the school funding system in the state. The bill would require the Director of Finance and the Legislative Analyst to convene a working group to make findings and recommendations to the Legislature and the Governor on or before December 1, 2010, regarding restructuring California's school finance system. The bill would require those findings and recommendations to include, among other things, alternative structures for funding public schools, the policy and fiscal implications of the alternative funding structure or structures, and an evaluation mechanism to facilitate continuous improvement, maximum transparency, and accountability of the funding structures. (2) Existing law provides that the revenue limit for the Newport-Mesa Unified School District for the 1996–97 fiscal year, and future fiscal years, shall not include specified funds allocated to that district the receipt of which were delayed due to bankruptcy filed by the County of Orange. This bill would provide that these provisions would remain in effect only until July 1, 2010.
Existing law sets forth procedures for voting by mail and requires the local elections official to compare the signature on a vote by mail ballot received with the voter's signature that appears on the affidavit of registration. Existing law requires the elections official to establish procedures to track and confirm the receipt of vote by mail ballots that are voted and to make that information available by means of online access using the county's elections division Internet Web site, or, if it has no Internet Web site, then by toll-free telephone number that may be used to confirm the date the ballot was received. This bill would further require the local elections official to establish a free access system by which a vote by mail voter may find out whether his or her ballot was counted and, if not, the reason why it was not counted, thereby imposing 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.
Existing constitutional provisions authorize the Legislature to provide for the selection of committees necessary for the conduct of its business, including committees to ascertain facts and make recommendations to the Legislature on a subject within the scope of legislative control. This bill would prohibit a state official, including the Governor, from binding the state, or giving consent to the federal government to bind the state, to provisions of a proposed international trade agreement, including, the government procurement rules, unless a statute is enacted that explicitly authorizes a state official, including the Governor, to bind the state or to give consent to bind the state to that trade agreement.
Existing law provides for the regulation of health insurers by the Department of Insurance. Under existing law, a health insurer that provides maternity coverage may not restrict inpatient hospital benefits, as specified, and is required to provide notice of the maternity services coverage. This bill would require new forms for health insurance policies submitted to the department after January 1, 2010, to provide coverage for maternity services, as defined. With respect to policy forms on file with the department as of January 1, 2010, the bill would require health insurers to submit to the department, on or before March 1, 2010, revised policy forms that provide coverage for maternity services and would require insurers to include that coverage in the corresponding policies that are issued, amended, or renewed following the department's approval of the revised forms, as specified.
Existing law, the Mello-Granlund Older Californians Act, creates the California Department of Aging, with prescribed duties, including the development of the state plan on aging. This bill would require the department to report data from the Elder Economic Security Standard Index (Elder Index) , as defined, for each service area included in the state plan, if specified conditions are met. Existing law requires each area agency on aging to create a plan for its planning and service area that considers available data and population trends, assesses the need for services, identifies sources of funding for services, and develops and implements a plan for the delivery of services based on the need. This bill would also require that the plan utilize the Elder Index, specify the cost of meeting basic needs for elders in each planning and service area, and identify which elders are living at or below the Elder Index, as prescribed.
Existing law requires the collection of fees for issuing marriage licenses and for providing certified copies of vital records, including marriage certificates, birth certificates, fetal death records, and death records. Existing law provides for the establishment of county domestic violence program special funds for the purpose of funding local domestic violence programs. Certain fees payable at the time a marriage license or a certified copy of any of the above vital records is issued may be collected by the county clerks for deposit into these funds. Existing law authorizes the Alameda County Board of Supervisors, until January 1, 2010, upon making certain findings and declarations, to authorize an increase in the fees for marriage licenses and confidential marriage licenses, up to a maximum increase of $2. Existing law authorizes the Alameda County Board of Supervisors, and the City Council of the City of Berkeley, upon making certain findings and declarations, to authorize an increase in the fees for certified copies of certain vital records, up to a maximum increase of $2. Existing law authorizes those governmental entities to make further increases in those fees each year, as specified. Existing law requires these fees to be allocated for purposes relating to domestic violence prevention, intervention, and prosecution. This bill would extend the operation of those provisions indefinitely. Existing law requires the Alameda County Board of Supervisors and the City Council of the City of Berkeley to submit to the Assembly and Senate Committees on Judiciary, by July 1, 2009, reports regarding the above fee increases, as specified. This bill would, instead, require the Alameda County Board of Supervisors and the City Council of the City of Berkeley, if they elect to increase fees pursuant to the above-described provisions, to submit preliminary reports by July 1, 2009, and final reports by July 1, 2014. The bill would repeal these provisions on January 1, 2015. The bill would also make technical, nonsubstantive related changes.