Sen. Nancy Skinner

This measure would declare that President Abraham Lincoln be honored on February 12, 2013, the anniversary of his birthday.

This measure would recognize February 2013 as Black History Month, urge all citizens to join in celebrating the accomplishments of African Americans during Black History Month, and encourage the people of California to recognize the many talents, achievements, and contributions that African Americans make to their communities.

This measure would urge the President to sign and Congress to pass the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act and ensure the sustainability of vital programs designed to keep women and families safe from violence and abuse.

This measure would recognize the month of February 2013 as American Heart Month in California and recognize February 1, 2013, as Wear Red Day in California.

This measure would designate that January 21, 2013, be observed as the official memorial of the late Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s birth and commemorate Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and the work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Civil Rights Movement in changing public policy in California and in the United States of America. This measure would also recognize the anniversaries of the Emancipation Proclamation and the March on Washington in connection with the advancement of civil rights.

(1) Existing law requires the Department of Motor Vehicles to issue driver's licenses to applicants who meet specified criteria and provide the department with the required information. Existing law requires the department to establish that the applicant's presence in the United States is authorized under federal law. Under existing federal law, the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security has issued a directive allowing certain undocumented individuals who meet several key criteria for relief from removal from the United States or from entering into removal proceedings to be eligible to receive deferred action for a period of 2 years, subject to renewal, and who will be eligible to apply for work authorization. This bill would allow persons who provide satisfactory proof, as described, that their presence in the United States is authorized under federal law, but who are not eligible for a social security account number, to receive an original driver's license from the Department of Motor Vehicles if they meet all other qualifications for licensure. (2) Existing law prohibits a person from renting a motor vehicle to another unless the person to whom the vehicle is rented is a validly licensed driver, as specified, and the person renting to that driver has inspected the person's driver's license and compared the signature on the license with the signature of the driver written in his or her presence. This bill would delete the requirement that the signature of the driver be written in his or her presence and would allow the person renting the vehicle to instead compare the photograph on the driver's license of the person with the person to whom the vehicle is to be rented. The bill would also exempt, a "rental company," as defined, from these requirements if the rental is subject to the terms of a membership agreement that allows the renter to gain physical access to a car without a key through use of a code, key card, or by other means that allow the car to be accessed at a remote location or at a business location of the rental company outside of that location's regular hours of operation.

Existing law creates the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund as a special fund in the State Treasury and requires any moneys collected by the State Air Resources Board under the California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 from the auction or sale of allowances pursuant to a market-based compliance mechanism to be deposited into the fund and available for appropriation by the Legislature. Existing law requires a state agency, prior to expending any moneys appropriated to it by the Legislature from the fund, to prepare a record consisting of a description of proposed expenditures and how they will further the regulatory purposes of the California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006, how they will achieve specified greenhouse gas emissions reductions, how the agency considered other objectives of that act, and how the agency will document expenditure results. This bill would enact the School Energy Efficiency and Greenhouse Gas Reduction Act. The bill would create the School Energy Efficiency and Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund as a special fund in the State Treasury. The bill would make moneys in the School Energy Efficiency and Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund available to the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for the purposes of implementing the program. The bill states the intent of the Legislature that the commission administer the fund and implement the program in coordination with the Superintendent of Public Instruction to provide grants to eligible institutions for building retrofits to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases and reduce the demand for energy. The bill would require the commission to award grants through the Bright Schools Program, as specified, and require the commission, in consultation with the Superintendent, to establish a system to prioritize eligible institutions for grants.