Voluntary tax contribution funds: spinal cord injury research.

A new Title 23 called 'The Keep News Independent Act' was added with its own definitions and notice requirements for 'legacy local news organizations,' creating a second regulatory framework alongside the existing 'Keep News Local Act.'

The legislative findings were expanded from two subsections to three, adding a detailed list of benefits of independently owned newsrooms (local reporting, diversity of opinion, business development, community information access, and democratic underpinnings) and broadening the ownership promotion language to include 'independent, employee, and small business ownership opportunities.'

New exemption: the 'Keep News Independent Act' provisions do not apply to any legacy local news organization that would be independently owned after a transaction. 'Independently owned' means not publicly traded (no more than 5% beneficial ownership by a publicly traded entity), not beneficially owned by a private fund, and not a subsidiary.

The publication frequency threshold for print outlets was raised in the new framework from 'at least once per month in 11 of the previous 12 months' to 'at least 24 times over the previous 12 months,' making it harder for a print outlet to qualify as covered.

New definitions added: 'independently owned,' 'legacy local news organization,' 'local news organization,' 'private fund' (with exceptions for venture capital funds and certain community development financial institutions), and 'transaction.'

The new 'Keep News Independent Act' requires sale notices to be published in an adjudicated newspaper of general circulation in the county where the organization is located (or a bordering county) for three consecutive weeks, a requirement not present in the original 'Keep News Local Act.'

The old standalone 'SECTION 1' stating legislative intent to enact legislation regarding public notices of proposed sales was removed and replaced by the expanded findings section.

Entire Title 23 (Keep News Independent Act) removed from the Civil Code. This eliminated requirements for legacy local news organizations to provide 120-day notice of intent to sell, definitions of 'legacy local news organization,' 'independently owned,' 'local news organization,' 'private fund,' and 'transaction,' notice delivery methods (to employees, subscribers, and newspaper publication), and an exemption for organizations that would remain independently owned after a transaction.

The spinal cord injury research fund designation is now limited to taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2027, and before January 1, 2034. Previously there was no start date specified for when individuals could make the designation.

The repeal date is now fixed at December 1, 2034, in addition to the existing relative sunset (seventh calendar year after first appearance on the tax return). The annual contribution threshold check date is also fixed at September 1, 2028, and each September 1 thereafter, rather than being tied to the fund's first appearance.

The fiscal committee vote changed from 'no' to 'yes,' indicating a state fiscal impact was identified. The bill now explicitly confirms it makes an appropriation through the continuously appropriated fund.

Section 18724.1 was restructured from a single unbroken paragraph into three subdivisions: (a) fund establishment, (b) Franchise Tax Board notification to Controller, and (c) Controller transfer of funds.

An entirely new Article 3.1 (Sections 18724-18724.3) was added to the Revenue and Taxation Code, creating the California Spinal Cord Injury Research Voluntary Tax Contribution Fund. This is a completely separate policy topic from the bill's original local news focus.

The new fund is continuously appropriated. Contributions are allocated to the Franchise Tax Board and Controller for administrative costs, and to the UC Regents for research grants on spinal cord injury treatments. UC may use up to 5 percent of its allocation for administration and promotion of the program.

The appropriation designation changed from 'no' to 'yes' and the fiscal committee designation changed from 'no' to 'yes,' reflecting the new continuously appropriated fund.

Any individual taxpayer may designate a contribution in excess of their tax liability (minimum $1) on their original tax return. Contributions are irrevocable once made and must be in full dollar amounts. On joint returns, each signatory may contribute individually.

The new fund provisions sunset on January 1 of the seventh calendar year following the fund's first appearance on the tax return. Additionally, if estimated annual contributions fall below $250,000 in any calendar year, the article becomes inoperative for that year and is repealed.

The original local news provisions (Keep News Independent Act) were renumbered from Section 1 to Section 2. Minor wording corrections were made: 'A material sufficient amount' was changed to 'A sufficient amount,' 'one 1 year' was corrected to '1 year,' and 'legacy local media news organization' was corrected to 'legacy local news organization.'

The entire employee right-of-first-refusal mechanism was deleted. The Assembly version required outlets to give employees 60 days to submit a purchase offer, engage in good faith negotiations, and not accept other offers during that period. All of this is gone in the Senate version.

The requirement that buyers receiving government grants or financing guarantees must accept and continue any collectively bargained employee contract in effect 120 days before the sale was deleted.

The notice trigger changed from 120 days before 'any sale or transfer' to 120 days before 'the final execution of any transaction agreement,' which is a slightly different and potentially later trigger point.

The requirement to provide written notice to the governing body of any city or county where the outlet is headquartered was removed. The Senate version instead requires publication in an adjudicated newspaper of general circulation for three consecutive weeks.

'Legacy local media outlet' was renamed to 'legacy local news organization.' The Assembly definition required at least 25 percent of content to concern specific community interests; this requirement was removed. The print publication threshold changed from once per month in 11 of the previous 12 months to at least 24 times over the previous 12 months.

An explicit exclusion was added: 'local news organization' does not include a television or radio broadcasting station licensed by the Federal Communications Commission.

The definition of 'transaction' was both expanded and narrowed. A new third prong was added covering sale of the organization's name, branding, or adjudication. However, the asset-sale prong now requires the transfer to constitute a merger or transfer of control of editorial operations or distribution, rather than simply being a 'material amount of assets.'

The legislative findings were revised to remove references to 'employee ownership' as a policy goal and to drop the word 'local' from several phrases, signaling a shift away from the employee-ownership framing toward a broader independence focus.

The bill now adds Title 23 (Sections 3273.80-3273.84) to Part 4 of Division 3 of the Civil Code, named 'The Keep News Local Act,' making it a full operative statute rather than a non-binding intent statement.

Defines 'legacy local media outlet' as a business that has operated for at least 10 years, performs a public information function comparable to newspapers or periodicals, employs professionals creating original content with at least 25 percent focused on a specific community or region, and meets publication frequency thresholds (print: at least once per month in 11 of the previous 12 months; digital: once per week in 48 of the previous 52 weeks).

Requires a legacy local media outlet to provide written notice at least 120 days before any sale or transfer of a material amount of its assets or voting securities greater than 10 percent of the business. Notice must be sent directly to each employee, published in every edition during the 120-day period for subscribers and consumers, and sent to the governing body of any city or county where the outlet is headquartered.

Notice must include the name of the proposed buyer, the dollar amount of the sale or transfer, the expected date, and an affirmation of compliance with the section's requirements.

If a buyer receives grants, financing, or financing guarantees from a governmental source to effectuate the purchase or transfer, the buyer must accept and continue any collectively bargained employee contract that was in effect 120 days before the sale or transfer of ownership.

Grants employees a right of first refusal to purchase the portion of the outlet being sold or transferred. Employees may invoke this right by submitting a written notice of intent and purchase offer within 60 days of receiving the right-of-first-refusal notice, with an opportunity to substantially match terms offered by another person.

Requires the legacy local media outlet to engage in good faith negotiations with any employee who invokes the right of first refusal and prohibits the outlet from accepting an offer from any other person until the 60-day period has elapsed. The outlet may reject any employee offer at the end of that period.