Existing law establishes a system of public elementary and secondary schools in this state and authorizes local educational agencies throughout the state to operate schools and provide instruction to pupils in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive. Existing law establishes various programs for the recruitment of teachers. Existing law establishes the Bilingual Teacher Professional Development Program, administered by the State Department of Education in consultation with the Commission on Teacher Credentialing, for teachers seeking to provide instruction in bilingual and multilingual settings. This bill, which would be operative upon appropriation by the Legislature, would establish the Pathways to Bilingual Teaching Program and would require the commission to develop and implement a program to award, on a competitive basis, grants of up to $600,000 to local educational agencies to form consortia with 4-year institutions of higher education, or 4-year institutions of higher education and community colleges, to establish or expand pathways to bilingual teaching to enable bilingual pupils to earn a multiple subject, single subject, PK-3 early childhood education specialist, or education specialist teaching credential, with a bilingual authorization, as provided. The bill would require the commission to annually report to the appropriate fiscal and policy committees of the Legislature on any grants funded until funds are fully expended, as specified.
Existing law sets forth the missions and functions of California's public and independent segments of higher education, and details the ways in which their respective institutions are to be differentiated. Existing law specifies that the California State University shall offer undergraduate and graduate instruction through the master's degree in the liberal arts and sciences and professional education. This bill, upon appropriation by the Legislature, would require the Chancellor of the California State University to establish a pilot program to offer an associate degree in general studies or, if applicable, an associate degree with an area of emphasis that is consistent with the former student's completed coursework, that is jointly conferred by a California State University campus and a community college or independent institution of higher education that awards associate degrees to former California State University students who are no longer enrolled at a California State University campus but have successfully completed coursework equivalent to the requirements for an associate degree and not previously earned an associate degree. The bill would require the associate degree to be awarded at no cost to the former student. The bill would require California State University, Long Beach, to participate in the pilot program and would authorize the chancellor to include up to 4 additional California State University campuses in the pilot program. The bill would require the chancellor, on or before January 1, 2032, to submit a report to the Legislature evaluating the effectiveness of the pilot program, as provided. The bill would make these provisions inoperative on June 30, 2032, and would repeal them as of January 1, 2033.
(1) Existing law, until January 1, 2030, generally prohibits a person from possessing, importing, shipping, or transporting in the state, or from placing, planting, or causing to be placed or planted in any water in the state, invasive mussels, and authorizes the Director of Fish and Wildlife or the director's designee to engage in various enforcement activities, including ordering the areas in conveyance that contain water be drained, dried, or decontaminated, as provided. Existing law requires a public or private agency that operates a water supply system to cooperate with the Department of Fish and Wildlife to implement measures to avoid infestation by invasive mussels and to control or eradicate any infestation that may occur in a water supply system. Existing law requires, if invasive mussels are detected, the operator of a water supply system to, in cooperation with the department, prepare and implement a plan to control or eradicate invasive mussels within the system, and eliminate or minimize any potential downstream transport of an invasive mussel. Existing law requires, on or before December 31, 2026, the department to review all approved plans and require all plans that do not specifically address all invasive mussel species known to be present in bodies of water in the state as of January 1, 2026, to be updated or revised appropriately to include all invasive mussel species, on or before September 30, 2027. Existing law requires every invasive mussel species to be addressed in a plan no later than 180 days from the date that the species is listed in a certain regulation. Existing law defines "invasive mussel" for these purposes as any nonnative detrimental mussel, as provided. Under existing law, except as otherwise provided, any violation of the Fish and Game Code, or of any rule, regulation, or order made or adopted under the code, is a crime. This bill would prohibit a conveyance from being launched until a specified drying period has completed, as provided. By expanding the scope of a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would require the department to require water supply system operators to update their plans to address all invasive mussel species present in the operator's water system as of January 1, 2026, as provided. The bill would require a plan to address every invasive mussel species detected in a water supply system after January 1, 2026, no later than 180 days from the date the species is detected. The bill would require a plan to minimize or eliminate the spread of invasive mussels. The bill would revise the definition of "invasive mussel" to mean any nonnative biofouling mussel, as provided. By expanding the scope of a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. This bill would enact a comprehensive inspection and decontamination program to be administered by the department under which the department would license inspection and decontamination stations with qualified inspectors to inspect and decontaminate conveyances for aquatic invasive species and issue certificates of compliance or notices of noncompliance, as prescribed by standards adopted by the department. The bill would establish a length of 2 years for those licenses and qualifications and would impose related application fees. The bill would impose requirements on various entities as part of the program, including requiring inspection and decontamination stations and waterbody managers to use a specified data sharing system for tracking the movement of conveyances, equipment, and other vectors among California waterbodies. Because a violation of these provisions would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (2) Existing law establishes a registration fee and a renewal fee for vessels, and imposes an additional fee, known as the invasive mussel infestation prevention fee, on a vessel required to pay the registration fee or renewal fee, as provided. Existing law requires the Division of Boating and Waterways to issue a vessel an invasive mussel infestation prevention sticker to the vessel owner upon payment of the invasive mussel infestation prevention fee. Existing law authorizes a vessel operator to be issued a citation for operating a vessel or a recreational vessel in nonmarine waters without a valid state-issued invasive mussel infestation prevention sticker. This bill would enact similar provisions that would impose an additional invasive mussel infestation prevention fee of $20 per nonmotorized vessel every 2 years, as specified. The bill would require the Department of Fish and Wildlife to issue an invasive mussel infestation prevention sticker to be affixed to the nonmotorized vessel upon payment of the invasive mussel infestation prevention fee. The bill would authorize a vessel operator to be issued a citation for operating a nonmotorized vessel without that valid state-issued invasive mussel infestation prevention sticker. This bill would require the $20 fee to be deposited into the Nonmotorized Vessel Invasive Mussel Infestation Prevention Account, which the bill would create within the Harbors and Watercraft Revolving Fund. Moneys in the account would be available, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for reasonable regulatory costs of the department and the division and for specified grants. The bill would require any citation moneys to be deposited into the Nonmotorized Vessel Invasive Mussel Infestation Prevention Penalty Account, which the bill would create within the Harbors and Watercraft Revolving Fund. Moneys in the penalty account would be available, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for specified grants and to expend on certain educational materials and signage. (3) 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. (4) 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.
The California Constitution provides that all property is taxable and requires that it be assessed at the same percentage of fair market value, unless otherwise provided by the California Constitution or federal law. The California Constitution and existing property tax law provide various exemptions from taxation, including, among others, a disabled veterans' exemption and a veterans' organization exemption. This bill would exempt from taxation, as provided, 50% of the full value of the property owned by, and that constitutes the principal place of residence of, a veteran, the veteran's spouse, or the veteran and the veteran's spouse jointly, if the veteran is 100% disabled. The bill would provide an unmarried surviving spouse a property exemption in the same amount that they would have been entitled to if the veteran were alive and if certain conditions are met. In the case of a disabled veteran or unmarried surviving spouse whose household income does not exceed a specified amount for the relevant assessment year, as prescribed, the bill would exempt 100% of the full value of the property from taxation. The bill would require certain documentation to be provided to the county assessor to receive the exemption and would prohibit any other real property tax exemption from being granted to the claimant if receiving the exemption provided by the provisions of this bill. The bill would make these exemptions applicable for property tax lien dates occurring on or after January 1, 2027, but occurring before January 1, 2032. By imposing additional duties on local tax officials, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. 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 also would include additional information required for any bill authorizing a new tax expenditure. 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. Existing law requires the state to reimburse local agencies annually for certain property tax revenues lost as a result of any exemption or classification of property for purposes of ad valorem property taxation. This bill would provide that, notwithstanding those provisions, no appropriation is made and the state shall not reimburse local agencies for property tax revenues lost by them pursuant to the bill. This bill would take effect immediately as a tax levy.
(1) Existing law, the Water Rights Permitting Reform Act of 1988, authorizes any person to obtain a right to appropriate water for a small domestic, small irrigation, or livestock stockpond use, as defined, upon registering the use with the State Water Resources Control Board, as prescribed, payment of a registration fee, and application of the water to reasonable and beneficial use with due diligence. This bill would extend the above-described ability to obtain a right to appropriate water to a small restoration use, as provided. The bill would define several terms for these purposes, including defining a small restoration use as a specified use of water for native fish and wildlife preservation and enhancement in connection with a project to restore, enhance, or provide habitat for native fish and wildlife, as provided. The bill would require the board to give priority to processing small restoration use registrations that are coupled with a petition for mandatory dedication to instream beneficial uses or wetlands habitat, as specified. The bill would require a person or entity who files a registration of appropriation for a small restoration use to pay a fee according to a fee schedule established by the board. (2) Existing law requires renewal of registration of a small domestic, small irrigation, or livestock stockpond use pursuant to a specified process prior to the expiration of each 5-year period following completed registration. Existing law provides for the reversion of water rights to which a person is entitled when the person fails to beneficially use the water for a period of 5 years. Existing law requires the board to establish general conditions to which all appropriations of water for small domestic, small irrigation, or livestock stockpond use are subject, including, among others, that the appropriation is subject to prior rights and that all conditions lawfully required by the Department of Fish and Wildlife are conditions upon the appropriation. Existing law authorizes the board to establish those general conditions for some methods of diversion or categories of small irrigation use before others, as specified. This bill would apply these renewal, reversion, and condition-setting provisions to a small restoration use and make other conforming changes. The bill would exempt the adoption and revision of those general conditions for small restoration use from certain economic impact assessment requirements of the rulemaking provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act.
Existing federal law provides for allocation of federal funds through the federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block grant program to eligible states. Existing law provides for the California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) program, under which, through a combination of state and county funds and federal funds received through the TANF program, each county provides cash assistance and other benefits to qualified low-income families. Existing law provides for state-subsidized childcare programs and childcare for recipients of benefits under the CalWORKs program and establishes 3 stages of childcare services managed by county welfare departments and agencies contracting with the State Department of Social Services. Existing law requires an applicant for, or a recipient of, CalWORKs benefits to be provided written notice, both at the time of application and when they sign an original or amended welfare-to-work plan, informing them of, among other things, the availability of paid childcare to allow them to be employed or participate in welfare-to-work activities. Existing law requires an applicant for, or recipient of, CalWORKs benefits to be asked to sign a copy of the written notice acknowledging that they have been informed of and received the notice, as specified. This bill would instead require an applicant for, or a recipient of, CalWORKs benefits to be provided written notice, and verbally informed, of the availability of paid childcare, as described above, at the time of application, approval, and when they sign an original or amended welfare-to-work plan, annual certificate of eligibility, or a semiannual report form. The bill would specify that a "written notice," for purposes of these provisions, includes a CalWORKs childcare request form. Upon receipt of a CalWORKs childcare request form and eligibility information, the bill would require a county to approve or deny the request for childcare within 10 calendar days. The bill would require the department to implement these provisions through an all-county letter or similar instruction on or before June 1, 2027, until regulations are adopted. By imposing additional duties on counties, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. Existing law, commencing January 1, 2021, or the date that the Statewide Automated Welfare System can perform the necessary automation, whichever date is later, requires the written notice described above to additionally be provided to a recipient at the time of orientation, when they are assigned to a program activity, when they report new or increased participation in a program activity, and when they report new earned income or employment. This bill would extend that commencement date from January 1, 2021, to January 1, 2028. 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.
Existing law establishes the Department of Housing and Community Development in the Business, Consumer Services, and Housing Agency. Existing law, the California Building Standards Law, establishes the California Building Standards Commission. Existing law requires the commission to approve and adopt building standards and to codify those standards in the California Building Standards Code. Existing law, the State Housing Law, establishes statewide construction and occupancy standards for buildings used for human habitation. Existing law, until January 1, 2033, requires the commission and the department, commencing with the next triennial edition of the code adopted after January 1, 2023, to research and develop, and authorizes the commission and the department to propose for adoption by the commission, mandatory building standards for the installation of electric vehicle charging stations in existing multifamily dwellings, hotels, motels, and nonresidential developments, as specified. This bill would authorize the commission, commencing with the first triennial edition of the code adopted after June 1, 2031, to adopt, approve, codify, and publish building energy standards for building electrical circuit features to enable a qualified plug-in photovoltaic system, as defined, to function as an energy source within the electrical circuit of a single-family residential dwelling, multiunit residential dwelling, or nonresidential development, that is constructed after that edition is adopted, as specified. The bill would, for purposes of that requirement, require the department to research, develop, and propose for adoption building standards for a qualified plug-in photovoltaic system to function as an energy source within the electrical circuit of a single-family residential dwelling, multiunit residential dwelling, or nonresidential development, as specified. The bill would require the commission and the department, in satisfying those requirements, to, among other things, consult with certain interested parties and invite the participation of the public at large in the development of those building energy standards through open consensus-based processes.
The California Uniform Controlled Substances Act (act) , among other things, requires a retail distributor to comply with specific requirements for the sale of certain types of controlled substances, including, among other requirements, not selling in a single transaction more than 3 packages of a product that is known to contain ephedrine, pseudoephedrine, norpseudoephedrine, or phenylpropanolamine. A violation of these requirements by a retail distributor is a crime. The act defines a "retail distributor," for its purposes, as a grocery store, general merchandise store, drugstore, or other related entity, the activities of which, as a distributor of ephedrine, pseudoephedrine, norpseudoephedrine, or phenylpropanolamine products, are limited exclusively to the sale of ephedrine, pseudoephedrine, norpseudoephedrine, or phenylpropanolamine products for personal use both in number of sales and volume of sales, either directly to walk-in customers or in face-to-face transactions by direct sales. This bill would include an online retailer, as specified, within the definition of a retail distributor. By expanding the types of entities that are subject to the requirements imposed on retail distributors under the act, the violation of which is a crime, this bill would expand the scope of a crime, 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 no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.
Existing law requires that, except as specified, not less than the general prevailing rate of per diem wages be paid to workers employed on public works. Existing law defines "public works," for the purposes of regulating public works contracts as, among other things, construction, alteration, demolition, installation, or repair work done under contract and paid for, in whole or in part, out of public funds. Existing law makes any officer, agent, or representative of the state or of any political subdivision who willfully violates specified provisions, including providing notice of certain public works projects, as specified, to the Department of Industrial Relations, guilty of a misdemeanor. Existing law requires the Labor Commissioner to investigate allegations that a contractor or subcontractor violated the law regulating public works projects, including the payment of prevailing wages. Existing law requires each contractor and subcontractor on a public works project to keep accurate payroll records, showing the name, address, social security number, work classification, straight time and overtime hours worked each day and week, and the actual per diem wages paid to each journeyman, apprentice, worker, or other employee employed by the contractor or subcontractor in connection with the public work. This bill would require an awarding body or owner to give reasonable access, as defined, to representatives of a joint-labor management committee in order to monitor compliance with the prevailing wage and apprenticeship requirements. The bill would authorize an awarding body, owner, contractor, or subcontractor to deny or revoke access to the committee's representative if the representative fails or refuses to comply with job site safety requirements, as specified. The bill would authorize the committee to bring an action against an awarding body, contractor, or subcontractor that willfully denies the committee's representative reasonable access. The bill would authorize the court to award a civil penalty, not to exceed $1,000, and would require the court to award reasonable attorney's fees and costs to the prevailing party. By expanding the definition of a 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 Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative, administered by the California Health and Human Services Agency and its departments, as applicable. Under existing law, the purpose of the initiative is to transform the state's behavioral health system into an innovative ecosystem in which all children and youth 25 years of age and younger, regardless of payer, are screened, supported, and served for emerging and existing behavioral health needs. Existing law requires, as a part of the initiative, the State Department of Health Care Services to develop and maintain a school-linked statewide fee schedule for outpatient mental health or substance use disorder treatment provided to a student who is 25 years of age or younger at a schoolsite. Existing law requires providers of medically necessary schoolsite services to be reimbursed by health care service plans, insurers, and Medi-Cal managed care plans, at a minimum, at the fee schedule rate or rates, regardless of network provider status. This bill would establish the Fee Schedule Intensive Technical Support for Onboarding Program. The bill would require the State Department of Education, upon appropriation and subject to the terms of the appropriation, to select through a competitive process, and, no later than July 1 of the year after an appropriation is made to fund the program, allocate funding to, a local educational agency that will serve as the lead entity that will administer the program over a 3-year period, as provided. The bill would require the lead entity, in coordination with the State Department of Education and the State Department of Health Care Services, to, no later than November 1 of the year after an appropriation is made to fund the program, select up to 25 entities to participate in the program and prioritize certain applicants, including, among others, applicants who will increase the number and amount of statewide fee schedule reimbursements. The bill would require that an entity meet specified criteria in order to be eligible to participate in the program, including, among other things, that the entity has past experience in serving children and youth that are of the age that the entity intends to serve. The bill would require a participating entity, as a condition of participation, to commit to increasing, among other things, the number of transition-age youth 16 to 25 years of age receiving behavioral health services. The bill would require the lead entity, starting on or before December 1 of the year after an appropriation is made to fund the program, and ending no earlier than 3 years after the program begins, to provide intensive technical assistance and support with regard to specified activities to the participating entities. The bill would require the lead entity to submit a progress report on or before September 1 of the year that is 3 years after an appropriation is made to fund the program, and submit a summative report by January 1 of the year that is 4 years after an appropriation is made to fund the program, regarding the program to the appropriate policy and fiscal committees of the Legislature.
The Permit Streamlining Act, among other things, requires public agencies to approve or disapprove of a development project within certain timeframes, as specified. The act requires public agencies to compile one or more lists that specify in detail the information that will be required from any applicant for a development project. The act requires a public agency, upon its determination that an application for a development project is incomplete, to include a list and a thorough description of the specific information needed to complete the application. This bill would provide that for the purposes of the Permit Streamlining Act, a housing development project or emergency shelter shall be deemed consistent, compliant, and in conformity with an applicable plan, program, policy, ordinance, standard, requirement, or other similar provision adopted or implemented by a public agency, as defined, if there is substantial evidence that would allow a reasonable person to conclude that the housing development project or emergency shelter is consistent, compliant, or in conformity, except as specified. By imposing additional duties on local agencies, 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, including charter cities. 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 Personal Income Tax Law allows various credits against the taxes imposed by that law, including a credit of $227 for each dependent, as defined, of a taxpayer for each taxable year beginning on or after January 1, 1999, as adjusted for inflation, and which may be reduced if a taxpayer's federal adjusted gross income exceeds a threshold amount. This bill would allow a credit against the taxes imposed by the Personal Income Tax Law for each taxable year beginning on or after January 1, 2026, and before January 1, 2031, to a qualified taxpayer in an amount equal to $1,500 per qualified dependent, as defined. The bill would define "qualified taxpayer" for these purposes to mean a taxpayer who is or would have been, or whose spouse is or would have been, as applicable, 65 years of age or older as of the last day of the taxable year and for whom no part of their adjusted gross income for the taxable year consists of earned income, as defined. Existing law requires any bill authorizing a new tax expenditure to contain, among other things, specific goals that the tax expenditure will achieve, detailed performance indicators, and data collection requirements. This bill also would include additional information required for any bill authorizing a new tax expenditure. This bill would take effect immediately as a tax levy.
