Existing law requires the driver of a vehicle, upon meeting or overtaking a schoolbus equipped with required signs that is stopped for the purpose of loading or unloading schoolchildren and displaying a flashing red light signal and stop signal arm, if equipped with a stop signal arm, to bring the vehicle to a stop immediately before passing the schoolbus and to not proceed past the schoolbus until the flashing red light signal and stop signal arm cease operation. A violation of these provisions is a crime. Existing law imposes escalating fines for violations of these provisions, including a fine of not less than $150, but not more than $250, for a first violation. This bill would authorize, until January 1, 2032, school districts to establish a stop signal arm enforcement system pilot program if the system meets specified requirements, in order to enforce the provisions above. The bill would require the school district to publish certain data regarding the system, and post routes or operational hours and camera locations on their internet website before deployment of the system. The bill would authorize the school district to contract with a private vendor or manufacturer to install a stop signal arm enforcement system on each schoolbus in its fleet. The bill would require a school district, vendor, or manufacturer to submit specified information regarding an alleged violation to a law enforcement agency authorized to enforce those violations within 30 days of the alleged violation. The bill would create a process for law enforcement to determine whether the person committed certain violations as well as a process for the alleged offender to challenge the violation. The bill would designate all photographic or administrative records, made by a system as confidential, and would only authorize public agencies to use and allow access to these records for specified purposes. The bill would require a school district operating a stop signal arm enforcement system, by July 1, 2028, and annually thereafter, to provide a summary report to the Governor, Legislature, and Department of Motor Vehicles that describes the use and operation of the system, as specified. This bill would, until January 1, 2032, repeal the authority to impose criminal fines for a violation of the schoolbus provisions and would instead recast the fines as a civil penalty schedule if a person violates those provisions. 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 law prohibits the smoking of tobacco products in various public and private places and also authorizes a landlord of a residential dwelling unit to prohibit the smoking of tobacco products on the property or in any building or portion of the building, including in any dwelling unit, in accordance with specified requirements. This bill would prohibit the smoking of tobacco products in a state-subsidized multiunit housing development, as defined, for which a certificate of occupancy is issued on or after January 1, 2027.
Existing law establishes the Minimum Essential Coverage Individual Mandate to require an individual who is a California resident to ensure that the individual, and any spouse or dependent of the individual, is enrolled in and maintains minimum essential health insurance coverage for each month beginning on and after January 1, 2020, except as specified. Existing law imposes an Individual Shared Responsibility Penalty for the failure to maintain minimum essential health insurance coverage, as determined and collected by the Franchise Tax Board in collaboration with the California Health Benefit Exchange, as specified. Existing law prohibits the imposition of this penalty on an individual for a month in which any of certain circumstances apply. This bill would additionally prohibit the imposition of an Individual Shared Responsibility Penalty for a month if the applicable household member, as defined, with respect to whom the penalty would otherwise be imposed was enrolled in Medi-Cal in 2024 or 2025.
Existing law describes the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) as a voluntary organization that consists of school and school-related personnel with responsibility for administering interscholastic athletic activities in secondary schools, and sets forth the Legislature's intent regarding the CIF's implementation of certain policies. This bill would require the CIF to establish a 5-year pilot program, operating from the 2027–28 academic year through the 2031–32 academic year, that sanctions flag football as an authorized sport for high school boys who are enrolled in the California Interscholastic Federation's member schools in the Counties of Orange and Riverside. This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the Counties of Orange and Riverside.
Existing law, the Municipal Water District Law of 1911, provides for the formation of municipal water districts and grants to those districts specified powers. Existing law permits a district to acquire, control, distribute, store, spread, sink, treat, purify, recycle, recapture, and salvage any water for the beneficial use of the district, its inhabitants, or the owners of rights to water in the district. Existing law, upon the request of certain Indian tribes and the satisfaction of certain conditions, requires a district to provide service of water at substantially the same terms applicable to the customers of the district to the Indian tribe's lands that are not within a district, as prescribed. Existing law also authorizes a district, until January 1, 2027, under specified circumstances, to apply to the applicable local agency formation commission to provide this service of water to Indian lands, as defined, that are not within the district and requires the local agency formation commission to approve that application. This bill would extend the above provisions regarding the application to the applicable local agency formation commission to January 1, 2032. By imposing new duties on local officials, the bill would create 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 vests the Public Utilities Commission with regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations and gas corporations, while local publicly owned utilities are under the direction of their governing boards. Existing law authorizes the commission to fix the rates and charges for every public utility and requires that those rates and charges be just and reasonable. Existing law requires that all electrical bills have a standard bill format, as determined by the commission or the governing board, and contain sufficient detail for customers to recalculate their bills for accuracy. Under existing law, a violation of any order, decision, rule, direction, demand, or requirement of the commission is a crime. This bill would require the commission to require each electrical corporation and gas corporation to disclose all public purpose program charges to ratepayers, including an itemized list of each public purpose program funded through the ratepayers' bills, as provided. The bill would require the commission to require each electrical corporation and gas corporation to provide an annual public purpose program statement to ratepayers and require the commission to maintain an internet website displaying certain information about all public purpose programs, as provided. This bill would require the commission to establish a mechanism to allow ratepayers to opt out of funding public purpose programs that are not expressly required by statute for specified purposes or explicitly designated as nonbypassable by statute, and to ensure that those opt-out elections are voluntary and that ratepayers are authorized to annually modify their opt-out elections, as specified. Because a violation of a commission action implementing the bill's requirements would be a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. This bill would require the commission, if the average price of electricity or natural gas in the state exceeds 10% of the national average price in the preceding quarter, to suspend the collection of all fees charged to ratepayers on electricity or natural gas bills for a period of 6 months. The bill would also require the State Air Resources Board, if the average price of electricity or natural gas in the state exceeds 10% of the national average price in the preceding quarter, to suspend the requirements of the market-based compliance mechanism known as the California Cap-and-Invest Program for a covered entity that is an electrical corporation or gas corporation, and the collection of any moneys under the California Cap-and-Invest Program from those entities, for a period of 6 months. This bill would require a local publicly owned electric utility or local publicly owned gas utility to adjust its tariff rules to limit the period for adjusting a customer bill, when the utility has undercharged a customer, to 3 months for its residential customers and small business customers and to 3 years for its large business customers, as specified. By imposing new duties on local publicly owned utilities, 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 specified reasons.
Existing law creates the High-Speed Rail Authority to develop and implement a high-speed rail system in the state. Existing law creates the High-Speed Rail Authority Office of the Inspector General and authorizes the High-Speed Rail Authority Inspector General to initiate an audit or review regarding oversight related to delivery of the high-speed rail project undertaken by the authority and the selection and oversight of contractors related to that project. Existing law imposes other duties and responsibilities on the Inspector General relating to the oversight of the authority, including the duty and responsibility to review the authority's contracts and contracting practices to determine whether they are, among other things, executed consistent with state and federal laws and policies. This bill would also impose on the Inspector General the duty and responsibility to review financial disclosures and identify conflicts of interest for officials who make, or participate in making, decisions to execute contracts, or contract changes, for the authority. This bill would require the Inspector General to complete an audit in a timely manner and pursuant to the "Government Auditing Standards" published by the Comptroller General of the United States. Immediately upon completion of an audit or review, the bill would require the Inspector General to make a report of the audit or review available to the public.
Under existing law, generally a motor vehicle may not be driven upon a highway unless it is registered. However, off-highway motor vehicles issued an identification plate or device may cross highways under specified conditions, including, among others, a peace officer in an emergency response situation. This bill would similarly authorize first responders, as defined, to operate or drive an off-highway vehicle upon a highway to provide emergency response services or while performing official departmental duties.
Existing law establishes the California Housing Finance Agency in the Business, Consumer Services, and Housing Agency, and, as of July 1, 2026, transfers the agency to the California Housing and Homelessness Agency created pursuant to the Governor's Reorganization Plan No. 1 of 2025, as provided. Existing law authorizes the agency to, among other things, make loans to finance affordable housing, including residential structures, housing developments, multifamily rental housing, special needs housing, and other forms of housing, as specified. Existing law establishes the California Dream for All Program, administered by the agency subject to the availability of funds, to provide shared appreciation loans, as defined, to qualified first-time homebuyers. Existing law limits the program to providing assistance to low- and moderate-income homebuyers in the purchase of owner-occupied homes. Existing law establishes the California Dream for All Fund, and continuously appropriates moneys in that fund for the purposes of the program, as prescribed. This bill would require the agency to expand the California Dream for All Program to provide additional assistance, as specified, to first-generation homebuyers, as defined. The bill would require the agency to prioritize this assistance to first-generation homebuyers purchasing homes built using specified state funding, and to expedite approval of that assistance for a first-generation homebuyer purchasing a home located in a moderate-density area, as provided. By expanding the purposes for which money in the California Dream for All Fund may be used, the bill would make an appropriation. The bill would additionally establish the Credit-Enhancement and Guarantee Fund for the purpose of distributing this assistance to specified first-generation homebuyers and would, upon appropriation, require the agency to align the distribution of funds with relevant government-sponsored enterprise pilot programs, as defined, focused on expanding access to credit for first-generation borrowers. Existing law requires the agency to convene a working group to develop recommendations to assist homeowners in qualifying for loans to construct accessory dwelling units and junior accessory dwelling units on their property and to increase access to capital for homeowners interested in building accessory dwelling units. This bill would require that working group to explore opportunities for first-generation homebuyers to use funds from the expanded California Dream for All Program as down payment assistance for small-plex or accessory dwelling unit ready properties.
Existing law vests the Public Utilities Commission with regulatory authority over public utilities, including telephone corporations. Existing law authorizes the commission to fix just and reasonable rates and charges for public utilities. Existing law requires the commission, on or before February 1, 1995, to issue an order initiating an investigation and open proceeding to examine the current and future definitions of universal service in telecommunications. Pursuant to that provision, the commission issued a decision involving carriers of last resort, including the withdrawal process for carriers of last resort, defined as a carrier who provides local exchange service and stands ready to provide basic service to any customer requesting basic service within a specified area. This bill would require the commission to develop a reasonable process for a carrier of last resort to be relieved, on or before January 1, 2029, of that status in areas where customers have other options for voice service. Under existing law, a violation of an order, decision, rule, direction, demand, or requirement of the commission is a crime. Because a violation of a commission action implementing this 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, the Vocational Nursing Practice Act, establishes the Board of Vocational Nursing and Psychiatric Technicians of the State of California to license and regulate vocational nurses and psychiatric technicians. Chapter 624 of the Statutes of 2022 (SB 1436) limited the respiratory tasks and services that a licensed vocational nurse may perform to basic respiratory tasks and services that do not require a respiratory assessment and only require manual, technical skills, or data collection, as identified by the Respiratory Care Board of California, as specified. SB 1436 and subsequent legislation have created exemptions for a licensed vocational nurse to perform respiratory tasks and services under specified circumstances that vary depending on the task or service, the nurse's training, demonstrated competency, and employer, and the setting in which the task or service is performed, as provided. SB 1436 became effective on January 1, 2023. This bill, instead, would authorize a licensed vocational nurse to perform respiratory tasks and services consistent with the scope of practice of a licensed vocational nurse, as it existed on December 31, 2022. The bill would make various conforming changes, including removal of the above-described exemptions.
(1) Existing law establishes in the Natural Resources Agency the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, and requires the department to be responsible for, among other things, fire protection and prevention, as provided. Existing law describes state responsibility areas as areas of the state in which the financial responsibility of preventing and suppressing fires has been determined by the State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection to be primarily the responsibility of the state. Existing law requires the State Fire Marshal to classify lands within state responsibility areas into fire hazard severity zones and, by regulation, designate fire hazard severity zones and assign to each zone a rating reflecting the degree of severity of fire hazard that is expected to prevail in the zone, as provided. Existing law also requires the State Fire Marshal to identify areas of the state as moderate, high, and very high fire hazard severity zones based on specified criteria. Existing law requires, within 120 days of receiving a recommendation from the State Fire Marshal that identifies fire hazard severity zones, described above, a local agency to designate, by ordinance, fire hazard severity zones in its jurisdiction, as provided. This bill would, on or before January 1, 2028, and every 2 years thereafter, require the department or a local entity to conduct an assessment, as provided, of all undeveloped public lands for which it is primarily responsible for preventing and suppressing fires to ensure that the public land is not a severe fire hazard. The bill would require this assessment to be posted on the department's and local entity's internet website and would require a local entity conducting the assessment to submit its assessment to the department. The bill would require all public lands, on or before January 1, 2028, to have 200-foot firebreaks on all borders with private property. This bill would, when the department or local entity acquires private undeveloped land, require the department or a local entity that is primarily responsible for preventing and suppressing fires on that land to create a plan on how the land will be managed with regard to fire prevention, and to report the cost of keeping the land managed. The bill would require the department and the local entity to post this information on its respective internet website and would require a local entity preparing this information to submit it to the department. To the extent that this bill would impose new duties on local government agencies, the bill would create a state-mandated local program. (2) The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of an environmental impact report on a project that it proposes to carry out or approve that may have a significant effect on the environment or to adopt a negative declaration if the lead agency finds that the project will not have that effect. CEQA also requires a lead agency to prepare a mitigated negative declaration for a project that may have a significant effect on the environment if revisions in the project would avoid or mitigate that effect and there is no substantial evidence that the project, as revised, would have a significant effect on the environment. This bill would authorize property owners to conduct wildfire fuel reduction activities, as described, on their own private property if the activities comply with specified guidelines. The bill would require fire chiefs of a county with jurisdiction over that private property in which the activities are conducted to establish these guidelines, as provided. The bill would exempt from CEQA these activities regardless of the acreage involved, if the activity is conducted solely for wildfire fuel reduction and not for development purposes. The bill would prohibit state agencies from imposing additional requirements on these activities, as provided. By imposing new duties on county fire chiefs, and because a lead agency would be required to determine whether a project qualifies for this exemption, the bill would create a state-mandated local program. (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 with regard to certain mandates no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason. With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs so mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.
