The Political Reform Act of 1974 provides for the regulation of political campaign financing, including the reporting and disclosure of campaign contributions and expenditures. Under the act, elected officers, candidates for elective office, and campaign committees are required to file periodic campaign statements that disclose specified information for specified reporting periods, including the amount of contributions received, the amount of expenditures made, and the identities of donors and recipients of expenditures. This bill would require a corporation that makes a contribution or expenditure for a political activity in the State of California, as defined, to prepare a report within 30 days after the close of the corporation's fiscal year containing specified information regarding all contributions or expenditures made by the corporation for political activities in the State of California during that fiscal year. The bill would further require the corporation to maintain records of those contributions or expenditures, including the report described above, for a period of not less than 5 years, and to file a copy of the report with the Fair Political Practices Commission upon request of the Commission. In addition, the bill would give shareholders of a corporation the right to file a notice of objection to the corporation's use of the shareholder's invested funds for political activities in the State of California and would require the corporation, if a shareholder so objects, to return to the shareholder as a dividend his or her pro rata share of the funds expended for political activities. The bill would also create a civil cause of action that may be brought by any shareholder against a corporation that violates the above provisions or that makes a political contribution or expenditure that adversely affects the value of the corporation's stock. Existing law makes a knowing or willful violation of the Political Reform Act of 1974 a misdemeanor and subject offenders to criminal penalties. This bill would impose a state-mandated local program by creating additional crimes. 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 Political Reform Act of 1974, an initiative measure, provides that the Legislature may amend the act to further the act's purposes upon a 23 vote of each house and compliance with specified procedural requirements. This bill would declare that it furthers the purposes of the act.
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This measure would designate the week of May 2 to May 8, 2010, as Public Service Recognition Week, and encourage all Californians to recognize the crucial role of public employees in this state.
This measure would designate that January 18, 2010, be observed as the official memorial of the late Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s birth, commemorate Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, 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.
Existing law provides that in every case in which a victim, as defined, has suffered economic loss as a result of the defendant's conduct, the court is required to impose an order upon the defendant to make restitution to the victim or victims, as specified. This bill would provide that no offset from or reduction of the amount the court finds to be the victim's full restitution amount shall be made due to any claim of comparative negligence or other fault, intentional or otherwise, on the part of the victim, and would state the Legislature's intent in this regard.
This measure would urge the Congress of the United States and the federal administration to work with the Governor and the Legislature of the State of California to, among other things, provide federal loan guarantees, flexibility with respect to certain programs, and certain funding levels for vital programs, as specified.
(1) Under existing law, various measures have been approved by the voters to provide funds for water supply and protection facilities and programs. This bill would enact the Safe Drinking Water and Water Supply Reliability Act of 2010, which, if approved by the voters, would authorize the issuance of bonds in the amount of $12,250,000,000 pursuant to the State General Obligation Bond Law to finance a safe drinking water and water supply reliability program. The bill would provide for the submission of the bond act to the voters at the November 2, 2010, statewide general election. (2) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Existing federal law provides for the declaration of a federal state of emergency, upon the request made by the Governor of an affected state, for the purpose of receiving federal emergency assistance. Existing law provides for the In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) program, under which, either through employment by the recipient, by or through contract by the county, by the creation of a public authority, or pursuant to a contract with a nonprofit consortium, qualified aged, blind, and disabled persons receive services enabling them to remain in their own homes. The duties of a public authority or nonprofit consortium that provides services under the IHSS Program include the provision of assistance to recipients in finding in-home supportive services personnel through the establishment of a provider registry. This bill would authorize a county department of social services to make IHSS provider registries available during a federally declared state of emergency. The bill would require a person designated by the county as representative of the county department of social services to, upon the request of an emergency shelter operator, assess the operator's emergency shelter, as defined, to determine the assistance needs of seniors and persons with disabilities at the shelter site. The bill would authorize the county department of social services to direct the public authority, or other entity responsible for providing in-home supportive services in the county, to contact in-home supportive services providers who are willing and available to provide assistance to seniors and persons with disabilities at the emergency shelter. By imposing new duties or local officials, this bill would create a state-mandated local program. The bill would provide that an in-home supportive services provider who provides assistance to seniors and persons with disabilities at an emergency shelter shall not be liable for harm caused by an act or omission of the provider if the provider was acting within the scope of his or her responsibilities as an in-home supportive services provider at the time of the act or omission and the harm was not caused by willful or criminal misconduct, gross negligence, reckless misconduct, or a conscious, flagrant indifference to the rights or safety of the individual harmed by the provider. 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 that, upon a breach of the obligation of a mortgage or transfer of an interest in property, the trustee, mortgagee, or beneficiary record a notice of default in the office of the county recorder where the mortgaged or trust property is situated and mail the notice of default to the mortgagor or trustor, among other acts required prior to exercising a power of sale in a nonjudicial foreclosure proceeding. This bill would establish, contingent upon receipt of federal funding for all costs, and only until January 1, 2014, the Facilitated Mortgage Workout (FMW) Program. The program would be a process whereby borrowers and lenders would engage in conciliation sessions for purposes of developing a loan modification plan. These provisions would apply, except as specified, if the loan originated prior to January 1, 2009, the loan is the 1st mortgage or deed of trust secured by the property, the property is occupied by the borrower as the borrower's principal residence, and the unpaid principal balance is not more than $729,750. The program would require that specified information regarding the FMW Program be included with the notice of default sent to a borrower, as defined, on a loan secured by residential real property of one- to 4-family dwelling units that is the primary residence of the borrower, as specified. The bill would require that this additional notice be recorded in the office of the county recorder. By expanding the duties of county recorders, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would provide for an administrator of the program who would be appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the Senate. The program would require a borrower who elects to participate in the program to complete a specified form and return the form to the administrator of the program not later than 30 calendar days after receiving the notice of default. The program would require the borrower to submit other information to the administrator within 15 days of requesting to participate in the program, including tax returns, income verification, a specified deposit of funds, and a letter describing the borrower's financial hardship, as specified. The program would require a borrower who elects to participate in the program to deposit with the administrator 50% of the current mortgage payment each month during participation in the FMW Program. The bill would also prohibit a mortgagee, trustee, beneficiary, or authorized agent from reporting negative credit information to a credit reporting agency about a borrower who has completed the FMW Program and accepted a mortgage loan modification. The bill would impose various administrative fees, and a specified minimum deposit, payable by the mortgagee, trustee, beneficiary, or authorized agent, or by the borrower, as specified, who participates in the FMW Program. The bill would also provide that the timelines set forth in the provision governing the exercise of the power of sale, as specified, would be suspended until the completion of the program, as specified. The bill would require the administrator of the program, among other duties, to implement rules and standards for selecting qualified neutral conciliation officers and to develop standards for forms and reports required to implement the program. The bill would also require the administrator, upon receipt of a borrower's form whereby he or she elects to participate in the program, to nominate an individual to serve as a neutral conciliation officer from a list of qualified neutral conciliation officers in the county in which the property is located. The bill would establish the compensation for a neutral conciliation officer who provides his or her services to the program and require a neutral conciliation officer to use reasonable efforts to ensure that each FMW Program is completed within 60 calendar days of the neutral conciliation officer's nomination. The bill would require the neutral conciliation officer to prepare a final report, as specified. The bill would also require, only until January 1, 2015, the administrator to report quarterly to the Legislature regarding the FMW Program, as specified. The bill would also require each mortgagee, trustee, beneficiary, or authorized agent participating in the program to post specified data about its loans on its Internet Web site. These provisions would become operative only upon the issuance of a notice from the administrator to the Governor and specified other legislative leaders, and the posting of the notice on an Internet Web site, declaring that the administrator has the capacity to make the program available to any borrower in every county who desires to participate. The bill would also make related and technical changes. 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.
This measure would memorialize the Congress and the President of the United States to uphold protections of women's equality and to encourage all Americans to participate in the celebration of Women's Equality Day on August 26, 2010, the 90th anniversary of the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which gave women the right to vote.
This measure would declare April 2010 as Financial Aid and Literacy Month to raise public awareness about the need for increased financial literacy.