General Government

General Government legislation of note enacted into law included SB 55 (Corbett) maintaining the 2009 state bar dues; SB 89 (Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Committee) ratifying the tribal-state gaming compact between the State and the Habematolel Pomo of Upper Lake; SB 156 (Wright) authorizing the Insurance Commissioner to convene meetings with representatives of insurers to discuss suspected or completed acts of insurance fraud; SB 189 (Lowenthal) revising and recasting the ‘mechanics lien law’; SB 294 (Negrete McLeod) extending the sunset date on various boards, bureaus, and programs within the Department of Consumer Affairs; SB 392 (Florez) allowing licensed contractors to organize their company under the laws of a limited liability corporation; SB 657 (Steinberg) ensuring interested California consumers have access to basic information from major retailers and manufacturers regarding their efforts to eradicate slavery and human trafficking from their supply chain; SB 877 (Harman) extending by two-years the provision of law allowing out-of-state lawyers to practice law in arbitration proceedings despite a license to practice in California; SB 879 (Cox) extending the sunset for the use of design-build by counties from January 1, 2011 to July 1, 2014; SB 909 (Wright) requiring a person (i.e., a prospective employer) who procures an investigative consumer report for employment purposes to disclose to the consumer (i.e., an applicant) the Internet Web site of the investigative consumer reporting agency; SB 944 (Runner) designating February 6th of each year as Ronald Reagan Day; SB 1059 (Denham) clarifying the closure dates for state offices for Veterans’ Day; SB 1072 (Calderon) authorizing the Horse Racing Board to license entities to operate “exchange wagering system” and AB 2414 (John A. Perez) sunsetting this program on May 1, 2016; SB 1079 (Walters) permitting the Office of State Printing to authorize paid advertisements, except for paid political advertising, in materials printed or published by a state agency or vendor and requires any funds derived from those advertisements be used for operational expenses; SB 1127 (Oropeza) requiring the Department of Veterans Affairs to make specific Internet and printed material related to veteran ailments available to family members of veterans returning from active duty; SB 1146 (Florez) establishing the Pilot Program for Affordable Credit Building Opportunities that allow licensees under the California Finance Lender Law to participate in the pilot program involving unsecured consumer loans less than $2,500 until January 1, 2015; SB 1181 (Cedillo) extending the sunset Transcript Reimbursement Fund to January 1, 2013, for very low-income parties in court who are unable to afford transcript services; SB 1192 (Oropeza) providing for a new method of calculating and controlling consumer fees for covered airport consolidated rental car facilities, and new uses for those fees; SB 1211 (Romero) ensuring that elected officials at all levels of government in California are not eligible to receive unemployment benefits in relative to their service in public office; SB 1417 (Cox) establishing new procedures and requirements for the appointment and confirmation of humane officers by nonprofit humane societies; SB 1483 (Wright) extending the sunset on the Multifamily Improvement District Law from January 1, 2012 to January 1, 2022; AB 41 (Solorio) encouraging insurance companies to increase the amount of community development investments; AB 122 (Coto) ratifying the tribal-state gaming compact between the State and the Pinoleville Pomo Nation; AB 142 (Hayashi) modifying the allocation formula of revenue generated from the state lottery; AB 177 (Ruskin) increasing and conforming penalties for persons who falsely engage in activities relating to the Small Business Procurement and Control Act; AB 441 (Hall) modifying provisions of the Gambling Control Act as it relates to the limit on increases in the number of gambling tables that a local jurisdiction may authorize without voter approval; AB 585 (Cook) adding to the definition of “deceased personality” to include soldiers and their families in order that fallen soldiers not be exploited for commercial use; AB 605 (Portantino) allowing the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control to issue an instructional tasting license that allows tasting of alcohol beverage at off-sale licensed premises; AB 759 (Ma) revising the definition of “expatriate corporation” to allow certain foreign incorporated entities to contract with the state; AB 953 (Eng) permitting disclosure of residence address information in Department of Motor Vehicles records to an authorized contractor of an insurance company; AB 1011 (Jones) adopting “green investment” principles for insurers with respect to the existing Community Development Investment program at the Department of Insurance; AB 1050 (Ma) providing when children may address the family court regarding custody of visitation; AB 1229 (Evans) authorizing the court to designate a court financial evaluation officer to make evaluations of liability for reimbursement for the costs of legal services rendered to a minor in dependency proceedings; AB 1659 (Huber) and AB 2130 (Huber-D) strengthening legislative sunset oversight of state entities; AB 1373 (Lieu) restricting the activities of grant deed copy services; AB 1399 (Anderson) prohibiting a city or county official, whether elected or appointed, from making available to an immediate family member a publicly-funded vehicle owned or operated by, or a credit card issued by, the local agency that the local official represents; AB 1437 (Huffman) requiring out-of-state egg producers to comply with California animal care standards; AB 1502 (Eng) authorizing the county counsel to bring a civil action to abate a public nuisance, a controlled substances nuisance, or a gambling or prostitution nuisance, as specified; AB 1597 (Jones) extending the sunset date of the low-cost automobile insurance program until 1/1/16 and making procedural and clarifying changes to the assigned risk plan; AB 1644 (Nielsen) requiring veteran’s service organizations to take all reasonable steps to inter remains received; AB 1650 (Feuer) prohibiting persons engaging in investment activities in Iran’s energy sector, as specified, from bidding or entering into contracts with a public entity for goods or services; AB 1666 (Swanson) strengthening the procedures of whistleblowers hotlines related to fraud, waste, or abuse by local government employees; AB 1668 (Knight) extending, from 30 to 60 days, the time for a city council to fill a vacancy buy either appointing a replacement or calling a special election; AB 1709 (Conway) making biologic production and biologic products subject to federal authority and permitting in lieu of the state; AB 1749 (Lowenthal) expanding existing whistleblower protection under the California Whistleblower Protection Act to include employees of the judicial branch; AB 1775 (Furutani) requiring the Governor to annually proclaim January 30 as Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties and the Constitution; AB 1911 (Gaines) establishing the Ronald Reagan Centennial Commission to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the birth of Ronald Reagan, as specified; AB 1912 (Evans) creating the California Apiary Research Commission to protect the health of honey bees in order to avoid an imbalance in the agricultural food supply; AB 1926 (Evans) authorizing the courts to create and maintain records in electronic form; AB 2022 (Gaines) revising the disclosure notice and the set of rights that residential property insurers must provide to policyholders; AB 2111 (Smyth) strengthening the service contract law; AB 2091 (Conway) exempting from disclosure under the California Public Records Act information security records that reveal vulnerabilities of an information technology system or increase the potential for cyber attacks; AB 2215 (Fuentes) requiring the California Horse Racing Board to develop and adopt rules to license and regulate advance deposit wagering activities that takes place within a mini-satellite wagering facility; AB 2243 (Smyth) prohibiting the discrimination against the handler of a search and rescue dog in hotels, lodging establishments, eating establishments, or public transportation; AB 2284 (Evans) establishing the Expedited Jury Trial Act to provide procedures for expedited civil jury trials; AB 2365 (Lieu) permitting a service member to recover actual damages, reasonable attorney’s fees and costs from any person who violates specified rights and protections of the Military and Veterans Code; AB 2394 (Brownley) establishing the Levying Officer Electronic Transactions Act, whereby a levying officer could use electronic methods to create, generate, and send, receive, store, display, retrieve, or process information, electronic records, and documents, as specified; AB 2408 (Smyth) codifying the Governor’s Reorganization Plan No. 1 of 2009 which consolidates state information technology functions under the Office of the State Chief Information Officer and changes the name of the Office to the “California Technology Agency”; AB 2416 (Cook) establishing procedures for the modification of child custody and visitation orders for active duty military personnel; AB 2426 (Bradford) regulating nonattorney surrogacy facilitators; AB 2486 (Feuer) enacting the narrowly-crafted Teen Alcohol Safety Act of 2010, adding California to the large preponderance of states that impose potential “social host” liability on adults who knowingly provide alcohol to minors who are subsequently injured or killed as a result of this lack of parental care; AB 2500 (Hagman) authorizing professional or vocational licensees or registrants whose license expired while on active duty as a member of the California National Guard or the United States Armed Forces to reinstate his/her license without examination or penalty, as specified; AB 2600 (Ma) authorizing elected mayors to solemnize marriages while that person holds office, as specified; AB 2619 (Block) authorizing wage garnishments against defendants convicted of elder or dependent adult financial abuse; AB 2668 (Galgiani) making it a misdemeanor to possess specified weapons, including unloaded firearms, in or on the grounds of the State Capitol Building or the Legislative Office Building; AB 2674 (Block) providing that, when a spouse is convicted of soliciting the murder of another spouse, the injured spouse shall be entitled to an award of 100% of the community property interest in the retirement and pension benefits; AB 2689 (Smyth) authorizing cities and counties to specify the means by which a dog owner is required to provide proof of his/her dog’s rabies vaccination; AB 2695 (Hernandez) creating the California Nursery Producers Commission to restore the marketing and research interest of the nursery industry in the state; AB 2700 (Ma) permitting couples that are both married and registered domestic partners to dissolve both unions in a single court proceeding and clarifying that, in a dissolution proceeding, courts may dissolve out-of-state, same-sex marriages recognized in California; AB 2733 (Ruskin) amending the California Cigarette and Tobacco Licensing Act to prohibit a licensee whose license has been suspended or revoked from giving cigarette and tobacco products away or displaying those products during the period of license suspension or revocation; AB 2738 (Niello) establishing new requirements for state agency adoption of regulations that require the use of specific technology, equipment, or procedures; AB 2756 (Blumenfield) defining “mobile billboard advertising display” and allowing a local authority to regulate these displays; AB 2763 (Assembly Judiciary Committee) improving the handling of family and juvenile law cases by increasing the likelihood that these matters are presided over by judges and not subordinate judicial officers; and AB 2764 (Assembly Judiciary Committee) creating a Governance in the Public Interest Task Force within the State Bar, continuing the current Bar fee of $410 in 2011, and creating the Temporary Emergency Legal Services Voluntary Assistance Option.

Vetoed General Government legislation of note included SB 427 (Negrete McLeod) which would have increased the penalty from $1,000 to $5,000 under the Auto Repair Act for failure to repair an air bag; SB 516 (DeSaulnier) which would have established the California Youth Legislature; SB 906 (Leno) which would have distinguished between civil and religious marriages; SB 933 (Oropeza) which would have extended existing law which prohibits retailers from imposing a surcharge on credit card purchases to also include debit card purchases; SB 959 (Ducheny) which would have recreated the Office of Permit Assistance under the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research; SB 967 (Correa) which would have required a 5% bid preference be provided on state contracts for goods and services exceeding $1 million; SB 1098 (Corbett) which would have enacted the Uniform Athlete Agents Act for regulation of agents who represent student and professional athletes; SB 1125 (Florez) which would have clarified that jackpot funds are to be held in trust for the players and are not the property of the gambling establishment; SB 1141 (Negrete McLeod) which would have provided incentives for counties to establish airport land use commissions; SB 1166 (Simitian) which would have required that a notice required under California’s data security breach law must contain specified information and a copy of the notice must be sent to appropriate state agencies; SB 1178 (Corbett) which would have preserved a borrowers protection from a deficiency judgment when loans are refinanced but only to the extent that the refinance was used to pay debt incurred to purchase the real property; SB 1205 (Corbett) which would have established the Bay Area Disaster Recovery Planning Council; SB 1207 ( Kehoe) which would have expanded the required contents of safety elements that cover state responsibility area lands and very high fire hazard severity zones; SB 1231 (Corbett) which would have expanded the scope of the Sweat Free Code of Conduct to include slavery and sweatshop labor and the procurement of all new materials used in the supply chain; SB 1363 (Runner) which would have required new escrow licensees, escrow managers, or any other person determined by the Commissioner of the Department of Corporations (DOC) within 12 months of receiving their license, to complete a course in escrow management conducted by DOC; AB 853 (Arambula) which would have established a process for the identification of service deficiencies in unincorporated disadvantaged communities through the local agency formation commission planning process; AB 1060 (De La Torre) which would have prohibited off-sale licensees from selling alcoholic beverages using a self-service checkout system; AB 1451 (Ammiano) which would have established the Local Government Identification Act, authorizing counties to issue local identification cards to persons who can provide proof of identity and proof of residency within the county; AB 1506 (Anderson) which would have required state agencies to accept registered warrants issued by the state for the payment of obligations owed them; AB 1647 (Hayashi) which would have established certification and training requirements for athletic trainers; AB 1656 (Ma) which would have required all clothing apparel for sale in this state that contains genuine animal fur, regardless of price of value of the fur, to carry an attached tag or label stating the animal from which the fur was acquired and the country of origin of any imported fur; AB 1671 (Jeffries) which would have required the Governor, whenever a vacancy occurs in any board of supervisors to fill the vacancy within 90 days; AB 1679 (Torres) which would have established the California Public Policy Telecommunications Week; AB 1680 (Saldana) which would have imposed specified restrictions on the future contractual waivers of rights under the Ralph Civil Rights Act and the Bane Civil Rights Act; AB 1745 (Ammiano) which would have authorized counties to increase fees for every burial permit (i.e., permit for disposition of human remains) it issues in order to help pay costs incurred by counties in disposing of the remains of indigent residents; AB 1778 (Lieu) which would have required promotional activities conducted by state entities to be filmed in California; AB 1822 (Swanson) which would have added two additional members to the Massage Therapy Organization board of directors and specified that no more than two members of law enforcement may serve on the board at any given time; AB 1832 (Saldana) which would have incrementally increased the fee that proponents of an initiative measure are required to pay at the time of submitting the draft of the measure to the Attorney General; AB 1925 (Salas) which would have allowed creation of veterans courts; AB 2009 (Logue) which would have permitted counties to use excess funds from state’s DNA Identification Fund to reimburse law enforcement and district attorneys for use of an independent laboratory, other than the Department of Justice, to expedite the analysis of samples; AB 2059 (C. Calderon) which would have temporarily provided a mechanism for service of legal process on non-residents who cause injuries involving rental cars in California, up to a maximum contractual limit; AB 2080 (Hernandez) which would have authorized a joint powers authority to purchase a local agency’s right to payment of monies due to a local agency from direct subsidy payments, called government receivables, related to the federal Build America bonds; AB 2151 (Torres) which would have granted protections to peace officers, members of the California Highway Patrol, and firefighters, who use their private vehicles in the performance of their duty, during their hours of employment; AB 2156 (Evans) which would have provided for the establishment of a Veterans Home Allied Council for each veterans’ home to represent veterans who reside at the veteran’s home in matters before the Legislature; AB 2193 (Hall) which would have extended the moratorium on the issuance of a new gambling license for card rooms from January 1, 2015 to January 1, 2020; AB 2317 (Saldana) which would have authorized cities and counties to collect fines related to nuisance abatement using a nuisance abatement lien or a special assessment; AB 2332 (Eng) which would have authorized the Contractors State License Board to suspend or deny a contractor license to a licensee who fails to resolve tax liabilities assessed by the Board of Equalization; AB 2411 (Jones) which would have established a series of disclosures that insurers selling pet insurance must post on their Internet Web sites and provide to applicants for pet insurance; AB 2437 (V. Manuel Perez) which would have established the California Manufacturing Competitiveness Act of 2010 for the purpose of supporting the retooling and expansion of California’s manufacturing facilities; AB 2443 (V. Manuel Perez) which would have codified the process whereby Sister State relationships are entered into by the Legislature and the Administration; AB 2457 (Salas) which would have established the California Financial Literacy Fund; AB 2494 (Blumenfield) which would have required a state agency to immediately discontinued a contract that has been disapproved by the State Personnel Board, unless otherwise ordered; AB 2581 (Bradford) which would have created a Banking Development District Program; AB 2613 (Beall) which would have allowed a city, county or city and county, after notice and public hearing, to order unpaid fines or penalties related to ordinance on real property to be specially assessed against the parcel; AB 2670 (John A. Perez) which would have established the State Capitol Sustainability Task Force; AB 2672 (Cook) which would have required an appointed or ex officio individual who has been debarred, suspended, disqualified, or otherwise excluded from participating in federal “covered transactions” pursuant to federal law to vacate that office; AB 2706 (Lowenthal) which would have clarified protections and remedies for hate-based violence directed at homeless people; AB 2734 (John A. Perez) which would have established the Office of Economic Development within the Governor’s Office; AB 2754 (John A. Perez) which would have created a Planning and Clearinghouse Unit within the Office of Planning and Research; and AB 2784 (Assembly Veterans Affairs Committee) which would have increased the size of the California Veterans Board by requiring one member to have substantiated training or professional expertise in mental health and one member to have a degree in health care administration or experience and required that two members be women.