Status: In Assembly. To enrollment.
The Meyers-Milias-Brown Act delegates jurisdiction to the Public Employment Relations Board to resolve disputes and enforce the statutory duties and rights of local public agency employers and employees. The act prescribes the powers and duties of the board with regard to, among other things, elections, the processing of unfair practice charges, and, in connection to an enumerated section of the Government Code, the authority of the board to petition the court for appropriate temporary relief or restraining orders. This bill would provide that, under the Meyers-Milias-Brown Act, the Public Employment Relations Board is exclusively authorized to make a determination whether to seek from a court of competent jurisdiction injunctive relief involving or growing out of a strike, work stoppage, or lockout involving an employee organization and a public agency. The bill would provide that those changes are declaratory of existing law, as specified.
Position: Watch
Status: Senate amendments concurred in. To enrollment.
Existing law requires that, in order to protect the public health and safety and the environment, a business, as defined, establish and implement a business plan, meeting specified requirements, relating to the handling and release or threatened release of hazardous materials. A business that violates or knowingly violates any provision with regard to the business plan is liable to an administering agency for a prescribed administrative penalty. This bill would remove the requirement that the amount of the administrative penalty be set by the governing board of the administrative agency. This bill contains other related provisions and other existing laws.
Position: Support
Status: Senate concurs in Assembly amendments. (Ayes 39. Noes 0.) To enrollment.
Existing public contract law authorizes public entities to adopt methods and procedures to receive bids on public works or other contracts over the Internet, as specified. This bill would authorize public entities to receive supporting materials submitted pursuant to a public works contract over the Internet, as specified. This bill would require public entities that receive bids and supporting materials over the Internet to provide an electronic receipt to the contractor either by immediate transmission or by providing access to the contractor to an electronic file that contains the receipt, as specified. This bill contains other related provisions and other existing laws.
Position: Watch
Status: Enrolled. To Governor at 2 p.m.
The California Emergency Services Act authorizes the Office of Emergency Services to include private businesses and nonprofit organizations within its responsibilities to prepare the state for disasters. The act creates the Disaster Resistant Communities Account in the General Fund and authorizes the Director of the Office of Emergency Services, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to expend the money in the account for this purpose. The act requires that any new activity undertaken by the office under these provisions be contingent upon the receipt of donations to the account. This bill would rename the account the Disaster Resistant Communities Fund in the State Treasury and would delete the requirement that any new activity be contingent upon the receipt of donations to the account. It would instead require that these provisions be implemented only to the extent that in-kind contributions or donations are received from the private sector, or grant funds are received from the federal government, for these purposes.
Position: Watch
Status: Senate concurs in Assembly amendments. (Ayes 36. Noes 0.) To enrollment.
The Ralph M. Brown Act requires that any meeting of a legislative body of a local agency be open and public and all persons be permitted to attend. The act requires the body to post an agenda at least 72 hours before a regular meeting and provides that agendas and any other writings, when distributed to all, or a majority of all, of the members of a legislative body of a local agency by any person in connection with a matter subject to discussion or consideration at a meeting of the body are public records subject to the public disclosure requirements of the California Public Records Act. This bill would provide that if a writing that is a public record under these provisions, and that relates to an agenda item for an open session of a regular meeting of the legislative body of a local agency, is distributed less than 72 hours prior to that meeting, the writing shall be made available for public inspection at a public office or location that the agency shall designate for this purpose. It would require each local agency to list the address of this office or location on the agendas for all meetings of the legislative body of that agency. It also would authorize a local agency to post a writing that is a public record under these provisions on the agency's Internet Web site. It would make these provisions effective on July 1, 2008.
Position: Watch
Status: Enrolled. To Governor at 2 p.m.
Existing law requires any peace officer or firefighter, as defined, who has been involved in an accident to submit to his or her private automobile insurer a written declaration stating whether or not at the time of the accident he or she was operating an emergency vehicle, as defined, in the performance of his or her duty during the hours of his or her employment. This bill would repeal that provision.
Position: Support
Status: Senate concurs in Assembly amendments. (Ayes 39. Noes 0.) To enrollment.
Existing law requires peace officer and civilian drug detection canine trainers working under the direction of a law enforcement agency to follow specified protocols of behavior. This bill would require the State Fire Marshal, in conjunction with recognized statewide fire investigation entities, to update and amend standards and procedures for accelerant detecting canines and their handlers, as specified. The bill would require these standards and procedures to be updated and amended on or before January 1, 2009, and to consider information from and publications by recognized statewide fire investigation entities, as specified.
Position: Watch