BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    



                                                                       



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          |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE            |                   SB 797|
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                              UNFINISHED BUSINESS


          Bill No:  SB 797
          Author:   Ridley-Thomas (D)
          Amended:  4/24/08
          Vote:     27 - Urgency

           
           SEN. BUS., PROF. & ECON. DEV. COMMITTEE  :  8-0, 4/9/07
          AYES:  Ridley-Thomas, Aanestad, Corbett, Denham, Florez,  
            Harman, Simitian, Yee

           SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE  :  11-0, 4/16/07
          AYES:  Torlakson, Battin, Cedillo, Corbett, Dutton, Florez,  
            Kuehl, Oropeza, Ridley-Thomas, Runner, Yee
          NO VOTE RECORDED:  Cox, Aanestad, Ashburn, Calderon,  
            Correa, Wyland
           
          SENATE FLOOR  :  33-6, 4/23/07
          AYES:  Aanestad, Ackerman, Alquist, Ashburn, Calderon,  
            Cedillo, Corbett, Cox, Denham, Ducheny, Dutton, Florez,  
            Harman, Kehoe, Kuehl, Lowenthal, Machado, Maldonado,  
            Margett, Migden, Negrete McLeod, Oropeza, Padilla,  
            Perata, Ridley-Thomas, Romero, Runner, Scott, Simitian,  
            Steinberg, Torlakson, Wiggins, Yee
          NOES:  Battin, Cogdill, Correa, Hollingsworth, McClintock,  
            Wyland
          NO VOTE RECORDED:  Vincent
           
          ASSEMBLY FLOOR  :  76-0, 5/29/08 - See last page for vote


           SUBJECT  :    Professions and vocations

           SOURCE  :     Author
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           DIGEST  :    This bill authorizes the Department of Consumer  
          Affairs to create advisory committees to the Dental Board  
          of California, the Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology  
          Board, the Board of Vocational Nursing and Psychiatric  
          Technicians, and the Barbering and Cosmetology Board, and  
          allows the Board of Behavioral Sciences to take  
          disciplinary action against licensees after the current  
          statute of limitation has expired in specified  
          circumstances, and makes other changes to boards and  
          programs under the Department of Consumer Affairs.

           Assembly Amendments  deleted the portion of the bill which  
          required a person who offers to perform, purports to have  
          the capacity to perform, or submits a bid to perform tree  
          removal and pruning services be licensed.  In addition, the  
          amendments remove the section of the bill which clarified  
          that enhanced penalties for repeat convictions for  
          unlicensed contracting applies to unlicensed persons who  
          perform or who offer to perform contracting work.  Lastly,  
          the amendments added language authorizing the Department of  
          Consumer Affairs to create advisory committees through  
          January 1, 2009, to the Dental Board of California, the  
          Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology Board, the Board of  
          Vocational Nursing and Psychiatric Technicians, and the  
          Barbering and Cosmetology Board, upon the conversion of  
          those boards to bureaus, and extends the sunset date of the  
          vertical prosecution pilot project within the Medical Board  
          of California by two years, from July 1, 2008 to July 1,  
          2010, added an urgency clause, and made other technical and  
          clarifying changes.

           ANALYSIS  :    

          Existing law establishes the Dental Board of California,  
          the Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology Board, the  
          Board of Vocational Nursing and Psychiatric Technicians,  
          and the Board of Barbering and Cosmetology in the  
          Department of Consumer Affairs.

          Existing law authorizes the Dental Board of California and  
          the Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology Board to  
          appoint executive officers, requires the Board of  

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          Vocational Nursing and Psychiatric Technicians to select an  
          executive officer, and requires the Board of Barbering and  
          Cosmetology to appoint an executive officer, as specified.

          Under existing law, the provisions establishing these  
          boards and their authority to appoint or select executive  
          officers will become inoperative on July 1, 2008, and be  
          repealed on January 1, 2009.

          Existing law, the Architects Practice Act, establishes the  
          California Architects Board and provides for its licensure  
          and regulation of architects.  Under existing law, the  
          Board is authorized to implement an intern development  
          program until July 1, 2009.

          Existing law provides for the certification of optometrists  
          to diagnose and treat certain conditions of the human eye  
          or its appendages, and to use therapeutic pharmaceutical  
          agents.  It requires the board to decide all issues  
          relating to the equivalency of an optometrists' education  
          or training for certification, as specified.

          Existing law imposes specified requirements and  
          prohibitions on tax preparers, as defined, and exempts  
          specified persons from these requirements and prohibitions.  
           A violation of those provisions is a misdemeanor.  Under  
          existing law, those provisions will become inoperative on  
          July 1, 2008, and will be repealed on January 1, 2009.

          This bill:

          1. Authorizes the Department of Consumer Affairs to create  
             advisory committees through January 1, 2009, to the  
             Dental Board of California, the Speech-Language  
             Pathology and Audiology Board, the Board of Vocational  
             Nursing and Psychiatric Technicians, and the Barbering  
             and Cosmetology Board, upon the conversion of those  
             boards to bureaus.

          2. Extends the sunset date on the authority of the Dental  
             Board of California, the Speech-Language Pathology and  
             Audiology Board, the Board of Vocational Nursing and  
             Psychiatric Technicians, and the Barbering and  
             Cosmetology Board to appoint an executive officer by  

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             January 1, 2012.

          3. Requires all income tax returns completed by a paid  
             preparer to be signed by an exempt or registered tax  
             preparer, including returns prepared by an unregistered  
             or non-exempt employee of an exempt tax preparer.

          4. Extends the sunset date of provisions regulating tax  
             preparers from July 1, 2008 to January 1, 2012.

          5. Deletes an obsolete reference to an Advisory Committee  
             within the State Board of Optometry.

          6. Permits the Board of Behavioral Sciences (BBS) to file  
             an accusation against a licensee after the current  
             statute of limitations has expired in cases involving  
             specified sexual acts against a minor.  This amendment  
             gives BBS three years from the date of discovery of the  
             alleged act to file an accusation if there is  
             independent evidence that corroborates the allegation of  
             certain acts against a minor.

          7. Clarifies that the enhanced penalties for repeat  
             convictions for unlicensed contracting applies to  
             unlicensed persons who perform contracting work.

          8. Extends the sunset date of the vertical prosecution  
             pilot project within the Medical Board of California by  
             two years, from July 1, 2008 to July 1, 2010, and makes  
             other technical and clarifying changes.

           FISCAL EFFECT  :    Appropriation:  No   Fiscal Com.:  Yes    
          Local:  Yes

           SUPPORT  :   (Verified  6/4/08)

          Board of Barbering and Cosmetology 
          Board of Behavioral Sciences
          Board of Geologists and Geophysicists 
          Board of Vocational Nurses and Psychiatric Technicians
          California Chapter of the American Fence Contractors  
          Association California Landscape Contractors Association
          California Dental Association
          California Fence Contractors Association

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          California Spa and Pool Industry Education Council
          California Tax Education Council
          Center for Public Interest Law
          Contractors State License Board
          Dental Board of California
          Engineering Contractors Association
          Flasher/Barricade Association
          Marin Builders Exchange
          Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology Board


           ASSEMBLY FLOOR  : 
          AYES:  Adams, Aghazarian, Anderson, Arambula, Beall,  
            Benoit, Berg, Berryhill, Blakeslee, Brownley, Carter,  
            Cook, Coto, Davis, De La Torre, De Leon, DeSaulnier,  
            DeVore, Duvall, Dymally, Emmerson, Eng, Evans, Feuer,  
            Fuentes, Fuller, Furutani, Gaines, Galgiani, Garcia,  
            Garrick, Hancock, Hayashi, Hernandez, Horton, Huff,  
            Huffman, Jeffries, Jones, Karnette, Keene, Krekorian, La  
            Malfa, Laird, Leno, Levine, Lieber, Lieu, Ma, Maze,  
            Mendoza, Mullin, Nakanishi, Nava, Niello, Nunez, Parra,  
            Plescia, Portantino, Price, Sharon Runner, Ruskin, Salas,  
            Saldana, Silva, Smyth, Solorio, Spitzer, Strickland,  
            Swanson, Torrico, Tran, Villines, Walters, Wolk, Bass
          NO VOTE RECORDED:  Caballero, Charles Calderon, Houston,  
            Soto


          JJA:do  6/4/08   Senate Floor Analyses 

                         SUPPORT/OPPOSITION:  SEE ABOVE

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