BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON BUDGET AND FISCAL REVIEW
Senator Mark Leno, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular
Bill No: AB 111 Hearing Date: June 18,
2015
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|Author: |Committee on Budget |
|----------+------------------------------------------------------|
|Version: |January 9, 2015 Introduced |
-----------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------
|Urgency: |No |Fiscal: |Yes |
----------------------------------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|Consultant|Brady Van Engelen / Farra Bracht / Mark Ibele |
|: | |
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: Budget Act of 2015.
Summary: This measure makes various statutory changes necessary to
implement the state administration related provisions of the
Budget Act of 2015.
Background: As part of the 2015-16 budget package, AB 111 makes various
statutory changes to implement the budget act.
Proposed
Law: This bill includes the following key changes:
1. District Hospitals. Clarifies the identification
requirements contract employees that perform services
specifically in the emergency department of a district
hospital.
2. Surplus Property. Requires that agricultural district
associations report their real property information to the
Department of General Services, and includes additional
reporting requirements associated with the disposition of
surplus property.
3. Merger of Missing Children Reward Program with the
Restitution Fund. Existing law establishes the Missing
Children Reward Fund, which authorizes the California
Victim Compensation and Government Claims Board to make
cash rewards from the fund to persons that provide
AB 111 (Committee on Budget) Page 2
of ?
information leading to the location of any child listed in
the missing children registry. This provision would
transfer any remaining funds from the Missing Children
Reward Fund to the Restitution Fund, and authorize the
provision of cash rewards from the Restitution Fund.
4. Statewide Disability Access. Requires local entities
collecting fees associated with the Certified Access
Specialist Program (CASP) to report their activities
associated with the administration of the program to the
Division of the State Architect. The Division of the State
Architect would then be responsible for developing a report
identifying the total amount of fees collected by each
city, county, or city and county.
5. Hazardous Material by Rail. Requires that the Office of
Emergency Services, in consultation with relevant local and
state agencies, develop and adopt a state fire service and
rescue emergency mutual aid plan that would serve as an
annex to the State Emergency Plan. This provision also
would create the Regional Railroad Accident Preparedness
Response Force within the Office of Emergency Services. The
force would be responsible for providing response
capabilities in the event of the release of hazardous
materials that were being transported by rail. This
provision would also require that the Director of the
Office of Emergency Services establish a schedule of fees
to be paid by any entity owning any of the 25 most
hazardous materials, as defined. The fee must be fair, and
the Director is required to consider the adjustment of the
fee structure every three years. This provision would
create an advisory committee that is responsible for the
consultation of the fee. This provision creates the
Regional Railroad Accident Preparedness and Immediate
Response Fund within the state treasury, where the
collection of the fees would be deposited. This provision
limits the collection into the fund at $10 million
annually, and a total amount not to exceed $20 million.
6. Human Trafficking Victim Assistance Fund. Creates the
Human Trafficking Victim Assistance Fund within the State
Treasury. The Office of Emergency Services would be
responsible for the administration of the fund, and would
distribute grants to non-profit organizations that meet
AB 111 (Committee on Budget) Page 3
of ?
certain criteria.
7. 21st Century Project. Existing law authorizes the State
Controller to access funds within the State Treasury for
the purposes of implementing a new human resources
management system - referred to as the 21st Century
Project. This provision would provide the State Controller
with authority to access funds within the State Treasury
until June 30, 2016.
8. Public Employees' Retirement Provisions. The Public
Employees' Retirement Law (PERL) permits a retired person
to serve as an elected official without reinstatement from
retirement or a loss of benefits, provided that his or her
retirement allowance is suspended to the extent that the
allowance is based on service in that elective office. The
PERL also permits a person retired for disability to serve
without reinstatement if the person is below the retirement
age for persons in the job and he or she is not disabled
for employment. In this circumstance, the PERL prohibits
service in the same member classification and requires
reduction of the person's disability retirement pension
during their employment to an amount that, when added, to
his or her compensation equals the maximum compensation
earned by a person holding the position that he or she held
at retirement. This bill reenacts these provisions
regarding service after retirement, on or after the
effective date of the California Public Employees' Pension
Reform Act of 2013 (PEPRA).
9. Additional Appointments. Further defines the term
"additional appointment", and requires the Department of
Human Resources to adopt policies to advise state agencies
regarding the procedures and appropriate use of additional
appointments.
10. Electronic Recording. The Electronic Recording Delivery
Act of 2004 allows for a county recorder, after certain
criteria have been met, to create an electronic recording
delivery system for digitized and electronic records, which
are subject to system certification, regulation, and
oversight by the Attorney General. Existing law authorizes
the Attorney General to charge a fee directly to a vendor
for the purposes described above. Existing law requires
AB 111 (Committee on Budget) Page 4
of ?
that fees paid to the Attorney General are to be deposited
into the Electronic Recording Authorization Account, which
is a Special Deposit Fund within the State Treasury. This
provision would redesignate the Electronic Recording
Authorization Account in the Special Deposit Fund as the
Electronic Recording Authorization Fund within the State
Treasury.
11. Drought Housing Relocation Assistance. Authorizes the
Housing and Community Development Department to provide
temporary assistance, under certain circumstances, for
persons moving out of a housing unit due to a lack of
potable water resulting from the drought. This program
sunsets on June 30, 2017. Makes Office of Migrant Services
housing centers available for rent by persons or families
rendered homeless or at risk of becoming homeless as a
result of the drought.
12. Earthquake Loss Mitigation. Recognizes the existence of
the California Residential Mitigation Program (CRMP), a
joint powers authority created by an agreement in 2012
between the California Earthquake Authority and the Office
of Emergency Services. This provision requires that the
CRMP design and implement a grant program that will be
provided to qualifying homeowners to defray costs
associated with a seismic retrofit.
13. Inspection Prioritization. Requires the Division of
Occupational Safety and Health to prioritize the
investigation of accidents that involve death or serious
injury and complaints that allege serious violation over
non-serious complaints.
14. Conveyance Inspections. This provision would, for fiscal
year 2015-16, suspend the fee for annual inspection of
elevators. In fiscal year 2016-17, and every year
thereafter, the Director of Industrial Relations, upon
concurrence from the Department of Finance, would have the
authority to suspend or reduce the fee on a one-time basis
when the funds are sufficient in the Elevator Safety
Account to meet its purpose.
15. Public Contracts: Public Bidding. This provision would
authorize a specific contract between the Office of
AB 111 (Committee on Budget) Page 5
of ?
Planning and Research, the University of California
Regents, or an auxiliary organization of the California
State University to include a subcontract that is not
subject to certain bidding requirements until January 1,
2019.
16. California Immigrant Integration. This provision would
establish the Director of Immigrant Integration, under the
Office of the Governor, and provide statewide leadership on
the administration, assessment, and planning efforts of
immigrant integration efforts in California. This provision
would also create the immigrant integration fund within the
State Treasury.
17. Collection of Charges by Franchise Tax Board. Expands
the types of vehicle-related charges that are collected by
the Franchise Tax Board (FTB) to include unpaid tolls, toll
evasion penalties, or any related administrative or service
fees. Under current law, the FTB is responsible for
collecting certain delinquencies related to vehicles
including registration fees, transfer fees, and parking
violation penalties.
18. Prepaid Mobile Telephony Service Surcharge. Addresses
certain aspects regarding the administration of the Prepaid
Mobile Telephony Service Surcharge (MTS). Specifically, the
proposal would:
a. De Minimis Amount. Establish that retailers with MTS
annual sales of less than $15,000 are not required to
collect the surcharge or local charge, and allow the
Department of Finance to adjust this threshold as
necessary.
b. General Fund Loan Authorization. Allow for a loan
from the General Fund to address cash flow issues and
specifies that the loan is to be repaid in the same
fiscal year, or delayed until six months after the
adoption of the budget act in the subsequent fiscal year.
c. Technical Changes and Clarifications. Specify the
accounts and funds for the deposit of the surcharge and
local charge revenues, clarifies dates regarding the
imposition of rates, and indicates the means by which
AB 111 (Committee on Budget) Page 6
of ?
service suppliers are notified of rates.
1. Financial Integrity and Accountability. Updates the
oversight and internal control activities of state agencies
to reflect appropriate levels and focus of internal
controls, as these relate to the Financial Integrity and
State Manger's Accountability Act (FISMAA) of 1983. The
update would incorporate additional guidance provided by
the Government Accountability Office (GAO) as set forth in
the agency's Standards for Internal Control in the Federal
Government, regarding internal controls, effectively, and
reliable reporting information, and compliance with
applicable laws and regulations. Specific changes include:
a. Expanding internal controls to fiscal, operational,
programmatic, strategic, as well as other factors.
b. Mandating objectivity and systematic review for
activities related to various monitoring processes.
c. Specifying the essential components of an effective
internal control system (to include Control Environment,
Risk Assessment, Control Activities, Information and
Communication and Monitoring.
d. Limiting the recipients of the biennial report, to
the Legislature, State Auditor, Controller, Director of
Finance, plus the Secretary of Government Operations.
1. Local Government Mandates. Requires the Department of
Finance, the Secretary of State and theLegislative
Analyst's Office to convene a working group to evaluate
alternative for funding election mandates, with Department
of Finance to release a report of the findings by September
1, 2016. Directs Department of Finance to survey county
election practices during years of a statewide general
election and report the results of the survey to the
Legislature by April of the following year.
2. State Banking Practices. Allows an eligible bank that
has been selected by the State Treasurer for the
safekeeping of funds, and has its headquarters outside of
California, to submit letters of credit hat are drawn on
its regional federal home loan bank as security for
deposits in demand accounts. Regarding securities to be
AB 111 (Committee on Budget) Page 7
of ?
deposited as security, receipts for securities, delivery of
securities, or safekeeping of securities, expands from the
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco to any federal
reserve bank, the participation in such activities.
Fiscal
Effect: This bill should not result in any changes to the budget act or
related budget actions. The provision referencing drought
housing relocation assistance includes an appropriation. This
bill has been identified as related to the budget in the Budget
Bill.
Support: None on file.
Opposed: None on file.
-- END --