June 20, 2024
Golden State Republican Women
Janet Price, President
Submitted by the GSRW Legislative Analyst Committee
Valerie Evans, Lou Ann Flaherty and Elaine Freeman,
SB 954, as amended, Menjivar. Sexual health: contraceptives. health.
(1) Existing law, the California Healthy Youth Act, requires school districts, defined to include county boards of education, county superintendents of schools, the California School for the Deaf, the California School for the Blind, and charter schools, to ensure that all pupils in grades 7 to 12, inclusive, receive comprehensive sexual health education and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) prevention education, as specified.
The bill would require the State Department of Education to monitor compliance with the requirements of the California Healthy Youth Act as part of its annual compliance monitoring of state and federal programs.
This bill would, in order to prevent and reduce unintended pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections, on or before the start of the 2025–26 school year, require each public school, including schools operated by a school district or county office of education, charter schools, and state special schools, to make internal and external condoms available to all pupils in grades 9 to 12, inclusive, free of charge, as provided.
The bill would require these public schools to, at the beginning of each school year, inform pupils through existing school communication channels that free condoms are available and where the condoms can be obtained on school grounds. The bill would require a public school to post at least one notice regarding these requirements, as specified.
The bill would require this notice to include certain information, including, among other information, information about how to use condoms properly. The bill would require each public school serving any of grades 7 to 12, inclusive, to allow condoms to be made available during the course of, or in connection with, educational or public health programs and initiatives, as provided. The bill would authorize a state agency, the State Department of Education, or a public school to accept gifts, grants, and donations from any source for the support of a public school carrying out these provisions, including, but not limited to, the acceptance of condoms from a manufacturer or wholesaler.
The bill would, in order to comply with these provisions, encourage public schools to explore partnerships, including, but not limited to, partnerships with local health jurisdictions, as defined, community health centers, nonprofit organizations, and the State Department of Public Health. The bill would require the governing board or body of a public school to designate one employee at each schoolsite to implement these provisions. By imposing additional duties on public schools, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would make the implementation of these provisions contingent upon an appropriation.
The bill would additionally prohibit a public school, as defined, maintaining any combination of classrooms from grades 7 to 12, inclusive, a school district, the State Department of Education, or a county office of education from prohibiting certain school-based health centers, as defined, from making internal and external condoms available and easily accessible to pupils at the school-based health center site.
(2) Under existing law, the Sherman Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Law, the State Department of Public Health generally regulates the packaging, labeling, advertising, and sale of food, drugs, devices, and cosmetics, in accordance with the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. A violation of those provisions is generally a crime. Existing law sets forth various other provisions relating to the furnishing and health care coverage of certain types of contraception.
This bill would, with certain exceptions, prohibit a retail establishment, as defined, from refusing to furnish nonprescription contraception to a person solely on the basis of age by means of any conduct, including, but not limited to, requiring the customer to present identification for purposes of demonstrating their age. Under the bill, a violation of that prohibition would be exempt from the above-described criminal penalty.
Hearing: Jun 25 @ 1:30 pm in 1021 O Street, Room 1100
ELECTIONS
SB 1174, as amended, Min. Elections: voter identification.
Existing law permits the governing body of a city or district to request that the county render specified services to the city or district regarding the conduct of an election.
This bill would prohibit a local government from enacting or enforcing any charter provision, ordinance, or regulation requiring a person to present identification for the purpose of voting or submitting a ballot at any polling place, vote center, or other location where ballots are cast or submitted, as specified.
The bill would include findings that changes proposed by this bill address a matter of statewide concern rather than a municipal affair and, therefore, apply to all cities, including charter cities.
Hearing: Jun 19 @ 1:30 pm in State Capitol, Room 444
ANOTHER GUT AND AMEND BILL!
A similar Motor Voter Bill was attempted in 2023, but failed
SB 299, as amended, Eggman Limón. Medi-Cal eligibility: redetermination. Voter registration: California New Motor Voter Program.
Existing law requires, in conformance with federal law, that the Secretary of State and the Department of Motor Vehicles establish and implement the California New Motor Voter Program for the purpose of increasing opportunities for voter registration for qualified voters. Existing law requires the department to transmit to the Secretary of State specified information related to a person’s eligibility to vote, which the person provides when applying for a driver’s license or identification card or when the person notifies the department of an address change.
Existing law requires that if this information transmitted to the Secretary of State constitutes a completed affidavit of registration, the Secretary of State must register or preregister the person to vote, as applicable, unless the person affirmatively declines to register or is ineligible to vote, as specified.
This bill would additionally require the Department of Motor Vehicles to transmit specified information to the Secretary of State for a person submitting a driver’s license application who provides documentation demonstrating United States citizenship and that the person is of an eligible age to register or preregister to vote.
The bill would deem this information to constitute a completed affidavit of registration for such persons, and require the Secretary of State to register or preregister the person to vote, unless the Secretary of State determines they are ineligible. The bill would require, if a person is registered or preregistered to vote in this manner, that the county elections official send a notice to the person advising that they may decline to register or preregister to vote and providing additional information.
The bill would also require the county elections official to send a notice to a person who is already registered to vote, but for whom the Secretary of State changes their registration information after receiving updated name or address information from the department.
This bill would prohibit the department from providing a person the opportunity to attest to meeting voter eligibility requirements when they submit a driver’s license application, if the person provides a document to the department during the transaction demonstrating that the person is not a United States Citizen.
This bill would expand the definition of “voter registration agency” to include entities designated by the Secretary of State. The bill would require the Secretary of State to establish a schedule whereby specified voter registration agencies must provide the Secretary of State electronic information regarding individuals who are eligible to vote or who provide updated registration information.
This bill would make these provisions operative on the earlier of January 1, 2026, or 5 days after the Secretary of State certifies that the information technology infrastructure to substantially implement the bill is functional. The bill would allow the Secretary of State, commencing January 1, 2024, to perform administrative actions necessary to implement these provisions.
Hearing: Jun 26 @ 9:00 am in State Capitol, Room 444
AB 2761, as introduced [2/15/24], Hart [D]. Product safety: plastic packaging: Reducing Toxics in Packaging Act.
Existing law prohibits any person from distributing, selling, or offering for sale in the state any food packaging that contains regulated perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), as defined, and requires a manufacturer to use the least toxic alternative when replacing regulated PFAS in food packaging to comply with this requirement. Existing law similarly prohibits, beginning July 1, 2025, a person from manufacturing, distributing, selling, or offering for sale in the state any new, not previously owned, textile articles that contain regulated PFAS, except as specified.
This bill would enact the Reducing Toxics in Packaging Act, which would prohibit, beginning January 1, 2026, a person from manufacturing, selling, offering for sale, or distributing in the state plastic packaging that contains certain chemicals, as specified. The bill would exclude from that prohibition packaging used for certain medical, drug, and federally regulated products. The bill would authorize the imposition of a civil penalty for a violation of that prohibition, as specified.
What are PFAS and why should we care?
According to the EPA,” PFAS are a group of manufactured chemicals that have been used in industry and consumer products since the 1940s because of their useful properties. There are thousands of different PFAS, some of which have been more widely used and studied than others. One common characteristic of concern of PFAS is that many break down very slowly and can build up in people, animals, and the environment over time [therefore referred to as forever chemicals]. PFAS can be present in our water, soil, air, and food as well as in materials found in our homes or workplaces, including: some food, food packaging, drinking water, household products, and personal care products.”
AB 3163, as amended [4/4/24], Mathis [R]. State parks: armed services: fee waiver.
Existing law authorizes the Department of Parks and Recreation to offer to a veteran, as defined, or current active duty or reserve military personnel for the United States Armed Forces or the National Guard of any state a reduced fee or free day use of California state parks, as provided, on Memorial Day and Veterans Day, if proper proof of military service is provided, as specified.
This bill would authorize the department to instead also offer to a veteran or current active duty or reserve military personnel for the United States Armed Forces or the National Guard of any state a reduced fee or free day use of California state parks on any day the department finds appropriate, if proper proof of military service is provided.
This bill was introduced by three Republican Assemblymen: Juan Alanis AD22, Devon Mathis AD33, and Phillip Chen AD59, honoring our veterans and military personnel.
SB 961, as amended, Wiener. Vehicles: safety equipment.
Existing law prohibits a person from driving a vehicle upon a highway at a speed greater than the speed limit. Existing law also prohibits a person from driving a vehicle upon a highway at a speed greater than is reasonable or prudent having due regard for weather, visibility, the traffic on, and the surface and width of, the highway, and in no event at a speed that endangers the safety of persons or property.
This bill would require 50% of certain vehicles, commencing with the 2029 model year, to be equipped with a passive intelligent speed assistance system, as specified, that would utilize a brief, one-time, visual and audio signal to alert the driver each time the speed of the vehicle is more than 10 miles per hour over the speed limit.
The bill would require all specified vehicles, commencing with the 2032 model year, to be equipped in the above-described manner. The bill would require the system, if the system receives conflicting speed limits for the same area, to apply the higher speed limit. The bill would exempt emergency vehicles from this requirement and would authorize the Commissioner of the California Highway Patrol to authorize the permanent disabling of the system on other vehicles based on specified criteria. requirement.
A violation of the above requirements would be punishable as a crime.
Hearing: Jun 17 @ 2:30 pm in 1021 O Street, Room 1100
SB 1292, as amended, Bradford. Electricity: fixed charges: report.
Existing law vests the Public Utilities Commission with regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations. Existing law authorizes the commission to adopt new, or expand existing, fixed charges, as defined, for the purpose of collecting a reasonable portion of the fixed costs of providing electrical service to residential customers. Under existing law, the commission may authorize fixed charges for any rate schedule applicable to a residential customer account.
Existing law requires the commission, no later than July 1, 2024, to authorize a fixed charge for default residential rates on an income-graduated basis, as specified.
This bill would require the commission, on or before July 1, 2027, January 1, 2028, but no sooner than 2 years after the adoption of the income-graduated fixed charge for default residential rates, to submit a report to the relevant policy committees of both houses of the Legislature on the electrical corporations’ implementation of the fixed charge, as specified. The bill would prohibit the commission from authorizing a fixed charge other than the income-graduated fixed charge for default residential rates until 30 days after the report is submitted.
Hearing: Jul 1 in State Capitol, Room 437
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