Corrections Cost-Cutting Measure Clears the Senate, Stalls in the Assembly
By Paul McIntosh, Executive Director
pmcintosh@counties.org
Yesterday, the Senate took up AB3X 14 (Arambula), a 239-page measure that would carry out a range of policy changes to achieve costs savings in the state’s correctional system. After lengthy debate and narrowly reaching the majority vote threshold (21-19), the Senate shipped the measure to the Assembly. Many anticipated that the Assembly would have difficulty approving the Senate plan and, indeed, the afternoon and evening hours elapsed with the Assembly in negotiations to reformulate the package.
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Major Reform Efforts Move Forward
Over the last several days, two efforts to make major changes to California’s government structure have taken important steps forward. In the first, California Forward sent an open letter to Governor Schwarzenegger and legislative leaders outlining their much-anticipated plan for reforms. In the second, the California Attorney General’s office issued titles and summaries for two citizen initiatives that would allow the citizens to call a Constitutional Convention, actually call the Convention, and govern the structure of a Convention; the proponents may now begin collecting signatures.
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Administration of Justice
As detailed in previous Legislative Bulletins, AB 985, by Assembly Member Hector De La Torre, would expand the existing process for seeking redaction of offensive and discriminatory language that exists in certain properties’ covenants, conditions, and restrictions (CC&Rs).
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Agriculture and Natural Resources
AB 64, by Assembly Member Paul Krekorian, has moved to the Senate Appropriations Suspense File. As previously reported, this bill would increase California's Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) to require all retail sellers of electricity and all Publicly Owned Utilities (POUs) to procure at least 33 percent of electricity delivered to their retail customers from renewable resources by 2020.
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Employee Relations
At its August 18 board meeting, the CalPERS Board of Administration (the Board) included in its agenda an action plan that would direct CalPERS staff to organize a series of future meetings to discuss the sustainability of pension benefits and the administration of these benefits.
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Government Finance and Operations
SB 10, by Senator Mark Leno, would allow counties to put a measure before their voters to impose an assessment on vehicles owned by county residents. The imposed rate, combined with all state rates, could not exceed 2 percent.
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Health & Human Services
AB 244 would require Knox-Keene licensed health plans to expand mental health coverage to include the diagnosis and treatment of any mental health condition or disorder as defined in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual IV (DSM-IV) (or subsequent editions), including substance abuse conditions.
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Housing, Land Use and Transportation
As Introduced on February 27, 2009, SB 802, by Senator Mark Leno, would require that contract retention proceeds not exceed 5 percent of the payment of all contracts entered into after January 2010, between a public entity and an original contractor, between an original contractor and a subcontractor, and between all subcontractors.
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