The Commission withdrew support from 15 bills when amendments made them no longer compatible with Commission recommendations. Of the remaining 66 bills, 37 measures passed both houses of the Legislature, and the Governor signed 25 of those measures. Twelve Commission-supported bills were vetoed.
The Commission's legislative activities during the 1997-1998 legislative session were largely focused on the areas of crime and prisons, education and long-term care. To a lesser degree, there was legislative activity in the topics of child support and general state management. Other subject matters, such as foster care, procurement, and utilities, also received the Commission's legislative attention.
The tables on the following pages describe each bill, organized by topic and in numerical order, that the Commission supported during the 1997-1998 legislative session.
| Bill, Author | Summary | Status |
| AB 123 (Wildman) | Originally would have modified the criminal penalty provisions for failing to provide child support | Support Withdrawn |
| AB 1334 (Caldera) | Originally would have established a pilot project to allow alternative methods of service of process in child support actions | Support Withdrawn |
| AB 1961 (Aroner) | Creates a dispute resolution process for child support collection disputes | Vetoed |
| SB 936
(Burton) |
Requires counties to collect and compile specified information on child support enforcement programs | Chaptered
Ch. 926, Stats. 1997 |
| Bill, Author | Summary | Status |
| AB 70
(Woods) |
Prohibits a juvenile court from committinga person to the Youth Authority for the commission of specified criminaloffenses in a county that has adopted a plan involving community-basedpunishment | Died in Senate |
| AB 320 (Goldsmith) | Establishes a pilot program for certain non-violentjuvenile offenders to attend a victim-offender reconciliation program, perform community service, and pay victim restitution | Vetoed |
| AB 486
(Margett) |
Establishes an education and transitional supportprogram for graduates of juvenile boot camps | Died in Senate |
| AB 640
(Aguiar) |
Authorizes a pilot program in San Bernardino County designed to demonstrate the effects of a collaborative and integrated approach to the apprehension, treatment, rehabilitation, education, and punishment of juvenile offenders in a community-based program | Chaptered
Ch. 753, Stats. 1997 |
| AB 963
(Keeley) |
Establishes a crime prevention program in specified counties for the purposes of reducing gang and criminal activity and youth violence | Chaptered
Ch. 885, Stats. 1997 |
| AB 986
(Migden) |
Originally would have revised the goals of the juvenile justice laws | Support Withdrawn |
| SB 483
(Schiff) |
Declares the intent of the Legislature to create a Department of Juvenile Justice in state government for the purpose of coordinating juvenile justice services | Vetoed |
| SB 668 (Vasconcellos) | Revised the goals of the juvenile justice laws | Vetoed |
| SB 670 (Vasconcellos) | Establishes the California Sentencing Commission, creates a Judicial Advisory Committee to assist the commission in developing sentencing guidelines, and authorizes counties to create local sentencing commissions for the purpose of establishing sentencing guidelines for misdemeanors | Died in Senate |
| SB 711
(Mountjoy) |
Modifies the sealed records law and the confidentiality of certain proceedings relating to juvenile offenders | Died in Senate |
| SB 817
(Polanco) |
Creates regulations for private sector boot camps | Died in Assembly |
| SB 822
(Lockyer) |
Creates the California Youth Violence Prevention Authority | Vetoed |
| SB 1136
(Kopp) |
Originally would have established a deferred entry of judgment procedure in juvenile court for a minor who has committed a felony offense if specified circumstances apply | Support Withdrawn |
| SB 1195
(Schiff) |
Enhances the ability of victims or families of victims of juvenile offenders to participate in the justice process | Chaptered
Ch. 910, Stats. 1997 |
| SB 1218
(Schiff) |
Authorizes certain juvenile offenders convicted of a felony to be released under supervision for a maximum period of two years after the offender reaches the age of 25 | Died in Senate |
| SB 1259 (Vasconcellos) | Establishes a crime prevention program in specified counties for the purposes of reducing gang, criminal activity, and youth violence | Died in Senate |
| SB 1485
(Rosenthal) |
Requires the Department of Corrections to award mentally ill offender grants to provide a continuum of sanctions for mentally ill offenders | Chaptered
Ch. 501, Stats. 1998 |
| SB 1913
(Ayala) |
Makes the Office of the Inspector General an entity wholly independent of any other state agency | Chaptered
Ch. 969, Stats. 1998 |
| Bill Author | Summary | Status |
| AB 36
(Firestone) |
Establishes the Alpert-Firestone BilingualEducation Reform Act of 1997 in order to provide a new program of instructional services for English learners | Died in Assembly |
| AB 55
(Mazzoni) |
Originally would have changed the vote requirement for the approval of bond measures related to school facility construction | Support Withdrawn |
| AB 458
(Caldera) |
Authorizes the Superintendent of Public Instructionto make apportionments for additional educational programs offered by charterschools provided the schools meet specified requirements | Died in Assembly |
| AB 544 (Lempert) | Increases the maximum number of charter schools allowedto operate in the State from 100 to 250 | Chaptered Ch. 34, Stats.1998 |
| AB 844
(Caldera) |
Repeals the limitation on the number of charter schools operating in the State and in any school district | Died in Assembly |
| AB 865
(Pringle) |
Authorizes school districts to utilize commercial buildings that do not meet the requirements of the Field Act as schoolbuildings under specified circumstances | Chaptered Ch. 629, Stats.1997 |
| AB 867
(Pringle) |
Requires the State Board of Education to annually identify low-achieving elementary and high schools and permits the parentsof the pupils at such schools to submit to the governing board of the school district a petition to establish a charter school | Died in Assembly |
| AB 1254 (Baldwin) | Makes inoperative the limitation on the number of charter schools operating in the state provided that the Senate and Assembly Education Committees make specified findings regarding charter schools and pupil performance | Died in Assembly |
| ACA 7
(Escutia) |
Originally would have provided an exemption from the property tax limitation for property taxes to pay the interest charges on bonded indebtedness incurred by school districts for school facility construction and changes the vote requirement for the approval of bond measures related to school facility construction from two-thirds to a majority | Support Withdrawn |
| SB 6
(Alpert) |
Establishes theAlpert-Firestone Bilingual Education Reform Act of 1997 in order to provide a new program of instructional services for English learners | Vetoed |
| SB 222
(Lewis) |
Repeals the limitation on the number ofcharter schools operating in the state and in any school district | Died in Senate |
| SB 223
(Lewis) |
Permits a petition for the establishment of a charter school to be submitted by the parents, guardians, or caregivers of pupils under specified circumstances | Died in Senate |
| SB 224
(Lewis) |
Originally would have deemed the Regentsof the University of California, the Chancellor of the California StateUniversity, and the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges as a governing board for the purpose of establishing charter schools | Support Withdrawn |
| SB 804 (Rosenthal) | Revises the procedure utilized by the Superintendentof Public Instruction for calculating the days of school attendance in a manner that takes into account a school district's average rate of apportionable absences | Chaptered
Ch. 298, Stats. 1997 |
| SB 843
(Hayden) |
Originally would have increased the number of charter schools allowed to operate in the State | Support Withdrawn |
| SB 1538
(Alpert) |
Provides for a comprehensive reform of the State's education finance system | Died in Senate |
| Bill, Author | Summary | Status |
| AB 2598
(Aroner) |
Creates an Interagency Coordinating Council for Foster Care | Vetoed |
| SB 916
(Vasconcellos) |
Enhances preplacement and annual training of foster care parents | Chaptered
Ch. 542, Stats. 1997 |
| Bill, Author | Summary | Status |
| AB 697
(Davis) |
Requires the Trade & Commerce Agencyto meet program-specific benchmarks, goals, and objectives set by the Legislatureand imposes a monetary sanction for failing to meet the established goals | Vetoed |
| Bill, Author | Summary | Status |
| AB 190
(Napolitano) |
Originally would have declared the intent of theLegislature to increase the penalties for fraud against adults over theage of 65 to a level commensurate with the pain or suffering inflictedon the victim | Support Withdrawn |
| AB 560
(Perata) |
Establishes a registered dental hygienist in alternativepractice as a new category of dental auxiliary and provides that such servicesmay be rendered as a covered benefit to Medi-Cal recipients under specified conditions | Chaptered
Ch. 753, Stats. 1997 |
| AB 668
(Aroner) |
Requires the Director of Health Services to seek amendmentsto existing waivers of federal Medicaid requirements in order to expandthe class of persons who would be eligible to receive personal care services | Chaptered Ch. 896, Stats. 1998 |
| AB 779
(Woods) |
Reorganizes the provisions of law creating theOffice of the State Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program in the CaliforniaDepartment of Aging and revises the powers and duties of the office | Died in Assembly |
| AB 789
(Cardenas) |
Prohibits a person from providing direct patient care in a long-term care facility if the person has been convicted of certain crimes | Support Withdrawn |
| AB 846
(Knox) |
Prohibits the eviction of a residentof a residential care facility for the elderly unless certain circumstances exist | Vetoed |
| AB 1032
(Frusetta) |
Prohibits a person from providing direct patientcare in a long-term care facility if the person has been convicted of certain crimes | Died in Assembly |
| AB 1087
(Aguiar) |
Requires the Director of Health Services to conduct a pilot project to examine and contrast the Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Health Care Organization accreditation review process with the current Medicare and Medicaid certification surveys and enforcement process for long-term health care facilities, and requires the department to seek all necessary waivers from the federal government | Died in Senate |
| AB 1133
(Gallegos) |
Increases the civil penalties against long-termhealth care facilities that are in violation of laws and regulations relatingto patient care and eliminates the authority of the Director of Health Services to waive the penalty for a Class B violation | Chaptered
Ch. 650, Stats. 1998 |
| AB 1147
(Shelley) |
Provides that any civil cause of action arising from the abuse of elderly or dependent adults shall be governed by the laws applicable to professional negligence actions as well as by those relating to the abuse of elderly or dependent adults | Died in Senate |
| AB 1178
(Davis) |
Originally would have established standards for informed consent for medical treatments in Residential Care Facilities for the Elderly | Support Withdrawn |
| AB 1215
(Mazzoni) |
Requires the Health and Welfare Agency to prepare a report regarding the licensing responsibilities for long-term health care facilities and to develop a plan to consolidate these responsibilities under a single administrative branch | Chaptered Ch. 269, Stats. 1997 |
| AB 1249
(Davis) |
Requires the Department of Aging to establish a statewiderespite care program and registry to provide services to individuals providing care to the elderly and the disabled | Died in Assembly |
| AB 1380
(Ashburn) |
Extends the sunset date for the California Partnershipfor Long-Term Care Pilot Program from June 30, 1998 to June 30, 2000 | Chaptered
Ch. 37, Stats. 1997 |
| AB 1440
(Woods) |
Requires the Department of Social Services to conduct fingerprint checks of in-home care providers at the expense of the provider | Died in Senate |
| AB 1483
(Gallegos) |
Requires every policy of long-term care insurance to be identified as either federally tax qualified or federally non-taxqualified and requires insurers offering federally tax qualified insurance to also offer federally non-tax qualified coverage | Chaptered Ch.700, Stats. 1997 |
| SB 140 (McPherson) | Originally would have suspended the application of the inflation factor to the senior citizen exemption credit and transfered any resulting revenues to the California Senior Special Fund | Support Withdrawn |
| SB 253
(Burton) |
Prohibits a health facility from discriminating or retaliating against a patient or employee of that facility because the patient or employee presents a grievance or complaint, or participates in an investigation or proceeding by a governmental entity, relating to the careservices, or conditions at the facility | Vetoed |
| SB 381
(Watson) |
Requires the Department of Social Services, in conjunction with other specified agencies, to develop or approve the curriculum content for certain training programs for licensees and staffs of adult residential facilities | Chaptered
Ch. 555, Stats. 1997 |
| SB 527
(Rosenthal) |
Requires the provisions of tax-favorable long-termcare insurance policies to be as permissive as allowed under federal lawand regulations and requires specified disclosures to be made on applications for long-term care insurance | Chaptered
Ch. 701, Stats. 1997 |
| SB 588
(Hughes) |
States the intent of the Legislature to implement an omnibus elder abuse reform effort, in coordination with the Commission on Aging, for the prevention of elder abuse | Died in Senate Committee |
| SB 791
(Costa) |
Requires adult day health care centers to provide coordination of transportation services and revises the procedures such centers must follow in emergency situations | Vetoed |
| SB 830
(Alpert) |
Requires the Department of Social Servicesto ensure that direct payments made by a state or county to an in-home supportive services provider shall cover wages for all authorized IHSS services provided during the appropriate pay period | Died in Senate |
| SB 942
(Solis) |
Increases the amount of payments made under the State Supplementary Program for the Aged, Blind and Disabled program for recipients in nonmedical out-of-home care facilities | Died in Senate |
| SB 1052 (Vasconcellos) | Requires every policy of long-term care insuranceto be identified as either federally tax qualified or federally non-tax qualified and requires insurers offering federally tax qualified insurance to also offer federally non-tax qualified coverage | Chaptered Ch.699, Stats. 1997 |
| SB 1061 (Vasconcellos) | Repeals requirement that long-term health care contracts of admission be submitted to the Department of Health Services for review and instead requires such facilities to utilize a standard admission agreement adopted by the department | Chaptered
Ch. 631, Stats. 1997 |
| SB 1231
(Watson) |
Authorizes a residential care facility for the elderlyto obtain a waiver from the Department of Social Services for the purposeof providing incidental medical care through a home health agency under specified conditions | Chaptered
Ch. 494, Stats. 1997 |
| SB 1238 (Johannessen) | Increases the criminal penalties for willfully causing any elder or dependent adult to suffer physical or mental pain | Chaptered
Ch. 698, Stats. 1997 |
| SB 1674
(Alpert) |
Requires the Department of Social Services to ensurethat direct payments made by a state or county to an in-home supportiveservices provider shall cover wages for all authorized IHSS services provided during the appropriate pay period | Died in Senate |
| SB 1724 (Johannessen) | Originally would have required the Departmentof Health Services to apply for a waiver in order for residents of RCFE's to receive federal services and benefits | Support Withdrawn |
| Bill Author | Summary | Status |
| AB 1913
(Ashburn) |
Declares legislative intent to require the Departmentof Corrections to provide inmates with assessments, treatment, aftercare, expanded drug treatment and parolee assistance programs, to create reintegration centers, and to establish a zero-tolerance policy of drugs in prisons | Died in Senate committee |
| AB 2321
(Knox) |
Requires the Department of Correctionsto expand the Preventing Parolee Failure Program and authorizes conditionally released or paroled prisoners to be placed in the program in lieu of the suspension or revocation of parole | Chaptered
Ch. 526, Stats. 1998 |
| SB 295
(Rainey) |
Authorizes nonviolent felons to be placed in local correctional facilities for treatment, incarceration, and supervision under specified circumstances, and authorizes the Department of Corrections to establish a Medical Detention Program for treatment of severely ill and disabled inmates | Chaptered
Ch. 526, Stats. 1998 |
| SB 1089
(Lockyer) |
Originally would have required the Department of Corrections to expand the number of beds in state institutions and community correctional facilities by 4,000 to provide intensive substance abuse treatment | Support Withdrawn |
| SB 1497
(Polanco) |
Requires the Department of Corrections to establish inmate reintegration centers that provide programs that prepare inmates for successful reintegration into society upon release | Died in Assembly |
| SB 2108 (Vasconcellos) | Requires the Department of Corrections to evaluate potential parolees for amenability for treatment and to develop an individualized treatment plan for inmates | Chaptered
Ch. 502, Stats. 1998 |
| Bill Author | Summary | Status |
| SB 1132
(Polanco) |
Revises the mission of the Prison Industry Authority, requires the state to purchase PIA products unless the state elicits bidsfrom outside vendors and receives a bid lower than the PIA quote, and creates a panel to advise the PIA and the Legislature concerning recommendations to improve the competitiveness of prison industries | Died in Senate |
| SB 1338
(Johannessen) |
Originally would have enacted the CaliforniaElectronic Commerce Act of 1997 which, among other things, centralizes the management and responsibility for all procurement functions with the Departmentof General Services and requires the department to employ best value purchasing techniques | Support Withdrawn |
| Bill, Author | Summary | Status |
| AB 1096
(Martinez) |
Transfers the consumer advocacy functions of thePublic Utilities Commission to the Office of the Attorney General | Died in Senate |
| SB 653
(Calderon) |
Provides for intermediate appellate review of certain types of decisions issued by the Public Utilities Commission | Vetoed |
To obtain a copy of the legislation listed, contact the Legislative Bill Room at (916) 445-2645 or visit the following sites on the Internet: the California Assembly, the California Senate or the California Legislative Counsel Bureau's Legislative Data Center.
If you have specific questions about the legislation, contact the Little Hoover Commission, littlehoover@lhc.ca.gov, 925 L Street, Suite 805, Sacramento, California 95814, (916) 445-2125 or (916) 322-7709 (fax).