| 2008 Legislative Proposals |
Below is an update on Assemblymember Huffman's legislation package for 2008 organized by issue area.
More Information on These Bills
Protecting Public Health & the Environment:
AB 541 (Huffman): Protection for Farmers against Cross-Contamination from Genetically Engineered Material
Enacts safeguards against the risk of cross-contamination from genetically engineered materials in agriculture. Specifically, protects farmers whose crops are contaminated by the drift of genetically engineered material against litigation by a party holding a patent on the genetically engineered material; establishes sampling, analysis, and notification protocols.
Status: Passed the full Assembly, the Senate Agriculture Committee and the Senate Judiciary Committee. Will be heard in the Senate Appropriations Committee in July or August.
AB 1338 (Huffman): California Coastal Commission License Plate
Authorizes the California Coastal Commission to replace existing whale tale art for the Commissions’ special environmental license plate with new art without creating a “new” special plate.
Status: Held in Senate Rules.
AB 1654 (Huffman): Resource Bond Funds: Integrated Regional Water Management Planning Act
Updates the existing Integrated Regional Water Management statutes, provides implementation framework for more than $1 billion in Prop. 84 water bond funding, and includes important environmental justice and disadvantaged community participation provisions absent from current bond funding guidelines.
Status: Senate Rules Committee.
AB 1860 (Huffman): Recalled Products
Addresses gaps in current voluntary recall system by requiring immediate removal of recalled toys and other products from the market; prohibits the sale of recalled toys and other recalled consumer products, and imposes stiff fines against those who sell recalled products to prevent the items from surfacing on the Internet or at second-hand stores; requires recalled products to be properly disposed of and for manufacturers to certify their disposal; requires manufacturers to establish a notification system when recalling products; mandates that retailers post recall notices in a conspicuous fashion.
Status: Passed the full Assembly and the Senate Judiciary Committee. Will be heard in the Senate Appropriations Committee in July or August.
AB 1879 (Feuer/Huffman): Consumer Safety Of Hazardous Products
Grants broader authority to the Department of Toxic Substances Control to regulate the list of chemicals in consumer products that are already recognized by the Legislature as hazardous, and provides enforcement tools to the Department for regulating contaminated consumer products.
Status: Passed the full Assembly and the Senate Environmental Quality Committee. Will be heard in the Senate Appropriations Committee in July or August.
AB 2765 (Huffman): Public Process And Disclosure Requirements For Pest Eradication Procedures, Including For The Light Brown Apple Moth
Sets new limits on the California Department of Food and Agriculture's emergency powers. Requires a public hearing to receive testimony and examine alternatives to aerial spraying prior to any decision to spray. Bars emergency spraying in an urban area unless there is full disclosure of every ingredient in pesticide formulation, to the extent authorized by law. Requires an assessment of human health and environmental risks by state agencies.
Status: Passed the full Assembly, the Senate Agriculture Committee and the Senate Environmental Quality Committee. Will be heard in the Senate Appropriations Committee in July or August.
AB 2935 (Huffman): Environmental and Public Health Protection from Oil Spills
Ensures that California's ecologically sensitive coastal areas are protected from oil spills. Protects public health after an oil spill by closing fisheries until potentially affected fish are tested and determined safe to eat and by alerting the public to potential risks of eating contaminated fish. Enhances clean-up and protection efforts after a spill by including private watercraft and mariners, including fishermen, in oil spill clean-up strategies.
Status: Passed the full Assembly, the Senate Environmental Quality Committee and the Senate Natural Resources and Water Committee. Will be heard in the Senate Appropriations Committee in July or August.
AB 2999 (Huffman): Caltrans - Animal Carcasses: Removal from Highways
Requires Caltrans to develop procedures for the removal & disposal of animal carcasses from roads and highways, notify owners of domestic animals when appropriate, maintain a record of animal carcass disposal sites, and prohibits Caltrans from disposing of animal carcasses within 150 feet of waterways or drainage ways.
Status: Passed the full Assembly, the Senate Transportation Committee and the Senate Appropriations Committee. Will be heard next by the full Senate next.
Promoting Green Power:
AB 1920 (Huffman): Renewable Energy Incentives - Net Metering
Enables residents who produce renewable energy for their homes, small businesses or farms to get paid a fair wholesale price by their utility company for any excess electricity they produce that goes back on the grid. Provides utilities with Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) credits for purchasing the surplus power from their customers.
Status: Passed the full Assembly and the Senate Energy Committee. Will be heard in the Senate Appropriations Committee in July or August.
AB 2558 (Feuer-Huffman): Bay Area Transportation Fund For Climate Protection
Authorizes the Metropolitan Transportation Commission and the Metropolitan Transportation Agency, with voter support, to impose a fee on gas, up to 3% of the retail sale price, or a regional increase in the vehicle registration fee, to fund a climate change mitigation and adaptation expenditure plan. The expenditure plan will guide how the funds are prioritized and spent; two-thirds of the revenues would go to public transportation and the other third would be eligible for congestion management projects.
Status: Passed the full Assembly and the Senate Transportation Committee. Will be heard in the Senate Appropriations Committee in July or August.
AB 2640 (Huffman): Compostable Organics Incentive Program
Creates a new grant program at the California Integrated Waste Management Board (CIWMB) to promote sustainable organic waste management. The program will provide competitive grants for processing these wastes, including composting and anaerobic digestion. The bill will close the loophole for green material alternative daily cover (ADC) that are currently exempt from the state’s disposal fee. The revenues will fund the new competitive grant program.
Status: Passed the full Assembly and the Senate Environmental Quality Committee. Will be heard in the Senate Appropriations Committee in July or August.
AB 2800 (Huffman): Voluntary Mileage-Based Auto Insurance Discount For Reduction In Mileage
Allows insurance providers to offer voluntary mileage-based insurance to drivers in California, and provides these insurance providers with the authority to offer discounts based on the reporting of miles traveled, and the reduction of vehicle miles traveled. This will provide an additional incentive for people to drive less, which will reduce GHG emissions.
Status: Passed the full Assembly and the Senate Insurance Committee. Will be heard in the Senate Appropriations Committee in July or August.
AB 2466 (Laird/Huffman): Aggregate Net Metering
Allows local public agencies to offset energy demand at one facility with renewable energy produced at a second location. Creates a new program at the Public Utilities Commission, which will authorize local agencies to create a ‘billing account’ to aggregate the agency’s net-metered facilities onto one utility bill so that surplus renewable energy at one generated at one facility can be credited toward the agency’s total load.
Status: Passed the full Assembly and the Senate Energy Committee. Will be heard in the Senate Appropriations Committee in July or August.
Making a Difference in Healthcare:
AB 371 (Huffman): Workplace Injury Prevention For Nurses
Requires hospitals that apply for bond financing from the California Health Facilities Financing Authority to provide a copy of the hospital's injury and prevention program which must include a plan for utilizing equipment and lift teams to reduce lift-related injuries by nurses.
Status: Passed Assembly and Senate in 2007, awaiting final concurrence vote in Assembly in the coming months.
AB 1155 (Huffman): Increased Penalties For HMO's Unlawful Nonpayment Or Underpayment Of Doctors' Bills
Ensures that when an HMO is found to have engaged in a pattern and practice of unlawful nonpayment or underpayment of physicians' bills, the Department of Managed Health Care will assess penalties sufficient to make physicians whole and to deter the HMO from further violations of the law.
Status: Passed Assembly and Senate in 2007, awaiting final concurrence vote in Assembly in the coming months.
AB 1390 (Huffman): Prohibits Coercive Contracts on Physicians
Extends the existing prohibition against hospitals conditioning medical staff membership or clinical privileges on the basis of whether a physician or podiatrist contracts with a health plan or health insurer, to additionally include whether a physician or podiatrist contracts with an entity (e.g. a medical group or independent practice association) with which the health plan or health insurer subcontracts.
Status: Passed the Senate Health Committee and will be heard in the Senate Appropriations Committee in July or August.
AB 2229 (Huffman): Dental Screenings For Residents Of Long-Term Care
Reinstates an annual dental exam as a benefit in the Denti-Cal program for residents of long-term care facilities.
Status: Passed the Assembly Health Committee and held in the Assembly Appropriations Committee.
AB 2697 (Huffman): Boutique Hospitals
Requires "boutique hospitals" to contract with an independent consultant to study the economic impact they have on other hospitals in their service area. This will help Boards of Supervisors, local health officials, and the state asses the potential impact on community hospitals and emergency rooms from boutique hospitals which typically provide a single service line such as orthopedics or cardiac care.
Status: Passed the full Assembly and the Senate Health Committee. Will be heard in the Senate Appropriations Committee in July or August.
AB 2839 (Huffman): Ban on HMO Confidentiality Agreements
Prohibits health insurers and HMOs from using confidentiality agreements to coerce providers into unfair contracts and limit access to medical care.
Status: Passed the Assembly Health Committee and held on suspense in the Assembly Appropriations Committee.
AB 2903 (Huffman): Drug Rehab Facility "Clustering" Reform
Authorizes the Department of Alcohol and Drug Programs to consider additional factors when granting licenses for 6-or-fewer drug treatment facilities such as complying with existing zoning requirements and possession of necessary fire permits and business licenses.
Status: Passed the full Assembly. Was held in the Senate Health Committee.
AB 2910 (Huffman): Increased Public Scrutiny when exemptions are given to HMO's
Requires the Department of Managed Health Care (DMHC) to establish a more open and public process when the DMHC issues orders exempting health plans from specific provisions of the Knox-Keene Act which regulates HMOs in California.
Status: Passed the full Assembly and the Senate Health Committee. Will be heard in the Senate Appropriations Committee in July or August.
Better Services for Youth:
AB 2322 (Portantino/Huffman): Family Based Homes For Foster Youth
Allows cities to participate in placing foster youth in family-based households.
Status: Passed the Assembly Local Government Committee and failed passage in the Assembly Housing Committee.
Improving Education:
AB 2478 (Huffman): Public School Accountability
Revises the Academic Performance Index (API) to measure progress in schools based on student-level longitudinal data so the state can assess, with better detail and clarity, individual student and school growth over time.
Status: Passed the Assembly Education Committee and held in the Assembly Appropriations Committee.
AB 2496 (Huffman): College Tuition Exemption For Survivors Of Fallen Law Enforcement Officers And Firefighters
Extends the exemption from the payment of higher education tuition and fees to the surviving spouse or child of a deceased law enforcement officer or firefighter whose death was the result of an injury or disease sustained in the line of duty. The bill would also apply to the surviving spouse or child of a fallen firefighter who was employed by the federal government who was a resident of this state and whose regular duty assignment was to perform firefighting services in California.
Status: Passed the full Assembly and the Senate Education Committee. Will be heard in the Senate Appropriations Committee in July or August.
Protecting Consumers and Privacy:
AB 2950 (Huffman): False and Deceptive E-Mail Spam Prohibition
This bill would expand consumer protections and remedies against false and deceptive e-mail spam.
Status: Passed the full Assembly and the Senate Judiciary Committee. Will be heard next by the full Senate.
AB 3011 (Huffman): Cell Phone Records Protection
Requires telephone corporations to obtain a cell-phone subscriber's consent before releasing their information (calling patterns, telephone numbers, financial info, etc), consistent with the customer consent requirement currently applicable to non-cellular phone customers.
Status: Passed the Assembly Utilities and Commerce Committee. Failed passage on the Assembly floor.
Cutting Red Tape for Taxpayers' Charitable Deductions:
AB 3035 (Huffman): Non-Profit Property Tax Extension
Extends the period of time for eligible 501(c)(3) nonprofits to qualify for a property tax exemption from 90 to 180 days to give the state adequate time to turnaround exemption applications.
Status: Passed the full Assembly and the Senate Revenue and Taxation Committee. Will be heard next by the full Senate.
Resolutions:
ACR 111 (Huffman): Senior Volunteer Month
Commemorates May 2008 as Senior Volunteer Month to honor the contributions of California's senior volunteers.
Status: Chaptered into law.
AJR 39 (Huffman): Winnemem Wintu Resolution
Memorializes the President and the Congress of the United States, and the Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs in the U.S. Department of the Interior to reaffirm that the Winnemem Wintu Tribe, which the federal government inexplicably and unjustly stopped acknowledging in the 1980's, possesses federal recognition such that tribe members may resume receiving federal benefits to which they are entitled.
Status: Passed the full Assembly and the Senate Governmental Organization Committee. Will be heard next by the full Senate.
AJR 53 (Huffman) Greenhouse Gas Emission Waiver Resolution
Encourages the US Congress and the President to support federal legislation in the 110th Congress, which would permit California and other states to implement their standards to reduce greenhouse has emissions from motor vehicles.
Status: Passed the full Assembly, the Senate Transportation Committee and the Senate Appropriations Committee. Will be heard next by the full Senate.
AJR 57 (Huffman) Mercury Contaminated Seafood Resolution
Encourages to the federal Food & Drug Administration to develop, implement and enforce a nationally comprehensive advisory system for seafood containing mercury levels that exceed 1 part per million.
Status: Passed the Assembly Health Committee and will be heard by the full Assembly in July. |
