Digital Commons Network^™

Public Service Contracts With Private Parties. Initiative Constitutional Amendment.

Initiatives

Authorizes governmental entities, including cities, counties, school districts and regional agencies, to contract with private entities and individuals for public services, except police and fire protection, if the governing body determines, in its sole discretion, that the public interest would be better served by contracting with the private sector. Allows the continuance of existing private contracts for police and fire protection services. Summary of estimate by Legislative Analyst and Director of Finance of fiscal impact on state and local governments: Unknown fiscal effect, with potential net savings to state and local governments due to increased options for providing public services.

Identity Theft. Criminal Gang Activity. Forensic Computer Analysis Fund. Initiative Statute.

Initiatives

None

Public Employee Union Dues. Restrictions On Political Contributions. Employee Consent Requirement.

Propositions

PUBLIC EMPLOYEE UNION DUES. RESTRICTIONS ON POLITICAL CONTRIBUTIONS. EMPLOYEE CONSENT REQUIREMENT. INITIATIVE STATUTE. Prohibits the use by public employee labor organizations of public employee dues or fees for political contributions except with the prior consent of individual public employees each year on a specified written form. Restriction does not apply to dues or fees collected for charitable organizations, health care insurance, or other purposes directly benefitting the public employee. Requires public employee labor organizations to maintain and submit records to Fair Political Practices Commission concerning individual public employees’ and organizations’ political contributions. These records are not subject to public disclosure. …

State Spending And School Funding Limits.

Propositions

STATE SPENDING AND SCHOOL FUNDING LIMITS. INITIATIVE CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT. Limits state spending to prior year’s level plus three previous years’ average revenue growth. Changes state minimum school funding requirements (Proposition 98); eliminates repayment requirement when minimum funding suspended. Excludes appropriations above the minimum from schools’ funding base. Directs excess General Fund revenues, currently directed to schools/tax relief, to budget reserve, specified construction, debt repayment. Permits Governor, under specified circumstances, to reduce appropriations of Governor’s choosing, including employee compensation/state contracts. Continues prior year appropriations if state budget delayed. Prohibits state special funds borrowing. Requires payment of local government mandates. SUMMARY OF …

Is There A Constitutional Right To Fish In A Marine Protected Area?, Doug Obegi

UC Law Environmental Journal

No abstract provided.

Reconciling Morality And Moral Responsibility In The Law: A Due Process Challenge To The Inconsistent Mental Responsibility Standards At Play In Criminal Insanity Defenses And Sexually Violent Predator Civil Commitment Hearings, Jeremy T. Price

UC Law Constitutional Quarterly

When seeking to civilly commit an inmate nearing release from prison, states often adopt a formulation of mental responsibility for criminal behavior that is inconsistent with the standard on which they rely when rebutting a criminal insanity defense. Defendants are permitted to raise certain incapacity defenses in one context, and yet they are prohibited from advancing those same defenses in another. As a result, many states may seek criminal punishment on the theory that a defendant is legally sane and then later argue that the same person has a serious mental abnormality characterized by a propensity to engage in criminal …

The Layered Dispute Resolution Clause: From Boilerplate To Business Opportunity, Robert N. Dobbins

UC Law Business Journal

No abstract provided.

Some Bargain: How Bankruptcy Courts May Now Require A Debtor To Relinquish Expectations Of Privacy As A Condition Of The Bankruptcy Bargain, Jennifer Taylor

UC Law Journal

There was a time when incurring debt and becoming insolvent was considered a crime. Although those days are long gone, discharge of debt in bankruptcy continues to be premised upon the debtor's cooperation in the "bankruptcy bargain." Honesty and disclosure of certain relevant information is required in exchange for a "fresh start." This Note explores the level of scrutiny that an individual debtor must submit to as part of the bankruptcy bargain by asking and answering the Fourth Amendment question: What is society "prepared to recognize as reasonable?" Contrary to the recent opinion of one bankruptcy court that went so …

Road Rage And R.S. 2477: Judicial And Administrative Responsibility For Resolving Road Claims On Public Lands, Bret C. Birdsong

UC Law Journal

Throughout the west, efforts to protect wild lands are being hampered by counties' and states' assertions of road ownership on public lands. On several occasions in the past decade, rural westerners have climbed atop bulldozers and scraped roads across some of the nation's most pristine lands, including National Parks, National Forests, and National Monuments, in the latest battle of the "sagebrush rebellion." The cover of Time magazine made one bulldozing county commissioner, Dick Carver of Nye County, Nevada, a folk hero for many rural westerners. Other counties' deployment of bulldozers has landed them in court, where they defend against the …

A Road To Injustice Paved With Good Intentions: Maggie's Misguided Crackdown On Drowsy Driving, Joshua D. Levine

UC Law Journal

Sleep-deprived drivers pose a serious threat to the public, killing and injuring tens of thousands of Americans each year. Nevertheless, this problem was largely ignored until the summer of 2003, when the New Jersey legislature made national headlines by passing Maggie's Law. Maggie's Law is a unique revision to New Jersey's vehicular homicide statute that permits unprecedented criminal penalties for drowsy drivers who are involved in deadly automobile accidents. The law's passage has had an effect far outside New Jersey's borders, leading many other states and the federal government to consider similar legislation.

This Note details the history and language …

School Holiday. Children's Human Rights. Initiative Statute.

Initiatives

SCHOOL HOLIDAY. CHILDREN'S HUMAN RIGHTS. INITIATIVE STATUTE. Creates an annual school holiday dedicated to children. Requires school closure on holiday with appropriate recognition of student accomplishments. Requires the Governor to send a message that day to all children in the United States to encourage them to study or practice a sport. Codifies as California law the Convention on the Rights of the Child, an international treaty recognizing a variety of civil, political, economic, social, and cultural rights of children. Summary of estimate by Legislative Analyst and Director of Finance of fiscal impact on state and local governments: This measure would …

Revenue Sources For Local Governments. Initiative Constitutional Amendment And Statute.

Initiatives

REVENUE SOURCES FOR LOCAL GOVERNMENTS. INITIATIVE CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT AND STATUTE. Replaces Vehicle License Fee as source of local government revenues with increased share of property taxes as primary source of local government revenues. Establishes School Assistance Fund for Education in each county, funded by VLF allocations and additional retail sales and use taxes. Prohibits Legislature from altering allocations or delaying revenues from taxes imposed by local governments. Requires state reimbursement for mandated programs or services by end of fiscal year. Permits local governments to either continue performance or suspend state mandates until reimbursed if Legislature fails to make timely appropriation. …

Local Government Revenue Sources. Initiative Constitutional Amendment And Statute.

Initiatives

LOCAL GOVERNMENT REVENUE SOURCES. INITIATIVE CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT AND STATUTE. Replaces Vehicle License Fee with increased share of property taxes as primary source of local government revenues. Limits local government's authority to impose sales and use taxes. Establishes School Assistance Fund for Education in each county, funded by VLF allocations and additional retail sales and use taxes. Prohibits Legislature from altering allocations or delaying revenues from local government taxes. Requires state reimbursement for mandated programs or services by end of fiscal year. Permits local governments to either continue performance or suspend state mandates if Legislature fails to make timely appropriation. Summary …

Indian Gaming Compacts. Revenue Contributions To State, Local Governments. Gambling Expansion. Initiative Constitutional Amendment.

Initiatives

INDIAN GAMING COMPACTS. REVENUE CONTRIBUTIONS TO STATE, LOCAL GOVERNMENTS. GAMBLING EXPANSION. INITIATIVE CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT. Authorizes Governor to seek compact amendments requiring: tribal contributions to state in amount not less than state taxes paid by non-tribal California business conducting lawful gaming; agreement with affected city/county to make payments in lieu of local taxes to mitigate off-reservation gaming impacts; and tribal ordinance recognizing workers' employment rights. If tribe agrees to these provisions, authorizes Governor to agree to up to two casinos and 3,000 slot machines per tribe. If not, tribes are limited to current compact terms or 350 slot machines. Summary of …

Local Government Funds And Revenues. State Mandates. Initiative Constitutional Amendment.

Initiatives

LOCAL GOVERNMENT FUNDS AND REVENUES. STATE MANDATES. INITIATIVE CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT. Requires voter approval for any legislation that provides for any reduction, based on January 1,2003 levels, of local governments' vehicle license fee revenues, sales tax powers and revenues, and proportionate share of local property tax revenues. Permits local government to suspend performance of state mandate if State fails to reimburse local government within 180 days of final determination of state-mandated obligation; except mandates requiring local government to provide/modify: any protection, benefit or employment status to employee/retiree, or any procedural/substantive employment right for employee or employee organization. Summary of estimate by …

Dna Samples. Collection. Database. Funding. Initiative Statute.

Initiatives

DNA SAMPLES. COLLECTION. DATABASE. FUNDING. INITIATIVE STATUTE. Requires collection of DNA samples from all felons, and from adults and juveniles arrested for or charged with specified crimes, and submission to state DNA database; and, in five years, from adults arrested for or charged with any felony. Authorizes local law enforcement laboratories to perform analyses for state database and maintain local database. Specifies procedures for confidentiality and removing samples from databases. Imposes additional monetary penalty upon certain fines/forfeitures to fund program. Designates California Department of Justice to implement program, subject to available moneys: Authorizes $7,000,000 loan from Legislature for implementation. Summary …

Tribal Gaming Compact Renegotiation. Non·Tribal Commercial Gambling Expansion. Revenues, Tax Exemptions. Initiative Constitutional Amendment And Statute.

Initiatives

TRIBAL GAMING COMPACT RENEGOTIATION. NON-TRIBAL COMMERCIAL GAMBLING EXPANSION. REVENUES, TAX EXEMPTIONS. INITIATIVE CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT AND STATUTE. Authorizes Governor to renegotiate tribal-state compacts to require that tribes: Pay 25% of slot machine/gaming device revenues to government fund; comply with multiple state laws; accept state court jurisdiction. Unless all compacted tribes accept terms within 90 days, or if terms determined unlawful, authorizes 16 specified non-tribal racetracks and gambling establishments to operate 30,000 slot machines/gaming devices, paying 33% of revenues to fund public safety, regulatory, social programs. Provides exemption from future state/local tax increases. Limits new tribal gaming. Summary of estimate by Legislative …

Local Funds And Revenues. State Mandates. Initiative Constitutional Amendment.

Initiatives

LOCAL FUNDS AND REVENUES. STATE MANDATES. INITIATIVE CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT. Requires two-thirds vote of Legislature and voter approval for any reduction, based on January 1,2003 levels, of local governments' vehicle license fee revenues, sales tax powers and revenues, and proportionate share of local property tax revenues. Permits Legislature to create tax exemptions and reduce vehicle license fee revenues without voter approval only if legislation reimburses local government for lost revenues. Provides that local government may, with limited exceptions, suspend performance of state mandate if State fails to reimburse local government within 180 days of final determination of state-mandated obligation. Summary of …

Are You Still Settling For Cable? A Case For Broader Application Of The Fcc’S Over-The-Air Reception Devices Rule, Lavonda N. Reed-Huff

UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal

Many renters in the United States have no choice when it comes to selecting a video or communications service provider for their residence, due to their inability to install satellite dishes on their rental property. Because of this lack of choice, many must rely on traditional broadcast television, cable service and traditional telephone dial-up for receiving video programming and accessing advanced technologies such as the Internet. Others simply go without service altogether. While the FCC has attempted to address this problem, the rule they have promulgated, known as the "OTARD Rule," fails to go far enough to make video and …

Local Government Funds, Revenues. State Mandates.

Propositions

Local Government Funds, Revenues. State Mandates. Initiative Constitutional Amendment. • Requires voter approval for any legislation that provides for any reduction, based on January 1, 2003 levels, of local governments’ vehicle license fee revenues, sales tax powers and revenues, and proportionate share of local property tax revenues. • Permits local government to suspend performance of state mandate if state fails to reimburse local government within 180 days of final determination of state-mandated obligation; except mandates requiring local government to provide/modify: any protection, benefit or employment status to employee/retiree, or any procedural/substantive employment right for employee or employee organization. Summary of …

Tribal Gaming Compacts. Exclusive Gaming Rights. Contributions To State.

Propositions

Tribal Gaming Compacts. Exclusive Gaming Rights. Contributions to State. Initiative Constitutional Amendment and Statute. • Upon request by federally-recognized Indian tribe, Governor must execute renewable 99-year gaming compact. • Grants exclusive tribal gaming rights; no limits on number of machines, facilities, types of games on Indian land. • Tribes contribute percentage of net gaming income, based on prevailing state corporate tax rate, to state fund. • Contributions cease if non-tribal casino-type gaming is permitted. • Contributions are in lieu of any other fees, taxes, levies. • Requires off-reservation impact assessments, public notice/comment opportunities before significant expansion or construction of gaming …

Coastal Justice: The Case For Public Access, Jessica A. Duncan

UC Law Environmental Journal

No abstract provided.

State Budget, Related Taxes, And Reserve. Voting Requirements. Penalties.

Propositions

State Budget, Related Taxes, and Reserve. Voting Requirements. Penalties. Initiative Constitutional Amendment and Statute. • Permits Legislature to enact budget and budget-related tax and appropriation bills with 55% vote rather than 2/3 vote currently required. • Requires that Legislature, Governor permanently lose salary, expenses for each day budget is late. • Requires that Legislature stay in session until budget is passed. • Requires budget summary in state ballot pamphlet and link to Internet website with legislators’ voting records on budget and related taxes. • Requires 25% of certain state revenue increases be deposited in reserve fund, which cannot be used …

Protection Of Local Government Revenues

Propositions

Protection of Local Government Revenues • Protects local funding for public safety, health, libraries, parks, and other locally delivered services. • Prohibits the State from reducing local governments’ property tax proceeds. • Allows the provisions to be suspended only if the Governor declares a fiscal necessity and two-thirds of the Legislature approve the suspension. Suspended funds must be repaid within three years. • Also requires local sales tax revenues to remain with local government and be spent for local purposes. • Requires the State to fund legislative mandates on local governments or suspend their operation. Summary of Legislative Analyst’s Estimate …

Voter Information Guide For 2004, Primary

Propositions

No abstract provided.

Limitations On "Three Strikes" Law. Sex Crimes. Punishment.

Propositions

Limitations on “Three Strikes” Law. Sex Crimes. Punishment. Initiative Statute. • Amends “Three Strikes” law to require increased sentences only when current conviction is for specified violent and/or serious felony. • Redefines violent and serious felonies. Only prior convictions for specified violent and/or serious felonies, brought and tried separately, would qualify for second and third “strike” sentence increases. • Allows conditional re-sentencing of persons with sentences increased under “Three Strikes” law if previous sentencing offenses, resulting in the currently charged felony/felonies, would no longer qualify as violent and/or serious felonies. • Increases punishment for specified sex crimes against children. Summary …

Dna Samples. Collection. Database. Funding.

Propositions

DNA Samples. Collection. Database. Funding. Initiative Statute. • Requires collection of DNA samples from all felons, and from adults and juveniles arrested for or charged with specified crimes, and submission to state DNA database; and, in five years, from adults arrested for or charged with any felony. • Authorizes local law enforcement laboratories to perform analyses for state database and maintain local database. • Specifies procedures for confidentiality and removing samples from databases. • Imposes additional monetary penalty upon certain fines/forfeitures to fund program. • Designates California Department of Justice to implement program, subject to available moneys: Authorizes $7,000,000 loan …

Non-Tribal Commercial Gambling Expansion. Tribal Gaming Compact Amendments. Revenues, Tax Exemptions.

Propositions

Non-Tribal Commercial Gambling Expansion. Tribal Gaming Compact Amendments. Revenues, Tax Exemptions. Initiative Constitutional Amendment and Statute. • Authorizes Governor to negotiate tribal compact amendments requiring that Indian tribes pay 25% of slot machine/gaming device revenues to government fund, comply with multiple state laws, and accept state court jurisdiction. • If compacted tribes don't unanimously accept required amendments within 90 days, or if determined unlawful, authorizes sixteen specified non-tribal racetracks and gambling establishments to operate 30,000 slot machines/gaming devices, paying 33% of net revenues to fund government public safety, regulatory, social programs. • Provides exemption from specified state/local tax increases. Summary …

Voter Information Guide For 2004, General Election

Propositions

No abstract provided.

Voter Information Guide For 2004, General Election

Propositions

No abstract provided.