California Air Resources Board

Summary 

Provides specified direction for procedures that pertain to restitution or vehicle replacement pursuant to the Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act and the Tanner Consumer Protection Act, commonly known as the “Lemon Laws.” Specifically, this bill would specify that a consumer seeking restitution for a vehicle repair or replacement must file their case within one year of the expiration of an applicable express warranty and in all cases must file their case within six years of the date of original delivery of the motor vehicle. Additionally, this bill, among other things, requires a consumer, at least 30 days prior to the commencement of a civil action seeking civil penalties related to the Lemon Laws, to notify the manufacturer of specified vehicle information and demand that the manufacturer repurchase or replace the motor vehicle. 

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Governor’s Signing Message 

To the Members of the California State Assembly:  

I am signing Assembly Bill 1755, which would significantly alter the procedures for handling vehicle defect claims under California's "Lemon Law." I commend the authors for their efforts to expedite resolution of Lemon Law claims and reduce litigation that is placing increasing pressure on court dockets.

Earlier this year, I was pleased to sign AB 2288 (Kalra) and SB 92 (Umberg), consensus measures that were the product of months of negotiation to address deficiencies in Private Attorney General Act (PAGA) litigation. In contrast to that consensus, this bill has drawn substantive opposition from several consumer groups and the majority of automakers, who were not party to the negotiations. While AB 1755 aims to speed resolution of Lemon Law claims and reduce litigation, many automakers, including smaller electric-vehicle automakers, have expressed serious concerns that some of the specific procedures prescribed in AB 1755 are unworkable for them. In light of those concerns, the authors have agreed to introduce a bill early in the 2025-2026 legislative session that would amend the statute enacted by this bill to make its new procedures subject to election by a given automaker. Automakers that do not elect to utilize the new procedures to resolve Lemon Law claims on their vehicles would be subject to existing Lemon Law rules. I urge the Legislature to adopt that compromise proposal swiftly.

The agreed-upon amendments would also require consumers who have made Lemon Law claims under this bill to give notice to prospective buyers if they sell their vehicles prior to resolution of their Lemon Law lawsuit, in order to ensure that buyers are aware of potential defects. The sale of vehicles to buyers unaware of pending Lemon Law claims on the vehicle is a broader problem under current law that puts buyers and the general public at risk from unsafe vehicles on the road, and I encourage the Legislature to consider additional solutions to that issue.

I also encourage the Legislature to consider whether additional changes to the Lemon Law are needed in light of the transition to electric vehicles and significant advancements in automotive technology. The Lemon Law was enacted in 1970, before cars were equipped with a single computer (today they have as many as 100 separate computers and related electronic sensors) and decades before the first mass-produced electric vehicle. While this issue was not the focus of AB 1755, I encourage the Legislature to consider whether additional updates to the Lemon Law are warranted.  

Sincerely,  

Gavin Newsom 

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Summary

This bill codifies parts of the Governor’s Executive Order N-12-23 (EO N-12-23) addressing the use and regulation of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) tools by State agencies. The bill tasks specified agencies to update the EO N-12-23 mandated report on the benefits and risks of GenAI. State agencies shall also consider procuring GenAI tools to improve efficiency, effectiveness, accessibility, and equity of government operations.

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Governor’s Signing Message

To the Members of the California State Senate:
I am signing Senate Bill 896, known as the Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) Accountability Act, which requires the California Department of Technology (CDT) and the California Office of Emergency Services (CalOES) to update specified reports called for in Executive Order N-12-23.

On September 6, 2023, I signed an Executive Order (EO) that underscores California's commitment to developing a deliberative and responsible process for the evaluation and deployment of AI within state government. Over the last year, my Administration has worked tirelessly to study the development, use and risks of AI, including potential threats to, and vulnerabilities of, California's critical infrastructure, including those that could lead to mass casualty events.

SB 896 codifies several important aspects of this EO, including direction to CalOES to perform risk analyses on potential threats posed by the use of GenAI to California's critical infrastructure. Under this direction, CalOES has been working with frontier model companies to analyze energy infrastructure risks and convened power sector providers to share threats and security strategies. Building on this work, and in signing this bill, I am further directing CalOES to undertake the same risk assessment with water infrastructure providers in the coming year, and the communications sector shortly thereafter.

Sincerely,

Gavin Newsom

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Summary

Urges the United States Congress and President Biden to support a $100 million supplemental funding request to address the ongoing impacts on public health, the environment, and the local economy caused by cross-jurisdictional pollution from the Navy North Hangar Fire in Tustin, and to include in future federal budgets sufficient ongoing operational and maintenance funding for Navy North Hangar Fire remediation. The measure urges President Biden to declare a national emergency due to the ongoing impacts.

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Summary

Authorizes the California Natural Resources Agency (CNRA), the California Environmental Protection Agency (CalEPA), or an entity within CNRA or CalEPA to enter into a direct agreement with the California Ocean Science Trust for the delivery of peer reviews, technical guidance, or scientific reports and analyses.

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Summary

Adds an additional unusual circumstance under which the initial response time to a public records request may be extended during a state of emergency proclaimed by the Governor in the jurisdiction where the agency is located. This circumstance applies when the state of emergency currently affects, due to the state of emergency, the agency’s ability to provide a timely response to requests due to staffing shortages or closure of facilities where the request records are located, and specifies that this provision only applies to records not created during and applying to the state of emergency.

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Summary

Authorizes a State agency administering a grant program to provide advanced payment of up to 25% to a federally recognized Indian tribe recipient under nearly the same conditions afforded 501(c)(3) nonprofits. The bill allows CARB to authorize advance payment from contract recipients and grant recipients to subrecipients.

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Summary

Requires a local air district whose jurisdiction includes a metal shredding facility, in consultation with the Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) and the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA), to develop by January 1, 2027, requirements for facility-wide fence-line air quality monitoring at metal shredding facilities, as provided. The bill requires the local air district to, among other things, develop threshold levels for airborne contaminants in consultation with OEHHA, and to adopt regulations by July 1, 2027, to implement the requirements of the bill. The bill authorizes the local air district to be reimbursed for these costs pursuant to its fee authority. The bill requires DTSC to require metal shredding facilities to monitor and report hazardous waste constituents and requires DTSC to collect and analyze light fibrous material at the fence lines to determine the potential for release of hazardous waste. The bill requires DTSC, by July 1, 2027, to develop a community notification procedure, among other things.

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Summary

Establishes the Salton Sea Conservancy (Conservancy) within the California Natural Resources Agency to operate, maintain, and manage projects that are planned and built under the authority of the Salton Sea Management Program to fulfill the State's obligations under the State Water Resources Control Board Order WR 2017-0134. The bill creates a board of directors to govern the Conservancy and adds CARB as one of seven nonvoting ex officio members. Operation of the statute established by SB 583 is contingent upon passage by the voters of the Safe Drinking Water, Wildfire Prevention, Drought Preparedness, and Clean Air Bond Act of 2024 at the November 2024 State election.

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Governor’s Signing Message

To the Members of the California State Senate:

I am signing Senate Bill 583, which creates the Salton Sea Conservancy within the California Natural Resources Agency (CNRA) to operate, maintain, and manage projects that are planned or built under the authority of the Salton Sea Management Program.

The Salton Sea Management Program is committed to building 30,000 acres of habitat and dust suppression projects around the Salton Sea to improve air quality and provide critical environmental habitat for birds along the Pacific Flyway. As the first projects are near completion, the state will need to transition to the operation and maintenance of completed projects. This bill will centralize the operation and maintenance of these projects in a new, mission-focused conservancy, led by the state, with extensive local community involvement and partnership. Importantly, enactment of this bill is contingent upon passage by the voters of the Safe Drinking Water, Wildfire Prevention, Drought Preparedness, and Clean Air Bond Act of 2024, placed on the November 2024 ballot.

I support this approach, which balances the creation of a new, mission-focused conservancy with viable and stable funding sources. In signing this bill, I expect that this conservancy will remain focused on fulfilling its primary objective - operation, maintenance, and management of Salton Sea restoration projects - without placing undue pressure on the state's General Fund.

Sincerely,
Gavin Newsom

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Summary

Allows local air districts, in support of Tribal sovereignty, to enter into written agreements with federally recognized California Native American Tribes to allow cultural burning in their ancestral territories without undergoing the permitting, regulatory, or administrative requirements for prescribed burning. In the event of a disagreement between a local air district and a tribe in developing or implementing an agreement, the Secretary for Environmental Protection must assist in resolving the disagreement. The bill authorizes the Secretary of the Natural Resources Agency to enter into written agreements with federally recognized California Native American tribes in support of tribal sovereignty with respect to cultural burning in their ancestral territories. The Secretary may agree in the written agreement that compliance with specified permitting or regulatory requirements is not required.

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Summary

Urges the United States Congress and President Biden to: 1) fully fund the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s Comprehensive Infrastructure Solution for the Tijuana River due to the ongoing impacts to public health, the environment, and the local economy caused by cross-border pollution, and 2) include sufficient ongoing operation and maintenance funding for the South Bay International Wastewater Treatment Plant in future federal budgets and provide funding to address ongoing cross-border pollution impacting the New River. The measure also urges President Biden to declare a national emergency due to the ongoing impacts caused by cross-border pollution in the Tijuana River Valley..

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