Time- Dated Material GAVIN NEWSOM, GOVERNOR OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE LAW California Regulatory Notice Register REGISTER 2024, NUMBER 16–Z PUBLISHED WEEKLY BY THE OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE LAW APRIL 19, 2024 PROPOSED ACTION ON REGULATIONS TITLE 2. PUBLIC EMPLOYEES’ RETIREMENT SYSTEM Definition and Reporting of Full–Time Employment — Notice File Number Z2024–0405–02 .................... 437 TITLE 5. BUREAU FOR PRIV ATE POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION Date of Closure Selection — Notice File Number Z2024–0404–02 ......................................... 440 TITLE 14.

DEPARTMENT OF CONSERV ATION/CALIFORNIA GEOLOGIC ENERGY MANAGEMENT DIVISION Underground Gas Storage Chemical Inventory and Root Cause Analysis — Notice File Number Z2024–0409–03 ................................................................. 443 TITLE 16. BOARD OF PHARMACY Compounding Drug Preparations — Notice File Number Z2024–0404–01 ................................... 449 TITLE 16. BOARD OF VOCATIONAL NURSING AND PSYCHIATRIC TECHNICIANS Disciplinary Guidelines — Notice File Number Z2024–0408–01 ........................................... 453 TITLE 16.

ARCHITECTS BOARD Experience Evaluation — Notice File Number Z2024–0405–01. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 459 TITLE 22. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH CARE ACCESS AND INFORMATION Hospital Community Benefits Plan Report — Notice File Number Z2024–0408–03 ............................ 463 GENERAL PUBLIC INTEREST DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND WILDLIFE Consistency Determination Request for Philo–Greenwood Road Over Navarro River Bridge Rehabilitation and Widening Project, 2080–2024–004–01, Mendocino County ............................... 468 (Continued on next page)

DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND WILDLIFE Consistency Determination Request for Five Springs and Deep Creek Project, 1653–2024–135–001–R1, Lassen County ............................................................. 468 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND WILDLIFE Consistency Determination Request for Lagunitas Creek Watershed Enhancement Project 2080–2024–005–03(R), Marin County ............................................................... 469 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND WILDLIFE Consistency Determination Request for Los Banos Wildlife Area, Mud Slough Restoration Unit Wetland Enhancement Project, 1653–2024–134–001–R4, Merced. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 469 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND WILDLIFE Consistency Determination Number 1653–2024–133–001–R2 Leek Springs Meadow Restoration Project, El Dorado County ............................................................... 470 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND WILDLIFE Consistency Determination Number 2080R–2024–001–01, South Fork Ten Mile River Salmonid Enhancement Project, Mendocino County ..................................................... 472 DEPARTMENT OF TOXIC SUBSTANCES CONTROL De Minimis Settlement for the BKK Class 1 Landfill ..................................................... 474 DEPARTMENT OF TOXIC SUBSTANCES CONTROL Public Notice/Comment Period Remedial Action ....................................................... 475 ACCEPTANCE OF PETITION TO REVIEW ALLEGED UNDERGROUND REGULATIONS DEPARTMENT OF STATE HOSPITALS Regarding Administrative Directive Number 558, dated September 20, 2022, Hospital Access System. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 476

SUMMARY OF REGULATORY ACTIONS Regulations filed with the Secretary of State .......................................................... 477 The California Regulatory Notice Register is an official state publication of the Office of Administrative Law containing notices of proposed regulatory actions by state regulatory agencies to adopt, amend or repeal regulations contained in the California Code of Regulations. The effective period of a notice of proposed regulatory action by a state agency in the California Regulatory Notice Register shall not exceed one year [Government Code § 11346.4(b)].

It is suggested, therefore, that issues of the California Regulatory Notice Register be retained for a minimum of 18 months. CALIFORNIA REGULATORY NOTICE REGISTER is published weekly by the Office of Administrative Law, 300 Capitol Mall, Suite 1250, Sacramento, CA 95814-4339. The Register is printed by Barclays, a subsidiary of West, a Thomson Reuters Business, and is offered by subscription for $338.00 (annual price). To order or make changes to current subscriptions, please call (800) 328−4880. The Register can also be accessed at https://oal.ca.gov .

CALIFORNIA REGULATORY NOTICE REGISTER 2024, VOLUME NUMBER 16–Z 437 PROPOSED ACTION ON REGULATIONS Information contained in this document is published as received from agencies and is not edited by Thomson Reuters. TITLE 2. PUBLIC EMPLOYEES’ RETIREMENT SYSTEM NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Board of Administration (Board) of the California Public Em - ployees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) proposes to take the regulatory action described below in the In - formative Digest after considering public comments, objections, or recommendations regarding the pro - posed regulatory action. I. PROPOSED REGULATORY ACTION In this filing, the Board proposes amending

section 574, “Definition of Full–Time Employment,” of Arti - cle 4 of Subchapter 1 of

Chapter 2 of Division 1 of Title 2 of the California Code of Regulations (herein - after referred to as CCR

section 574) and the title of

section 574 to “Definition and Reporting of Full–Time Employment.” By proposing this regulatory amend - ment in this Article, CalPERS seeks to describe how a classified member’s full–time payrate shall be re - ported to CalPERS in accordance with Government Code (GC)

section 20636.1. The proposed regulatory amendment would explicitly define how to determine a classified member’s hourly, daily, and monthly full– time equivalent (FTE) payrates and provide clarity and uniformity for CalPERS, its classified members, and CalPERS–covered school employers in reporting a classified member’s full–time payrate to CalPERS. II. WRITTEN COMMENT PERIOD Any interested person, or his or her duly authorized representative, may submit written comments relevant to the proposed regulatory action.

The written com - ment period has been established as commencing on April 22, 2024 and closing at 11:59 p.m. on June 6, 2024. The Regulation Coordinator must receive all written comments by the close of the comment period. Comments may be submitted by email to Regulation_ Coordinator@calpers.ca.gov or mailed to the follow - ing address: Andrea Peters, Regulation Coordinator California Public Employees’ Retirement System P.O. Box 942720 Sacramento, CA 94229–2720 Telephone: (916) 795–3038 III.

PUBLIC HEARING A public hearing will not be scheduled unless an in- terested person, or his or her duly authorized represen- tative, submits a written request for a public hearing to CalPERS no later than 15 days before the close of the written comment period. Notice of the time, date, and place of the hearing will be provided to every person who has filed a request for notice with CalPERS. IV.

ACCESS TO HEARING ROOM The hearing room will be accessible to persons with mobility impairments, and the room can be made ac - cessible to persons with hearing or visual impairments upon advance request to the CalPERS Regulation Coordinator. V. AUTHORITY AND REFERENCE Under GC

section 20121, the Board has authority to make rules as it deems proper. GC sections 20630, 20635.1, 20636.1, and 20967 govern compensation, overtime compensation, and compensation earnable for classified members. VI. INFORMATIVE DIGEST/POLICY STATEMENT OVERVIEW GC

section 20636.1 defines full–time employment for classified members as “40 hours per week” and further states that “payments for services rendered, not to exceed 40 hours per week, shall be reported as compensation earnable for all months of the year in which work is performed.” Under GC

section 20636.1, “classified members” means members who retain membership under CalPERS while employed with a CalPERS–covered school employer in positions not subject to coverage under the Defined Benefit Pro - gram under the State Teachers’ Retirement System. In 2019, CalPERS promulgated CCR

section 574 to define “full–time” employment for purposes of deter - mining CalPERS membership eligibility, reporting overtime positions, and determining compensation earnable and pensionable compensation. Consistent with GC

section 20636.1, the regulation provides that full–time employment for classified members means 40 hours per week. While GC

section 20636.1 and CCR

section 574 standardized the definition of full–time employment

CALIFORNIA REGULATORY NOTICE REGISTER 2024, VOLUME NUMBER 16–Z 438 for classified members, it is necessary to describe how CalPERS–covered school employers determine full–time payrates for purposes of reporting payrates to CalPERS. For example, some CalPERS–covered school employers report classified members’ earnings as payrate, but the earnings are not based on a 40– hour work week. Since GC

section 20636.1 explicitly defines full–time employment as 40 hours per week, the full–time payrate reported to CalPERS must be based on a 40–hour work week regardless of whether the classified member works 40 hours per week. CalPERS allows CalPERS–covered employers to report full–time payrates as hourly, daily, or month - ly. By proposing this regulatory amendment, the Board seeks to explicitly define how to determine a classified member’s hourly, daily, and monthly FTE payrates.

This proposed regulatory amendment is intended to benefit CalPERS, its classified members, and CalPERS–covered school employers by providing clarity and uniformity for reporting a classified mem - ber’s full–time payrate to CalPERS. Consistency Evaluation CalPERS conducted a review for any related state regulation and found that there are no other state reg - ulations defining how a CalPERS–covered school em- ployer shall report a classified member’s hourly, dai - ly, or monthly FTE payrate to CalPERS for purposes of reporting a classified member’s full–time payrate in accordance with GC

section 20636.1. Therefore, CalPERS has determined that the proposed regulatory amendment is not inconsistent or incompatible with existing regulations. VII. PRE–NOTICE CONSULTATION WITH THE PUBLIC No pre–notice consultation was done with the pub - lic, as all public comments and hearing requests can be submitted during the written comment period. VIII. EFFECT ON SMALL BUSINESS The proposed regulatory action does not affect small businesses because it applies only to CalPERS–cov - ered school employers and classified members. IX.

DISCLOSURES REGARDING THE PROPOSED REGULATORY ACTION The Board has made the following initial determinations: A. MANDATE ON LOCAL AGENCIES AND SCHOOL DISTRICTS: The proposed regulatory amendment does not impose any mandates on lo- cal agencies or school districts. CalPERS already requires CalPERS–covered employers to report the full–time payrates for their employees to CalPERS.

This proposed regulatory amendment describes how CalPERS–covered school employ- ers shall determine the hourly, daily, and monthly FTE payrates for purposes of reporting a classi - fied member’s full–time payrate to CalPERS in accordance with GC

section 20636.1. B. COSTS OR SA VINGS TO ANY STATE AGEN- CY: The proposed regulatory amendment will not result in any costs or savings to any state agency. C. COSTS TO ANY LOCAL AGENCY OR SCHOOL DISTRICT: The proposed regulatory amendment will not result in any costs to any lo - cal agency or school district. CalPERS already requires CalPERS–covered employers to report the full–time payrates for their employees to CalPERS. This proposed regulatory amendment describes how CalPERS–covered school employ- ers shall determine the hourly, daily, and monthly FTE payrates for purposes of reporting a classi - fied member’s full–time payrate to CalPERS in accordance with GC

section 20636.1. D. NONDISCRETIONARY COSTS OR SA VINGS IMPOSED ON LOCAL AGENCIES: The pro - posed regulatory amendment does not impose any nondiscretionary costs or savings on local agencies. E. COSTS OR SA VINGS IN FEDERAL FUND - ING TO THE STATE: The proposed regulatory amendment will not result in costs or savings in federal funding to the State of California. F.

ADVERSE ECONOMIC IMPACT: The pro - posed regulatory amendment will not have a sig - nificant, statewide adverse economic impact di - rectly affecting businesses, including the ability of California businesses to compete with busi - nesses in other states. G.

COST IMPACT ON REPRESENTATIVE PRI - VATE PERSONS OR BUSINESSES: CalPERS is not aware of any cost impacts that a represen - tative private person or business would incur in reasonable compliance with the proposed regula- tory amendment because the proposed regulatory amendment only applies to CalPERS, CalPERS– covered school employers, and classified mem - bers and does not impose new costs on school employers. H.

RESULTS OF THE ECONOMIC IMPACT ANALYSIS: The proposed regulatory amend - ment is not intended to create or eliminate jobs within California; and will not (1) create new businesses or eliminate existing businesses with - in California; (2) affect the expansion of business- es currently doing business within California; (3) affect the health and welfare of California resi -

CALIFORNIA REGULATORY NOTICE REGISTER 2024, VOLUME NUMBER 16–Z 439 dents, worker safety, or the State’s environment. The proposed regulatory amendment serves only to describe how CalPERS–covered school em - ployers shall determine the hourly, daily, and monthly FTE payrates for purposes of report - ing a classified member’s full–time payrate to CalPERS in accordance with GC

section 20636.1. I. EFFECT ON HOUSING COSTS: The proposed regulatory amendment will have no effect on housing costs. J. COSTS TO ANY LOCAL AGENCY OR SCHOOL DISTRICT WHICH MUST BE REIM- BURSED IN ACCORDANCE WITH GOVERN- MENT CODE SECTIONS 17500 THROUGH 17630: There are no costs to any local agency or school district which must be reimbursed in ac - cordance with GC

section 17500 through

section 17630. X. CONSIDERATION OF ALTERNATIVES In accordance with GC

section 11346.5(a)(13), the Board must determine that no reasonable alternative considered by the Board, or that has otherwise been identified and brought to the attention of the Board, would be: ● more effective in carrying out the purpose of the proposed action, ● as effective as, and less burdensome to affected private persons than the proposed action, or ● more cost–effective to affected private persons and equally effective in implementing the statu - tory policy or other provision of law.

The Board invites interested persons to present statements or arguments with respect to alternatives to the proposed regulation at a public hearing or during the written comment period. XI. CONTACT PERSON Please direct inquiries concerning the proposed ad - ministrative action to: Andrea Peters, Regulation Coordinator California Public Employees’ Retirement System P.O. Box 942720 Sacramento, CA 94229–2720 Telephone: (916) 795–3038 Regulation_Coordinator@calpers.ca.gov The backup contact person for the proposed action is: Melissa Ilusorio, Regulation Coordinator California Public Employees’ Retirement System P.O.

Box 942720 Sacramento, CA 94229–2720 Telephone: (916) 795–3038 Regulation_Coordinator@calpers.ca.gov Please direct requests for copies of the proposed amended text of the regulation, the Initial Statement of Reasons, the modified text of the regulation, if any, or other information upon which the rulemaking is based to the Regulation Coordinator at the contact informa - tion listed above. XII.

AVAILABILITY OF THE INITIAL STATEMENT OF REASONS AND TEXT OF PROPOSED AMENDED REGULATION, AND RULEMAKING FILE The Board will have the entire rulemaking file available for inspection and copying throughout the rulemaking process at its office at 400 Q Street, Sacramento, CA 95811. As of the date this notice is published in the Notice Register, the rulemaking file consists of this notice, the proposed amended text of the regulation, and the Initial Statement of Reasons. Copies may be obtained by contacting the CalPERS Regulation Coordinator at the contact information listed in

Section XI. For immediate access, the regulatory material re - garding this action can be accessed at CalPERS’ website at: https://www.calpers.ca.gov/page/about/ laws–legislation–regulations/regulatory–actions . XIII. A V AILABILITY OF CHANGED OR MODIFIED TEXT After receiving comments from the public and con - sidering all timely and relevant comments received, the Board may adopt the proposed regulatory amend - ment substantially as described in this notice.

If the Board makes modifications which are sufficiently re - lated to the originally proposed amended text, it will make the modified text (with the changes clearly indi- cated) available to the public for at least 15 days before the Board adopts the amended regulation as revised. Please send requests for copies of any modified regu - lation to the attention of the CalPERS Regulation Co - ordinator at the contact information listed in

Section XI. The Board will accept written comments on the modified regulation for 15 days after the date on which it is made available.

CALIFORNIA REGULATORY NOTICE REGISTER 2024, VOLUME NUMBER 16–Z 440 XIV. A VAILABILITY OF THE FINAL STATEMENT OF REASONS Upon its completion, copies of the Final Statement of Reasons may be obtained by contacting the CalP - ERS Regulation Coordinator at the contact informa - tion listed in

Section XI. TITLE 5. B UREAU FOR PRIVATE POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION DATE OF CLOSURE SELECTION NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education (hereinafter “Bu - reau”), Department of Consumer Affairs, is proposing to take the action described in the Informative Digest after considering all relevant comments, objections, and recommendations regarding the proposed action. PUBLIC HEARING The Bureau has not scheduled a public hearing on this proposed action.

However, the Bureau will hold a hearing if it receives a written request for a public hearing from any interested person, or their autho - rized representative, no later than 15 days prior to the close of the written comment period. A hearing may be requested by making such request in writing ad - dressed to the individuals listed under “Contact Per - son” in this Notice.

WRITTEN COMMENT PERIOD Written comments relevant to the action proposed, including those sent by mail, facsimile, or email to the addresses listed under Contact Person in this Notice, must be received by the Bureau at its office no later than 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday, June 4, 2024, or must be received by the Bureau at the hearing should one be held. AUTHORITY AND REFERENCE Authority cited: Sections 94803, 94877, and 94885 of the Education Code (Ed. Code). References cit - ed: Sections 94874.5, 94909, 94911, 94923, 94926, 94926.5, 94927, 94927.5 and 94940 of the Education Code.

INFORMATIVE DIGEST/POLICY STATEMENT OVERVIEW The Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education (Bureau) protects students and consumers through the regulatory oversight of California’s private postsec - ondary educational institutions (“institutions”) pursu - ant to the California Private Postsecondary Education Act of 2009 (“Act” — Ed. Code, §§ 9 4800–94950), in- cluding conducting qualitative reviews of educational programs and operating standards. Existing law at Education Code

section 94926 and 5 CCR 1

section 76240 requires institutions that are anticipating closure to provide notice to the Bureau and to supply both a date of closure and a last date of instruction. However, the statutes and regulations pro- vide no guidance to the Bureau if an institution fails to comply. There have been many instances of an insti - tution suddenly closing without providing any notice to the Bureau, and since the institution has ceased op - erating there is no way for the Bureau to sanction the institution’s owners or operators for failing to comply with

section 76240, because the institution is no longer within the Bureau’s jurisdiction. Establishing a date of closure for an institution is crucial for an impacted student to be eligible for com- pensation from the Student Tuition Recovery Fund (STRF), which the State of California created for stu- dents in the event of an institution closing before the student completing their educational program and the student suffering economic harm. Knowing an insti - tution’s date of closure is also critical for a student to apply for student loan relief under federal Student Fi - nancial Aid Programs authorized by Title IV of the federal Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C.

Sec. 1070 et seq. — federal Higher Education Act of 1965). In 2022 the legislature passed, and the Governor signed, Senate Bill (SB) 1433 (Roth,

Chapter 544, Statutes of 2022), which added Education Code sec - tion 94926.5 to the Code.

Section 94926.5 provides, “(

a) An institution’s approval to operate is automat - ically terminated on the date of closure or when its exemption from this

chapter has been verified by the bureau. (

b) A n institution that does not identify a date of clo - sure shall have one selected by the bureau. (

c) A t erminated license shall not be reinstated.” To address the problems stated above, the Bureau has drafted the following proposed regulatory changes: Amending

Section 76240 of the CCR to: ● A dd “calendar” before the word “days” ● A dd that “an authorized representative” shall notify the Bureau of an institution’s intent to close in writing “at the email address BPPE. closedschools@dca.ca.gov or by mail to the mail- ing address per CCR

section 70020” ● A dd a definition for “authorized representative” 1 Unless otherwise noted, all references to the CCR hereafter are to Title 5.

CALIFORNIA REGULATORY NOTICE REGISTER 2024, VOLUME NUMBER 16–Z 441 ● Add additional clarifications to the information required to be included in the closure plan ● Add additional information that an institution shall provide the Bureau if any student will not complete their educational program as a result of closure ● Move and edit requirements pertaining to teach out plans and refunds, student records, and how an institution will notify students affected by closure ● Move and edit requirements pertaining to how in- stitution will provide notice to students affected by closure ● Add additional information required for institu - tions to provide the Bureau regarding the writ - ten notice of closure provided by the institution to students Add

Section 76245: Closure Date Selection and Au- tomatic Termination of Approval to Operate ● This

section will require the Bureau to send a no- tice to institutions the Bureau believes has closed without notifying the Bureau of a date of closure. ● The notice will request a response from an autho- rized representative to confirm whether the insti - tution is operating or closed, and that the Bureau will select a date of closure if the Bureau does not receive a response, as well as how an institution may appeal the selection of a date of closure. The proposed regulations improve the institutional closure process in two ways.

First, it provides guid - ance to institutions that do supply a date of closure to the Bureau by establishing that the date of closure should in most cases be the same as the last date of instruction. Second, when the Bureau believes that an institution has closed without notifying the Bureau, it provides the means for the Bureau to select a date of closure for the institution and terminate the institu - tion’s approval to operate. Anticipated Benefits of Proposal The proposed regulatory language will allow the Bureau to designate a date of closure for institutions that close without providing one to the Bureau.

This will benefit the welfare of students by enabling stu - dents enrolled at those institutions to establish eligibil- ity for compensation from STRF as well as apply for student loan relief from the federal Title IV financial aid programs. The proposed regulatory language will also implement the statutory language of Education Code

section 94926.5, which will help ensure that the will of the legislature is effective by reconciling stat - utory language and regulatory language. This regu - lation will allow the Bureau to enforce provisions of the Act and further the Bureau’s mission of consumer protection for students seeking educational services from postsecondary institutions by helping to ensure that approved institutions comply with all legal re - quirements for operating an approved institution in California. This regulatory proposal does not affect the health of California residents, worker safety, or the state’s environment.

Consistency and Compatibility with Existing State Regulations During the process of developing this regulatory proposal, the Bureau has conducted a search of any similar regulations on this topic and has concluded that these regulations are neither inconsistent nor in - compatible with existing state regulations.

DISCLOSURES REGARDING THIS PROPOSED ACTION FISCAL IMPACT ESTIMATES Fiscal Impact on Public Agencies Including Costs or Savings to State Agencies or Costs/Savings in Federal Funding to the State: The Bureau estimates 100 institutions will close per year of which 20 institutions will fail to fully comply with the notification requirements, as specified. As a result, the proposed regulations are estimated to result in workload and costs ranging from approx - imately $8,500 to 11,000 per year and up to $97,000 over a ten–year period. Any workload and costs are anticipated to be ab - sorbed within existing resources.

The regulations do not result in costs or savings in federal funding to the state. Nondiscretionary Costs/Savings to Local Agencies: None. Mandate Imposed on Local Agencies or School Districts: None. Cost to Any Local Agency or School District for Which

Section 17561–17630 Require Reimbursement: None. Effect on Housing Costs: None. BUSINESS IMPACT ESTIMATES The Bureau has made the initial determination that the proposed regulatory action would have no signif - icant statewide adverse economic impact directly af - fecting business, including the ability of California businesses to compete with businesses in other states.

This initial determination is based on the following facts/evidence/documents or testimony: The Bureau estimates 100 institutions will close per year of which 20 institutions will fail to fully comply with the notification requirements, as specified. As a result, the proposed regulations are estimated to result in an economic impact to these institutions up

CALIFORNIA REGULATORY NOTICE REGISTER 2024, VOLUME NUMBER 16–Z 442 to approximately $9,300 per year and $93,000 over a ten–year period. RESULTS OF ECONOMIC IMPACT ASSESSMENT/ANALYSIS Impact on Jobs/New Business: The Bureau has determined that this regulatory pro- posal will have not have any impact on the creation of jobs or new businesses or the elimination of jobs or existing businesses or the expansion of businesses in the State of California.

Benefits of Regulation: The regulatory proposal benefits the welfare of Cal- ifornia residents by allowing students who enrolled at institutions that closed without providing a date of closure to the Bureau to more quickly apply for finan- cial relief from the Student Tuition Recovery Fund and from federal student loan programs and therefore get their relief more quickly. This regulatory propos - al does not affect the health of California residents, worker safety or the state’s environment.

Cost Impact on Representative Private Person or Business The Bureau is not aware of any cost impacts that a representative private person or business would nec - essarily incur in reasonable compliance with the pro - posed action. Business Reporting Requirements: The regulatory action requires institutions in cer - tain circumstances to file a closing plan with the Bu - reau along with related documents, and notice of clo - sure with students.

The Bureau has determined that it is necessary for the welfare of the people of the State that the regulation apply to institutions, as a closing plan and related documents will inform students of their options for completing their educational program after their institution’s closure, and will help the Bu - reau contact students about possible relief they may be eligible for if an institution closed before the student completed their degree. Effect on Small Business The Bureau has determined that the proposed reg - ulations will not affect small businesses.

Businesses that will be affected will already be closed, which means they will not be affected by the regulation. CONSIDERATION OF ALTERNATIVES In accordance with Government Code

section 11346.5, subdivision (a)(13), the Bureau must deter - mine that no reasonable alternative it considered to the regulation or that has otherwise been identified and brought to its attention would either be more effective in carrying out the purpose for which the action is pro- posed or would be as effective and less burdensome to affected private persons than the proposal described in this Notice, or would be more cost–effective to affect- ed private persons and equally effective in implement- ing the statutory policy or other provisions of law.

Any interested person may submit comments to the Bureau in writing relevant to the above determina - tions at Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education, P.O. Box 980818, West Sacramento, CA 95798–0818 during the written comment period, or at the hearing if one is scheduled or requested. AVAILABILITY OF STATEMENT OF REASONS AND RULEMAKING FILE The Bureau has compiled a record for this regula - tory action, which includes the Initial Statement of Reasons (ISOR), proposed regulatory text, and all the information on which this proposal is based.

This ma- terial is contained in the rulemaking file and is avail - able for public inspection upon request to the contact persons named in this notice. TEXT OF PROPOSAL Copies of the exact language of the proposed regu - lations, and any document incorporated by reference, and the initial statement of reasons, and all of the in - formation upon which the proposal is based, may be obtained at the hearing or prior to the hearing upon request from the Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education, P.O. Box 980818, West Sacramento, CA 95798–0818.

AVAILABILITY OF CHANGED OR MODIFIED TEXT After considering all timely and relevant comments, the Bureau, upon its own motion or at the request of any interested party, may thereafter adopt the propos - als substantially as described below or may modify such proposals if such modifications are sufficient - ly related to the original text.

With the exception of technical or grammatical changes, the full text of any modified proposal, with the modifications clearly in - dicated, will be available for review and written com - ment for 15 days prior to its adoption from the person designated in this Notice as the Contact Person and will be mailed to those persons who submit written comments or oral testimony related to this proposal or who have requested notification of any changes to the proposal.

CALIFORNIA REGULATORY NOTICE REGISTER 2024, VOLUME NUMBER 16–Z 443 AVAILABILITY AND LOCATION OF THE FINAL STATEMENT OF REASONS AND RULEMAKING FILE All information upon which the proposed regu - lations are based is contained in the rulemaking file which is available for public inspection by contacting the person named below. You can obtain a copy of the Final Statement of Rea- sons once it has been prepared, by making a written request to the contact person named below or by ac - cessing the website listed below.

CONTACT PERSON Inquiries or comments concerning the proposed rulemaking action may be addressed to: Name: David Dumble Address: P.O. Box 980818 West Sacramento, CA 95798–0818 Telephone Number: (279) 895–6091 Fax: (916) 263–1897 Email Address: David.Dumble@dca.ca.gov The backup contact person is: Name: Yvette Johnson Address: P.O.

Box 980818 West Sacramento, CA 95798–0818 Telephone Number: (279) 895–6099 Fax: (916) 263–1897 Email Address: Yvette.Johnson@dca.ca.gov AVAILABILITY OF DOCUMENTS ON THE INTERNET Copies of the Notice of Proposed Action, the Initial Statement of Reasons, and the text of the regulations with modifications noted, as well as the Final State - ment of Reasons when completed, and modified text, if any, can be accessed through the Bureau’s website at http://bppe.ca.gov/lawsregs/current.shtml. TITLE 14.

DEPARTMENT OF CONSERVATION/CALIFORNIA GEOLOGIC ENERGY MANAGEMENT DIVISION SB 463: CHEMICAL INVENTORY AND ROOT CAUSE ANALYSIS REGULATIONS NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the California Department of Conservation (Department) proposes to adopt the regulations described below after consid - ering all comments, objections, and recommendations regarding the proposed action. WRITTEN COMMENT PERIOD AND PUBLIC COMMENT HEARING Any person, or his or her authorized representative, may submit written statements, arguments, or com - ments related to the proposed regulatory action to the Department.

Comments may be submitted by email to: undergroundgasstorageregs@conservation.ca.gov or by mail to: Department of Conservation 715 P Street, MS 1907 Sacramento, CA 95814 Attention: SB 463 Rulemaking The written comment period closes at 11:59 p.m. on June 5, 2024. The Department will only consider comments received at the Department’s offices by that time. Public Hearing Any interested person, or his or her authorized rep - resentative, may present, either orally or in writing, comments regarding the proposed action at the virtual public hearing to be held on June 4, 2024 at 5:30 p.m.

Register for the public hearing on zoom: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/ WN_4aLwWnrlSFSLyElgH0dK0A Or join by telephone: 877–336–1831 Conference Code 148676 Spanish: 888–455–1820 Código de Conferencia 3642190

CALIFORNIA REGULATORY NOTICE REGISTER 2024, VOLUME NUMBER 16–Z 444 Accessibility If you have a disability and require a reasonable ac- commodation to fully participate in this event, please contact Sarah Rubin, Outreach and Engagement Co - ordinator, as soon as possible to discuss your accessi - bility needs. Email: Sarah.Rubin@conservation.ca.gov Phone: (916) 214–5731 [English] Translation and

interpretation services may be pro - vided upon request. To ensure availability of these services, please make your request no later than ten working days prior to the workshop by contacting Sarah Rubin, Outreach and Engagement Coordinator. Email: Sarah.Rubin@conservation.ca.gov | Phone: (916) 214–5731 [Spanish] Se podrán proporcionar servicios de traducción e interpretación a petición previa.

Para poder garantizar la disponibilidad de estos servicios, asegúrese de rea - lizar su solicitud a más tardar diez días hábiles antes de la reunión comunitaria comunicándose con Sarah Rubin, Coordinadora de Alcance y Participación. Co - rreo electrónico: Sarah.Rubin@conservation.ca.gov | Telephone: (916) 214–5731 AUTHORITY AND REFERENCE Pursuant to the authority vested by California Pub - lic Resources Code (Pub.

Resources Code) sections 3013, 3106, and 3180, and to implement, interpret, or make specific sections 3011, 3106, 3180, 3181, 3181.5, 3183, 3184, 3186.3, 3220 and 3403.5 of the Public Re- sources Code, the Department proposes to amend ti - tle 14, division 2,

chapter 4, subchapter 1,

article 5 of the California Code of Regulations, sections 1726.1, 1726.3, 1726.3.1, 1726.4.4, and 1726.6.1, and add new sections 1726.3.2, 1726.3.3, and 1726.4.3. INFORMATIVE DIGEST/POLICY STATEMENT OVERVIEW The California Geologic Energy Management Di - vision (Division), within the Department, supervises and regulates oil, gas, and geothermal well operations, including their attendant facilities, throughout the State. (See Pub.

Resources Code, § 3106.) The Divi- sion carries out its regulatory authority to encourage the wise development of oil and gas resources, while preventing damage to life, health, property, and nat - ural resources. The Division regulates the injection of natural gas into large underground reservoirs for storage before the gas is later withdrawn for sale to residential, commercial, and industrial customers and natural gas power plants.

The Division oversees un - derground gas storage (UGS) facilities to ensure that the original reserves are not lost, that drilling of new wells is conducted safely, and to minimize the risk of damage to public health and the environment. (Pub. Resources Code, §§ 3106, 3180, 3181, 3183, 3184, 3220 and 3403.5.) The Division’s duties include the protec- tion of public health and safety and environmental quality, including reduction and mitigation of green - house gas emissions associated with the development of hydrocarbon resources. (Pub.

Resources Code, § 3011.) Existing Regulations On October 23, 2015, a natural gas leak was dis - covered from an injection and production well in the Aliso Canyon Natural Gas Storage Facility in Los An- geles County. The leak, and subsequent well blowout, represented a significant threat to the public peace, health, safety, and general welfare. It resulted in the relocation of thousands of people from the areas proxi- mal to the facility and, according to the California Air Resources Board, released at least 109,000 metric tons of methane.

On February 11, 2016, the operator tem - porarily controlled the leak by injecting mud from a relief well intersecting the bottom of the leaking well. A permanent seal of the well was announced on Feb - ruary 18, 2016. In response to the Aliso Canyon incident, the Divi - sion promulgated emergency regulations on February 5, 2016, imposing requirements on all UGS facilities in the state. The Legislature also responded to the in - cident, and, effective January 1, 2017, Senate Bill 887 (Pavley,

Chapter 673 statutes of 2016) (SB 887) estab- lished a number of significant new statutory require - ments for UGS facilities, including a requirement that no single point of failure pose an immediate threat of loss of control of fluids. Consistent with the statutory requirements of SB 887, the Division promulgated a set of regulations specific to UGS facilities which be - came effective on October 1, 2018. The 2018 regulations were implemented within the California Code of Regulations as a new

article that is dedicated to the regulation of UGS activities, and which created a comprehensive regulatory frame - work tailored to the regulatory concerns specific to UGS projects. UGS operators also remain subject to the existing requirements for all wells enforced by the Division. Upon implementation of the 2018 regulations, UGS operators were subject to risk management plan (RMP) and emergency response plan (ERP) requirements, well construction standards, mechanical integrity testing, data requirements, records management pro - tocols, and monitoring and inspection requirements for wells and UGS projects.

The proposed regulations build on these requirements consistent with statutory mandates and goals for UGS projects to reduce risks

CALIFORNIA REGULATORY NOTICE REGISTER 2024, VOLUME NUMBER 16–Z 445 to health, safety, and the environment, and to facilitate thorough and transparent oversight, evaluation, and risk assessment of UGS projects. Proposed Regulations Investigations into Aliso Canyon continued after the new regulations were in place.

The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), in consultation with the Division and the federal Pipeline and Haz - ardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), selected Blade Energy Partners to perform an inde - pendent analysis in parallel with investigations being performed by the Division and the CPUC. On May 17, 2019, Blade issued a root cause analysis report for the incident that includes a main report and four volumes of supplementary reports (Blade Report).

Simultaneously, local public health officials, pri - vate health professionals, and community groups were reaching out to the Legislature and the Division, concerned that there was insufficient information regarding the chemical makeup of the gas that had been released during the Aliso Canyon event to prop - erly evaluate public health impacts on neighboring communities. In response to these concerns, the Legislature passed Senate Bill 463 (Stern,

Chapter 773 statutes of 2019) (SB 463) which requires operators to provide to the Division “a complete chemical inventory of the mate- rials, of any phase, that may be emitted from the gas storage well in the event of a reportable leak…no less than annually.” It also requires the Division to review and revise its regulations related to reportable leaks at least every 10 years.

Finally, SB 463 requires the Division to review, and if necessary, revise, its policy and regulations to address the root causes identified by the Blade Report, including consideration of cathodic protection, well control plans, and investigations into leaks and equipment integrity. The amendments and additions to the UGS regula - tions proposed in this package respond to the require - ments of SB 463 and include lessons learned by Divi- sion regulatory professionals as they have applied the UGS regulations which became effective in 2018.

The proposals include a definition for a Gas Storage Well Chemical Inventory as well as a dedicated regulato - ry

section outlining what the inventory must contain and identifying the details of a protocol for collecting, maintaining, and submitting chemical information to the Division. A new

section devoted to corrosion eval- uation and mitigation includes language recommended by corrosion professionals at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and requires consideration of ca - thodic protection as well as other mitigation strategies.

These proposed regulations further the Division’s statutory mandate under Public Resources Code (PRC) sections 3011, 3106, 3180, 3181, 3181.5, 3183, 3184, 3186.3, 3220 and 3403.5 to maintain surveil - lance over UGS facilities by requiring tracking and reporting of off–normal events, to identify integrity concerns by prescribing corrosion evaluation, mitiga - tion and monitoring that will reduce the risk of future incidents like Aliso Canyon, and to prevent damage to life, health, property, and natural resources by identi - fying the chemicals and pollutants that could be emit - ted from a UGS well.

The proposed regulations are intended to supple - ment the Division’s current regulatory framework re - lated to underground gas storage with the following objectives: ● Address new regulatory

definitions, including “gas storage well chemical inventory,” and “In - flow Performance Relationship.” ● Expand elements of operator RMPs, including corrosion protocols and strategies, reporting of off–normal occurrences, and the inclusion of con- tractors’ level of training, experience, and exper - tise in the assessment of human factors in operat- ing and maintenance procedures. ● Address new elements of the ERP, including well–specific well control plans that include evaluations of the conditions indicated by well– specific inflow performance relationship curves, and identification of monitoring, sampling, and testing methods that may be utilized to detect and, if possible, quantify chemicals of concern if requested by the Division in the event of a leak. ● Address the timeframe for updates to the ERP. ● Address prevention and mitigation protocols re - garding corrosion evaluation and corrosion mon - itoring and risk mitigation strategies. ● Address prevention and mitigation protocols for defining, investigating, tracking, and reporting to the Division any off–normal occurrences in - cluding content and timing for reporting, investi - gation, evaluation and remediation of the occur - rence, supplemental reporting, and the required use of the collected data to update and improve RMP methodology. ● Address the gas storage well chemical invento - ry, including the types of materials required to be listed, chemical abstract service number for each chemical, analytical test results of the chem- ical constituents present, a list of chemicals to be tested for, and a detailed protocol for maintaining and providing the inventory to the Division.

ANTICIPATED BENEFITS OF THE PROPOSED REGULATION The proposed regulations supplement the Division’s current regulatory framework concerning gas storage wells by increasing well corrosion monitoring and

CALIFORNIA REGULATORY NOTICE REGISTER 2024, VOLUME NUMBER 16–Z 446 mitigation, increasing the scope of RMPs and ERPs, requiring more frequent updates to an operator’s ERP, increasing reporting requirements for off–normal occurrences, and requiring an accurate inventory of chemicals that have been added to each well. In general, this rulemaking action will clarify, and augment the regulatory standards applicable to UGS projects in California to reduce threats to life, health, property, and natural resources, and protect stored resources, surface and underground waters, and the public welfare.

The proposed chemical inventory reg- ulations will provide needed transparency and infor - mation about the chemicals to which the public may be exposed in the event of a release from a gas storage well. The other proposed regulations and amendments will enhance the Division’s existing UGS regulations to support and facilitate operator detection, inves - tigation, evaluation, and mitigation of well integrity issues.

These supplements will benefit public health and safety and the environment by reducing the risk of blowouts, strengthening emergency response pro - cedures to be current and complete in the event of a blowout, and collecting information that can support public health analysis after a reportable leak occurs. CONSISTENCY WITH FEDERAL STATUTE AND REGULATION In June 2016, Congress enacted the “Securing America’s Future Energy: Protecting our Infrastruc - ture of Pipelines and Enhancing Safety Act of 2016” or “Safe Pipes Act.” Of significance to UGS projects, the Safe Pipes Act added a new

section entitled “Standards for Underground Natural Gas Storage Facilities.” (49 U.S.C. § 6 0141.) That

section authorizes states to adopt additional or more stringent safety standards for intra- state underground natural gas storage facilities if such standards are “compatible” with federal minimum standards implementing the Safe Pipes Act. (49 U.S.C. § 60141, subdivision (e).) PHMSA is the federal agency primarily responsible for pipeline regulation and safety (49 USC, § 1 08, (b), (f )). It adopts regulations that prescribe minimum pipe- line safety standards for the pipeline transportation of natural gas, as well as regulations that prescribe mini- mum standards for underground gas storage facilities.

The Division’s 2018 regulations for California UGS facilities were based on the same industry standards as PHMSA ’s safety rules and complement, rather than conflict, with those standards. The proposed regulations do not unnecessarily du- plicate or conflict with federal regulations contained in the Code of Federal Regulations addressing the same issues; they complement and extend corresponding PHMSA requirements.

For example, PHMSA requires reporting of “safety–related conditions” within five to ten working days (49 CFR §§ 1 91.23 and 191.25 (a)), while the proposed regulations would require report - ing of “off–normal occurrences” within 30 days. The term “safety–related condition” is not defined in 49 CFR, but reportable conditions are listed in § 1 91.23 and are similar in severity and level of urgency to the off–normal occurrences listed in the proposed regulations.

Unlike the PHMSA rule which does not require re - porting of certain conditions corrected within five or ten working days, the proposed regulations require reporting of all off–normal occurrences, even if they have been repaired before the deadline for the filing of the report. This proposed requirement is consistent with the recommendation of the California Council on Science and Technology, which recommends an off– normal occurrence database as a source of learning and collaboration for operators and regulators, 1 re - quiring all events to be included, even if corrected.

SB 463 directs the Division to collect an inventory of the chemicals that may be emitted from a well in the event of a reportable leak. (Pub. Resources Code, § 3 181.5.) There is no equivalent existing requirement under federal law. SB 463 also directs the Division to consider requirements for cathodic protection, well control, and off–normal incident reporting, to mitigate threats to life, health, property, the climate, or natural resources. (Pub. Resources Code, § 3 186.3; see also Pub.

Resources Code, § 3 403.5 [charging the Division with responsibility to ensure that no damage occurs to the environment by reason of injection and withdrawal of gas at underground storage facilities].) The Divi - sion’s proposed regulations are necessary to achieve California’s statutory goals of greater protection of health and safety and are generally consistent with, compatible with, or stricter than the federal standards. CONSISTENCY WITH EXISTING STATE REGULATIONS The Division has determined that the proposed regulations are not inconsistent or incompatible with existing state regulations.

To the extent other state agencies may enforce health, safety, or environmental protection standards that could apply to underground gas storage facilities because they are regulations of general application affecting a wider range of indus - trial activities, those regulations are not expected to be inconsistent or incompatible with the regulations proposed here. Certain aspects of the Division’s proposed regula- tions would apply to intrastate natural gas pipelines 1 C a l i fo r n i a C o u n c i l of S c ie n c e & Te c h n olog y.

L o n g –Te r m Vi a b i l- ity of Underground Natural Gas Storage in California. page 330– 332. 2018. https://ccst.us/wp–content/uploads/Full–Technical– Report–v2_max.pdf .

CALIFORNIA REGULATORY NOTICE REGISTER 2024, VOLUME NUMBER 16–Z 447 and associated facilities that are located within the gas storage field. These pipelines also fall under the regulatory jurisdiction of the CPUC and are subject to CPUC General Order Number 112–F. To the extent the Division’s proposed regulations overlap with CPUC’s requirements as applied to certain pipelines, the Divi - sion’s regulations would not be inconsistent or incom- patible with CPUC’s requirements.

For example, while CPUC’s General Order requires protection of pipelines from external corrosion and regular inspection for evidence of corrosion (see Gen- eral Order Number 112–F, §§ 125.4(f), 183.3, 183.5), the Division’s proposed regulations would require de- velopment of a comprehensive prevention and mitiga- tion protocol to provide for corrosion evaluation, cor - rosion risk mitigation, and monitoring. The Division’s requirement for more extensive corrosion prevention and mitigation would not prevent compliance with the CPUC requirements.

Further, the Division and CPUC have a Memorandum of Agreement in place to ensure coordinated, consistent, and non–duplicative regula - tion of pipelines and facilities associated with UGS projects. PLAIN ENGLISH REQUIREMENT The Department staff prepared the proposed regu - lations pursuant to the standard of clarity provided in Government Code

section 11349, subdivision (c), and the plain English requirements of Government Code sections 11342.580 and 11346.2, subdivision (a)(1). The proposed regulations are written in a manner to be easily understood by the persons that will use them. LOCAL MANDATE The Department has determined that the proposed action does not impose a mandate on local agencies or school districts. COST TO LOCAL AGENCIES This proposed action does not impose costs on any local agency or school district for which reimburse - ment would be required pursuant to

Part 7 (commenc- ing with

section 17500) of Division 4 of the Govern - ment Code. This proposal does not impose other non - discretionary costs or savings on local agencies. COST OR SAVINGS IN FEDERAL FUNDING This proposal does not result in any costs or savings in federal funding to the state. COST OR SAVINGS TO STATE AGENCIES Implementation of the requirements in the proposed regulations would require the Division to incur addi - tional staff hours for oversight of operator compliance. During the first–year implementation period, the Divi- sion will incur an estimated total expense of $241,962 from staff hours for RMP expansions.

In subsequent years, the Division will incur an annual recurring expense of $181,472 from staff hours for the monitor- ing of the same requirements. These impacts will be absorbable. Implementation of the requirements in the proposed regulations will not affect non–discretionary costs or savings to local agencies, including costs to any lo - cal agency or school district requiring reimbursement pursuant to

section 17500 et seq., and will not affect federal funding to the State. EFFECT ON HOUSING COSTS The Department has determined that the proposed regulation will have no significant effect on housing costs. IMPACT ON BUSINESS The proposed regulations will affect owners and operators of UGS facilities. Total direct costs to op - erators will be $1.15 million in the first year and $808 thousand in subsequent years.

The following report - ing, recordkeeping, and compliance requirements will result from the proposed regulations: ● Requirements for corrosion evaluation, corrosion risk mitigation strategies, and monitoring proto - cols for each gas storage well. ● Requirements for defining, investigating, track - ing, and reporting any off–normal occurrence. ● Evaluation of the level of training, experience, and expertise of contractors and assessment of their contribution to risk. ● Creation and submission of well–specific well control plans to include Inflow Performance Re - lationship and the associated data or modeling. ● Identification of monitoring, sampling, and test - ing methods for chemicals of concern. ● Requirements for the identification of chemical constituents, and the tracking and reporting of a Gas Storage Well Chemical Inventory on a well– by–well basis with protocols for regular update.

The Department has made an initial determination that the adoption of these regulations will not have a significant, statewide economic impact directly affect- ing business, including the ability of California busi - nesses to compete with businesses in other states. The

CALIFORNIA REGULATORY NOTICE REGISTER 2024, VOLUME NUMBER 16–Z 448 Department has considered proposed alternatives that would lessen any adverse economic impact on busi - ness and invites the submission of proposals. Alter - natives already considered can be found in the Initial Statement of Reasons.

Submissions may include the following considerations: ● The establishment of differing compliance or re - porting requirements or timetables that take into account the resources available to businesses. ● Consolidation or simplification of compliance and reporting requirements for businesses. ● The use of performance standards rather than prescriptive standards. ● Exemption or partial exemption from the regula - tory requirements for businesses.

IMPACT ON SMALL BUSINESS The Department has determined that the proposed regulations will not directly affect small businesses, as the requirements of the proposed regulations apply only to operators of UGS projects which are not clas - sified as small businesses. COST IMPACTS ON A REPRESENTATIVE PRIVATE PERSON OR BUSINESS The Department drafted the proposed regulations after careful consideration of current best practices with regard to underground gas storage, as well as similar statutes and regulations implemented by other federal and state agencies.

Additionally, the Depart - ment drafted the proposed regulations based on the requirements of SB 463. The following areas of the proposed regulations have been identified by the De - partment as potentially resulting in economic impact on a representative operator: ● Expansion of the RMP, including updating the ERP, expanding corrosion evaluation, mitigation, and monitoring protocols, and the reporting of off–normal occurrences. ● Creation and maintenance of a gas storage well chemical inventory for each well.

RESULTS OF THE ECONOMIC IMPACT ASSESSMENT/ANALYSIS Based upon its analysis, the Department determined: ● The proposed regulations may affect the creation of jobs within the State of California.

The pro - posed regulations will not affect the elimination of jobs within the State of California. ● The proposed regulations will not affect the cre - ation of new businesses or the elimination of ex - isting businesses within the State of California. ● The proposed regulations will not affect expan - sion of businesses currently doing business with- in the State of California. ● The proposed regulations will benefit the health and welfare of California residents, worker safe - ty, and the environment by improving regulatory oversight of UGS projects such that harms to the public are more likely to be avoided.

More infor- mation on these benefits can be found in the Ini - tial Statement of Reasons and Economic Impact Analysis. The proposed regulations satisfy the Division’s stat- utory mandate under SB 463 to address the root caus - es identified in the 2015 well leak at the Aliso Canyon gas storage facility and require operators of gas stor - age wells to provide a complete chemical inventory of materials that may be emitted from a gas storage well in the event of a reportable leak.

In addition, the proposed regulations satisfy the same statutory man - date to require an operator to report to the Division a leak that poses a significant present or potential hazard to public health and safety, property, or to the environment. NO SIGNIFICANT STATEWIDE ADVERSE ECONOMIC IMPACT The Department has determined that the proposed regulations will not have a significant statewide ad - verse economic impact directly affecting business, in- cluding the ability of businesses within California to compete with businesses in other states.

BUSINESS REPORTING REQUIREMENT These regulations will require the submission of in- formation to the Department by businesses that own and/or operate gas storage facilities and gas storage wells. The Department finds that it is necessary for the health, safety, or welfare of the people of this state that the submission of information required by these regulations applies to the affected businesses. CONSIDERATION OF ALTERNATIVES In accordance with Government Code

section 11346.5, subdivision (a)(13), the Department must de- termine that no reasonable alternative it considered or that has otherwise been identified and brought to the attention of the Department would be more effective in carrying out the purpose for which the action is pro - posed or would be as effective and less burdensome to affected private persons than the proposed action or would be more cost–effective to affected private per - sons and equally effective in implementing the statu - tory policy or other provision of law.

CALIFORNIA REGULATORY NOTICE REGISTER 2024, VOLUME NUMBER 16–Z 449 The Department invites interested persons to pres - ent statements or arguments with respect to alterna - tives to the proposed regulations during the written comment period or at any hearing scheduled to take statements or arguments that are relevant to the pro - posed action.

CONTACT PERSONS Inquiries concerning the proposed administrative action may be directed to: Department of Conservation 715 P Street, MS 1907 Sacramento CA 95814 Attention: SB 463 Regulations Christine Hansen Regulations Manager Christine.Hansen@conservation.ca.gov Phone: 916–694–7577 Nick Pesci Regulatory Analyst Phone: 916–208–4190 Nicholas.Pesci@conservation.ca.gov The Department has available the express terms of the regulation, the Initial Statement of Reasons, and all the information upon which the proposal is based (the rulemaking record).

Copies of the primary rulemak - ing documents are available on the Department web - site at https://www.conservation.ca.gov/index/Pages/ rulemaking.aspx, with all documents being available upon request to the contact persons listed above. AVAILABILITY OF CHANGED OR MODIFIED TEXT The Department will consider all timely and rele - vant comments received during the written comment period and at the public hearings above. Thereafter, the Department may adopt the proposed regulations in substantially the same form as described in this Notice.

If the Department makes any modifications to the text of the proposed regulations that are substantial, but sufficiently related to the original proposed text as described in this Notice, the Department will make the modified text (with changes clearly indicated) avail - able to the public for at least 15 days before adopting the proposed regulations as modified. The Department will accept written comments regarding modified reg- ulations for 15 days after the date upon which they are made available to the public.

Please send requests for copies of any modified regulations via email or mail to the persons identified as contact persons in this notice. AVAILABILITY OF THE FINAL STATEMENT OF REASONS Upon its completion, copies of the Final Statement of Reasons may be obtained by sending an inquiry to one of the contact persons above. The Final Statement of Reasons will also be available on the Department website at: https://www.conservation.ca.gov/index/ Pages/rulemaking.aspx.

AVAILABILITY OF DOCUMENTS ON THE INTERNET Copies of this Notice of Proposed Action, the Initial Statement of Reasons, and the text of the regulations in underline and strikeout can be accessed through our website at: https://www.conservation.ca.gov/index/ Pages/rulemaking.aspx. If you have any questions regarding the process of the proposed action, please contact Christine Hansen at Christine.Hansen@conservation.ca.gov. TITLE 16.

BOARD OF PHARMACY COMPOUNDED DRUG PRODUCTS NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the California State Board of Pharmacy (board) proposes taking the rulemaking action described below under the heading Informative Digest/Policy Statement Overview. Any person interested may present statements or argu - ments relevant to the action proposed in writing. Writ- ten comments, including those sent by mail, facsimile, or email to the addresses listed under Contact Person in this Notice, must be received by the board at its of - fice by June 3, 2024.

The board will hold a public hearing on June 18, 2024, beginning at 9:00 a.m. in the First Floor Hearing Room of the California Board of Pharmacy, 2720 Gateway Oaks Drive, Sacramento, CA 95833. Additionally, attendees may participate via the WebEx meeting platform. To participate via WebEx meeting platform please contact Lori Martinez at PharmacyRulemaking@dca.ca.gov by 4:30 p.m. on June 17, 2024, to request a link to the meeting. The link to the meeting will also be posted on the board’s Laws and Regulations webpage no later than 8:00 a.m. the day of the hearing.

The hearing will proceed on the date noted above until all testimony is submitted. At the hearing, any person may present oral or writ - ten statements or arguments relevant to the proposed action described in the Informative Digest. The board requests, but does not require, that persons who make oral comments at the hearing also submit a written copy of their testimony via email.

CALIFORNIA REGULATORY NOTICE REGISTER 2024, VOLUME NUMBER 16–Z 450 The board may, after holding a hearing if request - ed and considering all timely and relevant comments, adopt the proposed regulations substantially as de - scribed in this notice, or may modify the proposed regulations if such modifications are sufficiently relat- ed to the original text.

With the exception of technical or grammatical changes, the full text of any modified proposal will be available for 15 days prior to its adop- tion from the person designated in this Notice as the Contact Person and will be mailed to those persons who submit written or oral testimony related to this proposal or who have requested notification of any changes to the proposal. Authority and Reference: Authority: Sections 4005, 4126.8, and 4127, Business and Professions Code.

Ref- erence: Sections 4005, 4076, 4081, 4105, 4123, 4126.8, 4126.9, 4127, 4127.1, 4127.2, 4127.8, 4169, 4301, 4306.5, and 4332, Business and Professions Code; 21 U.S.C. Sections 355 and

Part 530. INFORMATIVE DIGEST/POLICY STATEMENT OVERVIEW The California State Board of Pharmacy (board) is a state agency vested with the authority to regulate the pharmacy industry, including pharmacies and phar - macists. Pharmacy Law provides for the licensure and regulation of pharmacists and pharmacies by the board. The board’s statutory priority is to protect the public (Business and Professions Code (BPC)

section 4001.1). Its stated mission is to protect and promote the health and safety of Californians. Compounding is the long–standing pharmacy prac - tice of mixing, combining, or altering ingredients. Compounding may involve merely altering an existing drug product or creating an entirely new drug product. Compounded human drugs can serve an important role for patients whose clinical needs cannot be met by an FDA–approved drug.

For example, compounding is used when a patient is allergic to an ingredient in an FDA–approved drug, or for when children need a lower strength drug than what is commercially avail - able. Compounded drugs can be preparations such as topical creams, eye drops, capsules or tablets intend - ed for oral ingestion, or injectable solutions. Gener - ally, each time a drug is compounded, it would be a new drug requiring compliance with all United States Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) requirements, including required approval of an application by the FDA. Compounded drugs, however, may not be FDA approved.

While the FDA has a role in approving the ingredients that may be used in compounding human drugs, it is not practical and would effectively prohibit all compounding of human drugs by pharmacists and pharmacies without an exemption under

section 503A of the FDCA (21 U.S.C. 353a) from new drug approval and other FDCA requirements (503A exemption). There are, however, compounding professional standards that are used across the nation known as the United States Pharmacopeia and The National For - mulary (USP–NF). USP–NF is a book of public phar- macopeial standards. It contains standards for non - sterile, sterile, hazardous, and radiopharmaceutical compounding. USP–NF is a combination of two com- pendia, the United States Pharmacopeia (USP) and the National Formulary (NF).

The FDCA designates the USP–NF as the official compendia for drugs marketed in the United States. A drug product in the U.S. market must conform to the standards in USP–NF to avoid possible charges of adulteration and misbranding. States are the primary regulators of pharmacists and pharmacies engaged in compounding human drugs. Thus, pharmacists engaged in compounding are sub - ject to both federal and state law. California has an extensive statutory and regulatory scheme governing compounding by pharmacies. Similar to federal law,

section 111550(

a) of the California Health and Safety Code prohibits the sale, delivery, or giving away of a new drug that has not has a new drug application approved under

Section 505 of the FDCA. Addition - ally, Business and Professions Code (BPC)

section 4126.8 expressly provides that the compounding of drug preparations by a pharmacy for furnishing in this state shall be consistent with “standards established in the pharmacy compounding chapters of the current version of the United States Pharmacopeia–National Formulary….” This

section also expressly authorizes the Board to adopt “regulations to impose addition - al standards for compounding drug preparations.” Existing law also requires the board to adopt regula - tions establishing standards for compounding sterile drug products (primarily drugs that are injectable) in a pharmacy. (BPC § 4127.) Existing law requires pharmacies to obtain a license from the board, subject to annual renewal, in order to compound these ster - ile drug products. (BPC § 4127.1.) A similar licensing requirement applies to nonresident pharmacies com - pounding injectable sterile drug products for shipment into California. (BPC § 4127.2.) Additionally, BPC

Section 4342 provides authority for the board to institute any action provided by law, that in its discretion, is necessary to prevent the sale of pharmaceutical preparations and drugs that do not conform to the standard and tests as to quality and strength provided in the latest addition of USP or that violate any provisions of the Sherman Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Law. Thus, both state and federal law require compounding pharmacies to comply with the USP chapters on compounding in lieu of compliance with current good manufacturing practices that manu- facturers and outsourcing facilities must comply with.

CALIFORNIA REGULATORY NOTICE REGISTER 2024, VOLUME NUMBER 16–Z 451 On June 1, 2019, USP published revisions to Gen - eral

Chapter <795> for nonsterile compounding and General

Chapter <797> for sterile compounding, as well as a new General

Chapter <825> for radiophar - maceutical compounding. After publication of the re - vised and new compounding standards, USP received appeals on certain provisions in <795>, <797>, and <825>. Therefore, USP postponed the official date of the revised <795> and <797>, and the new general

chapter <825> until further notice. General

Chapter <800> for hazardous compounding was not subject to any pending appeals and became official on Decem - ber 1, 2019; however, during the postponement and pending resolution of the appeals of <795> and <797>, USP indicated that <800> was informational and not compendially applicable. USP encouraged utilization of <800> in the interest of advancing public health. On November 1, 2022, USP published the final revised General Chapters of <795> and <797> and new Chap- ter <825> with an official effective date of November 1, 2023. The board is required to review any formal revision to General

Chapter 797 of the USP–NF relating to the compounding of sterile preparations, no later than 90 days after the revisions become official to determine whether amendments are necessary for the regulations adopted by the board. (BPC § 4127(c).) Upon publica- tion, the board began its review of the revised stan - dards and have worked to update its regulations. This proposal will implement, clarify, or make more specific requirements related to the respective chapters. For ease of reference to the USP chapters, the board’s proposed regulations mirror the structure of the respective chapters. This means the number - ing format and

section titles of the proposed regula - tions follow the relative USP chapter. The goal of the board’s regulations is not to duplicate provisions of federal law or USP language, but to clarify or make more specific the requirements. If no clarification is needed or no additional requirements are necessary for public safety, requirements are not being added to the board’s proposed text. Requirements that are al - ready laid out in the USP chapters or federal law that are not just suggestions or discretionary recommen - dations, but must be followed, were not duplicated.

In addition, USP requirements identified in existing regulations have been repealed to eliminate the dupli - cation with federal law. The board proposed additional requirements that strengthen the USP requirements. While the board can strengthen federal requirements, it cannot pro - mulgate a lesser standard in its regulations.

Section 503A is quite extensive but one of the specific con - ditions a licensee must meet to be eligible for the ex - emptions provided under 503A is that the drug product is compounded in compliance with USP chapters on pharmacy compounding. Further, as a consumer pro - tection agency, the board must promulgate regulations through the lens of its consumer protection mandate as the law makes clear whenever the protection of the public is inconsistent with other interests sought to be promoted, the protection of the public shall be para - mount (BPC 4001.1).

ANTICIPATED BENEFITS OF THE PROPOSED REGULATIONS USP General Chapters <795> for nonsterile com - pounding, <797> for sterile compounding, <800> for hazardous drug handling in healthcare settings, and <825> for radiopharmaceutical preparation, com - pounding, dispensing, and repackaging establish the minimum national standards for compounding in the United States.

This proposal aligns the board’s regu - lations with the revised USP standards and, in some instances where there are patient safety concerns, the proposed regulations build upon the minimum USP standards s to ensure protection of all Californians who require the services of a pharmacist or pharmacy to dispense or furnish to them the compounded drug products that meet their needs. Ensuring compliance with national standards is a benefit to public health and safety, worker safety, and the environment.

Due to the extensive proposed regulatory changes that occurred, the board’s proposal repeals the exist - ing articles related to compounding in total. It adds new articles that follow each other for ease of locating and reviewing compounding regulations. It adds sec - tion numbers and titles that tend to follow the revised USP chapters for ease of cross–reference. The repeal and replace is being proposed for clarity as the pro - posed revisions are extensive and the changes are dif - ficult to read and follow when proposed in a strikeout and underline format.

CONSISTENCY AND COMPATIBILITY WITH EXISTING STATE REGULATIONS While developing these regulations, the board con - ducted a search of similar regulations on this topic and concluded that these regulations are neither inconsis - tent nor incompatible with existing state regulations. INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE Controlled Environment Testing Association (CETA) Certification Guide for Sterile Compounding Facilities (CAG–003, October Revised 2022).

CALIFORNIA REGULATORY NOTICE REGISTER 2024, VOLUME NUMBER 16–Z 452 FISCAL IMPACT AND RELATED ESTIMATES Fiscal Impact on Public Agencies Including Costs/ Savings to State Agencies or Costs/Savings in Federal Funding to the State: The proposed regulation does not result in a fiscal impact to the state. The board cur- rently ensures compliance with its regulation through its robust routine inspection program. The regulations do not result in costs or savings in federal funding to the state. Nondiscretionary Costs/Savings to Local Agencies: None. Local Mandate: None.

Cost to Any Local Agency or School District for Which Government Code Sections 17500–17630 Require Reimbursement: None. Business Impact: The board has made the initial determination that the proposed regulations will not have a significant statewide adverse economic impact directly affecting businesses including the inability of California busi - nesses to compete with businesses in other States. This initial determination is based on the absence of testimony to that effect during the public discus - sion and development of the proposed regulation.

Ad- ditionally, the proposal aligned the board’s regulation with the national minimum standard. While the board does, in some instances, establish a higher standard, the board determined that this standard will not have a significant adverse impact. Cost Impact on Representative Private Person or Business: The board is not aware of any negative cost impacts that a representative private person or business would necessarily incur in reasonable compliance with pro - posed action. Effect on Housing Costs: None.

Effect on Small Business While the board does not have, nor does it maintain, data to determine if any of its licensees (pharmacies and clinics) are a “small business,” as defined in Gov- ernment Code

section 11342.610, the board has made an initial determination that the proposed regulatory action will not affect small businesses as the proposal aligns the board’s regulation with the national mini - mum standard. While the board does, in some instanc- es, establish a higher standard, the board determined that this standard will not have a significant adverse impact.

RESULTS OF ECONOMIC IMPACT ASSESSMENT/ANALYSIS Impact on Jobs/New Businesses: The Board concludes that: (1) this proposal will not create jobs within California; (2) this proposal will not eliminate jobs within California; (3) this proposal will not create new businesses with- in California; (4) this proposal will not eliminate existing business- es within California; and, (5) this proposal will not expand businesses current - ly doing business in the State of California. This proposal will not create or eliminate jobs and/ or businesses within California.

Additionally, this pro- posal will not expand businesses because this regula - tory proposal only establishes requirements for certain individuals to obtain a temporary license to practice pharmacy in California. The regulations are aimed at providing clarity to members of the board’s regulated public on the requirements specific to compounded drug products. While national standards apply to all compounding, this proposed set of compounding reg - ulations addresses areas where the board is requiring standards that go above the minimal established by USP guidelines.

The higher standards do not impact the creation or elimination of jobs or businesses within the state. This regulatory proposal benefits the health and welfare of California residents because the proposed regulations increase the safety standards for all Cal - ifornians relying on compounded and sterile com - pounded drug products.

This regulatory proposal benefits worker safety be - cause the proposed regulations will increase the in - centive for innovation in products, materials, or pro - cesses as those involved in the sterile compounding industry seek ways to improve products and materials as well as processes required for compounding and sterile compounding. The regulatory proposal does not impact the state’s environment. The proposal impacts the safety stan - dards on all businesses performing compounding and sterile compounding; however, those safety standards should not impact the state’s environment.

CONSIDERATION OF ALTERNATIVES The Board must determine that no reasonable al - ternative that it considered to the regulation, or that has otherwise been identified and brought to its atten - tion, would either be more effective in carrying out the purpose for which the action is proposed, would

CALIFORNIA REGULATORY NOTICE REGISTER 2024, VOLUME NUMBER 16–Z 453 be as effective and less burdensome to affected private persons than the proposal described in this Notice, or would be more cost–effective to affected private per - sons and equally effective in implementing the statu - tory policy or other provision of law. Any interested person may present statements or arguments in writing relevant to the above determi - nations at the address listed for the Contact Person during the written comment period.

AVAILABILITY OF TEXT OF PROPOSAL AND INITIAL STATEMENT OF REASONS The Board has prepared an Initial Statement of Rea- sons for the proposed action and has available all the information upon which the proposal is based. Cop - ies of the exact language of the proposed regulations, the Initial Statement of Reasons, and all of the in - formation upon which the proposal is based, may be obtained upon request from the Board of Pharmacy at 2720 Gateway Oaks Drive, Suite 100, Sacramen - to, California 95833, or from the Board of Pharmacy’s website at http://www.pharmacy.ca.gov.

AVAILABILITY AND LOCATION OF THE FINAL STATEMENT OF REASONS AND RULEMAKING FILE All the information upon which the proposed reg - ulations are based is contained in the rulemaking file which is available for public inspection by contacting the person named below. You may obtain a copy of the final statement of rea- sons once it has been prepared, by making a written request to the contact person named below or by ac - cessing the website listed below.

CONTACT PERSON Inquiries or comments concerning the proposed rulemaking action may be addressed to: Name: Lori Martinez Address: 2720 Gateway Oaks Drive, Suite 100 Sacramento, CA 95833 Phone Number: (916) 244–6648 Fax Number: (916) 574–8618 Email Address: PharmacyRulemaking@dca.ca.gov The backup contact person is: Name: Anne Sodergren Address: 2720 Gateway Oaks Drive, Suite 100 Sacramento, CA 95833 Phone Number: (916) 518–3110 Fax Number: (916) 574–8618 Email Address: PharmacyRulemaking@dca.ca.gov WEBSITE ACCESS Materials regarding this proposal can be found at the Board of Pharmacy’s website: https://www.phar- macy.ca.gov/laws_regs/pending_regs.shtml.

TITLE 16. BOARD OF VOCATIONAL NURSING AND PSYCHIATRIC TECHNICIANS DISCIPLINARY GUIDELINES NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Board of Vocational Nursing and Psychiatric Technicians (Board) is proposing to take the action described in the Informative Digest below, after considering all comments, objections, and recommendations regard - ing the proposed action. PUBLIC HEARING The Board has not scheduled a public hearing on this proposed action.

However, the Board will hold a hearing if it receives a written request for a public hearing from any interested person, or his or her au - thorized representative, no later than 15 days prior to the close of the written comment period. A hearing may be requested by making such request in writing addressed to the individuals listed under “Contact Per- son” in this notice.

WRITTEN COMMENT PERIOD Written comments relevant to the action proposed, including those sent by mail, facsimile, or email to the addresses listed under “Contact Person” in this No - tice, must be received by the Board at its office no later than Tuesday, June 4, 2024, or must be received by the Board at the hearing, should one be scheduled. AUTHORITY AND REFERENCE Pursuant to the authority vested by section(s) 2854 of the Business and Professions Code (BPC) and

Section 11425.50(

e) of the Government Code, and to implement, interpret, or make specific BPC sections 315, 315.2, 315.4, 729, 2875, 2876 and 2878,

Section

CALIFORNIA REGULATORY NOTICE REGISTER 2024, VOLUME NUMBER 16–Z 454 44010 of the Education Code; and Sections 11400.20, 11425.50(

e) and 11500 of the Government Code. INFORMATIVE DIGEST/POLICY STATEMENT OVERVIEW The Board of Vocational Nursing and Psychiatric Technicians (Board) licenses, regulates, and investi - gates complaints against licensed vocational nurses and psychiatric technicians in California, totaling approximately 132,199 vocational nurses and 10,922 psychiatric technician licensees pursuant to the pro - visions of the Vocational Nursing Practice Act (“VN Act” — Bus. & Prof. Code, §§ 2840 et seq.) and the Psychiatric Technicians Law (“PT Act” — Bus. & Prof. Code, §§ 4500 et seq., collectively “Practice Acts”).

Protection of the public is the Board’s highest priority in exercising its licensing, regulatory, and dis- ciplinary functions as specified in Business and Pro - fessions Code (BPC) sections 2841.1 and 4501.1. The Board is authorized to establish reasonably necessary rules and regulations to carry out the pro - visions of the VN and PT Acts in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act (APA). (Bus. & Prof.

Code, §§ 2854 and 4504.) The document entitled “Disciplinary Guidelines and Uniform Standards Related to Substance Abuse” (Rev. 6/20/11 — “Disciplinary Guidelines” or “Guidelines”) is used to provide guidance to the Board, Administra - tive Law Judges (ALJs), and other interested parties in determining the terms and conditions of discipline for licensees found to have committed actions warranting administrative discipline.

Existing regulations require (at Title 16, Code of California Regulations (CCR), Sections 2524 and 2579.10) the Board to utilize these disciplinary guidelines. “in reaching a decision on a disciplinary action under the Administrative Proce - dure Act (Government Code

Section 11400 et seq. — APA).” The Disciplinary Guidelines are incorporated by reference as a regulation, and therefore any update to the Disciplinary Guidelines will require an update in regulations as required by law in the APA. The Dis- ciplinary Guidelines were last modified in 2011, and this rulemaking would update the Disciplinary Guide- lines to better protect California consumers and en - sure consistency in the Board’s enforcement actions.

The Board’s proposal includes the following changes: ● Amend the Title of the document and the pro - posed text throughout to reflect the title of the Substance Abuse Coordination Committee’s document so that the title would refer to “Uni - form Standards Regarding Substance–Abus - ing Licensees” and update the standards consis - tent with recent changes made by the Substance Abuse Coordination Committee. ● Add a policy statement to the Introduction in - dicating that the Board seeks reimbursement of its investigative and prosecution costs in all dis - ciplinary cases in which the licensee is found to have committed a violation with an explanation for what cost recovery includes and why cost re - covery is an important public policy. ● Reflect changes to California law since the last version of the Guidelines were approved by the Board, including the adoption of Substantial - ly Related Criteria and Rehabilitation Criteria as outlined in 16 CCR sections 2521, 2522, 2578 and 2579, respectively, and as required by Business and Profession Code (Code) sections 480, 481 and 482, as amended by

Chapter 995, Statutes of 2018 (AB 2138). ● Change the introductory language for the stan - dard conditions of probation from items that will “generally appear” to items that “should appear in every case” to ensure consistency in imple - mentation of probationary orders. ● Add new factors to be considered when deter - mining whether revocation, suspension or pro - bation should be imposed in a given disciplinary action ● Clarify all conditions with time–based deadlines, such as adding the word “calendar” to a 30–day reporting requirement. ● Change the standard compliance (proposed as “cooperation and compliance”) condition to in - clude requirements for timely responding to Board inquiries, that the licensee on probation submit to the Board the contact information for their criminal probation or parole officer and in - form their criminal probation or parole officer that they are being monitored by the Board.

Also, makes explicit that failure to timely respond is a violation of probation. ● Change the submission of quarterly written re - ports standard condition to include that the licensee on probation will submit disclosures that include written disclosures regarding wheth - er Respondent has complied with each term and condition of probation contained in this Deci - sion (“complete report”); and, if applicable, (

B) if Respondent discloses they are not in compli - ance with any term or condition, a written state - ment regarding why Respondent is not in com - pliance with any term or condition of probation. Revisions to this condition also makes specific the due dates for the quarterly reports and the al - lowable methods for delivering such reports. In - complete written reports or reports submitted or postmarked after the listed reporting dates listed

CALIFORNIA REGULATORY NOTICE REGISTER 2024, VOLUME NUMBER 16–Z 455 would be considered late and not in compliance with this condition. ● Add new reporting requirements to the standard notice of change in address provision to include reporting within 5 calendar days of the effec - tive date of the Decision, Respondent’s current physical address, mailing address(es), email ad - dress, and telephone number(

s) to the Board or its designee. ● Change the standard notice of change in practice of residency, practice or licensure outside of the state (condition (would include title change to re- fer to “tolling”) to ensure that the licensee on pro- bation does not remain tolled for more than two years or it would be considered a violation of pro- bation. Adds new requirement to this

section that Respondent shall submit annually, within 30 cal - endar days of the date requested by the Board or its designee, a written document verifying Re - spondent’s out–of–state residency, practice or li - censure outside of California as specified.

Would also specify that periods of residency or practice outside of California do not relieve Respondent of the responsibility to maintain a current and active license, and to comply with the terms and condi - tions of probation. ● Change the standard meeting with Board repre - sentatives’ condition to include proof of identi - ty that includes a current state or federal govern - ment–issued photo identification (e.g., driver li - cense, passport, or military identification) to the Board or its designee for examination upon re - quest at any meeting. ● Changes the standard notification to employers’ condition to include notice to the employer of the name, title, telephone number and email address for the Board’s staff person who is Respondent’s probation monitor to ensure that the licensees on probation are informing their current employer as soon as they have been placed on probation. ● Change the employment requirement condi - tion to allow licensees to work with more flexi - bility, by making the hours needed a 160–hour monthly requirement instead of a 20–hour week - ly requirement. ● Change the standard completion of educational coursework condition to mandate that the licens - ee on probation take a law and ethics class, in ad- dition to any classes deemed necessary to ensure consumer safety.

Additional changes were in - cluded to ensure that the licensee on probation gave sufficient information to the Board to re - view and make a decision on whether or not the courses meet the standard for approval.

Further - more, a clarification was made to ensure that the licensee on probation had an understanding that any courses that had not been pre–approved by the Board would not be counted towards fulfill - ment of the condition. ● Change the standard condition related to main - tenance of a current license to ensure that the li - cense is also kept active, and that the licensee pays all fees prior to the license expiration date and that it shall be considered a violation of pro - bation to fail to do so. ● Change the standard cost recovery requirements to align them with the law at Business and Pro - fessions Code

section 125.3 and the recent cost recovery precedential decisions by the Board. ● Change the standard license surrender condition to include when and how the Board would accept surrender of a license on probation as specified, including considerations of circumstances when the Board would consider not accepting a surren- der in the interests of consumer protection. ● Change the standard violation of probation con - dition to specify that probation may be automati - cally extended while a Petition to Revoke Proba - tion is pending and has not been acted upon by the Board, and that the original terms and condi - tions of probation still apply during that extension period. ● Change the optional examination by a physician condition to ensure that the Board is given a re - lease to communicate effectively with the medi - cal practitioner, and that the report contains suffi- cient information so that the Board can make an informed decision on whether or not to allow the licensee on probation to continue to practice. ● Change the optional psychiatric evaluation con - dition to ensure that the evaluator is properly li - censed and within their scope of practice.

Fur - thermore, changes were made to ensure that the report contains sufficient information so that the Board can make an informed decision on whether or not to allow the licensee on probation to con - tinue to practice. ● Change the optional psychotherapy condition to ensure that the evaluator is properly licensed and within their scope of practice, and to al - low for other practitioners who can offer mental health counseling. This will allow the licensees on probation to have more options when choos - ing a practitioner.

Furthermore, the requirement that the licensee on probation share their decision and order and accusation with the practitioner helps ensure that the practitioner has all the need- ed information about the licensee on probation to make an informed decision on their ability to practice with safety to the public.

CALIFORNIA REGULATORY NOTICE REGISTER 2024, VOLUME NUMBER 16–Z 456 ● Change the optional rehabilitation program con - dition to include in–patient and out–patient op - tions and include recovery programs. This will allow the licensee on probation to have more op - tions when choosing a program. ● Change the optional addictive behavior support group condition to include recovery groups that are facilitated by a mental health professional.

Furthermore, changes were made to allow the Board to work with the mental health profes - sional to increase or decrease the attendance re - quirements, based on the needs of the licensee on probation. ● Change the optional abstain from controlled sub- stances condition to include abstention from al - cohol in that condition and remove the separate alcohol condition. ● Change the optional biological fluid condition to a drug and alcohol testing condition.

This will ensure that the Board has the flexibility in us - ing other methods of collection so that licensees on probation have flexibility, and consumers are protected. ● Change the optional take and pass the licensure examination condition to ensure that they include information on the reinstatement of a license and the use of the new proposed model orders. ● Update the Violations and Recommended Disci - plinary Actions matrix to include specified up - dates, where applicable, and remove any condi - tions that were duplicated. ● Add evidence in aggravation of penalty to ensure understanding of what the Board would consider aggravating factors in every case. ● Add evidence in mitigation of penalty to ensure understanding of what the Board would consider mitigating evidence. ● Add rehabilitation evidence to help applicants, petitioners and licensees understand the types of evidence that the Board will consider. ● Add model orders to ensure consistency in the implementation of the Board’s probationary or - ders, and, ● Make other non–substantive, technical clean– up changes including renumbering, punctuation, grammar, and changing gendered pronouns to non–gendered nouns.

Anticipated Benefits of Proposal The Board has determined that this regulatory pro - posal will have the following benefits to the health and welfare of California residents. The proposed amend - ments make the Disciplinary Guidelines consistent with current law and the current probationary envi - ronment, clarify the terms and conditions of probation to reduce the likelihood of misinterpretation, provide model orders, and strengthen consumer protection.

The Board anticipates that the updated Disciplinary Guidelines will provide a more useful tool for the Board, applicants and licensees, Administrative Law Judges (ALJs), legal counsel, and the public by pro - viding a more accurate overview of the Board’s pro - cesses in formal disciplinary actions. The updated Disciplinary Guidelines will also serve as an educa - tional and guidance tool for the ALJs who administer hearings for the Board. The regulatory proposal will improve the consistency of penalties for violations of the VN and PT Practice Acts and their accompanying regulations.

This regulatory proposal promotes the fairness and standardization of cases requiring formal discipline by clarifying the conditions under which licensees and applicants shall be subject to varying levels of disci - pline and terms of probation. This regulatory proposal does not affect worker safety, or the state’s environment as it is unrelated to either one of those issues.

Evaluation of Consistency and Compatibility with Existing State Regulations During the process of developing this regulatory proposal, the Board has conducted a search of any similar regulations on these topics and has concluded that these regulations are neither inconsistent nor in - compatible with existing state regulations. INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE This proposal would incorporate by reference the document entitled “Disciplinary Guidelines and Uniform Standards Regarding Substance–Abusing Licensees (Rev.

OAL Insert Effective Date).” The Dis- ciplinary Guidelines are incorporated by reference as they are too lengthy and cumbersome to be included in the CCR. FISCAL IMPACT ESTIMATES Fiscal Impact on Public Agencies Including Costs or Savings to State Agencies or Costs/Savings in Federal Funding to the State: None. There is no fiscal impact to the State in the form of federal fund - ing or any cost or savings to any state agency. This proposal does not change the fines for violations, so no additional revenues are anticipated.

This propos - al provides a more accurate overview of the Board’s processes in formal disciplinary actions, which will provide greater clarity to licensees, consumers, the Board, the Office of the California Attorney General, and the Administrative Law Judges (ALJs) by outlin - ing relevant and transparent standards directly related to violations outlined in law.

CALIFORNIA REGULATORY NOTICE REGISTER 2024, VOLUME NUMBER 16–Z 457 The Board does not anticipate additional workload or costs resulting from the proposed regulations. Nondiscretionary Costs/Savings to Local Agen - cies: None. Cost to any Local Agency or School District for which Government Code Sections 17500–17630 Re- quire Reimbursement: None. Mandate Imposed on Local Agencies or School Districts: None. Significant Effect on Housing Costs (and, if appli- cable, including any estimated costs of compliance or potential benefits of a building standard) None.

BUSINESS IMPACT ESTIMATES The Board has made the initial determination that the proposed regulatory action would have no sig - nificant statewide adverse economic impact directly affecting business, including the ability of California businesses to compete with businesses in other states. This initial determination is based on the following facts/evidence/documents or testimony: The proposed regulatory action only impacts vo - cational nurse and psychiatric technician licensees and applicants who are disciplined by the Board for violations of the laws and regulations within its ju - risdiction.

The Board does not have the authority to take administrative action against a business. The pro- posed regulatory action only affects vocational nurse and psychiatric technician licensees and applicants who, through their conduct, subject themselves to dis- ciplinary action for violations of the laws and regu - lations within the Board’s jurisdiction. Any “adverse economic impact” would only occur as the result of a disciplinary order following a formal administrative proceeding and a finding of fact affirming a violation of the laws or regulations within the Board’s jurisdic - tion.

Any potential “adverse economic impact” may be avoided simply by complying with the existing laws and regulations governing the practice of voca - tional nurses or psychiatric technicians in California. Cost Impact on Representative Private Person or Business: The Board is not aware of any cost impacts that a representative private person or business would nec - essarily incur in reasonable compliance with the pro - posed action. The proposed regulations would revise existing disciplinary guidelines but do not change fine amounts.

The proposed regulatory action only affects vocational nurses and psychiatric technician licensees and applicants who, through their own conduct, sub - ject themselves to disciplinary action for violations of the laws and regulations within the Board’s jurisdic - tion. Any potential “adverse economic impact” may be avoided simply by complying with the existing laws and regulations governing the practice of vocational nurses and psychiatric technicians in California. BUSINESS REPORTING REQUIREMENTS The regulatory action requires businesses to file a report with the Board.

The regulatory action adds a new quarterly reporting requirement for those proba - tioners who are ordered to abstain from the possession or personal use of a controlled substance or dangerous drug but have been lawfully prescribed a dangerous drug or controlled substance for a bona fide illness or medical condition (see Optional Term Number 21 “Abstain from Controlled Substances and Alcohol”). This new requirement would require the probationer (respondent) to file a report with the Board prepared by their prescriber containing specified disclosures including: (

A) the prescriber’s name, (

B) the prescriber’s license type and number, (

C) the medication, (

D) the dosage, (

E) the date the medication was prescribed, (

F) respondent’s prognosis, (

G) the date the medication will no longer be required, (

H) the effect on respondent’s recovery, if any, and, (

I) if the medication prescribed is considered addictive, a statement regarding whether re- spondent is safe to practice and any plan for time limited use of the drug. The new condition of probation would also require a probationer to identify a coordinating physician, nurse practitioner, or physician assistant who shall report to the Board on a quarterly basis the respondent’s com - pliance with this condition. The Board has determined that it is necessary for the health, safety, or welfare of the people of the State that the regulation apply to businesses.

These reports are required to be filed to ensure that all necessary information is provided by respondents to help the Board monitor whether respondent is practicing safe - ly and not impaired for the protection of the public. These reporting requirements are similar to those re - quired by other healing arts boards in the Department for licensees on probation for violations related to the use or possession of drugs or alcohol. As a result, prescribers would be familiar with these disclosures, and therefore should be prepared and able to address these reporting requirements within existing business operations.

CALIFORNIA REGULATORY NOTICE REGISTER 2024, VOLUME NUMBER 16–Z 458 EFFECT ON SMALL BUSINESS The Board has determined that the proposed regula- tions will not affect small businesses. Although small businesses owned by licensees of the Board may be impacted the Board does not maintain data relating to the number or percentage of licensees who own a small business; therefore, the number or percentage of small businesses that may be impacted cannot be predicted.

RESULTS OF ECONOMIC IMPACT ASSESSMENT/ANALYSIS Impact on Jobs/Businesses: The Board has determined that this regulatory proposal will not have a significant impact on the following: 1) the creation or elimination of jobs within the state, 2) the creation of new businesses or the elimination of existing businesses within the state, or, 3) the expansion of businesses currently doing busi- ness within the state.

The proposed regulatory action only impacts voca - tional nurse and psychiatric technician licensees and applicants who, through their own conduct, are subject to disciplinary action for violations of the laws and regulations within the Board’s jurisdiction. Therefore, the overall economic impact on businesses and jobs is insignificant. The Board does not have the authority to take administrative action against a business.

Benefits of Regulation: The Board has determined that this regulatory pro - posal will have the following benefits to the health and welfare of California residents: The Board has determined that updating the Disciplinary Guidelines through this regulatory proposal will benefit the health and welfare of California residents by enhancing the Board’s ability to take appropriate action against vo - cational nurse and psychiatric technician licensees and applicants who, through their conduct, subject themselves to disciplinary action by violating the ap - plicable Practice Acts and/or Board regulations.

Addi- tionally, this proposal will benefit the assigned Deputy Attorneys General (DAGs), ALJs, and others involved in the disciplinary process by ensuring consistency in the

interpretation and application of penalties in ad - ministrative disciplinary actions. This regulatory pro - posal does not affect worker safety and this proposal is not related to the state’s environment. CONSIDERATION OF ALTERNATIVES In accordance with Government Code

section 11346.5, subdivision (a)(13), the Board must deter - mine that no reasonable alternative it considered to the regulation or that has otherwise been identified and brought to its attention would be more effective in car- rying out the purpose for which the action is proposed, would be as effective and less burdensome to affected private persons than the proposal described in this No- tice, or would be more cost–effective to affected pri - vate persons and equally effective in implementing the statutory policy or other provision of law.

Any interested person may submit comments to the Board in writing relevant to the above determi - nations at 2535 Capitol Oaks, Suite 205, Sacramento CA 95833, and to the attention of either of the persons listed under the

section “Contact Person” listed below, during the written comment period, or at the hearing if one is scheduled or requested. AVAILABILITY OF INITIAL STATEMENT OF REASONS AND RULEMAKING FILE The Board has compiled a record for this regulatory action, which includes the Initial Statement of Reasons (ISOR), proposed regulatory text, and all the informa- tion upon which the proposal is based. This material is contained in the rulemaking file and is available for public inspection upon request to the contact persons named in this notice.

TEXT OF PROPOSAL Copies of the exact language of the proposed regu - lations, and any document incorporated by reference, and of the ISOR, and all of the information upon which the proposal is based, may be obtained at the hearing or prior to upon request from the Board of Vocational Nursing and Psychiatric Technicians at 2535 Capitol Oaks, Suite 205, Sacramento CA 95833.

AVAILABILITY OF CHANGED OR MODIFIED TEXT After considering all timely and relevant comments, the Board, upon its own motion or at the request of any interested party, may thereafter adopt the propos - als substantially as described below or may modify such proposals if such modifications are sufficient - ly related to the original text.

With the exception of technical or grammatical changes, the full text of any modified proposal will be available for 15 days pri - or to its adoption from the person designated in this Notice as Contact Person and will be mailed to those persons who submit written or oral testimony related to this proposal or who have requested notification of any changes to the proposal.

CALIFORNIA REGULATORY NOTICE REGISTER 2024, VOLUME NUMBER 16–Z 459 AVAILABILITY AND LOCATION OF THE FINAL STATEMENT OF REASONS AND RULEMAKING FILE All the information upon which the proposed regu - lations are based is contained in the rulemaking file, which is available for public inspection by contacting the person named below. You may obtain a copy of the final statement of rea- sons once it has been prepared, by making a written request to the Contact Person named below or by ac - cessing the website listed below.

CONTACT PERSON Inquiries or comments concerning the proposed rulemaking action may be addressed to: Name: Antoinette Wood Address: 2535 Capitol Oaks Drive Suite 205. Sacramento, CA 95833 Telephone Number: (916) 215–5014 Fax Number: (916) 263–7857 Email Address: Antoinette.wood@dca.ca.gov The backup contact person is: Name: Jeffery Weiler Address: 2535 Capitol Oaks Drive Suite 205.

Sacramento, CA 95833 Telephone Number: (916) 263–2042 Fax Number: (916) 263–7857 Email Address: Jeffery.Weiler@dca.ca.gov Website Access: Copies of the Notice of Proposed Action, the Initial Statement of Reasons, and the text of the regulations with modifications noted, as well as the Final Statement of Reasons when completed, and modified text, if any, can be accessed through the Board’s website at https://www.bvnpt.ca.gov/about_ us/bvnpt_regulations.shtml . TITLE 16.

ARCHITECTS BOARD EXPERIENCE EVALUATION NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the California Architects Board (Board) is proposing to take the ac - tion described in the Informative Digest below, after considering all comments, objections, and recommen- dations regarding the proposed action. PUBLIC HEARING The Board has not scheduled a public hearing on this proposed action. However, the Board will hold a hearing if it receives a written request for a public hearing from any interested person, or his or her au - thorized representative, no later than 15 days prior to the close of the written comment period.

A hearing may be requested by making such request in writing addressed to the individuals listed under “Contact Per- son” in this notice. WRITTEN COMMENT PERIOD Written comments relevant to the action proposed, including those sent by mail, facsimile, or email to the addresses listed under “Contact Person” in this No - tice, must be received by the Board at its office no later than Tuesday, June 4, 2024, by 5:00 p.m., or must be received by the Board at the hearing, should one be scheduled.

AUTHORITY AND REFERENCE Pursuant to the authority vested by sections 5526, 5550 and 5552 of the Business and Professions Code (BPC), and to implement, interpret, or make specific BPC sections 5550 and 5552, the Board is considering amending

section 117 of title 16 of the California Code of Regulations (CCR). INFORMATIVE DIGEST/POLICY STATEMENT OVERVIEW Currently, Board regulations 16 CCR

section 117 describe the method by which candidates may obtain the required experience to become eligible for licen - sure as set forth in BPC

section 5552. The existing regulation provides a chart of experience followed by explanations of education, training, and practice equivalents as necessary. 16 CCR 117 was last updated in 2014, when the now non–existent National Coun - cil of Architectural Registration Boards program was available. The current regulation references an obso - lete program, limits the amount of work experience that can be gained while enrolled in an academic setting and the experience submitted as part of an in - ternship program, and lists specific degrees related to architecture.

This proposal would increase the amount of experi- ence allowed for earning a degree related to architec - ture and broaden the degrees that are related to archi - tecture which will, in turn, reduce delays in licensure. Additionally, increasing the amount of experience that can be granted for completing degree and internship programs will increase efficiencies for staff and reduce unnecessary delays in licensure for candidates. This regulatory proposal will amend 16 CCR sec - tion 117. The amendments to the regulations through this proposed rulemaking are as follows:

CALIFORNIA REGULATORY NOTICE REGISTER 2024, VOLUME NUMBER 16–Z 460 Amend 16 CCR

section 117 prefatory paragraphs to clarify the Table of Equivalents’ structure and purpose. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(

a) to clarify language and remove obsolete language and columns from the table that are unnecessary. This will provide a more clear and concise understanding of what the following table will include to make it easier for future licensees to comprehend the requirements for licensure. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(a)(1) to update the lan- guage so candidates can clearly locate additional in - formation about relevant degrees and update the table with relevant credit. This will provide a more clear and concise understanding of the acceptable equiva - lents making it easier for future licensees to compre - hend the requirements for licensure. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(a)(2) to update the lan- guage so candidates can clearly locate additional in - formation about relevant degrees and update the table with relevant credit. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(a)(3) to remove unnec- essary language, update the language so candidates can clearly locate additional information about rele - vant degrees, increase the maximum amount of credit gained for the degree, and update the table with rele - vant credit. Remove former 16 CCR

section 117(a)(4) as it dupli- cates prior subsection (a)(3). Amend 16 CCR

section 117(a)(4) to renumber for consistency, remove unnecessary language, update the language so candidates can clearly locate addi - tional information about relevant degrees, increase the maximum amount of credit gained for the degree, and update the table with relevant credit. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(a)(5) to renumber for consistency and remove obsolete language to provide more concise and clear information for candidates. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(a)(6) to renumber for consistency and remove obsolete language to provide more concise and clear information for candidates. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(a)(7) to renumber for consistency, remove unnecessary language, update the language so candidates can clearly locate addi - tional information about relevant degrees, increase the maximum amount of credit gained for the degree, and update the table with relevant credit. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(a)(8) to relocate former subsection (a)(14) for clarity and relevance. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(a)(9) to renumber for consistency, update language so candidates can clear - ly locate additional information about work experi - ence, increase the maximum amount of credit that can be gained, and update the table with relevant credit. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(a)(10) to renumber for consistency, clarify documentation sources so the Board receives complete information regarding can - didates, update language so candidates can clearly locate additional information about work experience, and remove extraneous and obsolete language. Remove 16 CCR

section 117(

a) former paragraph (10), subparagraphs (A)–(

E) to facilitate licensure and align the Board with the national standard, providing consistency to candidates. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(a)(11) to clarify doc - umentation sources so the Board receives complete information regarding candidates, update language so candidates can clearly locate additional informa - tion about work experience, increase the maximum amount of credit that can be obtained, and remove ex- traneous and obsolete language. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(a)(12) to renumber for consistency, update language so candidates can clear - ly locate additional information about work experi - ence, and remove extraneous and obsolete language. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(a)(13) to renumber for consistency and remove obsolete language. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(a)(14) to renumber for consistency, update language so candidates can clear - ly locate additional information about work experi - ence, and remove obsolete language. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(a)(15) to renumber for consistency, update language so candidates can clearly locate additional information about work experience, update additional language for clarity, and remove ob- solete language. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(a)(16) to renumber for consistency and remove obsolete language. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(a)(17) to renumber for consistency, update language so candidates can clearly locate additional information about work experience, update additional language for clarity, and remove ob- solete language. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(a)(18) to renumber for consistency, update language so candidates can clearly locate additional information about work experience, increase maximum credit allowed, update additional language for clarity, and remove obsolete language. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(

b) to remove obsolete language that relates to prior method of evaluating candidates. Remove 16 CCR

section 117(b), former paragraph (1) as it is unnecessary language. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(b)(1) to renumber for consistency and remove unnecessary language. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(b)(2) to renumber for consistency and update language to gender neutral pronouns. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(b)(3) to renumber for consistency and update language to correct references. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(b)(4) to renumber for consistency, update language to correct references, simplify and clarify language, and remove unneces - sary language.

CALIFORNIA REGULATORY NOTICE REGISTER 2024, VOLUME NUMBER 16–Z 461 Amend 16 CCR

section 117(b)(5) to renumber for consistency, update language to correct references, simplify and clarify language, and remove unneces - sary language. Additionally, specific degrees are re - placed with National Center for Education Statistics Classification of Instructional Programs codes for de - gree programs. Remove 16 CCR

section 117(b), former paragraph (6), subparagraphs (A)–(

C) as this refers to prior lan - guage that is being removed to align the Board with national standards and facilitate licensure. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(b)(6) to renumber for consistency and update language to ensure submitted degrees are from legitimate educational institutions. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(b)(7) to renumber for consistency and update language to gender neutral pronouns. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(b)(8) to renumber for consistency and update language to correct references. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(b)(9) to renumber for consistency. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(b)(10) to renumber for consistency and update language for clarity. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(

c) to remove obsolete and unnecessary language. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(c)(1) to update language to cover the possibility of a candidate obtaining a high school alternative degree. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(c)(2)(

A) to include reg- istered professionals for jurisdictions that register in - stead of license. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(c)(2)(

B) to update refer- ences, clarify language and include registered archi - tects for jurisdictions that register instead of license. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(c)(3) to clarify the defi- nition of primary source documentation. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(c)(4) to include regis - tered professionals for jurisdictions that register in - stead of license. Remove 16 CCR

section 117(c), former paragraph (5) as this refers to prior language that is being re - moved to align the Board with national standards and facilitate licensure and thus provides uniformity of the process and requirements. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(c)(5) to renumber for consistency and update language to comply and re - main consistent with the language in BPC

section 7068. Amend 16 CCR

section 117(c)(6) to renumber for consistency. Remove 16 CCR

section 117(c), former paragraph (8) as t