Prohibits vivisection at colleges, universities, professional, proprietary or graduate schools in the state where a scientifically and educationally satisfactory method or strategy exists; defines vivisection to mean experimentation through surgery on a living organism to view living internal structure.
Authorizes counties to lease county land for natural gas exploration, development and production for five years or as long as gas is produced in paying quantities.
Establishes a fire prevention and emergency task force to develop a plan for training requirements and standards for fire prevention and emergency response services in rural areas and to examine the necessity of having uniform standards across the state.
Relates to enacting the biomass fired exception program providing an exception for certain biomass fired electric generation facilities to the definition of a fossil fuel-fired facility for purposes of a CO2 budget trading program.
Requires the administration and the instruction in preparation of the TASC examination in the Chinese and Korean languages for pupils who are proficient in these languages and of limited English proficiency.
Directs the department of economic development to study methods for keeping small retail businesses within the state and create a pilot program to train and counsel small business owners and potential small business owners; appropriates $210,000 therefor.
Eliminates provisions exempting employees with disabilities from the minimum wage law; provides that laws or minimum wage orders that authorize an employer to pay a wage that is less than the minimum wage are valid provided that under such laws or orders an employee with a disability is paid the same wage as an employee in a comparable position that does not have a disability.
Prohibits an employer from terminating an employee who is also a volunteer firefighter or an enrolled member of a volunteer ambulance service when such employee misses or is late to work because of an emergency to which the employee was dispatched.
Provides for the establishment of a method for determining the lowest responsible bidder when negotiating state contracts that would incorporate quantifiable fiscal benefits.
Provides that before a person may receive public assistance benefits, they must submit to and pass a drug test; requires health care professionals, law enforcement agencies, and courts report certain instances of substance abuse to the commissioner of social services.
Provides for the continuation of a commercial driver's license after lapse or termination of insurance if a person needs such license to perform their employment.