It’s another make-or-break week at the Legislature before its month-long summer recess. By Friday, bills that have already passed either the Assembly or Senate must get through policy committees in the other chamber to stay alive this session.
Most measures have, but there are some that are still in jeopardy as committees busily go through them this week.
On Monday, one of the most closely watched housing bills of the year made it past another key hurdle — but only because a group of Democrats and Republicans joined forces to override a powerful committee chairperson.
Senate Bill 423, written by San Francisco Democratic Sen. Scott Wiener, would fast track the permitting of new apartment developments in much of the state. At issue in the Assembly Natural Resources committee: Whether that streamlining should apply in California’s “coastal zone.”
Wiener agreed to narrow the amount of territory covered by the bill. But committee Chairperson Luz Rivas, a Democrat from Arleta, said she didn’t think the bill went far enough to dissuade developers from building in places prone to both flood and fire. Other Democrats worried about the precedent of circumventing the state’s Coastal Commission.
But they didn’t have the votes. That’s unusual. Chairpersons usually get their way.
- Longtime lobbyist Chris Micheli, who was in the room: “It happens maybe once or twice a year between the two houses.”
But even by those rare standards, the 140-minute hearing on a single bill was exceptional, with members debating the amendments at length and out in the open, rather than quietly working everything out ahead of time.
- Wiener: “I calculated I think four-and- a-half years since I walked into a committee without having full agreement with the chair.”
Many of the Assembly members were visibly flustered. Some lobbyists and advocates in the room were impatient as the debate dragged on. But for at least one observer in New York, the debate on display wasn’t dysfunction, but radical transparency and “detailed debate.”
Could there be as much drama on other noteworthy bills as the deadline looms?
Scheduled for debate in committee hearings today:
Abortion
- Senate Bill 487 would shield abortion providers from civil actions from other states where abortion is illegal.
Business
- Assembly Bill 8 would make ticket pricing more transparent;
- AB 1365 would expand layoff notices to contractors and ban companies from requiring employees to sign non-disparagement agreements as a condition of early layoff notification or pay.
Crime
- AB 28 would create an excise tax on guns to fund violence prevention;
- AB 474 would prioritize cooperation between state and local law enforcement to crack down on fentanyl trafficking, while SB 19 would create an anti-fentanyl abuse task force;
- AB 645 would create a pilot program for speeding cameras.
Education
- SB 596 would make it a misdemeanor to threaten or harass school employees outside work.
Health
- SB 58 would decriminalize psychedelic drugs.
Homelessness
- AB 464 would allow homeless individuals to get identification records;
- SB 43 would expand the definition of “gravely disabled” to allow more people to be admitted into mental health conservatorships.
Labor
- AB 1228 would establish joint labor law liability for fast food franchise owners;
- SB 627 would require large chains to give 60-day notice of closings and grant transfer rights to employees.
And on Wednesday, legislators are set to consider these proposals in committee:
Education
- AB 247 would put a $14 billion bond measure for construction at K-12 schools and community colleges on the 2024 ballot;
- AB 659 would recommend that K-12 students and college students be vaccinated against the human papillomavirus;
- SB 28 would put a $15 billion bond measure ($9 billion for K-12 schools and $2 billion each for the University of California, California State University, and California Community Colleges) for construction and campus modernization on the 2024 ballot.
Health
- AB 418 would ban the manufacturing and sale of certain chemical additives in food.
Homelessness
- SB 20 would create regional housing trusts to fund homeless and low-income housing.
Labor
- SB 497 would protect workers who report labor violations from being fired, bullied or harassed.
CalMatters reporters will be watching what happens to these bills and others, and I’ll have updates the rest of the week.
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