Government Relations Update

By Rebecca Gonzales, Director of Government Relations and Political Affairs

The Legislature has adjourned for the summer recess and will return to Sacramento on Monday, August 17.

The Legislative session will end for the year on September 11.  Bills that are still moving have about a month to get out of the appropriations (fiscal) committee and to be voted off either the Senate or Assembly floor. If the bills were amended in the second house, they must go back to the original house to adopt the amendments made in the second house. So for AB bills that were introduced in the Assembly—if they were amended in the Senate— they must pass the Assembly again before they are transmitted to the Governor’s office.

For Senate or SB bills that were introduced in the Senate and were amended in the Assembly, they must go back to the Senate for concurrence in Assembly amendments before they are sent to the Governor for his signature or veto. Below is an update on the bills that I reported on last month.

LOBBY DAY BILLS

SB 3 (Leno) Minimum Wage
Gradually raises the minimum wage to $13 an hour by July 2017. After January 2019, the minimum wage will be indexed to inflation.
Status: Passed out of the Assembly Labor and Employment Committee on a 5-2 vote and referred to Assembly Appropriations.

SB 4 (Lara) Health care 4 All
Expands access to health care regardless of immigration status. It has been amended to allow immigrants, who are ineligible for Medi-Cal because of their income, to purchase their own health insurance under Covered California without subsidies if the state secures a waiver from the federal government. The bill also allows immigrant children, ages 19 and under, who would otherwise qualify for Medi-Cal based on their family income, to receive coverage under that program. Also extends eligibility for either limited scope or full-scope Medi-Cal benefits to individuals 19 years of age or older if there is sufficient funding in the budget.
Status: Passed out of the Assembly Health Committee on a 12-6 vote and referred to the Assembly Appropriations Committee.

SB 23 (Mitchell) Maximum Family Grant
Eliminates the Maximum Family Grant in CalWORKs.
Note: The Legislature had supported this policy in the budget but it was removed from the final budget deal that the Governor signed. Advocates are still advocating for this bill to apply additional pressure on the Governor to support this policy. Passed out of the Assembly Human Services Committee on a 5-2 vote and referred to the Assembly Appropriations Committee.

OTHER SUPPORT BILLS

AB 47 (McCarty)
Expands the state preschool program to all low income families who do not have access to one year of preschool or to transitional kindergarten contingent on funding in the budget.
Status: Passed the Senate Education Committee on a 6-1 vote and referred to the Senate Appropriations committee.

AB 348 (Brown)
Establishes new timelines for investigating abuse and neglect reported at nursing homes.
Status: Passed the Senate Health Committee on a 9-0 vote and referred to the Senate Appropriations Committee.

AB 474 (Brown and Thurmond)
Raises SSI/SSP grants for the aged and disabled for the 2015-2016 fiscal year to be equal to 112 percent of the federal poverty level.
Status: Failed in the Assembly Budget Committee. Might be taken up in the special session.

AB 622 (R. Hernandez)
Expands instances when it is unlawful for an employer to use the E-Verify system to confirm the immigration status of a worker.
Status: On the Senate Floor.

AB 830 (Eggman)
This bill applies existing law remedies for victims of gender-related violence to victims of sexual orientation-based violence. Also defines “gender” in accordance with the Unruh Civil Rights Act, to include “gender expression” and “gender identity.”
Status: On the Governor’s desk awaiting his signature.

AB 832 (Garcia)
Creates a uniform process for mandated reporters regarding consensual sex between minors. This will equalize homosexual sex with heterosexual sex so that there is not an unequal standard for reporting.Status: On the inactive file. According to the author’s office this measure will be reintroduced in 2017.

AB 1025 (Thurmond)
Establishes a pilot program to encourage inclusive practices that integrate mental health, special education and school climate interventions.
Status: Not taken up in policy committee. Could become a two-year bill.

SB 29 (Beall)
Increases police officer training in mental health.
Status: Passed the Assembly Public Safety Committee on a 7-0 vote and referred to the Assembly Appropriations Committee.

SB 124 (Leno)
Limits solitary confinement for youth in juvenile facilities.
Status: In the Assembly Appropriations Committee.

SB 128 (Wolk)
End of Life Options Act modeled after Oregon’s Death with Dignity Act which allows for an adult, who is mentally competent, terminally ill, and in the final stages of their disease progression, to request a drug from a physician to bring about a peaceful death.
Status: The author did not have the votes to get this bill out of committee. Could become a two-year bill and be taken up in January.

SB 196 (Hancock)
Provides for elder abuse restraining orders for elders unable to advocate for themselves.
Status: Passed out of the Assembly Aging and Long-Term Care Committee on a 7-0 vote and referred to the Assembly Floor.

SB 238 (Mitchell), SB 253 (Monning), SB 484 (Beall)
Protects against the overuse of psychotropic medications for foster youth.
Status: All bills were referred to the Assembly Appropriations Committee.

For a full list of the bills we are following click here:  http://www.legisweb.com/app/pkgs/myInfo/MyInfo.asp?memberId=rebecca&memberCode=210296226&dataSet=bills&cmd=get&showCategories=yes&startIndex=1&itemsPerPage=10000&format=html