2018 Legislative Session - Significant Achievements

My colleagues and I wrapped up our 2018 legislative session on August 31^st. This was a session Californians can be proud of. Groundbreaking bills passed this year include SB 822, restoring Net Neutrality; SB 100, setting a 100% renewable energy goal for California; SB 10, putting an end to money bail; and SB 1421, my bill that breaks open a 40-year lock on public access to police records.

Below is a roundup of the bills I authored that now await Governor Brown's signature to become law. You can communicate your support or opposition by going to Governor Brown's website and clicking the "Contact" tab on the top right corner. On the online form there is a drop-down menu; click "Choose Your Subject," and a list of all the bills appears. There, you can select the bill you'd like to weigh in on.

SB 607 - Keep Kids in School
Puts a halt to willful defiance suspensions for grades K-8 to help kids succeed in school rather than dropping out.

SB 782 - Energy Data
Eases process to share building energy use data with researchers and energy efficiency/other energy service providers.

SB 926 - Low Income Worker Protections
Safeguards CalWORKs and CalFresh participants' benefits if they have to quit a job due to discrimination, harassment or other unfair workplace conditions.

SB 1008 - Dental Consumer Protections
Makes sure consumers have complete information about the dental services covered by their policy.

SB 1014 - Electrify CA Ride-hailing (E-CAR)
Gets transportation network companies like Uber/Lyft on board with increasing the use of EVs and other zero emission vehicles.

SB 1085 - Union Rep Loss Time
Protects the rights of public workers to perform union responsibilities.

SB 1138 - Plant Based Meals
Requires facilities like hospitals and prisons offer plant-based meals to respect health and dietary preferences.

SB 1164 - Craft Distillers Act
Allows California's artisan, small-batch distilleries to sell their products at the distillery without a required tasting.

SB 1200 - Strengthening CA's GVRO
Eases the process and lowers the cost for family members to request a Gun Violence Restraining Order (GVRO) to get guns away from a loved one who is threatening harm to themselves or others.

SB 1227 - Housing Our Students
Incentivizes student housing construction by allowing 100-percent student-serving projects to access CA's Density Bonus law.

SB 1369 - CA Green Hydrogen Initiative
Lays the groundwork for Green Electrolytic Hydrogen, a clean energy storage technology that captures excess electricity from solar and wind.

SB 1421 - Police Transparency
Lifts the veil of secrecy that has made CA the only state that denies all public access to records on law enforcement misconduct. SB 1421 opens access to records on use of deadly force and on the job sexual assault or dishonesty, such as witness interference or evidence tampering.

SB 1437 - BESTT Practices Act
Fixes CA's unjust felony murder law so that those who didn't commit murder or knowingly participate in a murder are charged to reflect their actual role in the crime.

I am proud of the work my staff and I undertook this year and the very significant legislation we were able to get across the finish line. It is an honor to represent you in the California State Senate.