In the News

August 22, 2019

The bill is sponsored by Sen. Nancy Skinner, D-Berkeley, and the Alliance for Boys and Men of Color. The alliance wrote that the bill “and the elimination of suspension for disruption/defiance will result in an overall reduction in suspensions and an increase in positive outcomes for students and the communities in which they live.”

For the full report, click here.

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August 21, 2019

The law was authored by then state Assemblywoman Nancy Skinner, D-Berkeley, following the Isla Vista shooting rampage in 2014, in which a 22-year-old gunman killed six people and injured 14 others near the UC Santa Barbara campus, before turning the gun on himself.

"The UC Davis study shows the importance of having a tool to get guns out of the hands of dangerous people before it's too late," State Sen. Skinner said. "It's imperative that here and across the country we do whatever we can to prevent more mass killings."

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August 21, 2019

Democratic state Sen. Nancy Skinner of the East Bay said that approach inspired her to successfully push for setting aside $2 billion in this year's state budget to prevent homelessness.

Cities and counties can use that money toward homeless services and emergency rental assistance. She hopes some of that money will be offered to the elderly.

"Emergency rental assistance is the best solution, far better than trying to deal with the problem once they lost their home," Skinner said.

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August 20, 2019

"It's so absurd," said State Sen. Nancy Skinner, D-Oakland, who wants to change state child support laws. "It's like we're trying to get blood from a turnip, blood from a stone."

Skinner is pushing a bill this year that would increase the amount of child support that goes to families. Under SB337, families with one kid would get $100 a month instead of $50, and families with two or more children would receive $200. Another bill would eliminate the interest charged on child support debt.

For the full report, click here.

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August 16, 2019

[Gov. Gavin Newsom] said he hopes lawmakers pass Senate Bill 330 by Sen. Nancy Skinner, D-Berkeley, which would suspend some local development rules to speed up housing permitting.

Newsom said the measure aims to streamline local regulations and crack down on “abuses” by local governments that are trying to avoid building new housing.

For the full report, click here.

 

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August 10, 2019

California legislators are currently considering the Getting Home Safe Act, which is based on recommendations collected from formerly incarcerated people after St. Louis’ death. Under the bill, inmates facing late-night release could choose to stay in jail until morning. For the many inmates likely to reject this option, sheriffs must offer a safe place to wait for a ride, at least three free telephone calls, and cell phone charging. The original version of the bill, sponsored by state Sen.

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August 8, 2019

This year, California became one of the few states in the country to pass legislation limiting felony murder convictions. The new law, SB 1437, written by state Senator Nancy Skinner, says people can't be convicted of murder unless they were the actual killer, helped the killer, or "acted with reckless indifference to human life."

For the full report, click here.

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August 5, 2019

“This was the start of the tough-on-crime era,” said Kate Chatfield, a law professor at the University of San Francisco who helped write SB 1437, which was authored by state senator Nancy Skinner. (Chatfield is also a senior adviser to The Justice Collaborative, which publishes The Appeal.)  “It was a very conservative period that led to mass incarceration in this country, and Proposition 7 very much started that movement.”

For the full report, click here.

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July 24, 2019

In California, it’s hard to argue that the right to a jury of your peers includes black men. This year, we can change that.

SB310, a bill currently being debated in Sacramento and authored by state Sen. Nancy Skinner, D-Berkeley, would expand the pool of eligible jurors by allowing people with felony convictions to serve. It would move California toward a fairer and more representative jury system.

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July 24, 2019

In the wake of the last two years of wildfires, Californians have seen insurance companies flee the wildland-urban interface market where so much of the destruction has been centered. Where companies do remain, fire insurance rates have often jumped.

“We’re not just talking fire, but sea level rise, coastal erosion, things like that,” said state Sen. Nancy Skinner (D-Berkeley). “If we want to create a condition where the insurance industry wants to stay, we have to be able to show that we’re making these changes.”

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