Legislative Watch

Rev. 12/6/2022 - We have started a brand-new two-year legislative session 2023-2024. All bills not signed into law in 2022 died in committee. However, this just means legislators will bring back bad bills under a different number.

(Our Legislative research team of volunteers is nearly entirely e-mail based with each volunteer specializing on one or two topics of interest. If you find an egregiously bad bill not already listed here, send the bill number to page-updater Harry Briley - [email protected])

TRACK BILLS and COMMENT: http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
Assembly Committees: https://www.assembly.ca.gov/committees
Senate Committees: https://www.senate.ca.gov/committees
STATE REPRESENTATIVE: http://findyourrep.legislature.ca.gov
GOVERNOR: govapps.gov.ca.gov Phone: 916-445-2841 govapps.gov.ca.gov (You will see a form to complete; then a box appears for message.)

We encourage initiatives to help correct bad State laws. See web page of Initiatives for November ballot.

On THIS page, we only list active bills in which you can engage State legislators or committee chairs. Once "Chaptered", which means the Governor has signed, the bad bill has become law and is removed from this list. Many bad bills passed during this Legislative Session have been signed by the Governor.

A bill pending referral allows direct public comment to the author using legislative web site. Too early to contact legislators.
A bill in committee is not ready for floor vote. Instead, ask named committee to either 'pass' or 'kill the bill in committee'.
Once examined by Appropriations Committee in each house, there will be a motion for a floor vote or put on consent calendar in that house. Sometimes the bill STILL goes back for revisions ("Third Reading").

Read steps a Bill goes through before signed into law: Legislation Steps.

THEMES

The bills on this web page are sorted by Theme (Abortion Promotion, Climate overreach, COVID, Education, Gun Control, Housing, Sexual Overhaul, Drugs, Water, Other) to let you contact your legislators referencing several related bills in two phone calls or two letters (one for State Senate bills and one for Assembly Bills).

Assembly and Senate Contacts for your District

SD 5 Susan Eggman 916/651-4005 [email protected]
SD 7 Steven Glazer 916/651-4007 [email protected]
SD 9 Nancy Skinner 916/651-4009 [email protected]
SD 10 916/651-4010
AD 14 Buffy Wicks 916/319-2014 [email protected]
AD 16 R.Bauer-Kahan 916/319-2016 [email protected]
AD 18 Mia Bonta 916/319-2018 [email protected]
AD 20 Liz Ortega 916/319-2020
AD 24 Alex Lee 916/319-2024

Letters and Calls

Write a very short letter in your own words summarizing your position on the theme. Write or call your legislator: “I ask for a 'No' vote on each of these bills (XX-1234, XX-2123, ...) because ….”. Be polite, to the point, and convincing. You want to sway legislators but not alienate them. Many instinctively react against your interests if you attack them. Calls get legislator attention, especially when hundreds come in spread over several days.

Theme: Abortion Promotion - This Legislature promoted California as the destination for cheap and easy abortions, while lowering medical safety standards. Taxpayers pay all costs.

PENDING

Theme: Climate Overreach - Bad bills are based on presumed climate change and green agenda of central banks. We need a different narrative than "manmade climate change" and the radical green agenda. We need legislation that builds great water projects, nuclear power, expands fusion research, and allows our farmers water to grow our food! We need ability to allocate emergency credit as necessary. (Also: Legislators need to work with Congress to dissolve the Federal Reserve and set up a National Bank. This is a major goal of the LaRouche PAC. - Mindy P.) - Sample Climate Theme Letter to send to your legislator or committee chair:

I ask for a "No" vote on these bills: [List them by number]

Taken together, these feel like significant overreach in the Climate debate that impedes transitional solutions.

For Climate effects of fossil fuel use, we forget that climate change was more severe in Europe long before the industrial revolution (coal-belching factories and car smog). Our American system reduced such gross pollution and found beneficial transitional solutions. Smog in Los Angeles is negligible compared to the thick brown-orange haze of the 1970s. While counter-intuitive for becoming far less dependent upon fossil fuels, we desperately need the improved designs for nuclear energy. Coal and gas plants currently power our electric cars that offset the purpose of such vehicles. Wind and solar provides just 10% of our energy needs. Without modern nuclear power replacing most gas and coal, we will still need continued easy access to fossil fuels to meet fundamental needs.

For similar Climate bills addressing the common drought cycles in California, we need better multi-year water management with increased water storage. We cannot let our water infrastructure decay with an increasing population. We cannot ration ourselves to success if there is no water stored to ration.

Thus, I urge a “No” vote on each of these Climate bills. Help us improve the livability of our State in both courageous energy and water stewardship.

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PENDING

Theme: COVID - The Corona-Virus created much stress and anxiety. Beyond physical damage and death, once again legislators are convinced that a multitude of bills can fix everything. Therefore, a long list of bills are going to “solve the problem of the virus.” Unfortunately, these result in incredible restriction of our Freedoms. (No changes since 10/8)

PENDING

Theme: Education

AB5 - Safe and Supportive Schools Program - Pending Referral

AB25 - Postsecondary education: debt-free college - Pending Referral

Theme: Gun Control

SB2 - Firearms - Pending Referral

SB8 - Firearms - Pending Referral

AB28 - Firearms: gun violence protection tax - Pending Referral

AB29 - Firearms: California Do Not Sell List - Pending Referral

Theme: Housing - Are some legislators beginning to understand that trickle down market-based legislation is not the solution?

PENDING

Theme: Sexual Overhaul - Senator Scott Wiener promotes many bills hostile to traditional faith beliefs, sexual morals, and parental authority. Read carefully any bill bearing his name.

PENDING

Theme: Drug Misuse

SB13 - Controlled substances - Pending Referral

SB44 - Controlled substances - Pending Referral

SB51 - Cannabis provisional licenses: local equity applicants - Pending Referral

AB18 - Controlled substances - Pending Referral

Theme: Water

PENDING

Theme: Other

SB24 - Elections: statewide direct primary - Pending Referral

AB23 - Theft: shoplifting: amount - Pending Referral

SIGNED LAWS FOLLOW-UP

Do not contact Legislators about signed laws. Only a conservative legislature or expensive ballot initiatives for 2024 can possibly reverse the worst new laws.

AB 101 - This signed law makes Critical Race Theory a requirement for high school graduation beginning with the 2029-2030 graduating class and requiring implementation of this curriculum in public and charter schools by 2025. Since the classroom material does not have to be implemented until 2025, and the bill allows curriculum to be developed locally, parents and interested citizens should get involved by asking for a citizen’s committee to assist in the formation of that curriculum.