Building the California Dream Alliance Advances 12 Bills to the Governor’s Desk

Building the California Dream Alliance (the Alliance), a statewide progressive policy table comprised of over 60 nonprofit members, has successfully concluded a productive year advocating for the people’s priorities. Through a collaborative process, Alliance members agreed upon a package of critical legislation that was subsequently voted on and advanced through the legislative process.

As we approach the end of the legislative session, several key bills from this package remain on Governor Newsom’s desk awaiting his signature. These bills address a range of pressing issues facing Californians, including criminal justice reform, environmental justice, gender equity, healthcare, housing, voting rights, and more!

We are closely monitoring the Governor’s actions and remain hopeful that he will sign these important pieces of legislation into law. The Alliance is committed to working with elected officials and stakeholders to ensure that the voices of Californians are heard and their needs are met. Here are some top lines:

1. The Alliance prioritized thirty (30) bills this year
2. Twelve (12) of those bills made it to the Governor, as of September 24th
3. Two bills have already been signed:

• SB 1132 — Clarifies that county health officers have the authority to inspect private detention facilities as deemed necessary, including those used to detain immigrants in our state. This bill will also ensure that public health regulations and standards are upheld in private detention facilities for the health and safety of people detained and working in these facilities.
• ACA 8 — The End Slavery in California Act, allows voters to amend the state constitution to prohibit all forms of slavery so incarcerated people can prioritize rehabilitation. This will be on the ballot for approval in November as Proposition 6 to become a constitutional amendment.

4. One bill has been vetoed as of 5:00 pm on September 24th, so nine are still pending on Governor Newsom’s desk.

• Vetoed — SB 1220: This would have protected our vulnerable communities needing access to social services and public benefits and the workers who provide them by prohibiting state and local agencies from contracting out call centers that serve Californians to firms that utilize artificial intelligence instead of California workers.

5. Governor Newsom has until September 30th to act on the nine remaining bills. If no action is taken, they become law. Below are the nine Alliance bills waiting to be signed by Governor Newsom:

• SB 1103: The Commercial Tenant Protection Act of 2024 will increase key protections that help commercial tenants remain in place, including reduced security deposit fees, increased notice periods, and ensuring lease agreements are written in the same language in which they are negotiated.
• SB 1137: Amends California’s anti-discrimination laws to clarify that these laws protect against discrimination based not just on one protected characteristic, but also because of the intersection or combination of two or more protected bases (e.g., gender and race).
• AB 3161: The Equity in Health Care Act, requires the collection of demographic data from hospitals and long-term care to track trends of biased behavior in care. This measure will also provide pathways to support access to civil rights for those who experience trauma from racial discrimination and improve patient trust in the healthcare system.
• SB 1089: Mitigates the harms of abrupt disruptions in access to food and prescription medication, especially in underserved communities. Also requires 90-day advance notifications to affected communities, employees, and other stakeholders, before the closure of a grocery store or pharmacy. Lastly, it implements the Reparations Task Force Report recommendations to address food injustice.
• SB 729: Advances reproductive freedom in California by requiring large group health plans to provide coverage for fertility and infertility care, including IVF. The bill will also update the definition of “infertility” to be inclusive of LGBTQ+ family planning experiences and help to ensure that anyone seeking to build a family has equitable access to infertility treatment and care.
• SB 1090: Allow workers to apply for Paid Family Leave and State Disability Insurance before their leave begins, so they can get confirmation that they will receive benefits before they miss out on necessary income and receive benefits sooner.
• SB 1061: Prohibits credit reporting agencies (CRAs) from placing medical debt on credit reports, and prevents medical debt information from being shared with CRAs. This bill will remove barriers to healthcare access and increase access to credit, housing and employment.
• SB 1337: Modifies the requirements for what is included on petitions for state referenda to curb abuse from corporations by requiring enhanced disclosure during the referendum signature gathering process, including the top three funders printed on each signature page.
• SB 1047: Establishes a publicly owned and operated cloud computing cluster (“CalCompute”) to democratize access to the critical computing power necessary to develop AI in the public interest and provide a check on market concentration. Second, it requires common sense safety testing of the largest AI models to prevent severe harms to public safety and lastly, requires fair, transparent and non-discriminatory pricing of large models and computing clusters.