2022 Legislation

Children/Families

SB 860 - It will expand the eligibility of the Young Child Tax Credit (YCTC) from $1 earning to $0 to include in-home caregivers without paid work. Senator Rubio introduced a similar bill, SB 691, last year. Governor Gavin Newsom’s January proposed budget highlighted the need for this expansion.

SB 934 - California Pediatric Cancer Research Fund Act. Would create a $50 million pediatric cancer research fund for the treatment and prevention of childhood cancers.

SB 70 - Mandatory Kindergarten: It will require all students to complete one year in kindergarten before entering first grade to ensure children are prepared socially and academically before entering elementary school.

Clean Energy

SB 560 - It will create a targeted financial program, administered by the California Energy Commission, to assist low-income households who want to replace outdated household appliances, such as water heaters, stoves, home heating and cooling systems, refrigerators, and washers and dryers, with low-carbon appliances.

Consumer Protection

SB 1040 - Insurance: Restitution. Would give the Insurance Commissioner the ability to order restitution to consumers from unlicensed sellers of insurance who are breaking California laws, leading to greater repayments to consumers. It would help consumers victimized by insurance scams, including the illegal “we are trying to reach you about your car’s extended warranty” robo-calls.

SB 1307 - Mobile Homes. Will help educate local governments about an existing process that allows them to assume responsibility for conducting inspections and enforcing health and safety laws at mobilehome parks located within their jurisdiction.

Domestic Violence

SB 616 - Piqui's Law: Keeping Children Safe from Family Violence. Will ensure California can receive critical federal funding to further protect victims of child abuse and domestic violence by prioritizing child safety in our family court system, aligning with federal provisions within the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA).

SB 1265 - The Right to Pause Act: Child Custody Protection. Will further protect victims and children by allowing for a pause in visitation if there were recent signs of an escalation in violent behavior by the abusive parent that resulted in as arrest, charge or use of a weapon on another person.

SB 1081 - Revenge Porn. Increases protections of victims of revenge porn by expanding the definition of “distribution” and defining what an “identifiable person” means within the statute. Existing law provides no justice to a victim who discovers intimate images publicly displayed without consent, because “display” is not included in the definition of “distribution.” The bill strengthens legislation Senator Rubio passed in 2021.

SB 914 - Homeless domestic violence survivors and data systems: local and state support and guidelines. This bill would require the California Interagency Council on Homelessness to set and measure progress toward goals to prevent and end homelessness among domestic violence survivors and their children and among unaccompanied women in California.

SB 935 - Domestic violence: protective orders. This bill would specify a party may request those orders be renewed, subject to termination, modification, or subsequent renewal, as specified.

SR 65 - Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Resolution. Recognizes that the Legislature continues to support teens who have experienced violence in relationships. It also intends to spread awareness about teen dating violence and how to prevent it by teaching youths what safe and healthy relationships look like.

Education

SB 1431 - Class Size Reduction. Will allow students to receive more critical individualized attention and interaction with teachers by incentivizing local education agencies to lower the student-to-teacher ratio to 20:1 within Kindergarten – Third (K-3) grade classrooms.

SR 60 - Driving near schools. Encourages all residents and community organizations in the state to support efforts to reduce speeding and to be aware that it is a major problem for all people in California, especially for children and parents near

SB 1487 - TEACH Survey. Would require the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CTC) to work with the Local Education Agencies (LEA) to develop and administer a statewide survey that would allow us to glean more specificity on why teachers are leaving the profession. Additionally, SB 1487 would require the information to be posted on the CDE’s website.

Environment

SB 560 - It will create a targeted financial program, administered by the California Energy Commission, to assist low-income households who want to replace outdated household appliances, such as water heaters, stoves, home heating and cooling systems, refrigerators, and washers and dryers, with low-carbon appliances.

Healthcare

SB 934 - California Pediatric Cancer Research Fund Act. Would create a $50 million pediatric cancer research fund for the treatment and prevention of childhood cancers.

SB 473 (Coauthor) - Health care coverage: Insulin cost sharing. This bill would prohibit a health care service plan contract or a health insurance policy from imposing cost sharing on a covered insulin prescription, except for a copayment not to exceed $35 per month per each dosage form of insulin products.

Insurance

Mental Health

SB 21 (Principal Coauthor) - Specialized license plates: mental health awareness. Requires the State Department of Education to apply to the DMV to sponsor a mental health awareness license plate program. The bill would also establish the Mental Health Awareness Fund from the revenue generated for mental health services in public schools.

Small Business

SB 972 (Coauthor) - California Retail Food Code. Help support street food vendors by removing barriers to accessing food vending permits. The bill would help reduce unpermitted vending, protect public health, and create a more equitable economy for women, low-income individuals and people of color who form a major part of the industry and contribute to the State’s economy as micro-businesses.

Tenants

SB 843 (Coauthor) - Taxation: renters’ credit. This bill would increase the credit amount for a qualified renter to $1,000. The bill would require the Franchise Tax Board to annually recompute for inflation.

Women

SB 914 - Homeless domestic violence survivors and data systems: local and state support and guidelines. This bill would require the California Interagency Council on Homelessness to set and measure progress toward goals to prevent and end homelessness among domestic violence survivors and their children and among unaccompanied women in California.

SB 53 (Coauthor) - Unsolicited images (Cyberflashing). This bill would allow a civil lawsuit against a person who knowingly sends an unsolicited image by electronic means depicting any person engaging in an acts of sexual relations.