Both houses of California’s Legislature are slated to return next week to dispense with second house policy committee meetings, appropriations committee meetings, and floor sessions, in a five-week condensed schedule. According to reports, there are over 700 legislative proposals for both houses to consider during this period. Senate Committees are anticipated to also include meetings…
Read More »As we reported to you last week, the Legislature, scheduled to return this week, extended their recess until July 27 after two Assembly Members and several legislative staffers contracted COVID-19. At this time, the plan remains for members and limited staff to return on Monday, July 27; however, the calendar for legislative hearings still remains…
Read More »The California State Senate and Assembly have both delayed their scheduled return to Sacramento from summer recess on Monday after six individuals in the Assembly, including two Assembly Members, tested positive for COVID-19. Assembly Member Autumn Burke announced receiving positive results after being notified by the Assembly Human Resources Department that she had been subject…
Read More »While the Assembly recessed for their summer recess last week, the Senate remained in session this week. Most of their work was focused on a few special hearings focused on outbreaks of COVID-19 at the California/Mexico border and in California’s state prisons (see below for hearing details). Members of both houses will be out of…
Read More »On Wednesday, the Senate Public Safety Committee convened an informational hearing to assess COVID-19 in California’s state prisons. Committee Chair Senator Nancy Skinner opened Wednesday’s hearing by providing an overview of the current COVID-19 case counts within state prisons among inmates and staff, as well as remarks on the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation’s…
Read More »On Tuesday, the Senate Select Committee on California-Mexico Cooperation and the Senate Special Committee on Pandemic Emergency Response convened an informational hearing to examine the impact of COVID-19 on the California-Mexico border region. The hearing began with opening remarks from Select Committee Chair Senator Ben Hueso, Special Committee Chair Senator Lena Gonzalez, and Consul General…
Read More »Today, the California State Senate met its deadline to advance measures introduced in their house of origin, concluding a busy week of floor sessions throughout the week. While the bulk of the Legislature’s focus remained on the 2020 Budget Act this week, the Senate deliberated and advanced numerous measures to the Assembly for further consideration….
Read More »This week the Legislature finished their house of origin hearings with the Senate Appropriations Committee meeting to dispense with their suspense file measures. Of interest to local health departments, SB 793, Senator Jerry Hill’s proposal to ban flavored tobacco, did pass off the suspense file (5-1) with amendments to exempt the sale of flavored shisha…
Read More »On Wednesday, the Senate Rules Committee advanced to the Senate Floor the confirmation of California Department of Public Health (CDPH) Director and State Health Officer Dr. Sonia Angell on a vote of 4-0 with one member not voting. During the Senate Rules Committee hearing, Senators extensively queried Dr. Angell on the state’s ongoing response activities…
Read More »This week, the Senate and Assembly convened separate hearings on COVID-19 outbreaks in skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) throughout the state. Below, we detail the two hearings: Assembly Health and Assembly Aging & Long-Term Care Committees Assess the State’s Response On Tuesday, the Assembly Health Committee and the Assembly Aging & Long-Term Care Committee convened a…
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