Assembly Standing Committee on Human Services

Good afternoon. I call this hearing of the Assembly Committee on Human Services to order today. Once we have established quorum, we have 11 bills on the agenda, six of which are on consent. Please note that we limit testimony. Two witnesses in support and two witnesses in opposition. Each witness has two minutes to to testify.

All additional witnesses will be limited saying their name, organization if they represent one, and their position on the Bill. I also want to note that we are accepting written testimony through the position letter portal on the Committee's website. Lastly, I would like to address disruptions during the hearing.

Conduct that disrupts or otherwise impedes the orderly conduct of this hearing is prohibited. If disruptive behavior occurs today, you will be removed from the hearing room by the Assembly sergeants.

Seeing that we do not yet have a quorum, we're going to start as a Subcommitee and we will hear the first Bill that we've authored for which I believe is Assembly bronclar Rubio. Whenever she's ready, we will have the hearing for AB373. File item two may begin whenever you're ready.

Thank you Mr. Chair and Members for giving me the opportunity to present AB373. This this Bill is based on the understanding that non minor dependents, individuals ages 18 to 21 in California who receive services from the foster care system are legal adults in all aspects of the law and should be granted the same rights in court.

Currently, when counsel is appointed to represent minors in dependency proceedings, they are expected to advocate for the minor's best interest. Although this law is reasonable for youth under the age of 18, current law applies to legal adults 18 years or older and ignore the Independence and legal adult privileges.

Non minor dependents do have greater autonomy and the ability to express their wishes about court proceedings, but counsel is still able to substitute their judgment and act according to what is perceived to be in the non minor dependent's best interest.

AB373 seeks to give discretion to the non minor dependent by ensuring the legal rights of a non minor dependent are fully respected. By clarifying the responsibility of appointed counsel to represent the expressed wishes of the non minor dependent, the Bill aims to empower individuals who have often been spoken for or disregarded.

Finally, this Bill will provide a sense of autonomy, Independence and adulthood to non minor dependents, setting them up for success as they transition into full adulthood. Thank you for thank you to the Committee for allowing us to take up minor amendments to maintain consistency throughout the Bill.

The Bill language with me today in support of this Bill is Ann Quirk, a policy attorney with Children's Law center of California and Caitlin Radigan, policy coordinator for California Youth Connection.

Thank you. Yes, my name is Caitlin Radigan and I am the statewide policy coordinator for California Youth Connection. I'm here today in support of AB373 because as a former foster youth, I understand what it feels like to be silenced in a system that claims to protect you, but fails to empower you.

So when I was in foster care, I was disempowered at every turn. The adults that were in my life and in charge of my care, they were tasked with protecting me, but they were not required to listen to me.

And so I wasn't trusted to make decisions about my own life, even, even as I was becoming an adult. And that experience really just perpetuated patterns of codependency and dependency. And those are the very cycles that I was trying to break free from.

And so AB373 is really about giving our youth the respect they deserve as emerging adults. Because protection without empowerment can actually be harmful. When we fail to empower our youth, we actually impede their confidence, their ability to take risks.

And when you think about empowerment, on the other hand, it actually encourages trial and error, it encourages self sufficiency, and it ensures that one actually takes accountability for their success.

So I strongly urge you to support AB373 so that our youth have allies and partners in their journey and not gatekeepers that can help them become self sufficient adults.

I'm Ann Quirk, policy attorney with Children's Law Center. Hard to follow that, but Children's Law Center. We are the attorneys for youth in the dependency system in Los Angeles, Sacramento and Placer counties.

When a child comes into foster care, they are surrounded by adults who begin to make decisions for them and about them, often having spent very little or any time with the child. So the decisions often center on what the adult believes is generally best for children and not necessarily what this particular child needs.

As a child's attorney, I'm one of those adults. My role is to tell people what my client wants. But additionally, if I don't agree with it, I get to substitute my judgment and argue for what I think is best. As an attorney, that's pretty great, but for the client, that can be very frustrating.

They often feel like your voice is not being heard, especially when it's done by the person who's supposed to be speaking for you. Extended foster care is a specialized program. It's specifically for those young adults who turned 18 while still in foster care.

It's a voluntary program and the focus is to provide support and services to those 1819 and 20 year old adults as they take on responsibility and Independence. WIC 303 clarifies that the participants retain all their legal decision making rights. This Bill is very simple.

It requires me as their attorney to respect that and not substitute my judgment for theirs. The social worker would still get to submit the report and express their opinion. The judge is the ultimate decision maker. But AB373 would require me be like every other attorney and advocate for my client's position. Thank you.

Thank you very much. Now, do we have Members of the public who wish to sign supportive Bill? Please come up to the microphone. If you're here to support the Bill. See not. Oh, all right. Please come up to the microphone. If you're in support of the Bill, please come to the microphone. Name and organization, please, ... Thank you.

Jen Rexroad with California Alliance of Caregivers in support.

Thank you. Do it now. Do we have any primary witnesses in opposition? Do we have any witnesses in opposition? Seeing none. Do we have any Members of the public who wish to oppose the Bill? Seeing none. I'm going to bring back to the Committee any questions or comments from Committee Members. Vice Chair Castillo,

I want to thank the author for bringing this Bill. As someone who has worked with foster youth, I'm a therapist and I've worked with foster youth and I feel their voice is very important.

Especially when you become an adult, you know, you should have the ability to make decisions for yourself and not someone telling you, as you have for a long time, what you should and shouldn't do that drives treatment.

You know, I feel like the client should be able to drive their treatment, not a court telling them what type of treatment they need. Because at some point you have to make your own decisions. And I feel like when you're 18, you should be able to do that. So thank you.

All right, we'll move and have a vote on the Bill when we have a quorum, but I'll invite the author to close.

Yeah, no, thank you. I just respectfully ask for an aye.

Thank you for bringing this Bill forward. It's important that we recognize the autonomy of adults in the extended foster care system. So I will be recommending an aye recommendation when we have the quorum here. So thank you so much. Thank you. Appreciate talking.

All right, I think I see File Item number one, AB42, Assemblymember Bryan is here to present his Bill. Whenever he's ready, you make him forward.

Whenever you're ready. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Come on over here wherever you want. Come on. Good afternoon. Afternoon, Mr. Chair and Member. Members, proud to present AB42. It's a Bill that will simplify our state's CalWORKS and CalFresh frameworks.

Currently, both CalWORKS and CalFresh include all need based educational funding under their list of income exclusions, but they do not explicitly exempt merit based private scholarships, grants, loans and fellowships.

As a result, CalWORKS and CalFresh recipients who work so hard to balance the demands of parenting, employment and education are essentially punished when they receive scholarships or other external educational funding or experiencing by experiencing a reduction in their state assistance.

AB42 will clarify that all educational funding, including merit based scholarships, grants and fellowships for students, will be exempt from income calculations under CalFresh and CalWORKS. It'll also bring parity to CalFresh and CalWORKS by allowing CalFresh to apply the same income exclusions to their beneficiaries that CalWORKS currently does.

Simplifying our benefits calculation system will also eliminate confusion, saving time and resources for both students and the Department of Social Services. Joining me today to testify in support of AB42 are Yahaira Guerrero, a student at Santa Monica College and Parshan Khosravi, the California Policy Director at U Aspire and a former classmate of mine at UCLA.

All right, go ahead. Whenever you're ready. Whoever wants to go first, two minutes please.

Good afternoon Mr. Chair Lee and Members. My name is Yahaira Guerrero. I'm a first generation student currently attending Santa Monica College and I'm on the pathway of transferring soon to a four year. I am here to talk about the crucial impacts AB42 presented by Assemblymember Bryan will have on students.

Students like me who are first generation and come from a low income household on a journey to pursuing higher education. Many students across California are facing basic need insecurities and are working 20 to 40 hours a week while being a full time student to make ends meet.

Students like me are working multiple jobs to provide for myself and family while applying scholarships and fellowships and and are being counted as income instead of a student resource which intimidates students who are looking to apply to scholarships.

I was recently trying to apply to CalFresh, but I thought about all the scholarships and fellowships that I'm taking on right now and how that will affect my capability of getting CalFresh because they see that as income rather than a student resource.

So because of that it will impact my eligibility and I may not even qualify for CalFresh, which is something that I really need because I depend on it. It's a necessity.

A fellow of mine too, a fellow buddy of mine also who will be graduating soon from USC, was saved from CalFresh and she didn't have to go through food hunger because of CalFresh and because of these things. So this Bill would exempt student loans like what Assemblyman Bryan said. And that's all I have for today. And I'm asking for your support.

Thank you very much. Parshan, go ahead.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Good to see you as well. I'm going to start with introducing myself. My name is Parshan, policy Director for California for uspire. We're a national nonprofit that works on education access and affordability and specifically also focusing on potential issues of basic needs and economic mobility. So for us, this is a very simple issue.

We were honored to have the Member authoring similar Bill to this last cycle. We're honored to have the Member introducing this Bill again this cycle.

This is about making sure that the student resources stay where they need to be and they are meant to be as a student resource to help students be able to advance their careers, move on to their degrees and not have to meet basic needs crisis the way they are. Typical day.

If a student is getting CalFresh or CalWORKS, that's because they need resources. And if they are on top of that going on to pursue a fellowship or a internship or something of that nature, it's because they want to add to those resources to get themselves out of poverty.

So when the state taxes those students effectively by displacing their benefits, that is actively hurting the students ability to move upward. So we again, we had this Bill last cycle. It moved quite far on the governor's desk. Vetoed mainly because of confusion, misunderstandings around the costs associated with the Bill.

We have since worked with the California Department of Social Services and addressed those concerns. So we hope to once again introduce this Bill and move it forward and hopefully get the signature this time. So thank you again.

And I will end with saying it's an honor to be in the presence of two really good fellow friends and former buddies of mine. So Mr. Chair, good to see you. Go Aggies. And Member over here, my classmate and fellow Bruins. Go Bruins.

All right. Thank you very much. Now, do we have Members of the public who wish to testify in support of the Bill? Please come into the microphone.

Thank you, Mr. Chair and Members. Tristan Brown of CFT Union of Educators and Classified Professors Professionals, happy to support this wonderful legislation. We urge an aye vote. Thank you.

Good afternoon. Kim Lewis representing Children Now in support.

Good afternoon. Keely O'Brien representing Western Center on Law and Poverty and also here on behalf of California Coalition of Welfare Rights organization in strong support and proud co sponsors of the Bill. Thank you.

Thank you, Chair. Members Andrew Cheyne Grace End Child Poverty in support and thanks for your determination.

All right, thank you very much. Now, do we have any lead witnesses? Opposition? Seeing none. Do we have any Members of the public who wish to testify in opposition to the Bill? Seeing none. Any questions or remarks for from the Committee Members? All right, Seeing none. I'm going to allow the author to close.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. As was mentioned, we ran this Bill last cycle. We got it to the governor's desk with robust support. There were some concerns by the Department of Social Services. We've worked through those concerns the entire recess.

Because like the leadership at the Department and those of us in the Legislature, we know that prioritizing the needs of our students, students who are facing food insecurity and other difficult challenges during a time that's incredibly unaffordable while attaining their higher education. We can do better. We should do better. This Bill is doing better.

And I respectfully ask your. I vote.

Thank you very much. Ms. Bryan. You know me, I am a fan of also veto overrides. So if it has to come to that, you can ask me about it. So perfect timing. We now will establish quorum. Madam Secretary, please call the roll to establish quorum.

[Roll Call]

So thank you for your common sense Bill. Is there a motion and a second for this Bill? Move by someone called around, I get second. Seconded by Rodriguez. Madam Secretary, please call the roll on AB42.

[Roll Call]

Four votes. That bill's out. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Chair. And we'll leave the role open for the apps Members. We are now waiting for authors, but in the meantime, I'm going to be presenting another Bill. So I'm going to be handing the gavel over to our Vice Chair to see you.

Assembly Member Schiavo, please come forward to present your Bill.

So thank you, Madam Chair and Members, appreciate the opportunity to present AB534. As we know, you know, youth service providers operating transitional housing programs are facing growing challenges in securing high quality affordable housing for young adults that they serve. Currently, most providers lease from private property owners and sublease them to transitional age youth.

However, rising rental costs and landlord hesitations about renting to Vulnerable populations has, especially with foster care experience, made it increasingly difficult to secure stable housing options. In my County of Los Angeles, many service providers are unable to fill all transitional housing slots, not due to lack of funding, but because of the shortage of affordable rental units.

To ensure long term housing stability, we must shift service providers from renting to owning the properties where they house and support youth. Property owners allow providers to control rental costs, expand access to stable housing, and serve young adults without barriers tied to their backgrounds.

Instead of requesting for a General Fund appropriation, AB534 provides a smart, sustainable solution by increasing service providers access to financing for property purchases. By extending initial contract terms to 10 years, this Bill empowers providers to invest in long lasting housing solutions, ensuring that more young people will have a safe and supportive place that they can call home.

I have with me today to testify Douglas Yost, the CEO of Crittenden Family Services and also Kevin, Kevin Clark. Sorry Clark, there was just a little switch up. And who's speaking today and who is going to speak as well. Thank you.

All right. Good afternoon Members of the Committee. Kevin Clark with Good River Partners. And as Assemblymember Schiavo just mentioned, AB534 is really a cost effective solution to figuring out how to get service providers into positions of property ownership.

And the whole social impact behind that is really creating sustainability, stability and consistency with earmarking units for youth exiting foster care in transitional housing programs across California. You'll hear from Douglas, Mr. Yost in a momentarily who is a service provider.

But we know that service providers across the states are struggling to access housing for the young folks that they serve. And part of that is because there's stigma associated with renting to young folks who are exiting foster care.

And also we know that rental costs continue to increase, which makes it difficult for service providers as well to access housing and maintain it over the long term.

So by placing service providers in a position of ownership as opposed to renting those units, we think that we can have more sustainability for the young folks as they're transitioning out of care. Thanks.

Good afternoon Committee Members. My name is Douglas Yost. I am the CEO of Florence Crittenton of Orange County. We are a nonprofit agency providing services to previous foster youth as well as other at risk youth services, including mental health services and transitional housing.

Over the last year, our program has empowered 14 former foster youth to graduate from college. This helping to really decrease generational traumas that are often associated within the foster care system.

Former foster youth lives are forever transformed through healing that occurs when they're able to find and sustain safe, stable and supportive housing, we believe that this allows them to truly shine and reach their full capacity.

Unfortunately, not all former foster youth have the same opportunities as many experience homelessness due to the challenges that transitional housing programs such as ours face. We face challenges around issues with affordability, unit availability, as well as challenges with as as was shared with landlords wanting to rent to former foster youth.

We believe that there are solutions to this. One of them being through your support of AB534. If I can share just a moment about an experience that we've had with with some of the housing units in which we do own.

Through some long term investments within the housing units that Critten owns, we have really seen a difference in how we're able to come alongside of the children. They are young adults. Forgive me, that's when I know I'm old. We have seen housing be able to be more trauma informed.

Youth have the environment that is supportive when they're struggling and they're acting out. They're not removed or evicted because of the apartments and the property managers, but we come alongside of them and we care and we support AS they are able to then re regulate and maintain an environment in which they're comfortable with programs such as ours.

When we are able to have ownership of them, the environment is much safer. There's more support and there's more stability for them. And we believe that this allows them to have the opportunity to thrive in education and other environments. I encourage the community to support AB534 and making a difference in the lives of former foster youth. Thank you for your time.

Thank you for that. Do we have any Members of the public in the hearing room to testify and support?

Jen Rexroad with California Alliance of Caregivers in Support.

Do we have any primary witnesses in opposition? Do we have any primary any Members of the public in the hearing room to testify in opposition? Are there any questions from the Committee Members? I recommend an aye vote. Oh, I'm sorry. I invite the author for closing remarks.

Thank you very much. Appreciate the consideration.

You know, I think we all know how difficult the budget is this year and this is really an opportunity for us to come up with creative solutions that are going to make an impact for kids coming out of our foster system so that they have the stability they need to take that next step in life. And respectfully request an aye vote.

We have a motion by Rodriguez and a second by Calderon. Madam Secretary, please call the roll.

[Roll Call]

So it's four to zero. That Bill. That Bill is out. Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

While we're waiting, we're going to vote on the consent calendar. Do I have a motion? Do I have a second?

[Roll Call]

The vote is 5 to 0. We're going to leave the roll open for absent Members. Thank you.

On file, item 2. The author presented while we were in a Subcommitee. Do I have a motion and a second on AB373? Madam Secretary, please call the roll.

File item two. AB373, the motion is due. Pass. Lay. Castillo. Castillo. I. Calderon. Calderon. I. El Hawari. Essayli. Jackson. Jackson. Aye. Rodriguez. Rodriguez. Aye.

That Bill is 4 to 0. The Bill is out. Thank you. Assembly Member Solace, please come forward to present your Bill.

Thank you for leading today's meeting. I know Mr. Lee is on his way back, so I just want to acknowledge him as well. And Committee Members, thank you for your work today. I'm here to present AB562 and will help improve outcomes for our state's foster youth.

As a state, we inherited more responsibility to ensure we place children in our foster system in the best possible situation. As the Committee's excellent analysis affirms, one of the best things we could do for our foster children is to place them with their family Members.

Unfortunately, only about a third of the time we succeed in placing foster children with relatives. And county placement rates are very inconsistent. AB 562 proposes a one year family finding checklist, the Board of Supervisors to level the counties that are not reaching the state average of placing foster youth with family Members. Small. Small.

Best practice changes can vastly increase the number of children placed with families. AB562 has no opposition and a similar Bill carried by a joint author, some Member, Brian, passed out of the committees last year with a. With no. No votes.

Children in the foster system deserve our best efforts to ensure safety, placement stability and keep families together when possible. This legislation will also help improve outcomes and needs to foster youth placement transition for children and families. With me today to testify are Caitlin Ratigan from the California Youth Connection.

And answering any technical questions will be Ed Howard, Senior Counsel of the Children's Advocacy Institution at the University of San Diego Law School, both co sponsors of the measure.

We have one primary support witness. Please begin.

Thank you. Hello again. My name is Caitlin Radigan. I am the statewide policy coordinator for California Youth Connection. And I'm here in strong support of AB562 because I know what can happen when counties do not prioritize family first place.

When I was a minor and a dual status youth, I was told by the courts that my DNA would be collected and it would be stored in a statewide database not to find my family, but to identify my body or to convict me of future crimes because I had been labeled a CSAC youth.

And so instead of being Protected and empowered. I was criminalized. And it wasn't until years later, as an adult, that I took one of those 23andMe or Ancestry.com tests that. That I found out my biological father had actually lived in my hometown the entire time as a homeowner with no criminal record.

And so I always wondered, what if? Why did the county not find that family Member? And why were they not held accountable for not looking hard enough? And so AB562 is about ensuring that counties not only prioritize family finding, but they are reviewing their data with placement rates, they're sharing it transparently.

And if they are falling below statewide averages, they have to leverage best practices through a partnership with the Center for Excellence for Family Finding. And I think family should always be the first option and not an afterthought. So we owe that stability to our youth, not to wonder what if. Thank you.

Ed Howard, Senior Counsel at the Children's. Advocacy Institute at the University of San. Diego School of Law. Please. Stands for any questions you may have. I'm pleased to co sponsor this measure.

Thank you. Do we have any Members of the public in the hearing room to testify in support?

Ann Quirk, Children's Law Center of California. In support.

Rita Soto, mayor of the City of Lynwood. In support of AB562.

Whitney Francis with the Western Center on Law and Poverty in Support

Zachariah Oquenda, Alliance for Children's Rights in Support

Jen Rexroad, California Alliance of Caregivers. In support.

Susanna Kniffen with Children Now in support.

Do we have any primary witnesses in opposition? Do we have any Members of the public in the hearing room to testify in opposition? Are there any questions from the Committee Members?

I just want to express my gratitude for you sharing your story here today and to the author for lifting up this really important issue. Thank you both. I believe there's already a second. Right. Okay.

And now I invite the author to close.

Thank you, Madam Vice Chair. And just respectfully ask for an aye vote. And again, making sure our foster children have not only a place, but obviously the humanity in our work that we do to make sure they have family one day and. And do our part to society. Thank you.

We have a motion by Member Jackson, a second by Calderon. And Madam Secretary, please call the roll.

[Roll Call]

The vote is 6 to 0. The Bill is out.

Appreciate the bipartisan support. Thank you.

So that Members can add on votes.

On the consent calendar, current vote is 5 to 0. [Roll Call] Current vote is 6 to 0. File item 1, AB 42. Current vote is 4 to 0. [Roll Call] That vote is 7 to 0. File item 2, AB 373. The current vote is 4 to 0. [Roll Call] Current vote 5 to 0. File item 3, AB 34, 534. Current vote is 4 to 0. [Roll Call] Current vote 6 to 0. File item 5, AB 562. Current vote is 6 to 0. [Roll Call] Current vote 6 to 0.

Ready? Don't mind us freshmen.

Assembly Member Rodriguez, please come forward and present your bill.

Okay. Hello, Vice Chair and Committee Members. I am a principal co author of 8661 and I'm presenting on behalf of chair Lee as he is caught up in a Committee at this moment. Thank you, colleagues.

This Bill will move the state forward on creating a permanent guaranteed basic income program by Task the Department of Social Services with developing a comprehensive implementation plan. As noted in the Committee staff's excellent analysis, there have been a number of pilot programs at the local level with different guaranteed incomes for participants.

The research shows that basic income programs are effective in fighting poverty, giving people a floor from which to pursue better long term employment, including education and job training.

In short, receiving an even relatively small amount of money on a monthly basis can be enough for people to take the risks that ultimately benefit them, their families and their communities. Like having the economic footing to leave a dead end low wage job and finding a better situation.

Either starting their own businesses, getting a degree or certification for a better job, or simply having the confidence to find a better job. Basic income programs have the potential to help people stabilize their housing situation, their children's educational situations and and improve healthcare access.

It is time that California takes its next big step on the issue by having a plan that looks at all the complex administrative issues required for such an important program.

This Bill requires the development of such a plan with input by experts in the policy area, academics and the insight of people who are or have been in a basic income program. With me today is Brian Ram, who can describe his experience. Program participant.

Thank you. So I live in West Hollywood and I was part of the NCJW pilot program and when I received it, started to receive it.

My goal was to try to save as much money of it as I can because I'm 65 and just things that happened in my life, I wasn't able to establish any sort of base. My wife, who I've been married to 36 years, has three types of autoimmune diseases.

So what the money helped me do was, you know, as your life goes on, you have to replace things that have broken in the past few years, things that you need. I did that for a job. I've been doing rideshare, which requires, you know, car maintenance. It helped me with that.

But the important thing was that it helped me do a better job of taking care of my wife, who, you know, can't really work because of her illnesses. I do infusions on her every other week, which I just did one yesterday. I do all the shopping, the cooking, the cleaning, laundry.

So the money that I received, even though I tried to save it all, it helped me take care of her. You do a better job of taking care of her. Also during the process, my mom got ill. She lives in Kansas City and I was able to go see her five different times before she passed.

So I was very grateful to be a recipient of it and it really did help me out and it helped to reduce a lot of the stress that I had going on in my life for taking care of the things I needed to. Thank you.

Thank you.

Hello. Thank you chair and Members of the Committee. My name is Lauren Daubert. I'm from Bay Point, California, and I'm a disabled veteran, a senior. And I've been homeless twice due to military trauma. Once when I was young and again later when I was supposedly should have figured it out.

I grew up in California in the 70s and 80s during the golden age of trickle down economics. Back then we were told it was going to lift everyone up. Prosperity was supposed to spill over and bless us all.

Instead, what we got was a system where the blessing stayed at the top and the rest of us were told to be grateful for occasional drips. Now it's 2025 and I'm watching it rain.

Middle class folks, people who did everything right, school, careers, families, all trickling down into the working poor and in some cases all the way to the streets. It's like the economic escalator broke and instead of fixing it, we turned it into a slide.

I'm here today as a designer and implementer of a community led guaranteed income pilot called Coco Go Big in Contra Costa County. This was designed by us for us, not to prove whether guaranteed income works because we already know it does, but so that I could be here today, not just telling my poverty story.

Too often folks like me get stuck being the voice of struggle. That's fine, but I'm also the voice of strategy, of innovation, and of damn good policy design. I didn't build the pilot so that I could survive.

I built it so that I could sit at this table, eye to eye with lawmakers and say that there is a better way. AB661 is a doorway to that better way. It's about learning from people on the ground, not from spreadsheets in a policy lab. It gives us the chance to test what happens when we trust people.

So I say vote yes because it's one of the few things on the table that recognizes what's really happening out there in the bottom two quintiles in our economy.

I'll close by sharing that my friends at Economic Security California strongly supports this Bill and that residents can get involved at our new website, caligobig.org thank you for your time.

Do we have any members of the public in the hearing room?

If you could shy one moment, just.

Zero, zero, no worry, no worries. Madam Chair Members. Monica Miller on behalf of the National Council of Jewish Women LA Chapter. I'm here today just to provide technical assistance and thank you. Thank you. And support.

Do we have any members of the public in the hearing room to testify in support?

Good afternoon, Madam Chair Members. Martha Guerrero representing the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors. We've just issued a support and we will be submitting our letter so. And ask for your. I vote. Thank you.

Good afternoon. Whitney Francis with the Western center on Law and Poverty, proud co sponsors of AB661 and strong support.

Sam Wilkinson with Grace and the In Child Poverty in California Coalition. Another proud co sponsor of AB 661. In strong support. Thank you.

John Benton on behalf of First Five California in support.

Amanda Kirchner on behalf of County Welfare Directors Association in support.

Zachariah Okenda on behalf of the alliance for Children's Rights. Also in support.

Adriel Okoro, United Way California Capital Region in support.

Do we have any primary witnesses in opposition? Do we have any Members of the public in the Hearing room to testify in opposition. Are there any questions from Committee Members?

Move the Bill.

Second, we have a motion from Jackson and a second from Calderon. Would you like to close?

Yes. Well, I just want to share that to the points lifted up by our witnesses today. This is about financial empowerment. And there have been so many pilots beginning in Stockton, Louisiana. County is here. They have a program called breathe. You heard from other programs today.

These have been proof points, but we've proven that this supports people in meeting their basic needs and having the financial autonomy to take the next step in their lives.

And so, as a former policy and program implementer, including the Los Angeles Guaranteed Basic Income Program, where we supported 3,000 families for a year, I can tell you that I've heard these stories time and time again and seen what a difference it can impact.

And this Bill is about taking that next step and ensuring that we have something for the entire State of California. So I respectfully ask for your. I vote.

We know that providing guaranteed income improves economic security significantly. So let's make it a permanent state program. Thank you for bringing this Bill forward. I recommend an aye vote.

Madam Secretary, please call the roll. The motion is due. Pass to the Assembly Appropriations Committee. Lee.

Aye.

Lee. Aye. Castillo.

No.

[Roll call]

Five to two. That Bill is out. That's AB 661. And I allow for vote changes, so if you want to change your vote on that.

Okay, we're set.

Thank you. Thank you so much.

We really appreciate it.

For Madam Secretary, please open the roll.

Please open the roll for absent Members.

On the consent calendar, current vote is 6 to 0. [Roll Call] Final vote, 7 to 0. File item 1, AB 42. Current vote is 7 to 0. File item 2, AB 373. Current vote is 5 to 0. [Roll Call] Final vote, 6 to 0. File item 3, AB 534.

Current vote is 6 to 0. [Roll Call] Final vote, 7 to 0. File item 5, AB 562. Current vote is 6 to 0. [Roll Call] Final vote, 7 to 0.

I just want to thank my Committee Members. How brutal. You did the whole Committee briefing while I was... Or the whole Committee hearing while I was gone, presenting my own other bills. Thank you to Celeste, Assembly Member Rodriguez for presenting. And thank you for our Vice Chair for taking over, too. With that, the Committee is adjourned.