Senate Floor

Secretary will call the roll.

[roll call]

A quorum is present. Colleagues, if we could return to our desk and please rise with the guests beyond the railing. Please rise. We would be led in prayer this morning by Sister Michelle Gorman. After which, please remain standing for the Pledge of Allegiance.

Let us remember, we are in God's presence. Our prayer is based on Psalm 24. This we know we did not create our mysterious life. The Earth is the Lord's and so is all that breathes in it. This we know. The Earth does not belong to us. The Earth is the Lord's and so are all its people.

This we know that we are called to care for creation. The Earth is the Lord's and we work to protect it for future generations. This we know. We are called to creatively till the Earth. The Earth is the Lord's and so are all who work the land. This we know. All creation deserves dignity and respect.

The Earth is the Lord's and blessed are those who share the land for the common good. We pray in gratitude for the privilege of belonging to this Earth. Amen.

Please join me in the pledge. I pledge allegiance. [audience joins in on the pledge]. Moving into privileges of the floor, we have two privileges I'd like to turn over to Senator Gonzalez.

Thank you, Madam President. Colleagues, please join me in welcoming to the Senate chambers one of my dearest constituents and one of my son Luca's very first friends, Alina Richardson, who is also the daughter of Mayor Rex Richardson and first lady Dr. Nina Richardson.

And the fourth grade class from the Long Beach Bethany School who are visiting Sacramento in the capital today. They are joined by their teachers, Megan Coet and Amber Francis, as well as parents and are here today from the district to learn about state government. Please join me in giving these students a warm California Senate welcome.

Welcome, everyone.

Senator Smallwood-Cuevas from the Majority Leaders desk has the next privilege.

Thank you. Madam President and colleagues, good morning. It is my great honor to introduce leaders of the Community Land Trust throughout the state. Here in Sacramento for the World Community Land Trust Day. These community advocates have worked to build strong neighborhoods communities for home ownership. They've spurred economic growth all across California.

And today I have the honor to introduce Community Land Trust leaders many of you already know because they're from your communities as well. They are joining us on the floor and in the gallery.

And I hope that you will all get an opportunity to meet with these leaders today as they advocate and come to your office explaining new innovative models of building wealth in our city and in our communities through. Thank you. Through using land in a way that is shared with all of us.

On the floor, we are joined by Michael Wharton with the Bay Area Community Land Trust, we have Lydia Lopez with the California Community Land Trust Network. From Sacramento, we have Tamika Lacluse. From Mountain View, we have Asunia Castanan. Hope I said that right. And Olga Melo.

From the Oakland Community Land Trust, we have Shakinu Samaya Thomas and Christopher Samaya Thomas. And from the Housing Land Trust, Ventura, we have Linder- Linda Brasha- Brashager. Forgive me for that, but Brashager. Was that good? Did I say it right? Thank you.

I also want to recognize their colleagues who are here today in the gallery and you see them standing on the left who are also here. From our Sacramento CLC, Cesar Agrie, we have Rose Cabral. Also from Mountain View, Sona- Sonia Sonakiros, we have Marilu Questa Flores, Nadia Mora, Paula Perez and Isabel Salazar.

And also from Oakland CLT, we have Phoenix Mangram and Shamar Theus. And from my district in South LA, we have Laura O ' Connor with the Liberty Land Trust. Colleagues, today, let's recognize these great leaders and we thank you all for your hard work in helping us address the state's housing crisis.

Far too many in our state need home ownership, but it remains out of reach, with California having the second lowest rate in the nation of homeownership. And in my district, only 7% of residents in my district in the heart of Los Angeles can afford to buy a home.

Despite being the fourth largest economy in the world, only 17% of all Californians can afford to own their own home.

We have a lot of work to do, and the Land Trust and housing Cooperatives have become proven partners and offer real tools to increase access to not only ownership, but also to alleviate poverty and improve living conditions and to change some of our neighborhoods by instilling and uplifting home ownership.

And that transforms the whole block and the whole community. And we see that happening throughout our state and the nation. I'm also proud to offer- author SB 592, which seeks to remove Community Land Trusts preemption in allowing them to be able to invest more in building these home ownership models.

And to ensure that we are building these models that can be sustained in the future. To all of our guests here today, I want to thank you for all of your hard work. Look forward to your visits later today. And together we will change this picture of homeownership in California. Send them all.

One second. Senator Arreguin would like to speak on this matter.

Senator? Yes.

Well, thank you very much, Madam President. Very briefly, I'm pleased to also welcome so many of my constituents from the East Bay who are here today and are doing the hard work of providing affordable, stable and democratically owned housing for their neighbors. We all know that California faces a housing affordability and supply crisis.

The acute shortage of homes, market speculation in which multinational corporations are acquiring single family and multifamily properties, and the lack of protections for tenants has fueled displacement of families who have called California home for generations. I believe we need an all of the above approach to how we address our affordability crisis here in our state.

And community land trusts play an important but often overlooked role in creating affordable housing, providing stability for families. Just a few statistics last year. There are about 50 current or emerging community land trusts throughout California. That's triple the amount that we had 10 years ago. Five of them are located in Senate District 7 proudly.

So I'm pleased to join my colleague, Senator Smallwood-Cuevas from Southern California to recognize today as World Community Land Trust Day and hope that we use this as an opportunity to raise awareness and expand the work of these organizations that they're engaged in to make California a place that we all can afford to call home.

So thank you.

Senator Becker. Sorry, Senator Saran. No, not yet. Senator. They don't want to add your voice. Okay go ahead.

Okay yes. Got it. Wanna add my voice as well. Thank you, my woman of the year. I'll go to all the folks in the Mountain View Community Land Trust and working so hard in a very, very, very high cost area. We need to preserve existing affordable housing as well.

That is housing that is affordable, which can go into Community Land Trust, which is what they're working on. Thank you for this resolution.

And with that, welcome to the State Senate. Messages from the Governor will be deemed read. Messages from the Assembly will be deemed read. Reports of Committee will be deemed read. And amendments adopted. We're moving under motions, resolutions and notices. Senator Wahab, you are recognized.

Thank you. I rise- sorry.

Motions, resolutions and notices. Not your STR, senator, if that's who you're rising on. If you're looking to pull an item, we'll come back to you Senator Wahab. Senator Stern, you are recognized.

Thank you, Madam President. I want to request removing ACR 15 from consent calendar.

The desk will note. See no other mic up. Moving on to consideration of the daily file. We have one item under second reading file. That's item one. Secretary, please read.

Senate Bill 446 with amendments.

Second reading of the file will be deemed read. We- Moving to Senate third reading. We have items 105681 and 122. We'll start with file item 10 by Senator Wahab.

Secretary, please read.

Senate Resolution 10 by Senator Wahab, relative to Foster Youth Awareness Month.

Senator Wahab.

Thank you. I rise to present SR 10, Foster Youth Awareness Month. I want to highlight how important this month is. The success of children of the welfare system is characterized by a system acting in the best interest of the child. And the reality is that I, I truly don't believe that we do enough for children in the foster youth system.

I will highlight that in 2022, in California, there was roughly about 46,000 foster youth at any given time in the system. The statistics for foster youth are abysmal. 3%—less than 3%—obtain a college degree.

In fact, foster youth are also one of the highest demographics within our homeless population. Housing tends to be a very significant concern for a lot of foster youth and children in the welfare system have high rates of chronic health problems, developmental delays, and substance abuse problems.

Cuts to community clinics would make it already hard to access health and mental health services virtually inaccessible, as well as for children and youth in foster care, we must continue to find stable temporary housing and deliver safe and supportive permanent housing.

I want to highlight that there are many different communities that we advocate for, that we highlight and say we're going to invest in housing, we're going to invest in education, we're going to do these things for this population. Foster youth, and I want to highlight this as much as possible, through no fault of their own, either their families or society has failed them.

These are kids under the age of 20, oftentimes 18, but also up to 25, 26, that have no safety net as a whole, have no foundation, no loved ones that are actually willing to step up and do much more. The trauma that they carry throughout their entire life is one that nobody can describe.

It's one that they didn't sign up for. In fact, there are children that are born with an addiction because of their mother. There are children that are living in complete poverty as well as abuse, as well as trauma, and much more.

I will also share that yesterday, a group of foster youth came to me yesterday, had a conversation of the needs that they have. Number one, they said that they need stable, affordable housing. These are youth that have nobody to rely on.

Oftentimes we talk about the COVID experience and how people moved in with their aunt or uncle or father, and these youth have nobody to turn to. And they also hit our prison system. They make up a large percentage of those that are incarcerated, and it all stems from their root concern of their foundation of life.

And we don't do enough. And I will say that the cuts at the federal level, that are taking place right now, it's happening to people. We don't see enough cuts to pet projects, but we're seeing cuts to vulnerable communities, whether it's our seniors, whether it's our women. And now, we're seeing it with our children.

So, I just ask that this entire Body step up and actually support foster youth in a bigger and more meaningful way. Not just 0 to 18, but also throughout their life, because they do not have the same foundation that everyone here takes for granted. So, thank you.

Senator Ashby.

Thank you, Madam Presiding Officer. 50% of the people who experience homelessness on our streets identify as former foster youth. It begs the question, if we could go back in time and give another alternative, what could the outcome be?

And I thank deeply the author of SR 10, who is, herself, a former foster youth, living proof that anything is possible when we invest in young people. I'm so proud of this body, in a bipartisan support, who made college debt-free for all former foster youth in the State of California.

I was honored to help carry that Bill with the Senator from Healdsburg, our now Pro Tem. And I'm very proud, when I look around this Chamber, there are so many advocates for foster youth, including the Presiding Officer, the Senator from the San Fernando Valley, who fought very hard to keep funding in play over the last few years for foster youth, former and current.

I just ask, as we face a devastating budget this year, that we continue to keep foster youth at the top of our minds and that we remember when we spend money on them early in their lives, we give them an opportunity to be incredibly important parts of our society that will contribute back, and there are fewer dollars that will be need to spend later in helping them with recovery and housing, because we will have done that hard work on the front end.

I thank the author and urge an "Aye" vote on SR 10.

Senator Dr. Weber Pierson, you are recognized.

Thank you, Madam President. Good morning, Senators. I rise today as a proud co-author on SR10 and would really like to thank the great Senator from Haywood for bringing this forward so that we can recognize May as Foster Youth Awareness Month.

Too often, poverty-related issues are mistaken for neglect, leading to family separations that could have been avoided with the right support. In Budget Subcommitee Number 3 on Health and Human Services, we've already been informed that foster care closures are unfortunately an imminent reality.

This would mean that children currently placed in foster care may soon have nowhere to go. The very system meant to protect them is failing, leaving them without stable placements, and in some cases, forcing them into inappropriate or an unsafe alternative. We know that family separation has severe consequences for children.

It negatively impacts their mental health, often leading to increased anxiety, stress, depression, even suicidal ideation. The trauma of being removed from their homes, especially when they are separated from siblings, can have a very long-term emotional and behavioral consequences.

The reality is that children who enter the foster care system are 76% more likely to experience poverty in adulthood than those that were never in the system. Foster care often brings frequent instability, with children being moved from one place to another, further disrupting their emotional, psychological, educational, and also social wellbeing.

Additionally, the foster care system has well documented structural issues that result in insufficient support for the vulnerable children that it is meant to be protecting.

Recognizing May as Foster Youth Awareness Month lets the children in these situations know that the Legislature is thinking about them, and that we are working day in and day out to develop solutions and policies to hone in on and craft, that will better their lives and the other thousands of children in foster care systems.

And for these reasons, I respectfully ask for an "Aye" vote on SR 10. Thank you.

Senator Niello.

Thank you, Madam President. When I first became involved in politics, it was at the county level and the first few months that I was on the Board of Supervisors was one of the steepest learning curves I've ever experienced. The breadth of issues that counties deal with is almost dizzying.

And the vast majority of it was very new to me, as just a automobile dealer at the time.

But the one issue that really captured my attention was that of the foster care system and foster youth specifically, because it dawned on me immediately that when the state or the county takes responsibility for a bad living environment of a kid and has to remove that kid from its home, that kid becomes the county's or the state's and it gives us a unique responsibility to care for that kid.

For those children that are in the foster care system, it is profoundly important. And I am also a proud co-author of this resolution, and I urge an "Aye" vote.

Senator Wahab, you may close.

Thank you. Each of the foster youth that we are talking about, even the adults, have faced challenges that many of us cannot imagine. Separation from family, instability, and uncertainty about the future.

And yet, despite these obstacles, many of them continue to hope, to dream, and to fight for a better life for themselves and the families that they want to create. But hope alone is not enough. We owe them more.

And I've said this over and over, we owe them stable homes, access to education, mental health care, and real opportunities to thrive as adults. We actually must prioritize them. We must build a system that does not just rescue children from harm, but also empowers them to succeed.

When foster youth graduate and when they find meaningful work, when they build loving families of their own, it isn't just victory. It's a victory for all of us who dare to believe that with the right support, every young person can reach their fullest potential. So, I'd like for all of us to commit to being that support.

Let's make sure no foster youth feels invisible, unheard, or left behind. Together, we can be the champions they deserve, because their future is our future, too. I respectfully ask for an "Aye" vote. Thank you.

Secretary, please call the roll.

[Roll Call]

"Ayes" 33. "No," 0. The resolution is adopted. We're going to go a little bit out of order. We're going to turn to Senator Allen for File Item 81. Secretary, please read.

Senate Concurrent Resolution 71 by Senator Allen, relative to National Hospital Week.

Senator Allen.

Well, thank you, Madam President, Members. SCR71 joins this week's celebration of National Hospitals Week, which is being recognized right now all over the country. In our state, our hospitals are staffed by an estimated 1 million dedicated individuals who make sure that Californians have a place to turn when they need it most. Every year, our hospital addresses 15.

Every year, our hospital system addresses 15 million emergency room visits, the delivery of 400,000 babies, one of which was mine last year. And they also, of course, take in those hardest hit by wildfires, earthquakes and other disasters whenever they hit.

We know that when disasters strike, but also during moments of great blessing, we're often in the care of doctors, nurses and staff who have chosen to dedicate their lives and careers to supporting health for regular folks during our most vulnerable moments.

Throughout the pandemic, we relied profoundly upon our hospitals and their hard working staff not only to continue saving lives, but also to shoulder the social and psychological burdens that the crisis placed on our communities.

And as so many of you have experienced, my district, just like many of yours, have grappled with the grief and challenge of rebuilding after being devastated yet again by wildfire.

And in those first hours and days of the fires, as well as the weeks that followed, it was thanks to the devoted Californians working in our hospitals that our communities did not face greater loss of life.

Despite so many of them dealing with their own loss and grief, our hospitals are full of people choosing every day to elevate the needs and crises of their community above their own.

So for many of us, it's in times of stress and tragedy, be it pandemic, wildfire, whatever may come next, that we realize just how grateful we are to all those who work in our hospitals who ensure that we have somewhere to turn. And I respectfully ask for an aye vote on SCR 71.

Senator Perez.

Thank you, Madam President. Colleagues, I rise in support of this resolution from the Senator from Santa Monica. While hospitals and their wonderful staff serve a critical, often life saving role, I want to especially give thanks and acknowledge the contributions of our local hospitals during the Eaton and Palisades wildfires earlier this year.

Among those efforts included are the wildfire response contribution from those at Huntington Hospital during the Eaton fire. Amidst the devastating wildfires, medical professionals were among the first responders that responded the call to service to serve our community. This came at the personal expense of so many of these healthcare professionals as they were also being evacuated.

They had also lost their homes and also lost their prized possessions. And of course, facing threats to their personal being on the front lines despite the difficult circumstances, these heroes prioritized the health and well being of our community that was in need.

I had opportunities to meet and thank many of these brave people while they were, among other efforts, providing critical resources and care to impacted residents in the evacuation centers like the Pasadena Convention Center.

Once again, I want to take this opportunity to thank you all for the tremendous selfless and essential work that our hospitals provided during this emergency. I was amazed and inspired by the dedication that that they provided and their craft, especially in the most dire circumstances.

They've exemplified the best that humanity has to offer, putting the needs of others, often at our time of greatest needs, before themselves. I'd like to share a quote I found from Jennifer Schweitzer, a food and nutrition service specialist who talked about their work during this time.

Coming back to work helped me breathe because everybody just showed me so much love and compassion. On behalf of those that staff these hospitals and their life saving work, I rise in strong support of this resolution. Thank you.

Senator Ochoa Bogh.

Thank you, Madam President, ladies and gentlemen of the Senate. Good morning. I rise in strong support of Senate Concurrent Resolution 71. I'm grateful to our hospitals around the state that have worked long and hard hours to provide care for our most vulnerable.

To protect all Californians, however, we must do more to support our hospitals, give them the flexibility they need to do their job and create opportunities for more access to care. In our great state, access to care is a challenge for many of our constituents.

There's a shortage of primary care providers, and with so few options in the Inland Empire, many patients are left without consistent and timely preventative care services. Sometimes waiting months to get established with a doctor or simply choosing to ignore ongoing health issues.

I recently heard that there are more doctors in the Central Valley than in the Inland Empire. That's a problem. The Inland Empire has geographical barriers. My District, Senate District 19, is the third largest Senate district by land mass, encompassing some very remote communities.

In the absence of local options, people often have to drive long distances for healthcare and social services, which can be a major obstacle for those without reliable transportation.

I am proud of the work done by my hospitals, including to mention just a few, San Gono Memorial Hospital, Arrowhead Regional Medical Center, Riverside University Health System, Loma Linda University Children's Hospital, Redlands Community Hospital, Desert Healthcare District, St. Mary's Medical Center, Bear Valley Community Hospital, and Isa Howard Health. I ask for an aye vote on SCR 71.

Senator Allen, you may close.

Thank you to my colleagues and respectfully ask for an aye vote.

Senators, this item is eligible for unanimous roll call. Any objection? Ayes 33. No 0. The resolution is adopted. Coming back to Senator Laird for file item 56. We're not coming back. We're going to go to Senator Allen for his privileges of the floor to introduce a special guest.

Thank you so much, Madam President. In recognition of National Hospitals Week. It's such an honor to introduce Dr. Laurie Morgan, who's the President and CEO of Huntington Hospital. The hospital itself is only six years younger than Pasadena itself.

It's been there supporting Members of our Los Angeles community year after year, especially in years like this. As Dr. Morgan's family was being evacuated, along with half of the staff at Huntington Hospital, they continue to serve as first responders for their neighborhoods and treating those who were injured in our terrible fires.

When a skilled nursing facility was burned, all 50 of their patients joined the many displaced residents who found refuge at Huntington or one of the many satellite clinics that their team set up at a moment's notice around the area.

The actions of Dr. Morgan and the team at the hospital, choosing to show up every day in the midst of their own personal crises to ensure that their neighbors were cared for, is exactly the type of sacrifice that we were discuss discussing as we honor National Hospitals Week. So thank you, Members. Please join me in recognizing the great work of Dr. Lori Morgan and all of her colleagues as we celebrate National Hospitals Week.

Thank you, Doctor, for all your hard work.

Now we'll be moving on to Senator Laird for file item 56. Secretary, please read.

Senate Joint Resolution 4 by Senator Laird relative to research and education.

Senator Laird.

Thank you very much, Madam President. Senate Joint Resolution 4 urges the Federal Government to rescind the National Institute of Health NIH funding cuts and reaffirms the Legislature's commitment to our academic institutions. These cuts hit California two different ways. Number one, they are significant support to our research universities across the state.

They really support financially research that goes on on really key things. At UC Santa Cruz, they enabled the groundbreaking genomics research, including the genomic browser and the gene editing technology that was developed at UC Berkeley. This research led to expedited vaccines during the COVID crisis. At CSU campuses, NIH grants support training underrepresented students in biomedical sciences.

The proposed cuts are 40%. They are dramatic. They really hit the research that makes a difference in Californians lives and they hit our universities that they support in a very strong way. So I would ask you to join me in elevating the voices of our researchers, our patients, our families.

Join me in calling the Federal Government to restore the NIH funding. I ask for an aye vote on SJR4.

Senator Seyarto.

Thank you, Madam President. So I will not be joining you in supporting the resolution. And the reason that I've come to that conclusion is because just like the state, we have to make budget cuts. The Federal Government has to make budget cuts.

And when we're looking at all these programs, this research, the science, all these things, yes, they are absolutely supportable items. But there's also a whole structure within that we need to examine once in a while. So we are not wasting taxpayer dollars. This year we're going to be making cuts.

We're making cuts that affect a lot of different CBOs in our districts that have come up here begging for us not to make those cuts.

But until we know whether we are wasting money, whether we have too much personnel, whether we have enough to do the job, whether all of that stuff is the hidden cost that we never know about.

So we have to make sure that our organizations are accountable for the amount of staff that they're staffing, the type of research that is being done is helpful to our California population, which a lot of times it is. But we're always going to have disagreements on what's helpful and what's not.

But the bigger issue is that we need to have an accounting to the public of how much money is being spent. In this case, $5 billion. That's a lot of money. And nationwide it's upwards of 30 some odd $1.0 billion that's being spent on research. What's it being spent on? Who's doing the research?

How much staff do they need to do it?

Are we just carrying loads to create jobs or are we actually getting research done in a timely manner so that we can put that research to work and make sure that the research that finds that it's beneficial for our communities can be done, or we can move on from that research and know that that is not going to be helpful.

I know research that's being done right now at the UC level that is determining whether or not we are going in the right direction in the child care space. So what's better is for us to actually once in a while take a step back. It doesn't mean we're going to decimate all of our research.

I see all the mics going up like, oh God, you know, they want to talk about decimating it. It's not.

We just need to have an accounting of what money is being spent and what it's being spent on because we need our taxpayer dollars to be spent in a manner that is reflective of what we want to accomplish and what's good for our taxpayers. If. If you don't do that, eventually the train runs off the track.

If we're not going to do it ourselves, somebody else is going to do it. In this case, the national government has decided that they are going to try to do this accounting. Well, maybe we ought to do it ourselves so we don't get ourselves in this position.

So I will be opposing this, given the amount of microphones that went up. Thanks.

Senator Limon.

Thank you. Members, I rise in support of SGR4. As someone who spent over a decade promoting and working with undergraduate and graduate research, this cut is more than accounting.

I also, in the role that I had, had the opportunity to, on a regular and annual basis, complete reports for the Federal Government related to federal research grants. And I can tell you if anybody has ever spent time doing these reports that are needed, you're able to track the evidence about the work that is needed.

The research that we do here in California is significant. I was recently told by the President of the University of California system that the UC system does 18% of the world's research. 18% of the world's research. That research is done in all areas, we do it at all UCs, we look at all communities and timeliness is ideal.

But appropriateness of research is even more important. We don't want to get anything or advance our opinions, our thoughts without evidence based peer research. And this is what we are standing up for today. A resolution that says that this research has value. It has value to all 58 counties, all 480 cities.

It has value to the world and being able to advance as California has done so much of the work in so many areas as it relates to NIH. NIH has helped us in many areas.

Whether we're talking about biomarkers, policies that we've passed here with really incredible bipartisan support, whether we are talking about cancer research, whether we are talking about water quality, whatever this is, it has been helpful and we have been able to bring it back to inform our policy decisions.

So I think it's important to recognize that cuts will do more than this idea, that it's going to create timeliness. Cuts will devastate our advancements to help the people that we represent.

Cuts in this area will eliminate the advancements we've done to ensure that our universities are open spaces for people to learn and also to bring that back to our community. Cuts will decrease jobs.

It is so important that we stand and support job creation, that we support these advancements, that we support bringing the evidence based peer research that helps our communities advance. With that, I respectfully ask for an aye vote.

Senator Perez.

Thank you, Madam President. Colleagues, I rise as a proud joint author of SJR 4 Members in rising to speak in support of this resolution, I want to point to the many meetings from impacted constituents that I've had on proposed cuts to NIH funding by the Federal Administration.

This includes graduate students, academics, scientists and countless other working professionals that are at fear of losing funding that provides not just for groundbreaking research that improves and saves lives, but also their livelihoods.

I can distinctly point to one graduate student whom shared with me that their journey to their graduate program and research work led them to California because of the pedigree and forward thinking reputation that our schools have here in our incredible UC system.

They turned down lucrative offers from schools and other states that offered more financial support because they believed that here in California they would be able to pursue critical medical research that would not be possible at many other schools.

And it's that kind of critical forward thinking and innovative research that we want to continue to have here in California that NIH funding supports. Now this student finds themselves on pins and needles waiting to hear if their research funding and livelihood are gone from one day to the next. Let's be clear.

These cuts are going to have reverberating and devastating consequences for society as a whole. This is the kind of research we need. Whether it's looking at cures to cancer, whether it's looking at cures to other complex diseases. This is the kind of research that we want here in California.

What we are talking about are delays to finding cures and medicinal support for people living with life threatening conditions like Alzheimer's disease, cancer, diabetes and heart disease. We need to do everything we can as a state to ensure that these horrific cuts are not carried out.

I rise in strong support of this resolution on behalf of those that do this critical work and provide so much collective benefit to us as a whole, not just here in California, but to the rest of the country. Thank you.

Senator Niello.

That was very quick. Madam President, I just put my mic up. It seems like my entire legislative experience has been dealing with challenged budgets.

When I was in the Assembly, I was Vice Chair of the Budget Committee with the Chair being my friend and colleague from Santa Cruz, where we really got to know each other and become great friends since. And I left with a horrible budget situation in 2008, 9 and 10.

And I come back in 2022 when we're entering some difficult budgets and our first Committee meeting. My friend from Santa Cruz opined that since when I left the Assembly we had a challenged budget. And as I come back to the Senate, we have a challenged budget.

It's obviously my fault, but the fact of the matter is we had challenged budgets and had to make reductions and the Federal Government has a 36 trillion that's with a T national debt that is completely unsustainable.

Unless you believe the cockamamie theory of modern monetary management or whatever the phrase is for that that opines that any governmental entity that can create its own money can spend to abandon without any concern of any other impacts. A $36 trillion deficit is totally unsustainable. They have a challenge with the budget at the federal level.

They need to make adjustments to spending. And I'm sure the issue will come up with regard to proposed tax cuts and that's perhaps why the spending reductions, but it's not, not with a $36 trillion deficit that has to be cured.

I will not speak to the efficacy or lack thereof of the proposal of my colleague from Santa Cruz because I don't debate it in principle. But what I do debate is taking one item and saying you can't cut it.

Our representatives at the federal level have a significant challenge over probably a lot of years to close a 36 trillion dollar national debt. I can't support the resolution again, not for reasons of the efficacy or not of the proposal, but for the reasons of the tremendous challenges that they have with the federal budget.

Senator Cabaldon.

Thank you, Madam President. I rise in support of the resolution. Let's not pretend that this is a federal budget item. No federal budget was passed that called for these cuts. No vote was taken. No 72 imprint rule was followed. This was an illegal action by the Administration in D.C. to take money that had been legally appropriated for research around the country.

This is not part of a budget solution. But even if it were, what are we really talking about here? Imagine being a patient who's been diagnosed with stage four cancer and you've just joined an immunotherapy trial at UC Davis or at UC San Diego.

You've been waiting to get into the trial, waiting for your tumor to grow to the necessary size to be eligible for the trial. And here you are, you've been accepted into it. You're going to have to put your entire life on hold with the one hope that you might be able to survive with this treatment.

And then you get word that the trial has been put on hold. Last week the Secretary of health said, I didn't order any trials to be cut. But there is no trial when half the staff is gone, there can be no trial when the electricity bill can't be paid, there can be no trial when, after, as you go through the treatment and you have to dispose, dispose of the bodily fluids and the medicines from that trial, you can't simply put it in the trash with everything else.

You have to do really expensive hazardous waste removal protocols. So the trials are not happening. Your trial is canceled. Your life is at risk.

Now, many of us have done audits and budgets for departments, fire departments or planning departments or nursing departments or what have you. You don't shut down your entire agency. You don't shut down all your research trials while you're on a fishing expedition to try to find waste and fraud and abuse.

You don't put people's lives at risk, not even at risk. You are killing people with these cuts. I represent UC Davis, which is the top food and agriculture research institution in the world and one of the top health institutions in the world.

But California is the home of more high quality research institutions than any other, not any other state, any other place on the planet. And it is a critical part of our economy and it has been forever.

We would have no tech sector, we would have no aerospace industry, would have had no wine industry, there would be no modern tomato.

So many of the health breakthroughs that we've created in this country and all of the economic development opportunities and communities and success that California has happened are because of our long standing commitment to research.

And so, Madam President, I rise to simply emphasize that while we can be disagreeing about federal budget issues, in the federal budget process, this illegal taking of these dollars, and not program by program by program, but simply saying, look, researchers, you can do all the research you want except for anything that has to do with equity.

But if you do it, we're not going to pay the electric bill, we're not going to pay to dispose of hazardous waste, we're not going to pay for the people. So if you want to have research by immaculate conception, good luck, but otherwise you are on your own.

And so we must stand up for the Californians who are in those trials, who are depending on the results of those trials, whether it's on dementia or ending infections from surgical errors or in Alzheimer's disease or in cancer. We are on the verge of so many breakthroughs in California. We pause them. We end lives.

We destroy our communities and our workforce and end California's special exceptional place in the world as the center of innovation and research. I ask for an aye vote.

Senator Strickland.

Thank you, Madam President. Members, there's a Yiddish term for this debate. It's called chutzpah.

Really, it takes a lot of chutzpah for the other side of the aisle to talk about what's going in terms of cuts on the federal side for research to universities like UC system, when we in the State of California right now have massive cuts into the UC and CSU system that you all are going to vote for.

If you vote for this resolution, I hope you restore all the cuts that you put in this budget for the UC and CSU budget because you yourselves are cutting into research and development within the state budget.

So before you look at the Federal Government, look in the mirror and look at what we're doing here in the state in terms of those UC and CSU cuts. And if you vote for this resolution, I hope you restore every penny to the UC and CSU system that right now is being proposed to cut.

For that, I ask your no vote because I believe in consistency.

Senator Wiener, you're recognized.

Thank you very much, Madam President. I wasn't planning to speak on this because my colleagues have done such an exceptional job explaining why science is so critical and how just horrifying it is that the President of the United States and Elon Musk are intent on bringing us back to the Middle Ages in terms of science.

But there are a number of things that are being said, and I think it's really important that we have accurate information. These cuts, as my colleague from West Sacramento mentioned, and it's not just NIH, it's NIH, it's CDC, it's the National Science Foundation, it's NOAA, it's the National Weather Service.

I still don't understand what they have against the National Weather Service. That seems like a really basic government service. They're just taking a wrecking ball to all of these agencies. We have scientists who are being fired. There was a scientist who was on the verge of a breakthrough around dementia and he was fired.

A senior scientist on the verge of a breakthrough on dementia and he was fired. That's not about balancing the budget. That is just the Federal Government at its absolute worst. We see in a hearing on a bill, we had a researcher from UC Davis, from the Primate Center.

And for those who don't know, the UC Davis Primate center has saved millions of lives around the world because that was where protease inhibitors were created, which turned HIV from a death sentence to a chronic condition for those who were able to access it.

Millions of lives, millions of people are alive today because of the work that the UC Davis Primate center did to create that therapy. They're losing grants. How many lives are going to be lost because of the loss of those grants? The U.S. economy, back to the 1940s when the National Science Foundation was created.

Our economy is based on scientific innovation in significant part. And because of the work of the Federal Government. We have the Internet. We have so many health therapies, we have so many innovative approaches to climate change. It just boggles the mind that anyone would want to cut those. And it is not about the debt.

This is such a microscopic part of the federal budget. Microscopic. And the same people who are doing this are proposing a $4.5 trillion tax cut exponentially. Different universe of scale has nothing to do with the debt. And finally, because reference was made to the University of California, this Senate has been, we have been champions for the University of California and for the CSU.

We restored funding cuts in the past. I don't remember if those were bipartisan restorations. I don't think they were. But I have to go back and look at the votes. We have been deeply committed to uccsu.

The Governor and his may revise reduced the proposed cut to UCN CSU by about 2/3. And we're going to continue to work on that.

I know that we have broad support in this chamber for the UC and CSU and I know that there are a lot of folks, Republicans, Democrats, Republicans in California, all love the UC and CSU and we're going to continue to be strong supporters.

But it makes it really hard when they try to take a wrecking ball to the UC. And I represent UCSF, which no offense to any other institution, is the top health research institution on the planet. Sorry, Senator.

And they are absolutely terrified about these cuts and what it means to their ability to continue to create life saving therapies. So I respectfully ask for an aye vote.

Senator Arreguin.

Well, thank you, Madam President. I also rise in strong support of SJR 4, and thank the Senator from Santa Cruz for bringing this important resolution forward for us to join our Attorney General and the Attorney General of many states to take a strong stand against ceasing legal cuts.

As the Senator from Berkeley, the best public University in the State of California, if I might add, this is having a devastating impact on my constituents who work at the University of California. Student researchers who have had positions cut. They don't know what's going to happen. And we talk a lot about growing our state's economy.

But I think as many of my colleagues said, these cuts would be devastating to the UC system and to California's economy. California is the largest recipient of NIH grants of any state in the United States. And I think, as my colleague said, this is helping fuel life saving research.

Think about what happened during the COVID pandemic and all the research that we did here in California through our research universities and through the partnership with business, how that saved lives, the research that's being done on therapeutics and cures to diseases that will save lives.

So this is around continuing to promote innovation, continuing to promote economic growth, and continuing to make California an economic engine that we so desperately need during these very difficult budget times. So I'm glad that our Attorney General took swift action to stop these illegal cuts.

And I hope the Legislature by passing this resolution will also take a stand and say that these cuts seem to be reversed. I respectfully asked for an aye vote.

Senator Allen.

Yeah. As a proud representative of UCLA Healthcare. And the number one hospital in the state, as demonstrated, I could send you the evidence. I strongly support this. The situation is dire and we need to make sure that this federal money continues for all this life saving work that has such an impact on both health and our economy.

Senator Blakespear.

Thank you. I also rise today in support of SGR4. I represent UC San Diego in San Diego as well as a major life sciences cluster from the private sector.

And it's really important to recognize that these federal grants, what they're doing is they are providing the infrastructure for the entire ecosystem that provides for all the things that my colleagues so eloquently described.

If we don't have those investments that keep the lights on the idea of what indirect costs are, there's a perception that somehow they're trivial or that they could be eliminated and we could still have this really important research. But they are facilities, their equipment, their maintenance, their accounting.

When I was recently at Scripps Institute of Oceanography talking with a researcher about what these cuts would mean, he was telling me that there's no way for the private sector to do the work it does if the institutions aren't able to do the work that they do.

And recognizing the interconnected nature of the money that comes from the Federal Government to the State of California is really important. California receives $5 billion in NIH dollars.

And if that money, the vast majority of that money goes away, we will unquestionably see people suffer and we will see a degradation and a collapse of part of this important ecosystem which is private sector and public sector and ultimately very much helps people.

It's also important to remember some of my colleagues have said things today on the floor that are just completely not true. Like for example, this is not an accounting that the Federal Government is doing. This is a proposed cut. It's also important to remember that the Republicans in this House voted against the higher ed budget last year.

And the may revise that just came out yesterday from the Governor reduced the proposed cuts. So now for the UCs it's a proposed 3% cut.

And President Trink came out with a statement in support of that, recognizing that we would be able to still provide the critical services of the UCS and the CSUs with that type of cut. So recognizing that the State of California has been an absolute champion for our public University systems.

And so equating what is happening at the federal level with what's happening at the state level is just essentially disingenuous. So with that, I respectfully ask for your support of SJR4. Thank you.

Senator Laird, you may close.

Thank you very much, Madam President. I really thank everybody for this great debate. I particularly thank every single Senator that represents the number one research institution in California, which was a great turnout and I think that the debate said it.

But let me respond to a couple of the points, because one of the points was, well, let's find out what this goes for. It's public record. It is out there now, as you could tell from the debate, we know where this entirely goes.

And it's not one of those things that let's cut 40% and then find out where it goes. We know where it goes. That's why we shouldn't cut 40%. And to compare it to the state budget, where, as was said, it went from 8% to 3%. Notice all our statements yesterday.

We're going to work to lower that and try to get it to zero as best as possible between now and June 30th. But that's a couple of hundred millions of dollars. This is $18 billion.

It makes a fundamental difference to Californians at the grassroots level in ways that many of them don't even know that were articulated very clearly. I appreciate this debate because I think all facts were in evidence in the debate.

And it's really, if you look at the history, there are certain administrations in the last 30 years that have balanced the budget or gotten close at the federal level. And then it gets knocked out and somehow it has to be fixed by blowing a four and a half $1.0 trillion hole in the budget for tax cuts. No.

Let's figure out how to serve people. And that's what this resolution supports. I asked for an aye vote on SJR4.

Secretary, please call the roll.

[Roll Call]

Please call the absent Members.

[Roll Call]

Ayes 26, Nos. 6. The resolution is adopted. Final item on Senate third reading is File Item 122 by Senator Wahab.

Senate Concurrent Resolution 72 by Senator Wahab relative to Child Care Awareness Month.

Secretary, please read.

Senator Wahab.

I rise to present SCR 72 Child Care Awareness Month. Affordable and accessible child care isn't a woman's issue. It's an issue of public concern that impacts our entire society and economy. The COVID 19 pandemic devastated our child care system and we have yet to recover fully. There are less providers and costs continue to rise.

Childcare costs in the United States economy account for $122 billion annually. Child Care Aware of America found that in 2023, the average cost of childcare in California for center based childcare was as high as $19,547. A married couple in California would have to spend 15% of their median income to afford child care.

For a single parent, it's much more. It would be 46.7% of their median income. As a state, we must do better to support universal child care and child care educators. Inadequate wages are the leading cause for early childhood care educators to exit the early care and education workforce.

When we invest in child care, employees are retained, families find economic stability and our collective economies grow. Continued investment in universally accessible full day childcare or extending school hours would transform our entire economy, but also our collective quality of life, whether or not we have children of our own.

I urge an aye vote for Child Care Awareness Month in order to shed light on the need for greater investment in universal child care.

Secretary, please call the roll on this item.

Alan. Aye. Alvarado-Gill. Archuleta. Aye. Arreguin. Aye. Ashby. Aye. Becker. Aye. Blakespear. Aye. Cabaldon. Aye. Caballero. Aye. Cervantes. Choi. Aye. Cortese. Aye. Dali. Aye. Durazo, aye. Gonzalez, aye. Grayson, aye. Grove. Hurtado, aye. Jones, aye. Laird, aye. Limon, aye. Mcguire, aye. McNerney, aye. Menjivar, aye. Niello. aye. Ochoa. Bogh, aye. Padilla. Perez aye. Reyes. Richardson. Rubio. Seyarto. Aye.

Smallwood-Cuevas. Aye. Stern. Aye. Strickland. Aye. Umberg. Aye. Valladares. Aye. Wahab. Aye. Weber-Pierson. Aye. Wiener. Aye.

Alvarado-Gill, Cervantes Grove. Padilla. Reyes. Richardson. Aye. Rubio.

Ayes. 30. Please call the absent Members.

Ayes. 34. No zero. The resolution is adopted. We have items 132 through 153 on the consent calendar. Items 154 through 163 on the special consent calendar number seven. Before taking it up, would any Member like to pull an item from either consent calendar I see no mic. Sub Secretary, please read all the items.

Senate Bill 85, 440, 846, 858, 237, 410, 459, 558, 534, 322, 344, 389, 392, 482, 517, 639, 650, 693, 772, 773, 852, 857, Center Resolution 30, Assembly Concurrent Resolution 42, 31, 34, 56, 57, 44, 59, and Assembly Concurrent Resolution 64.

Please call the roll on the first item and apply the roll call for all items.

[ROLL CALL]

Please call the absent Members.

[ROLL CALL]

Aye, 34. No, 0. Consent Calendar passes under committee announcements. We're now moving into committee announcements. Senator Richardson. Senator Richardson.

Well, hello there, folks. In the spirit of transparency, what you asked for, you now will get. Subcommitee number five. We're going to be meeting in conjunction with the Public Safety Committee to talk about what, the implementation of Prop 36. Our first panel will be the fiscal impacts of of the state on the state level.

The second panel will be the fiscal impacts at the local level regarding enforcement and charging. And the third and final panel will be on fiscal impacts at the local level regarding response and treatment. We're also going to talk about what the impacts will be from Prop 47 with the implementation of Prop 36.

And because we know you were so interested, we're actually going to have it in the swing space in room 1200, so there's room for everyone. We welcome you and look forward to seeing you. Thank you, everyone.

Thank you, Senator Richardson. We are now returning to motions and resolutions. We do have one adjournment in memory. Senator Menjivar, you are recognized for your adjournment in memory.

Thank you, Mr. President. I rise with a very, very heavy heart to adjourn in the memory of Oscar Omar Hernandez, a vibrant and joyful 13 year old from Sun Valley whose tragic passing last month has left an immeasurable void in the hearts of his family, friends, and community.

Oscar was born in Honduras and about three years ago him and his mom came to join the rest of his family here in California in search of a better life. He embraced his new home with energy, hope, becoming deeply involved in school, after after school programs and especially soccer. Soccer was more than a game to Oscar.

It was something that helped him feel connected to his home country, Honduras, and his heritage. It helped him build long lasting friendships. He was a beloved seventh grader at Sun Valley Magnet School where his teachers and his classmates remember him as a bright and very warm hearted boy.

They remember that he was always ready with the joke and always made others feel welcome. He had the rare ability to bring light into a room anytime he stepped into it. He was the niño of the family. The adored son of Oscar Daniel Hernandez and Gladys Maribel Bautista and the loving younger brother to Daniel, Jose, and Alejandra.

As the youngest in his family, he filled their lives with joy and laughter. But everything changed on April 2nd when little Oscar's body was found dead in Ventura County. And the man charged with his murder was none other than his soccer coach.

As someone who credits my coaches in sports having helped me become the confident, driven person that I am today, I have personal knowledge of the gravity of this betrayal. Oscar's family trusted this person to be a mentor and protector for their child when they were not around. Oscar believed his coach would have his best interest at heart.

This devastating act has left his family and our community reeling, wondering why. Today we honor Oscar Omar Hernandez's life. We remember his kindness, his joy, and the promise that he carried around. Let us carry his memory forward by continuing the work of creating a safe, more maturing world for every child.

And may his spirit live in the hearts of all who knew and loved him. [Spanish]. With that, colleagues respectfully asking that we adjourn this afternoon in honor of Oscar.

We express our sincerest condolences to the family and friends. Senator Menjivar, if you will bring the name of your adjournment memory to the desk to be properly memorialized. Thank you. With that, if there's no other business, Senator McGuire, the desk is clear.

Thank you so much. Very, very grateful to you, Mr. President. A couple reminders. Members, we are coming up on our busy floor season. The week of May 27th will be on the floor here taking significant budget, excuse me, significant floor votes.

And just a reminder about the week of June 2nd, we will all be on the floor morning, noon, and into the evening for floor votes. Please schedule accordingly. And we look forward to working with each and every one of you as we get into this marathon season. Members, the next floor session is scheduled for Monday, May 19th.

Enjoy the weekend. Thank you, Mr. President.

Thank you. Senate Pro Tem Mcguire. The Senate will be in recess until 3:30pm at which time the adjournment motion will be made. We will reconvene Monday, May 19, 2025 at 2:00pm Have a good weekend.