Assembly Floor

The assembly is now in session. Assembly member DeMaio notices the absence of a quorum. Sergeant of arms will prepare the chamber and bring in the absent members. Clerk will call the roll.

Addis, Aguiar-Curry, Ahrens, Alanis, Alvarez, Arambula, Avila Farias, Bains, Bauer-Kahan, Bennett, Berman, Boerner, Bonta, Bryan, Calderon, Caloza, Carrillo, Castillo, Chen, Connolly, Davies, DeMaio, Dixon, Elhawary, Ellis, Flora, Fong, Gabriel, Gallagher, Garcia, Gibson, Jeff Gonzales, Mark Gonzales, Hadwick, Haney, Harabedian, Hart, Hoover, Irwin, Jackson, Johnson, Kalra, Krell, Lackey, Lee, Lowenthal, Macedo, McKinnor, Muratsuchi, Nguyen, Ortega, Pacheco, Pappan, Patel, Patterson, Pellerin, Petrie-Norris, Quirk-Silva, Ramos, Ransom, CelesteRodriguez, Michelle Rodriguez, Rogers, Rubio, Sanchez, Schiavo, Schultz, Sharp-Collins, Solache, Soria, Stefani, Ta, Tangipa, Valencia, Wallis, Ward, Wicks, Wilson, Zbur.

Mister Speaker.

Members, the quorum is present. We ask our guests and visitors in the rear of the chamber and in the gallery to please stand for today's prayer. Assembly member Wilson will offer today's prayer. Assembly Member Wilson.

Please join me in today's prayer. Gracious and sovereign God, we thank you for your faithfulness and for the wisdom found in your word. Your word says that whatever you speak does not return to you empty, but accomplished what it is intended for and brings prosperity.

As the rain and snow come down from heaven to water the earth and bring forth growth, we pray that the words spoken and the work done in this chamber would also bear good fruit for the people we serve.

Guide us so that our deliberations are thoughtful, our decisions are just, and our actions accomplish the purposes of peace, equity, and the common good.

Let every effort undertaken here return not empty, but prosper in ways that strengthen our communities and uplift those in need. Let us bring forth with joy and with peace. May division give way to understanding, and may hope rise where there has been hardship.

Where there are obstacles, bring renewal. Where there is discouragement, bring vision. And where there is conflict, plant wisdom and grace. May our service leave a lasting legacy of integrity, compassion, and stewardship for generations to come.

Continue to grant us favor in your sight, and let us remain a beacon, not only to this nation, but to the world. Let our prayers be according to your will and acceptable in your sight. In your holy name, we pray. Amen.

We ask our guests and visitors to remain standing to join us in the flag salute. Assembly Member Pellerin will lead us in the pledge of allegiance.

Please join me in honoring our nation and the freedoms we cherish by reciting our pledge of allegiance. Ready? Begin. I pledge allegiance to the flag.

May be seated. To our guests and visitors today, state law prohibits persons in the chamber from interfering with legislative proceedings or disrupting the orderly conduct of official business.

Persons disrupting legislative proceedings are subject to removal, arrest, or other appropriate legal remedies. Reading of the previous day's journal.

Assembly chamber Sacramento, Thursday, May 26. The assembly met at 9am. The honorary Josh Lowenthal, speak for chamber of the assembly presiding, chief clerk Sue Parker at desk, reading clerk, David a Bowman reading. The role was called.

Our new leader, Aguiar-Curry, moves, and miss Sanchez seconds that the reading of the previous day's journal be dispensed with. Presentation of petitions, there are none. Introduction and reference of bills will be deferred.

Reports of committees will be deemed read and amendments deemed adopted. Messages from the governor, there are none. Messages from the Senate, there are none. Moving on to motions and resolutions, the opposite are as follows.

For legislative business, Assemblymember Celeste Rodriguez and Arambula. Onto our procedural motions. Madam Majority Leader, you are recognized for your procedural motions.

Good morning, Mr. Speaker. I request unanimous consent to suspend Assembly rule 45.5 to allow Assembly Members Dixon and Gipson to speak on the adjournment in memory today.

That objection, such shall be the order.

I request unanimous consent to suspend Assembly Rule 118 a to allow Assembly Members Haney, Bryan, and Hadwick to have guests in the rear of the chamber.

That objection, such shall be the order.

Pursuant to Assembly rule 96, I request unanimous consent to re refer SB 10 Padilla from the Transportation Committee to the Natural Resources Committee.

That objection, such shall be the order.

At the request of the author, please remove file item 162 AB 2486, Addis from the consent calendar.

Clerk will note.

I request unanimous consent to suspend joint rule 62 a, the final notice requirement to allow the Appropriations Committee to hear a 153 bills at their hearing upon adjournment of session today in the Swing Space Room 1100. The list of bills is at the desk. I ask the reading clerk to read the list of bills.

Assembly Bill 1554 Calderon, Assembly Bill 1605 Ransom, Assembly Bill 1606 Nguyen, Assembly Bill 1620 Sanchez, Assembly Bill 1628 Michelle Rodriguez, Assembly Bill 1633 Haney, Assembly Bill 1643 Nguyen, Assembly Bill 1668 Pellerin, Assembly Bill 1675 Lee,

Assembly Bill 1679 Mark Gonzalez, Assembly Bill 1690 Ahrens, Assembly Bill 1709 Lowenthal, Assembly Bill 1720 Haney, Assembly Bill 1725 Coloza, Assembly Bill 1726 Calderon, Assembly Bill 1727 Ta, Assembly Bill 1753 Stefani, Assembly Bill 1770 Garcia,

Assembly Bill 1771 Alvarez, Assembly Bill 1772 Papan, Assembly Bill 1774 Boerner, Assembly Bill 1790 Connolly, Assembly Bill 1795 Gipson, Assembly Bill 1806 Gabriel, Assembly Bill 1807 Gabriel, Assembly Bill 1810 Berman, Assembly Bill 1815 Wicks,

Assembly Bill 1825 Krell, Assembly Bill 1826 Lackey, Assembly Bill 1863 Demaio, Assembly Bill 1864 Berman, Assembly Bill 1887 Zbur, Assembly Bill 1897 Haney, Assembly Bill 1899 Coloza, Assembly Bill 1902 Pellerin, Assemble Bill 1903 Wicks,

Assemble Bill 1906 Aguiar-Curry, Assemble Bill 1915 Gabriel, Assemble Bill 1932 Elhawary, Assembly Bill 1942 Bauer-Kahan, Assembly Bill 1954 Ward, Assembly Bill 1967 Zbur, Assembly Bill 1971 Bennett, Assembly Bill 1975 Schultz, Assembly Bill 1979 Bonta,

Assembly Bill 1983 Blanca Rubio, Assembly Bill 1990 Gipson, Assembly Bill 1997 Lee, Assembly Bill 2000 Aguiar-Curry, Assembly Bill 2014 Elhawary, Assembly Bill 2015 Wicks, Assembly Bill 2018 Ramos, Assembly Bill 2022 Jeff Gonzales, Assembly Bill 2023 Wicks,

Assembly Bill 2026 Aguiar-Curry, Assembly Bill 2032 Ransom, Assembly Bill 2034 Addis, Assembly Bill 2047 Bauer-Kahan, Assembly Bill 2058 Harabedian, Assembly Bill 2069 Krell, Assembly Bill 2074 Haney, Assembly Bill 2083 Jackson,

Assembly Bill 2084 Bauer-Kahan, Assembly Bill 2088 Papan, Assembly Bill 2092 Bonta, Assembly Bill 2093 Bauer-Kahan, Assembly Bill 2103 Irwin, Assembly Bill 2108 Sharp-Collins, Assembly Bill 2122 Kalra, Assembly Bill 2138 Krell,

Assembly Bill 2141 Patterson, Assembly Bill 2145 Garcia, Assembly Bill 2167 Macedo, Assembly Bill 2169 Lowenthal, Assembly Bill 2182 Irwin, Assembly Bill 2186 Mckinnor,

Assembly Bill 2190 Wallis, Assembly Bill 2193 Todd, Assembly Bill 2195 Celeste Rodriguez, Assembly Bill 2204 Gabriel, Assembly Bill 2205 Quirk- Silva, Assembly Bill 2213 Lee, Assembly Bill 2221 Irwin, Assembly Bill 2222 Ward, Assembly Bill 2232 Patterson,

Assembly Bill 2235 Pacheco, Assembly Bill 2244 Gabriel, Assembly Bill 2246 Wicks, Assembly Bill 2247 Elhawary, Assembly Bill 2258 Avila Farias, Assembly Bill 2266 Schultz, Assembly Bill 2267 Garcia, Assembly Bill 2270 Arambula, Assembly Bill 2276 Soria,

Assembly Bill 2270 Avila Farias, Assembly Bill 2282 Alanis, Assembly Bill 2283 Jeff Gonzales, Assembly Bill 2302 Celestia Rodriguez, Assembly Bill 2311 Schiavo, Assembly Bill 2313 Berman, Assembly Bill 2314 Rogers, Assembly Bill 2329 Fong.

Assembly Bill 2330 Boener, Assembly Bill 2339 Gipson, Assembly Bill 2343 Patel, Assembly Bill 2344 Haney, Assembly Bill 2363 Pacheco, Assembly Bill 2354 Gabriel, Assembly Bill 2369 Rogers, Assembly Bill 2378 Gabriel, Assembly Bill 2383 Zbur. Assembly Bill 2384 Lowenthal,

Assembly Bill 2385 Petrie-Norris, Assembly Bill 2389 Irwin, Assembly Bill 2391 Ahrens, Assembly Bill 2395 Sharp-Collins, Assembly Bill 2398 Alarez, Assembly Bill 2430 Muratsuchi, Assembly Bill 2444, Michelle Rodriguez, Assembly Bill 2461 Hart, Assembly Bill 2478 Schultz,

Assembly Bill 2490 Valencia, Assembly Bill 2516 Petrie-Norris, Assembly Bill 2535 Pellerin, Assembly Bill 2555 Patel, Assembly Bill 2562 Dixon, Assembly Bill 2575 Ortega, Assembly Bill 2579 Petrie-Norris. Assembly Bill 2581, Soria, Assembly Bill 26 double Bonta.

Assembly Bill 2605 Arambula. Assembly Bill 2608 Patterson. Assembly Bill 2612 Schultz, Assembly Bill 2624 Bonta, Assembly Bill 2639 Soria, Assembly Bill 2651 Bonta, Aseembly Bill 2662 Carrillo, Assembly Bill 2679 Hadwick, 2690 Davies,

Assembly Bill 27 double Gallagher, Assembly 2704 Addis, Assembly Bill 2710 Harabedian. Assembly Bill 2711 Ellis, Assembly Bill 2716 Avila Farias, Assembly Bill 2717 Coloza, Assembly Bill 2748 Quirk-Silva, Assembly Bill 2767 Ahrens,

Assembly Bill 2774 Committee on Business and Professions, Assembly Bill 2775 Committee on Business and Professions, Assembly Bill 2790 Committee on Communications and Conveyance, Assembly Concurrent Resolution 9, Boerner,

Assembly Concurrent Assembly Constitutional Amendment 18 Coloza and Senate Bill 417, Cabaldon. Thank you.

Without objection, such shall be the order. Thank you, madam reading clerk. Okay, Members. We are gonna move on to guest introductions. Assemblymember Haney, you are recognized for your guest introductions.

Thank you, Members.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker and Members. It is my honor, to welcome miss Shannon Lee to the California State Assembly. Miss Lee is an actress, producer, author, entrepreneur, and the daughter of the legendary martial artist and cultural icon, Bruce Lee.

Although he is best known for his influence on martial arts, Bruce Lee's impact extends far beyond it. He broke barriers for Asian Americans in film and television at a time when AAPI representation was deeply limited and often defined by harmful stereotypes.

Through his talent, discipline, and philosophy, he became one of the first Asian global superstars and inspired generations of Asian Americans to see themselves reflected with strength, confidence, and dignity.

Miss Lee has dedicated much of her life to preserving and advancing that legacy. She serves as a CEO of the Bruce Lee family companies and cofounded the Bruce Lee Foundation alongside her mother, Linda Lee Caldwell.

Through her leadership, she has worked to ensure that Bruce Lee's philosophy, artistry, and cultural impact continue to inspire new generations.

She's also built an accomplished career of her own as an actress, producer, and author, served as executive producer on several documentaries, and is the author of Be Water My Friend, which shares the teachings and philosophy of Bruce Lee and encourages resilience, adaptability, and personal growth.

I wanna thank miss Lee for her help and guidance on AB 2455, legislation we are proud to be advancing to establish a Bruce Lee Day in California and recently passed out of our state assembly.

This bill honors not only Bruce Lee's extraordinary achievements in martial arts and film, but his lasting cultural impact on California, the AAPI community, and millions of people around the world.

California has long been central to Bruce Lee's story, and it's fitting that our state recognizes his enduring legacy.

Miss Lee, thank you for your leadership, your advocacy, and your commitment to preserving a legacy that continues to inspire people across generations. Welcome to the state capitol.

Thank you, Members. We need to continue, please. Members, we have an extraordinary amount of business to take care of and dispense with today. I need your cooperation to continue moving forward. Assembly member Jeff Gonzalez, you're recognized for your guest introduction.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker and Members. Today, I rise to recognize very special members of team Gonzalez who are joining us in the rear of the chamber.

My amazing district reps, Jasmine, Jacinto, and Bella work relentlessly on behalf of the people of the 36th Assembly District from India to Blythe, Needles to Anza, and all of Imperial County. Day in and day out, they are serving our constituents and make sure the voices of our communities are heard.

Over the past couple of days, they have had the opportunity to learn the ins and outs of this building and see firsthand the work being done here in the state Capitol.

As many of you already know, our district teams are truly the heart of our operations, and I'm incredibly thankful for all they do. Please join me in welcoming Jasmine, Jacinto, and Bella to the Assembly Floor.

Okay. Members, we are gonna be moving on to business on the daily file. We're gonna begin with our second reading, file items one through 43. The clerk will read.

Assembly Rules 1579, 1619, 1809, 1929, 1970, 1973, 1976, 2010, 2012, 2024, 2041, 2055, 2059, 2089, 2110, 2113, 2139, 2146, 2172, 2185, 2273, 2361, 2418 2433, 2440, 2496, 2525, 2613, 2631, 2031, 2165, 21745, 2181, 2298, 2324, 2429, 2523, 2524, 2618, 2718, 2795, Assembly Bill 1732 with amendments, and Senate Bill 73 with amendments.

All bills will be deemed read and all amendments will be deemed adopted. We're moving to reconsideration file items 44 through 46. All items shall be continued. Madam Majority Leader, you are recognized for your procedural motion.

I request unanimous consent to suspend the rules to allow Assembly Member Bryan to take up AJR 31 today without reference to file for the purpose of adoption.

Thank you, Madam Majority Leader. That is seconded by Assemblymember Gipson. Assemblymember Sanchez, you are recognized.

We withhold consent. Ask for roll call vote.

Members, this is a procedural vote on the suspension of the constitution suspension of the rules, excuse me. The clerk will open the roll. Majority Leader is asking for an Aye vote. Assemblymember Sanchez is asking for a no vote. All Members vote who desire to vote?

All Members vote who desire to vote. All Members vote who desire to vote. The clerk will close the roll, tally votes. Ayes 42, Noes 18. The rules are suspended.

Okay without reference to file, we are going to AGR 31 by Assembly member Brian. The clerk will read.

Assembly joint Resolution 31 by Assembly member Brian, relative to the restoration of the voting rights act of 1965.

Members, can I ask you to take your desk, please? You can take conversations off the floor members. Assembly member Brian, you are recognized.

Thank you, mister speaker, and Colleagues. I rise to present AJR 31. I also think it's fitting, absolutely fitting for this moment in history that Republicans on this floor just tried to stop us from even discussing the voting rights violations that are happening across this country. That alone is shameful to me. Last September, I was in Selma, Alabama and Montgomery, Alabama, and I met a man named Nelson Malden.

Nelson was doctor King's barber or Martin as he called him. They organized together. They protested together. And as I was talking with Nelson, and some of you on this floor were with me, he showed me his first poll test from the first time he ever voted. In fact, I took that poll test.

With my master's degree in public policy from UCLA, I still struggled with it because it wasn't designed for us to pass it. It was designed to be a barrier to the vote, One of many barriers to the vote. Barriers that were erected after black people in this country were given full personhood status. Something that was previously denied by the highest courts in our land.

The reason this resolution is important today is because we are seeing something that John Lewis warned us about but believed wouldn't happen in this country, and that is the rollback of voting rights and of representation of marginalized communities and specifically black communities across the country.

In Tennessee right now, after the Supreme Court struck down portions of the Voting Rights Act, the speaker of the house immediately passed maps that cracked Memphis, cracked Tennessee, took black population centers, and split them up, preventing them from having representation, and they are not alone. Louisiana pulled back election results that had already happened, something I'd never heard of before with intentionality. What's different about this than the redistricting conversations we've been having?

Conversations, by the way, that I started 2 years ago when I proposed independent redistricting for every level of government in California and didn't get a single Republican vote on this floor, is that this isn't about partisanship. This is about racialized disenfranchisement.

This is intentional. And when Tennessee lawmakers spoke up and resisted, they were stripped from all of their committees. We get complaints all the time about the super majority on this floor. We have never stripped a member of the opposition party from every single one of their committees. We have never silenced their voices on the floor and required a vote for them to be able to speak.

That has never happened. Every black member of the Tennessee House of Representatives has been removed from their seats. And when they protested, they were arrested. They were called boy. This is 2026, and we have gone backwards more than fifty years.

And it's important in this moment that California stand very clear on where we are. Clear that voting rights are to be protected and preserved. Clear that marginalized communities should have representation, which is why the first person from California's indigenous community is here on this floor with us. Next year, there will only be 2 black men in the entire California legislature. We can do better here.

But around this country, erasure is alive and well. And this is a moment where we have to be clear. Where do you stand? I was born in 1992 my entire life. I've never met a person who tells me that if they were alive during the civil rights era, they wouldn't have protested.

Everybody is pretty sure they would have marched on Selma. Everybody is pretty sure they would have gone to DC. Well, this is that moment. And this resolution is asking you very clear what side do you stand on. I respectfully ask for an aye vote.

Thank you. Assemblymember Brian. Assembly member DeMaio, you are recognized.

Thank you, Mister speaker. I rise in opposition to this resolution that I think serves to divide us and is actually a complete affront to the 14th amendment of The US constitution, which says, we will treat everyone equally without regard to any immutable characteristic of gender, of skin color, of orientation, equal protection under the law. And that government shall not enact a law that treats people differently on the basis of their skin color, their gender, their orientation, or any other immutable characteristic.

That is as fundamentally fair and American as anything. This resolution would say, no.

Let's let's throw away the 14th amendment, and let's actually have discriminatory policies. In order to support the position of those in favor of this opposition, you have to believe the worst in Californians. Believe the worst in Americans that they vote for people based on their skin color. I don't see that. I don't believe that Americans or Californians judge people based on their skin color, their orientation, their gender, or any other characteristic.

Unfortunately, those of you who back this resolution are making the argument that, yes, they do. What a low opinion you have of your constituents. The Supreme Court, I believe, made the right decision. Because when you look at the debate on this issue, one side says in order for African Americans or gays or Latinos or women, apparently, to win an office, we need to take all of those voters and pack them into one district.

Well, that runs the risk of taking their voice out of all the other districts.

When I ran for City Council in 2008, the ban on gay marriage was on the ballot. It was a hot topic in San Diego and throughout the state of California, and it was a different era. It's just, what, 16, 17 years ago. My house civil rights has progressed. But during that campaign, I had people come to me from the Democrat side of the aisle.

You're running in the wrong district, Carl. You should go run-in the gay district. I didn't live in the Gay District. I lived in District 5, the most conservative seat in the city. They said no way that those homophobes are gonna vote for you, Carl.

I said, well, we'll see about that. It wasn't District 3, the gay district that elected the first openly gay individual to the San Diego City Council. It was the most conservative district, District 5. As I walked door to door and I laid out the merits of my candidacy. I know that some of you believe that you can't do that, that voters in this country and in California only look at skin color, not merit.

I vehemently disagree with you. I think think it is fundamentally offensive and Un American. I urge you to not only reconsider your position, but stop with the inflammatory, divisive rhetoric. That the idea that the author of this amendment said that somehow if you vote against it, you're for a poll tax. Insane.

Offensive. No one on this side of the aisle, no one on your side of the aisle.

oh, maybe I won't speak for your side. No one believes in a poll tax. That's a dirty argument to be making on this floor. But somehow, you present that as something you're fighting against. What it means is the fundamental reason why you wanna pass this to divide us can't be defended on its own merits.

I urge a no vote. I urge us to come together. I urge us to support the 14th amendment and say that in America, we don't judge people based on anything but merit. And what a great day it will be when we get to that point.

Thank you, Assembly member Demaio. Assembly member Pellerin, you are recognized.

Thank you, speaker. Members, the right to vote is the foundation of every other right we hold dear in this democracy. The Voting Rights Act of 1965 was born from the courage, the sacrifice, and the unwavering belief that every American deserves an equal voice, regardless of race, zip code, or political power. For decades, that law helped open the doors to of democracy to millions of Americans who had been systematically locked out. It stopped discriminatory maps before they could silence communities.

It protected representation. It strengthened trust in our elections, and it moved this nation closer to its promise of equal justice. But today, we are watching those protections be dismantled in real time. In the wake of Louisiana V Calais, states across the country are rushing to redraw maps, weaken minority representation, and dilute the voices of black voters and other historically marginalized communities. They are attempting to turn back the clock on decades of progress.

But we cannot and we will not accept a democracy where politicians silence the voices of historically marginalized communities. As someone who spent more than twenty seven years administering elections, I know democracy is not self executing. It survives only when people are willing to defend it. And now is one of those moments. California must continue to lead.

We must stand firmly for free and fair elections, for equal access to the ballot, and for the principle that every voice deserves to be heard and every vote deserves to be counted. The history of voting rights in America has never been a straight line. It has always been a struggle between exclusion and inclusion, between fear and hope. And every generation is called upon to decide which side of history it will stand on. I know where California stands.

We stand on the side of democracy. We stand on the side of justice. And we stand on the side of the people of this state. I urge your aye vote on AJR 31.

Thank you, Assemblymember Pellerin. Assemblymember Tangipan, you're recognized?

Thank you, mister speaker. You know, I find it funny that when this bill is being or AJR is being presented, the author of the bill brought up what it's like to be stripped off of committees and how the intentions behind it are somehow racial in other areas. So then let's talk about race. Let's talk about this body stripping the first ever Polynesian elected to the state assembly, ever elected to the state legislature. This body stripped that individual of their voice.

Not only did they do that, they stripped the first Muslim ever elected to the state legislature. They stripped the first openly gay man ever on the Republican side to the state legislature. This body. And now we're chastised as somehow being bigoted. Being bigoted.

The Voter Rights Act is something that we all should celebrate as a necessary step in The United States that was needed to be done. But let us remember the history of the Voter Rights Act. It was the longest group filibuster in United States history. And who led it? The Democrat party.

It was the longest single filibuster in US history until recently by Cory Bush or Cory, Senator from New Jersey, led by a Democrat. It took Republicans and Democrats together to pass something that we all should cherish. The Voter Rights Act was meant to protect every American's access to the ballot. It was not intended to become a Democrat seat protection protection plan that segregates people by race, and it is insane today. The arguments being raid for it is actually to keep segregating people by race.

As one of the first Polynesians ever elected to a state house in the entire United States, I take pride and honor in that because I do understand what representation looks like, what it sounds like, and what it means to a lot of people. But that

Just a moment, mister Tanyapa. Assembly member Gibson, you are recognized?

Yes. Could you please instruct the member who's speaking to be accurate in his discourse? Because he made mention that members that he spoke about was taken off committees, and he referenced the what happened in Tennessee. What happened in Tennessee was not what happened here in California because members are still on committees.

Mister Gibson, mister Gibson, I I understand I understand your concern. Your point is not well taken. Mister Tanyapa, please continue.

Thank you, mister speaker. If you were to ask somebody within the Voter Rights Act, when it comes to map making, when it comes to the process, if you ask me, draw me a black district. Draw me a Latino district. Draw me a white district. Draw me a gay district.

I ask you this. Which one of those is racist? It's a trick question because they all are. And what the Supreme Court weighed in is that to be colorblind, to look at it under the merits and earn it, It doesn't matter what your race or your makeup should be. And what we're arguing for right now under this recognition is to keep racial remedies.

To look at people and say, let us write black districts, white districts, Latino districts. When will we be race unconscious to where people earn it? And it is where I do hold pride in that. As I represent one of the whitest districts in the entire state of California, I just so happen to also be Polynesian. But they voted for me because they believed we could do the right thing, not the race thing.

And for those reasons, to be racially blind, I ask for your no vote.

Okay. Members, before we continue with debate, I'm going to remind everybody of section one twenty, parliamentary essentials for floor session. Language used by members during debate should be temperate, decorous, respectful, and we do not impugn the motives of our colleagues. Assemblymember Ward, you are recognized.

Thank you, mister speaker. And it's Senator Cory Booker, a black man from New Jersey.

And I rise in strong support of AGR 31 and thank our author and our colleague from Los Angeles for bringing this full and important restoration of the full protections of the voting right act resolution forward to this body for discussion today because we are living in incredibly dangerous times where the Trump administration and its allies continue to attack democratic institutions, spread disinformation about our elections, and push policies designed to silence communities that they view as inconvenient or unworthy of political power. That's what's going on here.

You talk about discriminatory policies, you should see that alive and well happening in record speed right now in legislatures across the South who were given the green light to be able to diminish political power, canceling elections where people have already been casting ballots so that they can rush to redraw all these maps.

Folks, project twenty twenty five is alive and well. Across the country, we are seeing coordinated efforts to roll back civil rights protections, restrict access to the ballot, erase diverse representation, and undermine the voices, particularly of black and also Latino, Asian American, native, immigrant, disabled, and LGBTQ communities. These attacks are not isolated. They are connected. And when voting rights are weakened, our communities are pushed further to the margins.

The Voting Rights Act remains one of the most important civil rights laws in our nation's history because it recognized that democracy only works when everyone has a fair and equal opportunity to participate. And the recent erosion of the Voting Rights Act through the Supreme Court decisions has emboldened states to pursue voter suppression tactics that disproportionately harm black communities and other historically marginalized voters. Congress cannot continue to stand by while these protections are dismantled. Congress should be a reflection of America.

And today, even with all the advancements that so many have fought and died for, black representation is underrepresented.

And what is going to happen as this lightning speed effort in front of us right now moves forward? Black representation will be cut out from the next Congress, and this cannot stand. We talk about being color blind. I am not color blind to the fact of the intentional outcome of what is trying to be what is trying to happen today because of these actions right now. AJR 31 sends a clear message that California won't be silent while fundamental rights are stripped away.

Multiracial democracy, in fair representation, and in the simple principle that every eligible voter deserves to have their voice and their vote counted. And in a time when extremism and authoritarian rhetoric are gaining ground nationally, Restoring the Voting Rights Act is not just a legal necessity, it is a moral imperative. Colleagues, I ask you to vote aye on h AR 31.

Thank you, Assemblymember Ward. Assemblymember Gibson, you are recognized.

Thank you very much, mister speaker and members. I wanna thank my colleague from Los Angeles for one for bringing a h AR 31 before us today to have this very important and necessary conversation on this floor and this body and this time. As a member of the California Legislative Black Caucus, a proud coauthor of this AJR, I rise in support of AJR 31.

Two weeks ago, United States Supreme Court opened the door on the attack of black people by gutting the rights of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. The key provisions of this Voting Rights Act, and the vote was six to three.

Six to three. Klu Klux Klan are no longer wearing white robes. Six of them are wearing black robes and serve on the Supreme Court. And I wanna be clear. This decision touched on the legacy of our forefathers and mothers who toil and fought for the rights under 1965 voting rights act.

We remember the generations who paved the way forward, like Ida B Wells, Mary Church. I almost said a bad word because this is personal. You see, my mother and my father grew up during this time. Although they didn't have to do a poll tax, a literacy tax, although my colleague talked about it on the other aisle, they didn't have to go

through

this. But damn it, they had to go through the struggles of seeing their friends where water hose was torn were poured on them and dogs and their friends being attacked by police. We starting to see the sixties roll back right in front of us, although we didn't have to experience that in during this time. And I see my brother from Tennessee in the back. And it's like we're walking back in history in a slow pace.

And we're talking about my colleagues are talking about, like like, this stuff didn't happen in the past. And we know we're not gonna revisit that now under this administration. But 20 project twenty twenty five told us exactly what's Harabedian, and it's being revealed right now with the Voting Rights Act being gutted out. Black people not gonna have any representation in the South because they are redistricting us out, trying to silence our voices.

And then we're having a president, and the master plan is making sure that he remains a president past 2028 and continue to do the things that he's doing right now, not only to Latino people, but black people as well.

Can you imagine us coming to this chamber on this green on this green carpet and not having any person of color represent people of color in this state? That's the reality.

Can you imagine us coming to this chamber on this green on this green carpet and not having any person of color represent people of color in this state? That's the reality.

And this AJR is not just an AJR, but it's a it's a wake up call to making sure that California stand up and lead the rest of the nation, doing what we can do under the law, within our authority, within our jurisdiction, and standing along the sides of our brothers and sisters in the South and letting our voices be heard and giving them the support and being the wind beneath their wings. That's what it's all about. To making sure that we can strengthen them.

Yes. We have a governor that's fighting all across this nation. And I'm proud to say I'm from California. Because this me it means something. And it encourage our brothers and sisters all across the country.

And so we're not taking the what we're doing haphazardly or just doing just be doing it. It means something.

Thirty seconds.

It gives people hope and encourage that tomorrow will be better than today. So I'm encouraged what we're doing. So I ask for a strong eye vote on AJR 31. We're better than this.

Thank you. Assemblymember GiPson, doctor Sharp Collins, you are

recognized. Thank you, speaker and members. As a proud co author and a member of the Legislative Black Caucus, I rise in support of AJR 31. This is this is heavy for me. Licking our voices now is more important than ever given the attacks we are under at the federal level.

Just last week, as was already stated, the Supreme Court dealt a major blow to the Voting Rights Act. One of the most important protections we had to undoing racist gerrymandering that seeks to silence our voices. But let's be clear. The Voting Rights Act has not been erased from the books, but what remains is pretty hollow and unacceptable. The Voting Rights Act recognized the truth about what's supposed to be a system of democracy.

It exposes the truth about discrimination. It is often neither loud nor is it obvious. It acknowledges that discrimination hides behind neutrality, and it is fed by apathy and ambivalence. These behaviors both they actually birthed Jim Crow era laws by way of intimidation, district maps, polling text, voter ID laws, literacy tests, grandfather clauses, white primaries, good character clauses, and felony discrimination.

While California does have a state voting rights act to help with states and local elections, this ruling deals a blow to our ability to make sure we are represented in the national elections.

This is not just a problem for black Americans, but also for any number of minority voters. Because as we know, black people lead and others reap that benefit. So when we are unable to draw maps that represent the true political will of the people, we see white Democratic voices silenced too. So let's take North Carolina where the number of registered Republicans and Democrats are basically equal. But until last year, Republicans had a super majority in that state legislature.

That is not fairness or equity. This is a intentional attempt to silence us. Already, Louisiana has moved to redraw maps that could remove the single congressional black seat despite a population that is one third black. In addition, a number of states are trying to delay their primaries to redraw maps in silent minority voices. And this is all done in the name of race neutral policies.

The method used to redraw the district lines in Alabama, Louisiana, and other Southern states is based off of what we know to be census data, which folks claim is race neutral. So to my colleagues from San Diego and also from Clovis, let me be clear that race neutral has never ever been race neutral. When people fail to realize that census data has a profound impact on the balance of the political power, it's based on the population.

The reality is since this data is not race neutral, that data has, once again, an impact on a balance of power based on population identified by race and not political party. So let's continue to set the record straight.

Just because everyone has to abide by the same rule, that does not excuse the unjust impact on certain populations. History has continued to show us this lesson. After the ratification in 1870 of the fifteenth amendment, voting barriers that were racially neutral on face were used in Jim Crow South to disenfranchise black voters. The same continues today even in California where we face a valid measure this year to require voter ID.

Study after study have shown that in states as diverse as North Carolina, Texas, Michigan, North Dakota, and Indiana, ID requirements were more likely to deter voter voting amongst black, brown, and native American than other groups.

So we must remain forever vigilant and fight back against attempts to silence us and ignore our issues. Black California's issues, I'm tired of saying this over and over again. It's California's issues. This nation is under attack. Our voices are under attack.

Our civil liberties are under attack. And the reality is we are now at war. If you don't think we're at war, I think you need to wake up. I never thought that in 2026, my children and I would face the resurgence of Jim Crow.

I never thought that I would make it to the Florida Assembly, work to undo decades of discrimination and racism in the form of redlining, over policing, intentional diversion of resources, and barriers to equal opportunities, all while watching fundamental rights get stripped away at a federal level.

We're seeing the Jim Crow era laws that's hell bent on assaulting black voting power and retaining white supremacy in the electoral process. So when we think about voting rights of 1965, we think about the elevation of our voices as people. As a black woman, I think about the power of our voices as it pertains to ensuring that we elect someone who actually listens. Someone who understands the black experience and lives the lives and understand that lives were lost and fought for justice.

The fight for the filling of even moderately similar voting rights require Americans' deadliest war.

Thirty seconds.

Okay. Well, let me skip all of that and get to this point. So when I'm asked to speak about rolling black rolling black voting rights act, I find it difficult. And I'm a say this because it's not because I don't have words to say. Clearly, I do.

I am a college professor. But it's because I'm at the point of everything has been already said. What more could black Americans tell you to make clear about the frustration of the pain and the fear and and the feeling of our voice purposely being silenced? If this is not something that you feel in your heart and in your soul as a clear and present threat to to the very fundamental of our democracy, then I suggest you ask yourself, why are you even here?

Why did 500,000 constituents actually select you to represent you what you represent them?

What is your overall purpose? Understand that purpose. And I'm a close with this. I'm skipping a lot, but it's okay. Let me paraphrase a quote from activist Fannie Lou Hamer who organized the freedom summers and also SNCC.

If I fall, I'll fall five feet, two inches forward in the fight for our freedom. I'm not backing down. My my black voice will not be silenced, and I will not be silenced. And I respectfully ask for your aye vote on AJR 31.

Thank you, doctor Sharp Collins. Assembly member Bauer Kehan, you are recognized.

Thank you, mister chair, and members. And I wanna thank our legislative black caucus colleagues for their powerful words today. I was thinking sitting here as a white woman on this floor that I appreciate what our colleagues from CLOVE has said about how representation matters. This past summer, I had the privilege of traveling to Alabama with our black caucus. And I walked into the Lynching Memorial with our colleague from Carson, side by side.

And he said to me, I wonder if my cousin is hanging here. And then he looked at me and he said, do you think you have family here? And I said, no, but let's see if yours is. And it hit me that that lived experience, it's not my lived experience. It was never gonna be live my lived experience.

I have my own trauma. You've all heard about it. But to sit on this floor with people, with those lived experiences, it changes us, it makes us better, and it makes the state better. I had the privilege of joining this legislature with assembly member Ramos, so I don't know of time when there wasn't a native person on this floor.

And yet I can feel the difference it has made to have him here educating us and raising the voice of California's first people, and that is true of everybody on this floor.

But I also think it's important to note the power of allies. Yesterday, I held a hearing on LGBTQ plus issues, and I was a little shy to do it at first because I'm a straight woman. But what was made clear to me pretty quickly was the power of our voice is so strong in these fights. We cannot remain silent.

And so I I didn't actually plan on speaking, but when our colleague from San Diego raised the equal protection clause as a law professor, I couldn't sit silent because that's not actually what the equal protection clause says.

So permission to read, mister speaker?

Without objection.

So the equal protection act clause actually says that all persons born or naturalized in The United States and subject to jurisdiction thereof are citizens. No state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of The United States, nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property without due process of a law, nor deny any person the equal protection of the law.

And any student of constitutional law knows the precedent Supreme Court precedent teaches us that in order to protect people and to ensure they are given the same rights and privileges, the law is actually not race blind. It is not gender blind. And interestingly, one of the first cases that made that point was a case where the lawyer was Ruth Bader Ginsburg and the plaintiff was a man.

And that man had been discriminated against. And he brought to the court and he said, I deserve equal protection, and that actually means I need to be treated differently in this context. And the court has repeatedly decided that states can do so in order to procure equal protection under the law. So that's a really critical point as we sit here and debate law on this floor.

That not only did my colleagues speak better than I could about the fact that race blind doesn't ever mean race blind, but if we had a court that hadn't been politicized, but instead followed precedent as the law has taught us to do, none of this would be happening today.

Again, this is our job to make sure there is representation, to make sure every vote counts, to make sure every vote is heard. And when you draw lines for maps that look like no child in a kindergarten class would ever draw them because they're so insane, because you're trying to silence voices, you are not doing that. You are not ensuring the right to vote.

You are not ensuring representation, and you are not ensuring that we will grow and make good laws by being on this floor with people who can teach us things that we never would have known. With that, I respectfully ask for your aye vote.

Thank you. Assembly member Bauer Kahan. Assembly member Bonta, you are recognized.

Thank you, mister speaker. I rise today on behalf of the beautiful people of Oakland, Alameda, and Emeryville in strong support of assembly joint Resolution 31 and inspired by a son of Oakland, Tennessee representative Justin Jones, a freedom fighter leading the way in Tennessee for black voters who are being silenced as we speak. AGR 31 calls on Congress to enact legislation that restores and strengthens the full protections of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

Let me start with a simple fact that Republicans in Washington seem to have forgotten. The Voting Rights Act of 1965 was reauthorized by Republican presidents Nixon, Ford, Reagan, and George W Bush.

A mere twenty years ago, the United State Senate voted 98 to zero, ninety eight to zero to restore the Voting Rights Act. This was never a partisan issue. Protecting the right to vote was an American imperative. Under the president of the under this president's, that United States is gone. What we are living through today hearkens back to the confederacy, back to the poll taxes, the literary literacy test, the grandfather clauses, back to deliberate systemic erasure.

And let's call it what it is, the opposites of the civil rights act and the acts around that. It is an attempt to erase black political power. Trump is using his court to achieve what Trump's party is too unpopular to achieve at the ballot box. In Louisiana v Calais, six conservative justices gutted section two of the Voting Rights Act, and the least the last meaningful shield protecting black voters from racial gerrymandering. The ink was barely dry when they started running at Trump's behest.

Tennessee wiped out its only majority black congressional district. Alabama moved to reinstate maps that federal courts had already struck down as unconstitutional and racially discriminatory. This is beyond political tit for tat. This is an attempt, a coordinated attempt, and consolidation of white nationalism. The voters this court abandoned are the same voters whose grandparents were literally beaten back from the polls with poll taxes and literacy tests.

The same voters whose right to participate in this democracy was purchased with the blood of Martin Luther King Junior, paid for by John Lewis and people whose bodies were hosed down at the Edmund Pettus Bridge and in the soil of this American South. Black elected officials in The United States rose from 1,500 people in 1970 to over 10,000 today. Every single one of those seats was made possible by the Voting Rights Act. That is what they are trying to take back.

That is what this fight is about.

Our party has been clear eyed. Our plan to end this back and forth with fair maps for all but federal Republicans have blocked that path time and time again. Still, AJR 31 calls on Congress to do what only Congress can do and what they have done before, to Cross Party Lines, cross generations, and protect voters of all races. Today, that means passing the John r Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act.

From Oakland to Memphis, from the hood to the holler, an attack on black voters anywhere is an attack on all of us.

We will not look away. We will not stay quiet, and we will not go back. California will not be silent. I urge an aye vote.

Thank you. Assembly member Bonta. Assembly member Gallagher, you are recognized.

Thank you, mister speaker and members. The hypocrisy in this room is

Excuse me, mister Gallagher. Do not impugn the motives of members.

I'm not talking about any member. I'm just saying the hypocrisy is thick in this room right now. Because even even the example that you guys are using belies your hypocrisy. Tennessee, You did do exactly what they did in Tennessee. You did take people off of committees.

You did chastise mister Essaili for banging on his desk when he was being deprived of his ability to make an argument in this body. And yet you're celebrating the guy who brought a megaphone onto the floor in Tennessee to disrupt the proceeds because he felt like his voice was not being heard. You did every bit of the same thing that Tennessee is doing. And now you come here

and you chastise and you come and lecture us. Excuse me, mister Gallagher. I'm gonna say for a second time, do not impugn the motives of the mem of of your colleagues. I have to say it again, we're gonna move on.

I I will refrain from doing that, mister speaker. I hope that's evenly applied because I heard a lot of things here impugning the motives of people on my side of the aisle as well. And I hope that will be evenly applied in this debate.

And I I sympathize with a lot of the passionate debates on this floor right now because I made them myself when we were talking about Prop 50, about how you're diluting rural votes and the the votes of my community members and people that I represent with Prop 50. The member from the East Bay talked about crazy insane lines.

How about Modoc to Marin? Does that sound like a crazy insane line? You drew it. And you push that through. And let's just it's incumbent upon me a lot of times to just speak the truth on this floor and break through the BS that we too often hear hear hear.

Let's talk about Tennessee. You use the example. If this was really about race, if this was really about making sure that black people are represented, the only majority black district in Tennessee that you guys are decrying is represented by a white guy. But he's a Democrat, so it's okay. Because that's what this is really about.

The author himself represents a majority white district which belies the argument. Belies the argument.

Excuse me, mister Gallagher. Assemblymember Bryan, you were recognized.

That's just literally not true about the makeup of my district. There's a difference between majority and plurality, and the plurality isn't even white.

Okay. I have no idea

Excuse excuse me, mister Gallagher. Mister Bryan, your point is not well taken. Members, and and mister Gallagher, please stay to the merits of this resolution. I think that's the underlying concern that's being, conveyed here. Let's stay of the merits of the written resolution.

It's been about party. All this is about making sure that either more Democrats get elected or more Republicans get elected. And all the other stuff is just subterfuge, and it needs to stop. And what the Supreme Court really said is not that the Voting Rights Act is an important legislation. It is.

And it has been supported in a bipartisan way. It just simply said that Voting Rights Act doesn't require you to draw districts based on race. And let me try to chart a better path forward for all of us. Let's start drawing districts based on place instead of race. Let's start drawing districts based on people instead of party because that's what this has really all been about.

And the last time the gentleman from Tennessee was here, I talked about this. Supermajorities are a really bad thing for democracy. Because when one power one party has all the power, they use it to shut down the minority party and not let them speak. They do things like drawing lines that are crazy that you guys just did instead of making sure that all places and if we actually drew our districts just based on communities of interest, that's the principle.

If we just drew them based on communities of interest alone, That would protect minority communities.

That would protect rural communities. But instead, across this nation and let's talk about where the redistricting battle really started. The entire Northeast run by Democrats was redistricted so that zero Republicans are represented in Congress.

Thirty seconds.

That's when it started. And then Texas did the redistricting. But even after Texas is redistricting, 17% are represented by Democrats. That's actually better than it is currently here in California for Republicans. And under Prop 50, you're taking us down to 4%.

In the Northeast, it's zero. So who's the one that's drawing these districts so unequally and trying to deprive people of their voices and their rights? It sure as heck is not us. The leading candidate on the Republican Party side that's gonna represent Memphis is black.

Thank you. Assemblymember Gallagher. Thank you. Assemblymember DeMaio, you were recognized?

Mister speaker, as you know, I

Mister DeMaio, state your point of order.

Yes, mister speaker.

What is your point of order, mister De Maio? Mister De Maio, what is your point of order?

As you know, I do not

State your point, mister DeMaio.

As you know, I do not interrupt any member

Mister DeMaio. During this We're going to move on. Assemblymember Berman, can you we're gonna move on. Assemblymember Berman, you are recognized. We're going to move on, mister De Maio.

Mister Berman, you are recognized.

Thank you, mister speaker. I know there's been a lot of theater and theatrics and and misbehavior on the floor the last couple of minutes. I'm gonna try to bring this back to the actual resolution.

Please continue.

Thank you, mister speaker. On behalf of the legislative Jewish caucus, I rise in strong support of AJR 31. Long before I became an assembly member or a city council member or a lawyer, I spent a summer as a college student working as an analyst in the voting section of the civil rights division of the United States Department of Justice.

My job was to review preclearance submissions, The voting changes that jurisdictions with a history of discrimination, including here in California, had to get approved before they could take effect. Poll site location poll site relocations, changes to registration procedures, voter ID requirements.

It might sound bureaucratic, but it truly wasn't. Every submission represented real communities, real voters, often black and Latino voters in counties where not long before, their parents or grandparents had been turned away from the polls by violence or by law. That's a story that we have heard so powerfully spoken by our current secretary of state here in California, doctor Shirley Weber, about her history growing up in Arkansas. Preclearance was the guardrail. It was government saying, we learned our lesson, and we're not going back.

Then came Shelby County in 2013, and the guardrail was gone. And last month, the Supreme Court's decision in Louisiana versus Calais gutted what were made of Section two, the last meaningful check against discriminatory voting practices. Justin Kagan warned in dissent that the ruling renders Section two all but a dead letter. As a as a Jewish American, I think about this through the lens of our own history and our own values.

The Torah commands us 36 times to love and protect the stranger because we know what it means to be excluded, to be othered, to be denied full participation in the life of a society.

That teaching drove Jewish Americans to the front lines of the civil rights movement. It's why Andrew Goodman and Michael Schwarmer Schwarner, two young Jewish men from New York, gave their lives during the freedom 1964 working to register black voters in Mississippi. Their names are in this resolution. Their sacrifice is a part of this story. We're now living in the rainstorm that justice Ginsburg warned us about, after Shelby County in 2013, and Congress has now thrown away the umbrella.

AJR 31 calls on Congress to restore preclearance, codify results based standard under Section two, and pass the John r Lewis voting rights advancement act. It's the least we can do to honor everyone who bled and died for the right to vote. That's why I proudly and strongly urge your aye vote on AJR 31.

Thank you. Assembly member Berman. Assembly member DeMaio, you are recognized.

Mister speaker, a point of parliamentary inquiry.

State your point?

In reviewing the ruling you made and admonishment to mister Gallagher, I want to inquire as to whether lege counsel, the parliamentarian, and the speaker are aware of a May 2025 ruling by the US Supreme Court in the matter of Libby versus Maine House of Representatives, which restricts the ability of the legislature to police free speech. I want to make sure that in our next convening of this body, if this is going to continue to be the opinion that they

Thank you. I think you made your point.

That we

Just a moment, mister DeMaio. Mister De Maio, did not make a ruling against mister Gallagher. Made an announcement of how I was gonna be ruling over the house as a whole and making rules over the house. Thank you for your point of inquiry.

We're gonna continue on. Assembly member Kalra, you are recognized.

Thank you, mister speaker. On behalf of the API caucus, I stand in support of AJR 31. And I'd like to simply say that this is not about what we believe in. It's not about believing the best or worst in Americans. Although I find it quite shocking if people believe that we truly live in a racially blind society.

It's not about what we believe in. It's about what these white segregationists are showing us through their actions along with those that are allies with these white segregationists who are people of color. We must know our history, and and we're in 2026. I'm not gonna pretend that people don't know our history anymore. They may choose to want to repeat it, but they cannot claim to not know it.

The highest proportion of black elected officials from mayors to to US senators that were elected was shortly after black men were given the right to vote. That was representative democracy. However, that was a shock to the system. And that's when you had post reconstruction, and it will be decades before you saw black elected officials elected into office at any level again, in many jurisdictions around this country.

And, yes, there was a a a mention made made of a famous filibuster by Strom Thurmond in 1957 who was a Democrat.

He was a Dixiecrat who fought against his own party and a number of well intentioned Republicans and Democrats coming together to eventually pass a civil rights act. Sean Thurmond changed his party to Republican in 1964. This is about not just knowing our history and the sixty one years of the voting rights act. It's understanding why we still need it today. If you're still standing here saying that we don't need it, then you would have stood against it in 1965.

You would have been standing alongside George Wallace in the schoolhouse doors blocking black children from entering the schoolhouse, you would have stood alongside Bull Connor turning his fire hoses and attack dogs on peaceful protesters. Now

Excuse me, mister Kalra. Assembly member Patterson, you are recognized.

That is definitely impuning the motives of people on the floor that we're gonna be standing

Thank you, mister. Thank you, mister Patterson. Your point is well taken. Mister Kalra, please refrain from imputing the motives of your colleague.

Looks like I hit a nerve. For far too many generations, we have asked we have asked for the burden of the fight towards a more perfect union to be disproportionately born by our black sisters and brothers. And they have paid a terribly painful price for leading the fight on behalf of all Americans, and yet still they rise. If you look at the civil rights movement, it was our black brothers and sisters arm and arm with Latinos, whites, Asians, indigenous, everyone. Oh, hi.

Standing arm and arm together during the civil rights movement. And it's time for us to do that again, to stand arm and arm with one another. We will not abandon we will not abandon fellow Americans in the South who are being stripped and disenfranchised of their vote. And it's not about whether a a black electorate elects a black individual or a white electorate or whites. I represent a community that's less than 2% Indian American registered voters.

I think I represent them pretty well. The point is that they have self determination to decide who they want to represent them, And that self determination is being stripped. And, yes, it did start with the president of The United States who is led on policy by a white nationalist calling up Texas and demanding five seats, not going to the voters, just doing it outright. And yet in these democratic states where it's been done, they've gone to the voters.

And even that gets tossed out by the US Supreme Court that whose majority has aligned with the White House.

And so today, as I ask you to support AJR 31

Thirty seconds.

This is not simply this is not simply about standing up for the Voting Rights Act. It's about us telling all Americans that California stands for self determination. California will not go back a hundred years. California you can yell at me all you want.

Mister Gallagher. Excuse me. Members. Members. All members. All members. Excuse me. Mister Berman. Okay. Decorum. Mister Gallagher, you are out of order. Everyone, have a moment of reflection. Take a deep breath. Let's do our best to celebrate the diversity of opinion in the state of California. Let's not interrupt our colleagues, but speak respectfully.

Please continue, mister Kalra.

We will not stand down. We will not back down. We will not fighting. We will not stop fighting for the promise of America, and we will not stop fighting alongside our black sisters and brothers.

Thank you. Assemblymember Kalra. Assemblymember Patterson, you are recognized.

Thank you, mister speaker. You know, the my colleague said some things that made me wanna speak on this measure. And until those things were said, I was planning on just listening to the debate like I've done most of the time this year, and I'm falling down the rankings of how many words I've spoken this year. But it's true. I don't look kindly upon being compared to racists or segregationists.

And the fact that that continues to be allowed, those kinds of things impugning the motives of Republicans all the time on this floor. It's not just today. It's a very regular basis.

Mister Patterson, we're gonna speak to the merits of the legislation.

And I can hear my colleagues right now as I'm discussing this, heckling heckling things that I'm saying just like when all my colleagues have spoken today or on other measures.

Mister Patterson, I understand your frustration, and I just spoke about that. Please speak to the merits of the resolution.

This resolution, I don't think you can nobody here is denying racism exists in this country. No one is denying that racism exists in the way seats are created in this country. Nobody's here denying any of that. I just every time we go and we debate these very emotional, important resolutions, it's hard to clear out some of the things that are very obviously happening within this building.

And if you can't sit back and reflect on some of the things that have been discussed because of this resolution, things that are pointed out in this resolution that happened right here in this building.

If we can't acknowledge that, I don't know what to tell you. You know? I okay. I'm gonna just say one more thing, and then I'll stop. But there is no freedom of speech in this building, and I'm sorry that that makes you feel uncomfortable.

Mister Patterson, this is the third warning. Please wrap up with the merits of the resolution. Thank you. That's what we're speaking on on the floor, are the merits of the resolution.

Well, I just ask kindly that you go back and you reflect on that this weekend, exactly what I said, and come back. And as we go through the year, we think about exactly that and just watch exactly what's happening. So I appreciate my colleagues bringing this resolution and bringing this debate. I hope it sparks interest way beyond this resolution in our own chambers. Thank you.

Assemblymember Patterson. Assemblymember Ortega, you are recognized.

I rise in support of AJR 31. As an immigrant Latina, I know what it was like to have to struggle to get to this floor today, but I didn't do it alone. I did it because of my colleagues and my the history behind the voting rights act, because of the people that died for our ability to vote, to represent our communities, to have a voice. And this right here, this is what democracy looks like. This is what California looks like.

And this is what the country what this country is about. We are not going backwards. We are moving forward with everything that we have. And what makes America the greatest country on earth is the diversity of this body right here. For those reasons, I rise in support of AJR 31.

Thank you. Assemblymember Ortega. Seeing and hearing no further debate, Assemblymember Bryan, do you wish to close?

Thank you, mister speaker. Thank you to all of my colleagues who spoke on this across the aisle. I think we've made it abundantly clear who we are, all of us. And I take the point of my colleague from Rocklin. Well, nobody likes to be characterized or lectured on who they are or what they believe, which is why I also agree with my colleague from Nicholas about what feels like at times hypocrisy.

The last words my colleague from Nicholas said were if you cared about black people. My colleague from Clovis lecturing the legislative black caucus about the intent of the Voting Rights Act and the fourteenth amendment despite not having a law degree. It wasn't Democrats or Republicans who passed the Voting Rights Act. Let's just be very clear about that. It was black people.

It was black mothers, black sons, black preachers, black children who sacrificed everything. They never got tired. They were the ones who believed the best in this country despite seeing the worst. Many are still alive today, by the way, and they are seeing the worst. That is what's telling us what's happening in this moment.

I knew John Lewis. Reverend Lawson was a mentor of mine. 20 of us were down with people who marched in Selma, marched in Montgomery just last year. The history and the record of this is clear. And I don't wanna hear anything else about meritocracy.

Not when somebody who's accused of sexual assault sits on the same Supreme Court as Ketanji Brown Brown Jackson, who's been denied her accomplishments time and time again. Not when a TV reality host sits as president, but the first black man to be the head of the Harvard Law Review has his credibility not every single day. There is nothing meritorious about the maps that are coming out of the South. They are racist. That is what they are.

You couldn't disenfranchise black people more if you tried to. That's how we know that they tried to. We stand with our brothers from Tennessee and Memphis and around the country. I can also tell you that if you tried to disenfranchise the people of South LA and silence my voice and prevent us from being represented properly, you would get more than a protest from me. But today, I respectfully ask for your eye vote on AJR 31.

Thank you. Assemblymember Brian. Assemblymember Brian, you wish for the first role to be open for co authors?

Absolutely.

All debate having ceased, Clerk will open the role. Members, this is for co authors. All members vote who desire to vote. All members vote who desire to vote. All members vote who desire to vote.

This is for co authors. Clerk will close the roll and tally the votes. There are 57 co authors added members. This is an assembly joint resolution, requires roll call vote. Clerk will open the roll.

All members vote who desire to vote. This is on the resolution. All members vote who desire to vote. All members vote who desire to vote. Clerk will close the roll and tally the votes.

Aye's 58, noes eight, resolution passes. Assemblymember Bryan, you are recognized for your guest introduction.

Colleagues, we are joined by a member of the Tennessee State Assembly. He represents Nashville. He's a friend and a hero of mine and the Black Caucus. Please join me in welcoming Justin Jones back to the California assembly.

Members, we it's an important day today. As we all know, we have to get through a few items of business. I'm gonna ask you to take your desk, please. Okay. We're gonna continue on our assembly third reading file.

We're gonna pass through tandem file lines 47, 48, 49, fifty, fifty one, 52. Decorum, please. File item 53, that's AB 2341 by Assemblymember Fong. The Clerk will read.

AB 2341 by Assemblymember Fong, an act relating to local government and declaring the urgency thereof to take effect immediately.

Thank you, members. Let's give our respectful attention to the author. Thank you, members. Thank you. Thank you.

Assemblymember Fong, you are recognized.

Good morning, Mr. Speaker and members. In 2023, the government signed AB 163, requiring local agencies to provide translations in certain languages during emergency situations. Some local agencies have indicated that the language on how to determine which languages must be translated is not very clear. AB 2341 simply clarifies the language and adds a formula to ensure consistent implementation of the law. This is a support bill, and I respect the ask for an aye vote.

Thank you Assemblymember Fong. Members, this is a 54 vote bill. All debate having ceased, Clerk will open the roll. All members vote who desire to vote. All members vote who desire to vote.

All members vote who desire to vote. Clerk will close the roll tally votes. Aye 68, no zero on the urgency. Aye 68, no zero on the measure. The measure passes.

We'll pass and retain the file line 54, 55, 56, 57, 58. File item 59 is AB 1816 by Assemblymember Davies. Clerk will read.

Assembly bill eighteen sixteen by Assemblymember Davies, enact relating to probation.

Assemblymember Davies, you are recognized.

Thank you, mister speaker. Members, today I'm here to present AB 1816. Under a finding necessity by a court, this bill provides a narrow one year extension of court ordered supervision to ensure that individuals required to register as sex offenders can fully complete essential rehabilitation programs and classes that are critical for successful reintegration. AB 1816 recognizes that the path to rehabilitation isn't always a straight line, and it shouldn't be cut short by existing rigid statutory deadlines, such as someone is finding their footing.

This bill has received bipartisan support, has no no votes, and I respectfully ask for a nigh vote.

Thank you, Assemblymember Davies. All debate having ceased, clerk will open the roll. All members vote who desire to vote. All members vote who desire to vote. All members vote who desire to vote.

Clerk will close the roll, tally votes. Ayes 56, no zero. The measure passes. Gonna pass through in tandem file item sixty, sixty one, 62, 63, 64. That's file item 65 is AB 2561 by assembly member of Valencia.

The clerk will read.

Assembly bill twenty five sixty one by Assemblymember Valencia, an act relating to privacy.

Assemblymember Valencia, you are recognized.

Thank you, mister speaker. And members, AB 2561 would ensure consumers maintain control over their preferred privacy settings on their phones and digital, technologies by prohibiting any changes to a user setting without their consent. This bill does enjoy unanimous support. With that, I respectfully ask for a yes vote.

Thank you. Assembly member Valencia, all debate having ceased. Clerk will open the roll. All members vote who desire to vote. All members vote who desire to vote.

All members vote who desire to vote. The clerk will close the roll, tally the votes, size 65, no zero. The measure passes. Pass and retain on file item 66 all the way through 75. That brings us to file item number 76.

That's ACR 167 by Assemblymember Hadwick. The clerk will read.

Assembly Concurrent Resolution 167 by Assemblymember Hadwick relative to the World Agritourism Day.

Assemblymember Hadwick. Just a moment. Thank you, members. Assemblymember Hadwick, you are recognized.

Thank you, mister speaker. Members, I rise today to present ACR 167 recognizing World Agrotourism Day and celebrating the farms and ranches across California that open their gates to the public and create unforgettable experiences for families. I'd ask my colleagues, have you ever visited a vineyard, enjoyed a wine tasting, walked through a flower farm, taken your kids to a petting zoo or a pumpkin patch, or spend a fall afternoon at a you pick farm, filling buckets with berries or apples straight from the field.

Those experiences are more than just a fun day trip. They create memories that last a lifetime.

They connect Californians to the people who grow our food into the land that sustains our state. The California wine industry alone attracts an estimated 21,000,000 tourists who roughly spend 2,100,000,000 annually statewide. As many of you know, my family runs the only pumpkin patch in Modoc County. And across my district, 11 counties, we are proud to have 26 pumpkin patches serving families and communities every fall.

Agritourism is also an important economic driver for California with millions of visitors participating every year from farm stays to harvest festivals to corn mazes and tours.

Helping small farms and ranches diversify their income and remain viable for future generations. In fact, California farms welcome more than 2,400,000 agritourism visitors in a single year and agritourism continues to grow as families seek authentic local experiences. For many small family farms, agritourism is not just a supplemental income. It is what keeps the farm operating. It allows farmers and ranchers to adapt, innovate, and continue contributing to California's agricultural heritage.

Today, we recognize those farmers, ranchers, and small business owners who work tirelessly to provide these experiences and strengthen rural economies throughout our state.

Thank you. Assemblymember Hadwick. Assemblymember, do you wish for the first role to be open for co authors?

I do.

Members, all debate having ceased, the clerk will open the role. Members, this is for co authors. All members vote who desire to vote. All members vote who desire to vote. All members vote who desire to vote.

Clerk will close the roll and tally the votes. There are 65 66 co authors added. Without objection, we'll take a voice vote on the resolution. All those in favor, say aye. Aye.

All those opposed, no. The ayes have it. The resolution is adopted. Assembly member Hadwick, you are recognized for your guest introduction.

Thank you, mister speaker. I'm proud to introduce some of the best champions of agritourism in the state. Eleven years ago, my husband and I took an agritourism workshop put on by the UC extension office to learn about opening our business. We celebrated ten years of business last year and have opened our farm to over 30,000 visitors in that time. Our small patch has become a community hub every fall for families to make memories.

And we've had the pleasure to watch these kids grow up and be a little part of their family memories. Today, I'm honored to have in the gallery some of the biggest advocates for agri tourism. Miss Penny Leff, retired UC Statewide Agri tourism coordinator, who is actually the teacher of our course. And Rachel Callahan, the current UC statewide agri tourism coordinator. And representing the California Department of Food and Agriculture, Miss Sarah Ansell.

Local business owner and farmer farm operator, Justin Miller of Twin Peaks Orchard. And on the floor, I have, the California Farm Bureau President and my college classmate from Chico State College of Agriculture, Shannon Douglas. Please give him a warm welcome.

Okay. We are going to continue on with file item number 77. That's ACR 190 by Assemblymember Ortega. The clerk will

read. Assembly Concurrent Resolution one ninety by Assemblymember Ortega relative to the California Day of the Teacher.

Assemblymember Ortega, you are recognized.

Thank you, mister speaker and members. There's no interest. Today, I rise to present ACR 190 to celebrate the California day of the teacher, which was yesterday, May 13. Today, we honor our teachers for their dedication, resilience, and the support they provide California's teachers I mean, children. The day of the teacher was recognized in 1982 as a collaboration between the California Teachers Association and the Association of Mexican American Educators.

It was inspired by the traditional El Dia del Maestro festivities observed in Mexico and other Latin American countries. The day of the teacher is a day for school district, parents, public officials, and the community to recognize the commitment of teachers who are educating our children, our future leaders. Schools are supposed to be safe, stable environments for students to learn and become well rounded citizens.

But today, worries about school funding, large class sizes, and lack of adequate resources detract from the quality of education our students receive and leave our teachers unsupported and overburdened. As we honor our teachers today, let's ensure we recommit to ensuring that our schools have the resources they need to educate our future leaders.

Colleagues, please join me in celebrating this day of the teacher by supporting ACR 190.

Thank you, Assemblymember Ortega. Assemblymember Quirk Silva, you are recognized.

Thank you, mister speaker. Today, I rise in strong support of ACR 190 by Assemblymember Ortega recognizing California, the day of the teacher. Today, we honor educators across our state who dedicate their lives to shaping future generations and strengthening our communities through learning, mentorship, and compassion. Personal privilege.

Without objection.

I wanted to personally share that today when I returned to Fullerton, in the school district that I've taught And for thirty years, I will be officially retiring as a teacher along with my husband. We both have taught more than thirty years. I in grades, kindergarten all the way up to junior high, and my husband, a junior high teacher. And although you know me in my second chapter as a legislator, it is my first career in profession starting in 1987. Members think back to 1987.

What classrooms were like without technology, with books in kids hand, with paints in kindergarten and preschool children's hands, with clay and painting, with songs and poems. That's the education that I started with, and that's the education that we need to return to. There is too much information that we know is out there that shows that kids need to be talked to, kids need to be read to, kids need to have songs that are sung that they remember and that they memorize.

And that is where I will find my final final days. Whereas one of my best joys now is my two year old grandson, where Aye, in fact, am teaching some of the same things from reading Clifford to reading, some of the stories that I read to my own children.

But today is about recognizing teachers for what they are now enduring in many classrooms. We know that teachers don't always have the support that they've had in the past. And this is a plea for everybody on this floor to say thank you to the teachers that teach all day, to recognize those teachers, and to know that to be a great teacher in a classroom, you have to have supportive families. And parents, part of it is your responsibility.

When we know that kids can come to school and understand rules and structure and understand that, what they do in the classroom as children comes from parents.

So parents say no. Parents set rules. Parents give your child chores. These are the fundamentals that will help your child be successful in school. And of course, it helps teachers.

So for all of those teachers, I wanna end with saying education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire. One child, one teacher, one book, one pen, and of course, my cursive writing bill can change the world. And with that, I respectfully ask for an aye vote on ACR 190.

Thank you, Assemblymember Quirk Silva or miss Quirk Silva to so many. Seeing and hearing no further debate, Assemblymember Ortega, do you wish to close?

I respectfully ask for an aye vote.

Do you wish for the first role to be open for co authors?

Yes.

Okay. All debate having ceased, clerk will open the roll. Members, this is for co authors. All members vote who desire to vote? All members vote who desire to vote?

All members vote who desire to vote. The clerk will close the role, tally the votes. There are 69 co authors added. Without objection, we'll take a voice vote on the resolution. All those in favor, say aye.

All those opposed, no. The ayes have it. The resolution is adopted. Assembly member Ortega, you are recognized for your guest introduction.

Today, we had I had a guest in the gallery, a teacher, Mara Harvey. Unfortunately, she had to go, but I do wanna recognize her. She began her career in education in 2,002 as a high school social science teacher in Natomas. Now serves on the CTA board of directors. She has worn many hats during her career as an advocate, a union leader, a civic champion.

But like all teachers, her true passion lies in the well-being and education development of our children. For her and all the other teachers in this state, I would love to give a big hand. Thank you.

Okay. Before we continue with on the daily file, Assemblymember Soria, you are recognized for your guest introduction.

Thank you, mister speaker and members. Today, I rise to recognize three amazing interns that have been a big part of team Soria over the last several months, all which are leaving us this week. I wanna recognize Diana Campbell and Wendy Abrego Miranda. They both work in my Fresno district office, Both Fresno State students, and we appreciate all their hard work over the last several months. And also, Bridgette Nuno from Sac State.

She is a poli Sci Student and a future lawyer. Again, I wanna recognize these young women who are the future of California, our future psychologists, English professors, and lawyers. So welcome to the assembly floor, ladies, and thank you so much for your incredible work.

Okay. We are going to continue on and pass and retain on file item 78. File item 79, that's AB 1581 by Assembly member Ramos. The clerk will read.

Assembly bill fifteen eighty one by Assembly member Ramos and others, an act relating to pupils.

Assembly member Ramos, you are recognized.

Well, thank you, mister speaker. Today, I rise to present AB 1581. It focuses on ensuring Native American students are accurately identified in our public schools that has been overlooked here in the state of California. This misclassification equals incomplete data, which makes it difficult to allocate resources effectively or tailor educational programs to specific cultural and academic needs. This common sense legislation would implement policies aimed at bringing our state in line with others to ensure California's Native American students are no longer overlooked.

And this is why representation matters. I ask for your aye vote.

Thank you, Assemblymember Ramos. All debate having ceased, clerk will open the roll. All members vote who desire to vote. All members vote who desire to vote. All members vote who desire to vote.

Clerk will close the roll tally votes. Their ayes 69, no zero. The measure passes. Continuing on to file item number 80, that's AB 1586, also by Assemblymember Ramos. Members, can you please sit members, can you please take your desk?

Assemblymember Ramos, you are recognized.

Well, thank you, Mister speaker. Today, I rise to

Excuse me. I'm so sorry, Mister Ramos. My mistake. Clerk will read.

Assembly bill 1586 by Assemblymember Ramos, and I'd relate into people health.

Assembly member Ramos, my mistake. You are recognized.

Thank you, Mister speaker. Today, I rise to present AB 1586. It focuses on our school's ability to respond quickly and effectively to an opioid overdose on campuses. AB 1586 would require school resource officers to receive opioid overdose prevention training every two years and directs the Department of Health Care Services to integrate overdose responses into school safety plans.

The bill ultimately encourages both law enforcement and schools to have a greater access to remedies to the overdose that is happening and have more trained personnel on campuses within our schools.

I ask for your aye vote.

Thank you, Assemblymember Ramos. All debate haven't ceased. Clerk will open the roll.

All members vote who desire to vote. All members vote who desire to vote.

All members vote who desire to vote.

Clerk will close the roll tally vote. Aye's 68 and no 0. The measure passes. Gonna pass and retain them file items 81, 82.

File item 83 is AB 1665 by Assemblymember Pacheco. Clerk will read.

Assembly bill sixteen sixty five by Assemblymember Pacheco and others, and act relating to school athletics.

Assemblymember Pacheco, you are recognized.

Thank you, mister speaker and members. Today, I rise to present AB 1665, part of a bill package focused on student mental health training for coaches. The bill package is in partnership with assembly member Erwin and assembly member Gabriel Menjivar health crisis. More than twenty percent of children experience mental health issues, and three in ten teenagers report serious psychological distress. And these numbers are increasing.

At the same time, the number of young people participating in school sports is on the rise. Athletics are intended to be a fun physical and mental outlet, but increased competition and pressure to perform can intensify stress for young athletes. California already recognizes the role that trusted adults play in supporting men student mental health. Teachers receive youth mental health training as part of their credentialing process. Coaches are also our trusted adults in students students lives.

They often spend hours with student athletes and may be among the first to notice when a young person is struggling. They have the unique opportunity to spot mental health crisis and point students toward appropriate resources. School coaches are required to complete training to support student athlete physical health. Yet, these safety courses do not include any instruction about how to support student athlete's mental health, even though physical and mental well-being are closely connected.

AB 1665 requires sports coaches to complete an approved mental health training course.

The bill will equip coaches who see and interact closely with student athletes to recognize when a student may need support.

Vote. Thank you Assemblymember Pacheco. All debate having ceased, Clerk will open the roll. All members vote who desire to vote. All members vote who desire to vote.

All members vote who desire to vote. Clerk will close the roll, tally the votes. I 62, no zero. The measure passes. File item 84 is AB 1693 by Assemblymember's Board.

Clerk will read.

Assembly vote sixteen ninety three by Assemblymember Sebert and others, enact relating to retailers.

Assemblymember's Board, you are recognized.

Thank you, mister speaker. Members, I am proud to present AB 1693, which will support the state's diverse brick and mortar retail sector. Across California, small businesses and retail establishments face unpredictable local permitting processes for tenant improvements that create hardship, such as increased project costs, delayed business operations, and stagnant economic activity. When unnecessary permitting delays prevent business owners from taking on needed interior improvements to an existing building, it hurts not only the business, but the workforce and the surrounding community.

Last year, in a bill authored by our appropriations chair, we created a streamlined approval process for restaurants seeking interior tenant improvements through this and through the success of AB 167 through the success of AB 1671, establishing a similar model for retail projects will help small businesses to thrive in California.

AB 1693 aims to address this by requiring local building departments to allow a licensed architect or engineer serving as a qualified professional certifier to review tenant improvements and certify those improvements for applicable building health and safety codes. This legislation is critical as reducing these permitting delays will promote economic activity throughout the state while maintaining appropriate safety and compliance standards. Members, this bill has been tagged a cost cutter by the California Chamber of Commerce and has enjoyed significant, bipartisan support.

I respectfully ask for your aye vote.

Thank you. So many members for all debate having ceased. Clerk will open the roll. All members vote who desire to vote. All members vote who desire to vote.

All members vote who desire to vote. Clerk will close the roll, tally the votes. I 65, noes won. The measure passes. We're gonna go backwards, members, to file item number 74.

That's AB 1768 by Assembly member Brian. This is a 54 vote bill. The clerk will read.

Assembly bill seventeen sixty eight by Assembly member Brian and others, enact relating to taxation and declaring the urgency thereof to take effect immediately.

Assembly member Brian, you are recognized.

Thank you, mister speaker and colleagues. Today, the Federal Government has announced that they're withholding $1,600,000,000 in Medicaid reimbursements from California. That's in addition to other health infrastructure cuts that are disproportionately impacting our state, the poorest communities of our state, and Los Angeles County. The people of Los Angeles County are asking for the right to decide for themselves if they want to take care of their neighbors. And I think we should give them that right, and I respectfully ask your aye vote.

Thank you. Assemblymember Brian. Assemblymember Wicks, you are recognized.

Thank you, mister speaker and members. I just wanna rise in support of this legislation. It also includes Contra Costa County. I represent one of the poorest parts of Contra Costa County. My constituents are asking for this.

They need this. It is incumbent upon us to put this on the ballot, let them vote for it, ensure that it will pass the the sniff test, and and we can make sure that we are providing that critical social safety net that folks need, because of the federal cuts that are coming with that. Respectfully ask for an aye vote.

Thank you. Assemblymember Wicks. Assemblymember Jeff Gonzalez, you are recognized.

Thank you, mister speaker. With respect to this bill, you know, it's it's we have challenges here in this state, obviously. The challenges specifically in my district is that we have a 20% unemployment rate. We have hospitals that are closing down.

So I'm looking at this from the lens of of, you know, I'm not in favor of more taxation, but we're in a place, a unique place where we have to, I have to think of my district, and I have to start saying, what's the right thing?

What's the right way in which we we go about this? We don't want hospitals to close down. And if LA and Contra Costa County believe this is their fix for their specific region, then I'll support, I'll support that. The rest of the state can come up with their their own initial fixes as well. So with that, respectfully, after an aye vote.

Thank you. Assemblymember Gonzalez. Seeing and hearing no further debate, Assemblymember Brian, do you wish to close?

Respectfully ask for not vote.

All debate having ceased, clerk will open the roll. All members vote who desire to vote. All members vote who desire to vote. All members vote who desire to vote.

All debate having ceased, clerk will open the roll. All members vote who desire to vote. All members vote who desire to vote. All members vote who desire to vote.

Clerk will close the roll, tally the votes.

Eyes 54, nose 12 on the urgency. Eyes 54, nose 12 on the measure. The measure passes immediate transmittal to the Senate. We're gonna go back to file order where we left off. That's file item number 85.

That's AB 1712 by Assemblymember Pacheco. The clerk will read.

Assembly bill seventeen twelve by Assemblymember Pacheco, enact relating to local government.

Members, can I have decorum, please? You may take your conversations off the floor. Let's please give our respectful attention to the authors that have been working so diligently over the course of this year on their bills. Thank you, members. Assembly member Pacheco, you are recognized.

Thank you. Thank you, mister speaker and members. Today, I rise to present AB 1712, a district specific bill to help the city of Santa Fe Springs address urgent needs in its water system. Santa Fe Springs owns a water system that faces groundwater contamination issues and requires urgent infrastructure upgrades. However, due to the system small size, the city cannot afford to finance these upgrades without increasing customer rates by at least 300%.

In contrast, if the city sells its system to a larger water provider, the cost of those upgrades will be spread across a much broader customer base, allowing rates to remain steady. However, under current law, a public entity must hold a municipal election before selling its water system to a PUC regulated provider, adding cost and delay for the city and its residents.

AB 1712 allows Santa Fe Springs to use a protest process instead, giving residents a clear opportunity to weigh in while also facilitating a faster, more affordable sale. After the sale, the water system would be regulated by the PUC, which will help ensure reasonable and stable rates for residents. A similar approach was successful in the nearby city of Montebello under AB 850 in 2021, where rates remain stable after the sale.

Thank you all, and I respectfully ask for your eye vote.

Thank you. Assemblymember Pacheco. Assemblymember De Maio, you are recognized.

Thank you, mister speaker. I plan on voting for AB 1712. I know the author is trying to take a thoughtful approach to make sure we can, have an efficient consolidation of districts. However, when I saw asset sales and water district, it's alarming. In the coming weeks, my office will raise issues about the outrageous sale of water.

In the middle of California's drought, and we're never gonna be drought free, a major water system wants to sell our water to other states, wants to sell our water to Mexico, and MET refuses to buy the water. And this water district participates in the MET program, I believe. A question for the author on this bill, I I don't believe this bill would involve the sale of water to other states. And if you could clarify that in your closing remarks.

Thank you, Assemblymember De Maio. Seeing and hearing no further debate, Assemblymember Pacheco, do you wish to close?

Thank you. And I respectfully ask for your aye vote.

All debate having ceased, the clerk will open the roll. All members vote who desire to vote. All members vote who desire to vote. All members vote who desire to vote. Clerk will close the roll, tally the votes.

I 68, no zero. The measure passes. Pass and retain on file item 86. File item 87 is AB 1792 by Assemblymember Michelle Rodriguez. The clerk will read.

Assembly bill seventeen ninety two by Assemblymember Michelle Rodriguez and others, an act relating to pupil instruction.

Assembly member Rodriguez, you are recognized.

Thank you, mister speaker and members. AB 1792 is a thoughtful and measured approach to how we combat the rise of sexually exploitive AI imaging in today's ever changing technological and landscape. Taking an education first approach, AB 1792 asked the Instructional Quality Commission to consider updating the health education framework to reflect these digital threats such as deep fakes, sex sextortion, online grooming, and AI generated exploitation.

With your support, the bill ensures that instruction remains age appropriate, expert driven, and it's responsive to the evolving challenges facing students today. It gives educators the tools, the tools they need, and students the knowledge they deserve to safely navigate an increasingly digital world.

And I respectfully ask for my vote.

Thank you. Assemblymember Rodriguez. I'll debate having ceased. Clerk will open the roll. All members vote who desire to vote.

All members vote who desire to vote. All members vote who desire to vote. Clerk will close the roll, tally the votes. Ayes 57, noes four, the measure passes. Pass and retain on file item 88.

File item 89 is AB 1822 by Assemblymember Muratsuchi. The clerk will read.

Assembly Bill 1822 by Assembly member Muratsuchi, an act relating to school facilities.

Assembly member Muratsuchi, you are recognized.

Thank you very much. As the lead author of Proposition 2 in 2024, the $10,000,000,000 statewide school bond measure. I bring forward Assembly Bill 1822, which would simply authorize the state allocation board, which administers the Proposition 2 funds to prioritize, projects that include an efficient response to extreme heat conditions based by many of our schools. This bill has received bipartisan support. No "no" votes. Respectfully ask for an aye vote.

Thank you. Assemblymember Muratsuchi. All debate having ceased. Clerk will open the role. All members vote who desire to vote.

All members vote who desire to vote. All members vote who desire to vote.

The clerk will close the roll tally votes. Aye's 6, No 0. The measure passes. Pass and retain them.

File items ninety, ninety one, 92. File item 93, AB 2,005 by our friend, Assemblymember Arons. Clerk will read.

Assembly bill 20 o five by Assemblymember Arons, an act relating to land use.

Assemblymember Arons, you are recognized.

Thank you, mister speaker and colleagues. Today, I rise to present AB 2005, which is a straightforward bill that aims to address the state's housing crisiS By facilitating additional urban lot splits. By addressing unintended technical barriers to implementation of SB 9 while maintaining protection against investor speculation, This bill is a crucial step forward in a state where we are in desperate need of more housing. Respectfully ask for your aye vote.

Thank you. Assembly member Aaron. Assembly member Alvarez, you are recognized.

Thank you, mister speaker. I rise in support of assembly bill 2,005. I wanna thank the author for the focus on tweaking a state law that has not produced housing, at least not what was expected, and identifying ways that, actually, individuals, people can have access to housing opportunities. And for that reason, I respectfully ask for your aye vote for A B2005.

Thank you. Assemblymember Alvarez. Seeing and hearing no further debate, assemblymember's Arons, do you wish to close?

I wanna thank my colleague from San Diego, and I respectfully ask for your aye vote.

Thank you Assemblymember Aaron. I'll debate having ceased clerk will open the roll. All members vote who desire to vote. All members vote who desire to vote. All members vote who desire to vote.

Clerk will close the roll, tally votes. I 63, noes one. The measure passes. Pass and retain on file item number 94. File item 95 is AB 2120 by Assemblymember Solace.

Clerk will read.

Assembly bill twenty one twenty by Assemblymember Solace, an act relating to school district employees.

Assemblymember Solace, you are recognized.

Thank you, mister speaker. As a former school board member and personal commissioner, I rise to present AB 1220. This bill simply removes the sunset on Los Angeles Unified School District's long standing selective certification practice. The legislature has extended this practice seven times with unanimous support since 2005. This too is also utilized by other large merit system employees, including the Federal Government and the cities of Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, and Sacramento.

The bill includes language to protect these specialized, higher extreme potential reductions of force, ensuring critical skill set are not lost due to typical layoff patterns. AB 2120 is support support bill, and I respectfully ask for an aye vote.

Thank you. Assembly member Solace. All debate having ceased, clerk will open the law. All members vote who desire to vote. All members vote who desire to vote?