Assembly Floor

Morning, California. Good afternoon, California. The Assembly is now in session. Assembly member, Ellen Eese, notices the absence of a quorum. The sergeant arms will prepare the chamber, bringing the absent members. Clerk will call the roll.

Addis, Agriakuri, Herons, Alanis, Alvarez, Arambula, Avila Farias, Baines, Bauer Kehan, Bennett, Berman, Burner, Bonta, Brian, Calderon, Coloza, Carrillo, Castillo, Chen, Connolly, Davies, De Mayo, Dixon, El Hawari, Ellis, Flora, Fogg, Gabriel, Garcia, Gibson, Jeff Gonzales, Mark Gonzales, Padwick, Haney, Harabedian, Hart, Hoover, Erwin, Jackson, Johnson, Cora, Krell, Lackey, Lee, Lowenthal, Macedo, Mckenna, Marisucci, Quinn, Ortega, Pacheco, Papan, Patel, Patterson, Pellerin, Petri Norris, Quirk Silva, Ramos, Ransom, Celestia Rodriguez, Michelle Rodriguez, Rogers, Rubio, Sanchez, Shivo, Schultz, Sharp Collins,

Members, a 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.

Assemblymember Addis will offer today's prayer. Assemblymember Addis.

Members, today we pray to our Lord for her courage and her healing, courage to stand in that place between the no longer and the not yet and make decisions that will make the lives of our fellow Californians better, healing to look over our conduct and act on the understanding that we are all the same, facing the same struggles and needing to help each other along our common paths. For these things, we pray. Amen.

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

Ma'am members, please join me in today's pledge. I pledge allegiance to the flag.

You 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 of Sacramento, Thursday, 05/07/2026, the Assembly met at 9am. The Honorable Josh Lowenthal, Speaker Pro Tempore of the Assembly Leader.

Majority leader Aguiar Curry moves, and Mister Hoover seconds that the reading of the previous day's journal be dispensed with. Presentations and 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 absence for the day for illness, Assemblymember Ellis. And onto our procedural motions, madam majority leader, you are recognized for your procedural motion.

Good morning, Mister speaker. I request unanimous consent to suspend Assembly rule 45.5 to allow Assemblymembers Krell, Lackey, Calderon, and Pellerin to step on an adjournment in memory today.

No objection. Such shall be the order.

I request unanimous consent to suspend Assembly rule 118 A to allow Assemblymembers Haney, Harabedian, Krell, Lee, Pellerin, and Valencia to have guests in the rear of the chamber and to allow speaker Rivas to have guests on the floor today.

Without objection, such shall be the order.

At the request of the authors, please remove the following measures from consent calendar. Item 147, SB 990, Grove. Item 159, SB 145, Smallwood Cuevas. And item six excuse me. Item 165, SB 1436, Committee on Revenue and Taxation.

Clerk will note.

No problem.

Okay, members. Exciting day on the floor today. The end of summer, of course, marks the end of session for the year, but it is also a critical time for us to thank the fellows from two important programs for their contributions. We will now move to the special ceremony to recognize the 2026 Assembly Science Fellows. We'll first recognize the Assembly fellows.

2025- '26 Class of Assembly fellows have served us in a wide range of staff functions. Nearly half of the offices in the legislature employ former fellows from the Executive Judicial Senate or Assembly Fellowship Programs. Former fellows go on to do great things. We're expecting that out of you folks. They have been elected to the legislature.

They have served in other key roles such as Officers of the Legislature, Government Officials, Supreme Court Justices, University Instructors, Executives, and Community Leaders. Members who hosted fellows, please make your way to the rear of the chamber to escort your fellow. I ask that Speaker Rivas and Leader Macedo move to the front center aisle, please.

Okay, colleagues. The time has arrived.

I am pleased to present the 2025-2026 Jesse Marvin Unruh Assembly fellows. Clerk will read.

Escorted by Majority Leader, Aguiar Curry is Madeline Rotorda. She is from Alameda, California and is a graduate of the University of California, Berkeley. Please welcome, Madeline Roorda.

Escorted by Assembly member Ahrens is Maxwell Martinez. He is from Sacramento, California and is a graduate of California State University, Chico. Please welcome Maxwell Martinez.

Escorted by Assembly member Alanis, is Gabriela Gutierrez. She is from Tehachapi, California and is a graduate of California State University, Fullerton. Please welcome, Gabriela Gutierrez.

Escorted by Assemblymember Bonta is Naomi South. She is from Richmond, Virginia and is a graduate of Harvard University. Please welcome, Naomi South.

Escorted by Assemblymember Calderon is Ryan Dolan. He is from Novato, California and is a graduate of Syracuse University. Please welcome, Ryan Dolan.

Escorted by Assemblymember Carrillo is Jalen Wise. He is from Sacramento, California and is a graduate of the University of Nevada-Reno. Please welcome, Jalen Wise.

Escorted by Assemblymember Chen is Jonathan Ng. He is from San Ramon, California and is a graduate of the University of California, Davis. Please welcome, Jonathan Ng.

Escorted by Assemblymember Elhawary is Blas Guerrero. He is from Pleasant Hill, California and is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame. Please welcome, Blas Guerrero.

Escorted by Assemblymember Gabriel is Juan Becerra. He is from Winnetka, California and is a graduate of Swartzman College of Singla University. Please welcome, Juan Becerra.

Escorted by Assemblymember Mark Gonzales is Doris Kim. She is from Cerritos, California and is a graduate of the University of California, Davis. Please welcome, Doris Kim.

Escorted by Assemblymember Haney is Megan Lee. She is from Hayward, California and is a graduate of the University of California, Santa Barbara. Please welcome, Megan Lee.

Escorted by Assemblymember Harabedian is Mika Villavert. She is from Walnut, California and is a graduate of the University of California, Los Angeles. Please welcome, Mika Villavert.

Escorted by Assemblymember Irwin is Senay Zedingel. He is from Hawthorne, California and is a graduate of the University of California Los Angeles. Please welcome, Senay Zedingel.

Escorted by Assemblymember Johnson is Marco Florez. He is from Exeter, California, and is a graduate of California State University, Fresno. Please welcome, Marco Florez.

Escorted by Assemblymember Patterson is Simranjot Kaur. She is from Yuba City, California and is a graduate of California State University, Sacramento. Please welcome, Simranjot Kaur.

Escorted by Assemblymember Pellerin is Jonathan Vong. He is from San Gabriel, California and is a graduate of the University of California, Davis. Please welcome, Jonathan Fong.

Escorted by Assemblymember Rogers is Ignasio Castillo. He is from Bakersfield, California and is a graduate of California State University, Bakersfield. Please welcome, Ignasio Castillo.

Escorted by Assemblymember Schultz is Sydney Wood. She is from Jacksonville, Florida and is a graduate of the University of Michigan. Please welcome,Sydney Wood.

Escorted by Assemblymember Sharp Collins is Raquel Williams. She is from Alameda, California and is a graduate of the University of Rochester. Please welcome, Raquel Williams.

Escorted by Assemblymember Stefani is Ava Francis Hall. She is from Novato, California and is a graduate of Pfizer College. Please welcome, Ava Francis Hall.

Escorted by Assemblymember Todd is Jourieal Quisin. He is from Stockton, California and is a graduate of the University of California Davis. Please welcome, Jourieal Quisin.

Escorted by Assemblymember Wallace is Cameron Brown. He is from Camarillo, California and is a graduate of California State University, Channel Islands. Please welcome, Cameron Brown.

And escorted by Assemblymember Ward is Barbara Sanford. She is from Aptos, California and is a graduate of Stanford University. Please welcome, Barbara Sanford.

Okay, members. As the Assembly fellows and our Assembly leadership pose for a group photo, a group photo everybody. So we need you to come in here, slide into the middle in front of the dais for a group photo. But as they are getting ready for that members, would you please direct your attention to the rear of the chamber and join me in welcoming those who manage the Assembly fellowship program. Everybody up?

Okay. We have our Executive Director of the Center for California Studies, Leonor Ehling. The Director of the Assembly Fellowship Program, Ambar Carlisle Salgueiro. Last but not least, our Fellowship Coordinator, Rose Castillo. And also, members look up please also welcome the family and friends of our Assembly fellows in the gallery.

Alright. Picture time. Picture time. We have no doubt that this class of fellows will continue the program's legacy achievement as the fellows leave the chamber folks. Let's give them one last big round of applause, please.

Okay. We are not done. We are not done. We are now going to recognize our California Council on Science and Technology Policy Fellows. California Council on Science Technology Policy Fellows Program places PhD level or equivalent scientists and engineers in legislative offices to provide members and staff with advice on legislation and public policy issues.

During their fellowships, our science fellows worked as staff in our policy committees. We appreciate their expertise and contributions to the people of the great state of California. Members, those of you who hosted science fellows, please make your way to the rear of the Chamber. I also ask that speaker Rivas and leader Macedo come forth for presentations. Okay, colleagues.

The time is here. I am pleased to present the 2025, 26 Science and Technology Policy Fellows. Clerk will read.

Doctor Sean Clair was placed in the Water, Parks and Wildlife Committee. He is escorted by Committee Chair Diane Papan. Doctor Clare's research used high altitude balloons and aircraft to study the ozone layer. He earned his PhD in Chemistry from the University of California, Berkeley, and a BS in chemistry from the University of Richmond. Please welcome doctor Sean Clair.

Doctor Alexa Cohill-Milanick was placed in the Utilities and Energy Committee. She is escorted by committee Chair, Cottie Petrie-Norris. In her research, Doctor Cohill-Milanick investigated pathways in the brain that influenced addition-like behaviors. She earned her PhD in Neuroscience from the University of Iowa, and a BS in Neuroscience from North Central Collage. Please welcome Doctor Alexa Cohill-Melanick. Doctor Kate Davis was placed in the Privacy and Consumer Protection Committee. She is escorted by Committee Chair Rebecca Bauer-Kahan. In her research, Doctor Davis studied the effects of illness, during pregnancy, on fetal brain development. She earned her PhD, in Neuroscience from the University of Texas at Austin, and a BS of Phycology from Southwestern University. Please welcome Doctor Kate Davis. Doctor Akhbed Farrah was placed in the Emergency Management Committee. She is escorted by Committee Chair, Rhodesia Ransom. In her research, Doctor Farrah studied commercially important algae used for biofuel as a renewable energy alternative.

She earned her PhD in biological sciences from the University of California, San Diego, an MS in environmental science from California State University, Los Angeles, and a BS in Biochemistry from Sacramento State. Please welcome Doctor Akhbed Farrah. And Doctor Sarah Cate Hawthorne was placed in the Education Committee. She is escorted by committee Chair Darshana Patel. In her research, Doctor Hawthorne studied the cellular causes of rare diseases commonly termed childhood Alzheimer's.

She earned her PhD in Molecular and Cellular Biology from Oregon Health and Science University, an MS in Global Public Health from Trinity College Dublin, and BS degrees in Biological Sciences and English from the University of Notre Dame. Please welcome my doctor Sarah Cate Hawthorne.

Okay. Time for the photo again. Everybody come to the center, please. Now while the science fellows and Assembly leadership get together for this photo, we also recognize other guests from the program, members please look up and around.

Let's welcome the family and friends of our fellows up in the gallery, please. Welcome, welcome. And in the rear of the Chamber are executives from the California Council on Science and Technology. They are Julianne McCall, Chief Executive Officer, and Puneet Bhullar, Director of Policy Engagement. Welcome, and thank you.

Thank you. Thank you. Okay. Members, as our science fellows exit the chamber, please join me in one final round of applause. Thank you so much and congratulations.

Members, this concludes our ceremony. Members, while we are waiting for some guests to arrive into the gallery so we can introduce them, will you please join me in wishing our friend, Assemblymember Wicks, a very happy birthday today. Happy birthday. Our appropriations Chair. Members, while we continue to wait, we are going to move on to business on the daily file.

We will be interrupting our business, to do some guest introductions as we continue. But in the interest of time, we will begin with our second reading, File Items one 1-6. The Clerk will read.

Senate Bills 938, 952, 958, 999, 1261 and Senate Bill 1371.

All bills will be deemed read and all amendments will be deemed adopted. Okay. Here we go with our guest introductions. We are going to begin with Doctor Patel. Doctor Patel?

Okay. Scratch that.

Okay. We are gonna go into concurrence and Senate amendments. It is gonna be you, doctor Patel.

File Item 7-12. We are going to pass through on File Lines 7, 8 and 9. That brings us to File Line number 10, AB 2106 by Doctor Patel. The Clerk will read.

Assembly Bill 2106 by Assemblymember Patel and act related to civil actions.

Doctor Patel, you are recognized.

Thank you, Mister Speaker. I rise today to present AB 2106 back on concurrence. Members, Senate amendment simply extended the bill's enhanced vote vetting requirements to geologists and geophysicists. AB 2106 has no opposition and it has received unanimous support in the Assembly and the Senate. I respectfully ask your aye vote.

Thank you, Doctor Patel. 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. Aye 65, no 0, Senate amendments are concurred in. Pass through ... on File Items 11 and 12, file item 13 is a notice.

File item 13 is a notice. Okay. Going back to guest introductions. Assemblymember Lee? Assemblymember Lee?

Assemblymember Lee, you are recognized for your guest introduction.

Thank you, Mister Speaker. Please join me in welcoming the Science Bowl National Champions from Fremont's own Mission San Jose High School. The National Science Bowl is one of the most prestigious STEM competitions in the nation where students compete to solve complex problems in all branches of science and math. The team from my district, Mission San Jose High School, competed in Washington DC this past May and won the high school division's national title, placing the first among 68 teams nationally.

I'd like to recognize the students for their incredible achievement.

They are Anish Agarwal, Ruthvik Aurora, Roshan Anomalai, Tinash Sengupta, Advati Mopuri. I'd also like to thank their coach doctor Dorota Savika for her mentorship and unwavering support for these exceptional students who will present the next generations of innovators and change makers. Congratulations to the Mission San Jose High School team for winning first place at National Science World Championship, and please join me in giving them a warm welcome, colleagues.

Thank you. Assemblymember Lee. Okay, we're going on to reconsideration File Items 14-16, all items shall be continued. Assemblymember Ortega, you are recognized for your guest introduction.

Thank you, Mister Speaker. Please join me in welcoming Naomi Lee, her dad Owen Lee, her classmates Luna Levine, and Marie Alvarez Cho to the California State Assembly. Naomi and her friends will all be starting the fifth-grade next year and are spending some of their summer vacation driving all the way up to Sacramento from the East Bay to tour the Capital, and learn about their State Legislature, and the work that we do here.

Thank you for making us a destination for your summer, and we wish you nothing but the best in your new school year. Naomi.

Welcome to the California Assembly, Naomi. Welcome, welcome. Okay. We're moving on to the Assembly third reading file. We are gonna come back to guest introductions.

Gonna begin by pass and retaining on File Items 17, 18, 19, 20. File Item number 21 is ACR 199 by Assemblymember Kalra. The Clerk will read.

Assembly Concurrent Resolution 199 by Assemblymember Kalra and others relative to India's Independence Day.

Assemblymember Kalra, you are recognized.

Thank you, Mister Speaker. Members, I rise to present ACR 199, which honors India's Independence Day, a holiday celebrated by Indian Americans to honor their heritage and pay tribute to the cultural and political significance of India's independence from Great Britain. On 08/15/1947, after years of nonviolent resistance to over two hundred years of British colonial rule, India's first prime minister raised the Indian national flag and in doing so gave rise to the world's largest democracy.

India in a relatively short or in relatively short order ushered in an era of industrialization and self determination for its people. California is home to the largest population of Indian Americans in the country, many of whom have made vast contributions to the tech, medical, agricultural, business, and hospitality industries, just to name a few.

ACR 199 recognizes the great contributions and deep connections so many of our community members have to India's rich cultural history, celebrating that it is our diversity as a state that makes us stronger. It's my privilege to recognize India's Independence Day for all Californians and celebrate our nation's shared values of democracy and fair representation as we work towards a more unified global community.

Thank you, Assemblymember Kalra. Doctor. Baines, you are recognized.

Thank you, Speaker and members. Definitely want to thank Assemblymember Kalra for this resolution. The Sikh community played a huge, massive role in Indias' struggle for independence from British colonial rule. Despite being less than 2% of the entire population of India, Sikhs accounted for the vast majority of freedom fighters who were executed, exiled, or sentenced to life imprisonment. Their sacrifices are by the numbers.

Many events were recorded on the sacrifice of the Sikh community. So thank the author, Assemblymember Kalra for bringing this forward. Happy Independence Day.

Thank you, Doctor Banes. Doctor Patel, you are recognized.

Good morning once again, Mister Speaker and members, or is it afternoon? Today, I rise in strong support of ACR 199, recognizing 08/15/2026 as India's Independence Day. On 08/15/1947, India gained its independence after historic struggle for freedom rooted in nonviolence, democracy, and self-determination. This year marks India's Eightieth Independence Day and seventy-ninth year celebrating.

It's an important milestone for members of the Indian diaspora around the world. For Indian Americans, this day also connects a global community, bringing together immigrants, their children, and grandchildren, and families with enduring ties to India. California is home to the largest Indian American population in the nation, and their contributions can be seen throughout our communities from medicine and education to small business, technology, and public service.

I see firsthand, in my own district, where I am proud to join our community this year in celebrating India's Eightieth Independence Day and the heritage and traditions that continue to connect the generations. This relationship between India and The United States also extends beyond our communities.

India's independence movement and Mahatma Gandhi's commitment to nonviolent resistance influenced leaders around the world including doctor Martin Luther King Jr and the American Civil Rights Movement. ACR 199 honors both India's history and the generations of Indian Americans who have helped strengthen California. I am proud to jointly author this resolution with Assemblymember Kalra, and I respectfully ask for your aye vote today. Thank you.

Thank you so much, Doctor Patel. Seeing and hearing no further debate, Assemblymember Kalra, do you wish to close?

Thank you, Mister Speaker. I wanna give gratitude to my colleagues. I I'm proud of the fact that I was the first Indian American elected to the California legislature, but I'm even more proud of the fact that I have two colleagues here to ensure that I didn't remain the first and only one.

And so I have great gratitude to my colleagues from San Diego and and Delano and a special thank you to the both of them and particularly my colleague from Delano for highlighting the contributions specifically of the Sikh community, in the fight for India's independence. I respectfully ask for an aye vote on ACR 199.

Thank you, Assemblymember. Members, as this point in the legislative calendar, we're no longer able to add co-authors on these resolutions on ACRs. 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. Moving on to File Item 22, that's HR 119 by Assemblymember Alanis. The clerk will read.

House Resolution 119 by Assemblymember Alanis relative to International Referees Day.

Assembly member Alanis, you are recognized.

Thank you, Mister Speaker. Today, I rise to introduce HR 119, which recognizes October 11 as National Referees Day. Referees, umpires, and sport officials at every level play an essential role in maintaining the integrity and respect of the games we love. While their work often goes unnoticed, their professionalism, judgment, and dedication are important to ensuring that competitions can take place in a safe and respectful environment.

Additionally, HR 119 serves as a reminder that these individuals deserve the same respect and appreciation as do the players and coaches as sports could not exist without them.

Thank you, and I respectfully ask for your aye vote.

Thank you, Assemblymember Alanis. Unlike Concurrent Resolutions, HRs stay within our body, we can add co-authors. Would you like for the first role to be open for co-authors?

I would love that. Thank you.

Okay. All debate having ceased, the 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.

This is for co-authors. All members vote who desire to vote. Clerk will close the roll, tally the votes. Ayes, 59. There are 59 co-authors added.

Without objection, we'll add we'll take a voice vote on the resolution. All those in favor, say aye. All those opposed, no. The ayes have it. Resolution is adopted.

Assemblymember Alanis, you are recognized for your guest introduction.

Thank you again, Mister Speaker. Members, it is my honor for the International Referee Day that I would like to introduce Marsha Barclay, a successful and highly distinguished Referee. Marsha has been officiating varsity, collegiate, and Olympic sports for thirty-four years. She has officiated a multitude of postseason games, including the NCAA Division 1 World Series Finals, the ACA Softball Women's Olympic Team official, and several CIF state championships. Marsha has spent decades mentoring high level officials with her impressive experience and leadership skills.

As one of the very first African American women to take a leadership role in California officiating, she has inspired many young women to enter the ranks of sports officials across our state. Off the court, Marsha has an extensive background in criminal justice. She became the first African American woman to the rank of Director in the Sacramento court system. I'm honored to recognize Marsha for her dedication and service throughout the athletic industry and the criminal justice system and in her own community.

She's standing up here in the gallery next to Arezzo, and I wanna say thank you very much.

And please, members, join me in congratulating Marsha Barclay.

Congratulations, Marsha. We are not done singing your praises. Assemblymember Bryan, you are recognized for your guest introduction.

Thank you, Mister speaker and colleagues. I also rise along with my colleague from Modesto, in behalf of my colleagues in the California Legislative Black Caucus. Not only has Marsha Barclay officiated varsity, collegiate, and national level competition for thirty-four years, she was one of the first two African American women to rise to the rank of Director in the court system. She's also a group leader with the Northern California Officials Association, more than 325 officials.

She was one of the first black women to officiate in the Sacramento area, and one of only three to break through the glass ceiling and work men's high school basketball games.

As a former high school basketball player, I can tell you there is nobody tougher than the referee. And, Marsha, you are black history, and we appreciate you. Please join me in congratulating Marsha again.

Continuing on, File Line number 23, that's HR 125 by Assemblymember Valencia. The Clerk will read.

House Resolution 125 by Assemblymember Valencia relative to Chicano Heritage Month.

Assemblymember Valencia, you are recognized.

Thank you, Mister Speaker. Members, I rise today with great pride to present House Resolution 125, recognizing August as Chicano heritage month in the state of California. For me, this resolution is really personal. I have the distinct honor of representing the 16th Assembly District where Chicano history and culture are deeply woven into the fabric of our communities reflected in our families, our neighborhoods, our traditions, and the generations who have shaped who we are today.

At the heart of our District is the incredible city of Santa Ana, which in 2021 became the first major city in The United States to officially recognize Chicano Heritage Month through the leadership of Council Member Jonathan Hernandez.

Today, we carry that recognition from the 68th Assembly District to the State of California. And we do so with pride, pride in our Chicano heritage, pride in being Californians, and pride in being Americans. Those identities do not compete with one another. They strengthen one another because the Chicano story is not separate from the American experience. It's part of the American experience.

It's not a footnote neither in California. It's California history. Even the word Chicano itself reflects that journey. A word once used to diminish Mexican Americans reclaimed by a generation as a declaration of dignity, identity, and pride. Here in California, Mexican Americans have long fought to make the promise of equal opportunity real.

In Mendez versus Westminster, families challenged school segregation and helped make California the first state to desegregate public schools years before the Brown versus Board of Education. That same spirit carried into the 1960s where East LA walkouts, that included thousands of students demanded better schools and a fair chance for their future. A year later, a Plan de Santa Barbara helped establish Chicano studies, ensuring that our history and contributions would have a place in the classrooms of America. These were not simple victories for just Chicanos.

They were victories for the American promise that education and opportunity belong to everyone.

Our history is also one of service and sacrifice. Hundreds of thousands of Mexican American and Hispanic Americans served in our armed forces during World War 2. That tradition continued in Vietnam where Chicanos from the southwest suffered a deeply disproportionate share of the casualties. They wore the uniform of The United States, fought under our flag, and defended our freedoms. They were Americans who served their country with honor then, and so many continue to do so in more recent conflicts.

And our contributions extend far beyond those defining moments in history. Today, approximately 12.7 million Californians are of Mexican origin. That's roughly one third of our state's population. Mexican Americans have helped shape the identity and culture of California. Our influence can be heard in our music, seen in our murals, and experienced in our food, art, traditions, and incredible vibrant neighborhoods.

Our impact is also an economic one. Mexican Americans are entrepreneurs and educators, engineers and first responders, health care professionals, veterans, small business owners, and public servants, creating jobs and communities across our state. California's economy is driven in significant part by its Mexican American population, generating more than 1 trillion in economic output. Simply put, California would not be the California we know today without the contributions of Mexican Americans. We helped build it.

We helped defend it. We helped shape its culture. And today, we are helping lead it as well. That is something every California can be proud of and should be proud of because pride in our heritage and pride in our country are not opposing ideas. They are both part of who we are.

The progress we celebrate today was earned by generations before us

Thirty seconds.

By people who challenged barriers, demanded opportunity, served our country, and sacrificed so their children could dream bigger. Today, we stand on their shoulders, and our responsibility is to build upon what they began. God bless California, and God bless The United States. I respectfully ask for a yes vote on HR 125 and ask for the first roll call to be open for co-authors. Thank you, Mister Speaker.

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

Thank you, Mister Speaker. Colleagues, here in August, we recognize Chicano Heritage Month across California. We do far more than look back at history. We honor a fundamental truth. The story of California and the story of the Chicano community are inseparable.

Decades ago, the word Chicano was used by some to divide or label. But through resilience, courage, and self determination, a generation transformed that word into a powerful badge of pride, dignity, and civic empowerment. California was the beating heart of El Movimiento. It was forged in the agricultural fields of the Central, And Imperial Valleys where farm workers demanded simple human dignity and fair wages. It echoed through the classrooms of East Los Angeles during the student walkouts where young leaders stood up for equal education.

It was recorded by brave journalists like Ruben Salazar, who gave voice to community truths that needed to be heard. And it was demonstrated on the front lines of our nation's defense. For generations, Americans with Mexican roots have answered the call to serve the United States Armed Forces with extraordinary valor, earning military honors and demonstrating an unwavering devotion to country. Chicano heritage is not just a chapter in a textbook. It is a living foundation.

It is seen in our small businesses driving local economies, public servants fighting for strong schools, our agricultural leaders feeding the nation, and our veterans who sacrificed to protect our freedoms. It's rooted in core values that define our state, fierce devotion to family, pride in hard work, faith, and deep sense of community. When we lift up Chicano history, we remind our children that their roots are deep, their culture is a source of strength, and their potential is, in this state, is unlimited.

As we celebrate this Month, let us commit to carrying that torch forward. Let us build a California where hard work continues to unlock opportunity, where every family thrives, and where the legacy of those who fought for justice and dignity continues to guide our future.

Thank you. God bless you, and happy Chicano Heritage Month.

Thank you, Assemblymember Gonzales. All debate having ceased, Assemblymember Valencia, do you wish to close? Assemblymember Valencia has asked for the first role to be open for co-authors. 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. Clerk will close the roll, tally the votes. There are 61 co-authors added. That objection will 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.

Gonna do one quick guest introduction here by Assemblymember Krell. Assemblymember Krell, you are recognized for your guest introduction.

Thank you so much, Mister Speaker, and good afternoon, colleagues. I have the honor of rising to introduce some very special guests today. I have with me, Carissa Phelps from Survivors First Community, Marjorie Saylor from One Safe Place San Diego, Doctor Ronald Chambers from Dignity Health, and Suwan Baden, CEO of Community Against Sexual Harm.

They are in the back of the chambers now, and they have dedicated their lives as victim advocates to stand beside survivors of human trafficking in their darkest moments and help them on a quest to justice. These advocates stood firm when the path was uncertain and amplified voices that had been silenced.

And they worked through complex legal and administrative processes with one unwavering purpose, to ensure that justice did not stop at the courthouse door, but reached the people who needed it most. Their work has, helped many, many survivors throughout California and throughout The United States. They are doctors, lawyers, health care providers, social workers, and along with who those who I'm recognizing on the floor today, there are many other victim advocates who help survivors every day who are in the gallery. So I'd like to recognize them today.

Thank you.

Assemblymember Irwin, you are recognized for your guest introduction.

Well, thank you very much, Mister Speaker. I rise today to honor 11 incredible California women founders and CEOs whose leadership and vision has strengthened California's economy and future. These women represent some of California's most innovative industries from agriculture and climate technology to health care, financial services, and housing. What unites these women is not simply that they founded successful companies, they saw a challenge and asked a simple yet powerful question. How can we make this world a better place?

As we recognize these powerful women today, we also recognize the countless women and young girls across California who are watching them and seeing what is possible. To our honorees, I thank you for taking risks, creating jobs, solving problems, and leading with purpose. Thank you.

Welcome to the California Assembly. Thank you. Okay. Continuing on, File Number 24, that's ACR 221 by our Assistant Majority Leader Garcia. The Clerk will read.

Assembly Concurrent Resolution 221 by Assemblymember Garcia relative to sudden cardiac arrest awareness.

Assemblymember Garcia, you are recognized.

Thank you, Mister Speaker and members. Today, I rise to present ACR 221, a Measure to bring awareness of the prevalence of sudden cardiac arrest among student athletes and act as a call to action to take preventative measures and saving lives of our younger generation. As a parent and lifelong educator, I'm a big supporter of athletic programs, but every student deserves to come home safely after practice or a game.

Sudden cardiac arrest is the leading cause of death for student athletes, with about 2,000 young people, under 25 years of age, dying each year in our country. According to a 2023 scientific session from the American Heart Association, sudden cardiac death was the leading medical cause of death among NCAA athletes, comprising thirteen percent of 1,102 total deaths with male, black, and division one basketball players facing the highest risk.

If you have any kids who play sports, you may be aware of the annual physical examinations. Unfortunately, these examinations miss about eighty five to ninety percent of issues that may cause sudden cardiac arrest in youth. But with simple and impactful precautions, many of these tragedies can be prevented. I would like to recognize some of the organizations in our state and country that are working towards increasing awareness and providing preventative youth heart screenings and CPR trainings for youth communities.

These include the Eric Paredes Save a Life Foundation, the Kyle J. Taylor Foundation, Who We Play For, Project Adam, the California Youth Heart Coalition, the Saving Hearts Foundation, and the Heartfelt Cardiac Projects.

I believe that every child deserves a chance to live, and we must do the work to be a part of this progress. Thank you. I respectfully ask for your aye vote.

Thank you, Assemblymember Garcia. All debate having ceased members. This is an ACR. We cannot add co-authors, but we will take without objection a voice vote on the resolution. All those in favor, say aye.

All those opposed, say no. The ayes have it. The resolution is adopted. Moving on to File Item 25, that's AB 2597 by Assemblymember Wicks.

This is a 54 vote bill. Clerk will read.

Assembly Bill 2597 by Assemblymember Wicks, an Act relating to payment of claims against the state and making an appropriation therefore and declaring the urgency thereof to take effect immediately.

Assembly member Wicks, happy birthday. Thank you, Mister Speaker.

I rise today to present to you AB 2597, one of several annual bills carried by either the Chair of the Assembly Appropriations Committee or the Senate Appropriations Committee to provide appropriation authority for legal settlements approved by Department of Justice and Department of Finance. AB 2597 will appropriate approximately 7.4 million from the General Fund to the attorney general to pay eight specified claims against the state. It also includes an urgency clause. I respectfully ask for an aye vote.

Thank you, Assemblymember Wicks. 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. Aye, 60, no 0 on the urgency. Aye, 60, no 0 on the measure. The measure passes.

File Item 26 is ACR 231 by Assemblymember Addis. The Clerk will read.

Assembly Concurrent Resolution 231 by Assemblymember Addis relative to Coastal Stewardship Day.

Assemblymember Addis, you are recognized.

Thank you so much, Mister Speaker. And thank you to those of you who dressed in blue or green to help celebrate this very important day. You all look handsome and beautiful, and the coast loves you for it. Members, on behalf of the California Legislative Central Coast Caucus, I rise to present ACR 231 that recognizes 08/10/2026 as Coastal Stewardship Day in California.

As a caucus, as you've heard me talk about many times, we aim to shine light on the values and priorities of the Central Coast, which I would say are values and priorities of every single Californian.

Of these fundamental priorities is the stewardship of California's coasts and wetlands. California, and its coastline, is inextricably linked as part of California's identity and economy, which supports recreation, fishing, and international commerce. Our coast is home to hundreds of species of animals, which include marine mammals, fish, seabirds, and turtles.

And California's wetlands are also crucial to our climate and support the biological diversity of our state by reducing harmful greenhouse gases, by providing refuge for endangered plant and animal species, and by reducing the impact of ocean swells during major storms. But sadly, California's wetlands have been reduced by nearly 90% due to several manmade factors like coastal development and industrial pollution.

While our caucus has put forward a similar resolution back in 2024, Policies that the federal administration has pursued such as reopening closed oil pipelines and authorizing new oil drilling off of our coast now make it more important than ever to protect our coastline from pollution. The Central Coast Caucus, and I, know the majority of you remain committed to protecting our coast and wetlands from these attacks and will continue to advocate for them.

And with that, I respectfully ask for your aye vote on ACR 231.

Thank you, Assemblymember Addis. Assemblymember Rogers, you are recognized.

Thank you, Mister Speaker. As a member of the unofficial legislative North Coast Caucus Coastal Caucus, I wanted to stand in support of ACR 231. It's just a good opportunity for us to remind our colleagues about the confluence between climate change, climate policy, and the impact that humans have had on our ecology and our wildlife off the coast of California.

As a very brief example, we have one room in, a lab at UC Davis in Bodega Bay, that has 15 times more white abalone than exist anywhere else in the world combined. And that's because of overfishing by us humans and a confluence of loss of habitat.

We see that impact even on our land use policies as we're all having to plan for coastal erosion and the sea level rise without paying attention to the, linkage to things like overfishing or over extraction of sea otters, which would then eat the purple urchins. And without a natural predator to eat the purple urchin, they eat the kelp, and the kelp has acted as that natural barrier for us.

So this really is just an opportunity for us to highlight some of those challenges as we encounter other policies that are coming up, like floating data centers that we're seeing in certain areas, additional rocket launches, things that will impact our ecology off of our coast that don't currently have as many protections or at least as much discussion as is warranted for the potential impact and the harm that it'll do to our coastal economies as well.

So I wanna thank my colleague for bringing this forward. It's a good opportunity if you have a chance, get out to the coast.

Thank you. Assemblymember Rogers. Assemblymember Hart, you are recognized.

Thank you, Mister Speaker. I also rise in strong support of ACR 231, declaring today as the Coastal Stewardship Day in California. As my colleagues mentioned, the coast provides amazing benefits from a biodiversity standpoint, tourism, just a wonderful place to recreate for families and all Californians and people from all over the world. California's coastline is home to some of the most diverse and productive marine ecosystems in the world.

Santa Barbara and communities throughout our state were fortunate to experience the beauty and abundance of these coastal resources firsthand.

My district is home to the Santa Barbara Channel Whale Heritage Area, one of the most biologically productive marine environments on the West Coast. Throughout the year, more than 27 species of whales and dolphins pass through the area, serving as a reminder of the incredible wildlife and natural resources our coastline supports. Unfortunately, climate change has negatively impacted coastal communities throughout the state of California. This has resulted in rising sea levels, increased flooding, and beach erosion, all of which are visible in my district.

This year, the Super El Nino threatens the highest sea levels ever experienced, and our coast and communities are at increasing risk.

The state must take initiatives in protecting these natural resources while ensuring our coast remains accessible and healthy. This resolution recognizes both the fundamental importance of our coast and the crucial need to protect it for future generations. Please join me in recognizing the vital role our coastline plays in California's economy, communities, and identity.

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

Thank you, Mister Speaker. With that, I respectfully ask for your aye vote.

Thank you, Assemblymember Addis. Of course, we cannot add co-authors to this. Without objection, we will 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. Assemblymember Addis, you are recognized for your announcement.

Thank you, Mister Speaker. I wanna invite, every member to the member's lounge to grab a coastal themed cookie. I do wanna correct the record. I did not bake these cookies, but I did bring them from somewhere special, which is the French bakery in Morro Bay, Le Parisienne. The shark cookies are going very quickly, so I encourage you, when you step off the floor, to go grab a snack.

Thank you so much.

That's the reaction to free cookies? Come on, everybody. Let's go. Let's go. Thank you so much Assemblymember Addis.

I will take a cookie. Okay. Members, a very, very important guest introduction here. Thank you, decorum. Assemblymember Haney, you are recognized for your guest introduction.

Thank you, Mister Speaker and members. It is my honor to recognize our distinguished guests, in the rear of the Chamber and in the gallery, including his excellency, Rizwan Saeed Sheikh, Ambassador of Pakistan to The United States. Pakistan and The United States share a long-standing relationship, one that is reflected here in California through the contributions of our vibrant Pakistani American community.

Pakistani Americans have become an integral part of our state and have made important contributions in medicine, technology, finance, law, education, the arts, public service, and government. Their contributions reflect the diversity that make California stronger and deepen the cultural and people to people ties between California, The United States, and Pakistan.

We are especially honored to welcome Ambassador Sheikh, a career diplomat with more than three decades of experience representing Pakistan around the world. Ambassador Sheikh previously served as Pakistan's' additional foreign secretary and as deputy chief of mission at the Embassy of Pakistan in Washington, DC. We are also honored to welcome our distinguished guests in the rear of the chamber, Doctor Imran Sharif, chairman of the Council of Pakistan, Mubashir Khan, acting consul general of Pakistan in Los Angeles, Khadija Alam, and Mohammed Maksud Owan.

We wanna welcome our guests and celebrate the friendship between our communities, recognize the contributions of Pakistani Americans in our state, and strengthen the ties between California and Pakistan. Please join me in giving ambassador Sheikh and all of our distinguished guests a warm welcome to the California State Assembly.

Welcome to the California Assembly.

Continuing on, file item number 27 is ACR 232 by Assemblymember Harabedian. The clerk will read.

Assembly Concurrent Resolution 232 by Assemblymember Harabedian and others relative to direct support professional recognition week.

Assemblymember Harabedian, you are recognized.

Well, thank you, mister speaker. It's an honor to present ACR 232, which recognizes September 13 to September 19 of this year as the direct support professional, DSP, recognition week in California. DSPs help Californians with intellectual and developmental disabilities live safely in their own homes, participate in their communities, and hold jobs that enrich their lives and contribute to California's economy. So many of us have family, loved ones, and friends with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Many of you know, my sister has Down Syndrome, and our family and she have been direct beneficiaries of DSPs.

And this is really life saving work. And I don't think that's hyperbole. Anyone who has interacted with the DSP for their family members or loved ones knows that. DSPs perform highly technical, skilled, intimate work to support these individuals, and as I say, the families of the individuals. Whether helping with routines, teaching new skills, supporting someone through tough time, or just offering a comforting presence, the DSP's influence is lasting and important.

The Lanterman Act promises Californians with disabilities the services and support they need to pursue the lives of their own choosing, And that is so important. It is not just to live a life of survival. It's to live a life that the person with a disability chooses to live. And that's what the DSPs provide. Every day, DSPs deliver on that promise, empowering individuals with disabilities to live independently and lead fulfilling lives.

With that, I respectfully ask for an aye vote on ACR 232.

Thank you, Assemblymember Harabedian. Assemblymember Nguyen, you are recognized.

Thank you, mister speaker and members. I wanna thank the member from Pasadena for introducing this resolution. Our direct support professionals are truly a critical role in this community of members with intellectual and developmental disability. They are the backbone of that community. They work with them, help them live a life every day from not only making sure they have the proper transportation, but also being able to experience employment as well too.

As mentioned earlier, they are the backbone of this community. The work they they do is crucial. It is so important, but yet but yet they are not seen or recognized. There is still a shortage in this career because of not only the lack of pay, but also the amount of work and how intense it could be for our direct support professionals to do this work day in and day out.

But they do one thing, and they allow the individuals with intellectual disabilities an opportunity to live a life.

Every single person deserves an opportunity to live a life, and they do just that. This ACR 232 is not only just a resolution, but it's recognizing them for their hard work. It's recognizing them for the work that they wake up and do every single morning. It's recognizing them for the work that they wake up and they do from the minute they wake up until the minute they go to bed.

But also taking a lot of that pressure and stress home with them as well too.

I want to thank the member for Pasadena to to not only bringing up this resolution, but speaking so openly about his sister and sharing that story. I know how difficult it is to share such a story, but it means something to many of us who experience that every single day. And with that, Mister speaker and members, I respectfully ask for your aye vote.

Thank you, Assemblymember Nguyen. Seeing and hearing no further debate, Assemblymember Harabedian, you may close.

Just wanna thank the member from Elk Grove for those eloquent words and ask for an aye vote. Thank you.

Thank you. Assemblymember Harabedian. Without objection, we'll take a voice vote on this resolution. All those in favor, say aye.

All those opposed, no. The ayes have it. The resolution is adopted. Assemblymember Harabedian, you're recognized for your guest introduction, sir.

Thank you again, Mister speaker. As the member from Elk Grove just said, this is truly heroic work, and DSPs are the backbone of the community that they serve. And so we have some heroes here with us and DSPs throughout the state. So please, colleagues, join me in welcoming Eddy Tucci from Los Trumpas, Keita Baker from Creative Living Options, Samantha Marquez from Creative Living Options, Haley Powell from Hope Services, and Lucas Tai from Hope Services. I wanna thank you all for being here.

Thank the whole workforce. Let's give it up for them. Thank you.

Alright. File item number 28 is ACR 234 by our majority leader. The Clerk will read.

Assembly Concurrent Resolution 234 by Assemblymember Aguiar-Curry and others relative to California Wine Month.

Madam Majority Leader, you are recognized.

Thank you, Mister Speaker. Members, today I rise to present ACR 234 declaring September 26th as California Wine Month. Joining us today are representatives from the Wine Institute and the California Association of Wine Grape Growers. As we know, California's wine industry has been a part of our state's history for more than 250 years and remains a cornerstone of our economy.

Our wine community includes thousands of family owned wineries and wine grape growers that support hundreds and thousands of jobs.

California produces 95% of the nation's wine exports and is recognized around the world for its quality, its innovation, and commitment to sustainability. This has been a challenging year for the industry. Growers and vintners are working to keep wine affordable, but invasive species like the glassy winged sharpshooter puts our crops at risk. Even with these challenges, California's wine community continues to move forward. Today, we recognize their contributions to California's economy and their support for local communities throughout the state.

Thank you. And I respectfully ask for a aye vote on ACR 234.

Thank you, Madam Majority Leader. Seeing and hearing no further debate, without objection, we'll take a voice vote on this resolution. All those in favor, say aye. Aye. All those opposed, no.

The ayes have it. The resolution is adopted. Madam Majority Leader, you're recognized for your guest introductions.

It's very exciting to for this introduction today. I know all of you are asking where your bottle of wine is. I drank it. So sorry. With me today, I have leaders from California's wine making industry, including my constituent, Ryan Bogle from Bogle Family Vineyards, and our friends from the Wine Institute and the California Association of Wine Grape Growers.

Welcome and thank you for all you do for the state of California.

Welcome. Alright, members. File Item number 29 is HR 126 by Assemblymember Pellerin. Clerk will read.

House Resolution 126 by Assemblymember Pellerin relative to Suicide Prevention Awareness Month.

Assemblymember Pellerin, you are recognized.

Thank you, Mister Speaker and colleagues. I know today is a very busy day on the floor. We have bills to debate, votes to cast, deadlines ahead of us, and great reasons to celebrate, including our fellows. We also take the time to mourn the loss of loved ones during our adjournments in memory.

And in many ways, that is exactly how life unfolds. There are busy days. There are celebrations. There is laughter and accomplishment. There is profound heartbreak.

And in the midst of it all, every single day, someone is struggling with thoughts of suicide. Often silently. Often while going to work, going to school, caring for their families, showing up for their friends, and appearing to everyone around them that they are just fine. So, on this busy day, I ask you to give me just a few minutes to talk about something that has profoundly changed my life.

I rise today to ask for your co-authorship, your aye vote, and your voice in support of HR 126, proclaiming September as Suicide Prevention Awareness Month.

Earlier today, I was joined with colleagues, mental health professionals, and suicide prevention advocates to recognize this month and focus particular attention on the mental health of our young people. Our children are growing up with social media, constant comparison, cyber bullying, isolation in a digital world where it can sometimes be easier to connect with a screen than another human being. And behind every statistic is a child. Someone's son, someone's daughter, someone's grandchild.

A student sitting in a classroom who may look perfectly fine while quietly wondering whether life is worth living.

That is why we have to talk about this. And for me, this conversation is deeply personal. Before 11/19/2018, suicide was not something I spent much time thinking about. Then, in a single moment, everything changed. My husband at 25 years, Tom, the father of our two children died by suicide.

Nothing prepares you for that phone call or the questions that follow. The heartbreak, the guilt, the wondering if there was something you could have said, something you could have done, some sign that you missed. Well, I've learned since then that silence helps no one. That is why I speak openly about suicide. Because suicide is preventable.

Mental health conditions are treatable and conversations can save lives. Early in my grief, someone challenged me to put my grief to work, so I did. I joined a survivor support group. I walked overnight through San Francisco to raise awareness and funds for suicide prevention. I became involved with NAMI.

And ultimately, I ran for this office because I wanted to use this platform to help break the stigma surrounding mental health and suicide. Along the way, I learned a few things I wanna share with you. Suicide is not selfish. It happens when someone becomes trapped in unbearable pain and hopelessness and can no longer see a path forward. Words matter.

Suicide is not a crime. Please don't say someone committed suicide. Say died by suicide or took their own life. And asking someone if they were thinking about suicide does not put the idea in their head. It can open a door they desperately need someone to open.

I've learned that grief doesn't end. It changes shape, but it never leaves. Those of us who lost someone carry them with us in our hearts every single day. And I carry Tom with me today. Let me share a little bit about him.

He was wonderfully quirky, brilliant enough to have won our family fortune on Jeopardy if he ever ended up on that show. He was someone who actually read history books for fun. He was a gifted lawyer and a loving father, son, brother, friend, and husband. He loved Costco. Oh my god.

He loved Costco and Home Depot and had a fascination with light bulbs. He could tell you the wattage and everything about it. And he was never without hand sanitizer and Chapstick. He had a smile that could light up the room. And above all, he adored his children.

I'm wearing a semicolon today. A semicolon is used when a sentence could have ended but didn't. In the suicide prevention community, it represents a story that isn't over. A pause, a second chance, a next chapter still waiting to be written. It also reminds us that so many people struggle in silence.

Sometimes ourselves, sometimes someone we love, and sometimes someone whose struggle we may never see. Every single one of us can play a role in suicide prevention. Please be kind. You never know what someone is carrying. Talk openly about mental health.

Learn the warning signs. Store firearms safely. Promote the 988 suicide and crisis lifeline. And when someone is struggling, please do not look away. Ask the hard question.

Are you thinking about suicide? Then listen. Stay. Help them connect to support. You don't need to be a mental health professional to help save someone's life.

Sometimes the most powerful thing you can say is, I am here. You are not alone. And if anyone hearing my voice today is struggling, I want to say something directly to you. Your life matters. You are loved more than you know.

Whatever pain you are experiencing today is not the whole story of your life. And please believe me when I tell you, your family and friends will not be better off without you. Take it from someone who knows. So today amid the votes, the deadlines, the celebrations, our adjournments in memory and everything else that fills our busy lives, look around. Check on each other.

Check on our kids. And don't assume that because someone is smiling, succeeding, celebrating, showing up that they too are not struggling. And sometimes one conversation, one act of kindness, one person who notices can be that semicolon in someone else's story. That pause, not an ending. A chance for another chapter.

In a time of growing hatred and division, let us choose love. Let us choose kindness. Let us lift up our most vulnerable. Let us fund affordable and accessible mental health care for all. There's a song.

And together, that would be Tom, he does things like that. And together, let us build a world, please, let us build a world where every single person believes their life is worth living.

Mister Speaker, I respectfully ask for your aye vote on HR 126 and request the role be open for co-authors. Thank you.

Thank you. Assemblymember Pellerin.

Assemblymember Mark Gonzalez, you are recognized.

Thank you, Mister Speaker and Members. I rise today in support of HR 126 declaring September suicide prevention awareness month, but more importantly, arise in honor of Riley. As some of you may know, I have been working on legislation for the past year and a half now with an incredible brave mother and now a dear friend, Bridget. Her son, Riley, just a few weeks after his sixteenth birthday attempted suicide. His birthday balloons were still up in the room, and she lost her son.

But Members, she does not advocate for suicide prevention because of her own story, but for the many mothers in the world who have gone through similar tragedies. By the time that I finished my remarks, somewhere in The United States, at least two LGBTQ plus young people have attempted or died by suicide. I wanna let that sit for a second. Every forty five seconds, a youth feels like there is no other option than to leave this world.

You see, there's an invisible struggle that many in this community face.

One that has already taken too many lives. Not enough, that they are abnormal, and that they are freaks. The CDC has declared a crisis. Twenty percent of LGB youth and twenty six percent of trans youth attempt suicide, and that is compared to six percent of their peers. Members, that is crazy and insane that we are living in a world where over twenty percent of a sub population is attempting suicide.

We are at a turning point. One where we need to ask ourselves if we are doing enough. And while our great state has invested historic funding into mental health resources, including 988, person reaches out and ask for help, that call does not go unanswered. This is our chance to offer a safe space, a space where identities are validated, where help can be offered, where crisis services can intervene before the worst happens. Not just in September, but year round, we will continue to remember the lives lost.

Our hearts go out to every family who may have lost someone. But more importantly, today, we make a promise to honor their lives and fight to prevent another from being lost. I wanna thank my colleague from Santa Cruz for bringing this forward. And at the right time, I respectfully ask for your Aye vote on HR 126.

Thank you, Assemblymember Gonzalez. Assemblymember Berman, you are recognized.

Thank you, Mister Speaker. And I I first wanna thank my colleague from Santa Cruz, for her her strength, for her vulnerability in in sharing her story again on this floor, and how important it is to do that and to talk about it, to reduce the stigma, around suicide. And I've I've spoken about how my hometown of of Palo Alto has now suffered through three youth suicide clusters in the past eighteen years.

The first in 2008, 2009, the second in I think it was two thousand fourteen, fifteen when I was on the city council, and the third was earlier this year. And earlier this year, to the point from my colleague from Los Angeles, it was predominantly transgender youth, who took their own lives.

A community that is being bullied and targeted and scapegoated for clicks and and, for, you know, people's, you know, what they perceive to be jokes, things that we saw earlier a couple days ago, I think, of of certain community leaders claiming that they were going to declare themselves for the WNBA draft because they now consider themselves transgender is sick. It's sick what people are doing to get attention.

It's sick what people are doing for politics to to that that is directly harming young people in California and across the country. I wanna thank everybody on this floor because earlier this year, everybody supported a bill that I had, AB 2,003, which has now been signed into law, but you supported it on consent. And so I didn't get a chance to talk about it, so I'm gonna talk about it now.

And this is a bill to create a suicide prevention training.

The California Behavioral Health Commission by early next year will create a suicide prevention training and make that training available for free on a voluntary basis for every, student in California, 13 year old 13 years old or older, and for every teacher, administrator, and parent of every k through 12 student in California, so that every adult in every young person's life at least has the opportunity to get training to be able to identify when a young person is struggling, and to feel confident that they have the skills that they need to identify that, to intervene, and to get that young person the professional help that they need.

That's the purpose of this training. I helped get a pilot done six or seven years ago. 20,000 people took that training under that pilot, And 25 of those people, 5,000 people, it it wasn't academic.

It wasn't, just something that they were doing because they thought they might need it. In that moment, they knew a young person that they thought needed help. And that tells you how prevalent this problem is, especially in California. And so when that training becomes available, I will let everybody know because the training is only as good as if people take it.

And so we wanna increase awareness for all of our school communities and all of in all 80 districts across the state, so that more adults have the training necessary to help young people when those young people are struggling.

So I thank you again to my colleague from Santa Cruz, and I strongly urge your support for HR 126.

Thank you, Assemblymember Berman. Assemblymember Ramos, you are recognized.

Thank you, Mister Speaker. I rise today in support of HR 126, and I stand side by side with the member from Santa Cruz on recognizing September as suicide prevention awareness month. Mental health needs to be accepted in our community and break down the stereotypes around someone seeking help. We should pause and take time to listen to someone who is reaching out, who could be going through a crisis in their life. We all struggle with something in our lives.

Many times, the best thing we could do is to listen. There is more work to be done to reach all in the state of California and the nation. Our native American communities also are included and need to be outreach to. As our community suffer from the greatest disparities for mental health, statistic wise, suicide prevention is an issue that needs continued visibility throughout our community and to be accepted by each and every one of us.

And just last year, we continued to improve mental health care services and access to care in California through safety measures on the state's bridges and overpasses.

Think about that. We have to put up safety guards on state bridges and overpasses. Yet, where are we with the openness of the prevention of suicide? Suicide is the third leading cause of death for persons, ten to twenty four years of age. And the second leading cause of death among native American youth between 10 and 20 years of age.

California communities deserve to have health resources and suicide prevention services available. And we have to be open to be able to talk about these issues freely. In 2026, we have to make sure that when someone is seeking support, that we're there to listen and offer that support to them. We have to break down those stereotypes. Those stereotypes that might be in the back of many of our minds as growing up culturally, where it wasn't accepted to talk about these things.

But we need to talk about these things. We need to be open, and we need to be able to listen to those that are reaching out. We have to make sure that voices that are crying out, that we're listening to them. I urge your aye vote and thank the author for bringing this measure forward. I urge your support on HR 126.

Because Assemblymember Ramos, Assemblymember Bauer-Kahan, you are recognized.

Thank you, Mister Speaker and Members. I rise in support of HR 126 and to thank our colleague for her incredible leadership in this space. She has brought so much power to this conversation since joining this floor. And just earlier today, I was at a press conference with the author, and I was struck by the fact that I had never spoken about the time I lost a dear friend to suicide. He was my next door neighbor at my law firm.

We were young associates together. And on that Friday, he was preparing for his first deposition. He was gonna take his first deposition that Monday. He was reading a book called How to Take a Deposition. And I told him if he had to read the book, it wasn't gonna go very well.

So I remember dragging him away from reading his book, which he carried in his arms to a bar that night. We had a drink, and it was probably the last time anybody saw him alive. Over the weekend, he took his own life and never took that deposition. And it was silent. When I sat with him that night, I didn't know that I'd never see him again.

And I for many years, what could I have done differently if I was the last person who spoke to him? And like the author said, there can be guilt, there can be regret, but the only thing we can do is move forward with the knowledge, the experience, the lived experience we have from those moments. And to do more, to share, to speak openly, and to allow people to know that they would be so deeply missed.

We were in the middle of a toy drive at the time at our law firm, and he had bought, Pat the bunny for the kid that he had adopted. And I still have his little Pat the bunny book, and I keep it on my desk to remember him every day, and the talent and the life that was lost, that will never be forgotten.

And I just want to rise to say exactly that, that every person's life matters, that people will care, people will miss you every day, and that we need to do more to make sure Californians lives are lived fully, wholly, and with all the joy and pain that goes into living a life well lived. And so with that, I respectfully ask for your Aye vote.

Thank you. Assemblymember Bauer-Kahan. Assemblymember Gipson, you are recognized.

Thank you very much, Mister Speaker and Member. I was not going to say anything, but I don't want to I did not want to be derelict in my responsibility. One, I want to ask the author from Santa Cruz to forgive me. And because since she's been on this floor, she has brought this before us again and again, raising the conscious level of those who will watch and hear her voice about Tom and about how Tom is no longer with us.

And I remember two years ago, I told her about my adjournment that I did on this floor about my nephew.

You see, she's I told her about my nephew, and I did an adjournment on this floor, but I never told anyone how and why I did the adjournment about my nephew and why my nephew was no longer here. Well, my nephew, took his own life. And my nephew took his life by taking a gun and using that gun and pulling the trigger at a young age of 30, and it was very painful for our entire family.

He made a phone call to his mother and told his mother what he was about to do, and she rushed to him. By the time she got to him, the police was already there, and he was gone, which was one of the most painful experiences for our entire family to bear.

He was a character, the life of the party. And the reason why I elevate that story is because, we don't talk about those kinds of tragedies to happen to African Americans, but we are not immune from African Americans taking their own lives in our in the families, especially men because we're macho.

And we realize that sometime we get to a place in life where the pressures of life are so unbearable that we feel that there's no one to talk to, and we feel that we cannot talk or turn to anyone. And then we want to take an easy way out to do away with the pain. But it's a temporary situation to a permanent end.

We should never we should always find at least someone that we can talk to because the people who we leave behind will always remember that situation. We should even those who are in the capital who will hear this situation today understand whatever you're going through, you're not the only one that that has gone through what you're going through. Please hear what I just said. And that's for all of us on this floor.

Whatever you're going through in life, whatever curve balls that life throws at you, understand what I just said.

You are not the first one to go through what you're going through and experiencing. And if people can go through it, you can also go through it. And know that you won't be the first one or the last one to go through what you're going through. And if other people can go through and understand what I just said, you're going through it. You're coming out of it and understand it.

There's light at the end of the tunnel. All you have to do is be patient. You're going through it. And so I want you to know, the gentle lady from Santa Cruz, please do this every time that you're on this floor. I need you to elevate this conversation each and every year because we need to hear it and other people need to hear it as well.

You are powerful in your own right. You are saving other people's lives, and you giving people hope to hear about Tom, and Tom is looking down on the work that you're doing. I respectfully ask for an Aye vote on 01/26.

Thank you. Assemblymember Gipson. Seeing and hearing no further debate, Assemblymember Pellerin, you may close.

Thank you. Thank you, Mister Speaker. I am so grateful for all the love and support I feel in this room today. Thank you to all my colleagues who spoke about this important topic of suicide prevention awareness and how it's impacting people's life and mental health.

Also, a shout out to my daughter who is watching it online as well, And she is my my strength and my inspiration, and I I'm looking forward to walking her down the aisle when she gets married in September and will be carrying Tom in our hearts.

But I respectfully ask your Aye vote.

We thank you Assemblymember Pellerin. The Assemblymember has asked for the first role to be open for co authors. Clerk will open the role. All members vote who desire to vote. This is for co authors.

All Members vote who desire to vote. All Members vote desire to vote. Clerk will close the role, tally the votes. There are 63 co authors added. Without objection, we'll take a voice vote on the resolution.

All those in favor, please say Aye. All those opposed, No. The Ayes have it. Resolution is adopted.

Assemblymember Pellerin, you are recognized for your announcement.

Yes. So colleagues, on each of your desk is a journal with the semi colon on the cover. And I hope you take that journal with you, write about someone you love, write about something you're grateful for, write down your hopes, or whatever you need to remember when life gets hard. And whenever you see that semicolon, remember that your story is not over. Your story matters. And so does the story of the person sitting beside you and across the aisle.

And more most of our certainly all of our stories are not finished. So please take that with you and write down your hopes and dreams. Thank you so much.

Okay. We are moving on to file item number 30. That is HR 127 by Assemblymember Haney. Clerk will read.

Council resolution 127 by Assembly member Haney and others relative to transgender history month.

Assemblymember Haney, you are recognized.

Thank you, mister speaker and members. I rise today to honor transgender history month, a celebration that began in San Francisco in 2021, and California became the first state in the nation to officially recognize in 2023. This month is about recognizing a community that has always been here and has always been a part of the history of California. Everywhere in every single corner of the world, in every time throughout history, trans trans people have existed and contributed. Here in California, trans people have been scientists.

They've been teachers. They've been academics. They've been business people. They've contributed in the arts and culture in every sector of our state. For as long as California has existed, Trans people have been here and have contributed to everything that makes California special.

Transgender and gender expansive people have been documented in California ever since its earliest recorded history. In 1775, Spanish soldier Pedro Faez wrote about indigenous Californians who embrace gender variance and held respected roles in their communities. During the gold rush, Charlie Parker's became one of California's most famous stage ghost drivers. And for generations, San Francisco's Tenderloin became a home for transgender and gender expansive people who built community and cared for one another in the face of discrimination, exclusion, and violence.

In August 1966, transgender women and drag queens at Compton's Cafeteria in the Tenderloin stood up against harassment and police abuse and said enough.

The Compton's Cafeteria Uprising became one of the earliest LGBTQ civil rights uprisings in American history three years before Stonewall, and that is a reason why we celebrate transgender history month in August. California has long been at the forefront of the movement for transgender rights and liberation. Lou Sullivan built built the first national organization for trans masculine people from San Francisco. Sir Lady Java challenged discriminatory laws targeting gender expression in Los Angeles.

San Francisco created the first government office dedicated to advancing transgender rights, and the Tenderloin became home to one of the world's or the world's first legal legally recognized transgender cultural district.

That is a history we celebrate. People who were told that they did not belong, who became leaders. People whose history was erased, built institutions to preserve it. And people who face discrimination organized, fought back, and changed California for the better. We also have to be clear about why recognizing history that history is so important right now.

Across the country, transgender people are facing an organized effort to push them out of public life. Trans kids have had their health care threatened or taken away. Schools even here in California have been threatened with losing billions of dollars in federal funding for protecting transgender students. Doctors and hospitals have been threatened for providing gender affirming care. Transgender Americans, including here in California, who volunteer to serve our country have been forced out of the military.

And here in California, anti transgender hate crimes have increased even as overall crime has declined. California has been a place that has been shaped by the contributions of transgender people, and we cannot celebrate transgender people when it is easy and abandon them when standing with them becomes politically difficult. This history of cal California's transgender community standing up for their right to simply exist, simply live fully and freely and safely as themselves is a movement that we all have benefited from.

Nobody should be fired from their job because of who they are. Nobody should face violence violence simply for existing as themselves.

And when trans people have fought to make sure that they can live it as themselves safely, they have made all of us more free. They have made all of us safer. They have they have worked to actualize those words in The US constitution that all of us should have liberty and justice for all. That must include trans transgender people. That has been California's history.

That is a history we should be proud of. And today, we celebrate the contributions of transgender Californians and tell transgender young people that they come from a history that is worth knowing and a community that has been here all along. Mister speaker, members, let us honor this history by standing with transgender Californians today and protecting the progress that they have fought for, since California's earliest days. With that, I respectfully ask for your aye vote on HR 127.

Thank you. Assemblymember Haney. Assemblymember Addis, you're recognized.

Thank you, mister speaker. And I wanna say thank you to the member from San Francisco for bringing this important House Resolution forward. Also to the member from LA who spoke so eloquently around the risks that trans youth face right now in this moment. And I also wanna thank those who've led this fight for trans people for such a long time. Thank our LGBT caucus.

Thank the Trans Latine Coalition who I've had the honor of working with at Quality California and so many others.

Most of all, I wanna say thank you to my constituent, Lily, who as a sophomore in high school outed and relentlessly attacked as a trans athlete in our community in San Luis Obispo County, and say thank you to her parents for standing up for her and for standing up for every single trans athlete out there who just wants to live as a normal high schooler and be able to play sports and join their team.

Today, I'm rising not just on behalf of myself, but on behalf of the Jewish caucus in support of HR 127 to recognize transgender history month as we celebrate the contributions and achievements and leadership of two spirit transgender, gender expansive, and intersex people in California and around the world. And as we honor the generations of advocates and activists whose courage and determination and resilience have made this month possible.

And as we celebrate this history, I wanna recognize also that many transgender voices that are part of the Jewish community and Jewish history, pioneers such as Sandy Stone who helped launch the academic field of transgender studies while earning her PhD from UC Santa Cruz.

Her work reminds us that transgender people have long been shaping our communities, our institutions, and our understanding of the world around us. And that recognition is deeply consistent with Jewish tradition that teaches the inherent dignity and honor owed to every human being. The principles that call on us not only to respect one another, but to stand up when the dignity and humanity of anyone is under attack. And we've heard already twice today on this floor how the trans community is under attack in this very moment.

And we know that as Californians, we cannot stand idly by.

We must tell stories, honor leaders, and make space for transgender voices and affirm a very simple truth that every person deserves to live with dignity, with safety, and with the freedom of who they are. And so again, I wanna thank my colleague from San Francisco for bringing this resolution forward. And on behalf of the Jewish caucus, respectfully ask for your aye vote on HR 127.

Thank you, Assemblymember Addis. Assemblymember Wilson, you are recognized.

Thank you, mister speaker. Good afternoon, members. Today, I rise in support of HR 127 recognizing transgender history month, and I thank my colleague from San Francisco for submitting this important resolution. This month honors the contributions, strength, and resilience of transgender people across our communities while remembering those who came before us and helped build a more inclusive California. For generations, transgender Americans have helped shape our country's history even when they faced discrimination for being themselves or their stories were left out of our history books.

They have been artists and educators, veterans and advocates, parents and neighbors. They have stood up for their communities, fought for equal rights, and have helped move our nation closer to the promise that every person should be treated with dignity and respect. As a parent of a transgender child, I think often about the journey of raising my son, the things we got right and the things we got wrong. But through it all, I have always been incredibly proud of him.

His resilience, his courage, and his determination to simply be treated like a normal human being.

I've always taught my children to be themselves, to love themselves, to practice self care, and that they were the most amazing being in the world just for being them. All human beings, no matter how they identify, are beautifully complex and beautifully imperfect. And because our family was so open about his transition, other families in our circle experiencing similar situations would come and ask for guidance. I believe we made a difference.

We were able to give those parents a safe place to ask questions, to learn, and to find tools to help them navigate a journey they may never have expected to take.

More importantly, we encourage them to look beyond the noise and keep the wholeness of the human being at the center of the conversation and their action. Because that is what parenting is about. Our responsibility is not to raise children who fit neatly into someone else's expectation. Our responsibility is to raise whole, healthy adults who know who they are, know that they are loved, and know that they belong.

At a time when transgender people are facing attacks at every level, we have to be careful about the conversation we choose to have and the way we have them.

We cannot allow cheap political tactics to replace thoughtful conversation about real people, real families, and the dignity of every individual. As elected officials, we have a responsibility to ensure that every Californian know that they belong here. We may not all share the same experiences, but we can share a commitment to treating one another with compassion and respect. Our differences do not make our communities weaker. They make us stronger.

So this month, let us listen to transgender Californians. Let us learn from their experiences, and let us make sure their stories are included in the history we pass on to future generations. Let us remember that history is not simply about understanding where we have been. It is also about understanding its role in the future we choose to build. A California where everyone can live openly, safely, and with the empathy that they deserve.

Thank you. And as a parent, I respectfully ask for your aye vote on HR 127.

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

Thank you, mister speaker and members. As Chair of the California Legislative LGBTQ Caucus, I rise today in strong support of HR 127. I wanna thank our colleague from San Francisco for his allyship and his leadership bringing this issue here to the legislature. And I deeply wanna thank our colleagues from Morro Bay and Susan City for the eloquent rash, testimony that you provided here today.

Your own personal testimony, the representation for your constituents, and the continued fight that you have alongside all of us to make sure that equality is the underpinnings of what we do here in the state of California.

We know that this was first declared by San Francisco in 2021 and in my home city of San Diego in 2024. Transgender History Month is a commemoration which celebrates the rich history and cultural milestones of transgender people. Two spirit transgender, gender expansive, and intersex leaders have always existed throughout history. And yet, through deliberate exclusion, the contributions of these trailblazers and pivotal moments in our shared history have gone too far unrecognized.

For instance, while many recognize the nineteen sixty nine Stonewall uprising in New York as a defining moment in the LGBTQ equal rights movement, it was too often left out of our history books are the Compton's Cafeteria riots in San Francisco, which took place three years earlier.

Compton's cafeteria riots occurred in response to the discriminatory targeting of drag queens and transgender people, particularly transgender women of color. Now more than ever, it's imperative that we honor those brave transgender leaders whose courage and activism gave birth to LGBTQ equal rights movement. We cannot ignore the alarming national trend of a racing transgender history from our museums, our national monuments, our history books, and public disclosure. These efforts not only distort our shared history, they also threaten the visibility, dignity, and well-being of all people.

Today and always, we stand on the shoulders of those who came before us.

And as chair of the California legislative LGBTQ caucus, again, I thank our colleague from San Francisco for again bringing this issue forward here to the legislature and respectfully request your aye vote.

Thank you, Assemblymember Ward. Seeing and hearing no further debate, Assemblymember Haney, you may close.

Thank you, mister speaker. And members, thank you to my colleagues who spoke in support of this resolution, and thank you especially to the LGBTQ caucus who have signed on, all as coauthors of this resolution have been partners in bringing this forward. Sixty years ago in August 1966 at Compton's Cafeteria, the trans women and drag queens who came together in community didn't intend to make history. That's not why they were there.

They simply were there for the same reason and wanted the same things that all of us want in our lives and for our friends and family, to simply be able to exist, to go to a place where there were people who were like you, who you wanted to spend time with, to have some escape, some respite, maybe from a world that was harsh, and they wanted the same things in their lives that we want, to be able to have a job where you're not discriminated against, to be able to access health care, to be able to walk down the street safely and not face violence.

That's what they wanted for themselves. That's all they were asking for. And yet they found themselves regularly not only harassed, but attacked, violently attacked by the San Francisco Police Department in this case, who invaded their safe space and attacked them viciously and violently. And they, on that day, said enough is enough. We are not going to accept that in this city, in this state, that who we are will be a reason for us to hide, to be afraid, or to be harmed.

And by standing up for a California where people could be themselves safely, freely, fully in public, and access the same things that we want for all of our neighbors, friends, and family, transgender Californians have made our state better. It's it's made us freer. It's protected all of us.

And, as allies, because we do not have a transgender Californian representing on this floor at this time, as allies, we should have gratitude, we should celebrate it, and we should commit always to continue to stand with them and to stand with every single person in our state who simply wants to exist, live freely and fully, safely. And with that, on transgender history month, respectfully ask for your aye vote on HR 127.

Tell me a member, do you wish for the first role to be open for co authors?

Yes, please.

Tell me members ask for the first role to be open for co authors. Clerk will open the role. All members vote who desire to vote for co authors. All members vote who desire to vote. All members vote who desire to vote.

Clerk, we'll close the roll and tally the votes. There are 47 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. Assemblymember Haney, you are recognized for your guest introduction.

Thank you, mister speaker and members. Please join me in welcoming Tony Newman and Danny Sissenia and a coalition of transgender activists from all across the state. Tony Newman has spent more than two decades advancing justice in LGBTQ health, employment, HIV advocacy, and economic opportunity, a nationally recognized leader, best selling author, and champion for transgender employment. I'm also honored to recognize Danny Sissenia who has transformed LGBTQ health policy throughout California.

As the first two spirit native executive director of the California LGBTQ Health and Human Services Network, Danny has expanded access to affirming care, shaped statewide policy, and mentored the next generation of leaders.

We are also welcoming leaders from the from the Rainbow Families Action Network, Sacramento Native American Health Center, and Honey Mahogany, who is up in the gallery, from the San Francisco Office of Transgender Initiatives. Thank you for your continued work and advocacy, and welcome to the California legislature.

Welcome. Okay. Last bill on our third reading file is file on number 31. That's HR 129 by Assemblymember Sanchez. The clerk will read.

House Resolution 129 by Assemblymember Sanchez, and others, relative to Sarcoma Awareness Month.

Subcommittee member Sanchez, you are recognized.

Thank you, Mister Speaker. Members, as parents, neighbors, members of our communities, there are few things more heartbreaking than watching a child face a battle no one should ever have to fight. Every week when I return home from Sacramento and see my son, I am reminded of the hopes, dreams, and possibilities that every child carries within them. Every parent wants to believe that their child's future is bright, long, and full of opportunity. Sarcoma is often called the forgotten cancer.

While it accounts for only a percentage of cancer diagnoses in adults, it represents a much larger share of childhood cancers. There are more than 70 different forms of sarcoma, and because it is so difficult to detect, families often endure delayed diagnoses, uncertainty, or heartbreaking outcomes. This is why I introduce HR 129, which recognizes July as Sarcoma Awareness Month. This Resolution sends a simple but important message. These families matter.

These children matter, and we must do more. We need greater awareness, stronger research efforts, better access to care, and a deeper commitment to finding answers. In Ladera Ranch, a very close knit community in South Orange County, multiple families are living through the unimaginable. At least six children and young adults have been diagnosed with Ewing Sarcoma, an incredibly rare form of this cancer. Parents are searching for answers.

Families are searching for hope. An entire community is standing beside them. I made a promise to these families that I would continue to fight for transparency, accountability, research, and answers, and I intend to keep that promise. Today, I respectfully ask for your support for HR 129. Together, we can ensure these families know that they are seen, they are heard, and they are not alone. Thank you.

Thank you. Assemblymember Sanchez. Assemblymember Davies, you are recognized.

Thank you, Mister Speaker. Members, today I rise as a proud joint-author of HR 129. While sarcomas account for about 1% of adult cancers, they represent approximately 15% of all pediatric cancer diagnosis, disproportionately affecting our youth. Because sarcoma encompasses over 70 complex subtypes, and its underlying causes are poorly understood. It is frequently diagnosed or underreported in its early stages.

Statistics tell us that 50 thousand Americans are living with sarcoma today, but behind every single data point is a child, a teenager, a young adult sitting in a hospital room instead of a classroom. Rare cancers like Ewing Sarcoma are often overlooked or diagnosed late simply because they are rare. Raising awareness means catching symptoms early and giving a child a fighting chance.

Passing this resolution is our promise as lawmakers to be relentless allies for these children, honoring the memories of those we've lost and fighting for the lives of those we can still save. I've talked about this on my floor for years.

Cancer runs in my family, and I have sadly lost both my father and my brother. So members on behalf of families and patients alike, dealing with this disease, I respectfully ask for an aye vote.

Thank you Assemblymember Davies. Assemblymember Dixon, you are recognized.

Thank you. Good afternoon, Mister Speaker. I rise today joining with my fellow members from Orange County as a proud joint-author of HR 129, which would recognize July as Sarcoma Awareness Month. Sarcoma is an exceedingly rare cancer of the bones or connective tissues, making up less than one percent of annual adult cancer cases in The United States. It is so rare that the American Cancer Society has actually dubbed it the forgotten cancer due to lack of awareness.

This underscores the importance of increased awareness and investment in treatment, research and treatment. For sarcoma, sarcoma patients' early diagnosis is essential to reduce the magnitude of surgery and increase survival chances. Delays in diagnosis are associated with larger tumors, increased risk of metastases, and increased risk of amputation, rather than limb salvage surgery. As many of you know, we've seen an unprecedented cluster of Ewing Sarcoma cancers in South Orange County.

Ewing Sarcoma is an unbelievably rare variant of sarcoma, making up just two hundred diagnoses, per year, in children in The United States.

And now in Ladera Ranch, several children have been diagnosed recently with this incredibly rare form of cancer. It is crucial that we raise awareness and increase public knowledge of sarcoma. I'm sure that everyone in this room has seen the impact of cancer tragically, whether through a family member or a friend. It is pervasive in our society, in our community, in our world today. It is important to remember the effects of this devastating disease and do all we can to combat it.

For these reasons, I'm proud to rise in support of HR 129 and respectfully ask your aye vote. Thank you.

Thank you, Assemblymember Dixon. Seeing and hearing no further debate, Assemblymember Sanchez, all set?

Your aye vote.

Would you wish for the first roll to be open for co-authors? The Assemblymember has asked for the first roll to be open for co-authors. Click will open the roll. All members vote who desire to vote. This is for co-authors.

All members vote who desire to vote. This is for co-authors. All members vote who desire to vote. All members vote who desire to vote. The Clerk will close the roll, tally the votes.

There are 60 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. Okay Members, we are gonna pass and retain on File Item 32. That brings us to the Senate third reading file. We're gonna pass and retain on all items.

On the Senate third reading file. We're moving on to a vote on the consent calendar. This is file item number 170. Does any member wish to remove the item from the consent calendar? Seeing and hearing none, the clerk will read the second day consent calendar.

Assembly Concurrent Resolution 233 by Assemblymember Sharp-Collins relative to sepsis awareness month.

Clerk will open the roll on the consent calendar. 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 tide votes.

Aye 63, no 0. The consent calendar is adopted. Members, we are moving on to adjournment to memory. The quorum call is still in place. Let's give our respectful attention to those who are granted prior permission to speak on their adjournment in memory.

Assemblymember Pellerin. You are recognized for your adjournment in memory.

Thank you, mister speaker and members. Lieutenant Ken Haber was known for his kindness, generosity, and gift of making people feel welcome. The friendships he formed, whether in childhood or later in life, often lasted for decades. Born at the Santa Cruz County Hospital on 09/02/1944, Ken graduated from Santa Cruz High School in 1962. His career and travels took him around the country and the world, but Santa Cruz was always home.

Some of Ken's earliest friendships began in the playgrounds and ball fields of Santa Cruz. One of his dearest friends was former legislator and secretary of state Bruce McPherson. They grew up together, played on rival little league teams, and somehow remained friends despite the competition. That friendship lasted a lifetime from little league fields to Sundays watching the forty niners together. After high school, Ken attended the University of Arizona before joining the US Navy.

He served as a naval officer, lieutenant junior guard, primarily aboard the USS Arlington during Vietnam War. He served in the Gulf Of Tonkin and was part of the Apollo recovery backup ship for missions nine, ten, and eleven. After leaving the navy, Ken worked in Montgomery, Alabama, helping design and develop 200 homes south of Birmingham, but eventually Santa Cruz called him home. Ken returned to join his family's business, Habers Furniture, a beloved Santa Cruz institution that served the community for seventy seven years.

He later entered commercial real estate where his business sense and ability to build lasting relationships served him well.

Another important part of life's of Ken's life was forty thieves, an organization founded by his father. Ken helped carry its tradition into the next generation and happily became its chef. He planned meals and spent hours cooking for his friends, taking genuine pleasure in bringing people together around a table for food, laughter, stories, and friendship. Ken also had a passion for golf.

He played more than 100 courses around the world, including Saint Andrews in Scotland and was a long time member of Pasatiempo Golf Club and De La Viega Golf Course.

For Ken, golf was as much about the people, places, and stories as it was about the score. He gave generously of his time to his community serving organizations including North County United Way, Santa Cruz Chamber of Commerce, Boys and Girls Club, Santa Cruz Lions Club, and the Downtown Association. Following the nineteen eighty nine Loma Prieta earthquake, Ken was one of 36 community leaders selected for Vision Santa Cruz, helping imagine and rebuild the future of the city he loved.

But Ken's daughter, Carla, was his pride and joy. When he lost her to cancer in her late twenties, he faced an unimaginable loss.

Ken chose to honor her by creating a scholarship foundation in her name, turning his love for his daughter into an opportunity to help others and ensuring that her memory would live on. Ken was a Santa Cruz kid who went out into the world, served his country, built a successful career, traveled extensively, and pursued the things that brought him joy. But what mattered most were the people he loved and the community he gave back to.

Whether gathered around a table with his 40 thieves friends on a golf course halfway around the world, watching the 40 niners, or simply sharing a conversation, Ken understood that a life well lived is measured not only by what we accomplish, but by the friendships, laughter, and memories we leave behind. Ken never forgot where he came from, and Santa Cruz will remember him with great affection.

Ken was preceded in death by his parents, Louis and Irma Haber, and his beloved daughter, Carla. I respectfully ask that we adjourn in memory of lieutenant Ken Haber.

Thank you Assemblymember Pellerin. Members, let us observe a moment of silence to honor the life of this historic Californian, Ken Haber. Assemblymember Pellerin, you are recognized.

So members joining us on the floor today is Ken's devoted nephew, Doug Fisher. Doug and Ken shared a special and unbreakable bond. Their connection only grew stronger with the passing of time. And in Ken's final years, Doug was there for him every way, offering his time, his care, and most importantly, his love. No matter the circumstances or the hour, Doug could be counted on to be by Ken's side.

Doug, I thank you for giving me the opportunity to share a few words about your great, life that your uncle about the great life your uncle lived and all that he did for his family and the community.

Assemblymember Lackey, you are recognized for your adjournment in memory.

Thank you, mister speaker. Today, I rise and honor I rise to honor the life of Aden Walker Martin, a remarkable young man whose life was cut far too short. He was a devoted son, brother, grandson, and friend who was known for his kindness, generosity, and joyful spirit. An honor student with dreams of becoming an engineer. He approached every challenge with curiosity and a genuine love of learning.

Aidan's talents extended far beyond the classroom. He found joy in drawing, painting, playing the guitar, and other creative outlets. Whether exploring the outdoors, creating art, or enjoying his friends and family, Aidan had a gift for making others feel seen, welcomed, and valued. He represented the very best qualities we hope to inspire in every young person, integrity, creativity, perseverance, and kindness.

And although Aiden's life was tragically taken by an alcohol impaired driver, the love he shared and the memories he created continued to live on through his family, his friends, and his community.

His legacy reminds us that the measure of life is not found in its length, but the lives that it touches. May we adjourn in memory and honor Aiden by carrying forward the compassion, joy, and purpose he exemplified every day.

Thank you, Assemblymember Lackey. Assemblymember Krell, you are recognized for your adjournment in memory.

Thank you, mister. thank you, mister speaker. I rise to request that we adjourn in the memory of Joaquin Ross. Joaquin was born on 07/25/1972 and he died three weeks ago. He was born in, New York City to parents Juana and Richie Ross. He grew up mainly in Sacramento, graduated from Jesuit High School and went to San Francisco State University where he studied film and broadcasting.

But his dad, his grandpa and his great grandpa were all born in New York. So when nine eleven happened, he got on a plane, he flew to New York, he rented a truck, and he organized a volunteer drive giving out booths to firefighters whose who the rubber on the soles of their shoes were so burned from, searching through the rubble and the hot ashes. That's who he was. Free spirited, generous, kind, and practical.

He spent his life serving others working in public policy in this building as well as in politics.

He influenced many important campaigns and elevated many important issues. The through line through his work was justice and equality. Those who had the privilege of working with him described him as incredibly creative, being able to distill the truth excellence. And he would always strive for that. He was rambunctiously intelligent.

He was extremely witty and creative and his work showed it. There's also a level of curiosity and discovery to him. For example, he was also an expert, hang glider pilot. Him until putting this together. He will be missed by many, many friends and colleagues in the capital community.

He will be missed by his parents. He'll be missed by his family. My heart goes out to all of them, and I ask that we adjourn in his memory. Thank you.

Thank you. Assemblymember Krell. Assemblymember Ortega, you are recognized for your adjournment in memory.

I rise in memory of Joaquin Ross. A friend of mine lost his son recently. And I speak today to honor that son. I speak today to honor Joaquin Ross. I honor him here in our state capital because Joaquin Ross is from a family of warriors and the fight to protect working people.

Because my friend raised a son who was a brilliant communicator and a fierce strategist. He used those skills to fight for basic fairness and decency for all Californians because he learned from the best. So to the people of California who may be fearing for their future and for their children's future, I want you to know that Joaquin Ross was fighting for you. But he was not alone in that fight. I am not alone in this fight.

And you are not alone in this fight. Because my friend, who is fierce, who is relentless, and who loves to win, assures me that the best way to honor Joaquin Ross and the legacy of this family is to never give up on the people. Never give up on the people. Joaquin, I am proud to have served and fought beside you.

Thank you Assemblymember Ortega. Members, please bring the names to the desk to be printed in the journal. All requests to adjourn in memory will be deemed read and printed in the journal. Moving on to announcements, transportation committee will meet upon adjournment right now, Swing Space Room 1100. Session schedules as follows, Tuesday, August 11, check-in session.

Wednesday, August 12, check-in session. Thursday, August 13, floor session at 9AM. Seeing and hearing no further business, I'm ready and entertain a motion to adjourn. Majority leader, Aguiar-Curry, moves and Miss Castillo seconds. But this house stands adjourned until Thursday, August 13 at 9AM.

The quorum call is lifted and we are adjourned.