Caucus News

SACRAMENTO – Californians burdened with high student loan debt would get some much-needed relief on their taxes under a bill introduced today by State Senator Bob Wieckowski (D-Fremont).  SB 477 would allow people to take a greater tax deduction for the interest paid for student loans.

State Sen. Nancy Skinner, D-Berkeley, today announced the “Child Support Reform Act,” which seeks to ensure that low-income families receive all the child support payments to which they are entitled. The act, Senate Bill 337, would overturn a decades-old law under which child-support payments meant for families who receive CalWORKs benefits go to the state rather than to the families and children who need it most.

Sacramento, California– Today, a coalition of organizations including the California Council of Behavioral Health Associations (CBHA), California Behavioral Health Directors Association (CBHDA), Born this Way Foundation, and Children Now, issued statements supporting SB 428. The bill would require applicants for new and renewed teaching credentials to complete a course in Youth Mental Health First Aid (YMHFA).

SACRAMENTO – Senate Majority Leader Bob Hertzberg (D-Van Nuys) released the following statement today in response to Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti’s announcement to increase recycling capabilities at Hyperion — the largest treatment plant west of the Mississippi River.

SACRAMENTO – Dr. Richard Pan, a pediatrician and state senator representing the Sacramento area, and Senator Anthony Portantino, introduced Senate Bill 428 today to increase school and community-level capacity to tackle California’s growing youth mental health crisis.

The measure is sponsored by a coalition of organizations including the California Council of Behavioral Health Associations (CBHA), California Behavioral Health Directors Association (CBHDA), Born this Way Foundation, and Children Now.

Hospitals, clinics and other health facilities would be required to report allegations of patient sexual abuse and other sexual misconduct by medical professionals to the appropriate state licensing authorities within 15 days under a bill introduced today by state Senator Jerry Hill.

State Sen. Nancy Skinner, D-Berkeley, today unveiled the “Housing Crisis Act of 2019,” a sweeping new initiative that will speed up the creation of new housing in California at a time when the state is facing an extreme housing crisis in both supply and affordability. The act would suspend, for a 10-year period, specific local rules and regulations that are recognized as obstacles to housing production, and it would establish reasonable time periods for processing housing permits.

SACRAMENTO – With strong bipartisan support, the California State Senate today passed important legislation authored by Senator Connie M. Leyva (D-Chino) and Assemblymember Patrick O’Donnell (D-Long Beach) that will require charter school governing boards to comply with the same accountability and transparency laws that traditional school district governing boards already follow.