SAN FRANCISCO – The California Senate and Assembly announced an agreement on the state budget, including rejecting the Governor’s proposed $1.1 billion cut to public transit and extending an interest-free loan of $750 million for Bay Area transit systems to avoid catastrophic service cuts over the next two years.

SACRAMENTO – The Senate and Assembly have reached an agreement to preserve acupuncture as a covered Medi-Cal benefit. As Chair of the Senate Budget Committee, Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) worked with community leaders to protect this important benefit. The Legislature will now negotiate with the Governor to reach a final budget agreement. The budget is not final, and the deadline for the Legislature to pass a balanced budget is June 15.
Senator Wiener issued the following statement:

SACRAMENTO - California is facing unprecedented threats from the Trump administration, including harmful cuts and costly tariffs that are driving up prices for families and businesses, and escalating immigration raids designed to stoke fear in Los Angeles and communities across the state.

Sacramento, CA - In response to escalating tensions and the deployment of federal and local law enforcement in California cities, Senator Dave Cortese (D-Silicon Valley) is urgently calling for organized, nonviolent resistance and the immediate deployment of trained facilitators and resources to prevent further violence in urban communities.

“I call for the immediate release from custody of SEIU President David Huerta who was harmed and arrested while protesting one of several immigration raids taking place today in Los Angeles County. David is a respected leader in California’s powerful and united labor movement.

This week, the California State Senate passed 11 bills authored by Senator Lola Smallwood-Cuevas (D-Los Angeles) that prioritizes economic solutions for working families across the state.

SACRAMENTO – The California Senate has voted to approve Senate Bill 638, authored by Senator Steve Padilla (D-San Diego). The transformative measure would create the California Middle Class Pipeline Project, tasked with eliminating traditional barriers to career technical education and workforce development programs. The Pipeline Project would work with educational institutions and private industry to reimagine career technical education in the state, bringing it in line with the needs of the 21st century economy. The bill would also fund grants for workforce development programs in high-unemployment and low-income regions of the state.

Senate Bill 357, which was authored by Senator Caroline Menjivar to transform the juvenile justice system in Los Angeles County, passed the Senate House of Origin vote yesterday and was sent to the California Assembly.

SACRAMENTO – Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) announced that Senate Bill 310, a bill allowing workers — typically low-wage workers — to swiftly recover full penalties for late or stolen wages, will be paused until next January for further work. Senator Wiener released the following statement:

SB 704 would make it more difficult for criminals to obtain illegal ghost guns through common sense gun control regulations