Caucus News

Senator Mike McGuire

McGuire’s resolution protecting the Smith River passes

July 9, 2015

Sacramento, CA – A Senate Joint Resolution authored by Senator Mike McGuire protecting the Smith River watershed from strip-mining was made official last week after approval on both the Assembly and Senate floors.
North Coast Senator Mike McGuire advocated for Smith River protection by urging his fellow legislators to help him ensure the state’s premiere wild and scenic river would be protected from the devastating effects of a proposed strip-mining operation along the North Fork of the Smith River in southern Oregon, just over the California border.

Richard Pan

On Heels of SB 277 Passage – Another Study Shows Vaccines are Safe

July 8, 2015

Following the historic passage of Dr. Richard Pan’s Senate Bill 277, the RAND Corporation has released a report that supports findings from countless other studies showing that the vaccines administered to U.S. children are very safe and serious side effects are extremely rare. Dr. Pan made the following comment on the study:

Kevin de León

RELEASE: Pro Tem Bills to Lift Low-Wage Workers Out of Poverty and Fight Exploitation Clear Assembly Committee

July 8, 2015

Camille Mahan-Carr, a parent from Stockton; Anne Marie Gentry, a child care provider from South Los Angeles; Michael Young, from the California Labor Federation; and Senate President pro Tempore Kevin de León

Senator Bill Dodd

Wolk bill establishing statewide registry of end-of-life orders moves forward

July 8, 2015

Committee OKs bipartisan bill giving emergency care providers access to digital forms 
SACRAMENTO—The Assembly Health Committee voted unanimously yesterday to approve legislation by Senator Lois Wolk (D-Davis) to provide health care professionals with access to a secure, electronic, record of their patients’ precise instructions for their end-of-life health care, ensuring immediate access to this critical information.

Kevin de León

RELEASE: President pro Tempore De León Announces Appointments

July 8, 2015

SACRAMENTO – California Senate President pro Tempore Kevin de León (D-Los Angeles), Chair of the Senate Rules Committee, has announced the following appointments by the Rules Committee:

Robert M. Hertzberg

Sen. Bob Hertzberg plan to promote legal services for low-income Californians passes Assembly policy panel

July 7, 2015

SACRAMENTO – In an effort to help low-income Californians have greater access to equal justice, a plan by Sen. Bob Hertzberg to use unclaimed funds to help attorneys practice public-interest law today passed its first Assembly policy test.
“The cause is just and the price is right,” Hertzberg, D-Van Nuys, said before the Assembly Judiciary Committee approved Senate Bill 134 on a bipartisan vote. “The impact on low-income communities having true access to justice is nothing less than extraordinary.”

Senator Mike McGuire

The Time is Now: Senator McGuire’s Medical Marijuana regulation bill pushes forward with approval from Assembly committee

July 7, 2015

Sacramento, CA – Senator Mike McGuire’s bill to bring much-needed, and desired, regulation to the medical marijuana industry was again approved by another committee this week as it makes its way through the legislative process. SB 643 – The Medical Marijuana Public Safety and Environmental Protection Act – received overwhelming support in the Assembly Business & Professions Committee Tuesday morning gaining even more momentum as the bill has already cleared three Senate committees, as well as passing on the Senate floor in June.

Kevin de León

SB 350 Passes Assembly Committee, Pro Tem Hails Chamber’s Climate Leadership

July 7, 2015

SACRAMENTO – Senate Bill 350 passed the Assembly Utilities and Commerce Committee on a 9-5 vote Monday. The bill now moves on to the Assembly Natural Resources Committee. SB 350 establishes ambitious new targets for renewable energy generation, energy efficiency, and petroleum use reduction to strengthen California’s leadership in tackling climate change and air pollution while building the renewable energy economy of the future.

Bill Monning

Aid-in-Dying Legislation Removed from Assembly Health Committee Calendar

July 7, 2015

(SACRAMENTO, CA) – Today, the End of Life Option Act, authored by Senators Monning (D-Carmel) and Wolk (D-Davis), was removed from the Assembly Health Committee calendar.  Senate Bill (SB) 128 would allow a mentally competent, terminally ill adult in the final stages of life to request aid-in-dying medication from a physician. 

Senator Scott Wiener

Doctors, Parents, Elected Leaders Call for Statewide E-Cigarette Laws

July 7, 2015

SB 140, Authored by Senator Leno, Prohibits Smoking of E-Cigarettes at Workplaces, Schools, Restaurants and Hospitals