Schiavo advances 5 bills to Senate floor

News release 

The Senate Appropriations Committee voted on over 480 Assembly bills that require state funding, and five bills authored by Assemblywoman Pilar Schiavo, D-Chatsworth, were among those that advanced to the Senate floor.  

“I’m thrilled that we didn’t lose a single bill in the Senate Appropriations committee,” Schiavo said in a news release. “Our office has worked incredibly hard to craft financially responsible bills, many with bipartisan support, that advance our key objectives, including improving housing accessibility, enhancing health care affordability, and ensuring community safety. I’m thankful to the chair and my colleagues for recognizing our strategic work and for their support in advancing legislation that will make a real difference in our community.” 

Schiavo had six bills up for consideration before the committee. The news release provided the following summary of the bills that were approved and move to the full Senate floor for consideration. All bills must be approved by the full vote of both houses of the Legislature by Sept. 14.  

● IDs for Low Income & Unhoused Californians (Assembly Bill 464): Exempts individuals who meet specified eligibility requirements for specified assistance programs from paying a fee for various vital records 

● Streamline Affordable & Homeless Housing Development (AB 519): Reduces administrative costs to produce affordable housing by establishing a workgroup tasked with examining barriers to and developing a timeline to achieve a unified application and review process for affordable housing grants, loans, and tax incentives. 

● Postpartum Perinatal & Infant Care (AB 608): Provides nurturing, supportive and culturally competent postpartum care for new moms enrolled in Medi-Cal for a full year after a pregnancy ends. 

● Sick Day for Nurses & Healthcare Workers (AB 1359): Provides health workers, who encounter and treat illness every day, additional sick days to perform the best for their patients. 

● Banning Hazardous Chemicals in Astroturf (AB 1423): Prohibits the manufacture or sale of artificial turf that contain the toxic forever chemicals beginning in 2026 and creates an installation moratorium starting in 2026 for public entities, public or private schools, or public or private institutions of higher learning. 

Additionally, AB 1133, which seeks to create statewide testing standards for concealed carry permits and centralize permit holder information, was converted to a two-year bill by the Senate Appropriations Committee and can be considered again as soon as January 2024.