Senator Wiener’s Housing, Conservatorship, Homeless Youth & Nightlife Bills among Those that Move to Assembly Floor for a Vote in the Next Two Weeks

August 16, 2018

Sacramento –  Today the Assembly Appropriations Committee passed 12 of Senator Scott Wiener’s (D-San Francisco) bills, including bills to reform California’s housing allocation process, strengthen conservatorship laws to help people suffering on our streets, allow cities to choose to extend nightlife hours, and provide more support for homeless youth.

These bills will now move to the Assembly floor, where they will be voted on within the next two weeks.  The deadline for the Legislature to pass the bills is August 31, after which they will be sent to the Governor for approval. These bills join four of Senator Wiener’s other bills which are already pending on the Assembly floor: SB 221, SB 765, SB 1142, and SCR 110.

Among Senator Wiener’s bills approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee that will be voted on in the next two week are:

  • SB 700 to create incentives for residential solar energy storage by providing rebates to electricity customers for the installation of home and business energy storage systems, which allow solar energy to be stored and used throughout the day and night.
  • SB 828 to reform how housing goals are assigned to local communities by creating a clearer, fairer, more data-driven, and more equitable process for how the state and regional bodies assign Regional Housing Needs Assessment (RHNA) numbers.
  • SB 829 to help low-income,  severely ill individuals receive free medical cannabis by exempting compassionate care programs from paying state cannabis taxes when they are providing free medical cannabis to financially disadvantaged people living with serious health conditions.   
  • SB 905 to allow – but not require – cities to extend sales of alcohol at bars, nightclubs, and restaurants (but not liquor stores) to as late as 4 a.m. The bill is a 5 year pilot program that applies to the nine cities whose Mayors have expressed interest in pursuing later hours: San Francisco, Oakland, Los Angeles, Sacramento, West Hollywood, Long Beach, Cathedral City, Coachella, and Palm Springs.
  • SB 918 to support homeless youth by creating a framework focused toward ending youth homelessness. The bill originally directed $60 million in funding to address the alarming rise of youth homelessness in California, but funding has been included in the budget signed by the Governor to meet these needs. 
  • SB 937 to ensure lactation accommodations are available for working women by requiring businesses provide lactation facilities for their workers, requiring that lactation facilities be built in new construction, and ensuring employees receive information about their rights to a safe and comfortable lactation space at work. 
  • SB 1045 to expand existing conservatorship laws to support people suffering on our streets. The bill establishes a five year pilot program that authorizes San Francisco, San Diego, and Los Angeles Counties to create a new conservatorship focused on homeless individuals who suffer from mental health and substance abuse issues, and who cannot care for themselves.

The full list of bills that moved from the Assembly Appropriations Committee: