With the Friday deadline to introduce bills in Sacramento, a fuller picture of just what Orange County legislators plan to champion this year is beginning to form.
Many legislators — in both the Assembly and Senate and on both sides of the aisle — have introduced bills related to retail theft or fentanyl. Legislators are also looking at housing reforms, access to health care coverage, penalties for protesters who block emergency vehicles and even designating a state seashell.
Here’s a brief look at what’s on deck from your representatives in 2024.
Health
Seniors could not be denied Medicare Supplemental Insurance (Medigap) coverage because of pre-existing medical conditions, under a bill from Sen. Catherine Blakespear, who represents south Orange County communities. While federal law already prevents Medigap policies — supplemental coverage used by seniors in tandem with Medicare to cover help with high out-of-pocket costs — from penalizing seniors for pre-existing conditions under some circumstances, Blakespear’s SB 1236 would expand that for Californians.
AB 1788 from Assemblymember Sharon Quirk-Silva, D-Fullerton, would allow counties to establish mental health multidisciplinary teams to help people with a diagnosed mental health condition link to supportive services while incarcerated and upon release from jail. It permits the sharing of information among the teams to coordinate supportive services.
More information on inheritable genetic conditions found in California’s newborns could become more readily available if a bill from Sen. Janet Nguyen, R-Huntington Beach, is successful this year. Her bill, SB 1099, requires the Department of Public Health to compile a report that includes the number of inheritable genetic conditions found in infant screening programs in a year. That report would be given to legislators and made public online.
Housing
From Sen. Kelly Seyarto, a Republican whose district includes Yorba Linda, is legislation that would prohibit counties from keeping profits made from the sale of an auctioned property if it was auctioned because of defaulted property taxes. Any profits, according to SB 964, would be restored to the property owner. His bill follows a 2023 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that deemed it unconstitutional for state and local governments to seize properties with unpaid taxes and sell them for a profit.
Building a granny suite on your property could mean an exceptionally higher property tax bill — but a bill from Sen. Josh Newman, D-Fullerton, aims to alleviate that tax burden. Now, when a property owner builds an accessory dwelling unit, the entire property must be reassessed for tax purposes. But SB 1164 would halt that reassessment for either 15 years or until the property is sold. There are some exemptions, however; the bill only applies to housing units, meaning pool houses or short-term rental properties are not included.
Under a proposal from Assemblymember Avelino Valencia, D-Anaheim, unlicensed sober living homes that operate as part of a licensed drug treatment facility would not be able to lawfully operate within residential zones. Of his AB 2574, Valencia says that while sober living facilities are necessary, they still must adhere to local zoning laws.
Government
Marriage licenses, birth certificates and death certificates in California do not use diacritical marks (like accents or tildes) — but legislation from Assemblymember Blanca Pacheco aims to change that. The Democrat whose district includes La Habra has a bill, AB 77, that would allow diacritical marks on those certificates and licenses and provide a path for those to have a record updated.
Sen. Dave Min, D-Irvine, with SB 1174 wants to prohibit local governments from imposing voter ID requirements — even as Huntington Beach voters are set to consider such a ballot measure now in the March primary election.
Crime
Tackling retail theft appears to be a priority in the legislature this year, including for Speaker Robert Rivas.
But several OC legislators have put forth bills addressing retail theft as well, including Assemblymember Cottie Petrie-Norris, D-Irvine. Her recently filed AB 2438 addresses those who act in tandem with at least two other people to take, damage or destroy property while committing a felony; it creates an enhanced penalty of up to three years.
Then there’s Sen. Bob Archuleta’s SB 923 which would increase penalties for repeat offenders. On a third offense, according to the bill, a person could be sentenced to up to three years in county jail. His legislation is awaiting action in the Public Safety Committee.
And if passed by the legislature and approved by voters, Sen. Tom Umberg, D-Santa Ana, has a bill that tackles both drugs and retail theft. SB 22 is designed to increase penalties for repeated retail theft and drug dealing offenses. Additionally, it would implement what’s been dubbed Alexandra’s Law: Courts would issue a warning to convicted fentanyl dealers, and if they do it again and someone dies, they could be prosecuted for homicide.
On the drug front, Assemblymember Laurie Davies has legislation that would label drug cartels as “foreign terrorist organizations. The Laguna Niguel Republican’s AB 2644 defines a drug cartel as “an ongoing formal association of persons in which members or associates individually or collectively engage in human trafficking, drug trafficking for profit or any act of terrorism.”
AB 2742 from Assemblymember Kate Sanchez, R-Rancho Santa Margarita, creates a new crime specifically prohibiting a driver or pedestrian from blocking a highway, including during a protest, that interferes with an authorized emergency vehicle from passing. Those convicted could be fined up to $500 for the first offense, her bill says, or up to $1,000 for a third offense within three years.
Knowingly reporting a false emergency to government entities — often called “swatting,” this can result in a large amount of law enforcement responding to an address, putting people in danger — is already a misdemeanor in California. AB 2609 from Assemblymember Tri Ta, R-Westminster, would make those offenses punishable as felonies.
State symbols
Haliotis cracherodii — or the black abalone — would become California’s state seashell under AB 2504 from Assemblymember Diane Dixon, R-Newport Beach. The shells come from plant-eating marine snails that while once numbering in the millions along California’s coast are now endangered, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
“This is a fun bill designed to offer an educational purpose while encouraging Californians to learn more about our beautiful coastline and fragile sea life,” said Dixon.
Source: Orange County Register
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