California Senate approves 2025 budget package after heated floor debate

The California State Senate voted to approve the Legislature’s 2024–25 budget package, passing Assembly Bill 102 on a 29–8 roll call after several hours of debate Friday.

The bill, described on the floor as the final budget agreement between the Legislature and the governor, was presented by Senator Wiener. Wiener said the package “is balanced for the fiscal year,” and outlined its scale: roughly $321.1 billion in total spending, including about $228.4 billion from the General Fund. He said the plan preserves education funding, invests in affordable housing and homelessness programs, supports wildfire recovery in Los Angeles, and preserves access to long-term care services.

Senate opponents pressed two lines of criticism: process and substance. Senator Nilo — who led several objections on procedural grounds during the session — said the format and timing deprived many members of adequate subcommittee review and transparency. “This is the worst experience that I've had relative to navigating the frustrations of the lack of transparency and the lack of the transparency of the process itself,” Nilo…