California Senate Judiciary hears wide slate of bills on DEI, schools, consumer protections, public safety and privacy; multiple measures moved on to fiscal or.

The Senate Judiciary Committee convened in Room 2100 to hear a heavy agenda that ranged from a symbolic statement on diversity, equity and inclusion to bills addressing school funding after immigration raids, online pet‑sales transparency, microplastic bans in personal care products, mobile‑home cooling rights, and privacy protections for patients and health workers. The Committee moved multiple measures forward for fiscal review or to other committees.

The most prominent early item, Senate Concurrent Resolution 89, presented by Senator Smallwood‑Cuevas, affirms the legislature's commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion as “foundational” to California government. Lakisha Khamis of Black Women for Wellness Action Project told the committee the resolution "not only affirms California values and commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion, but it also shows that these are principles that are foundational to a thriving, just, and prosperous society." Testimony in support also included representatives from environmental, interfaith and equity groups; no organized opposition appeared at the hearing.

School funding amid immigration enforcement Assemblymember Banes presented AB 13 48, a measure intended to let schools preserve attendance‑based funding when immigration enforcement around schools causes families to keep children home. Banes cited district data showing large attendance drops—"22% above normal" in one rural district and absences above 30% at some charter schools in Los Angeles—and said the bill prevents school funding from being lost when families avoid school because of enforcement activity. Witnesses from the California Charter Schools Association, the California Federation of Teachers and the Los Angeles County Office of Education described operational burdens and urged the committee’s "aye" vote. The bill would permit schools to apply for relief similar to the limited list of conditions that already excuse attendance declines (for example, certain disasters), and proponents said additional implementation details on how the average daily attendance adjustments would be calculated will follow.

Consumer protections, animals and online sales Assemblymember Bennett presented AB 506, the consumer and animal‑welfare bill aimed at online pet brokers. Witnesses including the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and the San Diego Humane Society said brokers often take nonrefundable deposits and conceal breeder and veterinary records; AB 506 would prohibit nonrefundable deposits and require disclosure of available vet records and seller information when known. Supporters said the change would reduce fraud and shelter surrenders; no organized opposition testified at the hearing and the author agreed to the committee amendments offered.

A related consumer measure, AB 559, would treat accessory dwelling unit (ADU) construction as a home‑improvement project under contractor law so consumers get existing payment and contract protections; the Contractors State License Board described increasing complaints and supported the bill.

Environment and product safety AB 823 would expand California’s 2015 ban on plastic microbeads (then focused on rinse‑off products) to cover leave‑on personal care products, cleaning products with plastic abrasives and cosmetics that intentionally add microplastic glitter. Sponsors and cosponsors including Californians Against Waste and the Monterey Bay Aquarium described a growing evidence base showing microplastics in environmental and human tissues and urged the committee to approve the measure. The bill's enforcement structure would follow the prior law’s civil‑penalty model enforced by the attorney general, city attorneys and county counsels, the witnesses said.

Mobile‑home residents’ right to cooling Assemblymember Connolly presented AB 806 to give mobile‑home residents the right to install in‑unit cooling systems and for park owners to provide temperate common areas during extreme heat events. Legal aid and resident witnesses described situations where leases ban window or other cost‑effective cooling options and contrasted the price of a window unit (a few hundred dollars) with alternatives that could cost tens of thousands to upgrade a park's electric distribution. Opponents representing master‑meter park interests and some owners warned of electrical capacity and cost issues for common‑area upgrades and urged carve‑outs for master‑meter or transitioning parks; Connolly said the bill includes a feasibility exemption if park electrical capacity cannot safely accommodate additional load and said he will continue to work with stakeholders on details.

Protections for victims and for attorney practice Two bills addressing protective‑order and related safety procedures were heard. AB 1363 ("Wyland's Law"), sponsored by an Assembly member and supported by Giffords, would require courts to provide proof that protective orders were transmitted to the Department of Justice and enable creation of a DOJ notification system for protected parties; the author and an affected mother testified that breakdowns in transmission contributed to a child’s death in a high‑profile case and urged improved accountability. AB 451 would require standardized local law‑enforcement policies for serving and enforcing gun‑violence restraining orders and related relinquishment procedures; proponents noted large variation in time to receipt of relinquishment documentation and argued standard protocols would speed enforcement.

Privacy for health care providers and patients AB 82 would expand existing privacy protections and the state’s "Safe at Home" program to include providers of gender‑affirming care and would prohibit reporting certain medications and treatments to the state's prescription‑monitoring database (CURES) for the stated purpose of preventing doxxing and cross‑jurisdictional enforcement. Transgender patients and Planned Parenthood representatives said providers and patients increasingly face harassment and threats; proponents argued the bill would protect patient safety and care access. Opponents did not testify at the hearing.

Technology, safety and worker protections Assemblymember Dixon presented two bills. AB 392 (the Protect Act) would require adult‑content platforms to capture uploader contact information and certify consent prior to accepting explicit material, and would create a civil cause of action against operators who host nonconsensual explicit content; survivors and child‑advocacy witnesses described the harms of nonconsensual sharing and deepfakes. AB 426 would prohibit unauthorized drones at emergency scenes when they impede first responders; fire chiefs and special‑district representatives told the committee incursions already force grounding of aircraft and cited the Palisades incident where a drone struck a contracted firefighting aircraft. Both bills drew testimony from law‑enforcement and victim‑advocacy witnesses; AB 426 drew a short opposition comment from a civil‑liberties group.

Research approvals and Lifeline privacy AB 1103 would create an expedited state review process for federally sanctioned controlled‑substance research (research requiring state RAP‑C approval), aiming to avoid multi‑week delays that proponents said have halted clinical trials in California. Veterans’ advocates and RAP‑C leadership described prior pauses in the panel’s operation and the need for updated statutes to allow confidential peer review while enabling an expedited pathway for federally approved studies.

AB 1303 (packeted as AB 13 03 in committee documents) would clarify that a Social Security number is not required to enroll in California’s Lifeline program and would prohibit share of subscriber data with federal immigration authorities without a valid court order; advocates representing immigrant and digital‑rights organizations said the change will make low‑income and vulnerable people less fearful of signing up for subsidized phone and internet service.

Votes at a glance The committee took formal motions on a number of items during the hearing; several measures were moved to fiscal committees or to subsequent policy committees. Below are the actions reported on the record at the close of the hearing (motion language is the motion taken in committee as recorded in the transcript):

- SCR 89 (DEI resolution): motion to adopt the resolution; recorded committee tally: yes 5, no 1. (moved) - AB 13 48 (school funding relief tied to immigration enforcement impacts): motion to pass as amended to Senate Appropriations; recorded tally in committee proceeding: yes 6, no 1 (moved) - AB 506 (online pet‑sales disclosure / ban nonrefundable deposits): motion to pass as amended to Senate Appropriations; recorded tally: unanimous on roll calls recorded for that item (moved) - AB 823 (expand ban on microbeads to leave‑on products and plastic glitter): motion to pass as amended to Senate Appropriations; recorded tally: yes 8, no 0 (moved) - AB 806 (mobile‑home cooling rights): motion to pass as amended to Senate Appropriations; recorded tally: yes 6, no 1 (moved) - AB 559 (ADU consumer protections): motion to pass as amended to Senate Appropriations; recorded tally: yes 8, no 0 (moved) - AB 392 (nonconsensual explicit content / Protect Act): motion to pass as amended to Senate Public Safety; recorded tally: yes 8, no 0 (moved) - AB 426 (ban unauthorized drones that impede emergency response): motion to pass as amended to Senate Appropriations; recorded tally: yes 7, no 0 (moved) - AB 1103 (expedited RAP‑C research approvals): motion to pass as amended to Senate Appropriations; recorded tally: yes 10, no 0 (moved) - AB 1303 (Lifeline privacy / SSN not required): motion to pass as amended to Senate Appropriations; recorded tally: yes 9, no 1 (moved) - AB 1363 ("Wyland's Law", protective‑order transmission accountability): motion to pass as amended to Senate Public Safety; recorded tally: yes 5, no 0 (moved) - AB 451 (standardized protocols for serving and enforcing protective orders): motion to pass as amended to Senate Appropriations; recorded tally: yes 9, no 0 (moved) - AB 82 (privacy for gender‑affirming care providers and patients / limited PDMP reporting protections): motion to pass as amended to Senate Appropriations; recorded tally: yes 9, no 0 (moved)

What to expect next Most bills that received motions were referred to fiscal committees or to Senate Public Safety for further review; several authors and witnesses indicated they would continue negotiations on technical fixes and feasibility carve‑outs (for example, electrical‑capacity language in the mobile‑home bill and enforcement/notification details for the school funding bill). Committee members encouraged authors to continue stakeholder talks where concerns were raised.

Why it matters The hearing covered a wide range of policy areas: public safety (protective orders, drones at emergencies), basic services and equity (school funding, Lifeline access), consumer protection and environment (pet sales disclosure, microplastics), housing and climate resilience (mobile‑home cooling access), and privacy and technology (PDMP and reproductive/gender‑care protections, nonconsensual image sharing). Several bills raise implementation and interagency questions—how courts, the Department of Justice and local law enforcement coordinate, or how utilities and park owners accommodate increased cooling load—so further committee work is likely before final floor votes.

Closing note Authors and advocates representing survivors, health providers, environmental groups, unions, labor and business interests used the hearing to push for legislation they said addresses immediate harms; committee members asked authors to refine statutory language where implementation questions arose. The committee recessed after a long calendar but left a set of measures that will go through fiscal review or further policy consideration in coming weeks.