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Senate committee approves community violence intervention grant bill as part of Black Caucus package
Summary
AB 785 would establish a Community Violence Interdiction Grant Program administered by California Health and Human Services to fund community‑driven alternatives to incarceration, using savings from future prison closures; supporters called it an investment in prevention and survivors’ healing.
AB 785, sponsored as part of the Legislative Black Caucus’s Road to Repair package, would create a Community Violence Interdiction Grant Program under the California Health and Human Services Agency to fund community‑driven violence‑prevention and healing programs. The Senate Health Committee advanced the bill after testimony from survivors’ networks and violence‑prevention advocates.
Assemblymember (author) said the program would use projected savings from any future prison closures to invest in community programs such as school‑based behavioral health, youth diversion, and violence‑interruption strategies, with the goals of reducing recidivism and building public safety through prevention rather than incarceration. Ed Little of Californians for Safety and Justice testified in support, noting that community‑driven programs “have demonstrated with meaningful and sustained investment initiatives focused on interrupting the cycle of violence can achieve remarkable reductions in shootings and homicides.”
Other supporters included Friends Committee on Legislation of California, Clean Earth for Kids, Long Beach, Sacramento LGBT Community Center, Greater Sacramento Urban League, and city representatives. Committee members across parties voiced support for community‑based investment in prevention; several suggested integrating nonviolence curricula and upstream education alongside intervention funding.
There was no formal opposition recorded on the bill during the hearing. The committee advanced AB 785 as part of consent/appropriations referrals.
Votes at a glance: AB 785 advanced from committee and was referred for further consideration.
