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Dental board keeps 'oppose unless amended' stance on AB 966 after stakeholder debate; board adopts 2025 legislative summary
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Summary
The Dental Board reviewed a slate of post-sunset cleanup measures and debated AB 966, a bill about graduates from foreign dental schools, with staff warning the current draft could create oversight and workload challenges.
The Dental Board of California spent a large portion of its Thursday session reviewing pending legislation after its recent sunset bill changes and debating next steps for proposals aimed at addressing access to dental care.
Board staff told members the board had proposed a range of follow-up cleanup items after the sunset legislation (SB 1453) and has been working with stakeholders and authors to move provisions forward. Brent Nelson, legislative and regulatory specialist, said a draft package to amend licensing and application regulations is under internal DCA review.
AB 966 debate: board staff and counsel described AB 966, legislation that would expand pathways for graduates of foreign dental schools; staff said the current draft could require substantial statutory and regulatory redesign and create oversight gaps. Board counsel Tara Welch cautioned that the bill as drafted "would require significant statutory and regulatory changes and board staff time" and could risk "decreased consumer protection" if foreign schools were approved without ongoing board oversight.
Public commenters, including representatives of community health centers and advocates, argued the bill would mitigate access shortages in underserved communities. "Our communities are in desperate need of services," one commenter told the board, urging reconsideration of the board's 'oppose unless amended' position.
Board action: the board voted to submit a legislative cleanup proposal to amend BPC §1621 and repeal §1632.6 (removing obsolete portfolio-exam references) and adopted the board's 2025 legislative summary for publication on the board website. The board also confirmed its official position on AB 966 as "oppose unless amended," while allowing the executive committee to revisit the position if the author offers amendments that address the board's concerns.
What happens next: staff said they would continue negotiations with authors' offices and stakeholder groups and will return to the board or to the executive committee if an amendment package is proposed that resolves the board's concerns.
