Gangs, Tobacco and Sea in Sacramento
Last updated 9/3/2016 at 6:22am
As the end of session is called by the lawmakers, the Salton Sea is not the only hot topic being discussed. Here are some of the highlights of notable bills passed this week.
AB 635 by Assemblywoman Toni Atkins requires the Department of Health Care Services to study how best to provide medical interpretation services for Medi-Cal patients with limited English proficiency. Refugees in City Heights have led the fight on this issue for the last several years.
AB 1795 by Atkins closes coverage gaps for cancer screenings.
AB 2728 by Atkins extends the California Investment Network tax credit, a program that invests in community revitalization.
AB 492 by Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez provides a monthly $50 diaper voucher to parents in the CalWORKs welfare-to-work program, beginning in 2020.
AB 491 by Gonzalez would require more robust notifications for parents whose children are classified as English-learners in school.
AB 1708 by Gonzalez requires stiffer penalties for the purchasers of sex, and treats the purchasing and selling of sex as different crimes.
AB 873 by Assemblyman Brian Jones and Assemblywoman Marie Waldron requires the Bureau of Automotive Repair to define minor car repairs that can be performed without registration.
AB 2499 by Assemblyman Brian Maienschein would set up a process to let rape victims track the status of their rape kits.
AB 1739 by Assemblywoman Marie Waldron allows Medi-Cal patients receive allergy blood tests from their primary care doctors, instead of having to be referred to a specialist.
AB 1761 by Assemblywoman Shirley Weber lets human trafficking victims present an affirmative defense in court – arguing their circumstances justified their actions.
AB 2548 by Weber requires the state to adopt an accountability system for schools.
AB 2298 by Weber includes several reforms to the state’s troubled gang database, including a provision that those entered into the database be notified and allowed to contest the designation.
SB 1333 by Sen. Marty Block would ban smoking or disposal of tobacco products at state beaches and parks.
SB 1074 by Sen. Ben Hueso allocates money to certain projects that recover beneficial minerals from highly mineralized geothermal brines. The bill could help the Salton Sea, among other areas, and “has the potential to help commercialize domestic mineral mining from geothermal brine, which will produce lithium and manganese dioxide necessary for electric battery manufacturing, thereby transforming an economic cost into an economic benefit,” according to Hueso’s office.
