With the California Legislature having concluded business in mid-September, Gov. Gavin Newsom is parcelling through the litany of bills seeking his signature.
Some, in particular, have grabbed a bevy of headlines en route to his desk.
Newsom approved: Gov. Gavin Newsom signed off on bills that…
- Expand sick leave from three to five days for California workers, over the objections of California’s business community.
- Ban local jurisdictions from manually counting ballots during state-sanctioned elections.
- Ban chemicals – such as Red Dye No. 3 – utilized in well-known candies including Skittles and Peeps.
- Allow legislative staffers to unionize.
- Require the CSU to post annual reports on sexual harassment reports filed within each campus and Chancellor’s office with breakdown of investigations, including length of time to begin and conclude investigations.
- Allows retired nurses to maintain a license and perform volunteer work.
Newsom skeptical: Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed bills that would have…
- Legalized psychedelic drugs including magic mushrooms and DMT. The bill has taken multiple iterations and legislative session attempts by San Francisco Sen. Scott Weiner to get to Newsom’s desk.
- Extended unemployment benefits to striking workers.
- Banned discrimination against Indians based on caste, arguing that pre-existing civil rights legislation in California offers adequate protection and should be liberally construed.
- Capped the price of insulin at $35 for a 30-day supply. Newsom argued that California’s state-produced insulin is soon to hit the market at $30 for a 10ml vial of insulin.
- Established independent redistricting commissions in cities and counties with a population exceeding 300,000 people, arguing that the bill would create a state-funded liability in the tens of millions. Beyond the veto, two Valley counties – Fresno and Kern – have had independent redistricting commissions separately established through laws enacted by the California Legislature.
- Banned the use of plastic for gift cards, requiring businesses to issue digital gift card to buyers.
- Requiring food service vendors or hotel development projects on CSU campuses to be party to labor peace agreements with labor unions.
- Require public high schools to make free condoms available to all students and ban retailers for refusing to sell the contraceptive to minors.
