Summary: The committee took up AB 2285, a bill related to cryptocurrency staking and broader crypto regulatory issues. The author said the amendments would give California clearer guidelines for staking-as-a-service, maintain consumer disclosures, and remove a fee cap to make the business model workable. Supporters, including representatives of the Crypto Council for Innovation and the Satoshi Action Fund, said the bill would provide needed clarity and help Californians participate in blockchain-related opportunities. Opposition came from the Consumer Federation of California and credit union representatives, who argued the bill would weaken consumer protections, create an uneven playing field for state-chartered institutions, and move California into the middle of unresolved federal debates over the Clarity Act. They also raised concerns about fraud, money laundering, and the effect of the bill on DFPI’s authority and pending litigation involving Coinbase. The author responded that staking is distinct from buying crypto, that blockchain can improve traceability, and that the bill was still a work in progress with room for further amendments. Members discussed preemption, the pending federal framework, and whether the bill should wait until federal law is settled. The chair emphasized California’s role in setting policy and said other states were allowing consumers to benefit from staking. The committee ultimately adopted a due pass as amended motion and sent AB 2285 out on a 7-2 vote.

Summary: The Assembly convened, established a quorum, and handled a number of procedural motions, including suspending rules for adjournments in memory and guest introductions, rescinding prior action on SB 493, and re-referring several Senate bills to different committees. Members also recognized guests on the floor, including family members, interns, firefighters from the Corona Fire Department, and the Quartz Hill High girls’ soccer team, which was honored for its historic championship season. The main floor action was on AB 1795 by Assembly Member Gibson, the Smoke Damage Recovery Act, which would create statewide standards for inspecting, testing, and remediating wildfire smoke damage and set clearer insurance claim practices. Supporters said the bill would help wildfire survivors return home safely and urged science-based standards and a rebuttable presumption that contamination after a wildfire was caused by the fire; opponents warned the bill could raise costs and should better address government failures in fire recovery. The bill passed on a 54-6 vote, including the urgency clause. Members also adopted SCR 137, proclaiming March 15 as Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Day, with remarks praising her role in advancing gender equality and equal rights. The resolution was adopted after 65 co-authors were added and then approved by voice vote. The consent calendar, including SJR 11, was adopted 71-0. A large portion of the session was devoted to adjournments in memory, including tributes to Larry Vane, Dr. William A. Burke, Colonel Alfred P. Glover, and Rita Semmel. The Assembly also honored departing Member James Gallagher, who gave extended farewell remarks before leaving for Congress. The house then announced upcoming committee meetings and adjourned until Thursday, June 11, at 9 a.m.

Summary: The committee considered several coastal, climate, and air quality measures. Senator Laird presented SCR 136 marking the 50th anniversary of the Coastal Act and Coastal Conservancy Act, and SJR 12 opposing the federal offshore oil and gas leasing program; both drew broad support from environmental groups, local governments, and other advocates, with no opposition heard. Senator Padilla presented SB 10, requiring state climate plans to include gender impact assessments, with supporters arguing climate harms fall disproportionately on women and LGBTQ+ people; the bill also drew no opposition in the hearing. Senator Padilla also presented SB 675 to restructure the Imperial County Air Pollution Control District board and expand public transparency, while supporters cited severe air quality problems and opponents raised concerns about unfunded mandates, consultation, and impacts on local permitting and economic development. Senator Allen presented SB 1229 to limit disaster-rebuild coastal permit exemptions when replacement structures would newly impede coastal access or sensitive protections, with supporters saying it would prevent investor abuse of post-disaster rebuilding rules. After testimony, the committee took up the measures and recorded votes. SCR 136, SJR 12, SB 10, SB 675, and SB 1229 all advanced on party-line or near-party-line votes, with some members voting no on the more regulatory measures. The consent calendar was also approved, including ACR 157, SB 899, SB 949, SB 963, SB 1008, SB 1207, SB 1428, and SJR 5. All of the listed measures were sent onward, generally to Appropriations, and the committee concluded its hearing after the roll calls.

Summary: The Senate Committee on Military and Veterans Affairs heard two resolutions honoring veterans. S.J.R. 14, authored by Senator Gabaldon, urges California’s congressional delegation to support federal legislation awarding the Congressional Gold Medal to members of the U.S. Army Nurse Corps and Navy Nurse Corps who served in World War II. Brigadier General Ruth Wong testified in strong support, describing the nurses’ frontline service, harsh conditions, discrimination, POW experiences, and long-overlooked sacrifices. Senators praised the measure and noted the historical significance of recognizing these women’s service. The committee also heard S.J.R. 17, presented by Senator Choi, which honors Republic of Korea veterans who fought alongside American troops in Vietnam and later became U.S. citizens. The resolution urges Congress and the President to allow states to extend burial and memorial benefits in state veterans’ cemeteries to these veterans without jeopardizing federal cemetery funding. No opposition testimony was offered, and senators emphasized the importance of recognizing allied service members who fought with U.S. forces. Both resolutions were moved on call and later adopted by the committee on 5-0 votes. The chair thanked members for supporting veterans and closed the hearing after announcing the final votes.

Summary: The Senate Committee on Energy, Utilities and Communications met to hear several bills, noting that ACA 9 would be heard at a later date. The committee first approved a consent calendar item, then heard AB 2458 by Assemblymember Bennett, which would extend California Energy Commission appliance efficiency standards to appliances that are rented or leased, not just sold. Supporters included Ceres and Southern California Edison, and the bill was clarified to not affect commercial food processors. The committee also heard AB 2476 by Assemblymember Ellis, which would expand eligibility for pumped storage hydro projects under the state’s central procurement program by removing an outdated pre-2020 funding requirement while keeping the 500-megawatt cap. Support came from Rye Development, GreenGen Storage, and an irrigation district representative, with discussion focused on ratepayer benefits, competition, and grid reliability. The committee then heard AB 2518 by Assemblymember Sharp-Collins, a San Diego County pilot program to set faster utility connection timelines for certain projects, including affordable housing, hospitals, municipal infrastructure, and EV charging projects. Testimony in support came from the San Diego Housing Commission and San Diego Gas & Electric, which said the timelines were feasible and would help reduce energization delays. Members discussed whether the bill would create unintended consequences for other customers, and the author and utility representative said it would complement existing CPUC work and not conflict with SB 410-related proceedings. All three bills received unanimous or near-unanimous committee approval and were ordered to the Senate Appropriations Committee. The committee also repeatedly reopened and closed rolls to capture absent members, ultimately recording 16-0 votes on the measures that were heard.

Summary: The Senate Committee on Privacy, Digital Technologies, and Consumer Protection heard three bills. AB 412, the AI Copyright Transparency Act, would require generative AI developers to let copyright holders know whether their works were used in training. The author said the bill was narrowed by amendments to remove prescriptive technical language and focus on transparency rather than compensation or training restrictions. Supporters included voice actors, artists, labor groups, and technical experts who argued creators need a way to know if their work was used. Opponents, including business and tech groups, argued the bill was premature given unsettled copyright law and raised concerns about technical feasibility, scale, and ownership identification. After discussion, the committee passed AB 412 on a 6-2 vote and sent it to Judiciary. AB 2448 would require electronic health record vendors to enable technical safeguards so providers can better segregate sensitive reproductive and gender-affirming care information. The author and supporters, including Planned Parenthood, the Attorney General’s office, medical groups, and privacy advocates, said the bill builds on existing California privacy law and helps protect patients from misuse of sensitive health data. There was no opposition testimony. The committee passed AB 2448 on a 7-1 vote and sent it to Health. AB 2561 would prohibit changes to consumers’ preferred privacy settings without their consent, aiming to prevent apps and software from resetting privacy choices after updates. The author said the bill would reduce the burden on users and strengthen privacy protections. CalChamber and TechNet said they had moved from opposition to support after amendments were taken. The committee passed AB 2561 unanimously, 8-0, and adjourned after the final vote.

Summary: The Senate convened with a quorum, approved the journals, referred AB 1457 to Rules, and moved SB 1241 and SB 1422 to the inactive file. The chamber then considered two gubernatorial appointments: Tanya Pacheco Werner to the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District Board and Dr. Paulette Brown-Hines to the California Transportation Commission. Both nominees were presented by Senator Grove, received unanimous support, and were confirmed by roll call votes of 34-0 and 36-0, respectively. The Senate also took up SR 104 by Senator Becker, a resolution recognizing healthy aging and longevity research as a public health and economic priority for California. Supporters argued that aging drives chronic disease, that California’s growing older population will increase health care needs, and that the state should lead in prevention, early intervention, and research partnerships. Senator Weber Pearson emphasized health equity concerns, including disparities affecting Black Californians and underrepresented communities in clinical research. SR 104 passed unanimously, 35-0. After adoption, Senator Becker introduced guests from USC, UC Berkeley, the Buck Institute, and other longevity and health organizations. Committee announcements followed, including upcoming meetings of Energy, Utilities and Communications; Military and Veterans Affairs; and Privacy, Digital Technologies and Consumer Protection. The Senate then heard adjournment-in-memory tributes for Larry Vane, a Pacific Palisades community volunteer who helped with wildfire recovery, and David Sandell, an educator, coach, National Guard veteran, and school administrator. The session concluded after completion of the daily file, with the Senate set to reconvene on June 11, 2026.

Summary: The committee met as a subcommittee until quorum was established, then took up a series of bills on business, professions, health, cannabis, and consumer protection. AB 72, creating an electric vehicle economic opportunity zone in Riverside County, drew questions about whether the state should target one region over others, but supporters argued it would help bring EV manufacturing and related jobs to the Inland Empire. The bill passed on a 8-1 vote to Senate Labor, Public Employment and Retirement. AB 685, which would create the Small Business Resiliency and Innovation Fund to support technical assistance and capital infusion programs, drew broad support from small business networks and chambers, but some groups raised concerns that the June amendments could affect eligibility and that the funding should be clearly supplemental rather than replacing existing support. The author said discussions were ongoing, and the bill passed 10-0 to Senate Appropriations. The committee also approved AB 173, a resolution, on a 7-0 vote, and AB 1760, a Dental Practice Act cleanup bill sponsored by the Dental Board, on a 10-0 vote. AB 1637, which would limit changes to physician-authored medical records and make unauthorized alterations a misdemeanor, was supported by physicians and labor groups who said it would protect patient safety and professional accountability; it passed 10-0 to Senate Appropriations. AB 1785, allowing online sales of pseudoephedrine products with existing age and quantity safeguards, passed 10-0. AB 1973, expanding the ability of advanced practice clinicians to perform procedural abortions within their training, drew strong support from reproductive health providers and strong opposition from anti-abortion witnesses who raised safety concerns; after questions about training and oversight, it passed 7-3 to Senate Appropriations. The committee then considered AB 2025, requiring disclosure when rental listings use digitally altered or AI-staged images. Supporters said it would prevent renters from being misled, while the California Apartment Association said it was working with the author on implementation; the bill passed 8-1 to Senate Privacy, Digital Technologies and Consumer Protection. AB 2697, allowing drive-through cannabis sales with local approval and security requirements, was supported by cannabis businesses and operators as a way to improve access and compete with the illicit market, while narcotics officers opposed it over ID verification and public safety concerns; it passed 7-3 to Senate Appropriations. Finally, AB 2249, responding to a state audit on cannabis packaging attractive to children by defining prohibited imagery and creating a public rubric and pre-review process, received support from the cannabis operators association and the state auditor’s office, while small independent farmers raised concerns that some categorical bans could sweep too broadly. The transcript cuts off during that bill’s opposition testimony, and no final action on AB 2249 is shown in the excerpt.

Keywords: 987, senate, all

Keywords: 988, house, all

Keywords: 987, senate, all

Keywords: 987, senate, all

Keywords: 987, senate, all

Keywords: 987, senate, all

Keywords: 988, house, all