As a gasoline reserve bill faced a final vote today, labor advocates warned the bill’s safety measures don’t go far enough.

The vote is not guaranteed. Eight Senate Democrats did not vote for his bill, the oil industry and Republicans have been sharply critical of the proposal, which they say would actually drive up prices at the pump.

Google, Meta, ChatGPT and other Silicon Valley firms have been lobbying heavily against the bill, warning it will hurt new tech growth.

Legislators blocked more than 270 bills, partly due to the budget crunch, in the second round of suspense file hearings this year. The 500 bills that survived must still win final approval by Aug. 31 to reach Gov. Gavin Newsom's desk.

The sprawling bill that offers protection to whistleblowers and citizens was approved 32-1 by the state Senate in May faces a vote in the Assembly Appropriations Committee on Thursday and must win final approval by Aug. 31 to reach Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk this year. 

May 23 was the deadline to turn in 42,802 valid signatures of voters in the district, which includes parts of Alameda and Santa Clara counties.

A suite of five bills introduced this week seeks to protect election integrity from bad actors using AI, especially on social media.

The Assembly has until the end of January to decide the fate of the youth tackle football bill, which would prevent kids under 12 from playing the sport to protect them from brain trauma.

With the March 5 primary just three months away and a campaign period interrupted by the holidays, the candidates – a total of five Democrats and two Republicans so far – have a big fundraising challenge ahead of them.

The Santa Clara County supervisor says he already has raised $600,000 in federal campaign funds.

Speaker Robert Rivas seems to be laying the institutional groundwork for an aggressively pro-housing legislature next year.

Santa Clara County Supervisor Joe Simitian says he'll likely make it official next week and Assemblymember Evan Low says he is a few conversations away from his announcement, but the pair are likely opponents in California's 16th Congressional District.

Southern California school boards have been battling with Gov. Gavin Newsom and Attorney General Rob Bonta over book bans and other culture wars in the classroom. 

On Monday, the Assembly finished its votes on Newsom’s series of infrastructure streamlining bills, although not without reservations. Today, the Senate is expected to take its final vote on the infrastructure package, agreeing to some Assembly amendments before sending it to Gov. Newsom’s desk.

After a prolonged transition, the Hollister Democrat was sworn in as Assembly speaker today, taking over from Anthony Rendon of Southern California. It’s been a meteoric ascent for the 43-year-old who grew up in farmworker housing, and worked as a high school counselor and community college teacher while serving as a San Benito County supervisor.

Much of the Assembly Public Safety Committee's debate centered on whether it's better to treat the fentanyl crisis as a public health issue, or to see it as a public safety emergency where harsher punishments could deter drug dealers.