Overview and Legislative update:
Beginning on Tuesday, May 30th, and for the remainder of the week, was Senate and Assembly floor session. Floor session convened until Thursday June 1st. Starting on June 5th up until now policy committees of both houses have resumed hearings. With the Senate now hearing Assembly bills and the Assembly now hearing Senate bills. There were several successful wins for law enforcement during the week of floor session. Three bills in particular:
AB 793: This bill by Assembly member Bonta would have prohibited the use of reverse warrants and geofencing by law enforcement. This is an incredibly important tool utilized by the profession. Sponsors of the bill argued this tool would impact the ability of people to receive abortion services and/or gender affirming care. But the reality is, the sponsors of the legislation the ACLU and the Electric Frontier Foundation (EFF) deplore the use of reverse warrants by law enforcement because they deem them to be an invasion of privacy. We were able to negotiate considerable amendments on the floor and continue to be in dialogue with the sponsors and author of this bill.
AB 742: This bill by Assembly member Jackson would have prohibited the use of a police canine for the apprehension of a suspect. The author’s office wanted to make certain that a police canine would never bite anybody ever again. We worked diligently lobbying almost every member of the State Assembly and were able to defeat this bill. It never came up for a vote.
AB 93: this bill by Assembly member Bryan would have prohibited the use by law enforcement of consensual searches. Assembly member Bryan alleged that this tactic overwhelmingly impacts communities of color and therefore should be banned. Law enforcement was able to effectively combat this narrative and show all the ways consent searches have effectively worked, particularly in the seizure of illegal drugs like fentanyl. Although this bill almost got off the assembly floor, it failed passage by six votes.
Budget:
On Thursday June 15th, the California State Legislature passed their version of the state budget. There still needs to be considerable negotiations between the legislature and the administration over spending priorities. The plan that passed the legislature covered about $312 billion in spending that covered a $30 billion deficit. The fear from the Newsom administration and from the Legislative Analyst’s Office is that the budget shortfall will likely be considerably more. Some estimates put the budget shortfall close to $40 if not $50 billion. The plan that the legislature passed still mirrors many parts of the Governor’s proposed version of the budget that was released in May. This budget did not cut core programs and increased spending for education, health, and flood protection. The Legislative Analyst’s Office noted that the legislative plan involves more borrowing and cost shifts than the governor’s proposal. At this point the legislature’s plan does not pass a tax increase nor does it withdraw any of the $37 billion sitting in the State’s rainy-day fund. Lawmakers and the Governor’s office will continue to negotiate what the budget looks like until the legislative deadline which falls on September 14th.
