California Capitol Watch: Assisted Outpatient Treatment – Bill Would Loosen Criteria for Involuntary Mental Health Treatment
By Eric Gelber The Lanterman-Petris-Short (LPS) Act, signed into law in 1967, provides for involuntary commitment for…
California Capitol Watch: Ninth Circuit Revives Lawsuit Challenging Bill Requiring Women on Corporate Boards
By Eric Gelber Background In 2018, the Legislature enacted SB 826 (Jackson and Atkins), requiring that publicly…
California Capitol Watch: Bill Would Require Ministerial Approval of Duplexes and Lot-Splitting in Single-Family Zones
By Eric Gelber Among the Davis Housing Element Committee’s recommended changes to the City Housing Element is…
California Capitol Watch: Making Senior Housing More Inclusive — Affordable Intergenerational Housing
By Eric Gelber In Davis, a local developer continues to grapple with the details of a program…
California Capitol Watch: Bretton Woods Davis-Connected Buyers Program – All Local Resident Preferences Are Not Created Equal
By Eric Gelber This installment of California Capitol Watch is a bit of a departure from its…
California Capitol Watch: ‘Silenced No More Act’ – Empowering Survivors of Workplace Harassment and Discrimination
By Eric Gelber Non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) are provisions in a contract that bind the parties to secrecy…
California Capitol Watch: Addressing the Need for Affordable Housing—Accessory Dwelling Units
By Eric Gelber Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs)—also called granny flats, in-law units, secondary units, etc.—are an option…
California Capitol Watch: The Holocaust and Genocide—Filling the Education Gap
By Eric Gelber On April 24th, President Biden officially recognized the massacre of Armenians under the Ottoman…
California Capitol Watch: Bill Would Reduce Impediments to Physician-Assisted Suicide
By Eric Gelber In 2015, the Legislature enacted the End of Life Option Act (EOLA), permitting a…
California Capitol Watch: COVID-19 Vaccine Passports—Legitimate to Protect the General Health and Welfare or Unconstitutional Infringement on Civil Liberties?
By Eric Gelber On April 14th, Assembly Member Kevin Kiley repurposed one of his pending bills on…
California Capitol Watch: E-Bike Incentive Bill Would Help Improve Air Quality (and Physical Fitness)
By Eric Gelber AB 117 (Horvath), sponsored by the California Bicycle Coalition, would establish a pilot program…
California Capitol Watch: Bill Would Reform Sentencing for Felony Murder Special Circumstances
By Eric Gelber What problem/issue would the bill address? In addition to some 700 prisoners on death…
California Capitol Watch: 9-Year-Old Inspires Bill to Require Gender Neutrality in Kids’ Sections
By Eric Gelber What problem/issue would the bill address? Proposed and enacted legislation in California and nationally…
California Capitol Watch: Time to Phase Out Sub-Minimum Wages for People with Disabilities?
By Eric Gelber National attention has recently been given to whether the federal minimum wage should be…
California Capitol Watch: Police Accountability – Duty of Law Enforcement Personnel to Intervene and Report the Use of Excessive Force
By Eric Gelber What problem/issue would the bill address? The public was understandably shocked and outraged by…
California Capitol Watch: Protecting Voting Rights in California – Vote by Mail Ballots
By Eric Gelber As documented by the Brennan Center for Justice, as of mid-February, 2021, state lawmakers…
California Capitol Watch: Criminal Justice Reform Bills Pass First Hurdle
By Eric Gelber Senator Nancy Skinner is the author of two criminal justice reform bills responding to…
California Capitol Watch: Bills Would Extend Medi-Cal Eligibility to Undocumented Immigrants
By Eric Gelber Two bills now pending before the Legislature would extend medical coverage under the state…
California Capitol Watch: Bills Focus on Pupils’ Mental Health
By Eric Gelber Senator Anthony Portantino has introduced two bills focusing on student mental health: SB 224…
California Capitol Watch: Bail Reform, Plan B
By Eric Gelber Legislation enacted in 2018 (SB 10 (Hertzberg)) repealed existing laws regarding bail and required…