Sacramento, CA – The 2019 Session adjourned on Friday, September 13th after months of intense deliberation and decision-making. This year, Senator Ben Allen (D – Santa Monica) championed issues of election integrity, consumer safety, student debt, religious discrimination, and barriers to affordable housing, among many others. In total, nine of the Senator’s bills were approved by the Legislature, and Governor Newsom has already signed two of them into law. Following passage in the Legislature, the Governor has 30 days to determine the fate of a bill.

“I am proud of what we were able to accomplish this year for District 26 and for the state as a whole," said Senator Allen. "From elections to health and the environment, our momentum in this legislative cycle has been tremendously encouraging. I am hopeful that the Governor will be quick to approve the bills of mine still awaiting his signature.”

The following bills have been approved by the Legislature and signed by the Governor:

• SB 652:  Affectionately coined the “Mezuzah Bill”. Protects against religious discrimination, ensuring that renters and owners are allowed to display religious items on doors and doorframes. (Signed into law July 30, 2019)
• SB 677: California joins seven other states in protecting consumers and workers with latex allergies by prohibiting the use of latex gloves in restaurants. There are less costly alternatives available. (Signed into law September 5, 2019)

The following bills were approved by the Legislature and await the Governor’s signature:

• SB 47: Petition DISCLOSE Act - Requires signature gatherers to disclose the top three funders of an initiative campaign with voters who are deciding whether or not to sign a petition.
• SB 139: Expands impartial and independent redistricting to county supervisor districts in large counties and bans partisan gerrymandering from the district line drawing process.
• SB 212: Gives general law cities and counties the same electoral options as charter cities by allowing the use of the top-two primary and ranked choice voting.
• SB 296: Extends the Cal Grant financial aid program to include students who are seeking asylum in the United States and who have a social security number.
• SB 638: Helps renters access electric vehicle charging stations by reforming overly burdensome insurance requirements tied to their installation.
• SB 641: Expands the special election window to better allow for special elections to coincide with state or local elections within the same territory, decreasing the number of costly, low-turnout elections.
• SB 742: Removes prohibitions which ban a passenger from riding on a bus connected to rail services unless he or she rode on a train before catching that bus or is riding on that bus to catch a train. This will make our state transportation system function better.

The following bills are still alive and we will continue to work on them in the coming year:

• SB 54: Dramatically reduces single-use plastic waste by 2030.
• SB 664: Protects the state from billions of dollars’ worth of erroneous lawsuits by clarifying how state agencies communicate with one another.
• SCA 1*: Gives California’s voters an opportunity to eliminate Article 34, an anachronistic Constitutional provision that subjects local governments to a costly web of regulations and elections that end up driving up the price of building affordable housing.
• SCA 2*: Makes our state officer recall election process more fair.

*This is a constitutional amendment. Rather than requiring the Governor’s signature, it will require a vote of the people to be added to the State Constitution.

Contact:  Liliana Pond, 310.318.6994, liliana.pond@sen.ca.gov

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Senator Allen represents the Westside, Hollywood and South Bay communities of Los Angeles County. Follow him on FB/@BenAllenCalifornia; TW/BenAllenCA; and Instagram/@BenAllenCA.