California Legislature is back to decide 1,300 bills

The California Legislature gets back to work today, starting a one-month sprint to adjournment on Aug. 31.

Lawmakers have a lot to finish up: More than 1,300 bills are still in play, though many will not reach Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk.

Library review committees

One high-profile measure is Assembly Bill 1825, which would prohibit library review committees. As CalMatters Capitol reporter Alexei Koseff explains, the bill would require California public libraries to detail their policies for choosing books, including a plan to allow residents to voice their objections, but libraries cannot ban material because it deals with race or sexuality.

The measure comes amid a culture war that includes parental rights groups who want to limit access to gender-identity content and other materials. They’re facing off against LGBTQ advocates who say it’s important to have library books about marginalized groups available to the public.

A handful of local officials have already attempted to establish book review committees, such as Fresno County.

A Newsom spokesperson would not comment on pending legislation. But last year, the governor signed a law to prevent school boards from banning books based solely on the books’ inclusion of the history or culture of LGBTQ people and other underrepresented ethnic, cultural and religious groups.

Learn more about the bill to ban book review committees in Alexei’s story.

Transnational repression

Another contentious bill is AB 3027, which would create a training program for law enforcement to identify and address “transnational repression,” writes CalMatters news intern Shaanth Nanguneri. The FBI defines this type of violence as foreign governments reaching into the U.S. to intimidate or harm dissidents or expatriates.

Authored by Assemblymember Jasmeet Bains, a Bakersfield Democrat and California’s only Sikh state lawmaker, the bill is in response to a June 2023 killing of a Sikh activist in Canada. The measure lists Russia, China, Iran and India as governments that “increasingly rely” on transnational repression to control dissidents abroad. Law enforcement agencies, including the California State Sheriff’s Association, support the bill.

But some leading conservative Hindu activists are pushing back against the measure. They want to strike India from the bill language, arguing that the bill risks overlooking violence committed by Sikh separatists.

The proposal draws the same battle lines of a bill last year to ban caste discrimination that Newsom vetoed, calling it “unnecessary.” Though it’s unclear how the governor will vote on Bains’ bill if it reaches his desk, an Indian American political donor who initially took credit for Newsom’s vetoing of the caste bill met with Newsom in early July.

Read more about the transnational repression bill in Shaanth’s story.

Other bills under consideration:

• SB 1111: Democratic state Sen. Dave Min of Irvine and U.S. Rep. Katie Porter promoted Min’s anti-nepotism bill Friday, which would bar state and local officials from voting on public contracts that benefit their relatives.

• AB 2918: The Jewish Public Affairs Committee of California and other supporters are expected to rally at the state Capitol today in support of a bill to expand disclosure requirements for school districts when implementing ethnic studies courses.

• AB 2316: Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel, an Encino Democrat, plans to drum up support for his bill to ban six food dyes from food in California public schools at an online press conference Tuesday.