UNIVERSAL HEALTH CARE BILL, OTHERS FAIL TO PASS STATE LEGISLATURE

Numerous controversial, two-year bills failed to pass the legislature by January 31 and are dead for the legislative session, including AB 1400 by Assemblymember Ash Kalra, a San Jose Democrat. The “Guaranteed Health Care For All” bill would have established universal health care in California. Democrats lacked the votes needed to pass the measure. The bill drew opposition from business groups citing the estimated costs – and potential tax increases on businesses – needed to fund the system.

Another failed measure by Assemblymember Alex Lee, a San Jose Democrat, would have restricted the ability of rental property owners to get out of the housing business. According to the California Apartment Association (CAA), “(the) AB 854 proposal would have prohibited rental housing providers from using the Ellis Act to terminate tenancies and exit the rental market until all owners of the property have held their ownership interest for five years or more. It also would have prohibited owners from attempting to ever remove a second building from the market.

The bill also would have prevented new owners of a rental property from using the Ellis Act to move into their new home. At the same time, longtime owners, including those needing to exit the business because of financial distress, would have had a difficult time selling to potential buyers who want to move into the property.”

MANAGER TRAINING BILL DOUBLE REFERRED TO POLICY COMMITTEES

SB 869 by Senator Connie Leyva has been double referred to the Senate Housing and Public Safety Committees. A formal hearing date has not yet been set; however, WMA will be gearing up and registering its formal opposition to the bill, which would require park managers to undergo state-led, mandatory training and certification.  The legislation calls for park managers to complete 18 hours of training per year, and questions remain as to how this will be possible given that this amounts to at least three days that a manager will not be onsite to do his or her job.  We will be calling upon the membership to help us defeat this harmful bill.  

UPDATE REGARDING COVID PAID SICK LEAVE BILL    

Last year, WMA participated in a coalition with the California Chamber of Commerce and other business organizations opposed to AB 84 and SB 95, budget trailer bills regarding paid supplemental COVID-19 sick leave. Governor Newsom signed SB 95 into law on March 19, 2021. The new COVID-19 supplemental paid sick leave applied to all employers with more than 25 employees and expired on September 30, 2021.

The Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Committee passed AB 84 last week. AB 84 makes various statutory changes to reestablish and extend COVID-19 supplemental paid sick leave provisions that were included in SB 95 but expired on September 30, 2021. AB 84 would take effect ten days after enactment and would be retroactive to January 1, 2022.

Details including the bill text and an in-depth committee analysis: 

https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202120220AB84

UPCOMING DEADLINES

February 18 is the last day for new bills to be introduced, and WMA is actively monitoring bills being brought forth.  WMA will continue to keep our members informed about bills of interest and updates can be found at https://www.wma.org/bills-interest

Chris Wysocki is WMA’s State Legislative Advocate. He can be reached at chris@wma.org.