Gender Recognition Act Among Six Atkins Bills to Pass Assembly Appropriations Committee

September 1, 2017

The Assembly Appropriations Committee today passed six pieces of legislation authored by Sen. Toni Atkins and sent them to the Assembly floor, including SB 179 – the Gender Recognition Act – one of Atkins’ top priority bills.

The bills are:

SB 179: The Gender Recognition Act creates a third gender marker on state-issued identification documents for people who identify as nonbinary – neither male nor female – and streamlines the process for transgender, intersex and nonbinary Californians to obtain identification documents that accurately reflect their gender.

SB 223: This bill requires health plans in California to meet the higher nondiscrimination, consumer-protection and language-assistance standards that exist in the Affordable Care Act – no matter what happens to the ACA – ensuring equal access to affordable healthcare, regardless of race, religion, national origin, ethnicity, age, sex, sexual orientation or disability.

SB 310: The Name and Dignity Act establishes the right of people in state prisons and county jails to access the courts to obtain a name or gender change. It also requires corrections officials to use the new name of a prisoner who has successfully obtained a name change.

SB 379: This bill clarifies that schools that offer free oral-health assessments may facilitate dental screenings by requiring parents to opt-out if they do not want their children to receive an assessment, although any treatment would require active consent. It also requires schools to report to counties aggregate data on tooth decay and encourages schools to report oral-health data to the state.

SB 548: This bill ensures that public-employee grievances that involve claims of bad-faith bargaining are eligible to be expedited by the Public Employee Relations Board (PERB).

SB 667: This bill enables the Riverine Stewardship Assistance Program (RSAP), which was created in the 2016-17 fiscal year state budget. The RSAP provides technical and financial support for stream restoration, reduced flood risk and improved habitat corridors, empowering communities to reconnect with and take pride in their neighborhood waterways.

These six bills join five other Atkins bills awaiting a vote on the Assembly floor: SB 2 (permanent source of funding for affordable housing), SB 214 (San Diego River Conservancy enhancements), SB 230 (human-trafficking evidence), SB 462 (juvenile-justice data) and SB 625 (“honorable discharge” for juvenile offenders), 

Previously, two additional Atkins bills passed on the Assembly floor: SB 285 (labor protections) passed on Aug. 24 and was sent to the governor for his consideration, and SB 587 (vehicle emergency lights for probation officers) passed on Aug. 31 and was sent back to the Senate for concurrence with amendments.

 

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