GOOD
MORNING. WELCOME TO THIS
MORNING'S BUSINESS AND
PROFESSIONS COMMITTEE HEARING.
WE HAVE 13 BILLS ON TODAY'S
AGENDA, INCLUDING THE FOLLOWING
FIVE BILLS ON CONSENT. IT'D BE
1902 BY ASSEMBLY MEMBER ALANIZ
AB, 1988 BY ASSEMBLY MEMBER
MURATSUCHI AB, 2166 BY ASSEMBLY
MEMBER WEBER, AND AB 2496 AND AB
3119, BOTH BY ASSEMBLY MEMBER
LOWE. PLEASE NOTE THAT AGENDA
ITEM 13 AB 2862 BY ASSEMBLY
MEMBER GIBSON HAS BEEN PULLED BY
THE AUTHOR FOR SCHEDULING
PURPOSES AND WILL BE CONSIDERED
AT A LATER HEARING FOR EACH
MEASURE BEING PRESENTED. TODAY,
WE'LL BE ALLOWING PRIMARY
WITNESSES HERE IN THE ROOM TO
SPEAK FOR UP TO TWO MINUTES
EACH, WITH UP TO TWO PRIMARY
WITNESSES PER SIDE. ANY
ADDITIONAL WITNESSES WILL BE
LIMITED TO NAME POSITION ON THE
BILL AND THE ORGANIZATION.
THÀNH. HELLO. HELLO, AND THE
ORGANIZATION THEY REPRESENT, IF
ANY, FOR THOSE WISHING TO
PROVIDE FURTHER COMMENTS, WE ARE
ACCEPTING WRITTEN TESTIMONY
THROUGH THE POSITION LETTER
PORTAL ON THE COMMITTEE'S
WEBSITE. WITH THAT, WE'RE GOING
TO BEGIN TODAY'S HEARING AS A
SUBCOMMITTEE ASSEMBLY MEMBER, A
MAJORITY LEADER. AGUIAR-CURRY.
WE WOULD LOVE TO HEAR AB 2223
WHENEVER YOU'RE READY
.
PERFECT WHEN YOU'RE READY. GOOD
MORNING. CHAIRMAN. APPROPRIATE
TIME. MAY I USE A PROP? WE LOVE
PROPS. YOU MIGHT LIKE THIS ONE.
A LITTLE EARLY IN THE MORNING.
THAT'S 5:00 SOMEWHERE. GOOD
MORNING, MR. CHAIR. AND MEMBERS.
I WOULD LIKE TO ACCEPT THE
COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS AND ALSO
THANK THE COMMITTEE STAFF FOR
THEIR WORK WITH US ON THIS BILL.
AS YOU KNOW, I STARTED WORKING
IN THIS SPACE BECAUSE THE 2018
FARM BILL UNLEASHED A LARGE,
UNREGULATED INDUSTRY. NO
PRODUCTS WERE SUBJECT TO
THOROUGH TESTING AND
INTOXICATING PRODUCTS WERE
STARTING TO POP UP IN SMOKE
SHOPS AND GAS STATIONS WITH NO
AGE LIMITS OR PROTECTIONS. MY
TOP PRIORITY HAS ALWAYS BEEN TO
PROTECT THE HEALTH AND SAFETY OF
CALIFORNIA CONSUMERS. BUT I ALSO
WANTED TO ALLOW PEOPLE TO
CONTINUE USING NON-INTOXICATING
HEALTH AND WELLNESS PRODUCTS,
AND THE DISCUSSION WAS FOCUSED
AT THAT TIME ON CBD. AB 45 WAS
THE STRICTEST HEMP LAW IN THE
COUNTRY WHEN IT WAS ENACTED. IT
CLOSED LOOPHOLES FROM THE
FEDERAL FARM BILL BY
IMPLEMENTING THC CONCENTRATION
LIMITS, PROHIBITING INTOXICATING
AND SYNTHETIC CANNABINOIDS, AND
SETTING RIGOROUS TESTING
PROTOCOLS AND LABELING STANDARDS
. I'M WORKING ON AB 2223 TO
TACKLE SOME OF THE ISSUES THAT
HAVE COME UP DURING THE
IMPLEMENTATION IMPLEMENTATION OF
AB 45 AS THE HEMP MARKET GROWS,
WE'RE SEEING MORE INTOXICATING
HEMP PRODUCTS THAT ARE SOLD
OUTSIDE OF DISPENSARIES WITHOUT
AGE LIMITS, WHICH SHOULD BE
ILLEGAL. THIS BILL IS ANOTHER
HUGE UNDERTAKING THAT TAKES ON
THREE ISSUES CRACKING DOWN ON
ILLEGAL HEMP PRODUCTS WITH LOCAL
ENFORCEMENT, CLOSING LOOPHOLES
THAT ALLOW INTOXICATING HEMP
PRODUCTS, AND INTEGRATING HEMP
INTO THE CANNABIS SUPPLY CHAIN.
WE LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH
STAKEHOLDERS, STATE AGENCIES AND
COMMITTEE STAFF AS WE ADDRESS
CONCERNS ABOUT THE BEST WAY TO
IMPLEMENT THESE CHANGES. WITH ME
TODAY ARE KAREN WOODSON,
REPRESENTING THE CALIFORNIA
CANNABIS INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION,
AND KRISTIN HEIDELBACH WITH UFCW
WESTERN STATES COUNCIL. GREAT
VERYONE ANYONE IS TWO MINUTES
EACH. GREAT. GOOD MORNING,
CHAIRMAN BERMAN. MEMBERS OF THE
COMMITTEE. MY NAME IS KAREN
WOODSON. AND ON BEHALF OF THE
CALIFORNIA CANNABIS INDUSTRY
ASSOCIATION AND THE CALIFORNIA
CANNABIS MANUFACTURERS
ASSOCIATION, I URGE YOUR SUPPORT
FOR AB 2223, THE CANNABIS
LICENSE FEELS LESS AND LESS LIKE
A PRIVILEGE AND MORE LIKE A
BURDEN. IN ADDITION TO
NAVIGATING THE UNRELENTING SALES
OF CANNABIS PRODUCTS AND ILLICIT
CHANNELS, THE PROLIFERATION OF
UNCHECKED AND DUTY FREE HEMP
PRODUCTS AVAILABLE IN GAS
STATIONS AND SMOKE SHOPS HAS
REACHED A FEVER PITCH. TWO WEEKS
AGO, TOTAL WINE AND MORE MADE
WIDELY AVAILABLE TO CONSUMERS.
HEMP BEVERAGES EACH CONTAINING 5
TO 10MG OF THC PER BEVERAGE.
THIS ACTION HAS TRIGGERED DEEP
REACTIONS FROM WITHIN THE
CANNABIS INDUSTRY, A MIX OF
OUTRAGE, OPPORTUNITY AND FEAR.
BUT MOSTLY OUTRAGE. AS DETAILED
IN CSEA'S LETTER, EVERY SALE OF
THC BEVERAGES OUTSIDE
DISPENSARIES ROBS THE STATE
CANNABIS TAX FUND OF ROUGHLY
$6.08 WORTH. STILL, THAT REVENUE
LOSS PUTS THE CANNABIS INDUSTRY
AT DRAMATIC RISK OF A TAX
INCREASE AS THE PROP 64
FRAMEWORK IS BROKEN. AND THAT IS
WHY SO MANY SEEK OPPORTUNITIES
OUTSIDE THE REGULATED CHANNEL
UNTIL POLICYMAKERS TACKLE THE
SYSTEMIC PROBLEMS BAKED INTO THE
STATE'S CANNABIS LAW, WE WILL
FOREVER BE ADDRESSING THREAT
AFTER EXISTENTIAL THREAT. AB
2223 LAYS IMPORTANT GROUNDWORK
NEEDED TO REIMAGINE HOW WE
REGULATE CANNABINOIDS FOR
INTOXICATION, REGARDLESS OF
WHETHER THEY COME FROM CANNABIS
OR HEMP. FOLLOWING THE LEAD OF
15 OTHER STATES, IT EXPRESSLY
AUTHORIZES THE USE OF HEMP IN
THE CANNABIS SUPPLY CHAIN AND
PERMITS DUAL USE FACILITIES.
INTEGRATION ENSURES LEGAL
CANNABIS BUSINESSES CAN REDUCE
PRODUCTION COSTS WITHOUT
COMPROMISING QUALITY AND SAFETY.
THESE RESULT IN MORE COMPETITIVE
PRICING AT THE RETAIL LEVEL AND
ENSURE CANNABIS PRODUCTS ARE
MORE ACCESSIBLE TO CONSUMERS.
THE BILL ALSO CLARIFIES THE
DEFINITION OF HEMP PROHIBITS THE
SALE OF PRODUCTS CONTAINING
DANGEROUS OR CHEMICALLY
SYNTHESIZED CANNABINOIDS, AND
ESTABLISHES A TOTAL THC STANDARD
FOR HEMP PRODUCTS. IT ALSO
STRENGTHENS EXISTING ENFORCEMENT
PROVISIONS. CANNABIS PRODUCTS
ARE EXCESSIVELY REGULATED AND
OVERTAXED. IN CONTRAST,
INTOXICATING HEMP PRODUCTS ARE
UNREGULATED AND SUBJECT TO NO
SPECIAL TAXES. THIS PARADOX
PROVIDES AN OPPORTUNITY FOR
BRANDS, POLICY MAKERS, AND
CONSUMERS TO REIMAGINE A LEGAL
FRAMEWORK FOR CANNABINOIDS IN
CALIFORNIA AND BEYOND. THANK
YOU, ASSEMBLYMAN. ASSEMBLYWOMAN
CURRIE, FOR YOUR CONTINUED
LEADERSHIP ON THIS ISSUE. AND
MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE, I URGE
YOUR AYE VOTE TODAY. THANK YOU
VERY MUCH. GOOD MORNING. KRISTIN
HEIDELBACH HERE ON BEHALF OF
UFCW WESTERN STATES COUNCIL. I'M
HERE IN SUPPORT OF AB 2223. WE
REPRESENT THOUSANDS OF CANNABIS
WORKERS IN THE, EXCUSE ME,
THOUSANDS OF WORKERS IN THE
CANNABIS INDUSTRY, WE WANT TO
THANK ASSEMBLY MEMBER AGAR CURRY
FOR HER WORK IN THIS SPACE, I
DON'T THINK I NEED TO DO A DEEP
DIVE ON THE CHALLENGES THAT THE
INDUSTRY IS FACING RIGHT NOW. WE
HAVE UNIONIZED, REGULATED
CANNABIS BUSINESSES THAT NOT
ONLY HAVE HIGH TAXES, THAT THEY
HAVE TO DEAL WITH AN UNTENABLE,
ILLICIT MARKET, BUT NOW A SHADOW
MARKET THAT HAS EMERGED THAT
THEY DIRECTLY COMPETE WITH U OF
C, WHO CARES ABOUT THIS
LEGISLATION BECAUSE WE WANT
ADDITIONAL GUARDRAILS IN PLACE
THAT PROTECT OUR EMPLOYERS WHO
PAY GOOD LIVING WAGES, THEY
SUPPORT THEIR COMMUNITIES.
THEY'RE GOOD ACTORS. AND THEY
ARE STRUGGLING. SO WE ARE,
OBVIOUSLY INTERESTED IN THE CAPS
AND ALSO SOME OF THE PACKAGING
THAT IS IN THIS BILL, BUT ALSO
ABOUT THE ENFORCEMENT. WE NEED
ADDITIONAL ENFORCEMENT AGAINST
AGAINST THE HEMP PRODUCTS THAT
CURRENTLY ARE ARE UNCHECKED.
HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS.
THANK YOU. THANK YOU VERY MUCH,
ANYBODY WANTS TO ADD ON IN
SUPPORT OF AB 2223 ADD ONS AND
SUPPORT, IF YOU COULD JUST
PROVIDE YOUR NAME, ORGANIZATION
YOU'RE WITH, IF ANY AND POSITION
ON THE BILL. TALIA D'AMATO ON
BEHALF OF CALIFORNIA NORML IN
SUPPORT. THANK YOU, AMY JENKINS,
ON BEHALF OF CANNACRAFT MARCH
AND ASH AND SPARK AND STRONG
SUPPORT. THANK YOU. GOOD
MORNING, MR. CHAIRMAN. ALBERTO
TORRICO, ON BEHALF OF THE JOINT
LABOR MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE FOR
CANNABIS OF SAN DIEGO AND
IMPERIAL COUNTIES, COMPOSED OF
UFCW AND MARTINEZ. THANK YOU IN
SUPPORT. THANK YOU, MR.
CHAIRMAN. MEMBERS. GEORGE
MILLER, ON BEHALF OF WEEDMAPS
AND SUPPORT. THANK YOU. CHAIR
MEMBERS ALICIA PRIEGO ON BEHALF
OF THE CALIFORNIA CANNABIS
MANUFACTURERS ASSOCIATION AND
SUPPORT. THANK YOU. ZOE
SCHREIBER, ON BEHALF OF HYLAND'S
DISPENSARY AND SUPPORT. THANK
YOU VERY MUCH. ANY PRIMARY
WITNESSES IN OPPOSITION TO THE
BILL? COME ON UP, AND YOU HAVE
TWO MINUTES EACH.
TESTING. ALL GOOD. MR. CHAIR.
MEMBERS. MARK SMITH ON BEHALF OF
ORIGINS. COUNSEL HERE WITHIN.
OPPOSE UNLESS AMENDED. POSITION
ON TWO, TWO, TWO, THREE. WE
REPRESENT 800 MEMBERS ACROSS THE
FULL CANNABIS SUPPLY CHAIN, MOST
OF WHOM ARE SMALL, INDEPENDENT,
LICENSED CANNABIS CULTIVATORS.
AS MENTIONED, THIS BILL HAS TWO
PARTS PART ONE, WHICH
ESTABLISHES GREATER CLARITY
AROUND THE RULES FOR THE
EXISTING HEMP MARKET, AND PART
TWO, WHICH ENABLES THE
INTEGRATION OF HEMP INTO THE
CANNABIS SUPPLY CHAIN. WE FIND
OURSELVES IN ALIGNMENT ON PART
ONE. THOSE PRODUCTS SHOULD BE
MORE TIGHTLY REGULATED. OTHER
THAN REPEATING THAT, WE THINK A
ONE MILLIGRAM CAP PER PACKAGING
IS STILL TOO HIGH. WE DISAGREE
ON PART TWO. THIS BILL PROPOSES
TO STOP SYNTHETIC HEMP DERIVED
CANNABINOIDS IN THE HEMP MARKET,
BUT AT THE SAME TIME, IT
COMPLETELY OPENS THE DOOR TO
THOSE CANNABINOIDS TAKING OVER
THE CANNABIS MARKET. THE
MARKETPLACE IS AWASH IN
CHEMICALLY SYNTHESIZED, THC LIKE
COMPOUNDS THAT YOU'VE ALL HEARD
OF. DELTA EIGHT, DELTA NINE,
DELTA TEN, THC Þ, ACETATE, HCC,
AND OTHERS. THESE INTOXIC CGRTS
EXACTLY MIMIC THE EFFECTS OF THC
DERIVED FROM THE CANNABIS PLANT,
WHILE 2223 PROHIBITS THESE
SYNTHETIC COMPOUNDS IN THE HEMP
MARKET, IT THROWS THE DOOR WIDE
OPEN TO THE UNLIMITED
INCORPORATION OF THESE COMPOUNDS
INTO THE LEGAL CANNABIS MARKET.
AT THE POINT OF MANUFACTURING,
THE BILL PROPOSES A PROHIBITION
ON SYNTHETIC THC CONVERSIONS IN
SECTION 26 003 THAT ONLY APPLIES
TO DELTA NINE THC, NOT THE
DOZENS OF OTHER INTOXICATING
SYNTHETIC COMPOUNDS THAT I JUST
MENTIONED AND THE ONES THAT ARE
GOING TO BE CREATED IN THE
FUTURE. THIS BILL SHOULD BE
AMENDED TO PROHIBIT THC OR A
COMPARABLE CANNABINOID THAT HAS
BEEN CONVERTED FROM A HEMP
DERIVED CANNABINOID PERIOD.
FURTHER, BECAUSE HEMP
AGRICULTURE IS REGULATED
EXPONENTIALLY MORE LIGHTLY THAN
LICENSED CANNABIS CULTIVATION,
THERE EXISTS A STRONG MARKET
INCENTIVE TO UTILIZE THESE CHEAP
SYNTHETIC HEMP DERIVED COMPOUNDS
IN CANNABIS PRODUCTS UNLESS
GUARDRAILS ARE PLACED AROUND
THIS ACTIVITY. SO WHAT DOES THIS
MEAN? IT MEANS WHY WOULD I
SUBJECT MYSELF TO THE LICENSING
STRUCTURE TO BECOME A LEGAL
CANNABIS GROWER IN THE STATE OF
CALIFORNIA? WHEN I COULD PAY A
$900 FEE TO CDFA GROW HEMP, SELL
MY SYNTHETICALLY DERIVED THC,
CANNABINOIDS INTO THE HEMP, INTO
THE CANNABIS SUPPLY CHAIN, AND
NOT HAVE TO DEAL WITH THE
REGULATIONS ON CANNABIS. AND
THAT'S OVER TWO MINUTES. WE
COULD WRAP UP. THAT'D BE GREAT.
SURE. SO THESE ARE OUR TOP
PRIORITIES. WE BELIEVE THAT
OTHER ISSUES MUST BE ADDRESSED,
BUT WE WOULD APPRECIATE THE
COMMITTEE'S CONCERNS AND ASK YOU
TO RESPECTFULLY VOTE NO UNTIL
THIS BILL BANS ALL HEMP DERIVED
THC AND INTOXICANTS FROM THE
CANNABIS SUPPLY CHAIN. THANK
YOU. THANK YOU. GOOD MORNING,
MR. CHAIR. I'M DOCTOR LYNN
SILVER AND MEMBERS,
PEDIATRICIAN, ON BEHALF OF THE
PUBLIC HEALTH INSTITUTE. I'M
ALSO A PROFESSOR AT UCSF AND A
MEMBER OF DC'S PROP 64 ADVISORY
GROUP. OUR POSITION IS OPPOSE
UNLESS AMENDED. WE SHARE MANY
CONCERNS WITH THE ORIGINS
COUNCIL. WE THANK THE MAJORITY
LEADER FOR SEEKING TO ADDRESS
DANGEROUS LACUNAE IN HEMP LAW
AND LACK OF SUBSEQUENT
REGULATION. WE STRONGLY SUPPORT
THE PROVISIONS PROHIBITING THE
CHEMICAL COCKTAIL OF THC BEING
MARKETED BY A SHAMELESS HEMP
INDUSTRY, WHETHER OUTSIDE OR
INSIDE OF CANNABIS RETAILERS,
AND WE SUPPORT THE CRITICAL
ENFORCEMENT AND NON PREEMPTION
PROVISIONS OF THE BILL,
PEDIATRIC POISONINGS FROM HEMP
AND CANNABIS ARE UP BY OVER
3,000, OFTEN REQUIRING INTENSIVE
CARE. IN CALIFORNIA, HALF OF
10TH GRADERS WHO START USING
CANNABIS NOW START WITH HEMP
PRODUCTS. THESE HIGHLY
INTOXICATING PRODUCTS OFTEN
BLATANTLY ATTRACTIVE TO
CHILDREN, ARE SOLD IN SMOKE AND
VAPE SHOPS STATEWIDE. MORE AND
MORE STUDENTS ARE ARRIVING
STONED, GETTING STONED AT
SCHOOL, AND ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS
ARE SEEING GROUP POISONINGS
REQUIRING AMBULANCE EVACUATIONS.
WE'RE ALSO SEEING HEMP INDUCED
PSYCHOSIS CASES. THIS BILL DOES
NOT CURRENTLY RESOLVE THE KEY
ISSUE OF INTOXICATING HEMP
PRODUCTS. IT STILL ALLOWS DELTA
NINE THC EDIBLES LIKE THIS ONE
IN AMOUNTS FAR ABOVE LEGAL
CANNABIS EDIBLES. HOWEVER, WE
DEEPLY APPRECIATE THE PROPOSED
AMENDMENTS, WHICH WILL
SUBSTANTIALLY REDUCE RISK, AND
WE RECOMMEND THAT YOU ACCEPT
THESE, BUT ALSO MAKE FURTHER
IMPROVEMENTS IN THE BILL. WE
RECOMMEND SPECIFICALLY
CLARIFYING THE ONE MILLIGRAM
AMENDMENT AS PER PACKAGE,
ALTHOUGH WE WOULD LIKE TO SEE
LOWER THAN THAT, AS NOTED IN OUR
COMMENTS. AND WE AGREE WITH THE
COUNCIL ON THAT, WE WOULD LIKE
TO SEE THAT LIMIT ADDED TO THE
TESTING REQUIREMENTS OF 11925.
WE OPPOSE THE SALE OF UNTAXED
AND LOOSELY REGULATED FINAL FORM
HEMP PRODUCTS BY CANNABIS STORES
OUTSIDE OF THE CANNABIS
MANUFACTURING PATHWAY, THIS WILL
CUT TAX REVENUE. IT WILL REDUCE
CHILD CARE SLOTS IN YOUTH
PROGRAMS FUNDED BY CANNABIS
TAXES, WHICH WERE ALREADY CUT
THIS YEAR, AND IT WILL UNDERMINE
LEGAL CANNABIS CULTIVATORS. IF
YOU COULD WRAP UP, THAT'D BE
GREAT. ALMOST DONE, WE RECOMMEND
DELETING THE PASSED FOR CDPH TO
APPROVE NEW CHEMICAL COCKTAILS
NOT NATURALLY PRESENT. AND WE
CALL ON MAKING THE PROHIBITION
OF INHALED. INHALABLE HEMP
PERMANENT AND DELETING THE
ADDITION OF INHALABLE TO THE
DEFINITION. THOSE ARE CURRENTLY
PROHIBITED AND SHOULD NOT BE
ALLOWED. THEY'RE JUST A NEW PATH
FOR YOUTH INITIATION OF SMOKING.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THANK YOU
VERY MUCH. APPRECIATE IT. WE'RE
GOING TO HAVE TO TRY TO KEEP
TIGHT BECAUSE WE'VE GOT A LOT OF
BILLS AND A LOT OF PEOPLE HAVE
TO RUN EVERYWHERE, QUICK, NEED
ONE MORE MEMBER TO ESTABLISH A
QUORUM. SO MEMBERS OF THE BNP
COMMITTEE, PLEASE COME ON DOWN,
ANY ADDITIONAL FOLKS WHO WANT TO
ADD ON IN OPPOSITION TO THE BILL
PROVIDING YOUR NAME,
ORGANIZATION YOU'RE WITH, IF
ANY, AND POSITION ON THE BILL.
HELLO. GOOD MORNING. MY NAME IS
ANGELA ADRIANO ON BEHALF OF
YOUTH FORWARD. AND OUR POSITION
IS OPPOSED UNLESS AMENDED. THANK
YOU VERY MUCH. SEEING NO
ADDITIONAL WITNESSES IN IN
OPPOSITION. BRING IT BACK TO
COLLEAGUES. TO SOME ASSEMBLY
MEMBER PELLERIN. THANK YOU,
CHAIR. AND THANK YOU TO THE
AUTHOR FOR BRINGING THIS BILL
FORWARD, AM I UNDERSTANDING
CORRECTLY THAT THIS BILL AS
WRITTEN WOULD ALLOW A CANNABIS
MANUFACTURER TO BUY HEMP,
CONVERT IT TO A SYNTHETIC
COMPOUND LIKE DELTA TEN THC, AND
THEN INCORPORATE THAT SYNTHETIC
COMPOUND INTO A LEGAL CANNABIS
PRODUCT SOLD AT A LEGAL
DISPENSARY. SO THE BILL WOULD
ALLOW FOR CANNABIS MANUFACTURERS
IN ORDER TO COMPETE WITH THE
HEMP PRICES, TO BRING IN CBD AND
THEN CONVERT CBD INTO OTHER
MINOR CANNABINOIDS LIKE CBN OR
CBG. THE INTENT IS NOT TO ALLOW
FOR CONVERSION INTO DELTA, INTO
INTO DELTA NINE OR FCS. THE
OTHER ISSUE TO UNDERSTAND IS
THAT CANNABIS MANUFACTURERS ARE
ALREADY BEHOLDEN TO A FINAL FORM
FOR EVERY SINGLE BATCH TEST THAT
TESTS FOR TOTAL THC, THAT TOTAL
THC IS CAPPED AT UP TO 10MG OR
100MG PER SERVING. FOR EDIBLES.
SO THE IDEA THAT THAT THAT OUR
INTENT IS TO BRING IN DELTA
NINES OR TETRAHYDROCANNABINOL,
THAT'S NOT THE GOAL. THAT'S
SPECIFICALLY WHAT'S PREVENTED IN
THE BILL. WHAT IS ALLOWED IN THE
BILL IS TO BRING IN CBD FROM THE
HEMP MARKET. THAT WOULD ALLOW MY
PRODUCTS TO BE CUT IN PRICE BY
ABOUT 20, WHICH WOULD ALLOW MY
EDIBLES TO FINALLY COMPETE NOT
ONLY WITH THE ILLICIT MARKET,
BUT THE EMERGING SHADOW MARKET
FOR HEMP, IF I MAY.
ASSEMBLYWOMAN. SO WE
RESPECTFULLY DISAGREE ON THAT
POINT. THE BILL SPECIFICALLY
PROHIBITS DELTA NINE THC THE
CBDS THAT ARE BROUGHT INTO THE
CANNABIS SUPPLY CHAIN ARE
SYNTHETICALLY DISTILLED INTO
INTOXICATING SUBSTANCES, AND
THEY ARE CONCENTRATED AND THEN
PUT INTO THE CANNABIS SUPPLY
CHAIN AT DOSAGES THAT ARE
CURRENTLY ALLOWED AND ARE
TOXICATED TO CONSUMERS. AND WHAT
THEY DO IS THEY REPLACE THE NEED
FOR CANNABIS, THC IN THE SUPPLY
CHAIN. RIGHT. I'M GOING TO USE A
JUST A QUICK ANALOGY HERE. AND
YOU ARE ALL FAMILIAR WITH THIS
WITH GUN LEGISLATION. THÀNH YOU
DON'T BAN A GLOCK 17 OR A GLOCK
19, YOU BAN A SEMIAUTOMATIC
HANDGUN WITH A MAGAZINE CAPACITY
OF MORE THAN TEN ROUNDS. THE
SAME THING APPLIES TO THIS BILL.
WE SHOULD NOT BE BANNING
INDIVIDUAL SUBSTANCES BY NAME.
WE SHOULD BAN THE NOTION OF
INTOXICATING THC DERIVED FROM
HEMP IN THE CANNABIS SUPPLY
CHAIN. AND IF I UNDERSTOOD WHAT
THE SPONSORS OF THE AND THE
PROPONENTS OF THE MEASURE JUST
SAID, WE ARE SEEM TO BE IN
AGREEMENT ON THAT. IF IT'S CBD
OR CBN, GREAT. IF IT'S A THC
DISTILLATE, WE DON'T WANT THOSE
AND WE PROPOSE THAT YOU
SHOULDN'T HAVE THEM. YOU WILL
DECIMATE THE CANNABIS INDUSTRY.
PEOPLE WILL JUST STOP GROWING
CANNABIS AND THEY WILL START
GROWING HEMP OKAY. THANK YOU
VERY MUCH. THANK YOU. WE'RE
GOING TO TAKE A QUICK BREAK TO
ESTABLISH A QUORUM BEFORE YOU
ALL RUN OFF TO OTHER THINGS,
MADAM SECRETARY, PLEASE CALL THE
ROLL BURMAN HERE, FLORA HERE,
ALANIS BANES. YEAH. JUAN
CARRILLO CHEN. DIXON. GRAYSON
IRWIN. JACKSON LOW. LOWENTHAL.
MCKENNA GWEN. PELLERIN, SANJAY.
SORIA. ZIPPER. GREAT WE HAVE A
QUORUM. WE HAVE A MOTION. WE
HAVE A SECOND ADDITIONAL
QUESTIONS, SOMEONE WANTED TO
BRING IT BACK TO YOU. WELL, I
CONTINUE TO HAVE SOME CONCERNS
ABOUT THIS BILL, AND I'M HOPEFUL
THAT THE AUTHOR WILL CONTINUE TO
WORK WITH THE OPPOSITION TO WORK
OUT THE DIFFERENCES TO MAKE IT,
MORE PALATABLE FOR US. IS THAT.
THANK YOU. YEAH OKAY.
ABSOLUTELY. THANK YOU. ANY
ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS OR
COMMENTS? YES. DOCTOR BANES. CAN
WE GET BETTER AT THIS ONE DAY,
YES. NO, I JUST WANTED TO,
REITERATE, ASSEMBLYMEMBER
PELLERIN'S COMMENTS AS WELL. AND
I JUST WANTED TO MAKE IT VERY
CLEAR THAT THE CONCERNING PART
FOR ME IS THE LEVEL OF THC THAT
ARE IN THE DRUGS ON THE STREETS
TODAY. AS A PHYSICIAN, I'M
SEEING HIGH LEVELS OF DRUG
INDUCED PHRENIA IN OUR CHILDREN,
AND THAT IS DIRECTLY LINKED TO
THE THC AMOUNT IN OUR DRUGS
TODAY THAT ARE HITTING THE
STREETS ILLEGALLY. SO I WANT TO
MAKE SURE THAT EVERYBODY
UNDERSTANDS THAT THE LEVEL OF
THC IN THE ILLEGAL DRUG MARKET
RIGHT NOW IS NOT WHAT WE HAD 30
YEARS AGO. IT IS AT HIGH, HIGH
TOXIC LEVELS THAT ARE REALLY
INTERFERING WITH CHILD
DEVELOPMENT. AND THEIR THEIR,
DEVELOPING IN THE FUTURE AS
WELL. THROUGHOUT THEIR TEENS.
THANK YOU. THANK YOU. DOCTOR
BAINS. GOOD POINTS. ANY
ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS
? SEEING NONE, MAJORITY LEADER,
WOULD YOU LIKE TO CLOSE? I SURE
WOULD, I APPRECIATE THE COMMENTS
AND ABSOLUTELY WE'RE GOING TO
STILL WORK ON THIS. AS YOU KNOW,
THIS IS EVOLVING. I'VE WORKED ON
THESE ISSUES FOR SIX YEARS. IT
IS CHANGING EVERY SINGLE DAY.
AND AS I PRESENT THIS BILL TO
YOU TODAY, IT WILL MAKE PRODUCTS
AND PRACTICES SAFER AND MAKE IT
HARDER FOR CRIMINALS TO SELL
LEGAL PRODUCTS. BUT THAT DOES
NOT MEAN OUR WORK IS DONE. THIS
IS WHAT IS SOLD IN TOTAL WINE.
IT'S AN END CAP. BLOOD ORANGE,
MANGO, NORTH HIGH TONICS, TEN
MILLIGRAM THC, LIGHTLY
CARBONATED. I HAVE THIS AND
ANOTHER ONE. THEY'RE ALL OVER
THE PLACE IN THOSE STORES. THEY
ARE NOT FOLLOWING THE RULES THAT
WE INITIALLY PUT INTO. SO, YES,
WE'RE TRYING TO CLOSE THE
LOOPHOLE. THIS IS ABSOLUTELY AS,
DOCTOR BAIN SAID, IT'S OUT OF
CONTROL. WE WANT TO PUT SOME
MORE GUARDRAILS AROUND IT.
PEOPLE WILL TRY TO FIGURE OUT
OTHER WAYS, BUT WE'VE GOT TO
STOP THIS. THIS IS ABOUT SAFETY.
THIS IS ABOUT WHERE THIS IS
SOLD. THIS IS ABOUT KEEPING OUR
SMALL BUSINESSES GOING. MIND
YOU, I WANT TO MAKE SURE THOSE
KEEP GOING. SO I WANT TO JUST
ASSURE YOU ALL THAT I WILL
CONTINUE TO WORK WITH ALL THE
STAKEHOLDERS TO IMPLEMENT
INTEGRATION IN A WAY THAT
SUPPORTS OUR LEGAL HEMP AND
CANNABIS INDUSTRIES. WE FURTHER
EMPOWER OUR REGULATORS TO ATTACK
ILLEGAL PRODUCTS AND PROTECTS
PUBLIC HEALTH. I COMMIT TO ALL
OF YOU AND YOU KNOW I WILL DO
THAT. THEY WILL UPDATE THE
COMMITTEE AS THOSE CONVERSATIONS
PROGRESS AND I OFFER MY EXPERT
WITNESSES IF YOU'D LIKE TO MEET
WITH THEM OR THEY WOULD LIKE TO
MEET WITH YOU SO WE CAN MAKE
SURE EVERYTHING'S CLEAR. SO WITH
THAT, I RESPECTFULLY ASK FOR AN
AYE VOTE. THANK YOU, MR. CHAIR.
I THINK THOSE WERE SAMPLES SHE
WAS GOING TO GIVE OUT TO ALL THE
MEMBERS OF. YOU MAY NEVER GET
OUT OF THIS MEETING. THAT'S
GOING TO BE A CAUCUS LUNCH.
THAT'S GOING TO BE A CAUCUS
LUNCH. I WILL TELL YOU, THESE
ARE PRETTY POWERFUL. SO YEAH.
THANK YOU. ALL JOKING ASIDE,
THANK YOU TO THE MAJORITY LEADER
FOR ACCEPTING THE COMMITTEE
AMENDMENTS TODAY, I'D BE REMISS
IF I DIDN'T ACKNOWLEDGE THE HALF
A DECADE OF LEADERSHIP THAT THAT
YOU HAVE, SHOWN ON THESE ISSUES.
AND YOUR COMMITMENT TO
CONTINUING THE CONVERSATION
ABOUT HOW TO RECONCILE CANNABIS
AND HEMP REGULATION. I BELIEVE
EVERYONE WE'VE HEARD FROM TODAY,
SUPPORT AND OPPOSITION AGREES
THAT THESE CONVERSATIONS ARE
GOING TO HAVE TO CONTINUE AND
THAT THIS BILL IS STILL A WORK
IN PROGRESS, ANOTHER THING I
THINK WE ALL AGREE ON IS THAT
IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE GET THIS
RIGHT, THE ISSUES AROUND THE
INTOXICATING HEMP LOOPHOLE ARE
SERIOUS, AND I APPLAUD YOU, THE
AUTHOR, FOR KEEPING YOUR DOOR
OPEN AS WE WORK ON RESOLVING THE
MANY OUTSTANDING QUESTIONS. IN
THE MEANTIME, I BELIEVE THE
AMENDMENTS TAKEN TODAY MOVE THAT
CONVERSATION FORWARD, AND I'M
HAPPY TO SUPPORT THE BILL, MADAM
SECRETARY, PLEASE CALL THE VOTE
ON AB 2223 AGUIAR-CURRY. THE
MOTION IS DUE. PASS AS AMENDED,
TO THE COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY.
BERMAN I BERMAN I FLORA LARA I
ALANIS BAINS. BAINS I JUAN
CARRILLO, JUAN CARRILLO I CHEN.
DIXON, GRAYSON. GRAYSON I IRWIN.
JACKSON. JACKSON I LOW, LOW I
LOWENTHAL. LOWENTHAL I MCKENNA.
HIÆN, PELLERIN. PELLERIN I
SANCHEZ. SORIA. ZUBER. YEAH. SO
THAT THAT BUILDS ON CALL. WE'LL
KEEP THE ROLL OPEN FOR ABSENT
COLLEAGUES, AND NEXT UP, I SEE
ASSEMBLY MEMBER VIA, AGENDA ITEM
NUMBER SIX, AB 2228. NO, MA'AM.
I DON'T TRUST I DON'T TRUST MY
COLLEAGUES
.
SOME NUMBER VÆ VALLAPUDUA, READY
WHEN YOU ARE. GOT A MOTION. HAVE
A BIPARTISAN MOTION IN SECOND.
BUT JUST HIT THE MIC BUTTON.
THANK YOU. SIR, CAN YOU HEAR ME
NOW? THERE YOU GO. BEAUTIFUL.
I'M PROUD TO PRESENT AB 228 THIS
MORNING AND WOULD LIKE TO START
BY THANKING THE COMMITTEE FOR
STAFF FOR THEIR WORK ON THIS
MEASURE. I'M HAPPY TO ACCEPT THE
PROPOSAL. TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS
THAT CLEANS UP THE LANGUAGE
WITHIN THE CURRENT STATUTE. THIS
BILL ATTEMPTS TO ADDRESS TWO
ISSUES. FIRST, IT WOULD ALLOW
THE REPOSSESSION AGENCY TO
PROVIDE THE REQUIRED NOTICE OF
REPOSSESSION TO THE DEBTOR BY
EMAIL OR BY MAIL SENT TO THE
CURRENT ADDRESS. IF KNOWN, THIS
WOULD ENSURE THAT IT SURE THE
NOTICE BE SENT MORE MORE TIMELY
AND WITH A GREATER CARE OF
PRIVATE AND SENSITIVE
INFORMATION. THE SECOND IS
REQUIRED. THE PRIOR STORAGE OF
THE DEBTOR BELONGINGS TO BE KEPT
CONFIDENTIAL, AND FOR THAT PRICE
TO BE SET BY THE REPOSSESSOR WHO
IS IN CHARGE OF STORING AND
MAINTAINING IT. ALL. THIS IS THE
INSURER INTEREST OF THE THIRD
PARTY FINANCIAL INSTITUTE CANNOT
GAIN ACCESS TO FINANCIAL
INFORMATION THAT MAY PREVENT THE
DEBTOR FROM RECLAIMING THEIR
VALUABLE PROPERTIES. WITH ME
TODAY TO HELP ADDRESS ANY
TECHNICAL QUESTIONS YOU MAY HAVE
IS JOE COLLINS WITH THE
CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF
LICENSED REPROCESSORS AND DAVE
FONTANA. THANK YOU, THANK YOU,
CHAIRMAN. I'LL BE VERY QUICK, AS
THE ASSEMBLYMAN STATED, THIS IS
A VERY SIMPLE BILL. DOES TWO
THINGS. WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO
WITH THIS BILL IS JUST
STRENGTHEN THE CONFIDENTIALITY
K¾T BETWEEN THE REPOSSESSOR AND
THE CONSUMER, WHO UNFORTUNATELY
HAD THEIR COLLATERAL REPOSSESSED
AND THAT IS BY ENSURING THAT WE
STRENGTHEN THE CONFIDENTIAL K¾T
OF ANY FEES THAT THEY HAVE MAY
HAVE PAID. SO IT'S JUST BETWEEN
US AND THEM. AND WE, STRENGTHEN
THE CONFIDENTIALITY ON THEIR
ADDRESS. SO WE GET IT TO THE
RIGHT ADDRESS SO THEIR PERSONAL
INFORMATION ISN'T BEING SENT TO
SOME, WRONG ADDRESS, WITH ME FOR
ANY TECHNICAL QUESTIONS. YOU MAY
HAVE IS JOE COLLINS. BUT IF NOT,
WE'RE GOOD. GREAT. THANK YOU
VERY MUCH. ANY ADDITIONAL
WITNESSES WHO WANT TO ADD ON IN
SUPPORT OF THE BILL, PROVIDING
NAME, ORGANIZATION YOU'RE WITH,
IF ANY, AND POSITION ON THE BILL
SEEING NONE ANY PRIMARY
WITNESSES IN OPPOSITION TO THE
BILL OR TWEENERS OR PLEASE.
THANK YOU, MR. CHAIR. MEMBERS
MEGAN ALLRED, ON BEHALF OF
AMERICAN RECOVERY SERVICES, IN
OPPOSITION TO THE BILL AS
WRITTEN, HOWEVER, WE'RE WORKING
WITH THE AUTHOR'S OFFICE TO
ADDRESS MAJOR CONCERNS WE HAVE
WITH THE BILL, AND IT'S OUR
UNDERSTANDING THAT THE ORIGINAL
INTENT WAS SIMPLY A NOTIFICATION
MEASURE. SO WE LOOK FORWARD TO
WORKING WITH THE SPONSORS AND
THE AUTHOR'S OFFICE TO BRING THE
BILL BACK TO ITS ORIGINAL FORM.
THANK YOU. THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
ANY ADDITIONAL, WITNESSES WHO
WANT TO ADD IN, ADD ON IN
OPPOSITION TO THE BILL, SEEING%
NONE. WE HAVE A MOTION IN A
SECOND. BRING IT BACK TO
COLLEAGUES FOR ANY QUESTIONS OR
COMMENTS. I DON'T SEE ANY
QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS, MEMBER,
WOULD YOU LIKE TO CLOSE? YEAH,
I'D LIKE TO SHARE MY
APPRECIATION FOR THE OPPOSITION
WILLINGNESS TO WORK WITH THIS
AND ON THE LANGUAGE. AND I
REALLY REITERATE MY COMMITMENT
TO WORK WITH THEM IN THIS ISSUE
MOVING FORWARD. SO WITH THAT, I
RESPECTFULLY ASK FOR AN AYE
VOTE. THANK YOU, ASSEMBLY MEMBER
VÀ VALLAPUDUA FOR BRINGING THIS
BILL FORWARD WITH THE TECHNICAL
AMENDMENTS. I'M HAPPY TO SUPPORT
THE BILL TODAY, AND HAPPY TO
HEAR THAT YOU'RE GOING TO
CONTINUE THE CONVERSATION WITH
FOLKS WHO HAVE CONCERNS.
ABSOLUTELY, MADAM SECRETARY,
PLEASE CALL THE VOTE ON AB 2228
VÆ VALLAPUDUA. THE MOTION IS DUE
PASS AS AMENDED TO THE COMMITTEE
ON JUDICIARY. BERMAN A BERMAN
AYE. FLORA LARA. AYE. AL-ENEZI.
BAINES. BAINES AYE. JUAN.
CARRILLO. JUAN. CARRILLO. AYE.
CHEN. DIXON GRAYSON. GRAYSON.
AYE. ERWIN. JACKSON JACKSON.
AYE. LOW. LOW. AYE LOWENTHAL.
LOWENTHAL. AYE. MCKENNA. WHEN
PELLERIN. PELLERIN. AYE.
SANCHEZ. SORIA ZABIR. THAT BILL
IS ON CALL. WE'LL LEAVE IT OPEN
FOR ABSENT COLLEAGUES. THANK YOU
VERY MUCH. AND AS ASSEMBLYMEMBER
LEE COMES UP, WE'RE GOING TO
TAKE A QUICK BREAK IN THE ACTION
TO DO THE CONSENT CALENDAR,
MADAM, CAN I GET A MOTION AND A
SECOND ON THE CONSENT CALENDAR?
GOT A LOT OF THEM, WE'LL GO
MOTION WITH VICE CHAIR FLORA,
SECOND BY ASSEMBLY MEMBER
LOWENTHAL. PLEASE CALL THE VOTE
ON THE CONSENT CALENDAR. FILE
ITEM ONE, AB 1902. ALANIZ FILE
ITEM TWO, AB 1988 MURATSUCHI
FILE ITEM FOUR, AB 2166 WEBER
FILE ITEM 11 AB 2496. LO FILE
ITEM 12 AB 3119 LO. THE MOTIONS
ARE DUE. PASS TO THE COMMITTEE
ON APPROPRIATION. BERMAN A
BERMAN. AYE. FLORA. FLORA. AYE
ALANIZ. BAINES. BAINES. AYE.
JUAN CARILLO. JUAN. CARRILLO.
AYE. CHEN. DIXON. GRAYSON
GRAYSON. AYE. ERWIN. JACKSON
JACKSON. I LO LO I. LOWENTHAL
LOWENTHAL. AYE. MACKINAW. HIÆN.
PELLERIN PELLERIN. AYE. SANCHEZ.
SORIA ZUBER. THE CONSENT
CALENDAR IS ON CALL. WILL LEAVE
THE ROLE OPEN FOR ABSENT
COLLEAGUES. ASSEMBLY MEMBER LEE
FOR AB 2444. READY WHEN YOU ARE,
SIR. WELL, THANK YOU, MR. CHAIR
AND COLLEAGUES. MORNING. FIRST,
I WOULD LIKE TO THANK THE
COMMITTEE STAFF FOR THEIR WORK
ON THE BILL WITH US. THIS BILL
WILL ENSURE THAT BASIC LABOR LAW
INFORMATION IS PROVIDED TO
LICENSED MANICURISTS BECAUSE
THIS INDUSTRY WILL BE SUBJECT TO
THE AB FIVE EMPLOYER EMPLOYEE
DETERMINATION PROCESS STARTING
IN JANUARY FIRST, 2025, WHEN AB
FIVE BECAME LAW IN 2019,
MANICURISTS WERE EXEMPT
TEMPORARILY UNTIL JANUARY 1ST,
2022. THE SUNSET DATE WAS LATER
BUMPED TO 2025, WITH THIS CHANGE
COMING TO NAIL SALONS, THIS BILL
SEEKS TO PROVIDE INFORMATION TO
MANICURISTS AND NAIL SALON
BUSINESS OWNERS. THE
NOTIFICATION WILL BE SENT TO THE
DEPARTMENT OF INDUSTRIAL
RELATIONS, SO THE CONTENT WILL
BE CORRECT AND GOING FORWARD,
MANICURISTS WILL WOULD BE
PROVIDED THIS INFORMATION
THROUGH THE BOARD OF BARBERING
AND COSMETOLOGY AS PART OF THEIR
LICENSE AND RENEWAL PROCESS.
THIS IS A COMMON SENSE NOTICE
BILL, SO THAT PEOPLE WORKING IN
NAIL SALONS KNOW THAT THE LAWS
AROUND THEIR INDUSTRY ARE
CHANGING. WITH ME TODAY AND
SUPPORT OUR LISA FU, THE
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR AT CALIFORNIA
HEALTHY NAIL SALON
COLLABORATIVE, AND TINA BUI, A
NAIL SALON OWNER. GREAT. AND YOU
BOTH HAVE TWO MINUTES EACH. HI.
THANK YOU, GOOD MORNING,
CHAIRPERSON BERMAN AND COMMITTEE
MEMBERS. MY NAME IS LISA FU. I'M
THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE
CALIFORNIA HEALTHY NAIL SALON
COLLABORATIVE. WE ARE A
STATEWIDE ORGANIZATION WHOSE
MISSION IS TO MOBILIZE THE NAIL
SALON WORKFORCE TO TRANSFORM THE
HEALTH, SAFETY, AND WORKING
CONDITIONS OF THE NAIL SALON
INDUSTRY. WE AND ASIAN AMERICANS
ADVANCING JUSTICE SOUTHERN
CALIFORNIA, ARE CO-SPONSORS OF
THE BILL. THE OVERARCHING GOAL
IS TO ENSURE THAT THE BBC
LICENSE COMMUNITY KNOWS AND
UNDERSTANDS THEIR RIGHTS AND
OBLIGATIONS UNDER CALIFORNIA
LABOR LAW. ADDITIONALLY, WE
BELIEVE THAT ESTABLISHMENT
OWNERS AND LICENSEES HAVE A
RIGHT TO BE INFORMED ABOUT ABOUT
THE CHANGE IN LAW. IN JANUARY
2025, IN WHICH THE ABC TEST FOR
CLASSIFICATION WILL BECOME
APPLICABLE TO MANICURISTS, WE
THINK THAT'S POSSIBLE BY ASKING
THE BBC TO UTILIZE EXISTING
FORMS OF COMMUNICATION TO INFORM
THE LICENSEES OF BASIC LABOR
LAWS, SUCH AS QUARTERLY
NEWSLETTERS, THEIR LICENSE
APPLICATION PROCESS, AND BY ALSO
CALLING ON DA TO NOTIFY
ESTABLISHMENT OWNERS AND
MANICURISTS OF THE CHANGE IN LAW
. BOTH AGENCIES HAVE A STAKE IN
ENSURING LABOR LAW COMPLIANCE
LICENSEES ARE MORE LIKELY TO
PERFORM BETTER AT WORK AND
PROTECT THE HEALTH OF CONSUMERS
IF THEY ARE BEING TREATED
PROPERLY. ALSO EDUCATION OF
LABOR LAWS LEADS TO INFORMED AND
EMPOWERED LICENSEES AND
PREVENTION OF NONCOMPLIANCE.
THIS IS A FAR BETTER ROUTE TO AN
EQUITABLE WORKPLACE THAN
IMPLEMENTING ENFORCEMENT EFFORTS
AFTER THE FACT. SO WHY? WHY IS
THIS BILL NECESSARY? ONE THE
STATEWIDE NAIL SALON SECTOR IS
GROWING. IT'S MADE UP OF MOSTLY
ASIAN REFUGEE AND IMMIGRANT
WOMEN. 85% IDENTIFY AS FEMALE,
AND OF THE 81% BORN OUTSIDE OF
THE US, 82% WERE BORN IN
VIETNAM. TWO MANICURISTS ARE LOW
WAGE WORKERS WITH A MEDIAN WAGE
OF $10.94 AN HOUR. THAT'S LESS
THAN HALF THE MEDIAN WAGE OF ALL
OTHER WORKERS IN THE STATE,
WHICH IS OVER $23 AN HOUR. WE'VE
DONE FOCUS GROUPS AND INTERVIEWS
AND FOUND THAT THERE'S CONFUSION
WHEN TALK, WHEN TALKING ABOUT
CLASSIFICATION OF EMPLOYEES,
THIS IS ALSO LIKELY PRESENT
AMONG OTHER LICENSEES AS WELL.
THIS BILL REPRESENTS A MODEST
AND REASONABLE ATTEMPT TO ENSURE
THAT SALON OWNERS AND WORKERS
GET THE INFORMATION THEY NEED TO
PROVIDE AND ENJOY A FAIR AND
JUST WORKPLACE THAT ALL WORKERS
DESERVE. FOR THESE REASONS, WE
URGE A YES VOTE ON AB 2444.
THANK YOU. THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
HELLO BUSINESS AND PROFESSIONS
COMMITTEE. MY NAME IS TINA BUI
AND I AM A SALON OWNER AND A
MANICURIST. I HAVE BEEN IN, NAIL
SALON INDUSTRY FOR 28 YEARS IN
SAN RAFAEL, MARIN COUNTY. I
ENJOY DOING NAILS BECAUSE, YOU
KNOW, I LIKE A DETAILED JOB AND
MAKE, PEOPLE HAPPY AND TALKING
TO PEOPLE. I CAN READ AND WRITE
AND UNDERSTAND ENOUGH ENGLISH TO
WORK IN THE NAIL SALON, BUT IT
IS NOT ENOUGH TO UNDERSTAND
POLICY AND LEGAL PAPERWORK,
LABOR LAW. SO IT'S HELPFUL FOR
OWNERS AND WORKERS TO LEARN
ABOUT LABOR LAW AND THEIR
LANGUAGES. BECAUSE NOT ALL OF
OWNERS AND WORKERS WORKERS CAN
READ AND WRITE ENGLISH FLUENTLY
LIKE ME, I. I WASN'T BORN AND
GREW UP HERE, DIDN'T HAVE TIME
TO GO TO SCHOOL EITHER. I ONLY
CAN HAVE CONVERSATION WITH
CUSTOMERS, BUT LABOR LAW AND
HANDLING LABOR RELATED
DOCUMENTS? I'M NOT FAMILIAR. I
UNDERSTAND THE IMPORTANCE OF
HAVING LANGUAGE ACCESS. WE NEED
TO HAVE ALL DIFFERENT LANGUAGES.
THIS ISSUE IS NOT FOR ME, BUT
FOR ALL OF NAIL OWNERS AND NAIL
WORKERS AND EVERYONE IN THE
BEAUTY INDUSTRY TO HAVE THE
LANGUAGE IN ENGLISH, VIETNAMESE,
KOREAN AND SPANISH. I REQUEST
COMMITTEE TO SUPPORT AB 2444.
THANK YOU. THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
ANY ADDITIONAL WITNESSES YOU
WANT TO ADD ON IN SUPPORT OF THE
BILL? PLEASE PROVIDE YOUR NAME,
ORGANIZATION YOU'RE WITH, IF
ANY, IN POSITION ON THE BILL.
LEAH BARROWS ON BEHALF OF
CHINESE FOR AFFIRMATIVE ACTION
IN SUPPORT. GOOD MORNING. MY
NAME IS FAITH LI. WITH ASIAN
AMERICANS ADVANCING JUSTICE,
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA, WE'RE
CO-SPONSOR IN SUPPORT. THANK
YOU. THANK YOU. GOOD MORNING.
CHLOE STECK WITH THE CALIFORNIA
IMMIGRANT POLICY CENTER IN
STRONG SUPPORT. THANK YOU. THANK
YOU. KHÓ YOSHIHARA, ON BEHALF OF
THE CALIFORNIA COALITION FOR
WORKER POWER AND STRONG SUPPORT.
THANK YOU. GOOD MORNING. HELLO.
MY NAME Tê. I, I WORK A NAIL
SALON WORKER. I SUPPORT AB 2444.
THANK YOU SO MUCH. THANK YOU
VERY MUCH. HELLO. GOOD MORNING.
MY NAME IS MARY NGUYEN. I AM ON
BEHALF OF THE CALIFORNIA HEALTHY
NAIL SALON COLLABORATIVE. I AM
IN SUPPORT OF THIS BILL. THANK
YOU. MY NAME IS VITO YANG. YANG
NGUYEN TEAM. I TOMO YOU.LOOK AB
TWO FOUR. PAPA. THANK YOU SO
MUCH. SORRY, JUST A QUICK
TRANSLATION. SHE IS A NAIL SALON
WORKER AND SHE IS ALSO IN
SUPPORT OF AB 2444. THANK YOU
VERY MUCH. HELLO EVERYONE! MY
NAME IS HÌ. I SUPPORT FOR AB
TWO, AB 444. THANK YOU VERY MUCH
. GOOD MORNING FOLKS. VU NGUYEN
WITH THE CALIFORNIA HEALTHY NAIL
SALON COLLABORATIVE AND ALSO
CHÁVEZ NIELSEN WORKER AND I
SUPPORT THIS BILL. THANK YOU.
SYDNEY FONG ON BEHALF OF ASIAN
AMERICANS AND PACIFIC ISLANDERS
FOR CIVIC EMPOWERMENT, AAPI
FORCE AND STRONG SUPPORT OF THIS
BILL. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. ANY
PRIMARY WITNESSES IN OPPOSITION
TO THE BILL, PLEASE COME UP.
YOU'VE GOT TWO MINUTES EACH.
MR. CHAIR MEMBERS FRED JONES, ON
BEHALF OF THE PROFESSIONAL
BEAUTY FEDERATION OF CALIFORNIA,
WE'RE OPPOSED UNLESS AMENDED
FROM OUR PERSPECTIVE, THIS
WELL-INTENTIONED BILL IS TO
PREPARE ONE SECTOR OF OUR
INDUSTRY FOR ARMAGEDDON DAY,
WHICH IS THIS JANUARY 1ST. OUR
AMENDMENTS WOULD AVOID
ARMAGEDDON DAY FOR THIS
PARTICULAR SECTOR OF OUR
INDUSTRY. ASSEMBLY BILL FIVE,
WHICH I WORKED CLOSELY WITH.
ASSEMBLY MEMBER THEN LORENA
GONZALEZ IN DRAFTING AN
EXCEPTION TO THE ABC RULE IN AB
FIVE, SPECIFICALLY FOR OUR
INDUSTRY. OUR INDUSTRY INCLUDES
HAIR SALONS, SKIN AND NAIL
SALONS. AT THE LAST MINUTE OF AB
FIVE, A SUNSET WAS PUT IN ON
THAT EXCEPTION ONLY FOR THE NAIL
INDUSTRY. THAT SUNSET DATE WAS
EXTENDED FOR YEARS AGO, WITH A
COMMITTEE BILL, UNANIMOUS
SUPPORT. WE WOULD RECOMMEND YOU
EXTEND THAT SUNSET AS A MATTER
OF EQUITY. TREAT THE NAIL SECTOR
THE SAME AS THE HAIR AND SKIN
SECTOR OF OUR INDUSTRY, WHICH
HAS AN INDEFINITE EXEMPTION TO
THE ABC TEST. I SAY ARMAGEDDON,
THE IDEA OF TRYING TO GET 95% OF
THESE SALONS THAT UTILIZE
INDEPENDENT CONTRACTORS TO, BY
JANUARY 1ST, MAKE THEM ALL
EMPLOYEES AND EDUCATE THEM OF
WHAT THE REQUIREMENTS ARE IN AN
EMPLOYER EMPLOYEE RELATIONSHIP.
I WOULD ARGUE FROM A PRACTICAL
PERSPECTIVE, WILL BE IMPOSSIBLE.
THE STATE BOARD OF BARBER AND
COSMETOLOGY HAS AN OPPOSED
POSITION ON THIS BILL BECAUSE
THE MANDATE REQUIRED OF THEM OF
THIS BILL IS PRACTICALLY
IMPOSSIBLE, EVEN WITH THE
AMENDMENTS. RECENT AMENDMENTS TO
THE BILL, THEY STILL LICENSE
55,000 ESTABLISHMENTS AND DON'T
DISTINGUISH BETWEEN NAIL HAIR OR
SKIN. SO EVERY ESTABLISHMENT
WILL GET LOADS OF NEW PAPERWORK
AS PART OF THEIR LICENSE RENEWAL
APPLICATION. SO SO WHILE I
ADMIRE AND APPRECIATE THE INTENT
OF THE BILL FROM A PRACTICAL
PERSPECTIVE, JANUARY FIRST WILL
BE ARMAGEDDON DAY FOR THE NAIL
SALON SECTOR. IF THE EXEMPTION
IS NOT EXTENDED. THANK YOU.
THAT'S WHAT WE REQUEST. THANK
YOU VERY MUCH. AND ONE POINT OF
CLARIFICATION IS THAT THE BOARD
OF BARBERING AND COSMETOLOGY
REMOVED THEIR OPPOSITION WITH
THE AMENDMENTS TO THE BILL, BUT
APPRECIATE ALL THE COMMENTS YOU
MADE, WANT TO BRING IT BACK TO,
EXCUSE ME, ANY ADDITIONAL
WITNESSES WHO WANT TO ADD ON IN
OPPOSITION TO THE BILL? PLEASE
PROVIDE YOUR NAME, ORGANIZATION
YOU'RE WITH, IF ANY, AND
POSITION ON THE BILL. DAVID
BOLLAG, NEIGHBORS OF THE 40TH
ASSEMBLY DISTRICT FOR SAME
LEGISLATION, 22 YEAR
COSMETOLOGIST IN OPPOSITION TO
THIS AS THE OPPOSITION HAS
SPOKE. THANK YOU. THANK YOU
SENTIMENTS. THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
ANY ADDITIONAL WITNESSES IN
OPPOSITION SEEING NONE. BRING IT
BACK TO COLLEAGUES FOR QUESTIONS
OR COMMENTS ON THE BILL.
ASSEMBLYMEMBER CARILLO, JUST
WANT TO THANK THE AUTHOR FOR
BRINGING THIS LEGISLATION IN
FRONT OF US. AS AN IMMIGRANT
MYSELF, I KNOW WHAT IT'S LIKE TO
COME TO A FOREIGN COUNTRY HAVING
TO LEARN THE LANGUAGE, HAVING TO
ASSIMILATE TO THE CULTURE.
NEVERTHELESS, WORKING HARD IN
SEARCH OF THE AMERICAN DREAM. I
WANT TO THANK YOU FOR BRINGING
THIS IN FRONT OF US, AND I WANT
TO THANK THE SPEAKERS THAT CAME
UP TO THE MICROPHONE, BECAUSE I
KNOW HOW DIFFICULT IT CAN BE AND
INTIMIDATE IT CAN BE, THANK YOU
FOR BRINGING THIS IN FRONT OF
US. AND IF THERE HASN'T BEEN A
I'D LIKE TO MOVE THE BILL. GOT A
MOTION? GOT A SECOND? ANY
ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS
FROM COLLEAGUES? SEEING NONE.
ASSEMBLY MEMBER LEE, WOULD YOU
LIKE TO CLOSE? YEAH I WOULD JUST
LIKE TO THANK THE COMMITTEE, OF
COURSE, FOR WORKING WITH US ON
AMENDMENTS TO ADDRESS SOME
CONCERNS OUT THERE. YOU KNOW, OF
COURSE, THIS BILL IS SET IN A
LARGER CONTEXT OF AB FIVE. BUT
LIKE IT OR LEAVE IT, YOU HAVE TO
MAKE SURE THAT THIS WORKFORCE,
THE NAIL SALON INDUSTRY
WORKFORCE, IS GOING TO BE
BROUGHT ALONG ON THE RIDE. AS
YOU'VE HEARD, THE MAJORITY OF
THIS WORKFORCE ARE VIETNAM BORN
AND WOMEN. AND THIS INDUSTRY IS
VERY UNIQUE IN THAT IN THAT
SENSE. SO WE WANT TO MAKE SURE
THAT THE FOLKS ARE ARMED WITH
ALL THE INFORMATION THEY CAN TO
BE IN COMPLIANCE. AND THIS IS
REALLY ALL THAT'S ABOUT. IT'S
ABOUT LANGUAGE AND CULTURAL
COMPETENCY. AND I REQUEST YOUR
AYE VOTE. THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
EXCUSE ME. THANK YOU. ASSEMBLY
MEMBER LEE, FOR WORKING WITH THE
COMMITTEE ON THIS BILL AND
WORKING OUT SOME ISSUES THAT
WERE RAISED PRIOR TO TODAY'S
HEARING. AND I BELIEVE ANY
REMAINING ISSUES WILL BE
DISCUSSED WHEN THIS BILL IS
HEARD NEXT IN THE ASSEMBLY LABOR
COMMITTEE, AND IN THE MEANTIME,
I'M HAPPY TO SUPPORT THE BILL
TODAY. MADAM SECRETARY, PLEASE
CALL THE VOTE ON AB 2444. LEE,
THE MOTION IS DUE PASSED TO THE
COMMITTEE ON LABOR AND
EMPLOYMENT. BERMAN. AYE. BERMAN.
AYE. FLORA LARA. NØ. ALANIS.
BAINES. BAINES AYE. JUAN.
CARRILLO. JUAN. CARRILLO. AYE.
CHEN. DIXON IN. GRAYSON.
GRAYSON. AYE. IRWIN JACKSON.
JACKSON. AYE. LOW, LOW. AYE.
LOWENTHAL. LOWENTHAL. AYE.
MCKENNA. HIÆN WHEN? AYE.
PELLERIN. PELLERIN. AYE. SANCHEZ
SORIA. ZUBER THAT BILL IS ON
CALL. WE'LL LEAVE THE ROLL OPEN
FOR ABSENT COLLEAGUES. ASSEMBLY
MEMBER MAINE SHINE, YOU'VE GOT
TWO BILLS. AB 2270 AND AB 2581.
PICK YOUR POISON, WHICHEVER YOU
PREFER. THANK YOU VERY MUCH, MR.
CHAIR AND MEMBERS, YOU MEAN TO
START WITH 2270? OKAY I'D LIKE
TO START BY ACCEPTING THE
COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS AS PROPOSED
IN THE ANALYSIS. ACCORDING TO
THE NATIONAL LIBRARY OF
MEDICINE, UNDERSTANDING
MENOPAUSE IS CRUCIAL FOR BOTH
THE INDIVIDUALS EXPERIENCING IT
AND FOR HEALTH CARE
PROFESSIONALS ALIKE. HOWEVER
DESPITE ITS SIGNIFICANCE, THERE
EXISTS A WIDESPREAD
MISCONCEPTION SURROUNDING
MENOPAUSE. THIS LEADS TO A LACK
OF UNDERSTANDING FOR THOSE
EXPERIENCING IT AND DELAYS IN
RECEIVING APPROPRIATE CARE. AB
2270 AIMS TO ADDRESS THIS BY
ALLOWING MEDICAL AND BEHAVIORAL
HEALTH PROVIDERS TO TAKE A
COURSE IN MENOPAUSAL MENTAL OR
PHYSICAL HEALTH WITHIN THEIR
SCOPE OF PRACTICE TO SATISFY
CONTINUING EDUCATION
REQUIREMENTS BY INCREASING
AWARENESS AND UNDERSTANDING THE
ISSUES SURROUNDING MENOPAUSE, WE
CAN ENSURE THAT INDIVIDUALS
RECEIVE THE CARE AND SUPPORT
THEY NEED. THANK YOU. AND I
RESPECTFULLY REQUEST AND I VOTE.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH. DO YOU HAVE
ANY WITNESSES IN SUPPORT OF AB
2270? COME ON UP. YOU'VE GOT TWO
MINUTES. YOU CAN TURN ON YOUR
MIC. DAVID BULLOCK, REPRESENTING
THE SSP ALLIANCE AND NEIGHBORS
OF THE 40TH ASSEMBLY DISTRICT
FOR SAME LEGISLATION. WE'RE
HAPPY TO SUPPORT THIS
LEGISLATION. MENOPAUSE IS
SOMETHING THAT WILL AFFECT ALL
OF US IF WE LIVE LONG ENOUGH. IT
HAS MORE SEVERE EFFECTS ON US,
ON SOME OF US THAN OTHERS. IT'S
USUALLY MORE HARSH ON OUR FEMALE
FRIENDS AND FAMILY. I'VE
PERSONALLY WITNESSED MY MOTHER'S
MENOPAUSE COMPOUND INTO OTHER
DETRIMENTAL HEALTH ISSUES SHE
WAS GOING THROUGH, ESCALATING
INTO AN EARLY DEATH FOR HER. I
AM CURRENTLY WATCHING A CLOSE
FRIEND HAVING THIS EFFECT. HER
LIFE IN A NOT SO PLEASANT WAY.
THE MORE THAT COULD BE
UNDERSTOOD BY MEDICAL
PROFESSIONALS, THE BETTER OFF
CALIFORNIA WILL BE IN HELPING
PEOPLE WHO ARE SUFFERING DURING
THIS STAGE OF MATURATION. THE
UNDER THE UNDERSTANDING SHOULD
RESULT IN A BETTER QUALITY OF
LIFE FOR PEOPLE GOING THROUGH
MENOPAUSE. LEGISLATION IS MANY
TIMES INCREMENTAL, MANY TIMES IT
BUILDS ON ITSELF. I HOPE THAT
THIS IS SOMETHING THAT WILL
BLOSSOM IN THE LEGISLATIVE
SESSIONS IN YEARS AHEAD TO WHERE
WE START HAVING MORE
ENCOURAGEMENT OF STUDYING OF
THIS SUBJECT IN THE HEALING ARTS
AND MORE PUBLIC RECOGNITION OF
THE SUBJECT. PLEASE SUPPORT AND
VOTE YES ON AB 2270. THANK YOU
VERY MUCH. ANYONE ELSE IN
SUPPORT OF AB 2270? SEEING NONE.
ANYONE IN OPPOSITION TO 2270
SEEING NONE BRING IT BACK TO THE
COMMITTEE. ANY QUESTIONS FROM
COMMITTEE MEMBERS? MISS BANES,
YES. NOW, I WOULD LIKE TO THANK
THE AUTHOR FOR THIS IMPORTANT
BILL. AS A DOCTOR, I AM REALLY
CONCERNED THAT THERE ISN'T
ENOUGH RESEARCH AROUND MENOPAUSE
AND MAKING SURE THAT, YOU KNOW,
WE TREAT APPROPRIATELY, BUT ALSO
THAT SOCIETY UNDERSTOOD AS MORE
AND MORE ABOUT MENOPAUSE ITSELF
AND THE IMPACT IT MAKES, NOT
ONLY TO THE PERSON BUT THE
FAMILY AROUND THEM AS WELL.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH. ANY OTHER
QUESTIONS FROM THE COMMITTEE
SEEING NONE. MR. MAIENSCHEIN,
WOULD YOU LIKE TO CLOSE? THANK
YOU VERY MUCH. AND I'D
RESPECTFULLY REQUEST AN AYE
VOTE. I SECOND THAT MOTIONS IN A
SECOND. MADAM SECRETARY, PLEASE
CALL THE ROLL. ON AB 2270
MAIENSCHEIN. THE MOTION IS DUE.
PASS AS AMENDED TO THE COMMITTEE
ON APPROPRIATIONS. ÓRDENES.
BERMAN. AYE. BERMAN. AYE. FLORA
LARA. AYE. AL-ENEZI. BAINES.
BAINES. AYE. JUAN. CARRILLO
JUAN. CARRILLO. AYE. CHEN. DIXON
GRAYSON. GRAYSON. AYE. IRWIN.
JACKSON JACKSON. I LOW, LOW. I.
LOWENTHAL LOWENTHAL. AYE.
MCKENNA. HIÆN JUAN. AYE.
PELLERIN. PELLERIN. AYE. SANCHEZ
SORIA. ZUBER THAT BILL IS OUT.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH. AND NEXT UP
YOU'VE GOT AB 2581. THANK YOU,
MR. CHAIR. AND MEMBERS, I'D LIKE
TO START BY ACCEPTING THE
COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS AS PROPOSED
IN THE ANALYSIS, MATERNAL MENTAL
HEALTH CONDITIONS ARE THE MOST
COMMON COMPLICATION OF PREGNANCY
AND BIRTH, IMPACTING 1 IN 5
PEOPLE, 75% OF PEOPLE IMPACTED
BY MATERNAL MENTAL HEALTH
CONDITIONS REMAIN UNTREATED,
INCREASING THE RISK OF LONG
TERME NEGATIVE IMPACTS ON
MOTHERS, BABIES AND FAMILIES.
GIVING ALL HEALTH CARE AND
BEHAVIORAL HEALTH PROVIDERS
TRAINING IN MATERNAL MENTAL
HEALTH IS ESSENTIAL. THIS WILL
PROVIDE THEM WITH THE TOOLS TO
SUPPORT PATIENTS EFFECTIVELY
DURING AND AFTER PREGNANCY. AB
2581 EXPANDS ON MY BILL AB 845
FROM 2019 AND EXTENDS THE
CONTINUING EDUCATION
REQUIREMENTS FOR MATERNAL MENTAL
HEALTH FROM PHYSICIAN, FROM
PHYSICIANS AND SURGEONS TO ALL
MEDICAL AND BEHAVIORAL HEALTH
PROFESSIONALS. AB 2581 WOULD
ALLOW CONTINUING EDUCATION
REQUIREMENTS FOR HEALTH CARE AND
HEALTH PROFESSIONALS TO BE
SATISFIED WITH A COURSE IN
MATERNAL MENTAL HEALTH. BY DOING
SO, WE EMPOWER OUR HEALTH CARE
PROFESSIONALS, ENABLING THEM TO
UNDERSTAND MATERNAL MENTAL
HEALTH AND TREAT THEIR PATIENTS
EFFECTIVELY. THANK YOU, AND I
RESPECTFULLY REQUEST AN AYE VOTE
WITH HERE WITH ME HERE TO
TESTIFY IN SUPPORT AS RYAN
SPENCER FROM THE AMERICAN
COLLEGE OF OBGYNS. THANK YOU
VERY MUCH. THANK YOU, MR. CHAIR,
RYAN SPENCER, BEHALF OF THE
AMERICAN COLLEGE OF OB GYN'S
DISTRICT NINE, IN SUPPORT OF AB
2581, A MATERNAL MENTAL HEALTH
CONDITIONS INCLUDING DEPRESSION,
ANXIETY AND PERINATAL MOOD
DISORDERS AFFECT A SIGNIFICANT
NUMBER OF WOMEN DURING THE
PREGNANCY AND POSTPARTUM PERIOD.
THESE CONDITIONS, NOT ONLY
IMPACT THE WELL-BEING OF THE
MOTHER, BUT ALSO HAVE PROFOUND
EFFECTS ON THE HEALTH AND
DEVELOPMENT OF THE NEWBORN. THE
BARRIERS TO EFFECTIVE
IDENTIFICATION AND MANAGEMENT OF
THESE CONDITIONS ARE
MULTIFACETED. THEY INCLUDE LACK
OF AWARENESS, INSUFFICIENT
TRAINING, AND STIGMA SURROUNDING
MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES. ENHANCED
TRAINING FOR OBSTETRICIANS,
GYNECOLOGISTS, AND OTHER HEALTH
CARE PROVIDERS INVOLVED IN
MATERNAL CARE CAN BRIDGE THIS
GAP BY PROVIDING AN OPTION FOR
PROVIDERS TO BE EDUCATED ON
MATERNAL MENTAL HEALTH, THEY CAN
BE EQUIPPED WITH THE KNOWLEDGE
AND SKILLS NECESSARY TO
RECOGNIZE THE SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS
OF MATERNAL MENTAL HEALTH
CONDITIONS, CONDUCT APPROPRIATE
SCREENINGS, AND PROVIDE REFERRAL
FOR NECESSARY TREATMENT.
EVIDENCE SUGGESTS THAT EARLY
IDENTIFICATION AND INTERVENTION
FOR MATERNAL MENTAL HEALTH
CONDITIONS CAN SIGNIFICANTLY
IMPROVE OUTCOMES FOR BOTH THE
MOTHER AND CHILD. TRAINING
SHOULD THEREFORE NOT ONLY FOCUS
ON DIAGNOSIS, BUT ALSO CREATE AN
ENVIRONMENT WHERE WOMEN FEEL
SUPPORTED AND EMPOWERED TO SEEK
HELP WITHOUT FEAR OF JUDGMENT.
FURTHERMORE, ACOG ADVOCATES FOR
MULTIDISCIPLINARY APPROACH IN
THE MANAGEMENT OF MATERNAL
MENTAL HEALTH, INVOLVING
COLLABORATION BETWEEN
OBSTETRICIANS, MENTAL HEALTH
PROFESSIONALS, PEDIATRICIANS,
AND OTHER RELEVANT HEALTH CARE
PROVIDERS. THIS COMPREHENSIVE
STRATEGY ENSURES THAT WOMEN
RECEIVE THE HOLISTIC CARE THEY
NEED DURING THIS VULNERABLE
PERIOD, HELPING AN ARRAY OF
HEALTH CARE PROVIDERS TO BETTER
IDENTIFY AND MANAGE MATERNAL
MENTAL HEALTH CONDITIONS IS A
DIRECT INVESTMENT IN THE HEALTH
AND WELL-BEING OF MOTHERS AND
THEIR CHILDREN. AB 2581 PROVIDES
THIS PATHWAY AND I ASK FOR YOUR
AYE VOTE. THANK YOU. THANK YOU
VERY MUCH. ANY ADDITIONAL
WITNESSES IN SUPPORT OF THE
BILL? I WANT TO ADD NAME
ORGANIZATION THEREWITH, IF ANY,
IN POSITION ON THE BILL. DAVID
BULLOCK, SFI ALLIANCE AND
NEIGHBORS OF THE 40TH ASSEMBLY
DISTRICT FOR SAME LEGISLATION IN
SUPPORT OF THIS. THANK YOU SO
MUCH, MR. MAIENSCHEIN. THIS IS A
VERY IMPORTANT ISSUE. A LOT OF
TIMES IT'S DISMISSED BY DOCTORS
AND FAMILY MEMBERS, AND I
APPRECIATE YOU BRINGING IT TO
LIGHT. THANK YOU. ANY ADDITIONAL
WITNESSES IN SUPPORT SEEING NONE
ANY WITNESSES IN OPPOSITION TO
THE BILL? SEEING NONE. BRING IT
BACK TO COLLEAGUES FOR QUESTIONS
OR COMMENTS. I'VE GOT A COUPLE
OF QUESTIONS. I'M GOING TO START
WITH SOME MEMBER PELLERIN, THANK
YOU TO THE AUTHOR. THESE ARE
GREAT BILLS, AND WE REALLY NEED
TO BE FOCUSING ON PEOPLE'S
MENTAL HEALTH, ESPECIALLY AROUND
MATERNAL AND MENOPAUSE. I'M JUST
CURIOUS, WHY IS IT OPTIONAL FOR
THE COURSE AND NOT MANDATED,
IT'S OPTIONAL BECAUSE THEY HAVE,
THEIR FOR ALL THEIR CONTINUING
EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS, WHICH
MISS BARNES COULD COMMENT MORE
ON THIS, BUT THEY'RE ALLOWED TO
CHOOSE BETWEEN SORT OF A MENU
OF. SO IT'S PART OF HOW THEY
FEEL THEIR PRACTICE. IT
INTERACTS WITH THEIR PRACTICE.
DOCTOR BANES YEAH. NO TO. SO IN
THE TRAINING OF A PHYSICIAN, YOU
KNOW THAT THIS IS SOMETHING THAT
IS LARGELY PART OF OUR TRAINING
ALREADY, THE BIGGEST ISSUE RIGHT
NOW IS WORKFORCE, HAVING ENOUGH
ACCESS TO PRENATAL CARE AND ALSO
MAKING, LIKE, FINDING SOMEBODY
THAT'S DULY BOARDED IN, YOU
KNOW, FAMILY MEDICINE AND
PSYCHIATRY OR, YOU KNOW, LIKE,
FOR ME, HAVING A FELLOWSHIP IN
PRIMARY CARE PSYCH. SO GETTING
PEOPLE THAT HAVE THAT EXTRA
TRAINING, THOSE OPTIONS ARE
THERE. IT'S DEFINITELY DWINDLES
DOWN TO HAVING THE WORKFORCE TO
PROPERLY, PROPERLY ADDRESS THE
CONTINUING ISSUES THAT ARE
COMING UP IN OUR COMMUNITY,
AGAIN, THANK YOU FOR A GREAT
BILL. WOULD LOVE TO BE ADDED ON
AS A COAUTHOR ON THIS. AND THE
MENOPAUSAL BILL AS WELL. AND I
THANK THE AUTHOR FOR THAT
PLEASURE. ANY ADDITIONAL
QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM
COLLEAGUES? SEEING NONE. DO WE
HAVE A MOTION? GOT A YEAH, A LOT
OF MOTIONS AND SECONDS.
APPRECIATE Y'ALL. THAT'S A GOOD
SIGN. YEAH. IT'S NEVER NEVER
BAD, ASSEMBLY MEMBER, WOULD YOU
LIKE TO CLOSE? THANK YOU VERY
MUCH, MR. CHAIR. MEMBERS, THANK
YOU FOR THE COMMENTS. AND I
RESPECTFULLY REQUEST AN AYE
VOTE. THANK YOU, ASSEMBLY
MEMBER, FOR PRESENTING THIS BILL
. IT'S CERTAINLY IMPORTANT THAT
MEDICAL AND MENTAL HEALTH CARE
PROVIDERS HAVE ADEQUATE
EDUCATION AND TRAINING TO
SUPPORT THE MENTAL HEALTH NEEDS
OF INDIVIDUALS DURING AND POST
PREGNANCY WITH YOUR AGREEMENT TO
AMEND THE BILL AS OUTLINED IN
THE ANALYSIS, I AM HAPPY TO
SUPPORT THE BILL TODAY, MADAM
SECRETARY, PLEASE CALL THE VOTE.
ON AB 2581 MAIENSCHEIN, THE
MOTION IS DUE PASS AS AMENDED TO
THE COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS.
BERMAN A BERMAN. AYE. FLORA
LARA. AYE. AL-ENEZI. BAINES.
BAINES. AYE JUAN. CARRILLO.
JUAN. CARRILLO. AYE. CHEN. DIXON
GRAYSON. GRAYSON. AYE. IRWIN.
JACKSON JACKSON. AYE. LOW. LOW
I. LOWENTHAL LOWENTHAL. AYE.
MCKENNA. HIÆN WENT. AYE.
PELLERIN. PELLERIN. AYE. SANCHEZ
SORIA. ZUBER THAT BILL IS OUT.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH. SO WE HAVE
A BREAK IN THE ACTION. WE ARE
TRYING TO TRACK DOWN AUTHORS. NÓ
IS ON CONSENT, BUT WE DO HAVE A
COUPLE OF BILLS THAT ARE ON
CALL. SO WHY DON'T WE RUN
THROUGH, THE BILLS THAT HAVE
BEEN PRESENTED SO FAR AND SEE IF
WE CAN GET SOME MOTIONS AND
SECONDS
.
YEAH. GO FOR IT. ALL RIGHT, ALL
RIGHT. SIMILAR MEMBER CHEN,
PRESENTING AB 3097. READY WHEN
YOU ARE, SIR. THANK YOU, MR.
VICE CHAIR, COMMITTEE MEMBERS,
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME.
AND ALLOW ME TO PRESENT AB 397.
FIRST, I WANT TO THANK THE
COMMITTEE FOR THEIR HARD WORK ON
THIS, AND WE'RE HAPPY TO TAKE
ALL OF THE COMMITTEE'S
AMENDMENTS. AFTER A SERIES OF
CONVERSATIONS WITH STAKEHOLDERS,
I'M HAPPY TO PRESENT THIS PIECE
OF LEGISLATION WHICH SERVES AS A
TITLE PROTECTION BILL FOR
RADIOLOGISTS ASSISTANTS. THIS
BILL OUTLINES THE REQUIREMENTS
AND LIMITATIONS FOR THOSE WHO
WANT TO SERVE PATIENTS. AS A
RADIOLOGIST ASSISTANT, OUR
PRIMARY GOAL IS TO ENSURE
PATIENT SAFETY. THOSE WHO WANT
TO REFER TO THEMSELVES AS A
RADIOLOGIST ASSISTANT MUST MEET
SEVERAL CRITERIA, NAMELY PASSING
THE RADIOLOGIST ASSISTANT EXAM,
MAINTAINING UP TO DATE
REGISTRATION, AND WORKING UNDER
THE SUPERVISION SUPERVISION OF
RADIOLOGISTS. WE'RE PROUD TO
HAVE THE SUPPORT OF MANY OF THE
TECH AND RADIOLOGY ORGANIZATIONS
HERE IN CALIFORNIA, WITH THAT, I
BELIEVE WE HAVE WITNESS
TESTIMONY. WE HAVE LEO BACA, A
RADIOLOGIST PRACTITIONER, HERE,
TO SHARE HIS OWN EXPERIENCE.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH. FIRST
WITNESS IN TWO MINUTES APIECE,
PLEASE. MR. CHAIRMAN, TERRY
MCHALE, WITH AARON REED AND
ASSOCIATES, REPRESENTING THE
AMERICAN REGISTRY OF
RADIOLOGICAL TECHNOLOGISTS.
FIRST OF ALL, I WANT TO
ACKNOWLEDGE AND THANK THE STAFF
FOR THEIR HARD WORK ON THIS. WE
HAVE LISTENED TO MR. CHEE'S
SUGGESTION FOR MAKING THIS BILL
MORE ARTFULLY DRAWN AND
COLLABORATIVE. HE DID SUCH A
GREAT JOB THAT I ALMOST
CONSIDERED WEARING MY HAIR IN A
HAIR BUN TODAY, IN HOMAGE FOR
THE WORK THAT HE'S DONE, WE HAVE
SPOKEN TO STAKEHOLDERS TO MAKE
IT CLEAR THAT THIS IS NOT THE
CREATION OF A NEW HEALTH CARE
PROVIDER, BUT THE RECOGNITION OF
RADIOLOGICAL ASSISTANTS WHO ARE
ALREADY RECOGNIZED IN 31 STATES
AND FEDERAL AGENCIES AS A
PROFESSION BORN FROM NECESSITY
IN THE 1990S TO ADDRESS
PHYSICIAN SHORTAGES IN THE
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF
DEFENSE, THOSE SHORTAGES ARE
EXACERBATED NOW IN THE
MAINSTREAM, MAKING THIS BILL
MORE NECESSARY. WE ARE PLEASED
THAT WE LISTENED TO AND SPOKE
WITH THE STAKEHOLDERS IN THE
WRITING OF THE BILL. WE SPOKE TO
THE RADIOLOGISTS. WE HAVE SPOKEN
TO THE CALIFORNIA MEDICAL
ASSOCIATION. WE HAVE HEARD FROM
THOSE WHO ARE CONCERNED, THE
CONCERNS. LUCKILY ARE NOT THAT
THEY DON'T WANT THE BILL, BUT
THAT THEY WANT THESE SPECIAL
TESTS TO BE ABLE TO WORK WITH
THEIR DOCTORS. ALSO MR. Kò
MENTIONED IN HIS ANALYSIS THAT
THERE IS A CONCERN OF WHAT THE
DEFINITION OF A RADIOLOGIST IS.
AND SO I THINK WE CAN CONTINUE
THAT DISCUSSION IN TERMS OF
ALLOWING OTHER PROVIDERS TO WORK
WITH THEM. WE HAVE LEARNED IN
THE PANDEMIC THAT WE BENEFIT
FROM THE EFFICIENCIES OF
QUALIFIED ASSISTANTS WHO HAVE
MATRICULATED IN A MASTER'S
PROGRAM, COMPLETED DIDACTIC AND
CLINICAL EDUCATION, AND PASSED A
NATIONAL EXAMINATION. APPRECIATE
YOUR PATIENCE, MR. CHAIRMAN, AND
ASK FOR AN AYE VOTE. THANK YOU
VERY MUCH. NEXT WITNESS TWO
MINUTES, PLEASE, AND I'LL MOVE
THE BILL. MR. CHAIRMAN AND
MEMBERS, MY NAME IS LEO BACA,
CERTIFIED RADIOLOGIST ASSISTANT
AND A US NAVY VETERAN. I
CURRENTLY HAVE OVER 25 YEARS AS
A RADIOLOGIST ASSISTANT. THE
IMPORTANCE OF THIS BILL HAS COME
AT A CRUCIAL TIME. WE ARE LIVING
IN A POST-COVID ERA WHERE
PROFESSIONAL STAFF SHORTAGES ARE
MOUNTING AND PROCEDURAL BACKLOGS
ARE GROWING. DURING THE
PANDEMIC, RADIOLOGIST ASSISTANTS
WERE RECOGNIZED IN EXECUTIVE
ORDER AND SIGNED BY GOVERNOR
NEWSOM, WHICH HAS SINCE BEEN
LIFTED. DURING THAT TIME FRAME,
WE WERE ABLE TO ESTABLISH OUR
ROLE IN THE RADIOLOGY COMMUNITY
AND MAKE A GREAT IMPACT ON THE
DAY TO DAY IMAGING PROCEDURES,
THE MANY SERVICES WE PROVIDE ARE
AND WILL BE SUPERVISED BY
RADIOLOGISTS AT ALL TIMES. WE
RADIOLOGIST SYSTEMS PERFORM A
NUMBER OF PROCEDURES SUCH AS
GENERAL FLUOROSCOPY, GENERAL
URINARY EXAMS AND MANY NEEDLE
PROCEDURES. WE ALSO HELP
PROTOCOL IMAGING EXAMS AND HELP
STAFF DEVELOPMENT BASED ON OUR
EXPERIENCES. BY HAVING A
RADIOLOGIST ASSISTANT PERFORM
THESE EXAMS, WE FREE UP THE
RADIOLOGISTS TO HAVE THEM
DICTATE THOSE CRITICAL CASES AND
EXPEDITE PATIENT RESULTS TO THE
REFERRING PHYSICIANS. THEREFORE
SUPPORTING AB 3097 ENSURES
CALIFORNIA'S ACCESS AND IMAGING
SERVICES. RADIOLOGIST ASSISTANTS
ARE QUALIFIED. IMAGING
PROFESSIONALS WITH MANY YEARS OF
EXPERIENCE IN RADIATION
PROTECTION AND ARE CLINICALLY
COMPETENT IN PERFORMING THESE
PROCEDURES. AB 3097 WILL BE
INCREDIBLY HELPFUL IN PROVIDING
IMAGING SERVICES THROUGHOUT
CALIFORNIA. WITH LOMA LINDA
UNIVERSITY ALREADY HERE IN THE
STATE AND PROVIDING A REPUTABLE
RADIOLOGIST, RADIOLOGIST,
ASSISTANT PROGRAM, THE FRAMEWORK
IS IN PLACE TO GRADUATE
QUALIFIED CANDIDATES TO HELP
WITH THE EVER DEMAND IN IMAGING
SERVICES HERE IN CALIFORNIA. FOR
THESE REASONS, WE ALL CURRENT
RADIOLOGIST ASSISTANTS ARE
ASKING FOR AN AYE VOTE ON AB
33,097. THANK YOU AGAIN, MR.
CHAIRMAN, AND MEMBERS. THANK YOU
VERY MUCH. ANY OTHER WITNESSES
IN SUPPORT? COME ON UP. NAME AN
ORGANIZATION, PLEASE. RYAN
SPENCER WITH THE CALIFORNIA
RADIOLOGICAL SOCIETY IN SUPPORT.
THANK YOU. CHRISTY FOSTER BOWMAN
WITH. I'M AN RA AND I'M WITH
GURNICK ACADEMY OF MEDICAL ARTS
IN CALIFORNIA. SOCIETY OF
RADIOLOGIC TECHNOLOGISTS ASK FOR
YOUR AYE VOTE. THANK YOU VERY
MUCH. ANYONE IN OPPOSITION TO AB
3097 SEEING NONE. BRING IT BACK
TO THE COMMITTEE. ANY QUESTIONS
FROM COMMITTEE MEMBERS? SEEING
NONE. MR. CHEN, WOULD YOU LIKE
TO CLOSE? THANK YOU, MR. VICE
CHAIR. I RESPECTFULLY ASK FOR I
VOTE. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. YOU
SECONDED. MR. GRAYSON. SECOND,
MADAM SECRETARY, PLEASE CALL THE
ROLL ON AB 3097. CHEN. THE
MOTION IS DUE. PASS AS AMENDED
TO THE COMMITTEE ON
APPROPRIATIONS. BERMAN. FLORA
LARA. AYE. AL-ENEZI. BAINES.
BAINES. AYE JUAN. CARRILLO,
JUAN. CARRILLO. AYE. CHEN. CHEN
AYE. DIXON. GRAYSON. GRAYSON.
AYE ERWIN. JACKSON. JACKSON.
AYE. LOW LOWE. AYE. LOWENTHAL.
LOWENTHAL. AYE. MCKENNA HIÆN.
HIÆN. AYE. PELLERIN PELLERIN.
AYE. SANCHEZ. SORIA. ZUBER THAT.
BILL. ZAVALA. WE'LL LEAVE IT
OPEN FOR ABSENT MEMBERS TO ADD
ON.
ALL RIGHT. WE'RE GOING TO JUST
KIND OF GO THROUGH THE FILE AND
JUST ADD ON FOR MEMBERS. WE'LL
START WITH THE CONSENT CALENDAR.
ON CONSENT, ALANIS CHEN. CHEN
AYE. DIXON IRWIN MCKENNA. HIÆN
JUAN SANCHEZ SORIA. ZABIR
CONSENT CALENDAR IS OUT. WE'LL
GO TO FILE ITEM NUMBER FIVE, AB
2223 ON AB 2223 AGUIAR-CURRY.
ALANIS CHEN CHEN AYE DIXON,
IRWIN MCKENNA. WHEN? WHEN? AYE.
SANCHEZ SORIA. ZABIR AB 2223 IS
OUT. WE'LL GO TO FILE NUMBER
SIX. AB 2228 ON AB 2228 VÆ
VALLAPUDUA. ALANIS CHEN CHEN AYE
DIXON, IRWIN MCKENNA. WHEN.
WHEN. AYE. SANCHEZ. SORIA ZABIR.
THAT BILL IS OUT AS WELL. MOVING
ON TO FILE ITEM NUMBER SEVEN AB
2270. GOOD THERE. CHEN CHEN AYE.
HUAN WEN AYE. ALL RIGHT. MOVING
ON TO FILE ITEM NUMBER EIGHT, AB
2581. CHEN CHEN AYE. MOVING ON
TO FILE ITEM NUMBER TEN, AB 2444
LI. ON AB 2444 LI ALANIS CHEN.
CHEN NØ DIXON, IRWIN, MCKENNA.
SANCHEZ. SAU YEAH. ZIPPER. BILL
IS STILL ON CALL AND MOVING TO
THE FINAL ONE. FILE ITEM 13 AB
3097 CHEN. UNLESS WE HAVE
EVERYBODY. ALL RIGHT, I THINK
WE'RE CAUGHT UP FOR NOW
.
THANK YOU, MR. KALRA. HERE.
PRESENTING FILE ITEM 2133.
READY? WHEN YOU ARE. THANK YOU
SO MUCH, MR. CHAIR. APOLOGIES,
CHAIRING A COMMITTEE HEARING
OVER IN THE CAPITOL BUILDING.
AND, I WOULD LIKE TO START BY
THANKING COMMITTEE STAFF FOR
THEIR WORK ON THIS BILL. AND
I'LL BE ACCEPTING THE
COMMITTEE'S AMENDMENTS. AB 2133
WOULD ALLOW REGISTERED
VETERINARY TECHNICIANS TO
PERFORM CAT NEUTERS UNDER THE
DIRECT SUPERVISION OF A
VETERINARIAN. CALIFORNIA'S
ANIMAL SHELTERS ARE OVERWHELMED
BY A CONSTANT ONSLAUGHT OF
UNWANTED CATS AND DOGS. SINCE
COVID. THE INFLUX OF ANIMALS
HAVE BECOME SO INTENSE THAT
SHELTERS HAVE HAD TO MAKE
DIFFICULT DECISIONS TO EUTHANIZE
HEALTHY, ADOPTABLE ANIMALS, TO
MAKE SPACE FOR NEW ARRIVALS.
FORTUNATELY, SPAY AND NEUTER
SURGERIES ARE AN EFFECTIVE MEANS
OF LIMITING THE UNCHECKED PET
POPULATION. THESE SURGERIES
STERILIZE ANIMALS, PREVENTING
THE BIRTH OF UNWANTED LITTERS.
HOWEVER, CALIFORNIA DOES NOT
PERFORM NEARLY ENOUGH SPAY AND
NEUTER SURGERIES TO CURB PET
OVERPOPULATION. THE UNIVERSITY
OF FLORIDA ESTIMATES THAT AS OF
2022, THERE WAS 2.7. THERE WAS A
2.7 MILLION SURGERY SHORTFALL
ACROSS THE NATION. SO MANY
FACTORS CONTRIBUTE TO THE SPAY
AND NEUTER DEFICIT. DATA
INDICATES THAT THE ONGOING
VETERINARY STAFFING SHORTAGE HAS
SIGNIFICANTLY IMPACTED SURGERY
AVAILABILITY. THE UC DAVIS
CORRECT SHELTER MEDICINE PROGRAM
REPORTS THAT A LACK OF
PRACTICING VETERINARIANS HAS
RESULTED IN MORE THAN 40% OF
CALIFORNIA'S SHELTER SHELTERS
BEING UNABLE TO PROVIDE CONSTANT
SPAY AND NEUTER TREATMENTS TO
THEIR ANIMALS. FURTHERMORE, THE
PROGRAM HAS SHOWN THAT 80% OF
SHELTERS CANNOT OFFER LOW COST
SPAY AND NEUTER SERVICES TO
THEIR COMMUNITIES. CLEARLY,
THERE'S A PRESSING NEED TO
INCREASE SPAY AND NEUTER
STAFFING. ONE WAY TO ADDRESS
THIS SHORTFALL IS TO ALLOW OUR
VETS WITH THE NECESSARY TRAINING
TO PROVIDE CAT NEUTER SERVICES.
RVS ARE ALREADY TASKED WITH MANY
SURGERY ADJACENT
RESPONSIBILITIES, INCLUDING
ADMINISTERING ANESTHESIA AND
DENTAL EXTRACTIONS. AB 2133
RECOGNIZES RV'S POTENTIAL BY
ALLOWING THEM TO PERFORM CAT
NEUTERS UNDER THE DIRECT
SUPERVISION OF A VETERINARIAN
COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS ENSURE THAT
THIS PRIVILEGE WILL BE PAIRED
WITH ROBUST SAFEGUARDS. RVS WILL
BE REQUIRED TO COMPLETE A
TRAINING THAT HAS BEEN APPROVED
BY THE VETERINARY MEDICAL BOARD,
AND THEN WILL HAVE TO BE
APPROVED BY THE BOARD BEFORE
THEY CAN BEGIN. BEFORE THEY CAN
BEGIN PERFORMING SURGERY, THE
BILL IS LIMITED TO CAT NEUTERS,
AS I RECOGNIZE THE INCREASED
RISK PRESENTED TO SPAY SURGERIES
AND DOG NEUTERS. DUE TO THIS
RISK, THESE SURGERIES SHOULD BE
HANDLED BY VETERINARIANS WITH ME
TO PROVIDE SUPPORTING TESTIMONY
OR NANCY EHRLICH, CAL FOR
REGISTERED VETERINARY
TECHNICIANS ASSOCIATION AND
DOCTOR RICHARD JOHNSON, FOUNDER
AND PRESIDENT OF ALL GOD'S
CREATURES TEACHING HOSPITAL AND
SURGERY CENTER. THANK YOU VERY
MUCH. FIRST WITNESS, TWO MINUTES
APIECE, PLEASE, AND I'LL SECOND
IT, HELLO, CHAIR AND MEMBERS, MY
NAME IS NANCY EHRLICH. I'M A
REGISTERED VETERINARY TECHNICIAN
, AND I'M THE REGULATORY
LEGISLATIVE ADVOCATE FOR THE
CALIFORNIA REGISTERED VETERINARY
TECHNICIANS ASSOCIATION.
CALIFORNIA VÀ HAS A PET
OVERPOPULATION CRISIS WHILE
SIMULTANEOUSLY HAVING A SHORTAGE
OF VETERINARY STAFF. THIS BILL
IS ONE SMALL STEP TOWARD FIXING
THESE LINKED ISSUES RIGHT NOW,
THERE ARE ROUGHLY 8000 RVS IN
THE STATE COMPARED TO ABOUT
11,000 VETERINARIANS. WHY SO FEW
RVS THAN THERE ARE
VETERINARIANS? RVS LEAVE THE
PROFESSION ON THE AVERAGE AFTER
SEVEN YEARS. A BIG REASON FOR
THIS IS THAT THERE IS VERY
LITTLE ROOM FOR CAREER
ADVANCEMENT IN THE RV
PROFESSION. RVS WHO HAVE BEEN ON
THE JOB FOR MANY YEARS ARE
RESTRICTED TO THE SAME TASKS
THAT AN ENTRY LEVEL RV IS
ALLOWED. THIS BILL EXPANDS THE
TASKS ALLOWED SO THAT MORE
EXPERIENCED RVS MAY BE
INCENTIVIZED TO CONTINUE THEIR
CAREER IN THE FIELD. IT IS
IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT ONLY RVS
WHO HAVE THE TRAINING AND WHO
THE VETERINARIAN DEEMS QUALIFIED
WOULD BE NEUTERING CATS. I WILL
ADD THAT DURING MY LENGTHY
CAREER AND 50 YEARS OF ATTENDING
VETERINARY MEDICAL BOARD
MEETINGS, I HAVE NEVER OBSERVED
A CASE OF COMPLICATIONS FROM A
ROUTINE MALE CAT NEUTER. THIS
BILL WILL HELP THE VETERINARY
PROFESSION BY GIVING RVS A NEW
LANE FOR CAREER ADVANCEMENT,
WHILE ALSO EXPANDING THE
CAPACITY FOR STERILIZATION
SURGERIES TO HELP SOLVE THE PET
OVERPOPULATION PROBLEM. IT IS A
WIN WIN WIN ALL AROUND. THANK
YOU FOR YOUR TIME. THANK YOU
VERY MUCH. NEXT WITNESS, PLEASE.
TWO MINUTES. HELLO, CHAIR. AND
MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE, THANK
YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO
SPEAK. I'M DOCTOR RICHARD
JOHNSON, FOUNDER AND CEO OF THE
VET TECH NURSING ACADEMY IN EL
CAJON, CALIFORNIA. I'VE TAUGHT
VETERINARY TECHNICIANS FOR THE
PAST 40 YEARS AT MANY DIFFERENT
SCHOOLS ACROSS THE COUNTRY. I
WAS ON THE VETERINARY TECHNICIAN
COMMITTEE FOR THE VETERINARY
MEDICAL BOARD FOR NINE YEARS AND
WON THE CVMA DOCTOR OF THE YEAR
AWARD FOR MY SUPPORT OF
VETERINARY TECHNICIANS. I AM
WELL FAMILIAR WITH THE
TECHNICIANS EDUCATION AND
ABILITIES. I'M A STRONG SUPPORT
OF. AB 2133 FOR SEVERAL REASONS.
FIRST AND FOREMOST, VETERINARY
TECHNICIANS ARE CURRENTLY VERY
CAPABLE AND ALLOWED TO DO THE
FOLLOWING, AND THESE ARE
PROCEDURES THAT WOULD BE
REQUIRED, IN A CAT NEUTER,
SITUATION, INDUCTION OF
ANESTHESIA, THEY CAN CREATE A
RELIEF HOLE IN THE SKIN TO
FACILITATE CAT OR CATHETER
PLACEMENT, WHICH IS NO DIFFERENT
FROM MAKING A SMALL INCISION IN
THE SCROTUM, SUTURE. CUTANEOUS
AND SUBCUTANEOUS TISSUES. WHILE
THE SCROTUM IS NOT SUTURED
DURING THE CAT NEUTER PROCEDURE,
THE SPERMATIC CORD IS LIGATED
AND THE TESTICLE REMOVED AND THE
CUT END OF THE SPERMATIC CORD
CAN BE VISIBLE. VISUALIZED FROM
ANY BLEEDING, IT DOES NOT
RETRACT INTO THE ABDOMEN, AND
ENTIRE PROCEDURE IS OUTSIDE THE
ABDOMEN. THIS PROCEDURE WILL
REQUIRE STANDARDIZED TRAINING
AND CERTIFICATION BEFORE THE
TECHNICIAN WILL BE ALLOWED TO
PERFORM THE PROCEDURE. ADDING
FELINE CASTRATIONS TO THE LIST
OF PROCEDURES THAT REGISTERED
VETERINARY TECHNICIANS MAY
PERFORM WILL MAKE A SIGNIFICANT
DECREASE IN THE PET
OVERPOPULATION PROBLEM THAT HAS
PLAGUED US FOR DECADES. ACCESS
TO CARE IS DECREASING, AND IN
OUR SMALL SURVEY, LOCAL
HOSPITALS, THE TIME WAIT FOR A
FELINE CASTRATION WAS ANYWHERE
FROM TWO WEEKS TO THREE MONTHS,
INCREASING THE SCOPE OF THE
PRACTICE OF OUR REGISTERED
VETERINARY TECHNICIANS WILL
INCREASE THEIR JOB SATISFACTION,
WHICH WILL HELP RETAIN THEM IN
THE FIELD AND DECREASE
COMPASSION FATIGUE, THESE
EXTREMELY VALUABLE TEAM MEMBERS,
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THAT.
APPRECIATE THAT. ANYONE ELSE IN
SUPPORT NAME AN ORGANIZATION. Dð
AB 2133. HI, NICHOLAS SACKETT
FOR SOCIAL COMPASSION IN
LEGISLATION. PROUD SPONSORS OF
THE BILL IN SUPPORT. THANK YOU.
ANYONE ELSE IN SUPPORT? SEEING
NONE. ANYONE IN OPPOSITION TO AB
2133. COME ON UP TWO MINUTES PER
WITNESS. THANK YOU, MR. VICE
CHAIR. MY NAME IS GRANT MILLER.
I'M THE REGULATORY DIRECTOR AT
THE CALIFORNIA VETERINARY
MEDICAL ASSOCIATION, I'D LIKE TO
THANK YOU. I'D LIKE TO THANK
EDDIE FOR WORKING ON THIS BILL.
UNFORTUNATELY, THE AMENDMENTS
DON'T REMOVE THE CVMA STRONG
OPPOSITION. BUT WE DO APPRECIATE
THE THINKING THAT WENT INTO THE
AMENDMENTS. AND ALSO, WE'D LIKE
TO, THANK, ASSEMBLY MEMBER
KALRA. WE HAVE A LONG STANDING
RELATIONSHIP WITH HIM AS WELL AS
THE SPONSORS FOR ENGAGING US
EARLY ON THE MEASURE, WE
APPRECIATE THE PROFESSION AND
THE IMPORTANT CONTRIBUTIONS THAT
IT MAKES TO VETERINARY MEDICINE,
BUT WE FEEL THAT IT'S
UNACCEPTABLY DANGEROUS TO TRY TO
TEACH SOMETHING AS ADVANCED AS
SURGERY, AS AN ON THE JOB TASK,
ESPECIALLY IN THE CASE LIKE
THIS, WHERE VETERINARIANS
ACTUALLY AREN'T REPORTING THAT
WE'RE HAVING PROBLEMS GETTING
CATS NEUTERED, I WOULD LIKE TO
YIELD THE REMAINDER OF MY TIME
TO DOCTOR BARBARO FROM THE UC
DAVIS SCHOOL OF VETERINARY
MEDICINE AND THANK YOU VERY
MUCH. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. NEXT
WITNESS, PLEASE. THANK YOU. VICE
CHAIR, FLORA AND MEMBERS OF THE
ASSEMBLY BUSINESS AND
PROFESSIONS COMMITTEE, FOR YOUR
CONSIDERATION OF AB 2133, AS
SAID, I'M DOCTOR BARBARA FELIX
AND I'M A BOARD CERTIFIED
SURGEON. AND CHIEF OF SERVICE
FOR THE SMALL ANIMAL ORTHOPEDIC
SURGERY SERVICE AT UC DAVIS
SCHOOL OF VETERINARY MEDICINE.
MY TESTIMONY TODAY REFLECTS MY
OPINION ON THIS BILL AND DOES
NOT REPRESENT UC DAVIS AS A
WHOLE, AND UC DAVIS OFFICIALLY
HAS NO POSITION ON THIS BILL.
PRESENTLY, IN MY CAPACITY AS A
SURGEON AT UC DAVIS, I'M
RESPONSIBLE FOR TEACHING
VETERINARY STUDENTS HOW TO
REMOVE REPRODUCTIVE ORGANS OF
BOTH FEMALE AND MALE ANIMALS.
THESE SURGICAL PROCEDURES ARE
AMONG THE MOST COMMON ONES
PERFORMED BY VETERINARIANS AND
ALL VETERINARY STUDENTS UNDERGO
EXTENSIVE TRAINING WHILE IN
VETERINARY SCHOOL TO BE ABLE TO
SAFELY AND COMPETENTLY PERFORM
THESE PROCEDURES AS A CONDITION
OF LICENSURE. THE TRAINING
INVOLVES EDUCATION IN SEVERAL
SUBJECTS THAT REACH FAR BEYOND
THE ACTUAL SURGICAL PROCEDURES
THEMSELVES. THESE SUBJECTS
INCLUDE ANATOMY, PHYSIOLOGY,
PHARMACOLOGY, ANESTHESIA, THE
PRINCIPLES OF STERILITY,
HEMATOLOGY, EMERGENCY MEDICINE,
AND OTHERS. Ã. NEUTERING A CAT
IS A COMPLEX, MULTI-STEP
SURGICAL PROCEDURE. IT'S NOT A
SNIP SNIP EASY TASK AS SOME HAVE
CONTENDED. IN FACT, SURGERY
REPRESENTS ONE OF THE MOST
ADVANCED ASPECTS OF MEDICAL
PRACTICE TO PERFORM IT SAFELY
AND COMPETENTLY, A DOCTOR MUST,
POSSESS EXTENSIVE KNOWLEDGE NOT
ONLY TO PERFORM THE PROCEDURE
ITSELF, BUT ALSO BE READY AND
ABLE IN AN INSTANT TO RECOGNIZE
AND REACT WHEN THINGS GO WRONG
AND AS DESPITE OUR BEST EFFORTS,
MANY THINGS CAN GO WRONG IN
SURGERY FOR INSTANCE, IN THE
CASE OF SPAYING AND NEUTERING
BODY TISSUES CAN TEAR.
UNEXPECTED ANATOMIC FINDINGS CAN
BE DISCOVERED ONCE THE SURGERY
COMMENCES AND THE PATIENT CAN
PHYSIOLOGICALLY CRASH UNDER
ANESTHESIA AND IN SOME
INSTANCES, SIGNIFICANT INTERNAL
BLEEDING CAN OCCUR. IN RESPONSE
TO THESE PROBLEMS, MUST BE
IMMEDIATE, AND MUST DRAW ON
EDUCATION. IN OTHER AREAS OF
MEDICINE THAT I PREVIOUSLY
MENTIONED REGISTERED VETERINARY
TECHNICIANS AS A COMPONENT OF
THEIR LICENSURE, HAVE NO
TRAINING IN PERFORMING SURGERY,
AND IN INSUFFICIENT TRAINING IN
THE PERIPHERAL SUBJECTS TO BE
ABLE TO ADDRESS ANY
COMPLICATIONS THAT MAY ARISE.
WHILE WE VALUE REGISTERED
VETERINARY TECHNICIANS IN
PRACTICE, AND I MOST CERTAINLY
KNOW THAT THERE'S NO WAY THAT I
CAN DO MY JOB THE WAY THAT I DO
IT WITHOUT THE SUPPORT AND HELP
FROM REGISTERED VETERINARY
TECHNICIANS. WE APPRECIATE THIS,
DOCTOR. JUST ASK YOU TO FINISH
UP YOUR THOUGHT, PLEASE. ALL
RIGHT. THEY'RE NOT EQUIPPED TO
BE ABLE TO PERFORM THIS SURGERY,
SO I RESPECTFULLY ASK YOU TO
VOTE NO ON THIS BILL. AND I'M
AVAILABLE TO ANSWER ANY
QUESTIONS. THANK YOU. THANK YOU
SO MUCH FOR THAT. ANYONE ELSE IN
OPPOSITION TO AB 2133? NAME AN
ORGANIZATION, PLEASE. SEEING
NONE. BRING IT BACK TO
COMMITTEE. ANY QUESTIONS FROM
COMMITTEE MEMBERS? SEEING NONE.
MR. KAUL, WOULD YOU LIKE TO
CLOSE, THANK YOU SO MUCH, MR.
CHAIR, APPRECIATE. AND I VOTE ON
THIS MEASURE. THANK YOU VERY
MUCH FOR THAT. MADAM SECRETARY,
PLEASE CALL THE ROLL ON AB 2133
CALL. THE MOTION IS DUE. PASS AS
AMENDED, TO THE COMMITTEE ON
APPROPRIATIONS. BERMAN. FLORA A
FLORA I ALANIS BAYNES. BAYNES.
NOT VOTING. JUAN CARRILLO. JUAN.
CARRILLO I CHEN. CHEN I DIXON.
GRAYSON. GRAYSON I IRWIN. IRWIN.
NOT VOTING. JACKSON JACKSON I
LOW, LOW I LOWENTHAL. LOWENTHAL
I MCKENNA. HIÆN. PELLERIN
PELLERIN I SANCHEZ. SORIA ZIPPER
I. BILL IS ON CALL. WE'LL LEAVE
IT OPEN FOR ABSENT MEMBERS.
THANK YOU. WE HAVE ONE MORE
BILL.
ABOUT IT. ALL RIGHT. WE'RE GOING
TO START BACK AT THE TOP OF THE
FILE. WE'LL START WITH THE
CONSENT CALENDAR. SO MISS ERWIN
CAN ADD ON.
ON THE CONSENT CALENDAR, ERWIN.
ERWIN, I THANK YOU. FILE ITEM
ONE AB 1902. I'M SORRY I LIED.
THAT'S ON CONSENT. WE'LL GO TO
FILE ITEM. WELL, YOU ALREADY
VOTED ON THAT FILE. ITEM FIVE AB
2223. AB AB 2223. AGUIAR-CURRY
IRWIN IRWIN. I FILE ITEM SIX AB
2228 ON AB 2228 VÆ VALLAPUDUA
IRWIN IRWIN I ITEM SEVEN AB 2270
MAIENSCHEIN. IRWIN IRWIN I FILE
ITEM EIGHT AB 2581 MAIENSCHEIN
IRWIN IRWIN I FILE ITEM TEN AB
2444. LEE IRWIN. IRWIN. I AND
THAT BILL IS OUT IN FILE ITEM 13
AB 3097. CHEN IRWIN. IRWIN. I.
OKAY WELL, I CATCH MY BREATH.
ASSEMBLY MEMBER ZABIR. WE'RE
READY FOR AGENDA ITEM NUMBER
NINE, AB 2442. THANK YOU. SIR.
GOT THAT. OKAY. GOOD MORNING,
CHAIR MEMBERS, I WANT TO THANK,
EXTEND MY SINCERE THANKS TO THE
COMMITTEE AND STAFF FOR THE
DILIGENT WORK ON THIS CRITICAL
ISSUE. I ALSO ACCEPT THE
COMMITTEE'S PROPOSED AMENDMENTS.
AB 20 2442 IS SPONSORED BY
PLANNED PARENTHOOD AFFILIATES OF
CALIFORNIA AND EQUALITY
CALIFORNIA. THIS BILL SEEKS TO
IMPROVE ACCESS TO GENDER
AFFIRMING CARE IN ANTICIPATION
OF A SURGE, IN OUT OF STATE
PATIENTS SEEKING CARE IN
CALIFORNIA. IN RECENT YEARS, THE
NUMBER OF STATES WITH LAWS OR
POLICIES RESTRICTING ACCESS TO
GENDER AFFIRMING CARE HAS
INCREASED DRAMATICALLY, CLIMBING
FROM JUST FOUR CASES IN JUNE
20TH 20 TO 20 2 TO 23 STATES IN
2024. THESE LAWS AND POLICIES
OFTEN IMPOSE SEVERE PROFESSIONAL
OR CRIMINAL PENALTIES ON MEDICAL
PROVIDERS AND OTHER
PROFESSIONALS, OFFERING GENDER
AFFIRMING CARE, MAKING IT HARDER
FOR PEOPLE TO ACCESS GENDER
AFFIRMING CARE IN THESE STATES.
ACCORDING TO THE US TRANSGENDER
SURVEY, NEARLY HALF OF
TRANSGENDER RESPONDENTS HAVE
CONSIDERED MOVING TO ANOTHER
STATE DUE TO ANTI-TRANSGENDER
LEGISLATION. 5% OF RESPONDENTS
HAVE ALREADY RELOCATED, AND IT
IS IMPERATIVE THAT WE
PROACTIVELY FORTIFY OUR GENDER
AFFIRMING CARE PROVIDER NETWORK
TO ENSURE TIMELY ACCESS TO CARE
FOR BOTH IN-STATE AND OUT OF
STATE PATIENTS. AB 2442 REQUIRES
THE EXPEDITED PROCESSING OF
LICENSURE APPLICATIONS FOR
PROVIDERS, DEMONSTRATING A
COMMITMENT TO GENDER AFFIRMING
HEALTH CARE OR MENTAL HEALTH
CARE SERVICES WITHIN THEIR SCOPE
OF PRACTICE. CALIFORNIA HAS LONG
SERVED AS A SAFE HAVEN FOR
REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH CARE AND
GENDER AFFIRMING CARE. AB 2442
REFLECTS OUR STATE'S COMMITMENT
TO UPHOLDING THESE VALUES AND
ENSURING EQUITABLE ACCESS TO
ESSENTIAL SERVICES. TODAY. WITH
ME ARE CRAIG PULSIPHER,
REPRESENTING EQUALITY CALIFORNIA
AND DOCTOR BENJI. LÀ NAKAI. DID
I PRONOUNCE THAT CORRECTLY, FROM
FROM STANFORD MEDICAL TO PROVIDE
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION AND
ASSIST WITH QUESTIONS. GREAT.
YEAH. YOU EACH HAVE TWO MINUTES,
GOOD MORNING, CHAIR AND MEMBERS,
CRAIG PULSIPHER, ON BEHALF OF
EQUALITY CALIFORNIA, PROUD TO
CO-SPONSOR THIS BILL TO ENSURE
THAT TRANS, GENDER
NON-CONFORMING AND INTERSEX
PEOPLE HAVE ACCESS TO ESSENTIAL
HEALTH CARE. AS THE SOLE MEMBER
NOTED, OVER THE PAST TWO YEARS,
THE NUMBER OF STATES WITH LAWS
OR POLICIES RESTRICTING ACCESS
TO GENDER AFFIRMING CARE HAS
INCREASED DRAMATICALLY, CLIMBING
FROM JUST FOUR STATES IN JUNE OF
2022 TO 23 STATES IN JANUARY
2024, AND MANY OF THESE LAWS
IMPOSE SEVERE PENALTIES ON
MEDICAL PROVIDERS. AS JUST ONE
EXAMPLE, IN IDAHO, HEALTH CARE
PROVIDERS CAN BE CHARGED WITH A
FELONY AND FACE UP TO TEN YEARS
IN PRISON FOR PROVIDING GENDER
AFFIRMING CARE. THE GROWING WAVE
OF ANTI-LGBTQ LEGISLATION HAS
ESPECIALLY HARMED TRANS YOUTH,
AS HIGHLIGHTED BY THE WILLIAMS
INSTITUTE'S RECENT ESTIMATE THAT
ABOUT ONE THIRD OF TRANS YOUTH
IN THE US CURRENTLY LIVE IN
STATES THAT BAN ACCESS TO GENDER
AFFIRMING CARE. FOLLOWING THE
DOBBS DECISION IN 2022,
CALIFORNIA ENACTED LEGISLATION
TO EXPEDITE MEDICAL LICENSURE
FOR PROVIDERS OF ABORTION
SERVICES TO ENSURE THAT
CALIFORNIA REMAINS A SAFE HAVEN
FOR ABORTION AND REPRODUCTIVE
HEALTH CARE. SIMILARLY GIVEN
ATTACKS ON GENDER AFFIRMING CARE
ACROSS THE COUNTRY, THIS BILL
SEEKS TO IMPROVE ACCESS TO
GENDER AFFIRMING CARE IN
ANTICIPATION OF A SURGE IN OUT
OF STATE PATIENTS SEEKING CARE
IN CALIFORNIA, AS WELL AS
MEDICAL PROVIDERS WHO MAY
RELOCATE TO CALIFORNIA TO
PROVIDE THIS CARE TO MEET THE
GROWING DEMAND AND ENSURE TIMELY
ACCESS FOR BOTH IN-STATE AND OUT
OF STATE PATIENTS. AB 2442 WILL
EXPEDITE MEDICAL LICENSURE, THE
PROCESSING OF APPLICATIONS FOR
THOSE PROVIDERS, DEMONSTRATING A
COMMITMENT TO PROVIDING GENDER
AFFIRMING HEALTH CARE OR MENTAL
HEALTH CARE WITHIN THEIR SCOPE
OF PRACTICE. THIS BILL IS AN
ESSENTIAL AND TIMELY MEASURE TO
STRENGTHEN OUR NETWORK OF
AFFIRMING HEALTH CARE PROVIDERS
AND ENSURE THAT TGA PEOPLE HAVE
ACCESS TO THE ESSENTIAL HEALTH
CARE THEY NEED AND DESERVE. I
URGE YOUR AYE VOTE. THANK YOU.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH. GOOD
AFTERNOON, CHAIR, AND MEMBERS OF
THE COMMITTEE. MY NAME IS DOCTOR
BENJAMIN LANIAKEA AND I HAVE THE
HONOR OF SERVING AS THE CHIEF OF
THE STANFORD LGBTQ PLUS ADULT
CLINICAL PROGRAM, WHERE WE
PROVIDE GENDER AFFIRMING MEDICAL
CARE AS WELL. IN IN THE SCOPE OF
THE SPECTRUM OF LGBTQ PLUS,
CARE, TODAY, I TESTIFYING AS AN
INDIVIDUAL CITIZEN AND NOT A
MEMBER OF MY INSTITUTION OR NOT
REPRESENTING MY INSTITUTION.
RATHER, I'M HERE TODAY TO ASK
FOR YOUR SUPPORT ON ASSEMBLY
BILL 2442. WE KNOW THAT OUR
LGBTQ PLUS PATIENTS, AND
ESPECIALLY THE GENDER DIVERSE
PATIENTS, REALLY STRUGGLE TO
FIND ADEQUATE HEALTH CARE,
ADEQUATE GENDER AFFIRMING CARE,
RIGHT? AND EVERY SINGLE MAJOR,
REPUTABLE MEDICAL ORGANIZATION
HAS RECOGNIZED THIS AS MEDICALLY
NECESSARY CARE. THE WORLD
PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR
TRANSGENDER HEALTH, THE AMERICAN
MEDICAL ASSOCIATION, THE
AMERICAN ACADEMY OF PEDIATRICS,
THE AMERICAN PSYCHIATRIC
ASSOCIATION ALL ALL ARE IN
AGREEMENT THAT THIS IS MEDICALLY
RELEVANT CARE. IT IMPROVES
SUICIDALITY RATES. IT IMPROVES
ANXIETY RATES, IT IMPROVES RATES
OF DEPRESSION. WE KNOW THAT
THESE LAWS IN OTHER STATES ARE
DRIVING PEOPLE TO CONSIDER AND
EVEN TO MOVE AND TO RELOCATE.
THESE ARE PARENTS. THESE ARE
CHILDREN. THESE ARE FAMILIES WHO
WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY'RE
DOING BEST BY THEIR FAMILY
MEMBERS. THESE ARE PROVIDERS WHO
FEEL LIKE THEY HAVE NOWHERE ELSE
TO GO. THEY'RE NOT ABLE TO
PRACTICE THEIR MEDICINE IN THEIR
STATE, AND THIS IS JUST AN AS AN
EXAMPLE, OUR OAN PRIMARY CARE
CLINIC AT STANFORD IS BOOKED OUT
FOR 6 TO 8 MONTHS. WE'RE
ACTUALLY OVER PANELED BY 300
PATIENTS. THAT MEANS WE HAVE 300
PATIENTS. MORE THAN WE ACTUALLY
HAVE THE CAPACITY TO SEE. BUT WE
DON'T WANT TO TURN ANYONE AWAY.
PEOPLE WHO NEED THIS LIFE SAVING
CARE, THIS MEDICALLY NECESSARY
CARE, WE WANT THEM TO BE ABLE TO
HAVE THAT ACCESS, SO AB 2442
MEANS THAT WE'RE REALLY GOING TO
MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE
PRIORITIZING LICENSURE
APPLICATIONS FOR THESE
PHYSICIANS AND THESE PROVIDERS
THAT ARE GOING TO BE PROVIDING
GENDER AFFIRMING CARE. IT
DOESN'T, LIKE NEGLECT ANY OF THE
REQUIREMENTS THAT ARE ALREADY IN
PLACE. IT JUST EXPEDITES IT SO
THAT IT DOESN'T TAKE Ã SIX
MONTHS OR SOMETIMES MORE TO MAKE
SURE WE GET THAT LICENSURE DONE
FOR THESE PROVIDERS. SO NOW MORE
THAN EVER, PATIENTS AND
PROVIDERS ARE TURNING TO
CALIFORNIA AS A SAFE HAVEN. AND
WE REALLY NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT
WHEN THEY COME HERE, WE'RE READY
TO PROVIDE THAT FOR THEM. WE'RE
NOT CHANGING ANYTHING ABOUT WHAT
THE REGULATIONS ARE OR WHAT'S
NEEDED OR THE CARE THAT WE'RE
PROVIDING. THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
ANY ADDITIONAL WITNESSES WHO
WANT TO ADD ON IN SUPPORT OF AB
2442? LEAH BARROWS, ON BEHALF OF
PLANNED PARENTHOOD AFFILIATES OF
CALIFORNIA, AS PROUD CO-SPONSORS
IN SUPPORT. THANK YOU, KATHY
MOSSBERG, ON BEHALF OF APLA
HEALTH AND ESSENTIAL ACCESS
HEALTH, BOTH IN SUPPORT. THANK
YOU. GOOD MORNING, RUTH DAWSON
WITH ACLU CALIFORNIA ACTION IN
SUPPORT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, I
SEE WE HAVE A PRIMARY WITNESS IN
OPPOSITION. YOU HAVE TWO
MINUTES. THANK YOU. DAVID
BOLLAG, S.F. VÆ ALLIANCE,
NEIGHBORS OF THE 40TH ASSEMBLY
DISTRICT FOR SAME LEGISLATION
AND ALSO FOR THE PROTECT KIDS
INITIATIVE, THIS BILL WILL
EXPEDITE THE LICENSING OF THE
STAFF OF THE MEDICAL
INFRASTRUCTURE THAT WILL PROVIDE
MORE WAYS FOR OUR YOUTH TO
STERILIZE AND MUTILATE THEIR
BODIES ON TOP OF THE LEGISLATION
AND ACTIONS THAT THE PROPONENTS
AND THE AUTHORS SPOKE ABOUT.
THERE IS ALSO AB 665 THAT WAS
BEEN PASSED LAST SESSION THAT
WILL REMOVE CHILDREN FROM THEIR
PARENTS WITHOUT THEIR PARENTS
KNOWLEDGE. THERE'S ALSO THE
MANDATED EDUCATION THROUGH
EDUCATION CODE 51933, SECTION
66. IF THAT DID NOT INFORM
CHILDREN THAT THEY COULD BE
WHATEVER GENDER THEY CHOOSE,
CHILDREN WOULD NOT EVEN HAVE
THOUGHT THAT THEY ARE A
DIFFERENT GENDER. WITHOUT THE
INDOCTRINATION OF OUR CHILDREN,
THERE WOULD BE VERY LITTLE NEED
FOR THESE MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS
TO PROVIDE PUBERTY BLOCKERS.
CROSS-SEX HORMONES, BREAST
REMOVAL, BLASTOMA IMPLANTATION,
VAGINOPLASTY, HYSTERECTOMY, AND
PHALLOPLASTY PROCEDURES. SINCE
THE CODE IMPLEMENTATION, THERE
HAS BEEN A DRAMATIC INCREASE OF
YOUTH IN CALIFORNIA ATTEMPTING
TO SEEK GENDER, MENTAL AND
HEALTH CARE TREATMENT. GENDER
DYSPHORIA IS SAID TO BE A MENTAL
HEALTH DISORDER OR ISSUE THAT
MENTAL HEALTH AND PHYSICAL IS
NECESSARY. YOUTH THAT ARE NOT
MENTALLY FULLY DEVELOPED TO
UNDERSTAND THE LONG TERME
EFFECTS OF THEIR DECISIONS. THE
COURTS AND MEDICAL PROFESSIONS
HAVE AGREED THAT PART OF THE
BRAIN HAS NOT FULLY DEVELOPED
UNTIL THE AGE OF 25.
UNFORTUNATELY, ONE OF THE
RESULTS OF GENDER AFFIRMING CARE
CAN BE AND IS INFERTILITY.
PUBERTY BLOCKERS CAN PAUSE THE
MATURATION OF SPUM CELLS AND
THUS AFFECT FERTILITY. POTENTIAL
TESTOSTERONE THERAPY IN
TRANSGENDER MEN CAN SUPPRESS
OVULATION AND ALTER VARIATION.
HISTOLOGY WELL, ESTROGEN THERAPY
IN TRANSGENDER WOMEN CAN LEAD TO
IMPAIRED SPERMATOGENESIS AND
TESTICULAR ATROPHY. THE EFFECTS
OF HORMONE THERAPY ON FERTILITY
IS POTENTIALLY REVERSIBLE, BUT
THE EXTENT IS UNCLEAR, HAVING A
CHANCE OF REVERSIBILITY THE
LONGER IT IS IMPLEMENTED. HAVING
LESS OF A CHANCE OF
REVERSIBILITY, THE LONGER IT'S
IMPLEMENTED. GENDER AFFIRMING
SURGERIES THAT INCLUDE
HYSTERECTOMY, SURGICAL REMOVAL
OF ONE OR BOTH OF THE OVARIES IN
TRANS MEN, OR REMOVAL, SURGICAL
REMOVAL OF THE TESTES AND TRANS
WOMEN RESULT IN PERMANENT
STERILITY, STERILITY. IT IS
RECOMMENDED THAT FERTILITY
PRESERVATION BEING INTRODUCED TO
THE PATIENTS BEFORE THE ABOVE
TREATMENT. UNFORTUNATELY, DATA
SHOWS THAT ONLY 19% OR EXCUSE
ME, 13% OF THE PATIENTS ARE
INTRODUCED TO THIS IDEAL. I
SPECULATE THIS MIGHT BE BECAUSE
MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS ARE TOLD
NOT TO GATEKEEP OR ATTEMPT
CONVERSION THERAPY. WE WOULDN'T
WANT TO TALK TO KIDS ABOUT WHY
THAT'S OVER 2.5 MINUTES. THANK
YOU. THANK YOU SIR. I APPRECIATE
THAT, FOR THIS REASON, I BELIEVE
THIS WILL CAUSE, MORE STERILITY
IN CHILDREN. THAT THEY DON'T
REALLY UNDERSTAND. SO I ASK YOU
TO VOTE NO ON THIS. THANK YOU.
THANK YOU. ANY EXTRA TIME? THANK
YOU. ANY ADDITIONAL WITNESSES IN
OPPOSITION TO THE BILL? THANK
YOU, MR. CHAIRMAN. TOM SHEEHY,
ON BEHALF OF PERC ADVOCACY AND
OPPOSITION, WE WOULD ONLY NOTE
THAT THERE ARE MANY OTHER
HEALING ARTS, APPLICANTS FOR
LICENSING LICENSURE THAT COULD
ALSO BENEFIT FROM THE SAME SORT
OF EXPEDITED REVIEW THAT THIS
BILL WOULD CALL FOR. AND IF WE
DON'T ADD MORE STAFF TO DCA,
SPEEDING UP, ONE GROUP MAY SLOW
DOWN ANOTHER GROUP, AND THAT
COULD HURT OTHER SEGMENTS OF OUR
SOCIETY. SO WHY NOT ADD MORE
STAFF AND SPEED UP THE LICENSURE
PROCESS FOR EVERYONE RATHER THAN
PICKING OUT ONE PARTICULAR
GROUP? A NEEDY GROUP, A VALUABLE
GROUP, BUT NOT THE ONLY GROUP IN
THIS STATE THAT COULD BENEFIT
FROM EXPEDITED LICENSURE. THANK
YOU. THANK YOU. ANY ADDITIONAL
WITNESSES IN SUPPORT OR
OPPOSITION SEEING NONE BRING IT
BACK TO COLLEAGUES FOR QUESTIONS
OR COMMENTS OR MOTIONS OR
SECONDS. GOT A MOTION? GOT A
SECOND, MR. LOWENTHAL, FIRST OF
ALL, THANK YOU, MR. CHAIR. I
WANT TO THANK THE AUTHOR FOR
BRINGING FORWARD THIS VERY, VERY
IMPORTANT LEGISLATION. I DON'T
WANT TO DISCOUNT THE LAST
COMMENT THAT WAS JUST MADE, BUT
THERE IS ABSOLUTELY THIS IS AN
EXCEPTIONAL POPULATION IN THE
UNITED STATES RIGHT NOW THAT IS
IN THE MIDST OF CRISIS. AND DARE
I SAY, WHILE THERE, THERE ARE
MANY GROUPS THAT ARE IN NEED OF
ATTENTION THROUGH THE THROUGH
THE, THE DEPARTMENT, THIS CAN BE
A LIFE OR DEATH SITUATION. AND
SO WE NEED TO VIEW IT
DIFFERENTLY. I'M EXHAUSTED BY
THE IDEOLOGICAL WARFARE THAT'S
TAKING PLACE WITH THIS. I'M SICK
OF THIS BEING USED AS A
POLITICAL HOT POTATO OVER AND
OVER AND THIS IS ABOUT VALUES
AND WHAT THE VALUES OF OUR STATE
ARE, WHAT WE STAND FOR. SO I
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR BRINGING
THIS THIS FORWARD. THANK YOU.
ASSEMBLY MEMBER. ANY ADDITIONAL
COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS FROM
COLLEAGUES? SEEING NONE,
ASSEMBLY MEMBER ZEBRA, WOULD YOU
LIKE TO CLOSE, I THINK I WAS
JUST SAYING, YOU KNOW, GENDER
AFFIRMING CARE, YOU KNOW,
ENCOMPASSES CARE THAT IS AIMED
AT ALIGNING INDIVIDUAL'S BODY
WITH THEIR GENDER IDENTITY. AND
FOR MANY TRANSGENDER
INDIVIDUALS, THESE THIS CARE IS
NOT MERELY ELECTIVE, BUT
NECESSARY FOR A REALLY
DEBILITATING GENDER DYSPHORIA
AND IMPROVING OVERALL
WELL-BEING, AS I SAID, 5% OF
RESPONDENTS OF THIS SURVEY FROM
OTHER STATES HAVE ALREADY MOVED
BECAUSE OF THE WHAT'S HAPPENING
IN OTHER STATES. AND CALIFORNIA
HAS ALWAYS BEEN A REFUGE FOR
MEMBERS OF THE LGBTQ PLUS
COMMUNITY. AND SO THIS BILL IS
IMPORTANT TO MAKING SURE THAT WE
ARE THERE WITH THIS COMMUNITY,
THAT WE THAT WE HAVE THE
RESOURCES TO PROVIDE THE CARE
THAT THEY NEED. AND I
RESPECTFULLY ASK FOR YOUR I
VOTE. THANK YOU, ASSEMBLY
MEMBER, FOR INTRODUCING THIS
BILL. I'LL SECOND THE COMMENTS
MADE BY ASSEMBLY MEMBER
LOWENTHAL, AND WHILE THE
COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS ARE
INTENDED TO ENSURE THAT WE CAN
TAKE A COMPREHENSIVE LOOK IN THE
FUTURE AT ALL THE EXPEDITED
LICENSURE BILLS, THERE'S NO
QUESTION THAT EXPANDING ACCESS
TO PROVIDERS OF GENDER AFFIRMING
CARE IS ESSENTIAL IN A MORE THAN
HAPPY TO SUPPORT THE BILL, AS
AMENDED TODAY, THANK YOU VERY
MUCH, MADAM SECRETARY. PLEASE
CALL THE VOTE ON AB 2442 2442
ZEBRA. THE MOTION IS DUE PASS AS
AMENDED TO THE COMMITTEE ON
APPROPRIATIONS. BERMAN I, BERMAN
I FLORA. FLORA. NOT VOTING.
ALANIS. ALANIS NOT VOTING.
BAINES. BAINES I, JUAN CARRILLO.
CHEN. DIXON DIXON. NOT VOTING.
GRAYSON. GRAYSON I IRWIN. IRWIN
I JACKSON. LOW, LOW I LOWENTHAL.
LOWENTHAL I MCKINNEY. MCKENNA. I
WIN WHEN I PELLERIN. PELLERIN I
SANCHEZ. SANCHEZ NOT VOTING
SORIA SEEBER A SIBOUR I. THAT
BILL IS OUT. WE'LL LEAVE THE
ROLL OPEN FOR ABSENT COLLEAGUES.
THANK YOU EVERYBODY, SO FOLKS,
WHO HAVE MISSED VOTES CAN COME
BACK TO BNP AND ALSO RUN THROUGH
THE AGENDA, TO ALLOW FOLKS TO
ADD ON.
ON THE CONSENT CALENDAR, ALANIS,
ALANIS I. DIXON DIXON I MCKENNA.
MCKENNA I SANCHEZ. SANCHEZ I
SORIA. ZIBA ZUBER I. ALL RIGHT.
WE'RE GOING TO START BACK AT THE
TOP OF THE FILE WITH FILE ITEM
NUMBER THREE AB 2133. CHOLERA ON
AB 2133 CHOLERA. BERMAN BERMAN I
ALANIS ALANIS NØ. DIXON. DIXON.
NØ MCKENNA. MCKENNA. I NGUYEN.
NGUYEN I SANCHEZ. SANCHEZ NÓ.
SORIA. ZIBA SABER I. ALL RIGHT,
I'M. THE BILL IS OUT. MOVING ON
TO FILE ITEM NUMBER FIVE AB 2223
AGUIAR-CURRY ON AB 2223
AGUIAR-CURRY ALANIS. ALANIS.
AYE. DIXON. DIXON AYE. MCKENNA.
MCKENNA. AYE. SANCHEZ SANCHEZ.
AYE. SORIA. ZIPPER ZIPPER. AYE
ALL RIGHT. MOVE ON TO FILE ITEM
NUMBER SIX. AB 2228, VILLA
BOUDOIR ON AB 2228. VILLA
BOUDOIR. ALANIS. ALANIS. AYE
DIXON. DIXON. AYE. MCKENNA.
MCKENNA. AYE SANCHEZ. SANCHEZ.
AYE. SORIA. ZIPPER ZIPPER. I
THINK I'M MOVING ON TO FILE ITEM
NUMBER SEVEN. AB 2270
MAIENSCHEIN ON AB 2270 MAINE
SHRINE. ALANIS ALANIS. AYE.
DIXON. DIXON. AYE. MCKENNA.
MCKENNA. AYE. SANCHEZ. SANCHEZ.
ASESORÍA. ZIPPER. ZIPPER AYE.
THANK YOU. MOVING ON TO FILE
NUMBER EIGHT. AB 2581 MAINE
SHINE ON AB 2581 MAINE SHINE.
ALANIS. ALANIS. AYE DIXON.
DIXON. AYE. MCKENNA MCKENNA.
AYE. SANCHEZ. SANCHEZ. AYE
SORIA. ZIPPER. ZIPPER. AYE THANK
YOU. AND I THINK WE HAVE
EVERYBODY ON FILE. ITEM NUMBER
NINE. SO WE'LL MOVE TO FILE ITEM
NUMBER TEN AB 2444. LEE ON AB
2444, LEE ALANIS ALANIS NØ DIXON
. DIXON. NÓ MCKENNA. MCKENNA.
AYE. SANCHEZ. SANCHEZ NØ. SORIA.
ZIPPER. ZIPPER. AYE THANK YOU.
AND MOVING ON TO FILE ITEM
NUMBER 13. AB 3097. CHEN.
ON AB 3097, CHEN. BERMAN.
ALANIS. ALANIS AYE. DIXON.
DIXON. AYE. MCKENNA MCKENNA.
AYE. SANCHEZ. SANCHEZ. ASESORÍA
ZIPPER. ONE. ONE MOMENT ON AB
3097. CHEN ZIPPER. ZIPPER. AYE.
ALL RIGHT, MR. JACKSON, WE'RE
GOING TO GO TO FILE ITEM NUMBER
NINE, AB 2442. ZIPPER ON AB 2442
ZIPPER. JACKSON JACKSON. AYE.
OKAY, SO WE'RE GOING TO START
WITH THE CONSENT CALENDAR AND
WORK OUR WAY BACK DOWN THE FILE.
SO CONSENT CALENDAR. ON THE
CONSENT CALENDAR, SORIA. SORIA.
AYE OKAY. WE'RE GOING TO MOVE TO
FILE ITEM NUMBER THREE AB 2133
CHOLERA ON AB 2133. CHOLERA.
SORIA SORIA. AYE FILE ITEM
NUMBER FIVE AB 2223 AGUIAR-CURRY
ON AB 2223 AGUIAR-CURRY. SORIA.
SORIA AYE. FILE ITEM NUMBER SIX
AB 2228 VALLAPUDUA ON AB 2228 VÆ
VALLAPUDUA SORIA SORIA AYE. FILE
ITEM NUMBER SEVEN AB 2270 MAINE
SHINE ON AB 2270 MAINE SHINE.
SORIA SORIA AYE. FILE ITEM
NUMBER EIGHT AB 2581 MAINE SHINE
ON AB 2581 MAINE SHINE. SORIA.
SORIA AYE. FILE ITEM NUMBER NINE
AB 2442 ZIPPER ON AB 2442 ZIPPER
JUAN CARRILLO, JUAN CARRILLO AYE
CHEN SORIA. SORIA. AYE FILE ITEM
NUMBER TEN AB 2444. LEE ON AB
2444. LEE SORIA. SORIA AYE. FILE
ITEM NUMBER 13 AB 3097 CHEN ON
AB 3097 CHEN, BERGMAN, SORIA,
SORIA. AYE.
LOOKS LIKE WE'RE GOOD TO GO. BNP
IS ADJOURNED