Governor Signs Seven Cervantes Bills into Law

(SACRAMENTO) – Today, Assemblymember Sabrina Cervantes (D-Riverside) is pleased to announce that seven of her bills have been signed into law by Governor Gavin Newsom this year. The legislative package includes measures to enhance government transparency, improve access to healthcare, and make our students’ dreams of achieving higher education more affordable.

“Ever since first being elected to the Legislature in 2016, I have been committed to advancing our Golden State’s core values of equality, inclusivity, and opportunity for all. The seven bills I authored that Governor Newsom has signed into law are important steps forward in fulfilling our California values,” said Assemblymember Cervantes. “Although there is still much left to do, I am proud that our work this year has resulted in new policies making local governance more open to the public, closing gaps in access to maternal mental healthcare, and ensuring our basic governmental functions are inclusive of our LGBTQ+ community. I thank the Governor for signing these seven bills into law, and look forward to continuing to fight for working families in the Inland Empire.”

The following bills have been signed into law, and will take effect on January 1, 2025:

• Assembly Bill 453 increases transparency in local government proceedings by requiring local governments transitioning to district-based elections set a time certain to discuss the matter at public hearings required by the California Voting Rights Act. This will ensure that the public will know when the item will come up on the agenda so they can organize and participate, even if there are other items to be heard and discussed at the meeting.
• Assembly Bill 1807 updates the existing Riverside County Citizens Redistricting Commission to make the process of drawing new boundaries for the Riverside County Board of Supervisors more transparent, equitable, and accessible. This law expands on previous legislation authored by Assemblymember Cervantes, AB 1307 (2022), which established the commission; along with a $1 million allocation from the 2022-23 State Budget to fund its implementation.
• Assembly Bill 1899 makes juror questionnaires employed by trial courts more inclusive of our LGBTQ+ community by using more gender-neutral language and provide options to answer questions in a manner that embraces different sexual orientations, gender identities, and gender expressions.
• Assembly Bill 1936 expands health access by providing women and birthing people the opportunity to have a maternal mental health screening both during pregnancy and up to six weeks during the postpartum period. This will help improve access to diagnoses and treatment for maternal mental health issues.
• Assembly Bill 2951 provides the California Secretary of State with more time — until July 1, 2025 — to implement an existing requirement to notify individuals before their voter registration is canceled due to a change of address or death.

In addition, Assemblymember Cervantes had the following two bills signed into law earlier in 2024:

• Assembly Bill 1887 extended the application deadline for financial aid programs from April 2, 2024 to May 2, 2024 in response to implementation issues with the federal Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), providing California students with more time to complete the FAFSA and access the financial resources they need to begin their college careers. More information about AB 1887 can be found here.
• Assembly Bill 2370 helps protect community college faculty from encroachment by artificial intelligence (AI) by requiring that instructors of record for credit and non-credit courses must meet minimum requirements set by the Board of Governors of the CA Community Colleges. While instructors may continue to use AI as a support tool, this law will help ensure that community college students primarily receive instruction from human faculty. More information about AB 2370 can be found here.

Assemblymember Cervantes has now had 49 bills signed into law and has secured more than $650 million in critical state investments for the Inland Empire since first being elected to the State Assembly in 2016.

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