Assemblymember Rick Chavez Zbur, who represents Santa Monica and parts of Los Angeles, introduced the bill earlier this year. He told LAist January's fires showed that officials hadn't thought about steps to keep pets, and the people who love them, safe when disaster strikes.

"California has stepped up to really recognize how important people's pets are as part of their families," Zbur said. "We actually have learned from some of the gaps we had in our laws and procedures."

This victory was years in the making. Assemblymembers Rick Chavez Zbur and Dawn Addis worked closely with the Jewish, Black , Latino and AAPI caucuses — backed by the largest coalition of Jewish organizations ever assembled for Capitol legislation. After three different bills, countless amendments and feedback from education leaders, civil-rights advocates and legislators of every background, the north star for this two-year effort was protecting students.

Thank you to all the advocates who pushed forward this common-sense bill to continue effective HIV prevention. AB 309 made permanent a law that allows people age 18 or older to get clean needles and syringes from pharmacists and physicians without a prescription. Letting people who inject drugs get clean equipment from doctors and pharmacists helps them avoid sharing needles, and in that way prevents the spread of HIV, hepatitis C, and other infectious diseases. The law permitting this practice was set to expire on January 1, 2026, but AB 309 removed that expiration date.

The bill was prompted by a 2024 case in Stanislaus County where a transgender woman was harassed after being outed when her court records became public. The 5th District Court of Appeal ruled that such records could be sealed, but left the decision to judicial discretion. SB 59 codifies stronger and more consistent privacy protections statewide.

The bill is co-authored by Senators Chris Cabaldon, John Laird, Steve Padilla, Sasha Pérez, and Sabrina Cervantes, along with Assemblymembers Alex Lee, Chris Ward, José Luis Solache, Jr., Mark Gonzalez, Rick Zbur, and Corey Jackson.