Election reform, oil spills, crime and housing are just some of the topics targeted in new legislation proposed by state Assembly and Senate members from Orange County.

Some of the bills, such as a plan from Assembly members Sharon Quirk-Silva and Steven Choi to help Orange County finally get a veterans cemetery, drew headlines before they were even officially introduced.

Others, such as Assemblywoman Cottie Petrie-Norris’ pitch to have UC San Diego study coastal cliff landslides and erosion in Orange County, were quietly slipped in just before the Feb. 18 deadline to introduce proposed laws in this legislative session.

And some bills — such as state Sen. Tom Umberg’s proposal to address retail theft or Quirk-Silva’s plan to make use of the controversial Fairview Development Center in Costa Mesa — are still only “placeholders,” with a broad goal listed but little detail about how the legislation actually would achieve it.

Legislators will fill in those details as they work to get the bills through committee hearings over the next few months. Often they’ll make minor changes based on feedback they receive. Sometimes they’ll completely “gut and amend” the bill before it comes up for a vote on the floor.

Bills must pass the house they were introduced in by May 27 to stay alive. They then have until Aug. 31 to pass the other house, with a Sept. 30 deadline for Gov. Gavin Newsom to sign or veto them.

Here’s a look at some key bills introduced this year by the five state Senators and seven Assembly members who represent portions of Orange County.

Election reforms

After the failed attempt in 2021 to recall Gov. Gavin Newsom, surveys showed most Californians supported change to the state’s recall process. And it’s no surprise that a key plan came from state Sen. Josh Newman, who himself was recalled in 2018 before he won his seat back in 2020.

Senate Constitutional Amendment 6 from Newman, D-Fullerton, would overhaul state-level recall elections in California by having ballots only ask voters whether that person should be recalled or not. Rather than have voters simultaneously pick a replacement, allowing someone to win with far less than a majority of votes, Newman wants to have the lieutenant governor replace a recalled governor. If the recall is aimed at a constitutional officer, such as the secretary of state or state attorney general, Newman’s bill would have the governor appoint the replacement. And a recalled state legislator would be replaced through special elections.

Since Newman’s proposal would require an amendment to the state constitution — one of just nine constitution-changing ideas introduced statewide this session — it would require approval from two-thirds of both state Senate and Assembly members before it would have to be approved by a simple majority of California voters.

Newman also introduced a bill that would give election workers the option of keeping their home addresses private and one that would create an online archive of every digital political ad put out by political campaigns or committees in California.

Meanwhile, Umberg, D-Santa Ana, is pitching a bill to help make sure voters understand what they’re backing when they sign ballot petitions. His bill, SB 1360, would require anyone gathering signatures for initiatives, referendums or recalls to instruct voters to only sign the petition after they’ve first reviewed a list of top contributors bankrolling the effort.

Oil spills and environment

After an undersea pipeline burst Oct. 1 and spilled roughly 25,000 gallons of oil off the coast of Huntington Beach, state Sen. Dave Min, D-Irvine, quickly announced plans for a bill to ban all offshore drilling in California waters.

Local Republicans instead are focusing on narrower attempts to help contain damage from any future spills.

Assemblywoman Janet Nguyen, R-Fountain Valley, introduced a package of bills and resolutions aimed at safety around oil spills. Two bills would expand notification requirements in the event of a spill and require the state to share best practices for local oil spill response plans. Two resolutions would ask the federal government to set up unified command centers close to emergency sites and to dedicate resources to preventing a backlog of cargo ships that could strike pipelines.

Assemblywoman Laurie Davies, R-Laguna Niguel, also introduced AB 1611, which would beef up notification requirements for ship owners and operators that hit offshore pipelines.

On the cleanup side, Newman’s Senate Bill 1036 would create California Ocean Corps, a workforce that would do projects around restoration and protection of coastal habitats and waters. The bill asks for $12 million to fund a four-year pilot program based in Orange County that would focus specifically on wetlands and marshes hardest hit by the October oil spill.

Crime and drugs

With crime rates on the rise, Republicans are pointing fingers at Proposition 47, which voters approved in 2014 to reduce penalties for many nonviolent crimes.

State Sen. Pat Bates, R-Laguna Niguel, introduced a bill that would reinstate one provision repealed by Prop. 47. Her SB 1108 would allow someone who’s already been convicted of petty or grand theft three or more times, and who gets nabbed for petty theft again, to then go to jail for up to three years. Since it would mean a change to a voter-approved law, Bates’ bill would have to go before voters in the Nov. 8 election.

Several other bills from Bates deal with increasing penalties related to drugs sales and with drug treatment reforms.

Two of 14 bills from Min deal with gun safety.

His SB 915 would ban gun sales at all fairgrounds statewide. He introduced a similar bill last year, but ended up scaling it back to cover only  Orange County’s fairgrounds. That bill easily passed, so he’s trying again to expand the restriction across California.

Another of Min’s bills, SB 1384, would require licensed firearm dealers to have a digital video surveillance systems and to carry general liability insurance. It also would require any employees who handle firearms to complete online training through a program developed by the Department of Justice.

A couple local bills also tackle issues around hate crimes. Min introduced a bill that would require California’s 10 largest transit districts to develop plans for preventing harassment of women and other vulnerable communities riding on public transit systems. And Choi, R-Irvine, introduced a bill that would let California judges give offenders longer sentences for hate crimes.

Other bills from local lawmakers are aimed at the spike in catalytic converter thefts.

Assemblyman Philip Chen, R-Brea — who introduced more bills than any other local legislator this session, at 24 — wants the state to provide licensed smog check stations with signs that tell customers how to prevent catalytic converter theft, including etching identifying information on the part. The bill would also let smog check stations offer to etch catalytic converters for customers.

Meanwhile, Choi’s AB 1984 would make it a crime to buy, sell, receive or possess a stolen catalytic converter.

Housing and homelessness

A number of bills from local lawmakers aim to tackle housing and homelessness issues.

Assemblywoman Sharon Quirk-Silva, D-Fullerton, introduced a bill that would establish a legislative task force focused on helping more California residents buy homes. Under AB 2013, the California Master Plan on Home Ownership would have to bring a report with recommendations back to the legislature by March 31, 2023.

Quirk-Silva also introduced a bill that would prevent local governments from giving permits for housing communities in areas with “very high fire” risks unless the developer takes certain steps to address the risks. The bill also would require the State Fire Marshal to help cover costs to boost fire safety for at least 300,000 existing vulnerable homes within the next three years and an additional 300,000 existing vulnerable homes every three years after.

Nguyen, who pitched 15 bills this year, also called for creating a new state agency the Department of Homelessness Prevention, Outreach, and Support. The department would be required to make its first recommendations to the legislature by Jan. 1, 2024.

Choi’s AB 2485 would exempt emergency shelters and supportive housing from the state’s environmental review law, CEQA.

Tax breaks

Local lawmakers are pitching several tax breaks for Californians.

Bates’ SB 1025 would give tax credits to companies and organizations that sponsor blood drives, in hopes of helping with the shortage in blood supply.

Related Articles

Newman wants to offer tax credits to low-income property owners who let renters have pets.

Choi has a bill to give tax credits for teachers who buy their own school supplies, and another that would offer breaks on hygiene supplies to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Another bill from Choi calls for California to use $19.3 billion of its projected $30 billion budget surplus in the coming fiscal year to pay back money it borrowed from the federal government to cover unemployment insurance claims during the pandemic. If the state doesn’t cover that debt, it’s expected to leave businesses on the hook to cover the tab through a tax hike starting next year.