Our Legislative Successes - What They Mean For You

Dear Friend:

The 2023-24 California Legislative Session has come to a close marking my last as your State Senator. It has been the honor of my lifetime to serve you these past 12 years. I wanted to take this opportunity to share with you some of our legislative accomplishments this session that address important issues in our region and state.

Thank you to the Press Enterprise for their coverage of our legislative successes, writing about our efforts, “In the 2023-24 session, he (Senator Roth) introduced 36 bills and saw 19 signed into law, making him the Inland Empire’s most productive state senator.” (PE, October 26, 2024)

Some of our most significant bills are highlighted below:

Improving Access to Justice
SB 75 – This bill authorizes 26 new superior court judgeships, to address areas with the greatest need for more judges including Riverside County, helping to reduce lengthy delays in the courts.

Providing Educational Opportunities for Disadvantaged Youth
SB 228 – This bill lays the groundwork for the creation of a Youth Challenge Program in Western Riverside County, specifically targeting property at the former March Air Force Base. The Challenge Program provides an alternative educational opportunity for student’s ages 16-18 who have dropped out of school or who are otherwise not progressing towards graduation.

Enabling California’s Aerospace Industry to Soar
SB 419 – In order to enable California’s once burgeoning aerospace industry to thrive, expand and create jobs once again, this bill extends the property tax exemption for space launch vehicles for 10 years.

Strengthening Mental Health Care for All Californians—Prop 1
AB 531 – (Roth-Principal Co-author) This bill established Proposition 1, which was subsequentially passed by the voters, which provides, among other things, $1.5 billion dollars to expand the continuum of behavioral health treatment resources, specifically including, for the first time, new acute care inpatient psychiatric beds which are critically needed for emergency situations where a short-term stay is essential for mental health stabilization and treatment.

Protecting Small Businesses While Ensuring Equal Access for the Disabled Community
SB 748 – This bill builds on our groundbreaking 2015 legislation, SB 251, which protects California’s small businesses while securing equal access for the disabled community, ensuring, for the first time, that small businesses have the opportunity to cure violations of state and federal disability access laws. Our SB 748 furthers that reform by eliminating any guesswork or confusion for businesses so that they receive clear notice of their responsibilities and can more easily comply with disability access laws.

Protecting and Empowering Patients
SB 815 – This bill makes significant changes to promote patient rights and improve transparency and efficiencies at the California Medical Board.  The measure includes key reforms including a patient ombudsman, license revocation for physicians convicted of a serious felony, and streamlining the disciplinary process. 

Keeping Guns Out of the Hands of Convicted Violent Criminals
SB-902 – This bill prohibits individuals convicted of extreme misdemeanor animal cruelty from possessing firearms for a period of 10 years.

To Better Serve Our Older Residents
SB-1249 – This bill ensures that Californians, age 60 or older, will be provided with essential social and nutrition services to better maintain their self-sufficiency and personal well-being.

Improving Customer Service for Medi-Cal Applicants and Beneficiaries
SB-1289 – In order to eliminate long wait times at Medi-Cal Call Centers, this bill requires the collection of essential information on call wait time, and call abandonment rate, to better identify and correct deficiencies. 

Protecting Working Families in Mobilehome Parks
SB-1408 – This bill prohibits the management of a mobilehome park from removing a vehicle used by the homeowner or resident for work or employment from their driveway.

If you have questions about this or any other state-related issue, please feel free to call my District Office at (951) 680-6750 or message me directly by visiting my website at www.sen.ca.gov/Roth.

Sincerely,

RICHARD D. ROTH
Senator, 31st District