2025 CA Legislative Scorecard

SB518 establishes the Bureau for Descendants of American Slavery within California’s Civil Rights Department to administer future reparations-related programs. Headed by a Governor-appointed and Senate-confirmed deputy director, the bureau would verify individuals’ lineage to enslaved ancestors through a new Genealogy Division, with certified descendant status required to qualify for any state-authorized reparations benefits. The bureau would also include an Education and Outreach Division to promote public understanding of historical discrimination such as redlining and segregation, and a Legal Affairs Division to oversee compliance with laws and advise on reparative initiatives. The bill strictly limits the collection and disclosure of personal and genetic data to protect privacy, authorizes the bureau to receive public and private funding, and makes its implementation contingent on future legislative appropriations.

The California State Senate passed SB518 on September 10, 2025 by a vote of 30 to 10. We have assigned pluses to the nays because this bill violates the equal-protection guarantees of both the U.S. and California Constitutions by creating a state agency that grants benefits solely based on ancestry and race. Such racial classifications by government are inherently discriminatory and violate the 14th Amendment’s promise that all citizens are entitled to equal protection under the law. Moreover, the bill's declaration that these payments are not “gifts of public funds” attempts to sidestep the California Constitution’s Article XVI, Section 6 prohibition on using taxpayer money for private benefit. Beyond its constitutional defects, SB518 rejects the principle of individual responsibility and limited government by empowering a new permanent bureaucracy to administer race-based entitlements, an expansion of state power that deepens government dependency and fuels division rather than promoting liberty and justice for all.

AB268 designates Diwali, the Hindu “festival of lights," as an official state holiday in California. The bill allows public schools and community colleges to close on Diwali if approved through labor agreements, and authorizes state employees to take paid time off in observance of the holiday. Schools and educational institutions may also hold activities celebrating Diwali’s cultural and spiritual significance. The measure amends various sections of state law to integrate Diwali into the list of recognized holidays, alongside Native American Day and Genocide Remembrance Day. Legislative findings highlight Diwali’s importance to Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, and Jains.

The California State Senate passed AB268 on September 10, 2025 by a vote of 36 to 0. We have assigned pluses to the nays because this bill disregards America’s Christian foundation, treating with disdain the life and character upon which its civil institutions were founded. By elevating a Hindu festival to the status of an official state holiday, lawmakers are not merely recognizing cultural diversity—they are granting government endorsement to a non-Christian religious observance. The Founders acknowledged Almighty God as the source of liberty and moral order, not a pantheon of deities. Rather than uphold the moral foundations upon which the Republic was built, the Legislature has chosen to promote religious relativism under the guise of inclusion. As George Washington affirmed in his 1789 Thanksgiving Proclamation, “It is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favor… especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness.”

AB260 expands protections for access to medication abortion in California, and shields providers, pharmacists, and facilities from out-of-state interference. It repeals abortion restrictions, updates rules for dispensing mifepristone and similar drugs, and allows pharmacists to dispense them without identifying information to protect privacy. The bill bars criminal, civil, or professional action against anyone lawfully prescribing, supplying, or transporting these medications in California. It also extends until January 31, 2027, the liability exemption for healthcare providers adapting to new abortion privacy rules, and requires insurance plans to cover mifepristone even if used off-label or not FDA-approved, unless a state health risk is declared.

The California State Senate passed AB260 on September 9, 2025 by a vote of 30 to 8. We have assigned pluses to the nays because this bill further entrenches California as a sanctuary for the deliberate taking of innocent human life. By shielding abortionists and drug distributors from accountability, AB260 not only disregards moral law, but also violates the unalienable right to life. The care of human life—not its destruction—is the highest duty of government, yet this legislation treats death as "healthcare," and compels taxpayers to underwrite it. No one has a right to kill a preborn child under the guise of “reproductive freedom,” nor may the state lawfully compel citizens to finance or participate in that evil. The right to life is God-given and affirmed in the Declaration of Independence and the Fifth, Ninth, and 14th Amendments as the first and most essential of all rights upon which liberty itself depends.

SB771 makes large social-media platforms legally liable if their algorithms or actions help facilitate violence, intimidation, or discrimination that violates California civil-rights laws. Beginning January 1, 2027, platforms earning more than $100 million annually can face civil penalties of up to $1 million per intentional violation (higher if minors are involved) for aiding, abetting, or acting as joint tortfeasors in such misconduct. The bill clarifies that algorithmic content delivery can constitute an independent act and that platforms are presumed to know how their algorithms operate. It also prohibits waiving these provisions, and makes them severable.

The California State Senate passed SB771 on September 11, 2025 by a vote of 30 to 8. We have assigned pluses to the nays because this legislation strikes at the heart of the First Amendment by granting government sweeping power to police online speech under the pretext of preventing “violence” or “discrimination.” Such vague and subjective standards invite selective enforcement against disfavored viewpoints—particularly conservative or religious expression—while insulating politically approved speech from scrutiny. By making social-media platforms liable for user content and algorithmic delivery, the state effectively deputizes private companies to censor speech on its behalf, a clear violation of constitutional protections. Free expression is not a privilege granted by government, but an unalienable right endowed by our Creator and secured by the Constitution. SB771 expands state control over the digital public square and threatens the liberty of all Americans to speak and think freely.

SJR1 rescinds all previous applications made by the California Legislature requesting that Congress call an Article V convention for proposing amendments to the U.S. Constitution. The resolution directs the secretary of the Senate to transmit copies to federal officials, including the president, vice president, congressional leaders, and California’s congressional delegation, and requests that the measure be published in the Congressional Record and included in the official tally of state applications for a constitutional convention.

The California State Senate passed SJR1 on June 16, 2025 by a vote of 28 to 0. We have assigned pluses to the ayes because rescinding applications for a constitutional convention protects the U.S. Constitution. A so-called “Convention of the States” would not be of “limited” purpose. Article V of the U.S. Constitution was designed to correct structural deficiencies in the federal government, not the behavior of its elected officials. Officials should pursue sound solutions to return power to the states and the people, such as clear-cut proposals in Congress to repeal bad amendments or state nullification of unconstitutional federal actions.