Latest News

Sacramento, CA–The Assembly today approved a measure that would promote more Healthy Nail Salons throughout California. The legislation, Assembly Bill 2125 authored by Assemblymember David Chiu (D – San Francisco), requires the California Department of Public health to create guidelines for local governments to voluntarily implement Healthy Nail Salon Recognition programs.

“This bill encourages businesses to voluntarily become healthier nail salons, which will help both their workers and their patrons,” said Assemblymember Chiu. “Nail salons are part of an $8 billion industry in our state, with 80 percent of nail salon workers being Asian immigrants with limited English skills. There shouldn’t be hidden costs to polished nails, and as San Francisco’s healthy nail salon program says, ‘Pretty Shouldn’t Stink.’”

Bills Address the Real Costs of College for Students

Sacramento, CA – The Assembly late yesterday voted to pass three higher education bills that will help address the real cost of college that students must overcome. Tuition is not the only cost of college, as food, housing, transportation, child care and text books are necessary expenditures students must cover to not only complete their courses but to excel in their studies. Financial aid dollars do not stretch far enough when it comes to the day-to-day living expenses for an average student.

AB 2349 by Assemblymember David Chiu Protects California’s Intended Parents’ and Surrogates’ Rights When Litigation Arises in Other States

Sacramento, CA – The Assembly today voted unanimously to pass Assemblymember David Chiu’s Assembly Bill 2349, which would protect parents of children conceived through surrogacy in California – including many same-sex couples who rely on reproductive assistance to form their families – from having their rights violated outside the state.

AB 2349 would clarify that California’s Superior Courts have jurisdiction over parentage cases arising from gestational surrogacy arrangements. This bill would also make clear that when intended parents are using donated gametes (eggs and/or sperm); the names of these donors need not be revealed in their surrogacy contracts.

AB 1574 Requires Increased Coordination between State Agencies

San Francisco, CA—A bill by Assemblymember David Chiu (D-San Francisco) to reduce the number of “ghost buses” operating without the knowledge of the state regulatory agency passed the full Assembly today with bipartisan support.

Assembly Bill 1574, which is co-authored by Assemblymember Phil Ting (D-San Francisco) and Senator Jerry Hill (D-San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties), would require increased coordination between the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) and the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to identify unregistered tour buses.

Welcomes Terry Asten Bennett, General Manager, to Sacramento Luncheon

Sacramento, CA – Assemblymember David Chiu (D-San Francisco) today honored Cliff’s Variety, the iconic Castro institution that is so much more than a hardware store, as California Small Business of the Year 2016 at an awards ceremony in Sacramento organized by the California Small Business Association. Terry Asten Bennett, General Manager of Cliff’s and a great-great-granddaughter of the store’s founder, Hilario DeBaca, joined Assemblymember Chiu to accept the award.

“Cliff’s Variety has an incredible legacy of LGBT inclusion which is easy to forget now that the rainbow flag flies proudly over the Castro,” said Assemblymember Chiu. “It also happens to be a terrific store that has survived and even thrived in an era of increasing retail sameness. I welcome the opportunity to honor Cliff’s Variety as they celebrate their incredible 80th anniversary.”

Assemblymember David Chiu (D-San Francisco) released the following statement on the Assembly’s proposal to invest $650 million in the FY 2016-17 Budget to address California’s affordable housing crisis.

“This funding would be the most significant state investment in affordable housing since the elimination of redevelopment and the loss of billions of crucial dollars each year. Funding affordable housing will help us address poverty in California, which is the highest in the nation when housing costs are included. It’s heartening to see that so many of my colleagues, including Speaker Anthony Rendon, Budget Chair Phil Ting, Budget Subcommittee Chair Adrin Nazarian, are committed to the state’s vital role in building housing that is affordable to our lowest income working families. 

Assemblymember David Chiu (D-San Francisco) today issued the following statement after Los Angeles City Attorney Mike Feuer moved to enforce the requirement in Assembly Bill 775 that all relevant facilities, including so-called “crisis pregnancy centers,” provide accurate, unbiased information to women about the reproductive health choices available to them. AB 775, the Reproductive Freedom, Accountability, Comprehensive Care and Transparency Act (Reproductive FACT Act), was jointly authored by Asm. Chiu and Assemblywoman Autumn R. Burke (D-Inglewood) and was signed into law last year.

“There Ought to Be a Law” winner would simplify voter registration for college students

San Francisco, CA—The California State Assembly today passed the Student Voting Act, authored by Assemblymembers David Chiu (D-San Francisco) and Rob Bonta (D-Oakland), to increase voter registration and civic engagement among California students. AB 2455 would create an online link between class enrollment and voter registration for students in California’s public college and university systems. The bill is the winner of Assemblymember Chiu’s “There Ought to Be a Law” program and was proposed by two UC Berkeley Law Students, one of whom lives in San Francisco’s Mission District.

“Creating a one stop shop so that students can register to vote when they enroll for classes is the first step in getting them to the polls,” said Assemblymember Chiu. “Students represent a significant segment of California’s eligible voting population, yet their voices are not being heard in our elections.”