All Six Jewish California-Sponsored Bills Clear Key Fiscal Hurdle, Head to Final Floor Votes

SACRAMENTO, CA – Today, the Senate and Assembly Appropriations Committees decided the fate of each of Jewish California's six sponsored bills for 2026. The Appropriations deadline is the penultimate – and often the most-challenging – legislative hurdle.

All six of Jewish California's sponsored bills advanced out of their Appropriations Committees and now head to their final floor votes.

“Every one of these bills solves a problem our community asked Sacramento to fix,” said David Bocarsly, CEO of Jewish California. “We're grateful to the committee members and leaders who voted to keep them moving, and we're not letting up until they cross the finish line.”

Our Sponsored Bills

SB 1387 (Stern) – Recognize Jewish Identity as an Ethnicity

The Assembly Appropriations Committee advanced SB 1387 on an 11-0 vote, with four abstentions – which are equivalent to “no” votes. Authored by Senator Henry Stern (D-Sherman Oaks) and sponsored by Jewish California, SB 1387 codifies that Jewish identity is an ethnicity – in addition to a religion – and ensures it is captured when the state collects ethnicity data. According to Pew Research, a majority of American Jews cite ancestry and culture, not religion, as central to their Jewish identity. The bill previously passed the full Senate 33-0, with seven Senators not voting. It will next be heard on the Assembly Floor.

AB 2664 (Bauer-Kahan) – Safe Worship Zone Act

The Senate Appropriations Committee advanced AB 2664 on a 7-0 vote. Authored by Assemblymember Rebecca Bauer-Kahan (D-Orinda) and sponsored by Jewish California, AB 2664 establishes a 100-foot "Safe Worship Zone" around the entrances of houses of worship, ensuring congregants can enter and leave without being confronted, surrounded, or intimidated, while preserving the constitutional right to protest. Similar "bubble zone" laws have been upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court. The bill is backed by a broad interfaith coalition including Muslim, Sikh, Christian, and Hindu organizations. It passed the Assembly floor 61-2 – with 17 Assemblymembers not voting. It will next be heard on the Senate Floor.

AB 1836 (Gabriel) – Off-Site Events for Nonprofit Security Grants

The Senate Appropriations Committee advanced AB 1836 on a 7-0 vote. Authored by Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel (D-Encino) and sponsored by Jewish California, AB 1836 expands the California State Nonprofit Security Grant Program (CSNSGP) to let nonprofits use grant funding for security at offsite events – including Pride celebrations, cultural festivals, and religious observances – not just at their permanent building. Hate crime events in California increased 110% over the past decade – with anti-Jewish and anti-Black bias among the most prevalent every year. Demand for CSNSGP grants is at a record high. AB 1836 previously passed the Assembly floor 78-2. It will next be heard on the Senate Floor.

AB 395 (Gabriel) – Equal Access to School and Public Events

The Senate Appropriations Committee advanced AB 395 on a 7-0 vote. Authored by Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel (D-Encino) and sponsored by Jewish California, AB 395 asks state agencies, K-12 schools, and public colleges and universities to make every reasonable effort to avoid scheduling major meetings, first days of class, or graduations on religious holidays, so observant Californians of all faiths are not forced to choose between their faith and civic or academic life. Supported by an interfaith coalition, the bill has passed every committee and floor vote unanimously thus far, and enjoys zero opposition. However, it was held in the Senate Judiciary Committee for an entire year over technical concerns – making it a two-year bill. Major communal advocacy efforts finally pushed it through the committee last month, just days before a deadline that would have killed the bill outright. It will next be heard on the Senate Floor.

AB 1763 (Lee) – Student Absences for Religious Observances

The Senate Appropriations Committee advanced AB 1763 on a 7-0 vote. Authored by Assemblymember Alex Lee (D-San Jose) and sponsored by Jewish California, AB 1763 guarantees K-12 students an excused absence for religious holidays, removing the current requirement that parents obtain principal approval. This puts religious holidays in the same category as cultural ceremonies, bereavement, political events, illness or mental health, and a dozen other reasons for a guaranteed excused absence. The bill previously passed the Assembly floor 73-0 – with 7 Assemblymembers not voting. It will next be heard on the Senate Floor.

AB 1853 (Pellerin) – Hate Speech in Voter Guides

The Senate Appropriations Committee advanced AB 1853 on a 5-0 vote, with two abstentions. Authored by Assemblymembers Gail Pellerin (D-Santa Cruz) and Marc Berman (D-Menlo Park) and sponsored by Jewish California, AB 1853 limits candidate statements in California's official state and county voter guides to information about a candidate's education, professional experience, public service, community involvement, and qualifications for office. It bars false or misleading claims, links to external content, and hateful or discriminatory content – and it gives the Secretary of State and county elections officials clear authority to reject noncompliant statements. The bill was introduced after a candidate statement containing antisemitic conspiracy theories and white nationalist rhetoric was mailed to 23 million California households, and drew support from over 54 Jewish organizations within 48 hours. It will next be heard on the Senate Floor.

Beyond Our Sponsored Bills

In addition to these six priority bills, Jewish California also supported 15 other bills under consideration in the Appropriations Committees today. Of those, 11 advanced – including bills on food security, nonprofit support, and youth online safety. A full, real-time rundown is available at our bill tracker.

These bills now head to the floor of the second house for a vote of the full body. If they were amended in the second house, they will go back to the first house for a concurrence vote from that full body. The Legislature has until August 31 to vote on these bills. The Governor has until September 30 to sign or veto them.