GRASSROOTS AAPI POLICY AGENDA
Alongside our powerful network of grassroots Asian American and Pacific Islander organizations, we have identified the following legislative priorities that serve working-class AAPI communities.
SB 578 (Smallwood-Cuevas): California Worker Outreach Program
Championed by Pilipino Workers Center and Chinese Progressive Association.
Through the CA Worker Outreach Program (CWOP), state labor agencies and community organizations partner to share information on workplace rights with immigrant workers, workers of color, and women workers in high-risk industries across 46 languages. Funding for CWOP is threatened; the program is an effective part of our workplace fairness infrastructure and we cannot afford to discard it.
SB 578 will write CWOP into our Labor Code, marking it as an ongoing commitment to ensure that every working Californian can understand and assert their rights at work, and expand the scope to educate workers on civil rights and income supports for paid leave, disability, and unemployment.
AB 1242 (Nguyen): Language Access for All Act
Championed by Orange County Asian and Pacific Islander Alliance.
This bill would establish a Language Access Director within the California Health & Human Services Agency (CalHHS) to provide oversight, accountability, and coordination across CalHHS’ departments and offices to ensure individuals with limited English proficiency (LEP) and individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing have meaningful access to the government’s health and human services programs. One in six Californians are LEP; AB 1242 is a critical health equity bill that will help ensure all Californians—not just English speakers—receive the services and support they are entitled to.
SB 627 (Wiener, Arreguín, and Pérez): No Secret Police Act
SB 627 would prohibit law enforcement at all levels from covering their faces while conducting operations in California. The bill also requires officers to be identifiable via their uniform, whether with name or other identifier. As federal agents covering their faces and badges have sown terror in immigrant communities across our state, this bill is a step towards accountability.
SB 509 (Caballero): Stopping Transnational Repression
SB509 would provide training and resources for statewide law enforcement agencies combating foreign election interference and repression against California residents. There has been a significant increase in foreign operations in North America including the assassination of a Canadian citizen in 2023 which led to Canada’s expelling of five top foreign Diplomats suspected in connection. Additionally, an FBI agent uncovered a plot to assassinate a New York resident in 2023 and in August of 2024, a Sacramento resident survived an attempted highway shooting by suspected foreign agents. These incidents show the seriousness and extent of foreign operations and repression of speech
Two-Year Bills
AB 1157 (Kalra): Affordable Rent Act
AB 1157 caps annual rent increases at CPI (Consumer Price Index) plus 2%, up to 5%, extends rent caps to single family homes, and makes the policy permanent. Current law is significantly higher than inflation, setting the limit at CPI + 5%, up to a maximum of 10%, meaning that renters could see their rent double in ten years. As California faces skyrocketing rents and a homelessness crisis, AB 1157 helps keep families housed.
AB 868 (Carrillo): Mandatory General Elections
This bill seeks to guarantee that county elections are decided in higher-turnout general elections. By requiring that all contested county offices appear on the general election ballot, AB 868 allows a larger and more diverse electorate to have a voice in the final outcome of county elections. Additionally, if only two candidates file for a county office, the primary election is skipped, streamlining the process and eliminating unnecessary elections.
AB 1248 (Haney, co-sponsored by AG Bonta): End Junk Fees.
AB 1248 would prohibit landlords from charging excessive and arbitrary fees to tenants, a practice that landlords often use to get around the rent cap.
SB 436 (Wahab): Right to Redeem
This bill would require eviction courts to allow tenants to stay in their homes if the tenant pays the amount of rent owed or provides documentation of rental assistance funds that would cover the amount of rent owed. This policy is common in other states.