2022 State Legislative Scorecard

But here in California, Equality California and our partners continued to pave a different path — one toward a world that is healthy, just and fully equal for all LGBTQ+ people.

A MESSAGE

FROM EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR TONY HOANG

Friends and Partners,

From attacks against reproductive freedom and gender-affirming healthcare to efforts to separate transgender youth from their families and silence LGBTQ+ students in schools, 2022 was a year of great challenges for our community,

But here in California, Equality California and our partners continued to pave a different path — one toward a world that is healthy, just and fully equal for all LGBTQ+ people.

Together with the Legislative LGBTQ Caucus and pro-equality allies in the Legislature, Equality California helped pass groundbreaking legislation to protect trans kids and their families and people seeking abortion care who come to California; reduce barriers to healthcare for LGBTQ+ people; equip pharmacists and pharmacy technicians with critical training on how to provide inclusive services to LGBTQ+ patients; and modernize California employment laws to reflect our chosen families. Year after year, our legislative packages continue to reflect the vision and tenacity of LGBTQ+ Californians who lead the fight for full, lived equality through activism, storytelling and community building.

Still, as we celebrate our legislative victories in Sacramento, we recognize that too many LGBTQ+ Californians still face hate, discrimination and even violence in their communities. Too many LGBTQ+ students still face bullying and harassment in our schools. And too many LGBTQ+ people across the country and around the world do not have the most basic civil rights protections. The violence and terror that occurred at Club Q in December was not an isolated attack on our community. Anti-LGBTQ+, racist and antisemitic hate continue to rise. We mourn the loss of family, friends and loved ones — members of the LGBTQ+ community and the diverse communities to which we belong. And in their honor and legacy, we continue to fight.

Until the work is done,

Tony Hoang

Executive Director

10% REPRESENTATION

At a time when extremists have done everything they can to demonize our community, we’ve proven that California will continue to be a guiding light for our country. We did this together, and I know it is just the beginning.

Assemblymember Evan Low, Chair of the California LGBTQ Caucus

THANK YOU, LEGISLATIVE LGBTQ CAUCUS

As one of the nation’s largest, most diverse caucuses of openly LGBTQ+ state legislators, the California Legislative LGBTQ Caucus has continued set the bar for advancing full, lived equality — and paving the way for other states to follow.

In 2022, under the leadership of Chair Asm. Evan Low (D-Silicon Valley) and Vice Chair Sen. Susan Talamantes Eggman (D-Stockton), the LGBTQ Caucus championed many of Equality California’s legislative priorities — including bills to protect and empower transgender Californians and budget allocations to combat MPOX (Monkeypox) and better support LGBTQ+ students in our public schools. Equality California is grateful to the eight Caucus members in the Legislature and their staff, including consultants Alina Hernandez and Jacob Fraker, as well as Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara. We look forward to continuing our longstanding partnership with the Caucus, which in 2023 will enjoy a historic 10% representation in the Legislature.

PRIORITY SCORED LEGISLATION

Working closely with members of the California Legislative LGBTQ Caucus and other pro-equality legislators in 2022, Equality California sponsored 12 bills, of which 11 were signed into law by Governor Gavin Newsom. In creating this year’s legislative package — one of Equality California’s largest to date — we worked closely with organizational partners and legislative champions to identify threats and responses to the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization and its impact on LGBTQ+ communities. We also led the advocacy effort for a budget request that increased state and local responses to the ongoing MPOX (monkeypox virus) health crisis and expanded vaccination, testing, treatment, and outreach to impacted communities. Our sponsored legislation took on a wide range of issues that will help advance the health and well-being of the LGBTQ+ community and the diverse communities to which LGBTQ+ people belong.

SPONSORED BILLS

Leave for Chosen Families

AB 1041 by Assemblymember Buffy Wicks (D-Oakland)

AB 1041 will make access to job protected family caregiving and sick leave more equitable for all of California’s working families, including LGBTQ+ workers with chosen families.

Status: Signed by Governor Newsom

Civil Liability for Abortion

AB 1666 by Assemblymember Rebecca Bauer-Kahan (D-Orinda)

AB 1666 protects Californians from civil liability on the basis of other states’ laws that impede abortion rights, which are contrary to the public policy of California. The bill took effect immediately upon signature.

Status: Signed by Governor Newsom

Coverage for Family Building

AB 2029 Assemblymember Buffy Wicks (D-Oakland)

AB 2029 expands coverage for infertility diagnosis and treatment and updates the definition of infertility to be more inclusive of LGBTQ+ people, thereby reducing inequities in health and economic status.

Status: Held on Suspense in the Assembly Appropriations Committee

Reproductive Health and Privacy

AB 2091 by Assemblymember Mia Bonta (D-Oakland)

AB 2091 will protect the private medical information of people in California when exercising their right to obtain an abortion.

Status: Signed by Governor Newsom

Training for Pharmacists

AB 2194 by Assemblymember Christopher M. Ward (D-San Diego)

AB 2194 will strengthen implementation of SB 159 (Wiener 2019) and reduce barriers to care for LGBTQ+ people by equipping pharmacists and pharmacy technicians to provide LGBTQ+ culturally competent services and care.

Status: Signed by Governor Newsom

Minimizing Deadnaming in CCC Systems

AB 2315 by Assemblymember Dr. Joaquin Arambula (D-Fresno)

AB 2315 will require Community College Districts to implement processes by which students, staff, and faculty can declare and use an affirmed name and/or gender on academic records.

Status: Signed by Governor Newsom

Youth Bill of Rights

AB 2417 by Assemblymember Philip Ting (D-San Francisco)

AB 2417 will ensure that incarcerated youth – a disproportionate number of whom are LGBTQ+ – have easier access to information regarding their existing rights under state and federal law.

Status: Signed by Governor Newsom

Death Certificates

AB 2436 by Assemblymember Rebecca Bauer-Kahan (D-Orinda)

AB 2436 will make parental fields on death certificates gender inclusive, which will help LGBTQ+ parents navigate estate proceedings and other matters following the death of a child.

Status: Signed by Governor Newsom

Protecting Transgender Youth and Their Families

SB 107 by Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco)

SB 107 is a response to anti-trans laws of other states and will help to ensure that transgender youth and their families who come to California in pursuit of gender affirming care and an authentic life are protected in that endeavor.

Status: Signed by Governor Newsom

Safer Streets for All Act

SB 357 by Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco)

SB 357 repeals the law that criminalized loitering with the intent to engage in sex work, a law that has contributed to discrimination and profiling, particularly against Black women and people who are transgender.

Status: Signed by Governor Newsom

Transgender, Gender Diverse, and Intersex (TGI) Inclusive Care Act

SB 923 by Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco)

SB 923 will help to create a healthcare system that meets the needs of TGI people and will make it easier for TGI people to find life-saving gender-affirming services.

Status: Signed by Governor Newsom

STI Prevention & Treatment Fairness Act

SB 1234 by Senator and Dr. Richard Pan (D-Sacramento)

SB 1234 will expand access to STI services for income-eligible patients who have confidentiality concerns, including LGBTQ+ patients, through the Family Planning, Access, Care, and Treatment (FPACT) program.

Status: Vetoed by Governor Newsom due to lack of funding in the budget

As so many states work to erase trans kids and criminalize their families, California must always have their backs... With SB 107 signed into law, California is forcefully pushing back against the anti-LGBTQ hatred spreading across parts of our nation. The rainbow wave is real, and it’s coming. Thank you, Governor Newsom, for standing with our community.

BILLS SUPPORTED OR SPONSORED BUT NOT SCORED

SCA 10 by Senator and pro Tem Toni Atkins (D-San Diego) and Assemblymember and Speaker Anthony Rendon (D-Lakewood)

SCA 10 gave voters in California the opportunity to enshrine the right to abortion and contraceptives in our State Constitution.

Status: Chaptered. Passed by California voters in November 2022.

Removing Barriers for LGBTQ Resource Families & Foster Children

AB 2466 by Assemblymember Sabrina Cervantes (D-Riverside)

AB 2466 will advance the state’s goal of ensuring the safety and well-being of all youth in California’s child welfare system by prohibiting placement denials solely based on the actual or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity or expression of parents in resource families.

Status: Signed by Governor Newsom

All Gender Restrooms

SB 1194 by Senator Ben Allen (D-Santa Monica)

SB 1194 authorizes localities to require that new public restrooms be designed for all genders, as specified.

Status: Signed by Governor Newsom

Senator Scott Wiener

EQUALITY CALIFORNIA STATE LEGISLATIVE SCORECARD 2022

Methodology

In the scorecard that follows, the analysis of votes is based primarily on the final floor votes cast on the measures. “Yes” votes on scored legislation are represented by “+” and “no” votes are represented by “-.” Legislators who are present but not voting are denoted by an “A” for “abstaining,” which is scored as equivalent to a “no” vote on scored legislation. Passage of legislation typically requires a “yes” vote by the majority of all legislators, so failing to cast a vote has the same effect as a “no” vote.

Legislators who were officially absent for a vote did not have that vote factored into their rating and are denoted on the scorecard with an “E” for “excused.” Missed votes on scored legislation may be excused if the legislator was a co-author, voted to support the legislation at a previous floor vote or in committee, or was absent from the floor on official business.

The overall score reflects legislators’ votes on Equality California-sponsored legislation (highlighted in RED). Highlighted in YELLOW are bills that Equality California highlights as critical for the community but did not factor into this year’s scoring. The votes in YELLOW are included for informational purposes only. Members of the LGBTQ+ Caucus are denoted with an “*” and authors of sponsored legislation are denoted with a “+” next to their names.

Please note:

∂ SB 357 (Wiener) is not scored in the Legislature because the bill was already passed and subsequently scored in the Assembly and Senate in 2021. The bill was signed by Governor Newsom in 2022.

∂ AB 1041 (Wicks) was a two-year bill that was scored in the Assembly in 2021. In 2022, the bill is scored based on this year’s Senate vote and the final Assembly concurrence vote.

∂ Equality California joined as a cosponsor of SB 1194 (Allen) at the end of session, so while the bill is highlighted, it is not scored.

∂ Governor Newsom’s veto of SB 1234 (Pan) is noted as excused due to the bill’s budget companion not advancing in the state budget.

∂ SCA 10 (Atkins) is not included in the Governor’s matrix because the Governor does not take formal action on constitutional amendments, but Equality California deeply appreciates Governor Newsom’s strong support for SCA 10 and Proposition 1.

EQUALITY CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR NEWSOM SCORECARD 2022

I’m grateful to Equality California for their partnership and support and proud of the work we’ve done to advance LGBTQ civil rights and build a California for all. As governors and lawmakers in other states attack LGBTQ children and their families — and trans kids in particular — California will always stand with the LGBTQ community, and we will continue to lead the fight for full, lived equality, until the work is done.

Governor Gavin Newsom