During her 14 years in the California Legislature—six years in the Assembly and eight years in the Senate—Nancy Skinner has authored numerous groundbreaking laws. In her latest newsletter to constituents, she provided an overview of the 12 bills she championed in 2024 that will now be California law.
SB 56: UC Berkeley Student Housing
“UC Berkeley students are in great need of affordable housing,” Senator Skinner noted. SB 56 allows the university to transfer ownership of the Rochdale Apartments affordable housing complex to the Berkeley Student Cooperative (BSC) to continue to provide low-cost student housing at Rochdale.
SB 59: Bidirectional Charging
“The powerful batteries in our electric vehicles (EVs) can not only power a car, but also a home or another facility,” Skinner explained. “To do so, EVs need bidirectional capability.” SB 59 helps transition EVs to bidirectional charging so EVs can be used to power homes, reduce energy bills, and relieve strain on our electric grid.
SB 233: Standing Strong for Arizonans and Their Doctors
Earlier this year, the Arizona Supreme Court reinstated a law passed in 1864 that completely banned any abortion services, threatening doctors and midwives with jail time. Senator Skinner partnered with Governor Gavin Newsom to write SB 233, which allows Arizona medical providers to come to California and perform abortion services for their patients under an expedited medical licensing process.
SB 242: HOPE Accounts
During the pandemic, Skinner led the effort for California to be the first to create Hope, Opportunity, Perseverance, and Empowerment (HOPE) savings accounts for long-term foster youth and children who lost a parent or guardian to Covid. “SB 242 ensures that HOPE accounts work effectively and exactly as intended,” she said.
SB 440: Enabling Regional Housing Finance Agencies
Local governments often do not have the funds needed to build affordable housing units. “SB 440 enables local governments to join together to establish regional housing finance agencies to support affordable housing in their communities,” Skinner explained.
SB 899: Bolstering California’s Gun Violence Prevention Laws
“In 2014, I was proud to author the nation’s first ‘Red Flag’ or GVRO law, which allows guns to be removed from someone who is threatening harm to themselves or others,” Skinner noted. SB 899 will make it easier for courts to recover firearms from those subject to a Gun Violence Restraining Order (GVRO) without having to rely on law enforcement.
SB 941: Industrial Decarbonization
California is the largest manufacturing state in the country. Manufacturing facilities, food processing, and other industrial processes make up 22% of California’s current greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, second only to transportation. SB 941 directs the California Air Resources Board to examine cutting-edge advancements that can be used to decarbonize our industrial sector.
SB 976: Protecting Our Kids from Social Media Addiction
“Social media platforms have specifically designed features to addict users, especially our kids,” Skinner said. “Studies show social media addictions cause young people to experience higher rates of depression, anxiety, low self-esteem, and suicide.” SB 976 protects kids under age 18 from addictive social media feeds and prevents platforms from interrupting them at school and when they’re asleep.
SB 1001: No Death Penalty for Those with Intellectual Disabilities
“It is unconstitutional to execute an intellectually disabled person in the United States,” Skinner said. “Yet due to insufficient legal safeguards, some intellectually disabled people have ended up on Death Row. In 2019, Governor Newsom took the courageous step of halting executions. SB 1001 ensures that if a future governor reinstates executions, California will not execute intellectually disabled people.”
SB 1144: Shutting Down the Market for Stolen Goods
“Increasingly, organized retail theft rings have been selling goods they steal on online platforms, such as Facebook Marketplace and others,” Skinner explained. SB 1144 strengthens state law so online platforms can no longer be used as fencing operations for stolen goods.
SB 1210: Transparency of Utility Hook-Up Fees on New Housing
“People who build a home or add an ADU often don’t know the cost of expensive hookup fees charged by their water, sewer, electrical, and gas utilities until the project is nearly complete,” Skinner said. SB 1210 allows people to know upfront how much they will have to pay for utility hookup fees.
SB 1211: Flexibility for ADUs on Multifamily Housing
“Thanks to new laws that removed obstacles and streamlined ADU permitting, ADUs are the fastest-growing segment of California’s housing market,” Skinner noted. SB 1211 enables more ADUs to be built on multifamily properties that already have apartments, condos, or townhomes.
