California Legislature – Page 4

Gag Rule Prevents California Public Employees from Knowing Their Constitutional Rights

November 18, 2025 2:15 pmNovember 18, 2025 2:20 pm

The First Amendment right of public employees to decline union membership and dues deductions was unambiguously affirmed seven years ago by the U.S. Supreme Court in Janus v. AFSCME. Unfortunately, no one can exercise a right they don’t know they...

Introduction to Statutory Interpretation in California

November 4, 2025 2:00 pmNovember 4, 2025 2:01 pm

What is statutory interpretation or statutory construction? They are essentially the same thing. Both terms refer to how the judicial branch (i.e., the courts of this state) interprets statutes, which are enacted by bills (through the legislative process) or by...

Murderers Seek to Overturn Convictions Under California’s Racial Justice Act

November 3, 2025 3:15 pmNovember 3, 2025 3:15 pm

Four condemned murderers are asking the California Supreme Court to overturn their convictions and death sentences claiming that racial prejudice influenced the jury verdicts against them. In 2020 the California Legislature passed AB 2542, called the Racial Justice Act (RJA),...

Historical Look at Bills That Became Law Without the Governor’s Signature

November 3, 2025 2:00 pmNovember 3, 2025 2:01 pm

In California, the Governor has three options when a bill reaches his desk: sign the bill (and it becomes a statute), veto the bill (and the bill does not become law, unless the Legislature overrides the veto), or allow the...

An Introduction to the California Legislature and the Legislative Process

November 2, 2025 2:00 pmNovember 2, 2025 2:01 pm

This general overview of the California legislative process is intended to acquaint those new to the State Capitol with basic information to appreciate different aspects of the process and some of the players in the legislative process. The website of...

Legislative Committees in California

October 30, 2025 2:00 pmOctober 30, 2025 2:12 pm

Both Assembly and Senate Standing Committees do the bulk of the legislative work in the California Legislature. How many are there and what are their sizes? This information is for the 2025 Legislative Session. The Assembly has 32 standing committees....

How Many Bills Historically Get to the Governor’s Desk?

October 29, 2025 2:00 pmOctober 29, 2025 2:01 pm

Over the past four decades, thousands of bills have reached the Governor’s Desk. The vast majority of those measures get signed into law, with a small percentage being vetoed. The lowest veto rate was just over 1% by Governor Jerry...