End of the road: Laws that survived the legislative session and those that didn’t

FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE) — California’s regular legislative session ended Sept. 13, and now constituents see just how many bills reached the governor’s desk and how many never got off the ground.

Some major measures cleared both chambers and are now awaiting Governor Gavin Newsom’s signature. Among them is SB 79, the Abundant and Affordable Homes Near Transit Act, authored by Senator Scott Wiener. It aims to ease housing construction near transit hubs to help with the state’s affordability crisis. Lawmakers also passed SB 72, which creates enforceable statewide water supply targets and requires long-term planning. Another major win for bill authors: AB 130 and SB 131, a CEQA reform package that fast-tracks certain housing, wildfire mitigation, and advanced manufacturing projects by easing environmental review rules. The energy affordability package, extending cap-and-trade, expanding grid reliability, and providing bill rebates, also made it through.

But not every bill made it this far. A headline measure, SB 712, known as Leno’s Law, which would have removed smog-check requirements for cars 35 years and older, stalled in committee and never made it to the governor. Another bill that fizzled was AB 84, which sought to impose oversight requirements on charter schools tied to state funding. That proposal stalled and did not advance.

Other bills that died or were withdrawn this year include:

• AB 504 – Would have allowed manicurists to continue working as independent contractors
• AB 600 – Would have allowed parents to opt their children out of specific curriculum, and mandated the school to provide an alternative curriculum
• AB 844 – Would have mandated sex-segregated sports in public schools
• AB 1157 – Amended the Tenant Protection Act
• AB 666 – Would have made Bigfoot California’s official state cryptid

One of the most consequential bills this year, and one that has already been signed into law, is AB 130, a sweeping housing budget bill. Because it moved through the Legislature as a budget “trailer bill,” it drew little public attention, but its consequences are now coming into focus.

Among its many provisions, AB 130 introduces a new approach to Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) impacts under CEQA. If a development project is expected to increase car traffic and pollution, the developer may be required to pay into a state fund that finances affordable housing and infrastructure in location-efficient areas. State agencies will establish formulas by 2026 to calculate the contribution required from a project, creating what amounts to a new cost layer for developments located far from jobs or transit. Local governments may still impose their own VMT impact fees on top of the state program.

For some, this provision feels like a “penalty” on suburban or rural projects that generate more traffic. For others, it’s a long-overdue shift toward holding developments accountable for transportation impacts.

Close to 2,000 bills across the Legislature never advanced to a floor debate. Many were shelved in committee or placed in the appropriations “suspense file,” where costly proposals can be stopped without a public vote.

The governor has until the end of September to decide which of the successful bills become law and which face a veto. For Valley communities, those decisions could shape water policy, housing construction, home prices, school safety, cars on the road, and household electricity bills.