Legislative Update: A Year in
Review
City of Pasadena - Pasadena City Council Meeting
November 17, 2025
Senator Sasha Renée Pérez – 25th District
Committee Assignments
Senate Education Committee (Chair)
Senate Budget & Fiscal Review Committee
Budget Subcommittee No. 1 on Education
Senate Environmental Quality Committee
Senate Human Services Committee
Senate Public Safety Committee
Joint Committee on the Arts
Senate Affordability Working Group
Advisory Commission on Special Education
Education Commission of the States
State School Building Finance Committee
California State Allocation Board
Senate Appointments
Major Legislative Actions
Building a Fire-Safe California
• Provides $39 million, and then $78 million ongoing, to transition all CAL FIRE firefighters to year-long permanent positions so California is properly prepared to handle a year-round wildfire season. (Budget trailer bill: SB 124*) • The Fight for Firefighters Act equips California with the necessary resources to fight fires during the now year- round fire season by transitioning all 3,000 CAL FIRE firefighters from a 9-month seasonal term to working year- round. It also keeps 356 CAL FIRE fire-engines and all helicopter attack bases operational throughout the year and ensures CAL FIRE wildfire vegetation management crews are working all year. (SB 581**) (Joint Author: Senator Pérez)
Housing and Homelessness
• Empowers local jurisdictions to address homelessness in their communities by providing $500 million for Homeless Housing, Assistance and Prevention (HHAP) 7 and $100 million for the Encampment Resolution Fund. (Budget trailer bill: SB 131*)
• Members of the San Gabriel Valley Caucus secured $1 million for the San Gabriel Valley Council of Governments to support homeless services and public safety efforts. (Budget trailer bill: SB 105*) Major Legislative Actions
California Film Tax Credit
• Brings thousands of jobs, including in unionized trades, and tourism revenue to California by increasing the Film and Television Tax Credit program by $420 million, bringing the total to $750 million for this important program. (AB 1138*) (Principal Coauthor: Senator Pérez)
Public Safety
• Increases criminal punishments for offenders who take advantage of vulnerable Californians by impersonating first responders in communities subject to an evacuation order. Allows judges at sentencing to consider an increase in the penalty for looting if the person who was doing the looting was impersonating a first responder. (SB 571*) (Principal Coauthor: Senator Pérez)
• Ensures continued access to services for survivors of crime by providing $100 million to backfill federal cuts to the Victims of Crime Act program. (Budget trailer bill SB 134**/AB 134*) District Focused Legislative Actions
Fire Recovery Focused Efforts
SB 293 (Pérez) - Generational Homeownership Protection Act *Signed into Law*
Helps to protect homeowners who inherited their homes from facing unexpected financial hardships by extending the deadline to qualify for an intergenerational transfer from six months to three years after receiving a reassessment notice, giving families more time to recover and help prevent retroactive tax assessments that could put them at risk of losing their homes.
SB 547 (Pérez) - Commercial Insurance Protection Act
*Signed into Law*
Expands the Residential Insurance Moratorium law to commercial properties by prohibiting insurers from canceling or refusing to renew commercial insurance policies for one year following a declared emergency. Protections would apply to businesses, HOAs, condominiums, affordable housing units, non-profits, and other entities in the disaster area to help preserve jobs, maintain services, and support community recovery.
Following the Eaton Fire, our office heard from homeowners, tenants and business owners who were struggling to navigate recovery and its challenges. These concerns helped shape our legislative priorities.
District Focused Legislative Actions
Fire Recovery Focused Efforts
SB 610 (Pérez) - Generational Homeownership Protection Act *Signed into Law*
Provides clarity to existing law and establishes key protections for tenants and homeowners following a disaster. It creates a presumption that the presence of debris from a disaster makes a unit uninhabitable; clarifies that landlords are responsible for repairing damage, including from smoke and ash, to the unit; clarifies tenants are not obligated to pay rent during a mandatory evacuation order; and requires the state to coordinate with mortgage lenders and servicers to facilitate mortgage forbearance for financially-impacted homeowners.
SB 782 (Pérez) - Enhanced Infrastructure Financing District *Signed into Law*
Establishes an expedited process for cities or counties impacted by future disasters, to create a Disaster Recovery Financing District. Revenues generated by these districts are dedicated exclusively to restoring disaster-damaged infrastructure, and funding projects that strengthen resilience and reduce future risks. Eligible uses include economic recovery, small business support, workforce development and infrastructure resiliency improvements. Each district must hold public hearings and share its financing plan before it is approved to ensure transparency and community input.
District Focused Legislative Actions
Safeguarding Vulnerable Communities
SB 98 (Pérez) - Sending Alerts to Families in Education (SAFE) ACT *Signed Into Law*
Requires K-12 schools and higher education institutions to notify campus community members if immigration enforcement authorities show up on campus.
SB 805 (Pérez) - No Vigilantes Act
*Signed Into Law*
Expands the scope of existing police impersonation laws by making it illegal to impersonate peace officers, including federal agents, and requires all law enforcement operating in California to clearly display identification that includes their agency and either a name or badge number or both. This bill also authorizes law enforcement to request identification from anyone claiming to be law enforcement, under certain circumstances, and bans bounty hunters from engaging in any form of immigration enforcement in California.
Discriminatory ICE raids had a profound impact on our schools and communities, generating fear, disrupting learning environments, and raising urgent concerns about the safety and well-being of families.
District Focused Legislative Actions
SB 848 (Pérez) - Safe Learning Environments Act *Signed Into Law* Strengthens student safety and accountability in schools by requiring professional boundary policies, comprehensive safety plans, and consistent training for staff and volunteers to prevent employee sexual misconduct. It expands definitions of sex offences and grooming to reflect modern communication methods, broadens the mandated reporter requirement to include all employees, adult volunteers and board members, and mandates student instruction on sexual abuse awareness and reporting. Additionally, it ensures egregious misconduct is reported and tracked, extends work history verification to all school employers, and establishes an electronic database of misconducts for non-certificated employees.
Although disciplinary statutes exist, California lacks a comprehensive, standardized approach to preventing abuse in K-12 schools, underscoring the need for stronger preventative measures to protect children.
Safeguarding Vulnerable Communities
$2.5 Billion from the General Fund for Emergency Response and Recovery purposes to quickly provided tax and mortgage relief for those affected by recent wildfires and committed funding for impacted educational facilities, individuals, and families. $1 Billion in emergency loans to local governments in the Los Angeles area to support wildfire recovery efforts.
$4 Million to the City of Los Angeles, the City of Pasadena, the County of Los Angeles, and other local governments to expedite building approvals during recovery from the January 2025 wildfires. This funding applies specifically to residential properties that remain under the ownership of the same homeowners as of January 7, 2025. $1 Million in one-time General Fund to assist the Los Angeles Unified School District, the Pasadena Unified School District, and impacted charter schools in rebuilding facilities damaged by the January 2025 wildfires. These funds will remain available through June 30, 2026.
District Specific Budget Actions
Supporting The Recovery Process
Supporting The Recovery Process
$3.6 Million for the Altadena Library District to maintains a range of services for the community, so it continues to serve as an essential central meeting place for those seeking disaster relief assistance, emotional support, Wi-Fi hotspots, access to information and technology, and other resources to help residents.
$4 Million for the Foothill Municipal Water District. These funds will make sure our residents have access to clean water both during the immediate crisis and throughout the long-term recovery process by repairing and strengthening critical water infrastructure damaged by the fire. $2 Million for a pilot project to remediate homes with the highest levels of lead contamination in the Eaton burn area.
$2 Million for capacity building grants to affordable housing developers to support activities related to utilizing properties owned by faith-based organizations for development of affordable housing in the Altadena area.
$2 Million for remediation and repair projects at the Altadena Vista Senior Apartments, or other comparable senior housing developments, located within the same community that are fully restricted as 100 percent affordable housing.
$2 Million for a grant program to provide financial assistance for the development of prefabricated and modular housing in the Altadena area for individuals and families impacted by the Eaton Fire.
District Specific Budget Actions
District Focused Legislative Actions
Championing Justice and Relief for
Wildfire Survivors
Insurance Consumer Advocacy
Secured an investigation into the handling of Eaton Fire claims, calling for insurers to promptly resolve them and requiring that any rate increases occur only after they were processed fairly.
Accountability and Support
Advocated for full accountability in the aftermath of the Eaton Fire, including a transparent investigation into the causes and practices that contributed to the disaster, while ensuring survivors have access to the resources to rebuild their lives and restore their homes.
Urgent Housing Relief
Called for the immediate deployment of substantial financial assistance—up to $2.4 billion—to provide housing support for more than 12,000 affected households, without requiring liability waivers or settlement agreements that limit victims’ rights to seek further restitution.
Q & A
THANK YOU!
Office of Sen. Sasha Renée Pérez
215 N. Marengo Ave. Suite 380
Pasadena, CA 91101
(626) 304-1086
https://sd25.senate.ca.gov/