The Peace and Freedom Party has taken positions for or against a number of bills and one proposed constitutional amendment in the 2019-2020 session of the California legislature; the party also has watched/is watching the progression of several other bills. Below run the PFP’s positions on this legislation. For the full text and more information on a bill, click on the given bill’s title. For the final status of the PFP-supported or -opposed bills during the 2019-2020 session, click here.
Additionally, the PFP Legislative Committee sent several letters to state senators and assemblypersons detailing the party's support of or opposition to each bill. Each position letter may be accessed individually via the links marked [Position letter] below or click here for a list of all PFP position letters. Last update: August 27, 2020.
• AB 32 (Bonta) – State prisons: private, for-profit administration services – SUPPORT
Would end state of California contracts with private prisons. [Position letter]
• AB 33 (Bonta) – State public retirement systems: divestiture from private prison companies – SUPPORT
Would stop CalPERS and CalSTRS investments in private prisons. [Position letter]
• AB 36 (Bonta/Chiu) – Residential tenancies: rent control – SUPPORT
Would modify those provisions of Costa-Hawkins that prevent local rent control measures from applying to new construction. [Position letter]
• AB 85 – State taxes and charges – OPPOSE
Would modify certain provisions of state tax law with regard to vehicle sales and retail sales.
• AB 392 (Weber) – Peace officers: deadly force – SUPPORT
Would restrict police officers’ use of deadly force to only when necessary to prevent serious bodily injury or death. [Position letter]
• AB 646 (McCarty) – Elections: voter eligibility – SUPPORT
Would allow those on parole to register to vote if ACA 6 becomes law. [Position letter]
• ACA 6 (McCarty) – Elections: Disqualification of Electors – SUPPORT
Would eliminate the prohibition on voting while on felony parole from the State Constitution, and would reword the section of the state Constitution regarding prohibition on voting while imprisoned for a felony. [Position letter]
• AB 857 (Chiu/Santiago) – Public banks – SUPPORT
Would allow local public banks to engage in commercial and industrial banking businesses. [Position letter]
• AB 1217 (Mullin) – Political Reform Act of 1974: campaign disclosures – SUPPORT
Would expand the disclosure act to cover both issue ads and sham issue ads. [Position letter]
• AB 1253 (Santiago, Bonta, Carrillo, Chiu, Gonzalez, Kalra, Stone and Wicks) – Personal income taxes: Additional tax – SUPPORT
Would impose an additional tax of 1% to 3.5% on a taxpayer’s taxable income over specified thresholds[Position letter]
• AB 1481 (Bonta) – Tenancy Termination: Just Cause – SUPPORT
Would tighten restrictions on unwarranted evictions by residential rental property owners. [Position letter]
• AB 1482 (Chiu) – Tenancy: Rent caps – SUPPORT
Establishes a maximum to which a landlord may increase rental rates.[Position letter]
• AB 1784 (Santiago, Chiu, and Gonzalez) – The Secure the Vote Act – SUPPORT
Would authorize the Secretary of State to award matching funds to counties for the development of open-source paper ballot voting systems.[Position letter]
• AB 1829 (Berman, Gallagher, Low, Mayes, Mullin and Weber) – Elections – OPPOSE (unless amended)
Would modify certain candidate-filling procedures for California elections and further defines the parameters of special elections. [Position letter]
• AB 2088 (Bonta, Carrillo, Chiu, Gonzalez, Kalra, Santiago, Stone, Ting and Wicks) – Wealth tax – SUPPORT
Would impose an additional tax rate of 0.4% on individuals making $15 million or more per year and/or those with net worth of $30 million or more. [Position letter]
• AB 2473 (Cooper) – Public investment funds – OPPOSE
Would exempt records of certain private loan agreements from disclosure and public accessibility required by the California Public Records Act. [Position letter]
• AJR 23 (Mathis) – Domestic terrorism – OPPOSE
Would designate Antifa as a domestic terrorism organization. [Position letter]
• SB 47 (Allen) – Initiative, referendum, and recall petitions: disclosures – SUPPORT
Would require disclosure of top funders and contributors to state or local initiative, referendum, or recall petition drives. [Position letter]
• SB 57 (Bates) – California New Motor Voter Registration Program – OPPOSE
From the bill’s text: “This bill would […] require a person to affirmatively agree to become registered or preregistered to vote during a transaction with the DMV before the Secretary registers or preregisters that person…” [Position letter]
• SB 212 (Allen) – Elections: Local voting methods – SUPPORT
Would allow for the use of ranked choice voting for general law cities and school districts in either single-seat or multi-seat districts.[Position letter] [Updated position letter]
• SB 230 (Caballero) – Law enforcement: use of deadly force: training: policies – OPPOSITION WITHDRAWN
Would require law enforcement agencies to provide guidelines on use of, and alternatives to, deadly force. Would also require that the agencies make the guidelines publicly accessible.
• SB 288 (Wiener) – Democratic Party of California; County Central Committees – SUPPORT IF AMENDED
Would allow non-citizens and non-party members to serve on Democratic Party county central committees if permitted by chapter bylaws. [Position letter]
• SB 505 (Umberg) – Presidential Primary Elections – OPPOSE
Would define a generally advocated or recognized candidate for President of the United States by setting forth the following criteria.
A candidate must submit proof of at least two of the following:
- (a) candidate is qualified for funding under the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1974;
- (b) the candidate has appeared in a national presidential debate;
- (c) the candidate has been placed or qualified for placement on a primary or caucus ballot in at least one other state in the current presidential election cycle;
- (d) the candidate has been or has qualified to be a candidate in a caucus in at least one other state in the current presidential election cycle; and
- (e) the candidate has *all* of the following:
- (1) at least one campaign office in California,
- (2) a presidential campaign website,
- (3) a statement of candidacy filed with the Federal Election Commission seeking the office of President, and
- (4) a written request submitted on the candidate’s behalf to the Secretary of State by a party qualified to participate in a primary election and is the party that the candidate is registered to vote with on the candidates affidavit of registration.
SB 505 has moved to the Assembly Elections Committee and the author made changes to his bill in order to make it possible that Peace and Freedom Party presidential candidates are able to qualify for the primary. But we are still opposed to this bill and this letter of opposition was sent to the Assembly Elections Committee. [Original position letter] [Our follow-up position letter]
• SB 636 (Stern) – Elections: ballot label – SUPPORT
Would amend certain sections of election law to provide greater transparency in balloting and the state voter information guide.
• SB 641 (Allen) – Special Elections – SUPPORT WITHDRAWN
Would amend certain procedures in special elections; Peace and Freedom Party withdrew support for this bill when it was amended to remove the use of Ranked Choice Voting in special elections. [Position letter]
• SB 776 (Skinner) – Peace officers: release of records – SUPPORT
Would prohibit post-secondary educational institutions from inquiring about a person’s criminal history during the admission process. [Position letter]
• SB 850 (Leyva) – Work hours: scheduling – SUPPORT
Would require that employees in grocery stores, restaurants, and retail stores be notified of work schedules at least seven days in advance. a href="/images/documents/position-letters-legislation-2019/SB_850_Peace_and_Freedom_Party_Letter.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">[Position letter]
• SB 1124 (Borgeas) – Elections: vote by mail ballots – OPPOSE
Would strictly define the persons legally allowed to assist individuals with mail-in ballots. [Position letter]
• SB 1383 (Jackson) – Unlawful employment practice: family leave – SUPPORT
Would offer greater worker protections in cases of emergency childcare. [Position letter]
• SB 1450 (Umberg) – Elections: county officers: consolidation with statewide elections – OPPOSE
Would extend the “top two” voting system used in California primaries to elections for county offices. [Position letter]
•••••
The PFP Legislative Committee is also watching the following Assembly Bills and Senate Bills and may yet take an official position before the end of the 2019-2020 legislative session:
• AB 5 (Gonzalez) – Worker status: employees and independent contractors;
• AB 359 (Melendez) –
Political Reform Act of 1974: post-government employment;
• AB 681 (Gonzalez) – Presidential primary elections;
• AB 855 (McCarty) – Department of Justice: law enforcement policies on the use of deadly force;
• AB 1245 (Low) – Political Reform Act of 1974: contribution prohibitions;
• SB 27 (McGuire) – Presidential primary elections: ballot access: tax returns;
• SB 37 (Skinner) – Corporation taxes: Tax rates;
• SB 50 (Wiener) – Planning and zoning: housing development: incentives;
• SB 225 (Durazo) – Citizens of the state;
• SB 378 (Wiener) –
Taxation: estate, gift, and generation-skipping transfer taxes;
• SB 529 (Durazo) –
Tenant associations: eviction for cause: withholding payment of rent;
