CSHA Sponsored Bills in the 2024 Legislative Session
AB 2052 (Jones-Sawyer) – School-Based Health and Education Partnership Program
Co-Sponsors: California School-Based Health Alliance
Summary: AB 2052 strengthens coordination between the California Department of Public Health and the California Department of Education to support school-based health programs. The bill lays the foundation for a state grant program to fund school-based health centers with a focus on historically underserved communities and regions. AB 2052 was held in Assembly Appropriations Committee and will no longer advance.
SB 954 (Menjivar) – Youth Health and Safety Act
Co-sponsors: California School-Based Health Alliance, Essential Access Health, GenUp, Black Women for Wellness Action Project, and Unite for Reproductive and Gender Equity (URGE)
Summary: SB 954 supports youth health and well-being, addresses the sexually transmitted infection (STI) epidemic among California youth, and improves public health outcomes statewide, by requiring each public school to make condoms available to all pupils free of charge. The bill would require each public school to allow the distribution of condoms during the course of, or in connection to, educational or public health programs and initiatives, as provided.
CSHA Priority Bills in the 2024 Legislative Session
AB 247 (Muratsuchi) – School Facility Program
Co-Sponsors: Assembly Education Committee
Summary: AB 247 authorizes a ballot measure for the November 2024 election to authorize $14 billion in bonds for school facilities construction and modernization. This would allow schools to build new facilities and renovate older ones to ensure students can learn in safe, state-of-the-art spaces. CSHA has requested amendments to include school-based health centers and wellness centers as an eligible category for this funding.
AB 2711 (Ramos) – Suspensions and expulsions: controlled substances
Co-Sponsors: California Alliance of Child and Family Services, Children Now
Summary: AB 2711 requires schools to implement a public health framework to address substance use needs of students. This bill would prohibit the use of suspensions and expulsions as a response to students found in possession of or using controlled substances.
CSHA Priority Bills in Ongoing Implementation
AB 665 (Carrillo) – Medi-Cal Minor Consent Working Group
Co-sponsors: California Alliance of Child and Family Services, Cal Voices, GenUp, National Center for Youth Law, National Health Law Program, The California Children’s Partnership, and The California Children’s Trust
Summary: AB 655 aligns the standards of mental health care consent for all young people in the state. It allows all young people ages 12 and older to consent to their own mental health treatment, while still allowing providers, after consulting with the youth, to work with the youth’s parent(s). The bill would no longer require youth on Medi-Cal to meet a higher standard of need than their higher-income peers by eliminating the requirement that young people on Medi-Cal be in imminent danger of self-harm or the victim of child abuse in order for the Medi-Cal plan to pay for minor consent services.
AB 665 was signed into law on October 7th, 2023. Implementation is scheduled for July 1st, 2024. CSHA is actively engaged in advocacy efforts to advise school districts and health providers on implementation best practices.