Bill Roundup: Sign/Veto Deadline Passes; What Are the New Laws?

Last week, we reported on notable legislation Governor Newsom had signed or vetoed since the Legislature adjourned on August 31. Now, with the September 30 deadline to act on new legislation behind us, we’re bringing you an update on some key bills that made it through before the cutoff, and some that didn’t. The measures below are of particular note to county governments and were either signed or vetoed in the final week before the Governor’s September 30 deadline to act on new legislation. 

Chaptered 

AB 762 (Irwin) (Chapter 717, Statutes of 2026) 
Disposable, battery-embedded vapor inhalation device: prohibition and penalties.
To help prevent fires caused by the improper disposal of single-use electronic devices that lack end-of-life management options, this bill prohibits the import or manufacturing of single-use/disposable nicotine vaping devices beginning January 1, 2027, and the sale or distribution of single-use/disposable nicotine vaping devices beginning January 1, 2028. This bill does not impact the availability of reusable nicotine vaping devices.
Read the coalition’s request for signature letter here.
Questions? Contact Jordan Wells at jwells@counties.org and Caitlin Loventhal at cloventhal@counties.org. 

AB 1331 (Elhawary) (Chapter 851, Statutes of 2026)
Workplace surveillance.
This bill was substantially narrowed to restrict the use of specific workplace surveillance tools in bathrooms. CSAC negotiated additional amendments to protect worker privacy and address our remaining security concerns.
Read the Governor’s signing message here.
Questions? Contact Eric Lawyer at elawyer@counties.org and Julissa Ceja Cardenas at jcejacardenas@counties.org. 

AB 1699 (Rogers) (Chapter 761, Statutes of 2026) 
Good Fire Act: Prescribed Fire Liability Pilot Program: burn bosses: California Environmental Quality Act. 
This bill establishes the Good Fire Act, largely codifying the Governor’s 2025 executive order to expand the use of tools for safely implementing beneficial fire projects. It also makes the Prescribed Fire Liability Program permanent and extends burn boss certifications from one year to three years, among other provisions.
Read CSAC’s request for signature letter here. 
Questions? Contact Jordan Wells at jwells@counties.org and Caitlin Loventhal at cloventhal@counties.org. 

AB 1811 (Rogers) (Chapter 549, Statutes of 2026)
Health professionals. 
This bill would preserve existing Health Professions Shortage Area designations, to ensure that programs to recruit and retain health professionals will continue to be available, even if the federal government withdraws current designations. 
Read the coalition’s request for signature letter. 
Questions? Contact Brendan McCarthy at bmccarthy@counties.org and Danielle Bradley at dbradley@counties.org. 

AB 1821 (Pacheco) (Chapter 899, Statutes of 2026)
California Public Records Act: agency response time.
This bill updates the California Public Records Act response timelines from “calendar days” to “business days,” aligning deadlines with actual working days instead of weekends and holidays.
Read the coalition request for signature here.
Questions? Contact Eric Lawyer at elawyer@counties.org and Julissa Ceja Cardenas at jcejacardenas@counties.org. 

AB 1883 (Bryan) (Chapter 853, Statutes of 2026)
Workplace surveillance tools.
This bill restricts  public agencies from using “workplace surveillance tools,” that include emotional recognition or neural data collection. Amendments offered by our coalition of local government advocates that would have fully addressed our concerns while preserving the purpose of the bill were not taken.
Read the coalition’s request for veto letter here and the Governor’s signing message here.
Questions? Contact Eric Lawyer at elawyer@counties.org and Julissa Ceja Cardenas at jcejacardenas@counties.org. 

AB 1924 (Gabriel) (Chapter 794, Statutes of 2026)
Statewide homelessness prevention strategy.
This bill requires the California Interagency Council on Homelessness (Cal ICH) to develop a statewide homelessness prevention strategy within Cal ICH’s Action Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness.
Read CSAC’s request for signature letter.
Questions? Contact Justin Garrett at jgarrett@counties.org and Danielle Bradley at dbradley@counties.org.  

AB 1934 (Bennett) (Chapter 763, Statutes of 2026)
State Fire Marshal: home hardening certification program implementation plan.
This bill requires the Office of the State Fire Marshal’s (OSFM) Wildfire Mitigation Advisory Committee, which CSAC serves on, to develop an implementation plan for a home hardening certification program by January 1, 2029.
Read the Coalition’s request for signature letter here.
Questions? Contact Jordan Wells at jwells@counties.org and Caitlin Loventhal at cloventhal@counties.org. 

AB 1964 (Bennett) (Chapter 765, Statutes of 2026)
State Fire Marshal: home hardening.
This bill directs the OSFM to develop home hardening standards by January 1, 2028, and compile a report by January 1, 2030 that estimates the number of homes in specified fire hazard severity zones that meet these standards or require additional home hardening.
Read CSAC’s request for signature letter here.
Questions? Contact Jordan Wells at jwells@counties.org and Caitlin Loventhal at cloventhal@counties.org. 

AB 1738 (Carrillo) (Chapter 271, Statutes of 2026)
State Housing Law: remote inspections. 
The bill requires cities and counties that meet specific population minimums to offer remote inspections for certain building-permit work in one- and two-family homes, while allowing local agencies to set procedures and apply existing immunities. Additionally, the bill allows building officials to deny remote inspections to applicants for willful misrepresentation for a specified period of time. The bill would require most California cities and counties to offer remote inspections for certain building-permit work in one- and two-family homes, while allowing local agencies to set procedures and apply existing immunities. The bill is set to take effect on January 1, 2028. 

AB 2051 (Wicks) (Chapter 575, Statutes of 2026) 
Public resources: coastal resources: Coastal Resilience Permitting Working Group.  
This bill directs the California Natural Resources Agency to convene an interagency Coastal Resilience Permitting Working Group to identify administrative improvements and develop a clear roadmap for streamlining permitting for coastal resilience projects. This measure would help accelerate critical climate adaptation projects while upholding California’s environmental protections, protecting coastal communities and ecosystems.
Read CSAC’s request for signature letter here.
Questions? Contact Charles Delgado at cdelgado@counties.org and Caitlin Loventhal at cloventhal@counties.org. 

AB 2478 (Schultz) (Chapter 611, Statutes of 2026)
Kinship family approval.
This bill implements a streamlined Kinship Family Approval (KFA) pathway and clarifies emergency placement rules so that children can be placed quickly and safely with people who already know their needs.
Read CSAC’s request for signature letter.
Questions? Contact Justin Garrett at jgarrett@counties.org and Danielle Bradley at dbradley@counties.org. 

AB 2513 (Petrie-Norris) (Chapter 768, Statutes of 2026)
Wildfire: Regional Forest and Fire Capacity Program: local assistance grant program: regional landscape grants.
Wildfire mitigation must be addressed at the parcel, community, and landscape scales. This bill amends various state grant programs to authorize administering agencies to directly award regional landscape grants to regional entities.
Read the request for signature letter here.
Questions? Contact Jordan Wells at jwells@counties.org and Caitlin Loventhal at cloventhal@counties.org. 

SB 299 (Cabaldon) (Chapter 413, Statutes of 2026)
California Environmental Quality Act: exemption: day care center: zoning. The bill exempts day care centers which meet certain criteria and are located in a residential area from CEQA review requirements. Read CSAC’s support and request for signature letter for this bill here. 

SB 577 (Laird) (Chapter 971, Statutes of 2026)
Public entities.
This bill addresses public agency liability due to AB 218 (Gonzalez, 2019), as well as general liability for cases when public agencies share a small portion of the fault. SB 577 includes provisions heightening evidence and knowledge standards for past claims brought by a claimant above age 40; improves joint and several liability, limiting public agency liability for economic damages to their share of fault, if their share of fault is fifteen percent or less; and includes a variety of provisions aimed at prevention. CSAC was neutral on the bill. 
Read the Governor’s signing message here. 

SB 894 (Allen) (Chapter 770, Statutes of 2026)
Wildfire resiliency: financial assistance.
This bill establishes the California Wildfire Resilience Loan Program and requires the California Alternative Energy and Advanced Transportation Financing Authority to administer a low-interest loan program to reduce upfront costs and incentivize home hardening and defensible space activities.
Read CSAC’s request for signature letter here.
Questions? Contact Jordan Wells at jwells@counties.org and Caitlin Loventhal at cloventhal@counties.org. 

SB 947 (McNerney) (Chapter 859, Statutes of 2026)
Employment: automated decision systems.
This bill regulates the use of automated decision-making systems, which include artificial intelligence and other routine tools used for everyday work, when making employment-related decisions. This bill is the successor to SB 7 (McNerney) that was vetoed by the Governor last year. CSAC opposed both bills because they complicate the routine work of local governments.  
Read the coalition’s request for veto letter here.
Questions? Contact Emma Jungwirth at ejungwirth@counties.org and Julissa Ceja Cardenas at jcejacardenas@counties.org. 

SB 973 (Becker) (Chapter 772, Statutes of 2026)
Wildfire County Coordinator Program.
This bill establishes the California Wildfire Preparedness Program and requires CAL FIRE to enter into an agreement with the California Fire Safe Council to administer and deliver the Wildfire County Coordinator Program.
Read the coalition’s request for signature letter here.
Questions? Contact Jordan Wells at jwells@counties.org and Caitlin Loventhal at cloventhal@counties.org. 

SB 1051 (Menjivar) (Chapter 1002, Statutes of 2026)
Foster care: childcare. 
This bill will ensure that there is no wrong door for eligible children and caregivers in accessing the Emergency Child Care Bridge Program for foster children.
Read CSAC’s request for signature letter. 
Questions? Contact Justin Garrett at jgarrett@counties.org and Danielle Bradley at dbradley@counties.org.  

SB 1370 (Stern) (Chapter 777, Statutes of 2026) 
Covered wildfire mitigation projects: consolidated and expedited review.
This bill builds on the success of the Governor’s 2025 executive order and establishes a consolidated and expediated review process for certain covered wildfire mitigation projects. The bill also requires the Board of Forestry and Fire Protection to adopt regulations to develop a Certified Regulatory Program for nontimber vegetation management
Read the coalition’s request for signature letter here.
Questions? Contact Jordan Wells at jwells@counties.org and Caitlin Loventhal at cloventhal@counties.org. 

Vetoed 

AB 1881 (Ramos) California Indian Freedom Act of 2026.
This bill would have established a private right of action, allowing tribes and individual tribal members to challenge state decisions involving state lands and waterways, thereby increasing potential litigation risk. The measure would have further prioritizes tribal governmental interests through a strict scrutiny standard and overlaps with, or conflicts with, existing state and federal frameworks that already govern tribal consultation and protections.
Read the coalition’s request for veto letter here and the Governor’s veto message here.
Questions? Contact Charles Delgado at cdelgado@counties.org and Caitlin Loventhal at cloventhal@counties.org. 

AB 2218 (Kalra) Water policy: California Native American tribes.
This bill sought to address longstanding inequities faced by California Native American Tribes due to the loss of access to and control over water resources. However, the bill’s policy statement and directive introduced substantial uncertainty into existing water management processes by establishing a broad policy framework without providing clear direction, safeguards, or limitations to ensure the continued reliability of water supplies. This measure would have also had unclear, but potentially far-reaching impacts on surface water rights. 
Read the coalition’s request for veto letter here and the Governor’s veto message here.
Questions? Contact Charles Delgado at cdelgado@counties.org and Caitlin Loventhal at cloventhal@counties.org. 

AB 2656 (Petrie-Norris) Public employees: notice: artificial intelligence performing service within scope of work.
This bill would have required public employers to provide 45-day written notice to union representatives before developing, purchasing, or requiring the use of any generative AI to perform a service that is within the scope of work of a represented job classification. CSAC had significant concerns regarding the burdensome, costly obligations for local agencies.
Read the coalition’s request for veto letter here and the Governor’s veto message here.
Questions? Contact Eric Lawyer at elawyer@counties.org and Julissa Ceja Cardenas at jcejacardenas@counties.org.

AB 2739 (Soria) Water: affordability and system stabilization.
This bill would have established the Water Affordability and System Stabilization Fund and the Community Water Affordability Program, which would have helped ensure that local jurisdictions have the necessary resources to ensure access to clean, affordable drinking water for all residents.
Read CSAC’s request for signature letter here and the Governor’s veto message here.
Questions? Contact Charles Delgado at cdelgado@counties.org and Caitlin Loventhal at cloventhal@counties.org. 

SB 872 (McNerney) Delta Levees and Canal Subsidence Fund.
This bill sought to protect the millions of water users in the state, communities reliant on safe, clean drinking water, and the environment by making long overdue investments in the State Water Project and the network of levees protecting the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.  
Read CSAC’s request for signature letter here and the Governor’s veto message here.
Questions? Contact Charles Delgado at cdelgado@counties.org and Caitlin Loventhal at cloventhal@counties.org. 

SB 661 (Hurtado) Airports: financial assistance.
The bill sought to redirect a portion of jet fuel sales and use tax revenues into the Aeronautics Account and require those funds to be distributed among airports and aviation-related programs according to a set formula. Additionally, it would require annual transfers from the Retail Sales Tax Fund, reporting of jet fuel flowage by airports, and allocation of the money mainly to airports based on fuel use, with smaller shares for general aviation, aviation education, and certain grant programs. Notably, the bill would have redirected sales tax revenues from the Local Public Safety Fund and the Local Revenue Fund, which would have reduced county funding for public safety and health and human services programs. 

SB 1125 (Menjivar) Water Rate Assistance Program.
This bill would have established a water rate assistance program, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to provide rate assistance to low-income residents.
Read the coalition’s request for signature letter here and the Governor’s veto message here.
Questions? Contact Charles Delgado at cdelgado@counties.org and Caitlin Loventhal at cloventhal@counties.org. 

SB 1272 (Menjivar) Local ordinances: administrative fines or penalties.
This bill would have required county and city building officials to give at least six months to correct certain nonimmediate building, plumbing, electrical, or similar zoning violations on qualifying owner-occupied residential properties before imposing administrative fines or penalties. Specifically, it would have applied when the property has four or fewer units and the current owner files a sworn affidavit stating the owner did not cause the violation and did not know of it when acquiring the property. The bill would have allowed a six-month extension for a good faith effort to fix the problem and would have allowed for further extensions at the agency’s discretion. Read CSAC’s opposition and request for veto letter for this bill here. 

But wait, there’s more! 

For more in-depth information on the outcomes of notable legislation this year, stay tuned for a series of legislative wrap up bulletins from each of CSAC’s policy units. This week, the Administration of Justice policy unit will kick us off. The full schedule for all policy units is listed below. 

Thursday, October 8 – Administration of Justice
Thursday, October 15– Government Finance and Administration
Thursday, October 22 – Agriculture, Environment, and Natural Resources
Thursday, October 29 – Health and Human Services
Thursday, November 5 – Housing, Land Use, and Transportation

Curious about the fate of specific bills and can’t wait for an article to be published? We encourage you to reach out to CSAC’s Legislative Affairs staff anytime.