How does a bill become law in California? Here’s how to track it through the legislature

The start of the new year in California means new statutes are taking effect. It also means a new legislative session is about to begin: Just a few days into the new year, the second half of the term that began in 2021 kicks off.

Looking to stay better informed this year? Don’t forget that all politics are local. Use this guide to help you learn how the California legislative process works and how to track bills making their way to the governor’s desk.

Who is running the show?

The California legislature has two houses: The Assembly, with 80 members, and the Senate, with 40 members. Members of the Assembly are elected to two-year terms, while senators are elected to four-year terms.

Democrats control both houses. State Sen. Toni Atkins, D-San Diego, serves as the president pro tempore of the Senate, which means she’s the leader of the senate and chairs the Rules Committee. Sen. Robert Hertzberg, D-Los Angeles, is the senate’s majority leader.

Anthony Rendon, D-Lakewood, is the speaker of the assembly. You can find your legislator by address here.

When do lawmakers make laws?

The California legislature runs on two-year terms; so 2022 will be the second year in the term that began in 2021. In even-numbered years, the legislative session runs from January to August. This gives members time to campaign.

In 2022, the new year starts with a spate of laws taking effect in the state. Then, on Jan. 3, the legislature reconvenes. That’s when lawmakers can start introducing new legislation. They have until Feb. 18 to do so.

Lawmakers also have until Jan. 31 to pass legislation that was introduced in 2021 — bills that were introduced in 2021, but haven’t passed yet, don’t need to be introduced again. But if they aren’t passed by the end of January, they die.

A few more need-to-knows if you’re following along in the process:

• Bills can be introduced in both legislative houses. Bills are given numbers after they’ve been introduced. When you read or hear about a bill with an “AB” before a number, that stands for “Assembly Bill.” Bills that originate in the Senate go by “SB,” for Senate bill.

• There are other less common acronyms, too. For example, “ACA” refers to an assembly constitutional amendment and an “ACR” is an assembly concurrent resolution. The senate versions for those two types of action are “SCA” and “SCR.”

How do bills become law in California?

Bills start out as ideas. Once a member of the legislature comes up with one or finds one they want to push forward, they send the idea and proposed language for the bill to the Legislative Counsel’s Office. That’s where it gets drafted into the actual bill.

From there, a lawmaker reviews the bill and then can introduce it via the Senate Desk or the Assembly Desk, depending on the house. The bill then gets read for the first time before being put aside for 30 days. During that time period, the bill can’t be acted upon. This gives the public time to review the bill.

Then it’s time for a bill to be reported to a policy committee. The Rules Committee matches bills to policy committees by topic, so a bill about schooling would go to the Education Committee and a bill on state parks would go to the Water, Parks and Wildlife Committee.

Committee lawmakers hear testimony on bills when they are at the committee stage.

Here’s one way to track when that might be happening: Bills must appear on the Assembly or Senate Daily Files, which are the agendas for the two houses, for four days before they go to a committee.

Committee members vote to pass the bill, pass the bill with amendments or to kill the bill. If a bill makes it out of committee via one of the first two options, it goes back to the floor for a second reading.

• A quick note on amendments: Bills can get amended by committee members or when they go out to the floor. When a bill passed in one house goes to the second house and lawmakers attach amendments, that bill must go back to the house of origin for concurrence. If the two houses can’t agree on the amendments, the bill goes to a conference committee for resolution and then back out to both houses for more votes if the differences get ironed out.

After the second reading, staff prepare an analysis on the bill that explains key points like what the intended effect of the legislation is as well as what organizations support or oppose it. Then a bill gets assigned a third reading, where the member who authored the bill explains it and members discuss and vote on it.

• Bills require at least a majority —21 votes in the Senate and 41 votes in the Assembly — to pass, but legislation with appropriation attached or are urgency measures, which take effect immediately, need 27 senate votes and 54 assembly votes.

If a bill passes, it goes to the other house and the process starts again. Once it makes it through the second house, it goes to the governor’s office. At that point, the governor can sign it or leave it alone, but either way the legislation would become statute. Or, he can veto it. If the governor vetoes a bill, both houses need a two-thirds majority vote to overturn the veto.

How can I track legislation?

The best way to track legislation you’re following is by using the California Legislative Information page. You can search for legislation by bill number, session year author, code, code section or and keyword.

You can also find scheduling information, the new laws report, which lists all bills enacted in a calendar year during the regular session of the legislature, and other information on the site.

How can I testify at a hearing?

If you want to voice your opinions on a legislative action, you can submit written testimony that will be considered part of the record. You can also go to the capitol in person to testify, but both the Assembly and the Senate stress that seating is limited for the press and the public because of the COVID-19 pandemic. You can watch hearings for either chamber via live stream. Committees generally also post call-in numbers for hearings on information pages. The Assembly offers the option to testify remotely from the north steps at the State Capitol Park.

What other key legislative dates should I know?

Jan. 10 is a big one: That’s the day the governor’s proposed budget is due to the legislature. Then, the legislature has until midnight on June 15 to pass a budget bill. Aug. 31 is the last day in the calendar year the legislature can pass bills, and on Nov. 30, the two-year legislative term ends at midnight. Here’s the full legislative calendar.

This story was originally published December 29, 2021 at 5:00 AM with the headline "How does a bill become law in California? Here’s how to track it through the legislature."