New law protects homeless workers in California

From CalMatters homelessness reporter Marissa Kendall:

California cities cannot fine outreach workers for helping people sleeping rough — even if those people are living in an illegal encampment — under the terms of a new law signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom this month.

Senate Bill 634by Sen. Sasha Rene Perezsays that cities can’t prohibit people or organizations from providing homeless residents with legal services, medical care or things necessary for survival, such as food, water, blankets, pillows and materials to protect themselves from the elements.

The law comes after the Bay Area city of Fremont earlier this year briefly made “aiding, abetting or concealing” illegal homeless encampment a crime The City Council later bring back that language — after CalMatters first reported it — but made a lasting impression on state lawmakers.

• Peres, in a statement: “The legislation provides reasonable protections for service providers, especially nonprofit and faith-based ones, who do the work every day to help homeless Californians.”

But that wasn’t all the Pasadena Democrat originally wanted to do. The original bill she introduced was much widerand would have stopped cities from citing or arresting people for sleeping on public property. Peres cut this controversial provision after facing pushback from cities and law enforcement.

Despite that concession, San Bernardino County remained opposed to Perez’s bill, saying it would “override local governments and limit the enforcement tools that cities and counties use to promote public safety.”

The county recently issued an ordinance making it illegal to live on certain public properties. Dozens of other California cities and counties have adopted, reinstated or strengthened similar rules since the summer of 2024 after US Supreme Court decision which gave cities more freedom to deal with the camps. Arrests and citations related to homelessness have jumped in some places.

Let’s dive into some healthcare news:

• Cheaper insulin: Starting Jan. 1, the estimated 3.5 million Californians who have diabetes will have the option of purchasing state insulin for $11 per pen or $55 for a pack of five. The move is part of the state’s CalRx initiative to lower prescription drug prices for Californians. An equivalent amount of glargine, the generic version of Lantus, sells at pharmacies for more than $92, according to the governor’s office. Newsom broke the news Thursday, three years after he first said the state would lead efforts to make insulin more affordable. Last week, Newsom also signed legislation capping copays for insulin at $35. Read more by Kristen Huang and Ana B. Ibarra of CalMatters.

• Hospitals Sue CA: California hospitals are suing state regulators to block rules designed to prevent consumers’ health care costs from rising too quickly. The California Hospital Association claims the rules are illegal and will “severely impair” hospitals’ ability to provide quality care. The lawsuit comes as 38 percent of Californians report having medical debt and health care costs in California have risen 30 percent in five years. Read more by Anna.

On Thursday, California State University took the first steps toward requested a $144 million loan from the state. Considered an unusual financial tactic by some higher education budget experts, the money would be used to offer one-year bonuses to faculty and staff, writes CalMatters’ Mikhail Zinstein.

Although salaries vary among employees, the additional $144 million is roughly a 3 percent increase in total pay for Cal State workers. Cal State will have until next July to repay the loan interest-free.

Despite fiscal pressures and projections showing Cal State must add to its deficit to pay off the debt, Cal State’s interim chief financial officer, Patrick Lentz, said the system decided to take on the loan “after careful consideration.”

California’s largest state union, the California Faculty Association, applauded the decision but said more work needs to be done to bring back faculty whose contracts were voided due to budget cuts.

Read more here.

Newsom signed legislation earlier this month requiring lawmakers to disclose new jobs on conflict-of-interest forms. The measure was introduced in response to a CalMatters story which describes how lawmakers should not tell the public that they have accepted a job with an organization that may try to curry favor with the legislature. Read more by Ryan Sabalow of CalMatters.