- After each session of the California Legislature, the governor can sign into law, veto or allow to pass into law bills the Legislature passed.
- Multiple bills that crossed Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk have implications for the Sacramento region, including policies that could help establish daycares at state office buildings and new fireworks regulations following the Esparto explosions, among others.
- Newsom also vetoed locally-impactful policies, including a state worker telework bill.
Amid the deluge of bills that crossed Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk for him to sign or veto, you may have lost track of the ones most relevant to the Sacramento region.
Below, you’ll find a roundup of several policies impacting our community, on issues from fire resilience and firework safety to telework for state workers, that Newsom signed into law — and some he didn’t.
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Newsom signed the following bills into law by the Sept. 30 deadline:
Daycares may open in state offices (Assembly Bill 2006)
What it is: California’s government can give daycares priority for using space in certain newly-acquired or renovated state offices.
Why it matters: Childcare is a major reason many state workers opposed Newsom’s return-to-office order. If you’re a state worker, or live near one of the Sacramento area’s numerous state buildings, there’s a possibility that childcare will one day be available at your office following this bill.
Reigning in new bachelor’s degrees at community colleges (Senate Bill 960, AB 2694)
What it is: Community college districts will be limited to introducing only two to 12 new bachelor’s degrees per year, fewer than the prior limit of 30, CalMatters reported. Districts with higher transfer and graduation rates will be allowed to create more new degrees than districts with lower rates.
Before, community colleges weren’t supposed to offer degrees that California State University campuses already offered. But now they can if the university system rejects more than a quarter of applicants from the community college over three years.
Why it matters: The Sacramento region is home to several community colleges, including American River College, Sacramento City College and Cosumnes River College. If you’re considering community college, but drawn to a degree offered at a Cal State campus, there’s a chance that community colleges could offer it in the future. Community colleges will keep adding degrees, but likely more slowly.
Encouraging fire-resilient homes (AB 1934, AB 1964)
What it is: The state plans to create a voluntary certification that would recognize homes that include “home-hardening” features, or features aimed at making the home more fire-resistant. The office of California’s top fire safety official would create the program.
Why it matters: The certification could help those living in fire-prone areas identify what renovations would help protect their homes. The Sacramento region faces high fire risk: Sacramento County’s risk is higher than in 77% of counties across the United States.
In Yolo County, fire risk is higher than in 92% of counties, and in Placer and El Dorado counties, it’s higher than in almost every county in the country, according to the U.S. Forest Service.
New fireworks rules in response to deadly Esparto blast (SB 828)
What it is: Closes fireworks regulation loopholes and broadens the groups of people who can’t get fireworks licenses to include those convicted of any felony, not just those involving explosives, as well as other groups. Those applying for fireworks-related licenses including for manufacturing and importing will have to disclose where the fireworks will be stored. Local fire officials will have the authority to inspect those facilities.
Why it matters: The bill aims to decrease the likelihood of explosions like the one that killed seven people at a fireworks warehouse in Esparto, Yolo County, in July 2025.
Local government homelessness infrastructure faces overhaul (SB 802)
What it is: The governments of Sacramento, Elk Grove, Rancho Cordova, Citrus Heights, Folsom and Sacramento County are required to form a new, long-promised agency to collaborate on homelessness and housing insecurity. The agency is supposed to take over multiple existing efforts, including Sacramento County’s yearly point-in-time count of the unhoused population.
Why it matters: Critics and citizen investigators with the Sacramento County Civil Grand Jury have argued that local governments’ siloed efforts to address homelessness have hindered progress. If the new agency works as promised, it should remove those roadblocks.
Residents concerned about homelessness should keep an eye on this new strategy. And if you’re unhoused or seeking housing assistance, be aware a structural change to some organizations providing you services may be on the horizon.
The following were among the bills Newsom vetoed:
Narrowing return-to-office for state workers (AB 1729)
What it is: The bill would’ve required agencies to provide a “detailed, written justification” for requiring in-office work. Agencies would’ve had to create telework plans, and the state would have had to publish a dashboard of telework information, including how much money it saved.
Why it matters: If you’re a state worker, chances are you’re not a fan of Newsom’s four-day return-to-office order last year. As the governor prepares to leave office following the November election, he’s not backing off his stance that state workers should work in-office.
Fund for Delta levees repairs (SB 872)
What it is: The bill would’ve created a fund for repairing the levees that protect lands surrounding the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta from flooding. It first proposed putting aside $300 million for the repairs, but that figure was later removed from the bill, CalMatters reported.
In a letter accompanying his veto, Newsom said the state budget already includes roughly $171 million total for aqueduct, canal and levee repair, among other Delta expenses. But repairing the levees would cost billions, the Delta Stewardship Council estimated.
Why it matters: Amid climate change, sweeping areas surrounding Sacramento, Davis, Woodland and other locations face the risk of flooding. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has said many of the Delta levees that protect the area could fail even if they’re not filled.
