SEARAC opposes the passage of AB 715
Despite concerns from legislators, educators, and advocates, AB 715 (Zbur & Addis), and its new companion bill SB 48 (Gonzalez), were rushed for passage to Gov. Newsom for signature right before this year’s legislative deadline on Sept. 12. The bills as written will:
- Threaten the teaching of critical history about Asian American communities from ethnic studies curricula and reverse years of state investment, community engagement, and development work by educators
- Further discrimination by devoting more targeted resources to one community while relegating minority students and other protected classes into broad generalized categories and minimizing their ingrained experiences with hate and discrimination
SEARAC helped to improve multiple versions of AB 715 this year through detailed written feedback, meetings with legislators, and collaboration with education experts. We thank our advocacy partners and ethnic studies educators for working together on this bill. We look forward to addressing remaining concerns next year.
“While many changes have been made with the legislation, we still have significant concerns on the risks placed upon teachers to teach critical thinking and our full histories. During this milestone year marking the 50th year of our communities’ resettlement, school curriculum still renders Southeast Asian Americans invisible. AB 715 will adversely impact the way Southeast Asian American Model Curriculum can be implemented as Southeast Asian American youth continue to face significant educational disparities, bullying, and discrimination due to cultural invisibility and lack of teaching about their ethnic history, culture, and identity,” shared Mandy Diêc, California Deputy Director.
State resolution commemorates 50 years of Southeast Asian American resettlement and resilience
SCR 96, a state resolution commemorating the 50th year of our communities’ resettlement, officially passed this month! SEARAC thanks Senator Aisha Wahab for introducing this important recognition of the stories and experiences of the 1.1 million Southeast Asian Americans who have made California their home. It calls upon the legislature to pursue comprehensive policies for all immigrant and refugee communities, including in education, health and mental health, and language access.
This year, SEARAC also supported resolutions like AJR 5, which reaffirmed birthright citizenship for all children born on U.S. soil under the 14th Amendment in the face of Trump’s unlawful executive order, and SJR 9, which denounced the ongoing mass immigration raids and Trump’s deployment of U.S. military to assist ICE and suppress protestors.
California legislative update
Here’s where several bills SEARAC is supporting now stand, after this year’s legislative session ended on Sept. 12:
- AB 91 (Harabedian), which requires state entities to collect demographic info on major Middle Eastern and North African groups, awaits Gov. Newsom’s signature
- AB 49 (Muratsuchi), which limits ICE presence on K-12 schools, awaits Gov. Newsom’s signature
- SB 98 (Perez), which requires schools to notify students and staff when ICE is on campus, awaits Gov. Newsom’s signature
- SB 81 (Arreguin), which prohibits ICE access to nonpublic areas at hospitals, awaits Gov. Newsom’s signature
- AB 1242 (Nguyen), which would’ve created a Language Access Director in the CA Health & Human Services Agency and reformed the Dymally Alatorre Bilingual Services Act, is now a 2-year bill
California budget update
This month, a bill (SB 144 & AB 144) addressing the impact of federal funding cuts to health care made the following changes to state budget passed during summer:
- Increase stakeholder engagement opportunities for the Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative
- Exempt more undocumented immigrants from paying new monthly Medi-Cal premiums which start in July 2027 – individuals under 19, over 59, and individuals who are pregnant
- If an individual 19 and older misses a premium payment, they now have 90 days to re-enroll pay the amount owed
- Exempt Unsatisfactory Immigration Status (UIS) Foster Youth and Former Foster Youth from the new Medi-Cal dental coverage elimination OR monthly premiums until age 26
- Establish California’s own COVID-19 vaccine guidance in response to federal eligibility restrictions
- Extend a pilot research program on disparities faced by Medi-Cal recipients with limited English proficiency for 1 year