Senator Cortese's Authored Bills In 2025
Housing & Affordability
SB 743 – Expanding Housing Opportunities for Teachers
California’s educators are being priced out of the communities where they teach, forcing many to commute long distances or leave the profession altogether. SB 743 seeks to change that by streamlining the approval process for workforce housing for teachers and educators. (Contact: Michael Haleva)
SB 750 – Unlocking Affordable Housing Investment
SB 750 establishes Cal REMIA, a state-backed credit enhancement program administered by the California Housing Finance Agency (CalHFA). By guaranteeing loans and wrapping municipal bonds, Cal REMIA reduces financing risks for housing developers and accelerates the construction of multifamily housing at all income levels. There is no cost to the state’s General Fund, as fees cover program administration. (Contact: Michael Haleva)
Public Safety & Strong Neighborhoods
SB 753 – Abandoned Shopping Cart Recovery
SB 753 modernizes state law to allow cities and counties to immediately recover and return abandoned shopping carts. This bill will reduce sidewalk obstructions, environmental pollution, and flood risks caused by abandoned carts. The bill is sponsored by the City of San Jose. (Contact: Tara Sreekrishnan)
Wildfire Resilience & Insurance
SB 429 – The Nation’s First Public Wildfire Model
SB 429 establishes the first-in-the-nation Wildfire Catastrophe Public Model to assess wildfire risk, inform insurance rates, and educate the public. This bill will ensure transparency to help homeowners understand if they’re getting a fair deal on insurance. This bill will also improve wildfire preparedness and response through better data and planning tools. (Contact: Clare Recinos)
SB 653 – Environmentally Sensitive Vegetation Management
SB 653 supports environmentally sensitive vegetation management (ESVM) by guiding the implementation of funding for ESVM projects. ESVM will preserve biodiversity, prevent habitat degradation, and improve wildfire resilience, so that the state’s wildfire prevention strategies protect both communities and ecosystems. The bill is sponsored by the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District. (Contact: Evan Fern)
SB 616 - Strengthening Wildfire Resilience & Home Protection
Joint-authored with Senator Rubio and Senator Stern, SB 616 establishes the Community Hardening Commission to develop new wildfire mitigation standards that reduce fire risk and improve insurance access. By aligning policies across state agencies, streamlining home hardening efforts, and enhancing data-sharing on wildfire risks, this bill helps protect homes, businesses, and public safety while making communities more insurable. (Contact: Tara Sreekrishnan)
Economic Opportunity & Workforce Development
SB 61 – Fair Pay for Contractors
SB 61 bill protects small and minority-owned construction businesses by capping how much money can be withheld from payments on private projects, aligning with public works policy. SB 61 improves cash flow, ensures fair compensation, and supports a stable construction industry. By reducing financial strain on contractors—particularly small businesses—this bill strengthens the construction industry, increases workforce stability, and ensures workers receive fair compensation without excessive payment delays. (Contact: Sunshine Borelli)
SB 494 – Fair Hearings for School Employees
SB 494 ensures that classified school employees in non-merit districts and community colleges receive a neutral appeal process when facing disciplinary action, as is granted to teachers and most other public employees. This bill is sponsored by the California School Employees Association (CSEA) to support due process and fairness for thousands of dedicated school employees. (Contact: Evan Fern)
SB 550 – Construction Apprenticeship Advancement
SB 550 will increase accountability in state efforts to expand apprenticeship programs, particularly for women and underrepresented populations. This bill supports California’s goal of expanding access to high-wage construction jobs while addressing critical workforce shortages. (Contact: Tara Sreekrishnan)
SB 597 – Wage Theft Protections for Construction Workers
SB 597 protects workers from wage theft by ensuring general contractors remain liable for unpaid compensation owed by subcontractors on private construction projects. (Contact: Clare Recinos)
SB 605 – Fair Compensation for State Attorneys & Administrative Law Judges
SB 605 ensures fair compensation for state attorneys and administrative law judges by mandating salary surveys and adjustments to match regional public sector salaries. This bill addresses recruitment and retention challenges by ensuring competitive wages, reducing turnover, and strengthening California’s legal and administrative workforce. (Contact: Akali Warmsley)
SB 693 – Keeping Water Utility Workers on the Job
SB 693 extends meal period flexibility to water utility employees, ensuring their collective bargaining agreements determine break schedules—just as they do for electric and gas utility workers. This policy prevents unnecessary penalties, reduces staffing disruptions, and ensures water service remains uninterrupted for California residents. (Contact: Tara Sreekrishnan)
Education & Student Support
SB 33 – CalSOAR Guaranteed Income Program
SB 33 establishes the California SOAR (Success, Opportunity, and Academic Resilience) Guaranteed Income Program, providing $1,000 in direct cash assistance to twelfth-grade students experiencing homelessness. This support will help prevent the "summer melt"—where students with college acceptance fail to enroll due to financial barriers—and promote educational attainment. Sponsors of this bill include Economic Security Project Action, End Poverty in California, Mayors for a Guaranteed Income, United Way California Capital Region, and the County of Santa Clara. (Contact: Ashonte Smith)
SB 685 – Financial Assistance for Students Experiencing Homelessness
SB 685 establishes the Financial Assistance for Students Experiencing Homelessness Program at three California State University (CSU) campuses, including San Jose State University, to cover unmet financial aid gaps for homeless students. This bill will help homeless students stay enrolled, graduate from a university, and transition to stable employment. (Contact: Ashonte Smith)
Criminal Justice Reform
SB 551 – Principles of Incarceration to Reduce Recidivism
SB 551 codifies principles promoting respect-based interactions between staff and incarcerated individuals in our prison system to create a safer and more rehabilitative environment for incarcerated individuals and correctional staff. By adopting these evidence-based principles, SB 551 will improve safety, enhance rehabilitation, and support community reintegration. (Contact: Jewel Corral)
SB 552 – Supporting Justice-Involved Youth through Rehabilitation
Sponsored by the California Judges Association, SB 552 requires probation departments to develop individualized case plans for every youth on probation. These case plans will include specific goals, services, and responsibilities to support rehabilitation and reduce recidivism, with input from the minor and their family. (Contact: Clare Recinos)
SB 553 – Short-Term Clearance Reform
SB 553 streamlines access to California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) facilities by granting short-term clearance to legislators, legal professionals, and other designated officials without requiring repeated applications. This reform reduces administrative burdens while enhancing oversight and policy implementation in state correctional facilities. (Contact: Jewel Corral)
Transportation & Infrastructure
SB 30 – Decommissioning Diesel Locomotives
SB 30 ensures that diesel locomotives that are decommissioned by transit agencies cannot be resold or donated for continued diesel-use, preventing harmful emissions from polluting communities in California or elsewhere. (Contact: Evan Fern)
SB 400 – High-Speed Rail Authority Public Outreach
SB 400 modernizes the public outreach requirements for the California High-Speed Rail Authority to ensure transparency and accountability for the nation’s first 220-mph, fully electrified high-speed rail project. (Contact: Tara Sreekrishnan)
SB 545 – Economic Opportunities for the High-Speed Rail Corridor
SB 545 sets the foundation for leveraging commercial and residential development along the high-speed rail corridor to create jobs, attract businesses, and generate new revenue streams that will help fund construction, operations, and long-term maintenance. By requiring the state’s Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation to, on or before July 1, 2026, examine strategies such as land value capture, development incentives, and public-private partnerships along the High-Speed Rail corridor, SB 545 will ensure California maximizes the economic potential of this project. (Contact: Sunshine Borelli)
SB 695 – Supporting Infrastructure Projects of Regional Significance
Joint-authored with Senator Caballero, SB 695 strengthens California’s infrastructure resilience by directing investments into projects of regional significance under the California Disaster Assistance Act. The bill prioritizes climate adaptation, flood prevention, and seismic safety for aging infrastructure, ensuring California communities are better prepared for extreme weather events and avoiding costly failures in critical systems. (Contact: Sunshine Borelli)
Agricultural Preservation & Environmental Protection
SB 462 – Keeping Working Farms Working
SB 462 secures a $20 million annual investment in the California Farmland Conservancy Program (CFCP) to protect agricultural land through conservation easements. This funding will preserve farmland, sequester carbon, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions while supporting local economies, food production, and climate-smart agriculture. (Contact: Evan Fern)
SB 600 – Climate Policy Impacts
SB 600 authorizes the Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) to analyze the effects of California’s net-zero climate policies on public sector jobs, ensuring that labor relations remain stable amid the state’s ambitious climate initiatives and clean energy transition. (Contact: Tara Sreekrishnan)
Digital Privacy & Consumer Protection
SB 683 – Fighting Digital Exploitation
SB 683 will allow victims of unauthorized image use—including unauthorized use of another's name, voice, signature, photograph, or likeness in any manner—to seek injunctive relief for immediate removal within two business days while courts resolve disputes. This measure prevents ongoing harm and protects individuals from digital exploitation. (Contact: Clare Recinos)
Public Health & Animal Welfare
SB 602 – Expanding Access to Veterinary Care
SB 602 will make veterinary care more accessible by expanding access to low-cost veterinary care and reducing barriers for underserved pet owners and shelter animals. A public health measure, this bill will enhance disease control efforts by ensuring more pets are protected from common diseases in a timely manner. Sponsors of this bill include the California Veterinary Medical Association, the SF Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, and the San Diego Humane Society. (Contact: Michael Haleva)
SB 700 - Firefighter Cancer Prevention & Research Expansion
Firefighters risk their lives daily and, through their work, they face heightened cancer risks from toxic exposures on the job. SB 700 aims to expand research and prevention efforts under the California Firefighter Cancer Prevention and Research Program, ensuring firefighters receive the latest science-backed protections. (Contact: Mario Lopez & Sunshine Borelli)