California Legislation

California Pan-Ethnic Health Network

Healthy Food Procurement: Requires that food sold in state buildings to meet minimum nutritional requirements and sustainable purchasing practices.

California Pan-Ethnic Health Network

Building Healthy Communities: Includes health and equity criteria in the guidelines the state uses when advising local governments on land use and transportation planning and development.

PolicyLink, TransForm, California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation

Safe Routes to School: Requires state to consider the benefit to disadvantaged communities as part of its criteria for awarding local grants for construction of bicycle and pedestrian safety and traffic calming projects under its “Safe Routes to Schools” initiative.

Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment, California Labor Federation

Paid Sick Days:  Guarantees all California workers the right to earn and use paid sick days for personal illness.

California Center for Public Health Advocacy

Soda Tax:  Places a 1-cent-per-fluid-ounce tax on sweetened beverages and distributors. Money raised would go towards childhood obesity prevention.

PolicyLink

Healthy Food Financing Initiative: Establishes the Healthy Food Financing Initiative Fund for the purpose of expanding access to healthy foods in underserved communities.

California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation, Community Water Center

Public Water Systems: Requires that written public notices given by a public water system be provided in English, Spanish, and other languages spoken by prescribed numbers of residents.

Asian Pacific Islanders Community Action Network, Asian Americans for Civil Rights & Equality

Data on APIAs: Ensures that state-collected health, social services, labor, and civil rights data is disaggregated into Asian and Pacific Islander American ethnic groups, as currently reported by the U.S. Census.

AB 1296

Western Center on Law and Poverty

Eligibility and Enrollment in Medi-Cal: Requires the California HHS Agency to establish a standardized single application form and related renewal procedures for Medi-Cal, the Healthy Families program, the Health Benefit Exchange, and other county programs.

Health Access

Pre-Enrollment in Medi-Cal: Requires DHCS, MRMIB, Family PACT and other programs as well as some hospitals to provide information about the California Health Benefit Exchange to those who are no longer enrolled in these programs so that they may be enrolled in standardized coverage plans by 2014.

Western Center on Law and Poverty, Health Access

Office of Consumer Assistance: Establishes the Office of Consumer Assistance to provide outreach and education about health care coverage to California consumers.