Marin lawmaker advances 11 bills to governor’s desk

From wildfire evacuation plans for schools to electric bicycle regulations, a host of bills authored by Marin Assemblymember Damon Connolly now await the governor’s signature.

The San Rafael Democrat represents Assembly District 12, which covers Marin County and southern Sonoma County. Eleven bills he authored made it out of the state Senate at the end of the legislative session last week. Gov. Gavin Newsom has until Sept. 30 to either sign or veto bills.

“I am extremely proud of these bills and my entire legislative package this year that will help Assembly District 12 by protecting our environment, improving student health, and more,” Connolly said Tuesday.

Newsom has already signed one of Connolly’s bills into law. Assembly Bill 1790 requires the California State University system to update its policies on investigating sexual harassment or assault allegations against employees. Those who are determined to be offenders and were not suspended or demoted will be denied positive employment references.

“By implementing AB 1790, we can make our California State Universities safer for students and faculty by ensuring sexual harassment and assault allegations don’t slip through the cracks,” Connolly said when he introduced the bill in January.

Young e-bike riders in Marin County could soon face new regulations if Newsom approves Connolly’s AB 1778. The bill would create a pilot program that authorizes the Marin County or local municipal governments to prohibit children under age 16 from riding Class 2 electric bicycles. Such bicycles have throttle devices that can boost speeds up to 20 mph. AB 1778 would also require all Class 2 e-bike users to wear helmets.

Safety concerns prompted Connolly to author the bill that he introduced last year.

“This idea came from overwhelming comments of concern from Marin residents and from health and trauma doctors in the county,” he said.

County Supervisor Mary Sackett said that the legislation supports the county public health staff’s efforts around helmet use and their promotion of Class 1 e-bikes being the best choice for riders under age 16. Class 1 e-bikes have pedal-assistance, not throttle-assistance, up to 20 mph.

“By recommendation of the Marin County Civil Grand Jury, we formed a countywide taskforce that will use an education-first approach to coordinate outreach, local policies, and enforcement strategies across Marin, laying the groundwork to implement AB 1778,” Sackett said.

Another Connolly bill that awaits the governor’s approval include AB 2251. The legislation allows school districts to exempt high school students from additional graduation requirements if they had absences due to their mental or physical health.

“While it is important for students to reach state-mandated benchmarks for graduation, we should not delay their life milestones because of circumstances outside their control,” Connolly said Tuesday.

Other school-related bills approved by the Senate are AB 1864, which strengthens regulations over pesticide use near campuses and AB 2968, which requires schools in high fire hazard severity zones to create wildfire evacuation and shelter-in-place plans.

Fairfax resident Max Edwards inspired AB 2968 when he submitted his campus safety idea for Connolly’s second “There Ought to be a Law” contest that drew 300 submissions.

“Reading through hundreds of submissions with new bill ideas highlighted the fantastic ideas and issues that our community is focused on in the North Bay,” Connolly said.

Edwards said that he was grateful to see his ideas pass through the Legislature.

“This law should make great strides to decrease the risk exposure of schools in wildfire-prone areas, and to ensure each one has a plan to evacuate and shelter-in-place if needed,” he said.

Connolly on Tuesday also highlighted the passage of AB 99, which requires Caltrans to respect local laws that restrict or ban the spraying of pesticides along roads.

“Even though North Bay communities like Marin and Sonoma have taken bold steps to ensure our sensitive ecosystems along highways, toxic chemicals are still being deployed along state routes by Caltrans,” he said about his bill.

Not all of Connolly’s bills made it to the Senate floor. AB 2149 was held in the Senate Appropriations Committee last month. Megan Myre, a legislative aide for Connolly, said that her staff has not yet discussed with the bill’s sponsors if they want to pursue similar legislation next year.

AB 2149 calls for stronger safety regulations on large rolling gates. Connolly introduced the “Alex Quanbeck Gate Safety Act,” which was named after a student who died after a 300-pound, rolling gate fell on him at Mark Day School in San Rafael five years ago.