Press Releases

SACRAMENTO, CA – On May 8th, Assemblymember Damon Connolly (D-San Rafael) introduced Assembly Concurrent Resolution (ACR) 36, which designates the week of May 7, 2023, through May 13, 2023, as Compost Awareness Week. Composting is an effective form of waste reduction, reuse, and recycling. Since organic materials make up over 30 percent of the material going to landfills, composting is becoming one of the primary methods communities use to reach waste diversion goals and create sustainable communities. Returning organic resources—remanufactured into compost and applied to the soil—reduces water consumption by over 30 percent on all soil types, conserves water during extreme drought and flooding conditions, decreases dependence on chemical fertilizers and pesticides, and decreases erosion and nonpoint source pollution. Composting is recognized by the State Air Resources Board as an important tool to sequester massive amounts of carbon in California’s soils to help immediately reverse global warming by drawing down excess carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and storing it deep in California’s soils.

SACRAMENTO, CA – Assemblymember Damon Connolly (D-San Rafael) passed Assembly Bill (AB) 935 through the Assembly Governmental Organization Committee with overwhelming support on a 16-4 vote. In 2022, 63 percent of California voters, via Proposition 31, upheld state law prohibiting tobacco retailers from selling most flavored tobacco products. This groundbreaking prohibition covers flavored e-cigarettes, menthol cigarettes, and tobacco product flavor enhancers throughout California. Despite the overwhelming support from voters, flavored tobacco products continue to be sold in many stores across the state, allowing many teenagers to continue accessing these dangerous products. According to Tobacco Free Kids, 168,000 California high school students use some form of e-cigarettes. 

SACRAMENTO, CA – Assemblymember Damon Connolly hailed the bipartisan passage of Assembly Bill (AB) 1464, which seeks to address the severe traffic congestion on the Richmond San-Rafael Bridge. The bill directs the Bay Area Toll Authority (BATA) and the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) to consider reopening the third westbound lane on the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge to passenger vehicles in a manner that accounts for expanding multimodal transportation, preserving pathways for bicyclists, and reducing localized greenhouse gas emissions. AB 1464 passed with unanimous, bipartisan support out of the Assembly Transportation Committee with 15 votes.

SACRAMENTO, CA – This Tuesday, Assemblymember Damon Connolly (D-San Rafael) will accept amendments in the Assembly Health Committee, which will change the direction of AB 935. This bill will now close an enforcement loophole in the flavored tobacco ban (SB 793, Hill) which was upheld by 63 percent of voters in 2022 and remains a current law in California statute. AB 935 will authorize the California Department of Health (CDPH) and the Attorney General (AG) to enforce the flavored tobacco ban pursuant to Business and Professions Code Section 22950.5, also known as the Stop Tobacco Access to Kids (STAKE) Act. Currently, there is confusion among retailers regarding which products are prohibited. By authorizing CDPH and the Attorney General to enforce this important law, they will be able to provide uniform direction to ensure SB 793 is properly upheld and retailers have the information they need to stay in compliance with the law.

Today, Assemblymember Damon Connolly (D-San Rafael) honored Petaluma City Schools Board President Joanna Paun as Assembly District (AD) 12’s Woman of the Year. Ms. Paun was chosen for her passion and dedication to advocacy, promoting equity and elevating student voices. Under Ms. Paun’s leadership, the Petaluma School Board has sought to make the district a safe and welcoming space for all students, most recently by conducting a study to identify equity and opportunity gaps, which are currently being addressed using the data collected. Additionally, the board is implementing targeted training for trustees and staff on Title VI, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color or national origin.

 

Dear Neighbor,

SACRAMENTO, CA – Today Assemblymember Damon Connolly introduced AB 935, which would establish a phased tobacco ban for those born on or after January 1st, 2007. While on the Board of County Supervisors for Marin County, Assemblymember Connolly led the effort to pass one of the first bans on flavored tobacco products in California, and is continuing his fight against these lethal products in the legislature.

SACRAMENTO, CA – Today, Assemblymember Damon Connolly (D-San Rafael) introduced Assembly Bill (AB) 1109, prohibiting retailers and online marketplaces from selling the chemical “sodium nitrite” to anyone under the age of twenty-one.

SACRAMENTO, CA – Today, Assemblymember Damon Connolly (D-San Rafael) introduced Assembly Bill (AB) 620, which would require health plans to cover medical nutrition therapy. Medical nutrition therapy can be a successful alternative to medication treatment for several diseases, including Crohn’s disease. This therapy has substantial benefits for pediatric patients (children) because they may not have access to, or may not be able to use, certain medications. Additionally, patients with Intestinal Bowel Disease (IBD) can utilize medically necessary foods for nutritional support and to help them achieve remission.

SACRAMENTO, CA – Today, Assemblymember Damon Connolly (D-San Rafael) introduced Assembly Bill (AB) 478, which protects adults 65 years-of-age and older from losing their home insurance policy due to increasing risks of wildfires. AB 478 prevents home insurance providers from cancelling or refusing to renew an insurance policy for seniors based solely on the fact that the homeowners live in a high or very high fire hazard severity zone. The bill also puts a 25% cap on the amount an insurance company can increase a senior homeowner’s policy in a high or very high fire hazard severity zone and only allows one premium hike every five years.