The PERK team, Jessica , Darrlene, Natalie, and Erin had a wonderful week meeting with legislators and staff about bills we support and oppose. It is important as advocates to show that you work on both sides of the isle, and on both opposition/support of bills. Members were very pleased to see that we supported their bills and it reinforced our relationships with them. Darrlene and Jessica both gave support statements on behalf of Senator Shannon Groves bills: SB 292, 293 and SCA 5. The testimony witnesses in support were excellent!
Thousands of bills go through the legislature every year, it is near impossible for legislators to read and understand the bills they vote on. This is why your communication and advocacy is critical. We can break down these bills for them and educate them on the impact of the policy.
On Tuesday, AB 659 was passed out of the health committee and is now in the Appropriations committee which is fiscally based. We met with every single member on the health committee and had great dialogue about the concerns in AB 659.
On Wednesday we shifted our approach to the Appropriations committee members. The discussions we had regarding the misleading language in the bill were very well received. Almost everyone agreed that the language is not clear and will lead to confusion. We made a strong ask that members ask the author to clarify the language to reflect it is not an expectation, or to remove that section of AB 659, and keep it solely insurance based.
Assembly member Dr. Akilah Weber was the sole Abstain on AB 659 in the health committee. We had the opportunity to meet with her directly on Monday before the hearing and she shared the same exact concerns we have expressed. This speaks volumes as she directly treats HPV patients first hand and the information she shared about why she chose to abstain was reasonable. She is also on the Appropriations committee, we recommend you show your gratitude through a nice letter or post card for her Abstention.
As we get through the first quarter of the legislative session, PERK is very happy with the progress made so far. We must always remember that this is a long term game, and pace ourselves throughout this process. A key take away from our time at the Capitol is that RESPECTABLE, REASONABLE AND KIND commentary is absolutely essential to these issues being considered.
Your advocacy has made a difference and we are thankful to you for taking time to take action on the bills we are working on. This takes ALL of us working in different capacities. We all have a role to play and we encourage you to find yours!
Natalie and Erin from the PERK/ Catholic Families for Freedom team were invited to participate with California Nurses for Freedom and Take A Stand Stanislaus for an incredibly successful lobby day on Thursday April 20th! We are so happy to see all the advocacy taking place on behalf of Nurses and Health Care workers. California Nurses for Freedom and Take a Stand Stanislaus have worked tirelessly this year and last to advocate on behalf of parents, patients and children. PERK, Catholic Families 4 Freedom and California Nurses United and Take A Stand Stanislaus had 13 meetings with Legislators and their staff total. We are thankful for all the work they have done and look forward to supporting their work in the future!
