Speaker Rivas at Three Years: A Record of Delivering for Californians — Affordability, Housing, Responsible Government, a Safer, Stronger Golden State for Working Families

Tuesday, June 30, 2026

Under Speaker Rivas, the Assembly has tackled California's biggest challenges head-on - enacting generational housing affordability reforms, stabilizing costs for workers and small businesses, and defending health care, schools, and the essential benefits that define California's promise.

SACRAMENTO - Three years ago today at his inauguration as Speaker, Robert Rivas stood before the Assembly and made a promise: that under his leadership, government would focus squarely on improving day-to-day life for Californians.

In 2026, the results speak for themselves - historic housing reforms, a bipartisan public safety agenda that made California's communities and storefronts safer, landmark wins for workers from farm fields and schools to hospitals, and a reinvented Legislature focused on outcomes and making a real difference.

And when California faced its biggest tests, Speaker Rivas answered the call - on the ground supporting Los Angeles as wildfires devastated neighborhoods, standing firm as ICE targeted immigrant families, and fighting every attempt by Washington to strip Californians of the benefits and services they've earned.

Under Speaker Rivas' leadership, the Assembly has embraced a simple principle: government should solve the largest challenges facing Californians. By making affordability the Assembly's defining priority, reducing the number of bills introduced to emphasize quality over quantity, and creating new tools to hold laws accountable to their promises, the Assembly has charted a new course centered on measurable outcomes, lasting opportunity - and improving the day-to-day quality of life in ways every Californian can see and feel.

Historic, Generational Reforms to Building Affordable Homes Faster

Speaker Rivas recognizes that housing is the No. 1 concern for Californians. California cannot lower the cost of living without building more homes, and Speaker Rivas made housing affordability a signature legislative priority of his speakership.

As Speaker, the Assembly enacted the most sweeping housing reforms in decades - removing longstanding barriers to construction, streamlining approvals, and making it easier, faster and less expensive to build homes across California.

This includes the Assembly's landmark 2025 reform and legislative package to modernize the state's approval process and remove barriers that have long slowed the construction of new homes, providing greater certainty for builders by freezing new residential building standards through 2031. And since those historic laws, the Assembly has not slowed its progress on housing affordability - advancing major investments in lower-cost home options, and expanding pathways to build homes near jobs and transit.

Just last week, the Assembly took one of the boldest steps in California history, passing the $11.25 billion Veterans and Affordable Housing Bond Act of 2026 - a generational investment that fast-tracks construction and expands homeownership opportunities for veterans, military families, and working Californians. The bond will support tens of thousands of high-paying construction jobs and is designed to leverage federal tax credits and private financing so that every $1 invested by the state generates an estimated $4 in outside investment.

Together, these reforms are expected to lower housing costs, increase supply, and help more Californians achieve the dream of homeownership.

Key accomplishments include:

• Streamlining Housing Development: Passed legislation to fast-track housing construction by reducing regulatory barriers, modernizing CEQA, and cutting costs - at no fiscal cost to the state.
• $11.25 Billion Veterans and Affordable Housing Bond: Passed the Veterans and Affordable Housing Bond Act of 2026, placing a historic $11.25 billion bond on the November 2026 ballot to fund affordable housing for veterans, seniors, farmworkers, and working families.
• Investing in Affordable Housing: Allocated $500 million for the Low-Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC) and $200 million for multifamily housing developments.
• Improving Project Approval Time: Empowered homeowners and developers to use licensed third-party professionals for plan checks when local agencies exceed 30-day review windows, speeding up the building process for small-scale housing.
• Holding State Agencies Accountable: Required state departments reviewing post-entitlement housing permits to meet the same deadlines already imposed on local agencies.
• Preventing Cost Increases for Future Housing: Enacted a temporary moratorium (2025-2031) on new state and local residential building standards that could increase construction costs, ensuring more affordability in the development process.
• Expanding Farmworker Housing: Passed into law two bills authored in partnership with Speaker Rivas to keep migrant farmworker families in stable housing year-round and expand agricultural worker housing in Santa Clara and Santa Cruz counties.

Improving Everyday Quality of Life and Stabilizing Costs for Workers and Families

Since becoming Speaker, Rivas has made affordability a defining priority of the Assembly, recognizing that Californians are tightening their belts and looking to their government leaders to stabilize costs.

He began the 2025-2026 legislative session by urging his Assembly colleagues to focus on affordability and "chart a new path forward and renew the California Dream."

Assembly Democrats responded and delivered - both with new laws that make it easier to build homes, addressing the No. 1 cost-driver for working families, and also by passing dozens of additional solutions to move the needle on affordability, including:

• Guaranteeing California workers at least five days of paid sick leave per year
• Raising the minimum wage for fast food workers to $20 an hour and securing historic minimum wage increases for health care workers
• Delivering direct monthly electricity bill credits during the highest-cost months for families
• Making pricing algorithms subject to state antitrust law to protect consumers from artificial price increases

Speaker Rivas also made lowering Californians' energy and utility costs a central part of the Assembly's affordability agenda. Under his leadership, the Assembly passed significant legislation to stabilize utility bills, strengthen grid reliability, and invest in California's clean energy future - while ensuring the benefits of the state's climate policies are returned directly to families' pocketbooks.

The Assembly passed a comprehensive energy affordability package in 2025 that extends California's "Cap-and-Invest" program, delivering an estimated $3 billion annually in climate credits to households while supporting investments in wildfire prevention, clean transportation, affordable housing, and safe drinking water.

The energy affordability package marked one of the most comprehensive legislative efforts in the country to make energy more affordable and reliable for Californians. This historic accomplishment delivers:

• Lower electricity bills: Extending "Cap and Invest" is estimated to return $3 billion in Climate Credits every year to Californians on their utility bills, with higher rebates annually.
• A bipartisan partnership with states across the West: Integrating California's grid with western states will save Californians upward of $1 billion every year on energy costs.
• New jobs: These solutions are estimated to create 287,000 jobs through 2045. As of last year, Cap and Invest had already created 122,000 jobs, plus nearly 14,000 affordable housing projects, and over $9 billion to benefit neighborhoods hit hardest by pollution.
• Significant investments in affordable housing, cleaner buses, safer drinking water, wildfire prevention, and healthier air.
• Protections for vulnerable communities: The legislation strengthens environmental protections and ensures regulators can act quickly to crack down on polluters and protect public health. It also dedicates Cap and Invest proceeds to support climate change adaptation and the resiliency of disadvantaged communities.
• Stabilized gasoline prices and supply: These proposals secure the safe and affordable supply of transportation fuels to better shield families from sudden increases at the pump.

Fighting to Defend Health Care Access and Women's Reproductive Freedom

Speaker Rivas has always believed that all Californians deserve to see a doctor and access the care they need. As Speaker, he has made protecting access to affordable, high-quality health care and safeguarding reproductive freedom a cornerstone of the Assembly's work.

This year, Speaker Rivas and the Assembly acted fast to protect women's reproductive health, keep clinics and Planned Parenthood doors open, and avoid reductions in services. In February, California accelerated $90 million in critical funding to protect access to reproductive and women's health care services statewide, ensuring Planned Parenthood centers remain open and able to provide essential care - including cancer screenings, contraception, STD testing and treatment, and safe abortion services - even as federal actions have forced clinic closures in other states.

The 2026-27 budget also makes key health investments:

• Supports distressed hospitals by authorizing $165 million in loans
• Lowers Covered California premiums with $300 million in subsidies
• Protects reproductive health care and gender-affirming care with tens of millions in dedicated investments
• Rejects Trump's most damaging cuts to Medi-Cal, clinic funding, and dental care, and delays punishing cuts that target California's immigrant communities

Wildfire Prevention and Emergency Response to Support L.A. Recovery and Rebuild

Speaker Rivas - himself a former paid-call firefighter - has made sure the Assembly is doing what is necessary to mitigate wildfires and assist in recovery.

In January 2025, as the Eaton and Palisades fires devastated communities across Los Angeles County, Speaker Rivas traveled to the frontlines in Altadena, Malibu, and the Palisades. Within days, he convened the full L.A. County Assembly delegation and announced legislation to fast-track recovery, keep displaced residents housed, and accelerate debris removal and school rebuilding.

The Assembly quickly passed a bipartisan $2.5 billion emergency wildfire recovery package with strong legislative reporting requirements - providing immediate funding for community clean-up, school reconstruction, and recovery infrastructure. The bill passed with bipartisan support and was signed by the Governor within two weeks of the fires breaking out.

Speaker Rivas also voted in favor of a bipartisan Assembly resolution (AJR 27) demanding that President Trump deliver long-delayed federal wildfire aid - more than a year after California formally requested $39 billion for recovery - after the administration failed to act.

Key accomplishments include:

• $2.5 billion bipartisan emergency wildfire package to accelerate debris removal, rebuild schools, and keep displaced Angelenos housed, signed into law within two weeks of the fires.
• Post-disaster housing protections: Passed laws providing mortgage forbearance for homeowners who lost their homes in declared disasters, and expanded ADU construction in coastal areas to help rebuild faster.
• Incarcerated firefighter pay increases: Raised wages for incarcerated firefighters in state fire camp programs.
• Historic CalFire investments: Over the course of the Speakership, positions dedicated to fire protection have grown from 5,756 to over 10,000 at CalFire, and the total CalFire budget has been maintained at roughly $3 billion.
• Bipartisan AJR 27 demanding the Trump administration deliver long-delayed federal recovery aid to Los Angeles.

Transforming Education and How Young People Will Learn to Read

Speaker Rivas has made improving California's education system a top priority throughout his speakership.

In 2025, he authored and advanced AB 1454 - landmark early childhood literacy legislation - alongside a significant $200 million budget investment to equip educators and school leaders with evidence-based tools to improve reading outcomes statewide. The bill requires the State Board of Education to adopt instructional materials aligned with evidence-based reading instruction, and directs the Commission on Teacher Credentialing to update administrator and reading specialist training standards accordingly.

The Assembly has also:

• Protected funding for the Golden State Teacher Grant to ensure a pipeline of qualified teachers in high-need classrooms across California.
• Sent a $10 billion school infrastructure bond to voters for approval.
• Established record per-student funding in the 2026-27 budget, along with fully paid pregnancy leave for educators.

Making a Safer California for Businesses, Workers and Communities

Speaker Rivas' Assembly has advanced a comprehensive approach to public safety that prioritizes accountability for offenders, support for victims of crime, and investment in prevention and rehabilitation programs that make communities safer over the long term.

From his first months in office, Speaker Rivas created and led the Select Committee on Retail Theft, convening public hearings across the state. In 2024, the Assembly passed a comprehensive bipartisan legislative package - creating new felony crimes for organized retail theft, expanding CHP property crime task forces, and restoring cross-jurisdictional charging. The package was signed into law and took effect in 2025.

In partnership with the Governor and the Legislature, the Assembly funded the implementation of Proposition 36 in the 2025-26 and 2026-27 budgets, ensuring California has the resources to carry out the voter-approved measure.

Key accomplishments include:

• Retail theft reform: Led a comprehensive bipartisan legislative package creating new criminal penalties for organized retail theft, "smash-and-grab" crimes, and online stolen goods marketplaces.
• Fentanyl enforcement: Secured $42.8 million for a statewide enforcement program to combat fentanyl manufacturing, distribution, and trafficking; $183 million to distribute low- or no-cost Naloxone and test strips; and $14.6 million for local fentanyl mitigation programs.
• Victims of Crime Act (VOCA): Increased funding for crime victims and their families, including $50 million in this year's budget.
• Nonprofit security grants: Invested ongoing funding to protect communities from hate-based violence, including $80 million in this year's budget.
• Missing and murdered Indigenous people (MMIP): Strengthened services and grants with $15 million in this year's budget.

Speaker Rivas and the Assembly have made protecting California's children from online exploitation and harm a sustained priority. Key accomplishments include:

• Allocated $10 million for Internet Crimes Against Children Task Forces.
• Created a new crime for intentionally distributing sexual deepfakes of identifiable individuals.
• Required CSU and UC to provide students with information on how to access sexual assault forensic exams.
• Eliminated the time limit to recover civil damages for childhood sexual assault.
• Required social media platforms to provide a mechanism to report child sexual abuse materials.
• Passed AB 1709, prohibiting social media platforms from allowing users under 16 to access or maintain accounts on covered platforms with addictive features.
• Passed AB 1946, strengthening social media platform accountability for child sexual abuse material.

Standing Up for Immigrant Communities and Holding ICE Accountable for Violence and Chaos

During the past two years, the Assembly has been a forceful line of defense for immigrant families, workers, and communities against the Trump administration's indiscriminate, dangerous deportation agenda.

The Assembly passed new laws requiring ICE, Border Patrol, and Homeland Security agents operating in California to clearly identify themselves and show their badges during enforcement operations. The Assembly also advanced new laws prohibiting ICE operations at schools, hospitals, and child care facilities, and barring state-owned property from being used as staging grounds for immigration enforcement.

This year, the Assembly is moving forward with 22 additional bills to hold ICE agents accountable for violence and unlawful conduct, protect immigrant workers from employer retaliation, and ensure immigrant families can access essential services without fear.

Speaker Rivas has also personally convened community meetings and discussions across California - including multiple events in the Central Coast - to bring community advocates and leaders together and ensure immigrants know their rights and that their Speaker has their back.

Key accomplishments include:

• Prohibiting ICE at schools and hospitals: Enacted new laws keeping federal immigration enforcement off school campuses, out of hospitals, and away from childcare facilities and voting centers.
• 22 new accountability bills: Advanced legislation to investigate ICE killings, cut off state contracts with private detention profiteers, and expand legal protections for immigrant workers and families.
• Tens of millions of dollars for immigration legal services: The Assembly has voted to deliver essential legal support for California's immigrants - to help vulnerable residents including veterans, seniors, and domestic violence victims.
• $25 million State Litigation Fund to enable the Department of Justice to pursue legal recourse when the federal government withholds emergency aid or takes unconstitutional actions against California.
• "Know Your Rights" resources: Launched a public-facing immigrant rights information hub accessible to all Californians.

Uplifting Small Businesses and Supporting California's Economy

Speaker Rivas has worked throughout his speakership to ensure California's businesses - large and small - can thrive, grow, and create jobs.

Key accomplishments include:

• Film and Television Tax Credit: Extended the Film and Television Tax Credit Program at $330 million per year for five years beginning in 2025-26 - growing to $750 million annually- protecting an industry that has created over 197,000 jobs and $26 billion in economic activity statewide since 2009.
• Protecting small businesses: Passed legislation making pricing algorithms subject to state antitrust law, keeping markets competitive and costs down for consumers and businesses alike.
• Farmworker wages: Advanced legislation to set a $19.75 minimum hourly wage for certain agricultural workers, with annual cost-of-living increases - protecting both the workforce and California's $60 billion agricultural economy.
• Flood relief: Secured $20 million in direct assistance for farmers who suffered damage to their businesses from floods.

Oversight, Accountability and Making Sure Tax Dollars are Spent Responsibly

Unlike any previous Speaker, Rivas has worked to reshape the Assembly into a Legislature focused not only on passing laws, but on ensuring government delivers meaningful results for Californians.

To improve the quality and effectiveness of legislation, Speaker Rivas announced in 2024 that the Assembly would reduce the number of bills each member can introduce - lowering the number legislators can carry from 50 to 35. The result: lawmakers have introduced the lowest number of new bills in two decades, with bill introductions down nearly 13% compared to the previous session, with 608 fewer bills introduced overall.

Building on that commitment to results, Speaker Rivas launched the Assembly's first-of-its-kind Outcomes Review process to evaluate whether new laws are working as intended - because passing a new law isn't the finish line, it's just the beginning.

In 2026, 15 Assembly members are using this new tool toreview how their legislation has been implemented, with public hearings covering affordable housing, farmworker housing, online charitable platforms, community solar, mortgage forbearance and insurance, and groundwater recharge. At the end of the legislative year, the process will result in a summary of findings and proposals for next steps.

In 2024, Speaker Rivas also created Budget Subcommittee 7 - an oversight committee dedicated to ensuring taxpayer dollars are spent effectively and efficiently. The subcommittee has held three consecutive years of oversight hearings on a variety of key issues, such as homelessness spending, leading directly to stronger oversight requirements, stricter accountability conditions on local governments, and enhanced public transparency for future homelessness funding.

Together, these reforms reflect Speaker Rivas' belief that good government requires not only bold ideas, but also a commitment to measuring results, improving performance, and ensuring taxpayer dollars are spent effectively.

Defending California from Federal Attacks and Trump's Draconian Cuts

The Assembly has served as California's frontline of defense against the Trump administration's relentless attacks on the programs, people, and institutions Californians rely on.

Key actions include:

• State Litigation Fund: Approved a $25 million fund enabling the DOJ to pursue legal recourse when the federal government withholds emergency aid or takes unconstitutional action against California - including disaster relief, school funding, and health care.
• Legal services for vulnerable Californians: Provided $25 million in legal assistance for immigrant communities and other vulnerable Californians, including veterans, people with disabilities, seniors, those facing eviction, and victims of domestic violence and wage theft.
• Protecting Medi-Cal: The 2026-27 budget avoids and delays the most harmful cuts to Medi-Cal coverage, rejects the proposed asset test, and delays cuts to clinics, dental care, and In-Home Supportive Services.
• Protecting food assistance: The budget safeguards CalFresh and nutrition programs in the face of federal threats to SNAP funding.
• Election integrity investments: The 2026-27 budget includes new investments to safeguard and speed up elections - increased staffing, voter outreach and education, and measures to combat misinformation.

Fiscal Responsibility and Saving More for a Rainy Day

This year's balanced, responsible budget protects Californians while maintaining long-term fiscal stability - even amid federal funding attacks and economic uncertainty - and reflects the overarching fiscal responsibility that Speaker Rivas has delivered during his time leading the Assembly.

Key accomplishments include:

• Balanced 2026-27 budget with zero deficit: The Assembly and Senate delivered a balanced budget that preserves reserves, maintains responsible budgeting practices, and protects health care, housing, and essential safety net programs.
• Multibillion-dollar reserve increase: The 2026-27 budget increases the state's reserves above 2025-26 levels.
• Save for California's Future Act: Passed a constitutional amendment strengthening the state's Rainy Day Fund and modernizing fiscal safeguards to better prepare for future economic uncertainty.
• Cutting the structural deficit in half: The budget agreement cuts California's structural deficit in half while maintaining investments in schools, health care, and public safety.

Historic Leadership and A New Era in the Legislature

Throughout his three years as Speaker, Robert Rivas has not only delivered policy results - he has reshaped the Assembly itself.

• Record number of women in leadership: With Speaker Rivas' committee chair appointments, more women lead Assembly committees than at any time in California history.
• Historic caucus unity: Every incumbent Assembly Democrat who sought re-election prevailed in 2024 and all remain in the Assembly.
• Unprecedented transparency: Speaker Rivas has participated in dozens of media interviews, press conferences, and moderated public events - giving reporters and the public direct access to his governance and vision.