The California Problem Solvers Caucus Champions AB 35

In November 2024, California voters passed Proposition 4, a $10 billion climate bond designed to fund critical projects for safe drinking water, wildfire prevention, flood protection, and climate resilience. However, without legislative intervention, communities could wait up to 18 months for these funds to arrive due to the lengthy Administrative Procedure Act (APA) rulemaking process.

Enter Assembly Bill 35. Recently endorsed by the California Problem Solvers Caucus, AB 35 aims to cut through this bureaucratic red tape. Authored by Assemblymember David Alvarez, a Caucus co-chair, the bill exempts Prop 4 programs from the duplicative APA requirements. As Alvarez noted, voters approved the bond to secure safer communities, "not more paperwork." While previous natural resource bonds, such as Proposition 1 and Proposition 68, were exempt from full APA rulemaking, Proposition 4 currently stands as an outlier.

To ensure immediate impact, AB 35 includes an urgency clause, allowing it to take effect as soon as it receives the Governor's signature. Crucially, prioritizing speed does not sacrifice transparency or public input. State agencies will still be required to publish draft project guidelines for a 30-day public comment period and offer tribal consultation opportunities to any impacted tribes.

The advancement of AB 35 perfectly illustrates the core mission of the California Problem Solvers Caucus. With coauthors including caucus members Senator Suzette Martinez Valladares and Assemblymember Anamarie Ávila Farías, the bill represents true cross-party and cross-house cooperation. By setting aside partisan ideology, the Caucus is working to ensure shovel-ready projects are not stalled by administrative delays, ultimately making good on the promises made to Californians.