This year's BALIF delegation to the Conference of CA Bar Associations (CCBA) is returning home with several wins and inching closer to passing a resolution to establish the Homeless Bill of Rights. Please join me in thanking the delegates who lobbied hard for these resolutions and donated their time and resources to represent BALIF at this state-wide conference: Jen Orthwein, Felicia Medina, Annick Persinger, Michael Wolchansky, Stephan Ferris, and Ari Jones.
The CCBA Committee would also like to thank past delegate, Meaghan Zore for a resolution she authored that went on to become AB 1793 and signed into law in 2018. This law requires the CA Dept. of Justice to affirmatively identify past convictions for cannabis-related offenses that are eligible for recall, dismissal, or redesignation pursuant to the Adult Use of Marijuana Act. Signed into law in the 2019 cycle, BALIF supported SB 495, which prohibits considering a parent's sex, gender identity, gender expression, or sexual orientation in determining the best interest of the child in custody proceedings.
Each bar association delegate is eligible to vote on every resolution, which means the larger our delegation, the more BALIF members' voices are represented. We hope to have more participants at next year's September 2020 Conference in San Diego. If you'd like to attend or would like to draft a resolution, email ccba@balif.org for more information.
BALIF RESOLUTIONS APPROVED:
1. Changing Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples Day
2. Banning oxybenzone and octinoxate in sunscreen
3. Making Election Day a paid holiday in California;
4. Extending the statute of limitations for all claimants of death and personal injury tort claims against government entities to one year to file the government tort claim (from the currency 6 months) and a full 2 years from rejection notice to file a civil suit in state court. (Re: incarcerated individuals)
BALIF RESOLUTIONS DISAPPROVED:
1. Homeless Bill of Rights (5 votes short)
2. Affirmative defense of consent for assault and battery. See BDSM community (4 votes short)
BALIF RESOLUTION VOLUNTARILY WITHDRAWN:
1. Decriminalization of sex work
APPROVED RESOLUTIONS BALIF DELEGATES ARGUED & SUPPORTED:
1. gender-neutral language in the evidence code;
2. adding transgender as a protected status under the Fair Employment & Housing Act;
3. requiring hospitals to provide patients with the estimated cost of anticipated services;
4. allowing transgender employees access to workplace lactation/wellness rooms for post-surgical care; and
5. banning plastic bags for newspapers.
Approved resolutions will now be proposed to legislators to be introduced as bills in the 2020 legislative cycle.
