Legislative Efforts
SF NAPNAP is committed to advocating for legislation affecting pediatric health. We monitor current legislation related to pediatric wellbeing and support initiatives that protect and enhance child health. We provide opportunities for members to engage in legislative efforts, including submitting personal testimony on issues affecting pediatric health and NP practice. We believe that advocating for legislation related to the populations we serve is an essential aspect of the care we provide to our patients and their families. In doing so, we hope to educate our elected officials about the role of pediatric nurse practitioners as well as the services that we provide.
Get Involved (under construction)
Link to monthly meetings
Bill tracking
Click here to view a sample of letter
Click here for generic template letter
Bill tracking
Click here to view a sample of letter
Click here for generic template letter
- Use business letterhead
- Address lobbying correspondence to the author of the bill with copies to members of the committee hearing the bill and to your local legislator
- Make sure your legislator knows this letter is from a constituent who lives and/or does business in the legislator’s district
- Be clear what action you want the legislator to take
- Be sure to send a copy of your letter to the legislator’s district office and the Governor. Also send a copy to the California Chamber so our legislative advocates can include information on your support or opposition in their committee testimony.
- Be sure your address is on the letter
- Act promptly before a vote has already been taken
- If the legislator does what you ask, send a thank you note
- Keep your letter short; a one-page succinct letter will have more impact than a longer one.
- If you know the date of the next hearing, include it to ensure your letter is read in time to have an impact.
- Get to the point of your letter quickly. State the bill number early in the first paragraph. Focus on one topic throughout
- Provide concrete, credible information on the impact of proposed legislation. The more personalized, the more impact.
- Use the member’s title (Assemblywoman, Senator)
- Tell the legislator who you are (I am a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner who works at…and am a member of the National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners)
Bills we're following
- AB 1929 – Medi-Cal: violence preventive services: provides Medi-Cal reimbursement for violence prevention services for victims of gun violence and other violent incidents. AB 1929 will create a community violence prevention and recovery program covered as a Medi-Cal benefit.
- AB 1810 – Pupil health: seizure disorders: Establishes the Seizure Safe Schools Act to allow schools to designate one or more volunteers to receive initial and annual refresher training for the emergency use of anti-seizure medication for a pupil diagnosed with seizures, a seizure disorder, or epilepsy, if the pupil is suffering from a seizure. (Note: California has enacted similar laws for the use of epinephrine for allergic reactions (SB 1266, Huff 2014) and naloxone for opioid overdoses (AB 1748, Mayes 2016). The volunteer training would include recognition of the signs and symptoms of seizures and the appropriate steps to be taken to respond to those symptoms. In addition, the bill provides for the development of “seizure action plans” for all students diagnosed with epilepsy or seizures and identify students eligible for individualized education plans (IEPs) and Section 504 accommodations. The bill guarantees protections for the employees who volunteer to administer the medication.
- AB 2329 – Mobile vision examinations: school site: streamlines access to vision exams for California students by automatically opting them in, and allowing school districts to utilize nonprofit vision providers to administer exams and provide glasses more easily. Specifically, this bill authorizes a public school to enter into a memorandum of understanding with a nonprofit mobile vision provider to offer noninvasive vision exams and eyeglasses to students at the school site. It also provides parents with an opportunity to opt out of their child receiving these vision care services through a form developed by the State Department of Education. It would deem informed medical consent for the vision examination, if a parent or guardian fails to opt out. Finally, the bill includes liability waiver provisions for participating public schools and licensed health care professionals, among other protections.
Legislative Updates
December, 2022
Reminder: AB 890 (which pertains to nurse practitioner scope of practice) goes into effect as of
January 1, 2023. All nurse practitioners should be actively monitoring the bill's status and
frequently checking the CA BRN website for updates and information on any transition to
practice applications/paperwork that may need to be submitted to or verified by the BRN before
they can start practicing independently in various settings.
More information can be found here:
• https://canpweb.org/advocacy/ab-890-implementation/2022-legislation-status/
• https://www.rn.ca.gov/practice/ab890.shtml
• https://canpweb.org/advocacy/ab-890-implementation/
Bill Updates:
3 bills we were following were signed into law and will take effect on January 1st:
keywords for our next bill search. If our NAPNAP board members/chapter members
have any topics or issues that are of interest to you, let us know and we can include
them in our list!
Reminder: AB 890 (which pertains to nurse practitioner scope of practice) goes into effect as of
January 1, 2023. All nurse practitioners should be actively monitoring the bill's status and
frequently checking the CA BRN website for updates and information on any transition to
practice applications/paperwork that may need to be submitted to or verified by the BRN before
they can start practicing independently in various settings.
More information can be found here:
• https://canpweb.org/advocacy/ab-890-implementation/2022-legislation-status/
• https://www.rn.ca.gov/practice/ab890.shtml
• https://canpweb.org/advocacy/ab-890-implementation/
Bill Updates:
3 bills we were following were signed into law and will take effect on January 1st:
- AB 2329
- AB 1929
- AB 1810
keywords for our next bill search. If our NAPNAP board members/chapter members
have any topics or issues that are of interest to you, let us know and we can include
them in our list!
October, 2022
This past year we have been working as a coalition with all of the other CA NAPNAP chapters to actively support 7 bills as they have made their way through the legislature. We are now pleased to report that 3 of these bills have been approved by the governor and are being signed into law! They are:
(see above for descriptions)
AB 2329
AB 1929
AB 1810
The 4 bills that we supportive that did not pass are the following:
This past year we have been working as a coalition with all of the other CA NAPNAP chapters to actively support 7 bills as they have made their way through the legislature. We are now pleased to report that 3 of these bills have been approved by the governor and are being signed into law! They are:
(see above for descriptions)
AB 2329
AB 1929
AB 1810
The 4 bills that we supportive that did not pass are the following:
- SB 871: proposed to remove the medical exceptions currently in place relating to hepatitis B immunization prior to admission to any public or private elementary or secondary school, childcare center, day nursery, nursery school, family day care home, or development center, and to additionally prohibit the governing authority of a school or other institution from unconditionally admitting any person to said institution, unless prior to their admission to that institution they have been fully immunized against COVID-19.
- SB 934: proposed the creation of a California Childhood Cancer Research Fund Act
- SB 866: proposed to allow minors 12 and over to consent to vaccines which are FDA approved and advised by the ACIP w/o consent of parents
- AB 2320: proposed to require the Department of Health Care Access and Information to establish and administer a pilot program to direct funds to primary care clinics that provide reproductive health care services in 5 counties. The bill would require a participating primary care clinic to implement at least one of a number of specified activities to improve health care delivery for marginalized patients, and to annually report to the department over 2 years regarding its efforts and progress with those activities.
June, 2022
The San Francisco Bay Area NAPNAP chapter is now working together as a coalition with all of the other California NAPNAP chapters on our legislative efforts. For this year’s legislative session (which began in January 2022), we have decided to actively support the following 7 bills (see above).
As the status of each bill shifts on a regular basis, we encourage our membership to track these bills on the California legislature’s website Simply enter the bill number and click search. You can read the bill’s test, as well as look up its status and see what (if any) revisions have been made.
The San Francisco Bay Area NAPNAP chapter is now working together as a coalition with all of the other California NAPNAP chapters on our legislative efforts. For this year’s legislative session (which began in January 2022), we have decided to actively support the following 7 bills (see above).
As the status of each bill shifts on a regular basis, we encourage our membership to track these bills on the California legislature’s website Simply enter the bill number and click search. You can read the bill’s test, as well as look up its status and see what (if any) revisions have been made.
February, 2022
This year, the SF Bay Area Legislative Co-Chairs have pioneered a Legislative Collaboration between all the California NAPNAP Chapters in an effort to maximize our voice and impact in the Capitol. We have been meeting on a regular basis since December 2021. The 2022 legislative session just began in January, so at this point bills are starting to be introduced and we are in the process of reviewing bills and selecting which ones we want to support or opine on. This will be ongoing for the next month. We will have a final list of bills we've chosen to support for 2022 at the end of March!
This year, the SF Bay Area Legislative Co-Chairs have pioneered a Legislative Collaboration between all the California NAPNAP Chapters in an effort to maximize our voice and impact in the Capitol. We have been meeting on a regular basis since December 2021. The 2022 legislative session just began in January, so at this point bills are starting to be introduced and we are in the process of reviewing bills and selecting which ones we want to support or opine on. This will be ongoing for the next month. We will have a final list of bills we've chosen to support for 2022 at the end of March!
California Legislature
Senate: 40 members
Assembly: 80 members
Regular Session: Convenes on the 1st Monday in December of each even-numbered year and continues until November 30 of the next even-numbered year.
Effective Date of Laws: January 1 of the year after enactment
Assembly: 80 members
Regular Session: Convenes on the 1st Monday in December of each even-numbered year and continues until November 30 of the next even-numbered year.
Effective Date of Laws: January 1 of the year after enactment
Legislative Process
Introduction: The bill is introduced by a members of the Senate or Assembly, read for the first time, then assigned to a committee by either the Senate Rules Committee or the Assembly speaker.
Committee: Hearing(s) are held in committee and testimony is taken from proponents and opponents. Generally, the committee will then amend, pass, or fail to pass the bill.
Second Reading: Bills that are passed by committee are read as a 2nd time and sent to the full floor for debate.
Floor debate (in house of origin): The bill is read a 3rd time, debated and voted on. Most bills need a majority to pass. Bills with urgency clauses, appropriation measures, and some tax-related bills need a two-thirds majority. If the bill is passed, it is sent to the second house.
Second House: Procedures for a bill to pass the 2nd house are similar to consideration and passage in the house of origin. Amendments: If the 2nd house passes a bill with amendments, the bill must be passed a 2nd time by the house of origin for concurrence. If the amendments are rejected, a conference committee is formed to iron out the differences between the two houses.
Governor: The Governor must act on (sign or veto) any bill that passes the Legislature within 12 days during the legislative session. However, the Governor has 30 days in which to act at the end of the biennium. Bills not acted upon by the Governor automatically become law. A two-thirds vote of the Legislature is required to override a Governor’s veto.
Committee: Hearing(s) are held in committee and testimony is taken from proponents and opponents. Generally, the committee will then amend, pass, or fail to pass the bill.
Second Reading: Bills that are passed by committee are read as a 2nd time and sent to the full floor for debate.
Floor debate (in house of origin): The bill is read a 3rd time, debated and voted on. Most bills need a majority to pass. Bills with urgency clauses, appropriation measures, and some tax-related bills need a two-thirds majority. If the bill is passed, it is sent to the second house.
Second House: Procedures for a bill to pass the 2nd house are similar to consideration and passage in the house of origin. Amendments: If the 2nd house passes a bill with amendments, the bill must be passed a 2nd time by the house of origin for concurrence. If the amendments are rejected, a conference committee is formed to iron out the differences between the two houses.
Governor: The Governor must act on (sign or veto) any bill that passes the Legislature within 12 days during the legislative session. However, the Governor has 30 days in which to act at the end of the biennium. Bills not acted upon by the Governor automatically become law. A two-thirds vote of the Legislature is required to override a Governor’s veto.