For information on CFBPW Legislation endorsements, contact our Public Policy Chair

CFBPW Public Policy Statement. 2024-26

Focus Issues for 2024-26

1). Promote reproductive justice for all women, in particular by increasing access to reproductive and sexual healthcare.
2). Protect voting rights for all eligible voters including women.
3). Promote housing security.

Bills Reviewed by the CFBPW Bill Screening Committee in 2024 

Assembly Bills

AB 518 Author, Wicks  Paid family leave for Chosen Family member

This bill would expand eligibility for benefits under the paid family leave program to include individuals who take time off work to care for a seriously ill designated person. The bill would define “designated person” to mean any individual related by blood or whose association with the employee is the equivalent of a family relationship. The bill would authorize the employee to identify the designated person when they file a claim for benefits. The bill would make conforming changes to the definitions of the terms “family care leave” and “family member.” Support. Approved by Governor and Chaptered 09/28/24.

 AB 793  Author(s)   Bonta    Reverse Warrants

Would protect digital privacy for medical information by banning certain types of digital surveillance. The main purpose would be to protect against disclosure to law enforcement of sensitive reproductive health information for those seeking reproductive and gender-affirming care.  Support  Passed the Assembly June 1, 2023. In the Senate, hearing in Judiciary Committee canceled at author’s request on June 30, 2023. 

AB 884 (Low and Cervantes) Voting access for non-English speakers
Expands current language translation and assistance requirements for voters with limited English proficiency. It lowers the threshold for the Secretary of State (SOS) to identify
voters by county/precinct who lack sufficient English skills to vote without assistance, requiring county elections officials to translate elections materials in additional identified
languages and to expand related outreach efforts. SUPPORT Enrolled and presented to Governor 09/11/24, vetoed by Governor 09/22/24.
referral.

AB 1801 – (Bryand) Free menstrual products for incarcerated persons
Removes the existing requirement that a person incarcerated in state prison or confined in a local detention or juvenile facility must first request personal hygiene products, instead entitling them to ready access to free menstrual products. SUPPORT Approved by Governor and Chaptered 09/27/24.

AB 1895 (Weber) Maternity ward closures
Would stem the tide of hospitals closing their labor and delivery wards by requiring community impact assessments and the opportunity for public input prior to any closure. SUPPORT  Governor vetoed 09/29/24.

AB 1961 – (Wicks) End Hunger in California
Establishes a task force to develop a master plan to end hunger. SUPPORT  Enrolled 09/05/24. Vetoed by Governor 09/24/24. 

AB 2007 (Boerner) Homeless Youth Transitional Housing
Would establish a three-year pilot project for transitional housing for homeless LGBTQ+ youth, in up to five selected counties. The program would be administered by LGBTQ+ centers in each participating county to house eligible youth and to provide crisis intervention services. SUPPORT.  In committee. Held under submission 05/16/24. 

AB 2053 (Mathis) Sexual health education: including information on abusive relationships
Would amend CA Healthy Youth Act to include additional information about resources related to adolescent relationship abuse and intimate partner violence.  SUPPORT. Enrolled 9/3 Chaptered Secretary of State. Chapter 695, statutes 2024 approved by Gov 09/27/24.

AB 2085 (Bauer-Kahn) Streamlining clinic licensure
Streamlines the development of community clinics by creating an exception to local zoning and CEQA review for clinics in areas already zoned for retailed and services. Aims to alleviate unjustified local opposition delaying and blocking local construction. SUPPORT. Approved by Governor and Chaptered 09/28/24.

AB 2123 (Papan) Improving Access to Paid Family Leave
Prevents employers from requiring employees to take up to two weeks of accrued vacation days before accessing Paid Family Leave. SUPPORT. Enrolled and presented to Governor 09/03/24.Approved by Governor and Chaptered 09/29/24. 

AB 2137 – (Quick-Silva) Support Foster and Homeless Youth
Seeks to increase high school and college graduation rates of nearly 250,000 homeless and 46,000 youth in foster care, leveraging existing funding to increase direct support and other services. SUPPORT. Approved  09/22/24. Chaptered by Secretary of State-Chapter 382 Statutes of 2024. 

AB 2167 (Cervantes) Paid Family Leave
Would allow workers to apply for Paid Family Leave benefits up to 60 days in advance. (Does not apply to Disability benefits, as SB 1090 does.) SUPPORT. Still in committee. Will not pass this year. 09/30/24. 

AB 2229 (Wilson) CA Healthy Youth Act: Menstrual Health Education
Would amend CA Healthy Youth Act to make menstrual health a component of sex ed. SUPPORT. Approved and Chaptered 09/27/24.

AB 2258 (Zbur) Health Care Coverage Cost sharing
Would codify into CA law the ACA requirement that health coverage of preventive services be without cost sharing. SUPPORT. Approved and Chaptered 09/27/24.

AB2490 – (Petrie-Norris) Reproductive Health Emergency Preparedness Program
Creates a grant program to train and equip emergency departments to provide access to timely evidence based treatment of pregnancy loss, miscarriage, contraception, emergency contraception, medication and/or surgical abortion, and management of pregnancy related emergencies. SUPPORT. Enrolled and presented to Governor 09/13/24.  9/20/24 vetoed.

AB 2499 (Schiavo): Strengthening Safe Leave
Would strengthen current anti-discrimination, leave and accommodations for survivors of domestic violence and violent crimes and allow workers to use their paid sick and safe
days and take unpaid leave from work to support a family member who is a survivor of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, or other violent crime. SUPPORT. Approved and Chaptered 09/29/24. 

 AB 2759 (Petrie-Norris) Domestic Violence Protective Orders: Firearms
Clarifies when a court may allow a person subject to a domestic violence protective order to possess a firearm and/or ammunition at work, when using a firearm is a job requirement. It differentiates between peace officers and civilians. SUPPORT. Approved by Governor 09/24/24. Chaptered by Secretary of State-Chapter 535, Statutes of 2024 09/24/24. 

AB 2843 (Petrie-Norris) Health Care Coverage: rape and sexual assault
Would require coverage without cost sharing for care and treatment related to rape and sexual assault. SUPPORT. Approved and Chaptered 09/29/24.

AB 2901 (Aguiar-Curry) Pregnancy Leave for Educators
Would fix a broken system for public school and community college educators who go without any paid disability related to pregnancy, granting them up to 14 weeks of leave
with full pay. SUPPORT. Ordered to inactive file by request of Senator Gonzalez 08/28/24.  

Senate Bills

SB 953 (Menjivar) Menstrual products
Would require Medi-Cal to cover menstrual products as a coverage benefit. SUPPORT. Held in committee and under submission 05/16/24. 

SB 954 (Menjivar) Youth Health Equity & Safety Acts
Would address the sexually transmitted infection (STI) epidemic among California youth by expanding teen access to condoms in schools and requiring schools to post a notice informing students of where to get condoms on campus and of sexual and reproductive health information and resources. Also prohibits pharmacies and retailers from asking for IDs for condom purchases. WATCH. Vetoed by Governor 9/25/24. 

SB 1022 (Skinner) Strengthens the authority of CA’s Civil Rights Department to address systemic discriminatory actions under the Fair Employment and Housing Act. Extends the limitations period for the Department to file class actions against workplace, housing and other  unlawful discrimination under the FEHA to 7 years. SUPPORT. Presented and enrolled to the Governor 09/03/24. Vetoed by Governor 09/29/24

SB 1090 (Durazo) Early Application for Paid Family Leave and State Disability Insurance Benefits.
Would allow workers to apply for Paid Family Leave and Disability benefits up to 30 days in advance of the start of their leave. SUPPORT. Approved and chaptered 09/28/24. 

SB1174 (Min) Voter identification
Bans local voter ID laws, which have historically been used to disenfranchise low-income voters, voters of color, voters with disabilities and senior voters. It would prevent local governments from enacting or enforcing any law or regulation requiring a person to present identification for voting or submitting a ballot. SUPPORT. Enrolled 8/29. Chaptered by Secretary of State 9/29 chapter 990, statutes 9/24. Approved by Governor 09/29/24.

SB 1434 (Durazo). A Strong Unemployment Insurance Program for a Resilient Economy
Would modernize California’s Unemployment Insurance benefits and funding structure to create a secure social safety net for our state’s future. It would increase weekly benefit
amounts to workers, increase the UI Fund’s taxable wage base to ensure the fund is solvent, and protect the DI Fund from future borrowing. SUPPORT. Set for first hearing, canceled at request of author 04/17/24.  

ERA UPDATES (August 11, 2023) 

Two bills have been introduced in Congress to express that the Equal Rights Amendment has been validly ratified and that it is enforceable as the 28th Amendment to the Constitution. The bills also call on the U. S. Archivist to certify and publish it without delay. The House Bill is HJ Res 82 Bush, Cori (D-MO-1). It has 70 co-sponsors – all Democrats. Of these 12 are from California. If your representative is not on the list, contact her or him to be a co-sponsor. The Senate Bill is SJ Res 39 Gillibrand, Kristen (D-NY). It has 22 co-sponsors – 19 Democrats and 1 Independent Sanders from Vermont. Both California Senators are co-sponsors.

The House bill to remove the deadline for passage of the Equal Rights Amendment is H.J. Res. 25 Pressley, Avanna (D-MA-7). It has 208 co-sponsors – 207 Democrats and one Republican Brian Fitzpatrick from Pennsylvania. Of these 40 are from California. July 18th Rep. moved to discharge the bill from the House Judiciary Committee. Pressure needs to be put on Speaker Kevin McCarty to bring it to a vote.

The comparable Senate bill is SJ Res 4 Cardin, Benjamin (D-MD) It has 52 co-sponsors – 48 Democrats, 3 Independents (King from Maine, Sanders from Vermont and Sinema from Arizona) and 2 Republicans (Murkowski from Alaska and Collins from Maine). Both California Senators are co-sponsors. April 25th Senator brought it to a vote on the Senate floor. There were 51 “yes” votes and 47 “no” votes (all Republicans). It failed as 60 votes were needed to pass it. Previously on February 28th the Senate had a hearing on the bill. Senator Cardin gave the background on the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA). Senator Graham (R-SC) spoke against the bill pointing out that five States have rescinded their ratification after the original 35 ratified. ERA never got the needed 38 States with these rescissions. He said there needs to be 60 votes in the Senate to eliminate the time limit and to overcome a possible filibuster. He quoted Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who said we need to start over. Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS) said that the ERA will harm women, and it is vague. She asserted that the 14th Amendment, Title VI, the Equal Pay Act and other bills protect women. The ERA will muddy the waters. It will also destroy privacy for women and will restore unrestricted abortion and make tax payers pay for abortions. Senator Murkowski (R-AK) pointed that the ERA is clear. She pointed out that 29 percent of Congress members are women. Thirty-eight percent of court judges are women, but only ten percent of Fortune 500 CEOs are women. We have some progress, but that is not enough. Women make $0.82 for what a male makes. Female managers make $0.77 for what male managers make. She said we have a long way to go. “We need the ERA to get there.” She pointed out that Alaska ratified the ERA in 1978. It is long overdue and would insure equal treatment under the law for women. Juliana Stratton, Lt. Governor of Illinois, said she was at State Assembly when Illinois voted they ratified the ERA. She pointed out that Black women only earn $0.64 as compared to men. She also said that should the ERA pass, it will not guarantee that there will be equal rights overnight. We will still need to fight. She asked the Senators to consider their daughters, mothers and sisters. Jennifer C. Braceras, Director of the Independent Women’s Law Center, said that the ERA is a fraud. She said that the ERA does not define sex. Men can ID themselves as women so they can be put in women’s prisons. Do we want single sex teams in sports? Should we have an equal number of men and women in combat? What about religions organizations that only ordain men? Would they have to ordain women? Ms. Thursday Williams is a senior at Trinity College and also served on the Board of the ERA Coalition. She pointed out that the Constitution is flexible and has been adapted by different generations. The Constitution in 2023 still does not say she is equal to men. After she graduates, she will start at the most prestigious law firm, but she realizes that she is not protected from earning less than a man with equal qualifications. “The ERA will make the Constitution more perfect. Attorney Kathleen Sullivan said that the ERA was passed with a bipartisan vote in 1972. She is also a constitutional scholar. She said that Congress can eliminate the deadline. The deadline is in the Preamble to the ERA. There is no time limit in Article V of the Constitution. The States vote on the text not the Preamble. One Congress cannot bind a future Congress. She said that the States that rescinded the ERA are not recognized under Article V. They are counted as having ratified. “We would not have the 14th Amendment if rescissions had counted. Senator Graham pointed out that Illinois and Nevada’s Attorneys General had sued in Washington, D.C. to enroll the ERA as the 28th Amendment. The Circuit Court sent it back to Congress saying there was nothing standing in the way for Congress to decide that the ERA was the 28th Amendment.

The NFBPWC website nfbpwc.org has OneClickPolitics and can be used to contact your Senators to co-sponsor SJ Res 4 eliminating the deadline.

We have been trying to pass the ERA for 100 years, let’s get it done!

CFBPW joins “California Work and Family Coalition.” 

The California Federation of Business and Professional women became an official member of the California Work and Family Coalition in early 2023.  “[The] Coalition—made up of community organizers, public health officials, unions, worker leaders, legal experts, and advocates—works together to advance policies that build family-friendly workplaces.” See workfamilyca.org.

Coalition resources:

• A resources hub providing information about paid family leave rights in California.  https://www.workfamilyca.org/resources.
• A Legal Aid at Work webpage with know-your-rights information and with fact sheets that address how being a survivor of domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking relates to employment, including rights to take related leave. https://legalaidatwork.org/our-programs/domestic-violence-survivors/.

CFBPW Selects State Senator Toni Atkins as 2023 Legislator of the Year. Click here to hear her acceptance message https://youtu.be/IujuwD98KCM

NFBPWC program now that Roe is gone “Dr. Yen’s 8 Tips Now that Roe Is Gone” Dr. Yen’s 8 Tips Now That Roe Is Gone – YouTube

Link to CA website on bills California Legislative Information

New Race and Ethnicity Data on Women in State Legislatures 

Earlier this month, CAWP released updated data on the race and ethnicity of women serving in state legislatures around the country, and this data, compiled following the 2022 elections, shows new records for women across race and ethnicity groups.

• Asian American/Pacific Islander women: 98 (91D, 6R, 1NP) Asian American/Pacific Islander women serve in state legislatures. The previous record was 78, set in 2022.
• Black women: 372 (367D, 3R, 2I) Black women serve in state legislatures. The previous record was 369, set in 2022.
• Latinas: 190 (166D, 24R) Latinas serve in state legislatures. The previous record was 156, set in 2021.
• Native American women: 36 (30D, 6R) Native American women serve in state legislatures. The previous record was 32, set in 2022.
• Middle Eastern or North African women: 13 (13D) Middle Eastern or North African women serve in state legislatures. The previous record was 11, set in 2021.
• White women: A record 1,728 (945D, 759R, 4I, 20NP) white women serve in state legislatures.
• Multiracial women: 2 (2D) women who identify as multiracial alone serve in state legislatures.

These figures include women who identify with the given racial or ethnic group alone and women who identify with that racial or ethnic group in combination with others; adding totals from each racial and ethnic group above will not yield an overall tally of women of color serving in state legislatures, as it will double count officeholders who identify with more than group. Find full data on women serving in state legislatures by race and ethnicity here.

National Federation of Business and Professional Women’s Clubs’ (NFBPWC) Presentation on the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) at the General Assembly on August 6, 2022 https://youtu.be/WCetFfjFAKg.

California Representative Judy Chu was the luncheon speaker via a tape at the NFBPWC Assembly on Friday, August 5, 2022. She talked about reproductive justice – see Teleprompter Pro Video 2022-07-25 03-02-43.mp4 (dropbox.com)

As part of CFBPW’s Public Policy Statement, CFBPW supports the ratification of CEDAW. The following is part of former NFBPWC’s President Elizabeth “Liz” Benham’s presentation on May 26, 2021 to East Los Angeles-Montebello BPW CEDAW PPT, CEDAW, CEDAW2, CEDAW3 and CEDAW4

President Biden signs reauthorization of VAWA

On March 15th President Biden signed the Consolidated Appropriations Act for fiscal year 2022, which included the long absent reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act. Below are a few key points about the legislation, excerpted from the Department of Justice’s Press Release about the reauthorization. In addition to recognizing expanded jurisdiction for American Indian and Alaska Native tribes, the VAWA reauthorization addresses numerous Department of Justice priorities, including:

• Reauthorizing until 2027 VAWA’s vitally important grant programs, which will allow communities to provide critical services to survivors, as well as the right tools and training to make sure that responses to these crimes are survivor-centered and trauma-informed.
  
• Increasing services and support for underserved populations, including culturally specific communities, LGBTQ survivors, individuals with disabilities, immigrant survivors, older adults, and victims in rural communities, among others.
• Closing gaps in federal sex crimes statutes and promoting accountability for law enforcement officers, by strengthening the ability to prosecute federal officers who sexually assault or abuse those in their custody, and by appropriately penalizing defendants who commit civil rights offenses involving sexual misconduct, which includes those who commit sexual assault while acting under color of law and those who commit sexual assault as part of a hate crime.
• Enhancing efforts to reduce homicides through enforcement of federal and state firearms laws, including by enacting the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) Denial Notification Act to help state law enforcement investigate and prosecute unlawful firearms purchasers and amending the Gun Control Act to make clear that the firearm prohibitions apply to domestic violence offenders convicted under municipal ordinances.
• Improving access to justice for survivors by expanding grant funding for legal services and authorizing post-conviction legal assistance to survivors in matters arising out of their domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, stalking, or sex trafficking victimization.

  REMINDER: Don’t forget to sign up for the NFBPWC Advocacy Text Alerts!

  Text the keyword advocate1919 to the number 313131 to receive advocacy text alerts from NFBPWC!*. The text alert system is open to members AND non-members! Take a minute to share with a friend¦.or 2!
  *Mobile messaging rates from your carrier may apply.

THREE LAWSUITS FILED TO PROTECT ROE V. WADE
Contact: Honi Goldman, 502-451-4564, email honigoldman@gmail.com Three lawsuits were filed today (June 2022) in New York, Michigan and Rhode Island to protect Roe v. Wade from being overturned, and firmly establish the Equal Rights Amendment (“ERA”) in the United States Constitution. The plaintiff, The Elizabeth Cady Stanton Trust, filed the lawsuits to affirm that women are fully equal citizens under the U.S. Constitution, and are entitled to full and Equal Protection of all laws. Stanton was a leading women’s rights activist in the 1800s, whose leadership led to women winning the right to vote in 1920. The Trust’s president, Coline Jenkins, is the great, great granddaughter of Elizabeth Cady Stanton. Jenkins explained that the lawsuits were filed because “only with full Equal Protection of all laws can women’s right to choose be protected.” The lawsuits were filed in response to the recently leaked opinion of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito, who proposes to overturn Roe v Wade. The lawsuits were filed in states where Attorneys General have expressed their support for Roe, and have stated publicly that the ERA is valid. These lawsuits ask the courts to declare the ERA valid and ensure that all laws are fully compliant with the ERA. The lawsuits assert claims under the ERA as the Twenty-Eighth Amendment to the Constitution and state that because three-fourths of the states have ratified the ERA it is now part of the Constitution and must be enforced. Article V of the Constitution states that an amendment becomes valid the moment the last of 3/4ths of the states ratifies it, which was Virginia in January 2020. But federal officials have refused to acknowledge the ERA’s validity because a purported ratification deadline expired before Virginia ratified. The lawsuits assert that the ERA is valid because the deadline is not valid. The Elizabeth Cady Stanton Trust’s co-founder, Marsha Weinstein, explained, “these lawsuits have been filed in state court because the American people speak through the states when they ratify an amendment, and the American people have made their voices clear that the ERA is part of our Constitution. Federal officials may not agree, but the states play an equal role alongside the federal government in the Amendment process, and the states have decided in unequivocal terms that the ERA is now valid. We are now asking state courts to affirm this reality, which will guarantee equal treatment for all women in America at all times under all laws, including Roe.”

 Attorney Mary Mahoney filed the Michigan case. She explained that “many scholars agree the ERA’s purported deadline is not valid, and that the ERA is now our Twenty-Eighth Amendment. All we are asking is that judges in states that have ratified the ERA affirm this vitally important amendment to protect women’s right to choose, equal pay, and equal protection of all laws.”

Attorney Amy Rice, who filed in Rhode Island, added, “In the year 2022, it is unconscionable that officials in D.C. have taken steps to prevent the ERA from being added to our Constitution, and that they would seek to deny women the basic human right to full equality under the law, especially considering what’s going on with the Supreme Court right now. Women need equality more than ever to ensure that they receive equal treatment by all courts at all times, including the Supreme Court of the United States.”

 Carol Jenkins explained why her organization (ERA Coalition) was so eager to take action, “Many women are saying we will not go backward, but my great, great, grandmother would be saying, we must move forward – forward to full equality for all women in America. She was fearless in her fight for women’s equality and I hope her legacy inspires all women to be fearless in support of these lawsuits.”

TO: CFBPW Public Policy Conference
FROM: Linda Wilson, Sierra Mar District President
SUBJECT: ERA, Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum, Quarters and $20 bill  AS OF February 19, 2022

1). January 27th was the date that the Equal Rights Amendment should have gone into effect. The Amendment said that it would go into effect two years after the 38th State, which was Virginia, ratified it. There was a rally at Lafayette Park , which is close to the front of the White House,  at noon on January 27th in support of the ERA, which NFBPWC helped sponsor, but was not mentioned at the rally or given a chance to talk. Rebecca Wise, Maryland BPW President; Susan Horst, past President of Maryland BPW, and three additional Maryland BPW members attended the rally. They had submitted a form to speak, but were not called on. After the rally they marched to the Department of Justice to deliver 80 thousand petition signatures. The petition called on the Office of Legal Counsel to scrap the Trump’s Attorney General’s “flawed memo” on the ERA and publish it to the Constitution. NFBPWC has joined and is a sponsor of the ERA Coalition. January 26th the Biden Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel issued a new opinion, this time affirming the power of Congress to remove the time limit, but they did not withdraw the memo from the Trump Administration. More than 200 Constitutional law scholars say that the Trump Administration’s memo needs to be withdrawn.

Both President Biden and Vice President Harris called for the ERA to be added to the Constitution as the 28th Amendment. The President called on Congress to recognize the ratification. It should be noted that the Executive Branch has no control over ratification of Amendments to the Constitution. That belongs to Congress. January 28, 2022 Congresswomen Jackie Speier and Carolyn Maloney introduced a resolution in the House (H Res 891) that affirms the ERA as the 28th Amendment to the Constitution. There are 155 co-sponsors (all Democrats). It was referred to the House Judiciary Committee. As of January 31st SJ Res 1 (Resolution to eliminate the deadline from the preamble to the ERA) has 51 co-sponsors 47 Democrats, two Independents (Sanders and King) and two Republicans (Murkowski and Collins). The House voted to eliminate the deadline March 17, 2021, but the Senate has yet to take action.

February 8th Senators Portman (R-Ohio and Ranking Member Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs), Romney (R-Utah) and Johnson (R-Wisconsin) sent a letter to the Archivist telling him not to publish the ERA and that the Acting Archivist, who will take over in April when the current Archivist retires, is not to publish it either.

January 3, 2022 the Attorneys General of Nevada, Illinois and Virginia filed new briefs to have a review of the lower court ruling that dismissed their original January 2020 ERA case. February 2022 the Virginia Attorney General after the election of Governor Youngkin (R) pulled out of the case. The legal counsel for the other Attorneys General Linda Coberly added 13 amicus briefs representing 50 women’s rights organizations, 86 businesses and corporations, 20 constitutional law professors and former state legislators. Coberly stressed that the lower D.C. Circuit Court erred in dismissing the suit. The District Court judge who dismissed the lawsuit last year stated that the Attorneys General did not have legal grounds to sue and that the seven-year deadline had expired.

The Equal Means Equal ERA appeal lawsuit filed in Boston federal court won’t be reheard. Wendy Murphy, lead attorney in the Boston case, said the plaintiffs have not decided whether to petition the Supreme Court to review the case.

2). December 2020 Congress enacted the Smithsonian Women’s History Act, which established in the Smithsonian Institution a comprehensive women’s history museum. The bill established a council that, among other things, shall make recommendations to the board on the planning, design, and construction of the museum. The board shall designate a site for the museum, with priority given to a site that is on or near the National Mall. They are still in the site selection process, and they expect to complete the site selection process by the end of the calendar year. As a part of the process, they will be launching a national survey to gather additional feedback this spring. To participate in the survey, they want people to sign up for the Smithsonian’s women’s history newsletter at:  https://womenshistory.si.edu/email.  The Museum will be funded by a combination of federal and private money. According to the Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum, “the enabling legislation states that the federal government will match in appropriations the private funds raised for the building. So federal funds will cover one-half of the construction costs for the building. However, we do not yet know the total cost of the construction until a site is selected.” They also have not yet finalized their donation levels. Some of the donors already are 19th Amendment Society, Ford Foundation, Dick and Betsy DeVos Family Foundation, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the Cocoa Cola Foundation and others. They are accepting gifts. The Smithsonian projects that it will be ten years before such a museum opens based on what has happened with other Smithsonian Museums. The Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum is a separate organization from the National Women’s History Museum. National Women’s History Museum Board Chair Susan Whiting said, “We are delighted that the legislation we fought so hard to get introduced all those years ago finally passed the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate on a bi-partisan basis as part of the COVID relief/omnibus appropriations package. We strongly support this bill, but we also understand the reality that the timeline is uncertain and the bill still needs to be funded. We remain laser-focused, as we have been for the past 25 years, on the urgency of representation of sharing women’s stories and celebrating their contributions to our national narrative. We’ve long championed the creation of a space that captures and communicates the breadth and depth of women’s experiences and accomplishments, and this space is long overdue. We remain committed to having our own museum now.” The leaders of the Smithsonian Committee are Lisa Sasaki, Interim Director, Smithsonian Women’s History Museum, and Tey Marianna Nunn, Director, American Women’s History Museum. The Advisory Council has 23 members including Tory Burch, Lynda Carter, Rosario Dawson, Billie Jean King, Craig Newmark (founder of Craig’s List), Penny Pritzker (former U.S. Secretary of Commerce), S. Mona Sinha (founder of the Asian Women’s Leadership University), Representative Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), Representative Jackie Walorski (R-IN) and Alice Walton. CFBPW remains a strong supporter of this museum – see resolution sent to California’s Legislative delegation in 2012 following this report.

There are a couple of other items that may be of interest.

3). The American Women quarters program will be a series of quarters featuring notable women in U.S. history on the back of the quarter, commemorating the centennial of the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. The United States Mint will issue up to five designs each year from 2022 to 2025 for up to 20 total designs. The first quarter will feature author, poet and actress Maya Angelou and is to be out this month. Others on the quarter will be Dr. Sally Ride – physicist, astronaut, educator, and first American woman in space; Nina Otero-Warren – a leader in New Mexico’s suffrage movement and the first female superintendent of Santa Fe public schools; Wilma Mankiller – first female principal chief of the Cherokee Nation; Anna Mae Wong – first Chinese American film star in Hollywood.

4). President Biden promised to accelerate the plan to replace Jackson on the $20 bill with Harriet Tubman. Representatives Joyce Beatty, D-Ohio, and John Katko, R-N.Y. wrote a letter to the Biden administration asking for an accelerated timeline on the issue, but nothing has developed further. The process is more difficult than may be initially perceived as new currency has to be outfitted with world-class anti-counterfeit traits. Additionally, the American Council of the Blind successfully sued the Treasury Department demanding that the department includes a tactile signifier, similar to Braille, for the blind and visually impaired. The decision was made to include such an element in the next revision of the U.S. currency. The deadline for a new $20 bill is still 2030, which was put in place by an anti-counterfeit committee in 2013.

Resolution In Support of the National Women’s History Museum (Now called the Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum) 

WHEREAS,     The California Federation of Business and Professional Women advocates on
issues of importance to working women; promotes personal and professional
development and fosters connections among women;

WHEREAS,     Many women have contributed to our nation’s history and remain unheralded and
unremembered;

WHEREAS,     The establishment of a National Women’s History Museum would herald and
remember these women; and

 THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED That the California Federation of Business and Professional
Women supports the creation of a National Women’s History Museum in
Washington, D.C. and urges Congress to make available for sale the necessary
land; and,

RESOLVED    That the President of the California Federation of Business and
Professional Women is instructed to forward a copy of this resolution to the
California Congressional delegation and any other elected persons
deemed important in the process.

adopted May 20, 2012 California Federation of Business and Professional Women
(Signed by President and Secretary)

SEXUAL HARASSMENT AND ABUSE AGAINST WORKING WOMEN
by Jackie Melvin, Committee Chair

BE AWARE APRIL IS SEXUAL HARASSMENT AWARENESS MONTH

CALIFORNIA’S NEW SEXUAL HARASSMENT LEGISLATION FOR 2019

It is noteworthy that some 2,576 bills were introduced before the February deadline for the new legislative session, likely a record. While many may be just “empty vessels”, introduced as placeholders, a review of the legislative records found that 694 were so-called “intent” bills promising details later, which may be many months.

Submitted by the deadline were ten bills dealing with Sexual Harassment and which will likely see amendment and other changes as they move through the legislative process during the year.

AB1094: ASM CHOI: Sexual Harassment Claims Against Members of the Legislature and Settlement Payments. Prohibits either house of the Legislature from paying any compromise or settlement of a SH action against a Member of the Legislature. This takes the financial burden off the taxpayers and puts it where it belongs – on the perpetrator.

IN EDUCATION: Schools are the workplaces for students and so these bills are included for CFBPW consideration.

AB 543: ASM SMITH AND SEN LEYVA, [co-author]: Would require each educational institution to create a poster that notifies pupils of the written policy on SH and to prominently and conspicuously display on campus with rules and procedures for reporting charges of SH.

SB 493: SEN JACKSON: Requires institutions of higher education that receive state funds to comply with requirements relating to the protection of students from SH and sets forth specifics including requirements for gender equity personnel, training, and procedures.

IN THE WORKPLACE:

SB 778: Committee on Labor, Public Employment, and Retirement: Impacts rules for SH training by CA employers.

AB 628: ASM BONTA: Amends sections of the CA LABOR CODE relating to employment to add Code’s employment protections to victims of SH and extending these protections to family members of the victims.

ASM LORENA GONZALEZ has submitted five [5] bills related to workplace SH as follows:
AB 170: Amends the CA Fair Employment and Housing Act [FEHA] to require a client employer to share with a labor contractor all civil legal responsibility and civil harassment for all workers supplied by the labor contractor.

AB 171: Precludes employers from discharging or in any manner discriminating or retaliating against an employee because of the employee’s status as a victim of sexual harassment.

See further descriptions below.

AB547: JANITORIAL SURVIVOR EMPOWERMENT ACT: Impacts issues of sexual violence and harassment prevention training for janitorial workers within the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement

AB 51: Impacts non-disclosure agreements and protections for victims of SH. Our CFBPW Screening Committee voted SUPPORT at the MARCH 3 Public Policy Conference.

AB 1730: Removes sexual harassment as an intentional tort for which a public official’s public entity may be held liable as within the public official’s official duties. Puts the financial liability back on the perpetrator.

LORENA GONZALEZ represents the 80th Assembly District [southern San Diego County, including cities of San Diego, Chula Vista, and National City]. She serves as Chair of the Assembly Select Committee on Women in the Workplace, among others.

Two of her bills, 170 and 171, were approved by the Assembly Committee on Labor and Employment on 3/6/19 and moved on to hearing on 3/19/19 by the Assembly Judiciary Committee. From her web site is the following: “Workers who experience sexual harassment on the job are afraid to report that abuse because they know the law is not on their side. AB 170 will stop employers from dodging their responsibility to ensure a safe work environment, and AB 171 will protect workers from retaliation when they speak out about workplace abuse.”

AB 170, also known as Sandra’s Law, would require a company to share the legal responsibility for all workers who are provided by a contractor in cases of sexual harassment, assault and discrimination if they work in the company’s usual course on the company’s premises or worksite.

An estimated 60 percent [60%] of workers have experienced sexual harassment while on the job but have not reported it. Not only does lack of awareness of their rights prevent these workers from reporting harassment, they night also fear losing their jobs out of retaliation for filing a complaint.

BPW MEMBER ACTION

On behalf of SEXUAL HARASSMENT AWARENESS MONTH, won’t you please take one of your CFBPW postcards and address it to ASM LORENA GONZALEZ at: Capitol Office Rm 2114, PO Box 942849, Sacramento, CA 94249-0080, and say this or something like this… “Thank you for your 2019 legislation in support of elimination of sexual harassment and abuse against women in the workplace.”

TO:   CFBPW MEMBERS
FROM: LINDA WILSON
SUBJECT: EQUAL RIGHTS AMENDMENT

At September 14th CFBPW Fall Board I gave an update on the Equal Rights Amendment, what CFBPW members can do to finally get it ratified and why we need it.

As you know ratification of the Alice Paul’s Equal Rights Amendment is number one on the NFBPWC Advocacy Platform and the CFBPW Public Policy Statement. It states “Section 1: Equality of Rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex. Section 2: The Congress shall have the power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article. Section 3: This amendment shall take effect two years after the date of ratification.”

Why do we need an Equal Rights Amendment?
1). Current laws or statutes can be eliminated, amended or not enforced – e.g. Title IX.
2). State statutes do not apply to federal government action.
3). Some States including California do not have a State ERA. FYI – The California Constitution specifies equal employment and equal education rights. Ironically, five States with equal rights amendment or guarantees (Florida, Illinois, Louisiana, Utah and Virginia) have not ratified the federal ERA.
4). According to the late Justice Antonin Scalia the 14th Amendment does not protect against sex discrimination.
5). The Constitution would have zero tolerance for sex discrimination under the law.
6). It would improve the U.S. standing in the world community in respect to human rights.

Some history first – Are you aware that BPW raised $250,000 as a campaign coffer for the ratification of ERA in the 1970s and 1980s? According to Past NFBPWC President Liz Benham, BPW took a leading role in gaining congressional approval of the ERA, particularly when Congress considered it in the 1970s and passed it in 1972. BPW hired a national political consulting firm to evaluate campaign strategies. At the consultant’s recommendation, BPW helped organize an umbrella association comprising groups that supported the amendment. Founded in 1976, ERAmerica eventually including more than 200 organizations in the campaign. In 1975 a bylaws amendment provided that $1.50 from each member’s annual dues be used for the ERA Ratification Fund, which amounted to more than $250,000. This money was used to fund coalitions which sprang up practically overnight in unratified states to push ratification efforts.

In February 2018 at Public Policy Conference there was a question about rescission of the ratification. There are five States (Idaho, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kentucky and Tennessee), which have rescinded their ratification of the ERA, but there is precedent with the 14th and 15th Amendments showing that rescissions are not valid. North Dakota tried to repeal its ratification of the ERA this year, but it failed by one vote.

MORE LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

In 1919 after World War I working women from across the country united to establish the National Federation of  Business and Professional Women’s Clubs. Its purpose is to promote the interests of working women in the Businesses and the Professions.  At its 1920 annual conference the California Federation voted to join the National Federation (NFBPWC, Inc.).

BPW has successfully been developing women to be leaders in the workforce and communities.  For nearly 100 years BPW has been The Voice of Working Women.

 To help improve the leadership potential of women, CFBPW developed the Individual Development Program which was later adopted by the National Federation.

The National Federation participated with the John F. Kennedy Administration to establish a national Commission on the Status of Women, and CFBPW worked to establish the California Commission on the Status of Women and provided its first Executive Director, Past State President Marion Ash. Two other Past State Presidents – Dr. Dorothy Ford and Cravens Douglass Hansen – were appointed to the first Commission.

CFBPW’s Highway Litter Campaign gave impetus to California’s Litter Laws.

CFBPW lobbied to defeat:

• the “8-hour Law” which limited the number of hours a woman could work in a 24-hour period.
• a law that would have prevented a women from working if her husband earned more than $125/month.

CFBPW has been working to secure equal pay for women since 1938.  We’re getting closer but we’re still not there.

CFBPW successfully sponsored the “Wife’s Paycheck Law” which allowed a women to pick up her own paycheck. Previously, only a woman’s husband, father or brother could pick up her paycheck.

CFBPW successfully sponsored the State Inheritance Law revision to prevent a widow from paying a tax a widower would not.

CFBPW worked for three years to secure legislation outlawing sex discrimination in employment in California.

CFBPW was instrumental in California’s ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment.

In partnership with the Commission on the Status of Women CFBPW secured passage of the Community Property Reform Bill, which provided a wife access to a full accounting of all assets in an intact marriage.

Our work continues in supporting working women at work and in the home.

Our clubs have their own focus and personality, but they are all working for women’s equality in the workplace.

We invite you to join our organization as we Keep moving forward to bring true equality to women.