SACRAMENTO – Today, the California State Senate passed Senate Bill 903 by Senator Steve Padilla, a measure designed to ensure that mental health services are safe, ethical, and conducted by trained professionals, not artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms. This bill would prohibit AI algorithms from providing or advertising “therapy” and set standards for professional’s use of AI to promote human-centered care.
Press Releases
SACRAMENTO – Today, Senator Steve Padilla (D-San Diego) issued the following statement after 3 victims were killed at the Islamic Center of San Diego.
SACRAMENTO, CA — Following the release of the report required under SB 254 (Becker, 2025), Senate President pro Tempore Monique Limón has tasked Senator Josh Becker (D–Menlo Park) and Senator Steve Padilla (D-San Diego) with studying the recommendations from a report required by the passage of SB 254, and after a series of hearings on the topic coordinate the Senate’s response to help protect Californians from wildfires, strengthen recovery efforts, and rising energy and insurance costs.
SACRAMENTO – Today, Senator Steve Padilla (D-San Diego) introduced Senate Bill 10, a measure protecting vulnerable communities by requiring state agencies to include a gender analysis and perspective in climate emergency plans.
SACRAMENTO – This week, the California State Senate passed Senate Bill 941 by Senator Steve Padilla (D-San Diego), which would prohibit the excessive markup of products sold at private detention facilities.
SACRAMENTO – Yesterday, the Senate Environmental Quality Committee approved Senate Bill 1033, authored by Senator Steve Padilla (D-San Diego). The bill aims to protect consumers by requiring testing and disclosure of heavy metals in protein products sold in California.
SACRAMENTO – This week, the California Senate Judiciary Committee with bipartisan support passed Senate Bill 1247, a measure authored by Senator Steve Padilla (D-San Diego) which would require content creators who feature their minor children and receive compensation for that content to delete or edit the material if requested by the child after they turn 18.
SACRAMENTO – This week, several key committees approved and advanced Senate Bill 1119 and Assembly Bill 2023 authored by Senator Steve Padilla (D-San Diego) and Assemblymembers Buffy Wicks (D-Oakland) and Rebecca Bauer-Kahan (D-Orinda). The bills strengthen California’s nation-leading chatbot safeguards for children and establish a comprehensive regulatory framework to address the risk of prolonged chatbot interactions by children.