Press Releases

Two Bills Introduced in Senate to Shield Ratepayers from Higher Energy Costs and Protect California’s Climate Goals




SACRAMENTO – Today, State Senator Steve Padilla (D-San Diego) issued the following statement in response to OpenAI and Common Sense Media reaching an agreement on comprehensive chatbot safety regulations that builds upon last year’s SB 243 to protect children and other vulnerable users:




SACRAMENTO – Today, on the eve of the 1-year anniversary of the Eaton Fire, newly-appointed Senate Insurance Committee Chair, Senator Steve Padilla (D-San Diego) and California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara introduced Senate Bill 876, which would comprehensively reform the insurance claims process by cutting red tape, improving payouts, and ending delays and runarounds by insurance companies.




SACRAMENTO – Today, Senator Steve Padilla (D-San Diego) announced he will introduce legislation placing a 4-year moratorium on the sale and manufacturing of toys with AI chatbot capabilities for children under 18 to allow time for safety regulations to be developed protecting children from dangerous AI interactions.




SACRAMENTO – Last week, at a joint hearing of the California Seante Environmental Quality and Assembly Environmental Safety and Toxic Materials Committees, Senator Steve Padilla (D-San Diego) announced that he will introduce language into Senate Bill 58 that will update California’s air quality standard for hydrogen sulfide (H2S), a gas that is found at high concentrations in the Tijuana River Valley and the Salton Sea region. California’s hydrogen sulfide standard has not been updated since 1969.




SACRAMENTO – State Senator Steve Padilla (D-San Diego) released the following statement today in response to the recent gun violence at Brown University and in Sydney, Australia:




Today, State Senator Steve Padilla (D-San Diego) issued the following statement in response to OpenAI’s announced ballot initiative designed to limit additional legal protections from abusive and predatory AI chatbots:




SACRAMENTO – This week, State Senator Steve Padilla (D-San Diego) sent a letter (attached) to the members of the Imperial County Board of Supervisors to request further information on the rationale for the approval of the first stages of a data center application to be developed in the County.