Governors Briefs: New Legislation Supports LGBTQ+ Californians and Cracks Down on Sex Trafficking

Gov. Newsom Signs Legislation Supporting LGBTQ+ Californians

SACRAMENTO — Gov. Gavin Newsom Sept. 23 signed legislation strengthening protections and supports for LGBTQ+ Californians, including measures to better support vulnerable youth. 

The measures include AB 5 by Assemblymember Rick Chavez Zbur (D-Los Angeles), which sets implementation timelines for required LGBTQ+ cultural competency training by public school teachers and staff. The Governor also signed SB 857 by Senator John Laird (D-Santa Cruz), which will establish an advisory task force to identify LGBTQ+ pupil needs statewide and assist in implementing supportive initiatives, and AB 223 by Assemblymember Christopher Ward (D-San Diego), which requires any petition for a change of gender and sex identifier by a minor to be kept confidential by the court.

New California Law Cracks Down on Sex Trafficking of Minors

SACRAMENTO —  Gov. Gavin Newsom, joined by First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom, State Senator Shannon Grove (R-Bakersfield), State Senator Anna Caballero (D-Merced) and survivors and advocates, Sept. 25 signed SB 14 (Grove) into law to steepen penalties for human trafficking of minors in California. The law designates human trafficking of a minor for purposes of a commercial sex act as a serious felony — including under the state’s “Three Strikes” law — and imposes harsher penalties and sentencing enhancements for individuals convicted of the crime.

“The trafficking of young women and girls is a heinous crime with far too many victims,” said First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom. “I’ve seen the pain survivors carry for a lifetime and having recently visited the infamous Figueroa sex trafficking corridor, I’ve witnessed the devastating impacts of these crimes — not just on girls and young women — but on entire communities when trafficking persists. That’s why I am especially grateful to Senator Grove for her assiduousness in combating human trafficking and helping ensure California is a safer place for women and children.”

Human sex trafficking is a heinous crime that can have numerous long-lasting, harmful impacts on victims, survivors, and their families. SB 14, which passed the state Assembly and Senate unanimously, is a bipartisan measure co-authored by 64 members of the Legislature. The legislation is supported by over a hundred local, national and international organizations, including a coalition of human trafficking survivors and advocates.