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SB 1377: Reconsideration,
Legislative Timelines and Next Steps

There has been a significant amount of inaccurate information circulating about SB 1377 (Jones) – Vaccine Medical Exemption Protections ( [link removed] [[link removed]] ) , and A Voice for Choice Advocacy wants to provide a clear, fact-based update following last week’s Senate Health Committee hearing.

SB 1377 sought to make changes to California’s school vaccine medical exemption process by addressing how exemptions are reviewed, approved, and maintained.

Bottom line - SB 1377 is not moving forward this session: SB 1377 failed in the Senate Health Committee on a 3 Ayes and 8 Noes/NVR vote. There have been claims that the bill is still active due to “reconsideration.” This is not the case. Based on direct communication with the Senate Health Committee and the author’s office, SB 1377 is DEAD.

As confirmed directly by the Senate Health Committee: “We haven’t received a reconsideration request from the author’s office, so at this point there isn’t a plan for any action…” There have also been no follow-up discussions with the Chair or Committee staff about bringing the bill back. In addition, it was confirmed directly with Senator Jones that he did not request reconsideration and therefore none was granted.

Senator Jones also publicly stated: “The bill may be done for now, but the fight will continue… We need to fix this broken system… this was just a first step.” [link removed] [[link removed]]

What is “reconsideration”? Reconsideration is a procedural option, but it is often misunderstood. Even if a request is made within the allowed timeframe, it still would have required the Health Committee Chair to grant reconsideration and a newly noticed hearing, all within strict legislative deadlines.

As the Senate Health Committee Consultant explained: “The author is allowed to request reconsideration within 15 days… If reconsideration is granted, a second hearing would have to be noticed ‘Reconsideration Vote Only’… All the other rules apply… our last hearing on fiscal bills is April 22, so there doesn’t seem to be a path…”

Given this is the final week of policy committee hearings, and no reconsideration request or committee action has occurred, there is no viable path forward.

Why clarity matters: AVFCA understands how important this issue is and why people want to remain hopeful. However, effective advocacy depends on a clear understanding of how the legislative process actually works. AVFCA is the only organization advocating for medical freedom in California with a dedicated legislative team consistently at the Capitol each week, actively meeting with legislators and staff, attending committee hearings, and working within the process to ensure accurate information and effective advocacy. In an environment where advocacy efforts are often driven by personal visibility or fundraising, AVFCA remains focused on consistent, results-driven work grounded in experience and relationships within the Capitol. AVFCA has also put together a clear, step-by-step overview of the legislative process here: [link removed] [[link removed]]

Next Steps: SB 1377 brought important attention to the issue of vaccine medical exemptions. It also highlighted that successful legislation in California requires early alignment, strong strategy, and an understanding of how the process works. The Senate Health Committee Chair recommended the path forward should include Legislative Informational Hearings, which would allow the facts to be brought before the legislative body, as well as help shape future bill language.

AVFCA remains committed to advancing real solutions grounded in experience, strategy, and results and continues this work through ongoing legislative engagement, continued education of policymakers and staff, and litigation, including our religious exemption lawsuit and our titer testing lawsuit questioning SB 277:
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If you found this information helpful and appreciate the work A Voice for Choice Advocacy is doing, please support us by making a donation today.

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Together we can make change happen!

C
Christina Hildebrand
President/Founder
A Voice for Choice Advocacy, Inc.
[email protected] [[email protected]]
www.AVoiceForChoiceAdvocacy.org [[link removed]]
www.avoiceforchoiceadvocacy.org [www.avoiceforchoiceadvocacy.org]
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