SACRAMENTO – Assemblymember Brian Maienschein has introduced his legislative package for 2022, including focuses on public safety, porch piracy, and reducing single-use plastic waste in California.
“The safety and wellbeing of our neighborhoods is my top priority,” said Assemblymember Maienschein. “This year, I am focusing on strengthening safeguards in our communities, expanding protections for victims of domestic violence, and ensuring the welfare of California’s animals.”
Maienschein has introduced a number of bills on public safety, including protections for victims of domestic violence and overall community welfare.
- AB 1641 enacts restrictions on placement locations of sexually violent predators (SVPs) during conditional release. This bill also requires law enforcement to be involved in the selection of placement locations and will prioritize community safety. In 2020, the community of Rancho Bernardo was selected for the placement of an SVP. Maienschein joined the community in opposition to the placement, and was inspired to author legislation to fix the flaws and ambiguities in current law.
- AB 2137 expands protections for victims of domestic violence by ensuring family justice centers in California have the capacity to assist domestic violence victims in obtaining gun violence restraining orders against their abusers.
- AB 2040 increases the penalty of restraining order violations, particularly violations of entering a protected person’s home.
- AB 2239 takes guns out of the hands of dangerous individuals convicted of child endangerment or elder abuse by including these convictions in the list of crimes that prompt a 10-year ban on possessing a firearm.
Maienschein has also introduced a series of bills tackling the rising issue of package theft in California.
- AB 1698 establishes the crime of Organized Package Theft to combat rampant porch piracy. It also gives law enforcement new tools to stop package thieves.
- AB 1699 targets porch pirates who acquire a vehicle for the purpose of committing porch piracy or retail theft. This bill would penalize thieves by placing a point on their driver’s licenses.
- AB 1700 aims to cut down on the third-party resell market for stolen goods by creating a centralized reporting location for the public to report goods for sale on online resell marketplaces that they suspect are stolen.
Maienschein has had more measures on animal protection signed into law than any other legislator in the state. This year, Maienschein has introduced two additional bills in this issue area.
- AB 1648 will require animal owners, as a condition for obtaining a kennel permit, to create and submit an animal evacuation plan in case of a wildfire.
- AB 2380 prohibits predatory consumer loans from being offered for the purchase of a dog or cat.
Combating climate change and protecting our environment is also one of Maienschein’s priorities. To combat the overuse of single-use plastics and ensure clean drinking water is accessible, Maienschein has introduced AB 1953. This bill will require publicly accessed buildings, transit hubs, shopping malls, and golf courses to install water bottle refill stations.
“The goal of my legislative package is to enrich our community in San Diego County and California as whole,” Maienschein added. “I look forward to seeing my bills signed into law.”