Berman Bulletin: Legislative Wins, Awards, and Community Events

I hope everyone is enjoying the fantastic summer weather and spending time with friends and family. While the Legislature is currently on its summer recess, I wanted to give you an update on the great progress we’ve made on legislation, as well as what I have been up to in the district.

Seventeen of my bills passed out of the Assembly and are now moving through the legislative process in the Senate. My legislative priorities are focused on improving the lives of my constituents, and I am thrilled by the success we have had so far.

In addition, my team in the district is currently planning some great events for the fall, so keep an eye out for invites!

Scroll down or click one of the buttons below to learn more about what I have been working on.

In this Newsletter:

• In Sacramento:
  • Legislative Awards Spotlight
  • Legislative Highlights
• Out and About in AD 23:
  • Community Coffee in Menlo Park
  • Pride Month in Mountain View
  • Fourth of July Celebration in San Jose
  • Upcoming Events

Sincerely,

Marc Berman
Assemblymember, 23rd District

Legislative Awards Spotlight

I am proud to have received a few legislative awards over the first half of the year. I ran for the Assembly because I wanted to create real change in our communities, and this recognition is proof that the work we are doing is impactful. Earlier this year I received the following:

• The Excellence in Education Equity Award from EdTrust-West
• The Retail Champion of the Year from the California Retailer’s Association
• The AV Champion from the Autonomous Vehicle Industry Association
• The Civic Action Award from the California Council for the Social Studies

Each year, EdTrust-West identifies their top proposals which advance educational equity and justice. This year, I was honored to receive EdTrust-West’s Excellence in Education Equity Award for authoring Assembly Bill 2458, which supports student parents in affording, enrolling in, and successfully completing their higher education journey. AB 2458 was signed into law by the Governor in 2024.

Retail theft is a big concern for my constituents and for all Californians. Last year, I authored AB 3209, a critical part of the Legislature’s bipartisan retail theft package, to give local law enforcement an additional and needed enforcement tool against organized and repeated retail theft. I’m grateful to the California Retailer’s Association for recognizing me as one of their Retail Champions of the Year.

I’ve been a big believer in the potential of autonomous vehicles for a long time. In fact, here’s a speech I gave about the future with autonomous vehicles back in 2014, when I had a full head of hair! I’ve authored numerous bills to try to foster the AV industry in California, and I was proud to be one of the first state legislators in the country to be recognized as an AV Champion by the Autonomous Vehicle Industry Association.

A healthy civil society can only exist if the public is well-informed, and being an informed citizen requires both critical thinking and the skills to locate trustworthy information and determine its reliability. I was honored to be recognized by the California Council for the Social Studies for my legislative efforts to integrate media literacy into K-12 education, so that we teach the next generation to be critical consumers of online content and more guarded against misinformation, propaganda, and conspiracy theories.

Legislative Highlights

This year, my legislative package is centered on safeguarding our elections, protecting consumers, and increasing transparency. From lowering the cost of utility bills to cracking down on rental car price gouging, I am focused on improving the day to day lives of my constituents. Here are just a few of my bills I want to highlight that recently passed out of Senate policy committees.

Ensuring Every Vote Counts

Voting by mail is a reliable and easily accessible way for Californians to vote, but in the most recent election, nearly 85,000 vote-by-mail ballots were rejected for either a missing or non-matching signature on the envelope.

I wrote AB 827 to provide a greater opportunity for voters to fix signature deficiencies and have their vote counted. In every election, your voice and your vote matter, and when mistakes are made, voters deserve a sufficient amount of time to fix it. AB 827 passed out of the Senate Committee on Elections and Redistricting with bipartisan support, and is currently in the Senate Appropriations Committee.

Rental Car Price Gouging

Too many of us have had the experience of going online to rent a car for a big trip, reaching the end of the rental process, and then getting surprised by mandatory fees and taxes that were not reflected in the original advertised price. 

To ensure price transparency in the rental car industry, AB 1374 would require that the total estimated charges of a rental car be disclosed as soon as consumers select dates, rental location, and vehicle type. This ensures that the upfront price is the real price you pay, and allows consumers to make an informed decision and comparison shop. AB 1374 passed out of the Senate Judiciary Committee and is currently on the Senate Floor. 

The Ratepayer Protection Act of 2025

When paying your utilities, you should only be paying for safe and reliable service. However, investor owned utilities like PG&E have included or tried to include the costs of their political influence machines into their customers’ bills.

AB 1167, The Ratepayer Protection Act of 2025, prohibits for-profit utilities from charging customers for their lobbying efforts, pricey public relations advertising, and other activities that are for the primary benefit of utility shareholders. It’s time to take politics out of our utility bills and put the needs of hardworking Californians like you first. AB 1167 passed out of the Senate Committee on Energy, Utilities and Communications and is currently in the Senate Appropriations Committee.

View my full list and status of my 2025 bills here.

Community Coffee in Menlo Park

We had an overflow capacity crowd for my recent Community Coffee at Neighborhood Pizza Guy & Cafe Zoe in Menlo Park. We had a wide-ranging discussion about how the state is addressing our housing crisis, severe anxiety about overreach by the federal government, addressing environmental issues, and making transportation safer and more effective for our communities. A lot of work goes into planning these community coffees, and I’m exhausted by the end of them, but I truly love hearing directly from constituents about issues important to you. Stay tuned for future opportunities to connect!

Mountain View Pride

I had a blast joining the City of Mountain View for their first ever citywide Pride Celebration. During these trying times, when our LGBTQ+ community is under attack, it’s important that we come together to make sure all members of our community feel welcomed, supported, and that they belong. It was remarkable to see so many from the community come out to support such a wonderful event. Here’s to many more Pride celebrations in Mountain View and across California!

Rose, White and Blue Parade in San Jose

I had a great time this 4th of July at the Rose, White and Blue Parade in San Jose! It was amazing to see the streets lined with so many families taking part in the celebration. The promise of freedom and equality for all has never been fully realized in our nation, and every generation has had to step up – to organize, to mobilize, to speak out – to ensure that the United States lives up to its ideals. Now it’s our time.

Upcoming Events