California Secret Legislative Kill Process Under Scrutiny - Who are the Gatekeepers? What are the Recent Casualties? Can it be fixed?



The Secret Legislative Graveyard: California's "Suspense File" Process Under Scrutiny

In the California Legislature, hundreds of bills meet their end each year without debate, public vote, or explanation through a secretive process known as the "suspense file." Last week, the process was on full display as the Senate moved 33 bills to suspense in just 24 minutes, while the Assembly sent 82 bills to the same fate in under two minutes.

If history holds true, between a quarter to a third of these bills will be killed next month with little public explanation or accountability. The decisions are largely made behind closed doors, known only to lobbyists, legislative staffers, lawmakers, and Governor Gavin Newsom's policy team.

"The way we treat the appropriations process is a non-democratic process; I believe that it's a corrupt process," said Assemblymember Corey Jackson, a Democrat representing Moreno Valley, who has criticized the system after seeing his own legislation die in suspense.

How the Suspense File Works

Under decades-old policy, any bill estimated to cost taxpayers at least $50,000 in the Senate (or $150,000 in the Assembly) is automatically placed on the suspense file. Twice yearly—in May and August—the appropriations committees announce which bills move off "suspense" and advance through the Legislature.

The process officially exists to promote fiscal responsibility by allowing lawmakers to consider costly bills together and prioritize spending. However, former committee chairs acknowledge it serves other purposes.

"I would get angry with people," said Lorena Gonzalez, former Democratic assemblymember from San Diego who previously chaired the Assembly Appropriations Committee. "I'd have policy committee chairs come to me and they're like, 'Oh, I couldn't kill these. But here are the bills I think you should kill.' I'm like, you know, 'Grow some balls.'"

The Politics Behind the Process

The appropriations chairs wield enormous power in determining which bills advance and which die quietly. Former Assembly Appropriations chair Mike Gatto described the role as being "the Speaker's henchman," noting that chairs often face intense pressure and political consequences.

"You've got to be prepared to take really tough decisions for the caucus," Gatto said on a recent podcast, adding that when he left office in 2016, governors would also try to bottle up bills in the suspense file.

While the committees are subject to all rules of the Legislature and the pre-tallying of votes is legal, the private decision-making leaves rank-and-file lawmakers and members of the public wondering why certain bills get killed. The reasons can range from being too expensive to conflicts with policy agendas or even personal vendettas.

Recent Bills Killed in Suspense

Last August, approximately one-third of 830 bills placed on suspense were culled. Among the high-profile measures killed was a bill by Senate GOP leader Brian Jones of San Diego that would have added requirements before "sexually violent predators" could be placed in communities. Jones accused Democratic leaders of protecting "predators over families."

In this year's May suspense hearing, 32% of 1,009 bills were held, higher than the 25% average over the past decade. Notable casualties included a bill to cap and ultimately end the controversial $24 monthly fixed charge on many utility bills, and another to give workers the "right to disconnect" after work hours.

Senator Scott Wiener of San Francisco recently saw three of his twelve bills killed in suspense, including measures to ban certain roadside drug tests, boost housing in downtown San Francisco, and legalize therapy with psychedelic drugs. "I love all my children (bills) and of course I'm disappointed," Wiener said.

Calls for Reform

Critics argue the suspense file undermines transparency in lawmaking. "The suspense file is one of the most undemocratic features of the California Legislature," said Carmen Balber of Consumer Watchdog after seeing legislation requiring government agencies to retain records for a minimum of two years die in suspense.

Jonathan Mehta Stein, executive director of California Common Cause, a good government watchdog, noted that while the process may be familiar to Capitol insiders, new employees at his organization are consistently shocked to discover that bills can be killed or amended with zero public scrutiny. "Everybody knows there is a massive transparency problem at the heart of California's legislative process," Stein said.

As the May suspense hearings approach, stakeholders, lawmakers, and advocates are preparing for another round of rapid-fire decisions that will determine the fate of hundreds of bills with little explanation or debate.

Sources:

  1. California lawmakers quietly kill bills in secretive suspense process - Times of San Diego Times of San Diego. "California lawmakers quietly kill bills in secretive suspense process." https://timesofsandiego.com/california/2025/04/california-lawmakers-quietly-kill-bills-in-secretive-suspense-process/
  2. CalMatters. "How California bills die in secret: Inside the 'suspense file' process." https://calmatters.org/politics/2025/04/california-lawmakers-killed-bills/
  3. CalMatters. "California bills: Which survived suspense file?" https://calmatters.org/politics/2023/05/california-bills-suspense-file-2/
  4. CalMatters. "Suspense file day: Which controversial bills did California legislators kill?" https://calmatters.org/politics/2021/05/california-bills-legislators-kill/
  5. CalMatters. "California Legislature kills bills, lots of bills." https://calmatters.org/newsletter/california-legislature-bills-suspense-file/
  6. CapRadio. "Understanding how a California bill dies without public debate." https://www.capradio.org/articles/2023/05/16/understanding-how-a-california-bill-dies-without-public-debate/
  7. CalMatters. "California bills in danger in 'suspense file'." https://calmatters.org/newsletters/whatmatters/2023/05/california-bills-suspense-file/
  8. CalMatters. "California bills: Which died in 'suspense file?'" https://calmatters.org/newsletter/california-bills-suspense-file/
  9. Governing. "California's Secretive Suspense File: Where Bills Go to Die." https://www.governing.com/now/californias-secretive-suspense-file-where-bills-go-to-die
  10. Nourish California. "Don't Keep Us in Suspense!" https://nourishca.org/blog-category/dont-keep-us-in-suspense/
  11. California State Assembly. "Assembly Appropriations Committee Overview." https://apro.assembly.ca.gov/overview

SIDEBAR: CALIFORNIA'S APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEES - THE GATEKEEPERS OF LEGISLATION

The Power Centers of California's Legislature

California's Senate and Assembly Appropriations Committees serve as crucial checkpoints for nearly all substantive legislation in the state. In the 2023-24 Legislative Session alone, the Assembly Appropriations Committee heard 5,525 bills, making it the busiest committee in the California Legislature. These committees determine which bills with fiscal impacts advance and which quietly die.

How the Committees Work

According to the Senate committee website, "Pursuant to Joint Rule 10.5 all bills with a fiscal impact, as determined by Legislative Counsel, are referred to the Senate Appropriations Committee after they have been heard in their respective policy committees. This can include bills that appropriate money, result in substantial expenditure of state money, or result in a substantial loss of revenue to the state."

Bills estimated to cost at least $50,000 in the Senate (or $150,000 in the Assembly) are automatically placed on the "suspense file." Twice yearly—during hearings in May and August—committee chairs announce which bills will advance and which will remain in suspense, effectively killing them without public votes or explanations.

Committee Leadership

Assembly Appropriations

Chris Holden (D-Pasadena) has served as Chair of the Assembly Appropriations Committee since 2022. When appointed, Holden became the first African American to chair this committee in 27 years, according to his office. "After serving nearly 24 years on the Pasadena City Council, and nine years in the California State Assembly, I have learned the important balance of maintaining fiscal responsibility and advancing effective public policy," Holden stated after his appointment.

Senate Appropriations

For the 2023-24 session, the Senate Appropriations Committee was chaired by Anthony J. Portantino (D-La Cañada Flintridge), with Brian W. Jones (R-San Diego) serving as Vice Chair. Other members included Senators Angelique V. Ashby, Steven Bradford, Kelly Seyarto, Aisha Wahab, and Scott D. Wiener.

Portantino, who served in the Senate from 2016 to 2024, was known for his significant influence as committee chair. In 2019, he notably used a "pocket veto" to block SB 50, a controversial housing bill, from advancing to the Senate floor for debate.

According to the Senate Appropriations Committee website, "The 2025-26 Regular Session committee membership has not been established by the Senate Rules Committee" as of this report. New leadership is expected to be announced following Senator Portantino's departure from the legislature.

Behind Closed Doors

Former committee chairs acknowledge that the process combines policy considerations with political realities. Chairs consult with legislative leadership, the governor's office, and stakeholders before making decisions on bills in suspense. The committee chairs hold enormous power, as they can single-handedly determine the fate of hundreds of bills each year with little public scrutiny.

The lack of transparency in this process continues to draw criticism from good government advocates and some lawmakers, who argue that important legislation should receive public votes rather than dying quietly in suspense.


SIDEBAR: HIGH-PROFILE CASUALTIES OF THE SUSPENSE FILE

Bills That Died Behind Closed Doors

California's "suspense file" process routinely kills hundreds of bills each year with little public explanation. The 2024 legislative sessions have been particularly tough, with budget constraints forcing difficult decisions. Here's a look at some notable legislation that was quietly shelved through this secretive process.

Budget Deficit Drives Decisions

The state's multibillion-dollar budget deficit has shaped which bills survive, with committee chairs explicitly acknowledging fiscal constraints as a major factor. Assembly Appropriations Chairperson Buffy Wicks, a Democrat from Oakland, noted that the June 2024 budget agreement to close a $47 billion shortfall "weighed heavy" on the committee's decisions.

In the August 2024 suspense file hearings, legislators blocked more than 270 bills, partly due to the budget crunch. The approximately 500 bills that survived still needed to win final approval by August 31 to reach the governor's desk.

High-Profile Bills Killed in 2024

Worker Rights and Consumer Protections

AB 2751 by Assemblymember Matt Haney would have given employees the "right to disconnect" from non-emergency work calls and texts outside of working hours. The bill was held in suspense, effectively killing it for the year.

Another casualty was a bill to cap and eventually end by 2028 the controversial $24 monthly fixed charge on many utility bills, which had generated significant public debate.

Housing and Urban Development

Senator Scott Wiener, a San Francisco Democrat, saw three of his bills killed in the May 2024 suspense file, including measures to boost housing in downtown San Francisco, ban certain roadside drug tests, and legalize therapy with psychedelic drugs. Despite this setback, Wiener expressed continued commitment: "I love all my children (bills) and of course I'm disappointed... It's my fourth year working on psychedelics and I'm still very committed to the issue."

Public Safety and Criminal Justice

In August 2024, the committees killed a bill that would have prohibited broadband providers from charging more or offering slower internet service in low-income areas. Another bill that died would have barred law enforcement agencies from relying solely on facial recognition to arrest or search suspects.

Past Notable Casualties

In May 2023, the Assembly appropriations committee shelved two bills that would have expanded tax credits for the state's lowest-income residents. These measures would have delivered approximately $1 billion, primarily to poor families with children, by boosting the minimum payout through the state's Earned Income Tax Credit and expanding eligibility for the Young Child Tax Credit.

The Senate appropriations committee that same year held a bill that would have allowed civil penalties on operators of oil and gas wells located near residences, schools, and hospitals. Another environmental bill aimed at increasing California's ambitious greenhouse gas emissions goals was also killed.

The Scope of the Process

The suspense file is by far the most common way bills die in California. In a recent legislative session, 1,045 bills died through the suspense file process, compared to just 27 bills that died because a majority of legislators did not vote, and 364 that were withdrawn by their authors.

In the first suspense hearing of 2024, 668 bills were on the suspense file in the Assembly and 341 bills were on suspense in the Senate. Approximately 35% of Assembly bills were held in suspense, a higher percentage than is typical, largely due to budget constraints.

The secrecy of the process continues to frustrate lawmakers and advocates alike, who argue that important policy decisions affecting millions of Californians deserve public deliberation and recorded votes.

SIDEBAR: REFORMING THE "BLACK BOX" - CALLS FOR TRANSPARENCY IN THE SUSPENSE FILE PROCESS

Reform Advocates Seek Sunshine on Secret Decisions

For decades, California's "suspense file" has operated as a secretive mechanism for quietly killing bills, with little accountability or transparency. In recent years, however, both good government groups and some lawmakers have begun pushing for reforms to make the process more open to public scrutiny.

Leading Voices for Reform

Jonathan Mehta Stein, executive director of California Common Cause, has been one of the most consistent critics of the process, calling it "a massive transparency problem at the heart of California's legislative process." According to Stein, "The idea that the California state Legislature has created a mechanism for killing difficult bills in a way that enables no one to take a tough vote feels really contrary to the whole point of electing leaders to handle our toughest decisions."

Consumer Watchdog's Carmen Balber has been more specific in her reform proposals, arguing that "the suspense file should be reserved for bills that do in fact have a fiscal impact" and that "decisions need to be made in public." She notes that bills are often referred to suspense that don't meet the fiscal impact requirement but which lawmakers want to see buried.

Insider Critics

Some current and former lawmakers have also criticized the process. Assemblymember Damon Connolly, a Democrat from San Rafael, expressed frustration when his bill requiring CalTrans to abide by local regulations on pesticide use was held in the appropriations committee despite having support from 130 environmental groups and smooth passage through earlier committees. "Certainly, from where I stood — and I think a lot of my colleagues would agree — we would love to see the old processes in the Legislature changed around more accountability and transparency," Connolly stated.

Assemblymember Corey Jackson, a Democrat from Moreno Valley, has been outspoken about his dissatisfaction with the process, flatly stating: "The way we treat the appropriations process is a non-democratic process; I believe that it's a corrupt process." As a first-term assemblymember with an ambitious legislative agenda, Jackson has experienced firsthand the frustration of seeing bills die without explanation.

Proposed Reforms

While there isn't a comprehensive reform bill that has gained significant traction, several possible changes have been suggested by transparency advocates:

  1. Public votes: Requiring recorded public votes on bills in suspense, rather than the current practice where only bills that pass have vote counts read out.

  2. Justifications: Mandatory public explanations for why bills are killed in suspense.

  3. Stricter criteria: Ensuring only bills with genuine fiscal impacts are placed on suspense, preventing the file from being used to bury politically controversial legislation.

  4. Limiting chair power: Reducing the near-unilateral authority of committee chairs to determine which bills advance and which die.

Odds of Success

The chances of significant reform remain slim. Former Appropriations chair Mike Gatto speculates that one reason suspense file decisions are made in private is that they require very frank conversations about bills' deficiencies, the kind political observers might not be accustomed to seeing in the generally collegial Legislature. "You would have the staff, who are subject matter experts, tearing apart [members'] bills and saying 'this is really a bad idea,'" he explained.

Sen. Anna Caballero, who led Senate appropriations in 2024, typifies the institutional resistance to reform. When asked about specific suspense file decisions after a hearing, she refused to discuss them, citing only cost considerations. The suspense file process remains deeply embedded in the legislature's culture, with most committee chairs reluctant to give up the power and political utility it provides.

Legislative leaders and governors of both parties have historically benefited from the suspense file's ability to quietly kill bills that would otherwise force difficult votes or create political headaches. Without strong leadership from the top, reform efforts face steep odds against a system that has persisted for decades precisely because it serves the interests of those in power.

 

Sources for Sidebar #1: California's Appropriations Committees - The Gatekeepers of Legislation

  1. "Overview | California State Assembly," California State Assembly, Appropriations Committee. Accessed April 2025. https://apro.assembly.ca.gov/overview

  2. "Welcome to the Senate Standing Committee on Appropriations | Senate Appropriations Committee," California State Senate. Accessed April 2025. https://sapro.senate.ca.gov/

  3. "Assemblymember Chris Holden Appointed Chair of the Assembly Committee on Appropriations," Official Website - Assemblymember Chris Holden, January 3, 2022. https://a41.asmdc.org/press-releases/20220103-assemblymember-chris-holden-appointed-chair-assembly-committee

  4. "Senate Standing Committee on Appropriations for 2023-24 First Extraordinary Session," California State Senate. Accessed April 2025. https://www.senate.ca.gov/senate-standing-committee-appropriations-2023-24-first-extraordinary-session

  5. "Anthony Portantino," Wikipedia, February 4, 2025. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthony_Portantino

  6. "Members | Senate Appropriations Committee," California State Senate. Accessed April 2025. https://sapro.senate.ca.gov/members

Sources for Sidebar #2: High-Profile Casualties of the Suspense File

  1. "California's staggering budget deficit squashes hundreds of bills," CalMatters, May 16, 2024. https://calmatters.org/politics/capitol/2024/05/california-legislature-bills-budget-deficit/

  2. "California lawmakers kill crime bills, keep reparations proposals alive," CalMatters, August 16, 2024. https://calmatters.org/politics/capitol/2024/08/california-laws-legislature-suspense-file/

  3. "California bills: Which died in 'suspense file?'," CalMatters, May 17, 2024. https://calmatters.org/newsletter/california-bills-suspense-file/

  4. "Legislative Survivor: Which big California bills were shelved in 'suspense file?'," CalMatters, May 19, 2023. https://calmatters.org/politics/2023/05/california-bills-suspense-file-2/

  5. "In California's Legislature, most bills die quietly," CalMatters, December 10, 2024. https://calmatters.org/politics/2024/12/failed-bills-california/

  6. "Hundreds of California bills are no longer left in suspense — for now," Spectrum News 1, May 17, 2024. https://spectrumnews1.com/ca/la-west/politics/2024/05/17/hundreds-of-california-bills-are-no-longer-left-in-suspense--for-now-

Sources for Sidebar #3: REFORMING THE "BLACK BOX" - CALLS FOR TRANSPARENCY IN THE SUSPENSE FILE PROCESS

  1. "California's Secretive Suspense File: Where Bills Go to Die," Governing, August 16, 2022. https://www.governing.com/now/californias-secretive-suspense-file-where-bills-go-to-die

  2. "In California's Legislature, most bills die quietly," CalMatters, December 10, 2024. https://calmatters.org/politics/2024/12/failed-bills-california/

  3. "California Legislature: New class learns hard lessons," CalMatters, December 21, 2023. https://calmatters.org/politics/capitol/2023/12/california-legislature-new-lawmakers/

  4. "Ending the suspense: Child trafficking, fentanyl bills can still become law," CalMatters, September 6, 2023. https://calmatters.org/politics/capitol/2023/09/california-laws/

  5. "Understanding how a California bill dies without public debate," CapRadio, May 16, 2023. https://www.capradio.org/articles/2023/05/16/understanding-how-a-california-bill-dies-without-public-debate/

  6. "California's staggering budget deficit squashes hundreds of bills," CalMatters, May 16, 2024. https://calmatters.org/politics/capitol/2024/05/california-legislature-bills-budget-deficit/

 

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