(Wednesday, July 22, 2026) The California Legislature has officially entered its Summer Recess and will reconvene on Monday, August 3 for the final month of the 2026 legislative session.
With all policy committee hearings now complete for the year, the legislative process enters its final phase. Remaining bills must now clear any fiscal committee consideration in the Assembly or Senate Appropriations Committees before advancing to floor votes of the full Legislature. The deadline for the Legislature to pass all bills is August 31, making the coming weeks critical for many of AIA California’s legislative priorities. As the process continues, we will continue to monitor and actively engage in the legislative process to advocate for these priorities.
This session has been especially active, with several AIA California-sponsored measures and priority bills continuing to advance while addressing key issues affecting the practice of architecture, housing production, historic preservation, and professional practice across California.
AIA California Sponsored Bills
AB 306 (Schultz, Hadwick & Wicks) – Statewide Building Code Appeals Process (Sponsor)
AB 306 remains one of AIA California’s top housing and regulatory reform priorities. The bill would establish a practical statewide process for resolving building code interpretations, appeals, and equivalency determinations on issues of statewide significance. Today, identical provisions of the California Building Standards Code are often interpreted differently from one jurisdiction to another, creating unnecessary delays, uncertainty, and increased costs for housing and other construction projects.
Following extensive collaboration with stakeholders and legislative staff, the bill has been significantly refined while preserving its core objective of improving consistency and predictability statewide. AB 306 passed both the Senate Housing and Senate Local Government Committees unanimously and now awaits consideration in the Senate Appropriations Committee.
Take Action: Members interested in supporting AB 306 can do so here.
SB 1205 (Valladares) – Retention Reform (Sponsor)
SB 1205 addresses the growing practice of withholding excessive retention payments from architects and other design professionals on public projects. The bill applies the same 5% retention cap currently provided to contractors to architects and engineers on design-bid-build projects and requires retained funds to be released upon completion of the design professional’s contractual obligations rather than at the completion of construction.
The measure passed the Senate unanimously and has since been approved by the Assembly Governmental Organization Committee. It is currently awaiting consideration in the Assembly Appropriations Committee.
AIA California Co-Sponsored Bill
AB 1265 (Haney) – Historic Preservation Tax Credit (Co-Sponsor)
Co-sponsored by AIA California and the California Preservation Foundation, AB 1265 renews and strengthens California’s Historic Preservation Tax Credit. The bill helps make rehabilitation and adaptive reuse projects financially viable while supporting housing production, sustainability, economic development, and community revitalization.
The measure passed the Assembly unanimously and has advanced through the Senate Revenue and Taxation Committee. It now awaits consideration in the Senate Appropriations Committee.
Take Action: Learn more and support AB 1265 here.
Priority Support Bills
AB 1903 – Condominium Liability Reform (Support)
AIA California continues to work with a broad housing coalition to advance meaningful condominium liability reform. The bill seeks to encourage repairs over litigation, strengthen California’s Right to Repair framework, and reduce legal barriers that have contributed to the dramatic decline of for-sale condominium development throughout the state.
AB 1903 passed the Assembly unanimously and has advanced through the Senate Judiciary Committee. It is currently pending before the Senate Housing Committee, where negotiations continue as the author works toward stakeholder consensus.
AB 2106 – Certificate of Merit Reform (Support)
Sponsored by the American Council of Engineering Companies of California (ACEC California) and supported by AIA California, AB 2106 strengthens California’s Certificate of Merit requirements by ensuring that consulting experts offering opinions in design professional liability cases are both licensed in California and practicing in the same discipline as the professional whose work is being evaluated.
The bill passed the Assembly unanimously, cleared the Senate Judiciary Committee, and now awaits consideration in the Senate Appropriations Committee.
Read our coalition letter here.
Priority Opposition Bill
AB 1796 – Interior Design Licensure Proposal (Oppose)
AIA California has been actively engaged and providing feedback on AB 1796 as it moved through the process. While we support strong collaboration among design professionals, we continue to have significant concerns regarding the lack of a demonstrated risk to public safety necessitating licensure, consumer confusion surrounding the proposed model, liability and insurance implications, responsible control, and implementation within and adherence to California’s unique building regulatory framework.
The bill was not scheduled for a hearing in the Senate Business, Professions and Economic Development Committee and, as a result, will not move forward during the 2026 legislative session.
Read our opposition letter here.
Looking Ahead
With just a few weeks remaining before the Legislature adjourns on August 31, AIA California will continue advocating for legislation that supports architects, promotes housing production and innovation, protects public health, safety, and welfare, and advances sound public policy throughout California.
We appreciate the engagement of our members whose letters, testimony, and grassroots advocacy continue to strengthen our voice at the Capitol. As these bills move through the final stages of the legislative process, we will continue to keep you updated.
