(The Center Square) – The California Assembly on Monday afternoon approved $90 million in funding for Planned Parenthood.
The contentious debate on the Assembly floor highlighted the rift between the Democratic majority and the conservative Republican caucus before the funding bill passed, along party lines, with 55 “ayes” and 10 “no” votes. The budget bill now goes to the Senate for a vote.
“This bill would backfill $90 million in federal funding that has been stripped away from community clinics that offer abortion services,” Assembly Budget Committee chair Jesse Gabriel, D-Encino, said on the floor during the debate. “Under such circumstances, California cannot and will not stand idly by. Despite our budget challenges, we must step up to defend Planned Parenthood, to defend reproductive freedom.”
Senate Bill 106, the Planned Parenthood funding resolution, was the result of talks between Planned Parenthood and California lawmakers, according to state officials who testified during a recent Senate Budget Committee hearing on the bill. The $90 million allocation would be a one-time expenditure from the state’s general fund. The funding package was recently approved by California senators in a public hearing on the bill on Thursday, The Center Square previously reported.
The money would technically be available to other nonprofit health care providers who specialize in reproductive health care, family planning and abortion services, according to the budget bill.
The legislation was introduced in light of Planned Parenthood, a well-known family planning provider, losing million of dollars from previous federal funding. During summer 2025, H.R. 1, otherwise known as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, passed Congress and was signed into law by President Donald Trump. The latest federal budget keeps taxpayer money from going to organizations like Planned Parenthood.
“Under the original text of SB 106, we would be funneling millions of dollars to a nonprofit with little to no transparency at a time when it feels like every week brings another case of corruption or misuse of public funds,” Assemblymember David Tangipa, R-Fresno, said on the floor during the debate. “We should be moving towards greater accountability, not away from it.”
The budget resolution comes at a time when the state is struggling with an estimated $18 billion budget shortfall, according to the nonpartisan Legislative Analyst’s Office, although Gov. Gavin Newsom pointed to a much smaller figure – $2.9 million – in his budget proposal released in January. Much of the state’s budget woes come from constitutionally-mandated spending requirements over education-related spending, The Center Square previously reported, but the state’s $99 billion debt load and an inability to backfill federal cuts to Medi-Cal cuts add additional challenges to the state’s financial situation.
“No matter where you stand on the issue of abortion, it’s a profoundly personal decision,” Assemblymember Carl DeMaio, R-San Diego, said on the Assembly floor during debate on the bill. “But let’s be clear; this is not about choice or access to abortion services. Anyone paying attention will realize it’s nothing more than a reward for a politically powerful group.”
CBS reported previously that as the federal budget cuts took effect in 2025, five Planned Parenthood clinics closed in California just last year, which some lawmakers highlighted in their arguments for passing the budget resolution on Monday afternoon.
“People in my community have already lost local access to essential reproductive health care,” Assemblymember Gail Pellerin, D-Santa Cruz, said during the floor debate. “When a clinic closes, the need doesn’t disappear. Patients are forced to travel farther, wait longer or go without care altogether.”
A Planned Parenthood spokesperson was not available to take calls from The Center Square on Monday.
