Assembly BillVetoedGovernment
AB 986: State of emergency and local emergency: landslides and climate change.
What AB 986 does, verified March 9, 2026
This bill would amend the California Emergency Services Act to include a landslide as a condition constituting a state of emergency or local emergency. The governor and local officials would have the authority to exercise certain powers in response to an emergency declared due to a landslide or other extreme peril. The bill aims to address the increasing threat of landslides and climate change in California, ensuring public safety and property protection during such events.
Bill journey
✓IntroducedComplete
✓In CommitteeComplete
✓First Chamber FloorComplete
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5GovernorCurrent
6ChapteredPending
Last action: Consideration of Governor's veto stricken from file. (2026-01-22)Alert me
Author and sponsors
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| Jan. 22, 2026 | Consideration of Governor's veto stricken from file. |
| Jan. 22, 2026 | Stricken from file. |
| Oct. 01, 2025 | Consideration of Governor's veto pending. |
| Oct. 01, 2025 | Vetoed by Governor. |
| Sep. 24, 2025 | Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 3 p.m. |
Latest bill textEnrolled version, September 16, 2025 · 645 words
| Enrolled September 16, 2025 |
| Passed IN Senate September 11, 2025 |
| Passed IN Assembly September 12, 2025 |
| Amended IN Senate August 29, 2025 |
| Amended IN Assembly May 23, 2025 |
| Amended IN Assembly March 24, 2025 |
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION
Assembly Bill
No. 986
| Introduced by Assembly Member Muratsuchi (Principal coauthor: Senator Allen) |
February 20, 2025 |
An act to amend Section 8558 of the Government Code, relating to emergency services.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 986, Muratsuchi. State of emergency and local emergency: landslides and climate change.
Existing law, the California Emergency Services Act, authorizes the Governor to declare a state of emergency, and local officials and local governments to declare a local emergency, when specified conditions of disaster or extreme peril to the safety of persons and property exist, and authorizes the Governor or the appropriate local government to exercise certain powers in response to that emergency. Existing law defines 3 conditions or degrees of emergency for purposes of these provisions.
This bill would additionally include a landslide among those conditions constituting a state of emergency or local emergency.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
Section 8558 of the Government Code is amended to read:8558.
Three conditions or degrees of emergency are established by this chapter:(a) “State of war emergency” means the condition that exists immediately, with or without a proclamation by the Governor, whenever this state or nation is attacked by an enemy of the United States, or upon receipt by the state of a warning from the federal government indicating that an enemy attack is probable or imminent.
(b) “State of emergency” means the duly proclaimed existence of conditions of disaster or of extreme peril to the safety of persons and property within the state caused by conditions, including air pollution, fire, flood, storm, epidemic, riot, drought, landslide, cyberterrorism, sudden and severe energy shortage, electromagnetic pulse attack, plant or animal infestation or disease, the Governor’s warning of an earthquake or volcanic prediction, or an earthquake, or other conditions, other than conditions resulting from a labor controversy or conditions causing a “state of war emergency,” that by reason of their magnitude, are or are likely to be beyond the control of the services, personnel, equipment, and facilities of any single county, city and county, or city and require the combined forces of a mutual aid region or regions to combat, or with respect to regulated energy utilities, a sudden and severe energy shortage requires extraordinary measures beyond the authority vested in the Public Utilities Commission.
(c) (1) “Local emergency” means the duly proclaimed existence of conditions of disaster or of extreme peril to the safety of persons and property within the territorial limits of a county, city and county, or city, caused by conditions, including air pollution, fire, flood, storm, epidemic, riot, drought, landslide, cyberterrorism, sudden and severe energy shortage, deenergization event, electromagnetic pulse attack, plant or animal infestation or disease, the Governor’s warning of an earthquake or volcanic prediction, or an earthquake, or other conditions, other than conditions resulting from a labor controversy, that are or are likely to be beyond the control of the services, personnel, equipment, and facilities of that political subdivision and require the combined forces of other political subdivisions to combat, or with respect to regulated energy utilities, a sudden and severe energy shortage or deenergization event that requires extraordinary measures beyond the authority vested in the Public Utilities Commission.
(2) A local emergency proclaimed because of a deenergization event does not trigger the electric utility obligations set forth in Public Utilities Commission Decision 19-07-015 or its successor decisions as related to deenergization events. A local emergency proclaimed as the result of a deenergization event does not alter the electric utilities’ Public Utilities Commission-approved cost-recovery mechanisms for their own costs associated with deenergization events.
Text of AB 986 as enrolled, from the official record. Connect Plus keeps every version and highlights what changed.Compare versions