Assemblymember Kolozai seeks study on homelessness among pregnant people and a voluntary 'pink alert'

Assemblymember Kolozai asked the Senate Human Services subcommittee on June 30 to approve AB 262, a bill directing the California Housing and Homelessness Agency to study the problems faced by pregnant people experiencing homelessness and report back to the Legislature by July 1, 2028. The study would evaluate whether a voluntary “pink alert” notification system could connect pregnant people with participating nonprofits, shelters and emergency‑service partners.

Catherine Squire, a legislative analyst with the California Commission on the Status of Women and Girls, told the committee the commission supports the bill as a data‑driven first step. “Pregnancy should never become life threatening because someone lacks stable housing,” Squire said, urging a measured study before any program is created.

Kolozai and supporters said anecdotal reports show pregnant people sleeping outdoors or seeking help from small businesses and mutual‑aid volunteers, and they argued the state lacks comprehensive data to shape a coordinated response. The bill would require the housing agency to examine how nonprofits could opt into a notification network, how shelters capable of serving pregnant people could be connected, and how existing emergency systems could be incorporated.

Committee members asked for details about what a pink alert would actually notify and how it would differ from existing public‑safety alerts. Kolozai said the concept is voluntary and would focus on notifying service providers so they could prioritize prenatal care and housing placement for a highly vulnerable group.

Supporters included Trevor Nelson of the California Alliance of Child and Family Services and witnesses who provided personal examples of pregnant people who faced unstable living conditions. A staff member read testimony from a volunteer outreach organizer who described encountering pregnant people on the streets and urged a coordinated response.

The subcommittee moved AB 262 out with a due‑pass motion to the Appropriations Committee (committee action recorded later in the hearing). The measure will be subject to further analysis in appropriations, where members said they will examine costs and how study recommendations would be implemented.