Asm. Rodriguez, Coalition of Immigrant and Economic Justice Groups Celebrate Bipartisan Assembly Vote for Equitable Access to Electric Equipment for Landscapers

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

May 28, 2026

SACRAMENTO – The California State Assembly voted to pass AB 2635, the Just Transition for Landscapers Act, to protect landscapers across California – a largely immigrant workforce – from unjust penalties and criminalization, and ensure economic access so they can transition quickly and effectively to electric equipment. The bill – which passed with 62 votes in strong bipartisan support – will now advance to the second house for approval before going to the Governor’s desk later this year.

The bill brings together environmental justice and economic justice, while supporting immigrant workers and small businesses across the state. AB 2635 will:

• build on prior legislation (AB 1346), which mandated the phase out of small, gas-powered off-road engines;
• promote a faster transition for landscaping workers to phase out gas-powered equipment and adopt electric equipment that is greener, quieter, and healthier for workers and communities; 
• address the financial barriers landscapers face to transition to electric by ensuring access to voucher programs to purchase new equipment;
• alleviate unfair fines, criminalization, and debt traps by temporarily pausing punitive local enforcement until landscapers have a fair chance to transition.

AB 2635 is authored by Assemblymember Celeste Rodriguez (D – Los Angeles). It is co-sponsored by the California Immigrant Policy Center (CIPC), Inclusive Action for the City (IAC), and the National Day Laborer Organizing Network (NDLON), alongside a growing coalition of landscapers, immigrant entrepreneurs, environmental groups, and economic justice advocates.

“I’m proud to lead a bipartisan coalition in the Legislature to pass the Just Transition for Landscapers Act – a commonsense bill that helps landscapers transition more quickly and affordably to cleaner equipment,” said Assemblywoman Celeste Rodriguez. “This bill strengthens California’s climate leadership while balancing the needs of immigrant workers and small business owners who power the landscaping industry, especially in communities like the Northeast San Fernando Valley. Cleaner electric equipment means safer working conditions, less pollution in our neighborhoods, and a healthier future for our communities.”

Advocates applauded the Assembly vote on AB 2635, saying:

“For decades, workers like me have relied on gas-powered landscaping equipment to earn a living, even though it exposes us to toxic fumes and unsafe conditions every day on the job,” said Mathias, a landscaper based in Sacramento and a member of the statewide landscaper advisory committee. “We want to transition to cleaner electric equipment, but for workers living paycheck to paycheck, the cost is a major barrier. That’s why I’m joining landscapers across California to ask legislators for support that protects our health, our jobs and the air in our communities.” 

“Landscapers are essential workers who keep our neighborhoods and cities clean, healthy, and beautiful, yet too many have been pushed into impossible choices – facing fines and criminalization while trying to provide for their families,” said Jose Madera, Director of the Pasadena Community Job Center, a member of the National Day Laborer Organizing Network. “AB 2635 recognizes that immigrant workers and small business owners deserve support, and not punishment, as California transitions to cleaner technology. This bill supports workers doing some of the hardest labor in our communities.”

“Landscapers are making their voices heard because they want to be a part of the state’s clean air future, but they cannot carry the cost of the transition alone”, said Luz Castro, Associate Director of Policy, Inclusive Action for the City. “AB 2635 recognizes the realities facing immigrant workers who need support to fully transition to cleaner equipment. We applaud the Assembly’s overwhelming bipartisan support for AB 2635, and the leadership of our champion Assemblywoman Rodriguez, for centering immigrant workers and economic justice as essential to achieving California’s climate goals.”

“I believe supporting landscapers in the transition to electric equipment is both a worker justice and public health issue. Landscapers have been exposed to toxic emissions on the job,” said Fatima Garcia, Director of the Sembrando Semillas Day Laborer Worker Center, an affiliate of the National Day Laborer Organizing Network. “Workers are ready to embrace cleaner technology but the cost remains a barrier. We ask legislators to invest in financial support and resources that protect workers’ health, strengthen our communities, and ensure this transition is equitable for working families.” 

“This vote is a win for the landscapers who wake up before dawn to keep our neighborhoods beautiful – and who have been doing so with equipment they can barely afford to replace,” said Daniela Alvarenga, Economic Justice Policy Analyst, California Immigrant Policy Center. “AB 2635 says California won’t leave them behind in the clean energy transition. It says we can have a greener state and protect the immigrant workers who make it possible.”

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About California Immigrant Policy Center (CIPC)

The California Immigrant Policy Center is a statewide immigrant rights organization that advocates for policies that protect and advance the rights of immigrants and their families throughout California. CIPC combines legislative and policy advocacy, strategic communications, statewide organizing and regional coalition capacity building to pursue its mission of advocating for policies that uphold the humanity of immigrants and refugees while advancing racial, social and economic justice.

About Inclusive Action for the City (IAC)

Inclusive Action for the City is a nonprofit community development financial institution (CDFI) and economic justice organization based in Boyle Heights and serving communities throughout Los Angeles County. Inclusive Action’s mission is to serve underinvested communities and build thriving local economies by improving access to transformative capital, and advancing policy through collaborative research and community-driven advocacy.

About National Day Laborer Organizing Network (NDLON)

NDLON builds power for the immigrants who do hard jobs for low pay. Day labor, construction, gardening, housekeeping, demolition, disaster cleanup and recovery, entrepreneurial businesses – immigrants who do it all. They face natural disasters (wildfires, hurricanes) and human ones (ICE raids, exploitive bosses, unsafe workplaces). NDLON supports immigrants organizing for better pay, safer work, fairer opportunities and basic rights. In other words, justice.