Overview

• AB 268 cleared the Legislature with wide margins, passing the Senate 36–4 on Sept. 10 and the Assembly 76–4 on Sept. 11.
• If enacted, public schools and community colleges could close for Diwali through labor agreements, and certain state, school, and community college employees would have paid time off options.
• The measure would not create a judicial holiday, so courts would remain open on Diwali.
• Backers, including bill author Assemblymember Ash Kalra, frame the recognition as meaningful for California’s large South Asian community and for broader cultural inclusion.
• Diwali begins Oct. 20 this year, and recent precedents include Pennsylvania and Connecticut adding the holiday to state calendars and New York City closing public schools.