June 27th, 2025
The Honorable Senator Renée Pérez
Chair of the Senate Education Committee
1021 O Street, Room 6740
Sacramento, CA 95814
RE: Support for Assembly Bill 727 (González)
Dear Chair Pérez,
The California Youth Empowerment Network (CAYEN) is pleased to support Assembly Bill 727 (González), legislation that would require schools and institutions of higher education to provide the Trevor Project’s LGBTQ+ suicide hotline on their students’ identification cards.
CAYEN is a youth-led statewide network, comprised of TAY Action Teams and CAYEN Board members, that engages, empowers, and represents Transitional Age Youth (TAY), ages 15-26, in mental health advocacy on issues that directly affect TAY. Since 2006, CAYEN has actively worked to empower TAY and drive meaningful change in public policy, particularly in increasing access to vital mental health supports.
In another round of destructive cuts, President Donald Trump officially ordered the end of national 988 LGBTQ+ suicide prevention funding. Since 2022, 988—the nation’s official hotline for suicide prevention and crisis management—has offered specialized services for LGBTQ+ callers in need.
What does this mean?
LGBTQ+ callers in crisis will not be routed to specialized providers if they call 988. Instead, callers will now need to directly call these service providers.
LGBTQ+ crisis service providers have lost critical funding needed to support youth in crisis.
AB 727 is a critical measure to combat the LGBTQ+ youth mental health crisis and ensures student have access to suicide prevention resources at their fingertips. AB 727 would require student ID cards for grades 7–12 and at institutions of higher education to include the Trevor Project Crisis Support Line, providing immediate access to life-saving resources.
This bill is critical, now more than ever. Schools should be a safe place for children to learn, build friendships, and develop a sense of belonging. Unfortunately, the reality is stark—our schools are the third most common location where LGBTQ+ youth experience hate crimes, with incidents more than doubling between 2018 and 2022, according to the FBI.
Studies have consistently shown the need for increased specialized suicide prevention services for LGBTQ+ youth. The Centers for Disease Control, for example, have highlighted the staggering statistics. In a report, they found that 20% of surveyed students who identified as gay, lesbian, or bisexual reported having attempted suicide, compared to 6% of their heterosexual peers. This reality jumps to nearly 26% for transgender high school students.
California remains at the forefront of LGBTQ+ protections and resources for students, but many do not know how to access them. By increasing the visibility of these services, we hope to increase access while also fostering an inclusive learning environment – which research demonstrates contributes to better educational outcomes.
The State needs to bolster existing support mechanisms and provide additional resources to students. For these reasons, CAYEN supports AB 727 (González) and asks you to vote “Aye.” If you have any questions, or if CAYEN can provide assistance on this bill or any other behavioral health legislation, please do not hesitate to contact me at dthirakul@mhac.org or our Director of Public Policy, Karen Vicari, at kvicari@mhac.org.
Sincerely,
Danny Thirakul
California Youth Empowerment Network
Public Policy Coordinator