California lawmakers have advanced a bill to formally recognize two major Islamic holidays and allow public schools and state workers new accommodations, a move supporters call inclusive and critics warn could undermine school religious neutrality.
Assembly Bill 2017, introduced by Democratic San Francisco Assemblymember Matt Haney, cleared the California Assembly by a lopsided 64-1 vote in late May and now waits for action in the state Senate, with the legislative session set to close Monday. If it passes, the bill will land on Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk, opening the door for Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha to join a growing roster of holidays officially recognized in state law. The legislation would give state employees the option to use existing paid holiday credits for Eid observance and allow public schools and community colleges to close for the Muslim holidays.
Haney has framed the legislation as a matter of basic recognition and respect for California’s Muslim community, one of the largest in the country. In a statement marking the bill’s introduction in March, he declared, “California is home to one of the largest and most vibrant Muslim communities in the country, and their traditions deserve recognition and respect.” Haney argued that “no student should have to choose between celebrating one of the holiest days of their faith and showing up to school, and no worker should feel they have to sacrifice their religious observance.” He described AB 2017 as “about making sure Muslim Californians are seen, valued, and treated with the same dignity as every other community in our state.”
Supporters include the Council on American-Islamic Relations’ California chapter and the Muslim Impact Council, whose leaders say the change is long overdue. Oussama Mokeddem, the legislative and government affairs director for CAIR California, said in July, “For decades, Muslim families across the state have had to navigate an unfair balancing act between their faith and their academic or professional obligations.” Mokeddem called AB 2017 “a meaningful step toward ensuring Muslim students can celebrate Eid with the same dignity, respect, and accommodation afforded to other faith communities.” Hala Hijazi, founder of the Muslim Impact Council, described missing Eid celebrations with her family while working for the city of San Francisco years ago, saying, “It was really painful to not be with my family.”
But the bill’s school provisions have drawn fire from groups like the California Family Council, which says the legislation could violate the longstanding principle that public schools remain neutral toward religious observances. The group contends the bill’s language goes beyond simply letting students take time off for religious holidays, allowing schools to hold “exercises acknowledging and celebrating the meaning and importance” of Eid, and even instructing the State Board of Education to create a model curriculum for such activities. In their words, “No California statute authorizes public schools to hold exercises celebrating the meaning of Christmas, Easter, or Good Friday. The asymmetry is written into the law.”
The bill follows a recent trend in Sacramento of adding new holidays to the state calendar, California has already recognized Lunar New Year and Diwali in statute. But critics argue that while the state claims neutrality, the law increasingly picks favorites. The California Family Council supports letting students take time off for religious holidays but objects to what it sees as special treatment and government endorsement of one faith’s rituals in public institutions.
Assembly Bill 2017 would not create paid holidays for Eid, but would allow state workers to use their existing paid holiday credits to take time off for Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha. The bill would also make it possible for public schools and community colleges to close for the holidays, and would authorize schools to hold educational exercises “acknowledging and celebrating the meaning and importance” of the holidays. The State Board of Education would be permitted to develop a curriculum guide to help schools carry out these activities. Washington state is cited as the first to recognize the Eid holidays, and if signed into law, California would join a short list of states with similar policies.
As of August 27, the Senate had not yet voted on AB 2017, and Gov. Newsom had not taken any public action on the measure. The bill’s fate, and the broader debate over religious accommodation and government neutrality, remains in the hands of California lawmakers as the session’s deadline looms. For the full details of the legislative debate and the provisions at stake, see Fox News’ reporting.
When politicians play favorites with faith, the people who pay the price are those who expect government to treat all beliefs equally, and keep public schools a place for learning, not for official religious ceremonies.