In May, UNITE-LA attended Access Sacramento, an annual fly-in event hosted by the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce to connect business leaders and stakeholders with Sacramento officials.

UNITE-LA hosted a timely discussion on the role of affordability in the systems that shape our cradle-through-career ecosystem. Speakers explored how education and workforce policies/investments can be powerful levers for economic mobility.

In April, UNITE-LA sent a business advocacy letter to members of the state legislature to prioritize ECE investments such as: supporting an alternative reimbursement rate for providers that reflects the true cost of providing child care; preserving Gov. Newsom’s wildfire investment for child care infrastructure; and including the additional 44,000 child care spaces per state statute. Fifty-one business organizations from across California signed on to the letter, representing more than 800,000 employers statewide.

In April, UNITE-LA was honored to cohost a Sacramento reception in partnership with the National Hispanic Construction Alliance (NHCA), convening more than 50 stakeholders to discuss workforce trends and the impact of immigration enforcement on the construction sector.

In May, UNITE-LA's Senior Vice President of Education Policy and Public Affairs, Sonia Campos-Rivera, joined an expert panel at the City of L.A. Early Childhood Education (ECE) Expo to discuss the role that city leaders can play to expand early care and education. 

UNITE-LA Policy Analyst, Ashley Álvarez, attended Getting Down to Facts: Aligning Governance, Policy and Capacity to Support Student Success, co-hosted by Policy Analysis for California Education and Stanford University.

UNITE-LA presented a session, “From Research to Practice: Partnering across the Workforce Ecosystem to Support Immigrant Workers,” at WORKCON 2026, hosted by the California Workforce Association and attended by business leaders, community-based organizations (CBOs), educational institutions, policymakers and Workforce Development Boards (WDBs) committed to creating effective, equitable and sustainable workforce solutions.

UNITE-LA's Associate Director, Public Policy, Ajay Lucas, joined partners in a Choose Children campaign gubernatorial candidates meet-and-greet.

In April, UNITE-LA joined partners in Sacramento to present at the California Immigrant Policy Center’s Immigrant Day of Action focused on health care access for immigrant entrepreneurs and self-employed workers. The discussion examined how federal affordability rollbacks, changes to Medi-Cal, and the growth of gig and non-traditional work are creating coverage gaps—putting immigrant business owners’ health and financial stability at risk.

UNITE-LA is pleased to report significant momentum in our advocacy efforts: two co-sponsored bills have advanced beyond their house of origin and will continue through the State Legislature, while one of our key budget priorities received increased funding in the Governor’s May Revision.