We’re two years out from the 250th anniversary of America’s founding — and state legislators are working on California’s involvement in the upcoming party.
The federal government in 2016 tasked federal lawmakers and states with planning for the semiquincentennial, and in the years since, 43 states and U.S. territories have formed official commissions dedicated to the effort.
So far, California has not.
But could that change two years out from the celebration?
That’s the hope of Sen. Janet Nguyen, R-Huntington Beach, who is behind a bill to set up a state commission to commemorate the semiquincentennial on July 4, 2026, the 250th anniversary of America’s founding as well as the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
Under the legislation, California’s commission would be required to “plan and coordinate commemorations and observances of the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence and the American Revolution,” the bill said.
The state archivist would head the commission, and it would include two assemblymembers, two state senators, one individual proposed by the California Historical Society and five from the general public.
While California is without an official semiquincentennial commission, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office is in the early planning phase for the commemoration in 2026, according to a spokesperson. Legislation is not needed to establish a commission, according to the governor’s office.
In New Mexico, which most recently joined the effort to celebrate the semiquincentennial, the state commission is tasked with planning, promoting and implementing public celebrations of the 250th anniversary, similar to what Nguyen has proposed in California.
There, however, the commission is housed within the state’s cultural affairs department and names the governor as its honorary chair. Its commission is also tasked with consulting outside groups, including universities, civic organizations and historical societies, for publicity and educational outreach.
This is the third time Nguyen has brought up the measure, which cleared the Senate Governmental Organization Committee on Tuesday, April 9. She pointed to her family heritage as to why she cares so much about California joining in on the festivities.
Born in South Vietnam roughly a year after the fall of Saigon on April 30, 1975, Nguyen arrived in California by boat from Vietnam at just 5 years old. Had she stayed in Vietnam, Nguyen said she would probably not be alive.
“There’s no other country where you have a refugee, who’s 5 years old, speaks no English, on government assistant programs, extremely poor when she arrived in America, to 30 years later, being able to walk into the Capitol as a state senator,” said Nguyen.
“To me, it’s not just a birthday, it’s not just about hotdogs or barbecue. It’s a reminder of what a great privilege it is to live in a democratic society,” she said.
Huntington Beach, where Nguyen lives, hosted the California Bicentennial Fourth of July Parade in 1976.
According to city archives, Huntington Beach’s annual Fourth of July parade has been a community staple since 1904, held every year except in the World War II era from 1942-1946.
After the state legislature established the American Revolution Bicentennial Commission in 1967, which promoted statewide and local celebrations of the country’s bicentennial, Huntington Beach formed a special committee in the early 1970s to plan a celebration parade. That parade, which was heavily attended, was adopted by the state legislature as the state’s official bicentennial parade.
California is the largest state of the 10 that have not yet created a commission for the semiquincentennial, Nguyen said.
“California’s vibrant history, diversity and pivotal role in shaping our nation make it a critical part of commemorating the 250th anniversary of America’s founding,” said Rosie Rios, chairperson of the U.S. Semiquincentennial Commission.
Past legislation introduced by Nguyen — the fiscal impact of which was projected to be in the millions of dollars — ended up on the suspense file, where thousands of bills with a high fiscal impact go, and hundreds die.
The argument against the commission has always come down to the cost the state would bear, said Nguyen.
According to an analysis of similar legislation in 2022, the secretary of state estimated a cost of approximately $1.1 million in the first year and ongoing annual costs of $1 million.
That analysis also said the total costs to the secretary of state, while unknown, may be higher depending on other resources necessary in “promoting, commemorating and observing the semiquincentennial anniversary.”
But Nguyen argued there would be virtually no cost for the state aside from paying a couple of staff members to help kickstart the commission. However, a fuller estimate of the costs associated with the bill is not yet available, said Tori Richards, a spokesperson for Nguyen, because it has not yet been reviewed by the Appropriations Committee.
The bill says the commission must be “solely supported by private or federal funds made available for the purpose of supporting the commission.” Those private funds would come from citizens and other interested parties, Nguyen said.
At the federal level, America 250, the nonprofit supporting the U.S. Semiquincentennial Commission, provides $10,000 grants to states and territories to build their commissions.
But this year’s version of the bill has language that will give discretion to the state treasurer’s office to determine when and if enough funds have been raised, said Richards. That means if private funds come up short, California would simply not have a semiquincentennial commission.
