The governor of California has executive power over the state. This includes the right to veto and sign bills into law. Today, California voters head to the polls to elect their state leader for the next four years.
Incumbent Republican gubernatorial candidate and current California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed 110 bills into law and vetoed 73 bills introduced by the state Legislature this year. With bills ranging from outlawing hand-held cell phone use while driving to protecting students’ freedom of speech, many of Schwarzenegger’s actions directly affect college-aged students.
Here’s a look at how Schwarzenegger handled these bills:
Senate Bill 840: Mandatory state health care
Action taken: Vetoed
Introduced by: Sen. Sheila Kuehl, D-Santa Monica, Calif.
SB 840 would have established a single-payer health system that would require the state government to take over the role that private insurance companies now play if signed into law. Payroll taxes and individual income taxes would have replaced insurance premiums. Hospitals would then be paid by the state with these funds, allowing for universal health coverage including the more than 6 million Californians who are currently without health insurance.
Schwarzenegger vetoed this bill and said it would cost the state billions of dollars to create such a system. He also said it would limit a person’s ability to choose his or her own doctor.
SB 107: Renewable energy sources
Action taken: Signed
Introduced by: Sen. Joseph Simitian, D-Palo Alto, Calif.
Schwarzenegger signed a package of bills to reduce California’s greenhouse gas emissions. SB 107 requires investor-owned utility services such as San Diego Gas and Electric to have 20 percent of its electricity come from renewable sources by 2010. The bill amends the already-existing Renewable Electricity Standard that required companies to increase renewable energy use by 2017.
“The science is clear,” Schwarzenegger said in a press release. “The global warming debate is over. We have a responsibility to act now.”
Electric power production accounts for 30 percent of the state’s greenhouse gas emissions, according to the Union of Concerned Scientists. Increasing reliance on wind and solar power would address global warming by reducing such emissions.
SB 1613: Cellular phone ban
Action taken: Signed
Introduced by: Simitian
Schwarzenegger said cell phones are the No. 1 cause of distracted-driving accidents. Other driving distractions include eating, drinking, changing the radio station and reading. SB 1613 will prohibit cell phone use while driving starting July 1, 2008. However, a California driver can use a hands-free device or make an emergency call.
Though dialing a phone number or hanging up the phone will still distract the driver if a hands-free device is used, the new law aims to ensure that drivers have both hands on the wheel at all times.
Assembly Bill 2581:
Free speech for college journalists
Action taken: Signed
Introduced by: Assemblyman Leland Yee, D-San Francisco
AB 2581 eliminates the uncertainty raised by the 7th Circuit Court decision in Hosty v. Carter by giving college journalists the same protections from censorship that high school press receives from the California Student Free Expression Law.
Hosty v. Carter extended the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier, which allowed for prior restraint of student newspaper content by school officials. The Hazelwood decision justified prior restraint because student newspapers are funded by the school.
After the Hazelwood decision, the California Free Expression Law extended to students in public high schools the same First Amendment rights that professional journalists have. Students have the right to exercise freedom of the press whether or not the school financially supports the publication, so long as content is not obscene or slanderous. School officials may not exercise prior restraint unless they can prove that the material poses a clear and present danger.
AB 1835: Minimum wage increase
Action taken: Signed
Introduced by: Assemblywoman Sally Lieber, D-Mountain View, Calif.
AB 1835 approved increasing the state minimum wage from $6.75 to $8 by Jan. 1, 2008. The increase will come in two phases: a 75 cent increase in January 2007 and a 50 cent increase in January 2008.
The governor vetoed a similar bill in 2004 but said in a press release that the economy is strong enough now to implement the change.
Nearly 2.1 million workers in California earned $7.75 or less per hour, according to the California state Web site.
AB 2941: Investment in Sudan
Action taken: Signed
Introduced by: Assemblyman Paul Koretz, D-West Hollywood, Calif.
With increasing national criticism of the Sudanese government’s handling of the civil war in Darfur, AB 2941 was proposed to make it illegal for California Public Employees Retirement System and California State Teachers Retirement System from investing in companies with active business operations in Sudan.
CalPERS and CalSTRS are the two largest pension funds in the nation, according to the Office of the Governor.
The conflict in Darfur is between the Janjaweed militia and the non-Arab people of the region. The Sudanese government is suspected to have provided arms and assistance to the Janjaweed and participated in joint attacks with the group, according to The Associated Press. It is estimated that 400,000 have been killed in the conflict since 2003 and 2.5 million have been displaced, according to the United Nations.
AB 2165: Felons in student athletics
Action taken: Signed
Introduced by: Assemblyman Jay La Suer, R-San Diego
AB 2165 prohibits college athletes in the University of California, California State University or California community college systems from participating in intercollegiate athletics events if he or she is prosecuted as an adult and convicted of a felony. The student will remain ineligible until he or she has completed his or her sentence in prison and any parole or probation.
“(The bill) sends a strong message to criminals on campus: If you commit a violent crime, you lose your privileges on campus until you pay your debt to society,” Schwarzenegger said in a press release.
AB 2923: Greater punishment for vandals
Action taken: Signed
Introduced by: Assemblyman Ron Calderon, D-Montebell, Calif.
This bill will increase the severity of punishment for a person convicted of engaging in graffiti. The bill mandates that a vandal will have his or her driver’s license suspended for two years rather than one year. It also delays the issuance of a driver’s license for one to three years for people who have committed vandalism but do not yet have a license.
“Harsher penalties like these deter potential criminals and help to keep California’s communities clean and safe,” Schwarzenegger said.
AB 2612: Free newspaper theft
Action taken: Signed
Introduced by: Assemblyman George Plescia, R-San Diego
California has placed restrictions on the amount of free newspapers that a person may take. AB 2612 makes it a crime to take more than 25 copies beginning Jan. 1, 2007.
The bill is a reaction to recent actions throughout California that have censored free media and used free newspapers to make money, according to the Office of the Governor.
In November 2002, a Bay Area politician reportedly stole 1,000 copies of a free newspaper because it did not endorse his campaign. The office also reported that several thousand copies of a college newspaper were taken by a group who did not support the paper’s editorial content. This year in Chula Vista, Calif., an individual reportedly took entire bundles of free newspapers to sell to recyclers in Mexico.
The bill makes taking more than 25 free
newspapers a unique crime that no longer falls under petty theft. The first violation will result in a $250 fine. A second violation may be punishable as a misdemeanor, requiring that the person convicted pay a fine of up to $500, go to jail for 10 days, or both.
Sources: www.gov.ca.gov and The Associated Press
-Compiled by Staff Writer Megan Burks
