Most of us are just coming back from summer break and the California Legislature is about to go on break, but they call it "interim recess." The Legislature operates on a two-year session cycle and they are just completing the first year of the 2005-06 legislative session. September 9 is the deadline for both the assembly and senate houses to pass bills and October 9 is the deadline for the Governor to sign or veto bills passed by the Legislature. If a bill does not pass out of its first policy committee before this constitutional deadline, it will be carried over and acted upon when the Legislature reconvenes after the "interim recess". If the bill does not pass its policy committee by the second year deadline, it is considered "dead." Many of the bills that the Academic Senate has been following will carry over to the second year of the session and become two-year bills. Please check the legislative tracking page at http://www.academicsenate.cc.ca.us/legislative/legtracking/legtracking… for the latest information on proposed legislation.
For the fourth year in a row, Californians will be voting in a statewide election.
This November, we will be having a special election, with eight propositions on the ballot. Please remember that the deadline for voter registration in order to vote in the November election is October 24. There have been polls and surveys on most of the issues and stories in both the general media and in faculty-oriented publications of groups such as FACCC, CCA, and CFT. However, the conventional wisdom is that most people don't start paying attention to the issues on a November ballot until after Labor Day. So expect the two months or so before the election on November 8 to be jam-packed full of coverage of those propositions on the TV, Web, newspapers and other publications. The Academic Senate will be helping you by providing information in upcoming Legislative alerts that we hope will be useful in the decision-making process.
The Academic Senate will be having its Fall Plenary Session in Pasadena from November 3 through 5. The Legislative and Governmental Relations Committee will be hosting several breakouts on legislative issues. We look forward to seeing you there.
Propositions on the November 8, 2005 Ballot
73. Waiting period and parental notification Before termination of minor's pregnancy.
74. Public school teachers. Waiting period for permanent status. dismissal.
75. Public employee union dues. Restrictions on political Contributions. Employee Consent requirement.
76. State spending and school funding limits.
77. Redistricting.
78. Discounts on prescription drugs.
79. Prescription Drug Discounts.
80. Electric service providers.
Regulation Source: California Secretary of State. http://www.ss.ca.gov/elections/elections_j.htm#2005special