Senate Floor

Allen, Alvarado-Gil, Archuleta, Ashby, Atkins, Becker, Blakespear, Bradford, Caballero, Cortese, Dahle, Dodd, Durazo, Eggman, Glazer, Gonzalez, Grove, Hurtado, Jones, Laird, Limón, McGuire, Menjivar, Min, Newman, Nguyen, Niello, Ochoa Bogh, Padilla, Portantino, Roth, Rubio, Seyarto, Skinner, Smallwood-Cuevas, Stern, Umberg, Wahab, Wiener, Wilk.

Members, a quorum's present. Would our Members and our guests beyond the rail and in the gallery please rise? We'll be led in prayer this morning by our chaplain, Sister Michelle Gorman after which we're going to ask you to remain standing for the flag Salute.

And let us bring our minds and hearts into the presence of holy mystery. Gracious and merciful God, in these days of fires, floods and other disasters, how can we pray for those who suffer, from the security of our own homes? How can words salve and soothe real wounds, assuage real fears, wipe tears from real eyes?

God of endless compassion transform our prayers from words into bridges that span the distance between us uniting our hearts with those who need our compassion and swift response. Every time we turn our keys and a lock, may we remember all who are losing their homes. Every time we step into our cars, may we remember all those having to flee. Every time we embrace our loved ones may we remember all who are grieving losses.

May our besieged brothers and sisters suffering from recent disasters be drawn into your loving arms. And may our cry be heard as one voice ringing out from every corner of the Earth. God of endless mercy, give us the resilience to create a world of security and love. Amen.

Members we'll have the Pledge of Allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Members, before we begin, can we please have a moment of silence for the victims of the mass shooting in Orange County yesterday evening? Thank you. I want to take this opportunity to introduce two special guests here today, Tommy and Timmy Bonikowski. Please stand. Hi, Tommy. Hey, Timmy. Good seeing you again. The two sons of our Senator, Senator Nguyen.

Members, without objection, we'll move to Senate third reading to take up file item 34, Senate Resolution 45. Senator Min, are you prepared? He's getting there. Secretary please read.

Senate Resolution 45 by Senator Min relative to Kimchi Day.

Senator Min.

Thank you, Mr. President. Members, it's my honor to present SR 45 which designates November 22, 2023 as Kimchi Day. Kimchi is a Korean dish made of fermented vegetables, basically pickling, traditionally prepared through a process called Kimjang where community Members come together to prepare enough Kimchi to last through the winter. In 2013, the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization officially recognized Kimjang on its representative list of the intangible cultural heritage of humanity.

This designation led to a Kimchi Day holiday in Korea and the celebration of Kimchi Day in states across the United States. Like Korean culture, Kimchi is a little bit spicy, has a tremendous depth of flavor and is really good for your health and your heart. I would just want to say, take a moment to personally just reflect. When I was growing up in California in the 1980s, no one knew what Korea was.

The idea that Kimchi would be celebrated in this state, in this country, was unfathomable to me. The idea that Korean culture would be celebrated in so many different ways, whether it's K pop or KTV, K dramas, to see so many movies and shows become popular on streaming channels, to see just the growth of Korean culture, to see the explosion of the population here in this state, is just something that makes me incredibly proud as a Korean American.

I ask that you join me in celebrating Kimchi Day by voting aye on SR 45.

Thank you. Any further discussion or debate on this item,

We're doing this later,

seeing none. Secretary, please call the roll.

Allen? Alvarado-Gil? Aye. Aye. Archuleta? Aye. Aye. Ashby? Aye. Aye Atkins? Aye. Aye. Becker? Aye. Aye. Blakespeare? Aye. Aye. Bradford? Aye. Aye. Caballero? Aye. Aye. Cortezi? Aye. Aye. Dahle? Aye. Aye. Dodd? Aye. Aye. Durazo? Aye. Aye. Eggman? Aye. Aye. Glazer? Aye. Aye. Gonzalez? Aye. Aye. Grove? Aye. Aye. Hurtado? Aye. Aye. Jones? Aye. Aye. Laird? Aye. Aye. Limón. Aye. Aye. Maguire? Aye. Aye. Menjivar? Aye. Aye. Min? Aye. Aye. Newman? Aye. Aye. Nguyen? Aye. Aye. Niello? Aye. Aye. Ochoa Bogh? Aye. Aye. Padilla? Aye. Aye. Portantino? Aye. Aye. Roth? Aye. Aye. Rubio? Aye. Aye. Seyarto? Aye. Aye. Skinner? Aye. Aye. Smallwood-Cuevas? Aye. Aye. Stern? Aye. Aye. Umberg? Aye. Aye. Wahab? Aye. Aye. Wiener? Aye. Aye. Wilk? Aye. Aye.

Please call the absent member.

Allen? Aye. Aye.

Ayes, 40. No, zero. The motion passes.

Too spicy for your district? I don't know

Members moving back to privileges of the Floor. Senator Min.

President and Members, in celebration of Kimchi Day, you'll notice that, you probably smelled this coming in, but there's a jar of Kimchi on each of your desks. I also want to note that we're celebrating SCR 72, which honors and recognizes the 70 year alliance between Korea, the Republic of Korea, and the United States, something that is incredibly important both in Korea and for Korean Americans here. We hope to have another 70 years of a close relationship between these two countries.

And in honor of these two things, we're joined this morning on the floor by Consul General of the Republic of Korea for San Francisco, Yoon Sang-soo and Sonya Harris, the CEO of Sage Strategies. I want to thank Sage Strategies, as well as Korean, KYCC in LA for all the work they did in helping us put together the Kimchi Day celebration last night, which some of you were able to join. So please join me in welcoming our guests.

Welcome to the California State Senate. If any Members want to join in the photos, now's the time. We're going to invite all senators who would like to participate in a photo to do so now. Members, now we're moving to the Senate Fellows presentation. Senator Atkins, you're recognized.

Okay thank you

, we're going to ask Members to take their seats during this presentation.

This is a really, really important presentation. A year long effort of work on the part of some people that we're getting ready to recognize. Colleagues, I am rising now today to honor our Senate Fellows, a group of diverse individuals who play a very critical role in the work we all accomplish each session. And I do not exaggerate.

When I got to the Senate my first year, I was fortunate enough to have a Fellow, and she really jockeyed my most important bill and one that was incredibly tough to get done. And I will be forever grateful to have had her focused attention and her brilliance as a Fellow doing that bill. Our Fellows bring unique strengths, diverse backgrounds, and new perspectives towards problem solving to inform their support of our public policy and governmental decisions.

Their work over these past eleven months at the Senate has helped them gain practical professional experience while also aiding us Senators as we do the people's work. Our Fellows are the future bench for the Senate, offering us a skilled pool of staff talent that's been thoroughly, gone through a thorough and highly selective application process. They know that is true to enter this prestigious program. Many of our experienced staff and capital community members are former Fellows themselves, even some Senators.

The program boasts an average of 60% to 75% retention rate. Several Members of our Senate staff, of course, including my own chief of staff, Nick Hardeman, our Senate Rules Committee Appointments Director and former Policy Director to a previous Pro Tem, Lisa Chin, are alumni of the program.

So, Fellows, when you leave this program, whether to return in a new role in our Legislature here, or to embark on your own professional journey in other areas of government or beyond, your experience here in the Senate has prepared you well to excel in public service. You've made it through a budget season, the House of Origin deadline, and the final hurdles that comprise the end of a legislative session.

You've made your mark on countless pieces of legislation, some of which will be enshrined into California law in the next few months. And you've served our state with dedication, focus, and an unwavering commitment to make California better for all who call our state home. So, my colleagues and I appreciate all that you brought to this role and we cannot wait to see what each of you do next. Thank you, Mr. President.

Thank you. We're going to ask all Senators who are recognizing their Fellows to do so from the Pro Tem's desk. I mean, majority leaders desk, I apologize. From the majority leaders desk. So our first Senator's, is he prepared? Senator McGuire and secretary, please read.

Congratulations to Cayley Chan from Roseville. Cayley graduated from UC Davis with a Bachelor of Arts in Science degree in Environmental Policy and Political Science. Cayley was placed in Senator McGuire's office.

Senator McGuire.

Mr. President, thank you so much for allowing me to present and to be able to share some brief words about Ms. Chan. She is a go getter to say the least. She is already interned in the Governor's Legislative Affairs and Appointments Unit. She is a former student advisor to the chancellor at Davis. She was a Fellow with Equality California, and she lives and breathes doing good for the Golden State.

Cayley's worked on three bills this year, including a critical mortgage disclosure Bill that's going to forever protect fire survivors with their rebuilds. She is wicked smart, she is determined, kind, and she always, always goes the extra mile. Anyone who has had the privilege to better work with Kaylee would say her go get 'em attitude is infectious. She is a team player, always willing to take on an additional task and to go to the mat for the people of California.

Finally, we have also benefited greatly from her endless supply of beef jerky, which we are forever grateful for, and an ever growing list of new music, which I've never heard of. So it has been an absolute privilege to be able to work with Cayley and cannot wait to see what comes next. If we can, please give a round of applause to Ms. Chan.

Thank you. Senator Becker. Secretary please read.

Congratulations to Amaya Childs from Sacramento. Amaya. Graduated from San Diego State University with a Bachelor of Arts, Degree in Sociology. Amaya was placed in Senator Becker's office.

Senator Becker

Colleagues, I'm here to recognize Amaya Childes, which seems like a strange thing to do, not because she hasn't been a good fellow, but because she was so good, I honestly forgot she was a fellow and just consider her part of the team. She graduated from San Diego State. She twice served as Executive vice President there on the student council, she was President of her sorority.

In our office, she staffs K-12 education, governance and finance, housing, labor, and she staffed four bills for us this year. And most importantly, she's been a strong contributor to our shared office Spotify list. She's ingrained herself in the broader community, becoming the Communications Director for the California Legislative Black Staff Association. Beyond that, she's been an invaluable addition to our office with her bright smile, superior baking skills, and infectious personality have impacted all who met her.

And if you don't believe me, take this from my team who said, described her as the following, "insightful and supportive, upstanding and detail oriented, kind and driven. Friendly, enthusiastic, thoughtful and sincere. Big hearted and wise beyond her years, and positive and upbeat." Amaya, we're very grateful to have had you in our office and it's been a privilege to watch you grow. And congratulations on your fellowship.

Congratulations to Pedro De Anda Plascencia from Southgate. Pedro graduated from UC Berkeley with a bachelor of arts degree in English and political science. Pedro was placed in Senator Weiner's office.

Congratulations. Next up, Senator Weiner. Clerk, please read.

Thank you, Mr. President. Colleagues, our office had the distinct privilege this year of hosting Pedro De Anda Plascencia as our Fellow. Born in Mexico and raised in Southgate, Pedro's own experience as a formerly undocumented person and a member of the LGBTQ community made him uniquely suited to handle many of the issues that our office has to deal with in San Francisco and San Mateo county.

Aside from being an incredibly hard worker, one of Pedro's greatest strengths was his ability to listen and empathize with anyone that comes into our office. Pedro staffed me on the Judiciary Committee this year, and as members of that committee know, that is one of the very hardest committees to staff. And he analyzed and advised me on scores of difficult bills. He took on sweeping legislation this year related to children's mental health and entertainment issues.

And throughout the entire year, he provided the office with endless laughs and tidbits of information from reality TV. He continues to grow in his advocacy, and it's been just a real pleasure to watch him grow and prosper in our office. While we are sad that Pedro cannot be here today, we're happy to report that the reason that he's not with us today is that he just started the next leg of his journey as a public policy Fellow with the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute.

So our State Senate's loss for the last couple of months of the year is Senator Alex Padilla's gain. So, Members, please help me in sending our biggest 2500 mile thank you to Pedro in Washington, DC for his service to San Francisco and San Mateo county and to the state of California.

Congratulations. Next up is Senator Cortese. Clerk, you may read.

All right, first thing I need to straighten out is we refer to this gentleman as Steve. Thank you, Steve, for your service to the state of California and for the contributions you have made to my office, our office.

Congratulations to Lawrence Steven Dorsey III from Morovia. Lawrence graduated from La Sierra University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology. Lawrence was placed in Senator Cortese's office.

Senator cortez

Anyone who's worked with Steve knows that he has a kind heart and a strong passion for justice. He's been an excellent staffer and a great fit with our team. He's staffing one of the most difficult bills with proficiency and patience. He's learned quickly, and he shows grace and understanding in stressful situations. He's ready to take on anything outside the office and often in it. From what I understand, Steve is an avid Marvel fan.

Much like Dr. Strange, Steve is always prepared for the unexpected, so I wouldn't be surprised if he had access to his Time Stone. He exemplifies what it means to be a strong leader through his work. Staffing actually, altogether four of my bills. He's welcoming and comforting in his presence toward staffers, visitors, constituents. I often mentioned to him during his first few months, particularly in my office, that he had the warmest space, the warmest space of anyone in our office.

It's easy to see and feel his passion for serving his communities. Again, he's a great staffer who thrives in the legislative environment, but he's an even better human being. It was a privilege to have him on my staff, and you're not done yet. We're proud of you, Steve, and I look forward to seeing the great things you accomplish. Thank you so much.

Congratulations. Next up, Senator Grove. Clerk you may read.

Congratulations to David Edwards from Hilmore. David graduated from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo with a Bachelor of Science degree and Agricultural Business and Management. David was placed in Senator Grove's office.

Senator Grove.

Thank you, colleagues and thank you, Mr. President. It's my honor today to introduce Mr. David Edwards, who served with Team Grove this past year. Mr. Edwards is a graduate like this, it was stated, from Cal Poly, and he's a third generation farming family, which made him very, very successful in staffing me in the agricultural community. When Mr. Edwards first came to our office, he was the Fellow.

Then he put together a wonderful bill for our agricultural community and built a Nascar letter of support, worked very hard on it, and he became David. And then the morning that we were able to present this bill before committee, he comes into my office and he says, "Our lead witness can't make it". I go, well, you better be prepared, and my bill better not die.

And after he got up before a committee and he presented that bill and it got out unanimously, he was applauded and welcomed back into my office as Mr. David Edwards, as an incredible, hardworking individual that has great success paved before him in his life. We were excited to have him. He had to leave the fellowship a little bit early because he got a full ride scholarship to McGeorge University to be a lawyer.

And I hope that he hangs both of these little memento things that we gave them in his office when he becomes a very successful lawyer and he defends the agricultural community to make sure that we can still produce food in this wonderful, great state of California. Colleagues, please say thank you to Mr. David Edwards. I just am so impressed with this young man. We kind of memorialized all of his successes in this photo array of.

Senator Niello. Clerk, you may read.

Congratulations to Hayley Fernandes from Tulari. Hayley graduated from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo with a Bachelor of Science degree and Dairy Science. Hayley was placed in Senator Niello's office.

Senator Niello.

So Hayley is actually the longest tenured member of my staff. She was the first official member of my staff when I started, and she has been truly an indispensable Member of our team. She's been my lead staffer on transportation, agriculture, and insurance policy, to name a few. She helps in and lots of other areas. She always steers me, to draw on her dairy background, in the right direction, to call on our common conservative background. And I know her parents and family are here today.

And while her immense intelligence is native, they deserve credit for raising a truly charming young lady who has been indeed fun to work with. Her ability to draw from her upbringing and education has benefited our office, and I think it's important to note her dedication to agriculture. And I know that that will be an important part of what is I know for her a very bright future. So I asked my team to give me a few thoughts that they had about Hayley.

And they, of course, offered high praise. A couple of examples, "Hayley has been the perfect fit for our new team. She is all of the things you hope for in a Fellow. She's bright, resourceful and eager to learn, and has also never hesitated to ask a question, chime in with a joke that is important in my office, or laugh out loud to our silly banter in the office." A comment by the person with whom she really worked the most closely.

"Hayley is a quick study, hard worker, and has grown much during her fellowship. She embraces obstacles with grace, excels with fortitude, and will be a confident leader to those wise enough to follow." And her boss said "From the moment I met Hayley, I was supremely impressed. She is intelligent, poised, capable, inquisitive and a creative individual. Her spirit and potential promise a bright future for her and those lucky enough to be in her company."

So, as for me, I was fortunate to have a couple of fellows when I was in the Assembly, and my Legislative Director was actually a Fellow the immediate prior year before me hiring her, so I learned that Fellows are truly the cream of the crop. And I have to say that Hayley Fernandez exceeded even my expectations. So please join me in congratulating Hayley on a successful year. And I'd like to present these flowers.

Next up, Senator Glazer. Clerk please read.

Congratulations to James Ford from San Mateo. James graduated from Brown University with a bachelor's degree in political science. James was placed in Senator Glaser's office.

Senator Glazer.

Thank you, Mr. President. Members and before I speak to James, who we call Jay, let me mention that I had the honor this this year to host many of the fellows in my office for what we call the annual Higher Education Seminar on Agricultural Products. And so I want to thank all those who participated with me again in that fun activity. Jay came to my office as one of the more mature fellows.

Having been in the workforce for a few years, that life experience has served him very well in the work here in the Legislature. From the beginning, Jay's work has been marked by an even keel, thoughtful deliberations and a solid pursuit of the task before him. He has taken the lead on analyzing tough issues for me, including transportation and governmental organization. I'm particularly impressed with his work to support higher education, including one of my priorities, the California Promise Program at the California State University.

Always willing to learn and ask questions, Jay is notably intellectually curious, often asking questions about California's legislative history that reveal a scholar's eye. He's probably the most serious person in my office, but if you listen closely, he has a dry wit and humor that can bust up the room. Now, Jay, I want to note that your foosball skills have definitely improved, especially as your defense as a doubles partner. In all, Jay has been a perfect fit in my office.

I want to thank him for all that he has contributed, and I'm excited to see where he goes next in his career. Please join me in congratulating Jay Ford.

Congratulations. Except Senator Rubio. Clerk you may read.

Congratulations to Daniela Garcia Hernandez from Richgrove. Daniela graduated from California State University Bakersfield with a bachelor of arts degree in political science. Daniela was placed in Senator Rubio's office.

Senator Rubio.

Thank you, Mr. President. Ladies and gentlemen of the Senate, today I'm here so proud to acknowledge someone that has brought tremendous value to my office. She's incredibly talented. My Senate fellow, daniela Garcia Hernandez. She's from Rich Grove, Bakersfield. She has been the perfect fit to our office and has exhibited leadership qualities since day one. Since the first day, she wasn't afraid to ask tough questions, challenge us in so many ways, and push us to see different perspectives.

As a veteran teacher, I could not be more proud of her engagement and her passion for learning. She's proactive very inquisitive. She will ask the tough questions and has made a tremendous impact over the past year. She has met every goal, every marker that we set for her and beyond. Daniela also has taken a few policy areas, which includes helping staff, energy, utilities, and communications committee forming, where she continues to excel.

She always goes beyond the call of duty to help on all issues in all committees. I also want to recognize her for staffing. My first Bill signed in 2023, SB 376, which provides further protections for victims of human trafficking. I'm very impressed at her ability to convey how much she cares about her community. She's always thinking of back home. She's always thinking what's best for her community. I'm also very proud of her as she continues to grow and mature in this role.

And I know that she will do incredible things and I look forward to her running California someday. I could not be more proud of what we've accomplished together and she never hesitated to join in in the fun and laugh with us. Again, to Daniella. Thank you for being in our office. Thank you for bringing that light, the joy, the smiles every day, and for always wanting to be part of a team. And her fellows. And she jokes that she's become a little mini me.

She even dresses like me. And again, the proud mama. I couldn't know how proud I am of her and our team. And to all the other fellows, thank you for adding value to California with that. Thank you very much.

Congratulations. Next up, Senator Seyarto.

Congratulations. Congratulations to Crystal Horn from Oakland. Crystal. Graduated from Cal Poly Pomona with a Bachelor of arts degree in political science. Crystal was placed in Senator Ciarto's office.

Senator Seyarto.

Well, good morning colleagues, and thank you for helping me welcome Crystal here today and thank her for her service this year. So Crystal isn't new to our office. Last year she was an intern from Sac State. She participated in intern program. So we got our first glimpse at Crystal and recognized the talents that she had. We encouraged her to apply for this program and of course she succeeded in doing that.

And while Crystal is from Oakland, she's also from Southern California and she and I share the same community college as graduates from Mount Sack College in Southern California. So Crystal has been a blessed addition to our team and she has carried important roles in staffing us on governmental organizations and also on our natural resources. Thank you. I don't know why I have a problem with natural resources and water. And she's done an outstanding job preparing me for any of those issues that come up.

She is dedicated and she gets there first. She leaves last, which is a model for the fire service. First in, last out. That's how you work. And she's always upbeat, she's always concerned about other people in the office, making sure that they're okay. But she's also very dedicated to doing the job of researching and understanding problems. And because of that, she is also very dedicated to education. That is her main interest. And so she staffs us.

She's the main office contact for anything related to education and also labor. So Crystal has a very, very bright future. And we are so happy that she came to our office and she is part of our team, and I wish her the very best in the future. I know you will do great things. And with that, I'd like to say thank you. Thank you so much for being part of our team and being a delightful part of it at that. Thank you.

Congratulations. Next. Clerk you may read.

Congratulations to Kyle Kruger from Cleveland, Ohio. Kyle graduated from UC Davis with a bachelor of environmental science and management degree. Kyle was placed in Senator Caballero's office.

Senator Caballero.

Thank you, Mr. President and Members. I'm pleased to rise today to recognize Senate fellow Kyle Kruger for his dedication, hard work, service and contributions to the 14th Senate District. Kyle Kruger, affectionately known in our office as Kylosaur, given his passion for paleontology and his talent for drawing dinosaurs, has been a tremendous asset to our district. An integral part of our team. During his time in the office, he staffed several bills and handled an array of complex issues, including health, environmental quality and judiciary.

He played a key role in our efforts to save hospitals and the services they provide so that Californians have medical care when they need it. He provided terrific support in our legislative efforts to secure $150,000,000, the initial $150,000,000 for the Distressed hospital loan Fund, and really did excellent work to research the managed care organization tax, which was really complicated and technical, so that we could run a Bill on it and get everybody together in support of extending that to help hospitals and healthcare.

Not only was his writing precise and his research excellent, he was a team player and a passionate public service. When we were short staffed at our Committee on Governance and Finance, he jumped in, helped them to analyze Bill, and actually sat at the dais during the committee hearings and did really tremendous work. For those who don't know, Kyle is a nature enthusiast, a published author, a former UC Davis student body President. He would be considered a Renaissance man, except that he was unfamiliar with Motown.

So, I mean, what can you say about that? Our office would not have been the same without Kyle's welcoming and positive demeanor, his contagious laugh, and of course, his dinosaur sketches that kind of roamed around the office. Thank you to Kyle Krueger for your excellent staff work and your dedication to service on behalf of the entire state of California. And congratulations to Kyle's parents, Kevin and Angie Krueger, for raising an outstanding, responsible and respectable young man.

Congratulations, Senator Limon. Clerk you may read.

Congratulations to Isabella Martinez from San Diego. Isabella. Graduated from UC Riverside with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration. Isabella was placed in Senator Limon's office.

Thank you. We have truly enjoyed having Isabella Martinez in our office. During the fellowship, Isabella was key staff on four bills and staffed me on the Senate Health Committee, which I think our Majority Leader would say is not short of some crunchiness at times. Isabella came in and began the work with a very little direction. Her integration into our office and the legislative process was so seamless that we often forgot that she was a fellow.

She has demonstrated initiative, willingness to learn, and is a hard worker and absolutely reliable. Isabella balances her incredible work ethic with a wonderful sense of humor and is a delight to work with. She also somehow is able to answer the phone quicker than anybody else in our office, which is truly an impressive skill. Thank you, Isabella, for bringing your intellect, your commitment, your dedication, your charm to Team Limon and your service to the people of California in Senate District 19.

We are so fortunate to have you on our team. Your energy, your dedication, and love for public service, and your strong work ethic fit really well into Team Limon. Thank you.

Congratulations. Next up, Senator Dodd. Clerk you may read.

Congratulations to Nina Wynn from Santa Clara. Nina graduated from California State University, Sacramento, with a master of arts in composition, rhetoric and professional writing. Nina was placed in Senator Dodd's office.

Senator Dodd, thank you very much.

Mr. President, Members. I am absolutely delighted to be here today to recognize Nina Nguyen, who has been an outstanding Member of Team Dodd over the last year. And as a point of personal privilege, it's been really interesting because she has introduced me to all the other fellows. That's the type of person she is. She's incredibly inclusive, and I had the opportunity to go in probably as other Members did, to speak with all the fellows.

And one of the incredible things is, as you walk around the Capitol and they say, Hello, Senator, hello, you don't think of as fellows anymore. You're all part of the team, and you've just done an outstanding job. But Nina was born and raised in Santa Clara and has been with us, of course, for a year. She's made significant contributions to my 2023 program, staffing me on some of my most difficult and technical bills, dealing with issues like education, insurance, privacy, and Native American tribal issues.

She's also been an amazing staff colleague to everybody in the office. She has these areas that she's particularly interested in, but when anybody needs a helping hand, she is always there to help out. She holds a bachelor's degree in English and a minor in Business Administration and a master's degree in composition, rhetoric and professional writing from Sacramento State. I could use you for a lot longer. In addition to serving my constituents in District Three, Nina is very passionate about education issues.

As a bilingual first generation college student of Vietnamese immigrant parents and peer writing tutor for four years, Nina has brought her diverse lived experience to my office and the Legislature. On top of that, Nina is starting her Doctorate in Educational Leadership Program this week, and hopes to use the knowledge and skill set she has garnered from her time in our office to continue her work in public service and her community. Thank you, Nina.

Congratulations. Next up, Senator Newman. Clerk you may read.

Congratulations to Crystal Padilla from Redwood City. Crystal graduated from California State University, Sacramento with a bachelor of arts degree in political science. Crystal was placed in Senator Newman's office.

Senator Newman.

Thank you, Mr. President. I have the honor today of introducing Crystal Padilla who has served as a Senate Fellow with distinction in my office over the course of the past year. Like so many of her Senate Fellow colleagues crystal is a proud product of our California State University system. After studying political science at Deanza Community College, christal transferred to Sacramento State and completed her bachelor's in political science and government.

As a Senate Fellow, christal quickly established herself as a key contributor in our office covering a range of issues to include budget, budget sub five and elections and constitutional amendments. Over the course of that work she has distinguished herself further through her diligence, her enthusiasm, her professionalism, her thoughtfulness, and her dependability.

Over the past legislative year my office has been very fortunate to have had Kristal as a Member of our team and I'm very grateful for her contributions but also for the cheerful energy and quiet intelligence that she brings to everything that she does. Christal has a very bright future ahead of her in public service. Her parents and other Members of her family are here with us today and they have every reason to be immensely proud.

Colleagues, please join me in recognizing and thanking Christal for her outstanding service as a California State Senate Fellow.

Congratulations. Next up is Senator Wilk. Clerk you may read.

Congratulations to Bryce Pamer from Concord. Bryce graduated from California State University, Sacramento with a bachelor of arts degree in political science. Bryce was placed in Senator Wilk's office.

Senator Wilk.

Thank you, Mr. President. I've had a Fellow 9 out of my 11 years here and this is the first time I believe we've done this and I commend you for it. These fellows should be honored like this. So thank you pro TEM for doing that since we hadn't done this before all these other people did backgrounds of their fellows. And so I went to Bryce. I go, do you want me to share anything about your background?

He said, It's none of their business so that's all you're going to get. So his life begins today. But our office is an unusual office because we've been together a long time and we have a good time. And Bryce was absolutely the perfect fit and I just love his energy and his enthusiasm.

In the early days of session he was like a human Pac Man game because he was pinging the halls, getting co sponsorships assigned and did a great job and he really, actually had a heavy lift and actually, I don't even know what my legislative Director does because I think Bryce does it all. But from late nights on Judiciary with Senator Umberg to getting up at the crack of dawn to prepare for Education Committee, Bryce has been with me every step of the way.

And your dedication has been truly you know, regardless of what we asked you to do, whether it was big or small, you always did it, and you did it with excellence. He did come away with a couple of life lessons which I'm happy that we were able to impart to him. Number one, when you come to the floor, you bring a second pen because chances are I'm going to forget a pen. So he learned that.

He also learned that if the pro TEM is giving an adjourn in memory, you do not walk out the chamber back when it's on TV. So he learned that. But I think we haven't taught him the most important lesson you need to learn when you're in this body, although I think it's going to happen. He's been very successful this session. But the number one lesson, as you know, is you should not fall in love with your bills.

And he's in love with the Bill that we're still working on. We're probably going to come up short. But I'm glad you're going to walk away with that experience because you need to have the whole experience of the legislative process. With that, you've really been a blessing to our office, really have enjoyed you, really appreciate the fact that you were the first one on staff to embrace my bubble machine entry. If you haven't come, you gotta come by my office.

We have lights and bubbles and we want to make you feel good before we tell you no with that. Thank you so much. Thank you so much for your service to the people of California.

Congratulations. Next up, Senator Padilla. Clerk you may read.

Congratulations to Silverio Rizo Yamas from Sacramento. Silverio. Graduated from UC Davis with a bachelor of arts degree in political science and sociology. Silverio was placed in Senator Padilla's office.

Senator Padilla.

Thank you, Mr. President. It's a real honor to recognize and thank Silverio Rizoyamas who is Team Padilla Senate Fellow this year. He's been an invaluable asset to our team and office with insight and curiosity about the legislative process. It's been a starting point for many, many meaningful conversations in our office. He's been a Member of Team Padilla from day one this year and during that time he's learned a great deal about the district and legislative process.

It's really been a pleasure watching you grow, Silverio, as a staff Member, developing relationships with other advocates and team Members, offering incredible policy analysis on a wide variety of issues including public safety, housing, transportation and education, to say the least. He has a desire to dive deep into issues and is a gifted researcher and has helped informed our office's efforts in areas such as investigating the practices of large corporate entities who feel free to skirt California's labor laws.

Addressing California's cross border sewage pollution challenges, traveling from Mexico. But most importantly of all, consistently reminding our team of the incredible playing and scoring potential of the Mexican national soccer team. He truly is a conscience of team padilla, sometimes with his intellectual curiosity, and constantly regrounding every conversation we have about what's really important about public policy and the people that it affects. I am certainly excited, and we all should be, to see what's next for Silverio. His intellect and natural curiosity will lead him.

And my friend, if I had a few words to describe you to my colleagues here, it would be heart, it would be commitment, it would be integrity. Folks like Silverio Risos yamas are our future. Let's please recognize and thank him.

Congratulations. Next up is Senator Gonzalez. Clerk Clerk, you may read.

Congratulations to Aurora Shuneman from North Bay. Aurora. Graduated from UC Davis with a bachelor of arts degree in international relations. Aurora was placed in Senator Gonzalez's office.

Senator Gonzalez.

Thank you, Mr. President. And Members. I am so thrilled to be able to congratulate our Senate fellow, Aurora Schuneman on an incredible year of hard, hard work, learning experiences, and accomplishments with our Senate District 33 team.

Aurora is the first State Senate Fellow that I've had the pleasure of working with, and I'm so glad because she's actually joining Team Gonzalez in a couple of weeks because I loved her so much and all of her incredible work, and it's been such a pleasure seeing her grow since last fall. As a recent UC Davis grad to now a skilled and accomplished legislative staffer, I think she wrote that for me.

But I actually totally agree with her and also thank her for her positivity as well in our office, as well as her conviction to always do what's right as a fellow.

She took on some of our most daunting bills, including an effort to keep our state parks free of plastic pollution, measures to bring transparency and sunlight to local government, as well as our fossil fuel divestment Bill and is leading our current push to make California one of the first signers of an international treaty on nonproliferation of fossil fuels.

She has dug into the very easy bills in Senate District 33, all the while committing to ensuring that we are doing everything we can on environmental quality on the committee, and also ensuring that she is the Goto staffer on all things housing policy through late nights long committee hearings, tough vote counts. Aurora helped carry our team with a positive attitude and always a desire to do the best thing for people first. The people of the Senate District 33 and California. I thank her family as well.

Congratulations, Aurora, and thank you so much for being on Team SD 33 officially.

Congratulations. Next up is Senator Umberg Clerk you may read.

Congratulations to Chloe Shin from Fullerton. Chloe graduated from UC Irvine with a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science. Chloe was placed in Senator Umberg's office.

Senator Umberg,

Thank you, Mr. President and colleagues. We are really pleased to be able to recognize Chloe. Chloe is a product of the 34th Senate district and actually lives in Senator Mint, Senator Min, Senator Newman's. They're easily confused Senator Newman's neighborhood. Chloe has tremendous passion, tremendous integrity.

She has been a wonderful asset to our office, both in the district because she speaks fluent Korean, and with our new Korean population, she's been an emissary to the Korean community. She's also been fantastic, fantastic in terms of her substantive contribution to our legislation. For example, on Fentanyl, she was person who guided and helped craft two surplus lands bills that have evolved and emerged from the Anaheim Stadium scandal.

Oh, by the way, she'll be watching each you don't want to disappoint Chloe when these bills come to the floor. Just a heads up, she is also up the team Umberg humor game. And with permission to read let me just read part of the talking points my staff gave to me to read. It says that Chloe Shin has added a fresh perspective to the Umberg team. She has convinced us and me to engage in choreographed TikTok dances.

And as a consequence, I have become an expert in short choreographed TikTok dancing. That's actually not quite true. Yeah. For those of you who are going to TikTok right now, you're not going to find too many Umberg TikTok dances. But in truth, she actually is someone who has enjoyed thank you. Senator Dodd shooting. Apparently she killed a number of pigeons the other night, most of them of the clay variety, and was the last person on the range as it was becoming dark.

Her remarkable journey has really blessed our office and special recognition of her mom, Grace Hugh, who is here with us today. Thank you, mom. Because you have made a tremendous contribution to the state of California in the form of your daughter, Chloe Shin. Thank you so much. Thank you. Congratulations.

Next up, Senator Portantino. Clerk you may read.

Congratulations to Catherine Squire from Stockton. Catherine graduated from UC Berkeley with a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science. Catherine was placed in Senator Portantino's office.

Senator Portantino.

Thank you, Mr. President and Members. It is truly a privilege and an honored to be introducing you all to Catherine Squire, who has served both our district, this office, and the state of California. Extremely admirably with passion and commitment, and just a pleasantness about her and a quiet confidence that I know. And her mom is up in the balcony as well. Makes her family proud. She was born in 1999, and for all of you as old as I am, think about that.

Here we are recognizing somebody born just before the 2000s. She lived excuse me. Moving to Stockton, California, where she was a lifelong resident for more than 20 years. Catherine owes her hard work, character and commitment to the furthering her education. To her mother, Liliana, who I mentioned, and her grandma Irma, who are both immigrants from Guatemala, and raised her in the south side of Stockton.

After graduating from Lincoln High School, catherine attended San Joaquin Delta College, where she developed a deep passion for advocating on behalf of students from disproportionately impacted communities. She became the student representative to the Board of Trustees and later rose to the Executive vice President of the Student Senate for California's Community Colleges. In those roles, Catherine worked with Members to champion several legislative proposals and mentored other student leaders across the state.

Catherine also remained committed to serving in her local community as an intern for the Stockton Public Defender's Office and an intern for Mayor Michael Tubbs, where she worked on projects surrounding homelessness, undocumented families and seed the city's guaranteed income pilot program. She continued to share her love of learning after transferring to the University of California, Berkeley. So for all of you go Bears folks out there, she did you proud.

Where she served as a reading mentor to me to fifth graders at schools in Berkeley and Oakland before completing her bachelor's degree in political science. Upon being accepted to the Capital Fellows program, catherine, obviously was placed in my office, where she staffed the Banking and Finance Committee and six bills ranging from issues related to firearms and the opioid crisis to education and housing. And the Bill she staffed for me.

One of those six was the first Bill I had signed this year by the Governor to help undocumented community college students access programs at community college students. So put her passion to help other students, and the Governor signed that Bill. As a resident of Stockton, she found deep personal ties to many of the issues she worked on, having lost family and family Members and friends to gun violence and drug addiction.

Growing up, she viewed working on these issues as a way to honor her late father, Brian, who also, tragically, she lost mental health issues and a cousin Andreas, who unfortunately passed away in the collapse of Chaplain Towers condominium in Surfside, Florida. Think about that.

One could look at all of that trauma in your family and be deeply moved to not just move forward here's somebody who took all of that trauma and all of that pain and channeled it to help other young people and other families around the state of California. She forever have my deep appreciation for that today. Catherine's mother, Liliana, who I know is proud, is in the gallery with us. And in her spare time, she has found experiences rewarding.

And I know she has gotten as much out of this as we have gotten out of her. When she's not working in our office, she can be found traveling and exploring new places, tending yoga, reading and listening to Taylor Swift. Now, Mr. Umberg, I know you listen to Taylor Swift as well. Some of her favorite lyrics are make the friendship bracelets because she believes there is no more fulfilling thing in life than having friends and adventures and sharing that with family and friends.

And I can see that when I see her interact with the other fellows. This is a person who deeply cares about making friends and values those friendships. I know she's got a long term plan to continue to serve our state and mentor other young people. And please join me in thanking and appreciating the work of Catherine Squire.

Congratulations, Senator Jones from the majority leaders desk, please.

Thank you, Mr. President. Good morning, fellows. It's an honor to be here on the Senate floor with you this morning and bid you farewell. Good luck and God's blessings as you move on from the Senate building. But before I get into my prepared remarks, I did want to bring up Mr. Jamie Taylor. If you can come up right here to the center, sir.

Jamie is the Executive Director of this program and has been overseeing I don't even know for how many years, as long as I've been here and longer. But I want the Senate to thank Mr. Taylor for his leadership in this program, mentoring these young people and bringing them up into caring about what's happening in our state and our country. And I'm very thankful for Mr. Taylor and everything that he does in this program.

I want to say congratulations to all the Senate Fellows of the class of 2023 on completing this phenomenal program. For those who aren't aware of the program, every year 18 Senate Fellows are placed in a Senate office and serve as full time legislative staff with strong support and mentorship. And I'll underscore and expand on full time based on some of the members'comments. It sounds like it was more than full time, but thank you for your service and your extra participation in partnership with Sacramento.

State Fellows also attend weekly seminars to help them better understand the theoretical and actual aspects of the job. I don't know if any of the Members mentioned this, but this weekly seminar I will share. When I've had an opportunity to have three Fellows over the last couple of years, and as a Member with a Fellow, you're invited to come speak to their group at their seminars. And obviously for two years we were in Pandemic, so it was on Zoom. I hope this year it was live.

I didn't have a Fellow this year. I lost the lottery somehow and didn't get a Fellow. But I will share as often as we speak on the floor, as often as we speak at events, as often as all of us. Senators are well reasoned and well spoken and well thoughtful and all of that.

The most scary thing I've ever had to do is present at one of those fellowship brown bag luncheons, because I just knew somebody was going to come up with a question I wasn't going to be able to answer. But I will share every single time, all three years I've had the opportunity to do it. The fellowship class was very gracious, very polite, and very inquisitive and curious about how I was sharing my perspective on things. And I appreciate that. The professionalism of the program.

That's one of the reasons why the fellowship program is so highly regarded and there is an ever increasing demand for Fellows. The program has high standards, only accepting the best and brightest individuals that the State of California has to offer. As I said, I have been fortunate to have three Senate Fellows over the past few years, and all of them have been very successful during the program and continue their successes after the program. And you will as well.

I know all Fellows are highly motivated with a passion for the State of California public policy and politics. Importantly, the program seeks diversity as we try to represent 40 million Californians in all parts of the state with various backgrounds. Not only do we need more diversity in the Legislature, but diversity also helps the fellowship class learn from their peers about difference, experiences, backgrounds, and how that impacts our work here in that building.

As Senate Minority Leader, I greatly value the diversity of thought and applaud the program for continuing to seek qualified candidates from all parties and walks of life across the state. After the program, Fellows excel at leadership positions in the public and private sectors at all levels of government. Fellows have frequently referred to their fellowship as life changing experiences. I do not doubt that this class will follow in the footsteps of their predecessors and excel in the next phase of their careers.

I wish you the best of luck. Thank you for your service to the State of California. Godspeed to the parents in the gallery. God bless the parents. Congratulations. Maybe you're all sending them off to very successful careers and they can move out of the House if they haven't already. Members in public. There's a fellowship reception following this down in the Eureka Room in the basement. We would invite you all to join us. Thank you, fellows.

Have a great afternoon and a very successful rest of the summer.

Members, we're going to take a slight pause and allow the fellows to take a group photo. So we'll do that at this time.

Once again, congratulations to all our 18 Senate fellows. Job well done. Members, we're going to return back to privileges of the floor. Senator, Umberg, you're recognized.

Mr. President and colleagues, thank you very much. We are privileged to have here in our chamber, in the gallery, the young senators from the 34th Senate District. These are young people, are sophomores, juniors, and seniors in high school. And I want to ask that we all welcome them. They're here to learn a little bit about how the sausage is made and to keep us focused and honest.

Thank you. Mr. President, if we could recognize welcome. To the California State Senate. Now, Members removing messages from the Governor will be deemed read. Messages from the Assembly will be deemed read. Reports of committees will be deemed red and amendments adopted. Now, moving on to motions, resolutions, and notices. Without objection, the Senate journals for August 14, 2023 through August 17, 2023, will be approved as corrected by the minute. Clerk.

Senator McGuire, you're recognized.

Thank you so much. Members, I move the adoption of amendments for bills that cross the desk on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, August 25, 26th and 27th. These amendments will be adopted and published. Would respectfully ask for a nibble.

Is there any objection, Senator Neelo

Thank you, Mr. President, at the risk of sounding like a broken record I'm going to sound like a broken record. I must object to what contributes to the ongoing lack of transparency, I think generally, but in the budget process in particular, this is not a comment about any substance to the bills, because, indeed, the reason for my objection is there is no substance to the bills. But after this weekend, I suppose, magically, there'll be substance in the bills. I recommend a no vote.

Thank you. Senator McGuire is asking for aye vote. Senator Niello is asking for a no vote. Clerk please call the roll.

Allen, Alvarado-Gil, Aye. Archuletta, Aye. Ashby, Atkins, Aye. Becker, Aye. Blakespear, Aye. Bradford, Aye. Caballaro, Aye. Cortese, Aye. Dahle, No. Dodd, Aye. Durazo, Aye. Eggman, Aye. Glazer, Aye. Gonzalez, Aye. Grove, No. Hurtado, Aye. Jones, No. Laird, Aye. Limone, Aye. McGuire, Aye. Menjivar, Aye. Min, Aye. Newman, Aye. Nguyen, No. Niello, No. Ochoa Bogh, No. Padilla, Aye. Portantino, Aye. Roth, Aye. Rubio, Aye. Seyarto, No. Skinner, Aye. Smallwood-Cuevas, Aye. Stern, Aye. Umberg, Aye. Wahab, Aye. Wiener, Aye. Wilk,

Please call the absent Members.

Allen, Aye. Ashby, Aye. Wilk.

32. No. 7. The motion passes. Senator Wahab.

Thank you. Members, I move to suspend the Senate rules as they relate to Senate Joint Resolution Seven.

Senator Grove

Mr. President, on behalf of the Senate Republican Leader, I ask for a no vote on this rule waiver. Just so the public understands what's being asked here. SGR Seven calls for a constitutional convention to make a change to the Second Amendment.

There's no debate on the motion.

Specifically ask for a no vote.

Senator Grove asking for a no vote. Senator Wahobbs asking for aye vote. Clerk please call the.

Allen, Aye. Alvarado-Gil, Archuletta, Aye. Ashby, Aye. Atkins, Aye. Becker, Aye. Blakespear, Aye. Bradford, Aye. Caballaro, Aye. Cortese, Aye. Dahle, No. Dodd, Aye. Durazo, Aye. Eggman, Aye. Glazer, Aye. Gonzalez, Aye. Grove, No. Hurtado, Aye. Jones, No Laird, Aye. Limone, Aye. McGuire, Menjivar, Aye. Min, Aye. Newman, Aye. Nguyen, No. Niello, No. Ochoa Bogh, No. Padilla, Aye. Portantino, Aye. Roth, Aye. Rubio, Aye. Seyarto, No. Skinner, Aye. Smallwood-Cuevas, Aye. Stern, Aye. Umberg, Aye. Wahab, Aye. Wiener, Aye. Wilk, No.

Please call the absent Members.

Alvarado Gill. Aye. McGuire. Aye.

Rayes. 32. No is 8. Senate rules are suspended now. Senator Wahab.

Thank you. I request unanimous consent to return SB 461 to the Assembly for.

Further action, without objection.

Thank you.

Senator Cabiaro.

Mr. President, I rise to submit a letter to the Journal referencing SB 699, a Bill related to non compete restraints of trade.

Without objection.

Senator Laird, at the request of the author, please remove file item 273, AB 1404 from the consent calendar for purposes of amendments.

Without objection. Senator Portantino.

Thank you. Please remove consent item 1769, which is file item 278, a Committee on Government Organizations, from the consent calendar for the purpose of amendments.

Without objection. Senator Hertado, at the request of the.

Author, please remove file item 274, AB 1505 Rodriguez from the consent calendar and AB seven one seven via Pudda from the inactive file for purpose of amendments.

Senator Hertato, I'm going to need you to repeat that file item and Bill number.

Pardon me, Mr. President, I don't have the file item, but it's AB 717 via Pudua from the inactive file for purpose of amendments.

It was just one.

There's two. File item 274, AB 15 five and AB 7117.

What are you asking, Senator Hertado?

I know. At the request of the author, please remove file item 274, AB 15 five Rodriguez from the consent calendar, and please remove AB seven one seven by Assembly Member Vapuda from the inactive file for purpose of amendments.

Without objection. Senator Skinner.

Thank you. Mr. President, at the request of the author, I'd like to pull item 277 AB 1765 from the consent calendar without objection.

Are there any Senator McGuire?

Thank you so much, Mr. President. And at the request of the author, I'd like to be able to remove AB 365 file item 268 from the consent calendar. Thank you.

Thank you. Without objection. Any other Members wishing to remove an item? Seeing none. Now we're going to the consideration of daily file Senate well, second reading file items 1 through 4.

Clerk you may read Assembly Bill 1280 713 41 223.

Now moving to governor's appointments, we have four items. We have Senator Laird, we're ready for file item five. Senator Laird, please read. Senator Laird.

Thank you very much, Mr. President. File. Item number five is the confirmation of Dr. Linda Darling Hammond for reappointment to the California State Board of Education. She is a retired professor of education and founder of the Learning Policy Institute. She's been a Member of the Board of Education since 2019. Currently serves as board President. She was approved by the Rules Committee on July 5. I respectfully ask for an Ivote.

Senator Grove.

Mr. President. On July 5, Linda Darling Hammond, Jose Escobaro, and Allison Yoshimito Towery came before the Senate Rules Committee for a robust conversation including a discussion about the new controversial math framework. Since that time of their confirmation, the State Board of Education unanimously voted to adopt the 2023 Mathematics Framework which would guide math instruction for our public K through 12 school districts.

The controversial math framework has received countless opposition in local school boards and local school districts and have concerns from Stem teachers experts, and very concerned parents that are concerned about the upward mobility of education in the state of California. Critics with the new math framework worry about the new focus that will be promoting equity and engagement and not direct instruction on the math fluency where it gives us a disadvantage with other countries that are teaching algebra and those kinds of things.

The math framework that we adopted here in the state of California will now remove algebra from the 8th grade curriculum. If we want public education to be the best place for the next generation in talent, it's going to be because we're better preparing our students and our teachers are better preparing our students with a math curriculum that works not only for us, but around the world.

It's only because of this situation that I'm reversing my vote that we supported or that I supported in rules to a no vote and respectfully ask for a no vote on these conference.

Thank you. Senator Jones. Oh, I'm sorry. Any further discussion or debate on this appointment Clerk please call the roll.

Allen, Aye. Alvarado-Gil, Aye. Archuletta, Aye. Ashby, Aye. Atkins, Aye. Becker, Aye. Blakespear, Aye. Bradford, Aye. Caballaro, Aye. Cortese, Aye. Dahle, No. Dodd, No. Durazo, Aye. Eggman, Aye. Glazer, Aye. Gonzalez, Aye. Grove, No. Hurtado, Aye. Jones, No. Laird, Aye. Limone, Aye. McGuire, Aye. Menjivar, Aye. Min, Aye. Newman, Aye. Nguyen, No. Niello, No. Ochoa Bogh, No. Padilla, Aye. Portantino, Aye. Roth, Aye. Rubio, Aye. Seyarto, No. Skinner, Aye. Smallwood-Cuevas, Aye. Stern, Aye. Umberg, Wahab, Aye. Wiener, Aye. Wilk, No.

ayes 31 noes nine. The appointment is confirmed. Now we're moving on to file item six. Senator Laird.

Thank you very much, Mr. President. Final item six is the confirmation of Dr. Francisco Escobevo for reappointment to the California State Board of Education. He's the Executive Director of the National Center for Urban School Transportation. He's been a Member of the Board of Education since 2021. He was approved by the Rules Committee on July 5. I respectfully ask for an iPhone.

Any further discussion or debate, Senator Ochoa-Bogh

Thank you, Mr. President and Members, I rise today to oppose the appointees to the State Board of Education. I initially supported two of them in the Rules Committee because of our discussion on the proposed math curriculum at that time, I talked with them and their willingness to listen and heed the advice of thousands of Stem professionals who had petitioned the board to rewrite the curriculum.

Unfortunately, they did not heed the advice of these very distinguished Stem professionals, such as the Dean and professor for the College of Engineering of UC Berkeley. I know some are opposed to the math curriculum for other reasons, but I'm opposed to it because it technically lowers our math standards and expectations. And my assessment is shared by many.

I have serious concerns with the State Board of Education recommending something that our UC system says isn't rigorous enough to meet the UC math requirements and the foundational and introductory classes to Stem majors. We will not achieve social justice or equity by abandoning mathematical rigor if our students are not mastering the math standards. We should look at the root causes and find new ways to teach math, not reduce what our students need to learn in order to appear successful.

How can we expect them to have successful Stem careers if they are not afforded the opportunities and expected to take the necessary math classes in order to build the necessary foundation and, yes, confidence. Most importantly, in order to take these classes, we should not lower our standards so that everyone can appear to reach the bar. We should keep our standards high and believe that everyone is able to reach the bar.

Their vote to lower standards in math curriculum is a reason I cannot, in good conscience, support the Iponetes today. Our children, our students, our California future deserves more. More dignity, more respect, and our confidence in their potential. We must ensure that our educational leaders embody and act on these values. I respectfully ask for a no vote.

Thank you. Any further discussion or debate? Senator Laird, would you like to close on this?

Thank you, Mr. President. I think there was a robust discussion. Equity was at the center of it. I think it was a real motivating factor. And I respectfully ask for an aye vote.

Clerk please call the roll on file, item six.

Allen, Aye. Alvarado-Gil, Aye. Archuletta, Aye. Ashby, Aye. Atkins, Aye. Becker, Aye. Blakespear, Aye. Bradford, Aye. Caballaro, Aye. Cortese, Aye. Dahle, No. Dodd, No. Durazo, Aye. Eggman, Aye. Glazer, Aye. Gonzalez, Aye. Grove, Hurtado, Aye. Jones, Laird, Aye. Limone, Aye. McGuire, Aye. Menjivar, Aye. Min, Aye. Newman, Aye. Nguyen, No. Niello, No. Ochoa Bogh, No. Padilla, Aye. Portantino, Aye. Roth, Aye. Rubio, Aye. Seyarto, No. Skinner, Aye. Smallwood-Cuevas, Aye. Stern, Aye. Umberg, Aye. Wahab, Aye. Wiener, Aye. Wilk No.

Clerk please call the absent Members.

Dodd. Jones.

ayes 31. No, seven. The appointment is confirmed. Now moving on to file item seven. Let me file item 12. 7. Okay. File item seven. Senator Laird.

Thank you very much, Mr. President. File item number 7 is the confirmation of Allison Yoshimoto towery for appointment to the California State Board of Education. She is the Executive Director of the UCCSU California Collaborative for Neurodiversity and Learning. She was approved by the Rules Committee on July 5. I respectfully ask for an iPhone.

Thank you. Any further discussion or debate on this appointment scenario? Cho Bok.

Thank you, Mr. President. Members, same points as iterated with the previous appointee are shared with this particular apprentice as well.

Any further discussion or debate? Hearing seeing none. Clerk please call the roll on file item seven.

Allen, Aye. Alvarado-Gil, Aye. Archuletta, Aye. Ashby, Aye. Atkins, Aye. Becker, Aye. Blakespear, Aye. Bradford, Aye. Caballaro, Aye. Cortese, Aye. Dahle, No. Dodd, Aye. Durazo, Aye. Eggman, Aye. Glazer, Aye. Gonzalez, Aye. Grove, No. Hurtado, Aye. Jones, No. Laird, Aye. Limone, Aye. McGuire, Aye. Menjivar, Aye. Min, Aye. Newman, Aye. Nguyen, No. Niello, No. Ochoa Bogh, No. Padilla, Aye. Portantino, Aye. Roth, Aye. Rubio, Aye. Seyarto, No. Skinner, Aye. Smallwood-Cuevas, Aye. Stern, Aye. Umberg, Aye. Wahab, Aye. Wiener, Aye. Wilk No.

Ayes 32 no's eight. The appointment is confirmed. Now moving on to file item twelve. Senator Laird

Thank you very much, Mr. President. File item number 12 is the appointment of Jack Weiss for appointment to the Board of Parole Hearings. He previously served as a federal prosecutor for the US. Attorney's Office, Central District, and is also a former Los Angeles City Council Member. He was approved by the Rules Committee on August 16. I respectfully ask for an aye vote.

Thank you. Any further discussion or debate on this appointment? Hearing seeing none. Clerk please call the roll.

Allen, Aye. Alvarado-Gil, Aye. Archuletta, Aye. Ashby, Aye. Atkins, Aye. Becker, Aye. Blakespear, Aye. Bradford, Aye. Caballaro, Aye. Cortese, Aye. Dahle, No. Dodd, Aye. Durazo, Aye. Eggman, Aye. Glazer, Aye. Gonzalez, Aye. Grove, Hurtado, Aye. Jones, No. Laird, Aye. Limone, Aye. McGuire, Aye. Menjivar, Aye. Min, Aye. Newman, Aye. Nguyen, No. Niello, No. Ochoa Bogh, Padilla, Aye. Portantino, Aye. Roth, Aye. Rubio, Aye. Seyarto, Skinner, Aye. Smallwood-Cuevas, Aye. Stern, Aye. Umberg, Aye. Wahab, Aye. Wiener, Aye. Wilk No.

Please call the absent Members.

Grove, Ochoa-Bogh, No. Seyarto, No.

ayes 32. Nose seven. The appointment is confirmed. Now, Members, we're moving on to Assembly third reading. We have file item 89.

Senator Smallwood. Cuevas. Are you prepared? Secretary please read.

Thank you. Mr. President, I rise to present AB 587 on behalf of Speaker Robert Rivas.

The secretary needs to read.

Sorry about that.

Assembly Bill 587 by Assembly Member Robert Rivas in accolading to public works.

Yeah.

Senator Smallwood-Cuevas.

Thank you. Mr. President, I rise to present AB 587 on behalf of Speaker Robert Rivas. AB 587 is a simple clarification to existing law that makes clear that when a labor compliance entity detects a possible inaccuracy in electronic certified payroll record, they are entitled to review the hard copy of that record, which is the source material. This Bill does not impose any new reporting requirements on the contractors and has negligent let me resay that negligible fiscal impact to the state. AB 587 has received bipartisan support and has no registered opposition, and I respectfully ask for your aye vote.

Thank you. Any further discussion or debate on this item? Any further discussion or debate? Hearing, seeing none. Clerk please call the roll on file, item 89.

Allen aye. Alvarado Gill. aye Archuleta. aye Ashby. aye Atkins. aye Becker. aye, Blakespeare. aye Bradford. aye Caballero. aye Cortese. aye Dahle aye Dodd aye Durazo. aye Eggman. aye Glazer. aye Gonzalez. aye Grove, Hurtado. aye Jones, Laird. aye Limon.aye McGuire aye Menjivar. aye Min Newman. aye Nguyen aye,

Please call the absent Members. Oh, he's not even finished.

Niello?

Senator Nguyen, can you repeat your vote? Not voting.

Niello, Ochoa Bogh, Padilla aye Portantino aye, Roth aye. Rubio. Seyarto Skinner aye Smallwood-Cuevas aye Stern aye, Umberg aye Wahab aye Weiner aye, Wilk aye.

Please call the absent Members.

Dahle, Grove, Jones, Min aye. Nguyen Niello, Ochoa Bogh, Seyarto

Ayes 33, noes zero. The measure passes. Now, Members, we're moving to the Consent Calendar. This is the time of any Member would like to remove an item from the consent calendar. This would be the time seeing none. Clerk please read the consent calendar.

Assembly Bill. 872, 979, 1140, 1159, 1566, 1763 Senate Concurrent Resolution 60, 70. Senate Resolution 32 Senate Concurrent Resolution 24, 25. Senate Bill 269, 469, 82, 86. Assembly Bill 502 Assembly concurrent resolution 91, 97, 100, 101.

Please call the roll Clerk on file. Item 269.

Allen aye, Alvarado-Gil aye, Archuleta aye, Ashby aye, Atkins aye, Becker aye, Blakespeare aye, Bradford aye, Caballero aye, Cortese aye, Dahle aye, Dodd aye, Durazo, Eggman Durazo aye, Eggman aye, Glazer aye, Gonzalez aye, Grove aye, Hurtado aye, Jones aye, Laird, aye Limon aye, McGuire aye, Menjivar aye, Min aye, Newman aye, Nguyen aye, Niello aye, Ochoa Bogh aye, Padilla aye, Portantino aye, Roth aye, Rubio aye, Seyarto aye, Skinner aye, Smallwood- Cuevas aye, Stern aye, Umberg aye, Wahab aye, Weiner, Wilk aye.

Please call the absent

Member Wiener Aye.

Ayes 40, no, zero. The consent calendar is approved. ayes 40, n zero. The special consent calendars approved. Now, Members, we're moving on to announcements. You might be aware, today was white suit day, started by former Senator Rod Wright. We're going to ask all the Members who are wearing white or think you're wearing white to stay in the chamber afterwards for a photo opportunity after we finish close of business today. Now we're returning to motions and resolutions. Now's the time for adjourn. The memories we first have up Senator Atkins.

Mr. President. Thanks so much. Colleagues, I rise today to adjourn in memory of longtime affordable housing advocate and trailblazer Patrick "Pat" Sabelhaus. A dedicated public servant who passed away earlier this month at the age of 82. Pat was born and raised in rural Tell City, Indiana, the 6th of seven children. After graduating from Marion College in Indianapolis, pat served in the Peace Corps in Venezuela. It was Pat's rural roots, however, that inspired him to enter public service and to dedicate his life to affordable housing.

He began his career in public service in Washington, DC. Working for the Office of Economic Opportunity. He then became Director of Field Operations for the Rural Housing Alliance, a role that he held from 1968 to 1976. And while there, Pat helped create farm labor, housing, and self-help housing throughout the country. This was just the beginning of his long and dedicated career in affordable housing. At the end of his time in Washington, DC. Pat served as a senior consultant at the US.

Department of Housing and Urban Development, or HUD. Pat and his wife Nettie Sabelhaus moved to Sacramento in the late 1970s. As many of you know, Nettie herself is a dedicated public servant was an influential Member of Governor Jerry Brown's inner circle. Once in California, Pat attended law school at Golden Gate University. He also served as Chief of Community Affairs Division at the California Department of Housing and Community Development and he graduated with his law degree in 1980.

After more than a decade of public service and leadership in the public sector Pat continued his work on affordable housing for many, many years specializing in state and federal affordable housing tax credit law, tax exempt bond financing law, real property law and syndication. Notably, Pat helped found the California Council for Affordable Housing which now provides college scholarships in his name to people living in affordable housing.

His legacy lives on through that scholarship and through the countless individuals and families he helped to fund housing over the decades. He's survived again by his wife of 51 years, Nettie who, by the way, is a Member of our Capitol community and a Member of the Senate family for those of you who have been around for a while. He is also survived by his children Sarah Sabelhaus Lutz and Emily Sabelhaus. He was a devoted grampy to Patrick and Charlotte Lutz.

He leaves behind two brothers, Jerome and Stephen, and many nieces and nephews to his family and certainly our friend Nettie. We thank you for sharing Pat and his tireless commitment to improving people's lives with California. And on behalf of my colleagues and I, we thank both of you for your dedication to public service and endless contributions to our state. Those of you that knew Pat talk about a true gentleman.

You would never know he had done all of the things he had done and all of the incredible work and leadership if you met with him, he was just a pretty grounded, very, very distinguished, just a decent human being. And so my heart goes out to Nettie, of course and the whole family. And so, colleagues, I ask that we adjourn today in memory of affordable housing champion Pat Sabelhaus.

Thank you. Please bring his name forward so it can be properly memorialized by the California State Senate. Next up is Senator Seyarto.

Thank you, Mr. President. Members, today I rise to ask that we adjourn in memory of Cal Fire Assistant Chief Josh Bischof of Menifee. Along with Fire Captain Tim Rodriguez and pilot Tony Sosa, Bischof gave his life battling a fire in Cabazon earlier this month. Bischof's firefighter and career started in Mountain Center where he was a volunteer firefighter before joining Cal Fire in 1999. In 2013, he transferred to Hemet Ryan Air Attack Base and promoted to Battalion Chief for Menifee Battalion 13. Three years later.

His promotion to Assistant Chief for Cal Fire Southern Region headquarters came in March just this past year where he oversaw their training program and subsequently their tactical air operations. Besides his decades of service and passion to the fire service. Josh was a devoted husband, a father, son, brother and uncle. He cherished his family and friendships and was always up for an adventure. His work ethic was unmatched, and he was loved and respected in both his personal and professional life.

Josh Bischof, Assistant Chief Josh Bischof is survived by his wife of 24 years and their children. Members, I thank you for this opportunity to speak today, and again, I ask that we adjourn in memory of Cal Fire Assistant Chief Josh Bischof.

Thank you, Senator. Please bring his name forward so he can be properly memorialized by the California State Senate. Next up is Senator Ochoa Bogh.

Thank you, Mr. President and Members, it is with great sadness that I rise to adjourn in memory of Tim Rodriguez, a 44 year old fire captain with Cal Fire who was a resident of San Jacinto in my district. Loving, humble, loyal, dedicated, courageous these were just a few words used to describe Captain Rodriguez during his memorial service on Monday at the Ontario Convention Center.

After graduating from high school, Captain Rodriguez completed the fire technology program at Mount San Jacinto College and began his Cal Fire career as a fighter as a firefighter in Mecca. In 2014, he promoted to a fire apparatus engineer, and in 2019, he promoted to fire captain. In 2022, he returned to the Hemet Ryan Air Attack base, where he was promoted to Hell Attack Fire Captain Tim, or "T Rod", as he was affectionately known, was dedicated to fitness and loved mountain biking, kayaking, snowboarding, and hiking.

Captain Rodriguez is survived by his parents, Tim Senior, and Mary, Dorothy, his wife of 19 years, and his three children, Josh, Haley, and Alexis, whom he talked about all the time with love and pride. Captain Rodriguez was an outstanding leader who was well-respected among his peers. He was taken far too soon and will be deeply missed in our community. His dedication to making Riverside County a safer place will not be forgotten. My thoughts and prayers are with his loved ones and the entire Cal Fire family as they grieve this terrible loss. Thank you.

Thank you. Bring his name forward so he can be properly memorialized. Next up is Senator Dahle.

Thank you, Mr. President. Members, it is with great sadness that I rise today to adjourn in the memory of our beloved hero, helicopter pilot Tony Sousa, who tragically passed away while performing wildfire aerial operations. Tony was a determined man. He was best at whatever he set his mind to. Once he decided to become a pilot, nothing could stop him. Tony was not only going to be an average helicopter pilot, he was going to be an A-plus pilot. And he was.

He achieved top scores on all of his exams. After becoming a pilot, he became a flight instructor and developed future pilots in his latest adventure. Tony was a pivotal in implementing the Cal Fire helicopter coordinator, also known as Hilco Training Program, which started in 2022. He was the first night vision goggle qualified Hilco pilot, qualified by Cal fire. He trained and mentored a huge brotherhood of fellow aviators to provide the Hilco services to the state of California.

He shined the most in being a father of his two sons, Connor and Carson, and a devoted husband to his wife, Rachel, of 28 years. We will never forget his courage and fight to keep California's family safe from devastating wildfires. His legacy will continue forever in our hearts. I ask that the Senate adjourn in his memory. Thank you.

Thank you. We ask that you bring his name forward so he can be properly memorialized. Senator. Laird

Thank you very much, Mr. President. I rise to adjourn in memory of Steve Martin, who was mayor of the city of Paso Robles. He was mayor or City Council for 23 years. In two stints, he was a Democrat in a conservative community who reached across the aisle for a very long political career. I ran into him once in the conservative radio station in Paso Robles, where he had a regular show and took calls.

Last year when there was an explosive issue at the school level, his instinct was to call a town hall meeting and get everybody to talk together. But there was a very unique development in his passing, and that was that he died a week ago. Monday and Tuesday was a city council meeting and he wrote a farewell letter to the community. And I asked for permission to read.

Without objection.

Thank you. And I'll just do excerpts, but I think it tells the story better than I could of who he was because he wrote, I'm a man of simple purpose, and that is to serve my North County community and treat everyone's, supporter and detractor alike with dignity, compassion, and respect. I trust I have succeeded most of the time. To those who feel I have failed, I ask your forgiveness. To those who now feel they may have wronged me, I offer my forgiveness.

I face the future with regrets about not having finished unfinished work. But I also face the future with wonderful memories of family, friends, and colleagues. I feel honored to have worked with such a caring and competent council members and such talented and dedicated staff. As a Christian, I move toward the rest of God's plan for me, even as I wave goodbye to everyone and everything he has provided during my lifetime, my wonderful family.

And he lists them and says, I love you all and hope to see you again one fine day. As always, I hold all of you and your community in my heart, urging you to let your differences be subordinate to your desire to care for one another. Remember to stay informed, stay involved, and stay strong. God bless all of you and farewell. That says it better. He was a class act to the last minute. I ask that we adjourn in the memory of Steve Martin.

Please bring his name forward so he can be properly memorialized by the Senate. Senator Bradford. You are recognized.

Thank you, Madam President. And I stand here to adjourn in the memory of a luminary music executive, bar none, one of the top individuals in the entertainment industry. And that's in the passing of Clarence Avant. If you know anything about music, you can name any artist over the last 50 years. And I assure you, Mr. Avant had something to do with their career.

As I stated last week when we recognized our hip hop 50th anniversary, it was individuals like Mr. Avant that I looked up to when I was a club promoter, because that's how he started his business. He grew up in North Carolina. He was the oldest of eight kids. And in high school, he dropped out of high school and he moved to Newark, New Jersey, and started running nightclubs.

And through running nightclubs, he met a variety of artists from Dizzy Gillespie, Sarah Vaughn, on and on and on. And he started managing many of these artists. And in the 60s, he moved to California and expanded his musical career by joining record labels. He started three record labels Taboo, Sussex, and Venture Records, and all successful labels. And then when Barry Gordy sold Motown in 1992, he became the chairman of Motown Records.

And it was due to a good friend of mine, Ron Carter, who was the publicist at the time at Motown, that afforded me the opportunity to meet Mr. Avant, who, if you ever had a chance to meet him, he was no nonsense. He was a straight shooter, stoic looking, you couldn't read his face. He was an excellent poker player, but he was a genuine individual. And he always expressed, know your value and don't let folks know how much you know. Know your value.

And he helped the career of Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, if you know those names, too. They produced all the Janet Jackson hits, you name it. And when they were seeking a record deal, he sat them down and he says, what do you think you're worth? And they had no idea. And he says, I'm going to get you a million dollars, and you're going to do your first deal. And he got on the phone and he got him a million dollars.

He also helped Jim Brown when he left the NFL, the transition into acting. Jim Brown had no Hollywood connections. It was Mr. Avant who put that deal together. And he also did the documentary for Muhammad Ali on and on and on and the Michael Jackson Bad Tour, Mr. Avant was the promoter of that as well. And Bill Withers, as we all know, the legendary singer. Mr. Withers was an airplane mechanic.

And he had tried to start a musical career, and every record label rejected him that he interviewed or auditioned for it was Mr. Avon that saw something and heard something, as he said, and Bill Withers, and the rest is history. He went on to first album, sold multi-million copies, gold record, platinum. You name it, he did it. But this was Mr. Avant's visionary. He was not one to take credit.

He was always in the back of the room, but he was always in the room, and he expressed being in the room. And he was the biggest champion of diversity and inclusion in the entertainment industry, from records to entertainment, movies. You name it, he's done it. And he was affectionately known as the Black Godfather because he made sure that people looked like him, had opportunities. He helped Quincy Jones, and who would think Quincy Jones needed help with his career?

But he helped elevate Quincy to a whole nother level. So it is with that honor, and I failed to mention, he was a consultant and advisor to four presidents Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, George Bush, and Barack Obama. And he helped all of them get elected. And again, a man with a high school education, but a passion and a witness for business, for people and understanding.

And as we all know, two years ago, he tragically lost his lovely wife Jacqueline, when their home was invaded by armed robber who shot her. But he has two amazing children Nicole Avant, Sara Dando, who was our Ambassador to Bahamas under the Barack Obama's Administration, and his son Alexander, who's an agent and Music Executive as well, and his son-in-law Ted. So I ask that this body adjourn in the memory of Clarence Avant, affectionately known as the Black Godfather.

May the angels be singing his greeting in heaven. Please bring his name forward so that he may be properly memorialized by the State Senate and you are recognized for your second adjourn in memory. Mr. Bradford.

Thank you. I stand today to adjourn and an amazing Californian, one that we all know, the name Charles J. Ogletree Jr. He was a tiring and respected legal scholar, a professor of Harvard Law School who became one of the nation's leading civil rights attorneys. Professor Ogletree rose from a very humble beginnings in California Central Valley community of Merced. He was a child of farmers who worked on rented land, and at an early age, he developed what would become a lifelong love of reading and fishing.

He was the first in his family to graduate from high school. He attended Stanford University and became active in the Black Student Union. He earned a bachelor's and master's degree in political science. He earned his law degree from Harvard University. And as an attorney, he was famously represented Anita Hill and a recording artist, Tupac Shakur. I had the opportunity to meet Mr. Ogletree back in 1992 on the Clarence Thomas confirmation in Washington, DC. And our paths crossed numerous times over the years.

He worked on behalf of survivors of the Tulsa Race Massacre in 1921 to help advance people's knowledge of the horrible moment in our nation's past and helped to refocus the discussion about reparations. He was our guiding light on many of the issues that we discussed over the last two years on the Reparations Task Force.

A colleague summed up Professor Ogletree's passion for the law by saying, quote, he was determined to see that black people were treated fairly in the courts, whether they were Anita Hill or Tupac Shakur or even an indigenous person on the streets of Boston. His legal legacy lives on in the many black attorneys who he has mentored over the years. That list includes Barack Obama and Michelle Obama. Professor Ogletree, known affectionately to his friends as simply The Tree, lived a life of great meaning and impact.

In recognition of his contributions to law and civil rights, the new Superior Court building in Mercedes was dedicated in his name earlier this year. Led by former Assemblyman Adam Gray, he passed away of Alzheimer's disease earlier this month at his home in Maryland. He is survived by his wife of nearly 50 years, Pamela, two children and four grandchildren. Members, I ask you that you join in memory and adjourning the memory of Charles J. Ogletree Jr.

Thank you. Senator Weiner, you're also recognized thank you.

Very much, Madam President. I also asked that the Senate adjourn in memory of Professor Ogletree. When I was a law school student at Harvard Law School in the mid-1990s, Professor Ogletree was teaching there. He headed up the clinical program, among other things. And so I had the honor of getting to know him then. And he was just truly an exceptional human being.

Absolutely brilliant and transformational in his mentorship of students and encouraging students to consider careers in public service and consider legal careers representing people who cannot afford attorneys but absolutely deserve legal representation. Thank you.

Thank you. Please bring his name forward so he can be properly memorialized by the State Senate and if there is no other business Senator Grove, the desk is clear.

Thank you, Madam President. Colleagues, the Senate will be in recess until 3:30 this afternoon, at which time the adjournment motion will be made. Wilk Reef convene Monday, August 28 at 02:00 p.m. Have a wonderful weekend, and we'll see you back here on Monday.

Senate will be in recess until 03:30 p.m., at which time the adjournment motion will be made. We will convene Monday, August 28 at 02:00 P.m..