CRI - Update 09/17/03 [My title: Scorched Earth Policy? or Business as Usual]

Capitol Resource Institute Monday Morning Update – Early Edition Wednesday, September 17, 2003

Action is needed on the following bills: The following bills have been passed by the Legislature and are now sitting on Governor Gray Davis' desk awaiting his signature or veto. Action is expected to be taken on these bills within the next several days. The deadline for Governor Davis to sign or veto the bills is October 12. If the bills are not signed or vetoed at that time, they will automatically become law.

AB 17 - Kehoe: Special Rights for Homosexuals - AB 17 would prohibit a state agency from entering into a contract for the acquisition of goods or services with a vendor or contractor who does not offer benefits to domestic partner employees that are equal to benefits offered to employees with spouses. Businesses, including non-profit organizations like Salvation Army, that believe in the sanctity of marriage between a man and a woman only will be forced to either lose state contracts or stop offering any benefits to all employees. This is an effort to promote Homosexual marriage. Capitol Resource Institute opposes this bill. Recently, The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force (NGLT), a group working to force businesses to adopt such benefits for its homosexual employees have slashed in half their partner benefits stating that the partner benefits were too high to maintain during a budget crisis. NGLT understands these benefits are too expensive.

AB 76 - Corbett: Preventing Harrassment by Non-Employees - Existing law requires an employer, other than a religious association or non-profit organization, or any agent of the employer, who knows or should know of an employee’s harassment of another employee, an applicant, or an independent contractor, to take corrective action and take all reasonable steps to prevent the harassment from occurring. This bill would revise existing law to require that employers and their agents also prevent harassment by non-employees. For example, if a cross-dresser is working at Taco Bell and is harassed by a customer, this bill would require the supervisor to intervene take corrective action against the customer in support of the cross-dresser employee. .

AB 205 - Goldberg: Domestic Partner Bill (Homosexual Marriage) - AB 205 would enact the California Domestic Partner Rights and Responsibilities Act of 2003. This bill equates traditional marriage with domestic partners. It provides that registered domestic partners shall have the same rights, protections and benefits as are granted to a spouse. Essentially, all of the legal protections afforded to a spouse would apply equally to a Homosexual partner in the following areas and more: community property, child custody and visitation, transfer of real property, government benefits and workers’ compensation, tax law, health insurance coverage, spousal pension rights and death benefits. Capitol Resource Institute believes this is another attempt to overthrow the will of the people of California who voted overwhelmingly in support of traditional marriage with the passage of Proposition 22.

AB 1082 - Laird: Privileges for Agencies Providing Domestic Partner Benefits - Existing law authorizes public agencies that contract with the Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) for employee annuitant health care benefits to provide those benefits to domestic partners. AB 1082 would authorize a contracting agency that adopted a local definition of domestic partnership prior to January 1, 2000 to provide health care benefits to those domestic partners. This bill awards special privileges to local agencies that provide "domestic partners" benefits and want to join CalPERS. CRI opposes this bill.

SB 2 - Spier: Forcing Businesses to Pay Employee Healthcare - This bill would declare the intent of the Legislature to develop an employer-based health care coverage system that provides health insurance to every employee in California. SB 2 makes it mandatory that employers pay the cost or pay a yet-to-be determined amount to the state. This bill does not address the underlying cost drivers impacting health care premiums. Rather, it mandates a new health care tax on businesses in California. Mandating coverage means employers will incur significant new costs that will severely limit expansion of California operations and the hiring of new employees. This may lead to layoffs and relocations to neighboring states due to the significant new costs associated with this bill.

SB 71 - Kuehl: Radical Sex Education for School Children - This bill would consolidate current sex education provisions and establish the California Comprehensive Sexual Health and HIV/AIDS Prevention Education Act. This new sex education program would strongly promote transsexual and homosexual lifestyles to children from kindergarten through the 12th grade. One purpose of the new program would be to encourage the children to "develop healthy attitudes concerning . . . gender roles, sexual orientation, dating, marriage, and family." The bill provides that instruction and materials shall teach respect for marriage and "committed relationships." This bill also would remove a provision that allows local school districts the option of requiring positive parental consent for the sex education. SB 71 undermines parental rights and traditional standards within the home. This bill is detrimental to student's physical health and emotional stability by promoting sexual activity outside of marriage.

SB 85 - Torlakson: Death Benefits to Domestic Partners - Under the County Employees Retirement Law of 1937, any death benefits, optional retirement allowances, or survivor’s allowances accorded to a spouse, as specified, may be accorded to a domestic partner in San Mateo County, Los Angeles County, Santa Barbara County, and Marin County, subject to approval by the county board of supervisors and other limitations, including, but not limited to, the accordance of those benefits and allowances to a surviving dependent child, if any, until 19 years of age or until married, or 22 years of age if attending an educational institution. This bill would instead accord those benefits and allowances to a domestic partner when the surviving dependent child, if any, turns 18 years of age, or 22 years of age if attending an educational institution.

SB 295 - Vasconcellos: Extension of Medical Marijuana Research Program - This bill would Existing law authorizes the creation by the University of California of a 3-year program, the California Marijuana Research Program, the purpose of which is to develop and conduct studies intended to ascertain appropriate administration and use of marijuana. This bill would eliminate the program’s 3-year duration limit.

SB 322 - Ortiz: Stem Cell Research - This bill would require the State Department of Health Services to establish the Stem Cell Institutional Review Board, to be comprised of members selected by the department, to review and approve proposals for stem cell research projects. SB 322 would implement a new institutional review board to the Department of Health and Human Services for human embryonic stem cell research projects. We do not support human embryonic stem cell research or the destruction of human embryos in any way. We do not need to have a board to review projects that we do not support. This is one step closer to facilitating embryonic stem cell research through state programs, which are not needed. For this reason, this bill is not necessary.

SB 420 - Vasconcellos: Medical Marijuana ID Card - This bill would require the State Department of Health Services to establish and maintain a voluntary program for the issuance of identification cards to qualified patients and would establish procedures under which a qualified patient with an identification card may use marijuana for medical purposes. This bill in creates Id cards for obtaining "Medical" Marijauna. Despite the Federal law against cultivating and possessing the substance. This piece of legislation is deceptive in its attempt to legalize the use of this drug.

SB 490 - Alpert: Pharmacists Permitted to Furnish Emergency Contraception - Existing law, the Pharmacy Law, creates the California State Board of Pharmacy and makes it responsible for regulating the practice of pharmacy. This bill would also authorize a pharmacist to furnish emergency contraception drug therapy in accordance with a standardized procedure or protocol developed and approved by both the board and the Medical Board of California, in consultation with specified entities.

SB 545 - Speier: Emergency Contraception - Existing law provides for the licensing and regulation of pharmacists under the jurisdiction of the California State Board of Pharmacy. SB 545 would remove training requirements for the limited purpose of allowing a pharmacist to initiate emergency contraception drug therapy. The pharmacist would be permitted to use his or her own discretion in administering the emergency contraception with no specified guidelines. The pharmacist would not be allowed to charge a separate consultation fee to the patient. Life begins at conception. If SB 545 is passed, it would open the floodgates for all women to obtain convenient abortions in the earliest stage of pregnancy. These women would not be required to first consult a doctor concerning any risks involved nor is there any language in the bill that would require the potential risks to be given to the patient in written form. In addition, the patient would not be required to seek medical attention subsequent to ingesting the emergency contraceptive drug. This bill not only takes the life of unborn children, it endangers women.

SB 719 - Kuehl: Silencing the Free Speech of Students and Teachers - Existing law establishes the Interagency School Demonstration Act of 1985 with the purpose of supporting state public schools as they develop their comprehensive safety plans. This bill would recast and renumber these provisions. SB 719 allegedly seeks to reduce "discrimination and harassment" on campus but would effectively infringe upon the free speech rights of teachers and students who disagree with the homosexual and transsexual lifestyles.

SB 771 - Ortiz: Stem Cell Research - This bill would require the State Department of Health Services to establish and administer a stem cell research program which, among other things, would serve as a repository of embryos donated for research. The purpose of SB 771 is to make the embryos more accessible to scientists so they can be conveniently located and obtained for research. We do not support the state’s use of taxpayer dollars to fund human embryonic stem cell research. Without consent, California’s families are forced into financially supporting the creation and destruction of human life.

SB 774 - Vasconcellos: Encouraging Drug Use - This bill would create the Syringe Pharmacy Sale and Disease Prevention Act. It permits a pharmacist to sell up to 30 hypodermic needles or syringes, at a time, to anyone. It also eliminates the requirement that pharmacists document information about the persons who purchase the needles or syringes without prescription. Additionally, this bill exempts persons who possess up to 30 needles or syringes for personal use from the prohibition on possessing drug paraphernalia. Thus, SB 774 would encourage continued illegal drug usage and make it harder for law enforcement to convict illegal drug users. SB 774 could also potentially increase the amount of contaminated needles and syringes left in parks, beaches and other public areas.

Is this scorched earth policy or is it business as usual?

How in the world do you stop a runaway locomotive (such as this STATE LEGISLATURE has become)?

Quite true! Referendums necessary to respond to all of this licentiousness would take incredible amounts of time by many people.

How ignorant are the voters who put such people into office! They ignore history and culture and rational thought - preferring to sell out their children's future for the porridge of their own "personal freedom."

3 posted on 09/17/2003 2:53:25 PM PDT by kritikos (Truly true truth)

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