Legislature Adjourns 2003 Session
Working late into the wee hours of Saturday morning, September 13, 2003, the legislature adjourned after rounding up the necessary votes to pass significant health care and Workers’ Compensation reform bills.
Internal and partisan politics made this year’s end of session a particularly tense state of affairs. The riff between Republicans and Democrats was exacerbated by recall politics and the Assembly Republicans’ anger over the Senate Democrats’ refusal to honor a deal they believed they had with Assembly Democrats regarding the 2003-04 budget. As a result, Assembly Republicans refused to vote on several bills requiring a two-thirds vote, thus, these bills failed passage during the final hours of the legislative session. Since legislation containing an urgency clause (effective upon the signature of the Governor) requires a two-thirds vote, Republicans were able to halt passage of bills during the final hours of the legislative session. This bargaining chip gave them control over legislation that they typically don’t have, especially as the clock was winding down late Friday night.
One of the key bills for education that made it to the Governor’s desk after the urgency clause was removed was AB 1266 (Oropeza, D-Long Beach). AB 1266 is a education “trailer bill” to the 2003-04 State Budget that clarifies several budget-related issues for education. The major provision in the bill that applies to community colleges is a change in how declining enrollments will be calculated. (Refer to previous article)
Some of the key bills that made it to the Governor include:
§ A change in layoff notice requirements (AB 290), from 30 days to 45 days, and a requirement that community college employees who transport students in a 15-passenger van (AB 626) have a Class B drivers license
§ AB 1051, which gives public utility companies greater power when it comes to raising rates on educational entities
§ AB 457, which authorizes a “Golden Handshake” for classified employees
§ AB 654, which would expand the rights of part-time faculty to include their names in course selection catalogs and notification in a timely manner if their class is cancelled
§ Community colleges would not have to stop using social security numbers until 2007 under the provisions of SB 25
§ Students enrolled concurrently in some community college classes will face restrictions under the provisions of SB 338, and
§ A bill that was amended during the final hours of the session (SB 644), which would expand the membership of the Board of Governors to include a classified employee.
The Governor has until October 12, 2003 to sign or veto legislation.
Some of the bills that did not make it to the Governor’s desk during the 2003 legislative cycle include an equalization funding mechanism (AB 40) and property tax backfill legislation (AB 1417). These bills will likely resurface during the 2004 legislative session, scheduled to start on January 5, 2004.
