Governor Issued an executive order creating a...

Governor Issued an executive order creating a special commission to plan state activities for the first federal holiday honoring the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on the third Monday of January, 1986.

Will address a Los Angeles Chinese Chamber of Commerce dinner on Wednesday evening.

Will tour Palmdale, Los Angeles and Long Beach aerospace manufacturers’ facilities on Thursday.

Assembly Floor Action:

Approved, by a 66-1 vote, a bill to make it a misdemeanor to sell counterfeit state lottery tickets. The bill, AB 93 by Assemblyman Richard Alatorre (D-Los Angeles), now goes to the Senate.

Approved, by a 58-10 vote, an Alatorre bill to allow state Horseracing Board to authorize up to 25 additional weeks of harness racing at the Los Angeles County Fairgrounds in Pomona. It now goes to the Senate.

Bills Introduced:

Air Bags: AB 1099 by Assemblyman Rusty Areias (D-Los Banos) would require dealers to honor requests from new car buyers that air bag safety restraints be installed in cars sold after Jan. 1, 1987.

Exotic Weeds: AB 1107 by Assemblyman Robert J. Campbell (D-Richmond) would prohibit the importation, possession or sale of exotic weeds that threaten native plants and farm crops.

Pirated Musical Tapes: AB 1115 by Assemblyman Gary A. Condit (D-Ceres) would prohibit the possession of pirated musical tapes for sale.

Senate Floor Action:

Approved and sent to the governor, by a 35-0 vote, a bill that would increase penalties for abuse of nursing home patients and increase Medi-Cal payments to nursing homes for higher staff salaries. The legislation (SB 53) was introduced by Sen. Henry J. Mello (D-Santa Cruz).

Committee Action: Senate Health Committee approved two bills designed to reduce public fear about the risk of contracting acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) through blood transfusions. The bills would establish guidelines for screening tests recently ordered by the federal government. AB 403 by Assemblyman Art Agnos (D-San Francisco) and AB 488 by Assemblyman Mike Roos (D-Los Angeles), now go to the Senate Appropriations Committee.

Bills Introduced:

AIDS: SB 768 by Sen. David A. Roberti (D-Los Angeles) would extend the life of the state acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) advisory committee from 1986 to 1990.

Ticket Sales: SB 675 by Sen. Joseph B. Montoya (D-Whittier) would require all ticket sellers to sporting, musical, theater or other entertainment events to keep detailed records and to refund the ticket price for canceled or postponed events.

Miscellany A Senate Prayer Poll Puzzle: Bishop Francis A. Quinn of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Sacramento observed in a recent prayer to open a Senate floor session: “It is puzzling that in recent public opinion polls among the most admired persons in the world, we find at the top of the list the names of politicians and church-related people: the President of the U.S., Mother Teresa of Calcutta, Rev. Billy Graham, Pope John Paul II. But (other) polls indicate that among the least respected professions are politicians and clergy.”

Capitol Wedding Party: It took a rewrite of the policy book, but Assemblywoman Jean Moorhead (D-Citrus Heights) and Gordon Duffy, chairman of the Air Resources Board and a former Republican assemblyman, can hold their June wedding reception in the rotunda of the restored state Capitol. Although the rotunda’s use had been limited to official state functions, the Legislature’s Joint Rules Committee voted unanimously to extend its use to social functions of current and former legislators and statewide officials.