Credit Check Notification Requirement Clears Assembly
Like to know when somebody is checking up on your credit rating?
Credit check agencies would be required to notify consumers when their credit report has been issued to a third party, if the consumer requested such information, under legislation passed by the Assembly.
A 45-17 vote sent the bill (AB 2908), sponsored by Assemblyman Steve Peace (D-La Mesa), to a questionable fate in the upper house.
Notices would have to be in writing and include the name, address and telephone number of whoever received the credit report. The notices would be sent on a quarterly basis.
Peace argues that consumers should have the right to know who is using information contained in their credit report to be sure that the data is accurate and up to date. Opponents object to the prohibitive cost for credit reporting agencies to comply with the notice requirement. GOVERNOR
Will attend a Pacific Coast Electrical Assn. luncheon and Forbes Magazine reception in San Francisco today. ASSEMBLY
Floor Action
Rent Increases: Passed and sent to the Senate on a 42-26 vote a bill (AB 3854) by Assemblyman Byron Sher (D-Palo Alto) to require landlords to give tenants 60 days instead of 30 days notice before raising the rent.
Water Quality: Passed and sent to the governor’s desk on a 42-23 vote a bill (AB 478) by Assemblyman Tom Bates (D-Oakland) to allow unnanounced spot checks of the water in Santa Monica and San Diego bays to determine if those discharging waste are complying with permit requirements.
Sales Tax: Passed and sent to the governor on a 41-0 vote a bill (AB 520) by Assemblyman Johan Klehs (D-Castro Valley) to guarantee school youth groups an exemption from paying state sales tax on fund-raising events.
Roadside Repair Service: Passed and sent to the Senate on a 44-17 vote a bill (AB 3635) by Assemblyman Richard Katz (D-Sylmar) to require emergency roadside automotive repair service personnel to be regulated by the state.
Crane Operators: Passed and sent to the Senate on a 48-14 vote a bill (AB 2537) by Assemblyman John Burton (D-San Francisco) to require crane operators to be licensed and regulated by the state. This bill was sparked by a recent San Francisco crane collapse that killed five people.
License Plates: Rejected on a 42-21 vote a bill (AB 2902) by Assemblywoman Gwen Moore (D-Los Angeles) to issue special Los Angeles Marathon design license plates to be sold for the payment of an additional fee. Fifty-four votes or a two-thirds majority required for passage. Reconsideration requested.
Committee Action
Medfly: The Public Safety Committee approved a bill (SB 1754) by Sen. Ruben Ayala (D-Chino) to make it felony instead of a misdemeanor to smuggle medflies into California. A 7-0 vote sent the bill to the Ways and Means Committee.
Battered Women: The Public Safety Committee also approved a bill (AB 2613) by Assemblyman Jerry Eaves (D-Rialto) to allow evidence of battered women syndrome to be introduced in court trials where a woman is accused of murdering her husband or live-in partner. A 5-2 vote sent the bill to the Assembly floor. SENATE
Floor Action
Water Skiing: Passed and returned to the Assembly for concurrence in amendments on a 27-2 vote a bill (AB 2772) by Assembly Majority Floor Leader Tom Hannigan (D-Fairfield) to allow Coors beer to sponsor water-skiing exhibitions at the Marine World/Africa USA theme park in Vallejo, which is prohibited by current law.
Vietnam Vets: Approved by a voice vote a resolution (SR 49) by Sen. Wadie Deddeh (D-Chula Vista) to create a seven-member homeless Vietnam veterans commission to hold statewide hearings and make legislative proposals to meet needs of those veterans. MISCELLANY
Puppy Mills: Forty-three assemblymen and five senators signed a letter sent to Kansas Gov. Mike Hayden calling for a boycott of commercially raised puppies from that state until Kansas “takes all necessary steps to ensure that these dogs are raised and brokered in human and healthy conditions.” The lead signer was Assemblyman Sam Farr (D-Carmel), who is seeking a state law calling for civil penalties and license revocations for repeated sale of sick puppies by pet stores. Capital Fact
There were 550,446 felony arrests in California in 1988, of which 170,156 arrests or 30.9% were for drug violations, according to a state Department of Justice report.
