Senate Approves $11.5 Million for Effort to Lure U.S. Facility

The Senate has approved an $11.5-million bid to attempt to land a federal accounting center at the site of Norton Air Force Base in San Bernardino County, scheduled to be closed in 1994. The 11,000 jobs to be lost at the base would be partially offset by 4,000 new jobs at the center if California is chosen as a site. Twenty-one states are competing for half a dozen of the proposed centers, to be used to process paperwork and pay defense contractors.

A 29-1 vote sent the bill (AB 2X) by Sen. Ruben Ayala (D-Chino) to the Assembly, where similar legislation is pending.

The $11.5 million includes $10 million to train potential employees and $1.5 million for refurbishing base buildings, an investment that would pay off in an estimated $134 million for the region’s economy if a center is established.

ASSEMBLY

Bill Introductions

Offshore Gambling: AB 74 by Assemblywoman Dede Alpert (D-Coronado) would permit casino-type gambling on cruise ships traveling in international waters between California ports.

Drive-By Shootings: AB 85 by Assemblywoman Kathleen M. Honeycutt (R-Hesperia) would increase prison sentences for discharging a firearm from a motor vehicle at an inhabited house or occupied building.

Mexican Prison: AB 87 by Assemblyman Mickey Conroy (R-Orange) calls for a state study on the construction and maintenance of a men’s prison in Baja California in cooperation with the Mexican government to handle deported illegal immigrants.

Sex Education: AB 88 by Assemblyman Willard H. Murray Jr. (D-Paramount) would require counties to provide welfare and Medi-Cal applicants with information relating to sex education, AIDS transmission, drug use, family planning services and birth control devices.

Memorial Demonstrations: AB 78 by Assemblyman B.T. Collins (R-Carmichael) would prohibit any person from participating in a political demonstration within 300 feet of any memorial dedicated to law enforcement personnel, firefighters or veterans.

Motor Vehicles: AB 70 by Assemblyman Richard Katz (D-Panorama City) would allow Department of Motor Vehicles offices to provide Saturday services without additional costs by reducing the number of hours that they are open to the public on other days.

Statehood: AJR 3 by Assemblywoman Juanita M. McDonald (D-Carson) asks the President and Congress to extend statehood to the District of Columbia.

SENATE

Floor Action

Auditor General: Passed and sent to the Assembly on a 35-0 vote a bill (SB 37) by Sen. Ken Maddy (R-Fresno) to re-create the defunct Auditor General’s Office within the Little Hoover Commission.

Bill Introductions

Chop Shops: SB 73 by Sen. Tom Hayden (D-Santa Monica) would make it a crime to own or operate a “chop shop” where parts from stolen motor vehicles are sold.

Carjackers: SB 60 by Sen. Robert Presley (D-Riverside) would make convicted carjackers who kidnap a person during the crime subject to life imprisonment.

Abortions: SJR 1 by Sen. Charles M. Calderon (D-Whittier) commemorates the 20th anniversary of the Supreme Court’s Roe vs. Wade abortion decision and states the Legislature’s support for the Freedom of Choice Act.

Sexual Activities: SB 59 by Sen. Dan McCorquodale (D-Modesto) would make it a crime for a husband or wife to induce a spouse to engage in sexual activities by creating a sense of fear within them.

MISCELLANEOUS

Clinton Inauguration: The Democratic-dominated Rules Committee voted to send Sens. Diane Watson of Los Angeles and Henry J. Mello of Santa Cruz, both Democrats and experienced travelers, to the inauguration of President Bill Clinton. The cost to taxpayers will run approximately $1,200 each for air fare to Washington, hotel rooms and meals. Watson also will travel to Rhode Island to make a speech to legislators on smoking and public health. Republican Sen. Bill Craven of Oceanside, who voted against authorizing Watson’s excursion, questioned the value of such trips. “She (Watson) is close to Marco Polo,” Craven said. Senate President Pro Tem David A. Roberti (D-Van Nuys) defended the inauguration trip as a proper expenditure. Roberti said he believed Republican senators attended former President George Bush’s inauguration four years ago at taxpayers’ expense.