Yolo County 101 -- Week 2 > Rexroad.com

So tonight at about 5:25 I was sure that Mike McGowan has scared everyone away last week. We had lots of empty seats and I was bummed that we were only going to have 20 people. However, by 5:35 we had more than 60 people in the classroom. This thing is really rocking.

Then David Morrison went out and did an absolutely excellent job talking about land use planning in Yolo County.

Dotty and I are really just kind of making this stuff up as we go along. I will wait to see what the evaluations look like from tonight but it appeared that David had the full attention of everyone in the room the entire time. Can't ask for much more than that.

Next week is public safety. I think the people that show up are really enjoying this.

We were lucky enough to have Supervisor Duane Chamberlain show up tonight.

Comments

By YoloCalVet @ Thursday, September 20, 2007 2:17 PM

Who will address illegal immigration and it's effects on city, county and state budgets?

The Bill That Would Not Die

The legislative process normally takes many months in which bill ideas are reviewed with input from the public. Some bills make it through this process and some do not. A problem arises when members of the Legislature seek to subvert this process by re-introducing bills that already failed in committees. This action is often taken at the end of the legislative session in an effort to sneak ideas through with little review or input.

The most egregious example in the recently concluded session was SB 1 by Senator Gil Cedillo (D-Los Angeles). The bill, as introduced in December 2006, sought to establish the Office of Immigrant Affairs. On the last week of session, the bill was amended to allow illegal immigrants to receive state financial assistance at California State University and University of California campuses. SB 1 would also allow illegal immigrants to receive fee waivers from community colleges. In other words, illegal aliens could be receiving grants, not loans, from the state government, essentially subsidizing his or her college education. This attempt to sneak legislation through at the last minute is just plain wrong.

The new version of SB 1 previously existed in another bill by Senator Cedillo. SB 160, which was introduced in January, contained the same provisions. This bill did not make it through the legislative process. In May, SB 160 failed in the Senate Appropriations Committee due to the significant costs it imposed on the state’s general fund. This action was a great victory for California taxpayers and those who support the legal immigration process.

By all appearances, this idea was dead for the year. However, Senator Cedillo refused to accept the verdict of his colleagues and thus amended this language into a new bill during the last week of session. The public had no knowledge that this bill had resurfaced and was being rushed through the Legislature at the last minute. SB 1 was approved by the Senate and the Assembly and is currently pending before the Governor.

By Tricia Valenzuela @ Thursday, September 20, 2007 3:24 PM

Matt,
I am home sick for the second day and missed the lecture last night. Are you going to post the videos from the class or can I catch it on the WAVE? I was really looking forward to listening to David as he is so knowledgeable and can answer any question thrown his way.

By Matt Rexroad @ Thursday, September 20, 2007 3:26 PM

Webmaster Bob has the video. He says is looks good. Last week was terrible. We should have at least the first hour on tape.

By sharla @ Friday, September 21, 2007 11:47 AM

The rainstorm was a challenge. That and there is a virus floating around the community attacking people.

I'm enjoying the classes, if only to meet the staff and hear what they do, what are the challenges of their jobs, and how we can help.

You must be logged in to post a comment. You can login here