"No man's life, liberty, or property is safe while the Legislature is in session."

- unknown

From the San Jose Mercury News:

Lawmakers worked through a host of bills before the two-year legislative session ended at midnight Saturday.



Among bills sent to the Governor:

Helmets: A bill to require children who use skateboards, skates or scooters to wear helmets was approved by the Senate, 22-8. Under SB 1924, by Sen. Jack O'Connell, D-Santa Barbara, people younger than 18 who are not wearing helmets could be fined $25.

Immigrant licenses: In a 25-8 vote, the Senate approved SB 804, by Sen. Richard Polanco, D-Los Angeles, which would make nearly 1 million undocumented immigrants eligible for driver's licenses if they pass a fingerprint background check.

Farmworker mediation: In a 45-23 vote, the Assembly approved a bill to cap farmworker mediation at five years. SB 2956, by Sen. John Burton, D-San Francisco, would also limit the number of cases for mediation to 75 and call in mediators after 180 days of negotiations instead of 90.

Dietary supplements: In a 2378 vote, the Senate passed SB 1884, by Sen. Jackie Speier, D-San Mateo, which would require warning labels on dietary supplements such as Metabolife, and ban their sale to minors.

Hetch Hetchy repairs: The Assembly passed AB 2058, by Lou Papan, D-Millbrae. The bill would create the Bay Area Water supply and Conservation Agency, including up to 26 public entities to finance about $3 billion in improvements to the Hetch Hetchy Water System.

Child care planning: In a 48-29 vote, the Assembly passed AB 2954, by Assemblyman Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, which would require cities to provide adequate child care locations in their land-use plans.

Nuclear waste site: In a 41-31 vote, the Assembly passed AB 2214, by Assemblyman Fred Keeley, D-Santa Cruz, which would remove Ward Valley from consideration for California's low-level nuclear waste site.

Land preservation: In a 29-4 vote, the Senate approved AB 52, which would steer $9.6 million from Proposition 40 funds to buy development rights to farm land threatened by suburban growth.

Insurance discounts: In a 30-0 vote, the Senate passed SB 689, by Sen. Don Perata, D-Oakland, which would let insurance companies offer discounts to customers who maintain long-term coverage, even if they switch to another company.

Construction defects: In a 33-6 vote, the Senate approved SB 800, by Sen. John Burton, which would set new rules for fixing construction defects in new homes and condominiums, giving home builders a chance to fix defects before lawsuits are allowed.

Water flow study: In a 46-27 vote, the Assembly approved AB 858, which would require that the Department of Fish and Game study possible effects of reduced water flows on salmon and steelhead populations in Northern California rivers.

School performance: In a 27-11 vote, the Senate passed SB 1310, by Sen. Dede Alpert, D-San Diego, which would establish sanctions for low-performing schools that don't improve test scores. Those sanctions would not include takeovers by for-profit management companies.

Schools for communities: In a 24-11 vote, the Senate passed AB 2588, by Assemblyman Robert Hertzberg, D-Van Nuys, which would begin process to help school campuses become community centers for surrounding neighborhoods, sharing school libraries, gymnasiums and playground space.

BILLS KILLED BY THE LEGISLATURE:

-Consumer privacy: The Senate voted 1-27, killing SB 773, by Sen. Jackie Speier. The bill would have limited financial service companies' ability to sell consumers' financial information.



The libertarians among you may have noticed that few, if any, of these pieces of legislation falls under the legitimate functions of a government. Some, like allowing illegal* aliens legitimate drivers licenses, approaches the insane. Most are just representative of the usual Democratic--you did notice that all the folks listed here had a little D after their names?--constant drive to shove their expansive noses into just about every aspect of your existence.

*No, not "undocumented." Try sneaking into a baseball game and convincing the guards that you're an "undocumented" spectator.