A day of recognition commemorating the life of a slain gay-rights activist and a bill linking student achievement with teacher evaluations were among the 478 pieces of legislation signed Sunday by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Senate Bill 572, introduced by State Sen. Mark Leno (D-San Francisco), calls for May 22 to be acknowledged as a special day of remembrance to commemorate the life of San Francisco Supervisor Harvey Milk. It will not be a state holiday; schools and government offices will remain open. Public schools, however, will be encouraged to conduct "suitable commemorative exercises."
The piece of legislation was protested by several family rights groups, and the governor vetoed a similar bill last year.
Milk and San Francisco Mayor George Moscone were shot and killed by former Assemblyman Dan White on Nov. 29, 1978. Milk's life and the the events surrounding the killings were documented in the recently released bio-pic "Milk." In July, President Obama awarded Milk the Presidential Medal of Freedom. May 22 is Milk's birthday.
Schwarzenegger also signed Senate Bill 19, which allows student achievement data to be tied to teacher evaluations and makes California eligible to apply for up to $4.5 billion in Race to the Top funds. The bill was authored by State Sen. Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto).
"My goal was to make this a non-issue as quickly as possible," Simitian said in a statement. "Now, California can compete for our fair share of federal funding, and make more informed choices for our schools and our kids."
The bill was endorsed by State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell.
Schwarzenegger vetoed a bill that, if passed, would have prohibited California State University officials from receiving pay increases or bonuses in years when there are cuts to state funding. The governor also vetoed Senate Bill 84, which would have allocated and guaranteed $400 million in funds for low-performing schools. In a veto message, the governor said the state will distribute federal funds to the schools, instead of state funds.
Leave a comment