Audit the CSU? + A parental bill of rights? + Bonta to city: Act in good faith or else
Good morning and welcome to the A.M. Alert!
ASSEMBLYMAN CALLS FOR CSU AUDIT
Yet another California lawmaker is calling for an investigation into the California State University system’s handling of sexual harassment investigations.
Assemblyman Jim Patterson, R-Fresno, said that such an investigation should not be conducted in-house, but instead should be handled by the Office of the California State Auditor.
“I’ve concluded that we need a rigorous investigation by our state auditor to uncover just exactly what has happened, not only at Fresno State but also San Jose State University that we are also hearing about,” Patterson said in a Monday morning press conference.
Last week, Sen. Connie Leyva, who chairs the Senate Education Committee, called for CSU Chancellor Joseph Castro to be investigated for his handling of former vice president of student affairs Frank Lamas, who is accused of multiple counts of sexual harassment. Leyva added that Castro should resign if the allegations against him are found to be factual.
Patterson, a former Fresno mayor and Fresno State alum who said that he once considered Castro a friend, stopped short of calling for Castro’s suspension or resignation.
“I’m going to reserve that kind of decision because I think it’s important that the audit be rigorous,” Patterson said.
Patterson added that he thinks that the system itself may have enabled the sexual harassment and ensuing cover-up, and that the blame might go far beyond Castro.
“I think that this goes to the very top,” he said.
The Fresno Republican praised the auditor’s office and said that it has been a valuable tool for holding the state bureaucracy accountable.
“The auditor’s office is absolutely straight as an arrow. They follow the facts and they are fearless,” he said.
A PARENTAL BILL OF RIGHTS?
Should California parents have their own bill of rights?
Assemblywoman Laurie Davies, R-Laguna Niguel, believes so, and has introduced AB 1785 as a means of enshrining one in state law.
The bill, which faces extremely long odds in a Legislature where Democrats hold a super-majority, would require school districts to post to their websites how parents may opt their children out of comprehensive sexual health and HIV prevention education, school district immunization requirements and how to inspect their children’s instructional materials, among other things.
In a press conference announcing the bill, Davies took a shot at the school mask mandate, saying, “There’s no good reason to mask our children at school.”
The bill doesn’t address masking, but does require that parents be informed of what school choice options they have that are offered by their local education agency.
AB 1785 is pending referral to committee, but may be heard on March 6.
BONTA TO CA TOWN: ‘ACT IN GOOD FAITH’ OR ELSE
SB 9 is now the law of the land, but that hasn’t stopped towns from getting creative in ways to get around the housing law.
Take Woodside, an affluent, small Bay Area town whose planning manager issued a memorandum declaring the entire town a “mountain lion sanctuary” in order to to avoid compliance with SB 9, which allows homeowners to build up to four residential units on a single-family lot.
Attorney General Rob Bonta was not amused.
“Woodside declared its entire suburban town a mountain lion sanctuary in a a deliberate and transparent attempt to avoid complying with SB 9,” Bonta said in a statement. “This memorandum is – quite clearly – contrary to the law, and ironically, contrary to the best interests of the mountain lions the town claims to want to protect.”
“My message to Woodside is simple: Act in good faith, follow the law, and do your part to increase the housing supply. If you don’t, my office won’t stand idly by.”
Bonta sent a letter to the planning manager to that effect, pointing out that there is no valid basis for declaring the entire town of Woodside a mountain lion habitat.
“Land that is already developed – with, for example a single-family home – is not, by definition, habitat,” Bonta’s office said in a statement.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“Last week @MayorOfLA Eric Garcetti said he ‘held his breath’ is his maskless pic with Magic Johnson. Perhaps if more politicians held their breath, California could truly return to being the Golden State. #CADeservesBetter.”
– Senate Republican Leader Scott Wilk, R-Santa Clarita, via Twitter.
Best of the Bee:
An acknowledged member of the Proud Boys, a far-right, white nationalist group, has filed to run for California Assembly against Democratic incumbent Ken Cooley, via Lara Korte.
San Joaquin Valley Rep. David Valadao voted to impeach President Donald Trump in January, and that’s meant campaign money from like-minded Republicans, via Gillian Brassil and David Lightman.
Vaccinated Californians can ditch their masks indoors soon, the state’s Department of Public Health announced Monday as it lifts restrictions imposed to slow the spread of the omicron variant, via Sophia Bollag.