• Noreen's View: Protecting our Wild Lands
• Why "Denim Day" Matters
• Fighting for Your Right to Know
• State Audit Finds Reforms Needed at Yountville Veterans Home
• An Eye on the Governor

NOREEN'S VIEW: PROTECTING OUR WILD LANDS

California is home to some of our world's most beautiful natural treasures that we must preserve for future generations to enjoy. While California is a leader in environmental protection, your State Legislature has not designated new state wilderness areas since the 1970s.

I introduced legislation this year in partnership with the California Wilderness Coalition to change this unimpressive track record because we need to protect pristine wild lands, wildlife, and watersheds.

California manages thousands of acres of wild lands that aren't protected as wilderness, the highest level of protection for publicly owned lands. Wilderness designation requires that lands retain their primeval character and be managed to preserve their natural conditions.

Assembly Bill (AB) 2923 lays the groundwork for high value wilderness designations in the near future. It directs the state to assess whether specific lands in Northern California counties merit wilderness designation. Broken down by county, these lands include:

• Lake County - Cache Creek Wilderness;
• Mendocino County - South Fork Eel River Wilderness, Sanhedrin Wilderness, Yolla Bolly-Middle Eel River Wilderness, Yuki Wilderness;
• Napa County - Robert Louis Stevenson State Park, Knoxville Wildlife Area, and Cedar Roughs Wildlife Area;
• Santa Clara County - Henry W. Coe State Park; and
• Sonoma County - Armstrong Redwoods State Natural Reserve and Austin Creek Redwoods State Park.

Current law requires the Resources Secretary and State Lands Commission to report to the Governor and the Legislature about the wilderness system and prospective additions each year. Current law also requires them to assess prospects for new state wilderness each time new federal wilderness land is designated in California.

I have not seen such a report since I entered public office. Clearly, the state is delinquent in its responsibility. Despite the fact that Congress designated new federal wilderness in California in 2006 through legislation authored by Congressman Mike Thompson (D-St. Helena), no studies of state lands have been conducted assessing new wilderness prospects. The last report of this nature that I was able to find was filed with the Legislature back in 1980.

AB 2923 is my way of working with the environmental community to tell the agencies which state lands we'd like to hear about first. It is supported by Defenders of Wildlife, Environment California, the Planning and Conservation League, and the Wilderness Society. Further information is available online at http://www.leginfo.ca.gov.

WHY "DENIM DAY" MATTERS

I was proud to join advocates for women who attended an April 23 "Denim Day" rally at the State Capitol in order to raise awareness about sexual violence.

"Denim Day" originated as a result of an outrageous 1998 Italian Supreme Court decision which overturned the verdict of a convicted rapist because the 17 year-old victim "wore very, very tight jeans," which in the view of the court meant that "she had to help him remove them...and by removing the jeans...;it was no longer rape but consensual sex."

Within hours, women from the Italian Parliament showed solidarity in outrage over the decision by breaking the dress code and wearing jeans to work. As news of the decision spread, so did the protest. "Denim Day" has been internationally observed since 1999.

FIGHTING FOR YOUR RIGHT TO KNOW

The Assembly recently passed a bill that I authored to give journalists legal tools to obtain information from wrongdoers who use our courts to hide secrets that should be public knowledge.

Sponsored by the CA Newspaper Publishers Association, AB 2379 expedites court procedures to unseal court documents to protect the public's right to know about certain judicial proceedings. This bill will help ensure that journalists will be able to provide the public timely information.

The need for AB 2379 became evident during the recent court case of Savaglio v. Wal-Mart. A former employee sued Wal-Mart alleging denial of appropriate meal and rest periods. Wal-Mart was allowed to file volumes of records under seal in the Superior Court. When the Berkeley Daily Planet became interested in the case and sought access to the court files, access was denied for three years. The Daily Planet made a motion to unseal the records in August 2004, but the appellate court did not render its final decision until April 2007. By that time, the information was no longer newsworthy.

I believe strongly in the public interest and transparency in our judicial proceedings. In some cases, the public's right to know must necessarily be balanced with a litigant's right to privacy. In those cases, the judicial system should act promptly in determining whether information should become public knowledge. AB 2379 offers a simple solution by streamlining the judicial process in such cases, consistent with the California Public Records Act.

Further information about AB 2379 is available online at http://www.leginfo.ca.gov.

STATE AUDIT FINDS REFORMS NEEDED AT YOUNTVILLE VETERANS HOME

Last year, the Joint Legislative Audit Committee requested the Bureau of State Audits to evaluate the Veterans Home of California at Yountville, emphasizing the adequacy of health care and accommodations provided for members with disabilities.

The audit was recently finalized. Its findings reveal that California can improve its care for our honorable veterans. As the proud daughter of a Korean conflict veteran, I believe that we owe our veterans nothing less for the sacrifices they made in service to our country.

A copy of the full report is available online at http://www.bsa.ca.gov/pdfs/reports/2007-121.pdf.

AN EYE ON THE GOVERNOR

Activities:

On April 24, the Governor met with officials from Marin County to listen to concerns regarding the light brown apple moth eradication program, which includes aerial spraying to disrupt the moth's reproductive cycle. He announced that the state will postpone aerial spraying until acute testing of eye, inhalation, respiratory and other potential irritants, known as the "six-pack" toxicology test, is completed.

On April 23, the Governor - and his counterparts from Arizona, Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, New Mexico, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Vermont and Washington - sent a letter to the President opposing his proposal to overturn California's legal right to regulate climate changing emissions from automobiles, which comprise nearly 40 percent of total emissions. The President's proposal would overturn decades of legal precedent reaffirmed by Congress and our judicial system.

On April 21, the Governor and his counterparts from Oregon and Washington sent a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi requesting economic assistance to mitigate the effects of the first ever commercial closure of the salmon season in the Pacific Northwest.

Appointments from our Community:

David Noren, of Sebastopol, was appointed to the North Coastal Regional Water Quality Control Board. Since 1996, he has served as manager of Environmental Services of EBA Engineering. Noren is a co-founder and member of the Sebastopol Water Information Group and a member of the California Groundwater Association.

For further information about the Governor, please visit www.gov.ca.gov.