4th annual event further establishes CALSAGA as a major player in Sacramento
On Tuesday, August 22, CALSAGA legislative leadership and staff spent the day meeting with key legislators and staff on some of the more important issues facing the security industry, including meal and rest break reform, legislation the Association is looking to pursue in 2008 and CALSAGA sponsored Senate Bill 666.
Perhaps equally as important to our legislative goals, the Legislative Day was another opportunity for CALSAGA to meet with face-to-face with elected officials who make decisions that have a direct impact on our industry. Additionally, many of the meetings were with legislators that had previously supported SB 666, so it was an opportunity to thank them for their support.
On the meal and rest break front, CALSAGA met with Mike Prosio who is the Chief Deputy Legislative Affairs Secretary for Governor Schwarzenegger. Prosio explained that the Administration is still hopeful that an agreement will be brokered before the end of the legislative session, despite the relatively slow movement on the issue. If something were to get done, Prosio believed that the issue would need to gain traction within the next week or so.
Everyone involved recognizes that there is a problem, but the issue has become a political game of cat and mouse, with both sides wanting something in return for what they give up. Until that is determined, there is a high probability there will be no resolve to the issue this session. However, in the event something does break, there are several legislative bills that could be used to move the reform bill quickly through the Legislature and to the Governor’s desk for signature.
As mentioned, CALSAGA also discussed some of our future legislative goals with each member. Some of those ideas include, implementing tiered security officer classifications and legislation that would mandate security officers to return their uniforms to their employer once they no longer work with that particular company, or face a suspension of their license and/or monetary consequences. Again, these are just ideas, but CALSAGA believes both will continue to professionalize the industry and further protect the public and consumers.
On the SB 666 front, we reiterated our appreciation to those members who supported the bill thus far and told them we would keep them informed as it continues to move through the Legislature. Specifically, Assemblymember Mike Eng (D – Monterey Park) who is the Chairman of Assembly Business & Professions Committee was one of those legislators who remained patient when opposition began to arise on our bill and gave our lobbyist the time necessary to work out a solution with the opposition in order to keep the bill moving forward.
The day was a success and we received many positive remarks about CALSAGA and our lobbyist from legislators and their staff. All said, we met directly with four legislators and four key staff members representing other legislators and the Governor’s Office.
We will continue to keep you posted on any developments pertaining to our industry as the legislative session winds down.
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