California Senate busy passing bad bills

[tsai3904]

Senate passes minimum wage boost for California

SB 3 would raise wage to $11 an hour on Jan. 1
Wage tied to inflation in 2019

JUNE 1, 2015

As labor unions lead a nationwide push for a higher minimum wage, the California Senate on Monday approved raising the state’s required hourly rate to $11 in 2016 and $13 in 2017.

Under Senate Bill 3, which passed by a vote of 23-15, California’s minimum wage would also begin increasing annually in 2019 based on inflation. The measure heads next to the Assembly.

...

More:
http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-...e22841253.html

California Senate approves health care for undocumented immigrants

Under SB 4, undocumented children would be eligible for Medi-Cal
Bill also allows immigrants to purchase insurance on state exchange

JUNE 2, 2015

A proposal to expand health care to Californians in the country illegally cleared the Senate on Tuesday, passing on a 28-11 vote and heading to the Assembly.

Senate Bill 4 would allow undocumented immigrants to purchase health insurance on the state exchange, pending a federal waiver, and enroll eligible children under the age of 19 in Medi-Cal, the state’s insurance program for the poor. A capped number of undocumented adults would also be allowed participate, if additional funding is appropriated in the state budget.

...

More:
http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-...e22904433.html

California Senate approves increase in legal age to buy tobacco

JUNE 2, 2015

With no debate and bipartisan support, the state Senate voted 26-8 on Tuesday to raise the legal age to buy tobacco in California from 18 to 21.

Senate Bill 151 aims to keep cigarettes out of the hands of teenagers. Nine in 10 smokers take up the habit by age 18, according to the American Lung Association in California, and 36,000 California kids start smoking each year.

“Cigarettes are the single most dangerous consumer product ever sold,” said Sen. Ed Hernandez, D-Azusa, the measure’s author. “It’s time to stop allowing tobacco companies to make their deadly product so readily available to our youth.”

...

More:
http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-...e22928928.html

[Suzanimal]

Unfortunately, they have.

California Senate votes to restrict e-cigarettes as tobacco products

The state Senate on Tuesday approved a bill that would ban electronic cigarettes from restaurants, theaters and other public places in California where smoking is prohibited to address health concerns.

Sen. Mark Leno (D-San Francisco) said his bill would treat e-cigarettes, also known as “vaping” devices, as tobacco products because they often use nicotine and are popular with teenagers.

“Of great concern is that the fastest growth segment of new users is among middle and high school students who are now smoking electronic cigarettes,” Leno told his colleagues. "They are advertised on television. They are advertised on billboards.”

...

http://www.latimes.com/local/politic...602-story.html