California Lawmakers Chipping Away at Hundreds of Bills

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Credit Photo used under Creative Commons from Andy Patterson / Modern Relics / http://www.flickr.com/photos/modernrelics/4461010654/

California lawmakers chipped away at the more than 500 pieces of legislation they need to vote on before the session ends this month.

California Senators debated one controversial bill for more than an hour. It would give juveniles sentenced to life without parole a second chance at sentencing. The bill, authored by Democratic Senator Leland Yee, squeaked by in the Senate. Yee, a child psychologist, argued teenagers brains aren’t totally developed so they make bad decisions.

The Assembly passed legislation known as the “Student Athlete Bill of Rights.” It would require California universities provide academic scholarships to student athletes who are injured. It still faces a vote in the Senate before it could move to the Governor.

And Californians could show proof of auto insurance on their smartphone or iPad under a bill passed by the Assembly. That bill now heads to the Governor’s desk.