• U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla (D-California) voted to move the Supreme Court Ethics, Recusal, and Transparency (SCERT) Act out of committee and into the Senate for consideration. The committee action follows recent public reports detailing potentially unethical behavior by members of the Supreme Court, highlighting the lack of transparency and enforceable ethics standards for the court, according to a July 20 statement from Padilla’s office. “It is long past time we restore public faith in the Supreme Court by implementing an enforceable standard of ethics—because it’s clear that they’re not willing to police themselves,” Padilla said in the statement. “As we know, and the court itself has said even the appearance of impropriety threatens our democracy. Regaining the trust of the American people begins with peeling back the curtain and increasing ethical standards and transparency at the court. And the legislation that we voted out of committee today is a major step forward in that effort.” Padilla is a cosponsor of the SCERT Act, which would create a process for investigating misconduct on the Supreme Court; strengthen recusal standards for judges and disclosure rules for special interests trying to influence the courts; improve disclosure of travel and hospitality for judges; and mandate the creation of a binding code of ethics.
• U.S. Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara) joined a bipartisan majority of the U.S. House of Representatives in voting to advance the reauthorization of Federal Aviation Administration programs with key improvements for aviation safety and consumer protections for America’s air travelers, according to a July 20 statement from Carbajal’s office. The Securing Growth and Robust Leadership in American Aviation Act would prevent runway incursions by expanding ground surveillance and detection equipment; direct the FAA to hire more air traffic controllers; direct the Department of Transportation to require airlines to develop policies addressing reimbursement for hotels and meal costs when flights are canceled or significantly delayed; require airlines to establish policies to allow passengers to sit next to their young child if seats are available; and require airlines to carry overdose reversal medications like EpiPens and defibrillators. “While this bill doesn’t have everything I’d hoped for, and includes provisions I disagree with like a change to pilot retirement age, this is a good bill—one that includes language that I worked to include to support Central Coast airports, those who live nearby them, and the thousands of passengers who use our airports to visit our region or travel the world,” Carbajal said in the statement.
• Following the Temecula Valley Unified School District’s failure to adopt an updated social studies curriculum, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced the state is entering into a contract to secure textbooks to ensure students in the district begin the school year with access to up-to-date books and materials that comply with state law, according to a July 19 statement from Newsom’s office. Elementary students in Temecula are slated to begin the school year on Aug. 14, 2023, without proper instructional materials—in violation of state law—because of the school board’s 3-2 majority’s repeated decision to reject an updated curriculum. “The three political activists on the school board have yet again proven they are more interested in breaking the law than doing their jobs of educating students—so the state will do their job for them,” Newsom said in the statement. “California will ensure students in Temecula begin the school year with access to materials reviewed by parents and recommended by teachers across the district. After we deliver the textbooks into the hands of students and their parents, the state will deliver the bill—along with a $1.5 million fine—to the school board for its decision to willfully violate the law, subvert the will of parents, and force children to use an out-of-print textbook from 17 years ago.”
This article appears in Jul 27 – Aug 6, 2023.