Recent News in the 43rd District

SACRAMENTO—More than 200 activists, from every corner of California, joined the Armenian National Committee of America – Western Region (ANCA-WR) on Monday, April 15 for the Commemoration of the Armenian Genocide in the California State Legislature and for their annual Advocacy Day.

Activists spent the entire day advocating issues concerning the community, educating their legislators about the consequences of the denial of the Genocide, and were able to view the month long exhibit of Armenian American inventors that have contributed to the wellbeing of the American population.

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Sacramento, CA – Assemblyman Mike Gatto’s (D-Los Angeles) legislation to criminalize the dangerous and increasingly prevalent crime known as “swatting”, cleared a major legislative hurdle today, passing the Assembly Public Safety Committee by a unanimous vote of 7-0.  Swatting is a perilous prank by anonymous mischief-makers who alert police to a bogus crime situation, prompting a tactical response — sometimes by special weapons and tactics (SWAT) officers — that then involves a high-risk search for phantom assailants.  AB 47 is the legislature’s most comprehensive legislation to address the issue, and the only pending bill to increase criminal penalties for swatting.

AB 47 would increase the criminal fines and penalties for anyone who makes a call to 911 resulting in the deployment of police personnel when no emergency exists.  Under the provisions of the bill, anyone who makes such a call would be subject to a $2,000 fine and a year in jail, and significantly increased fine and jail time if the call results in bodily harm.  Finally, the bill stipulates that any swatting call that results in a death can be considered manslaughter.  Assemblyman Gatto introduced AB 47 on December 19, 2012, even before the recent spate of high-profile swatting incidents.

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(Sacramento).- On April 15th, the California State Assembly marked the annual commemoration of the Armenian Genocide with a ceremony honoring the memory of the victims of that horrible occasion. The legislature passed Assembly Joint Resolution AJR 2, by Assemblyman Mike Gatto (D-Los Angeles), that would designate the week of April 18 to 24, 2013, as “California Week of Remembrance for the Armenian Genocide of 1915–1923,” and calls on Congress and the President of the United States to observe the California Week of Remembrance for the Armenian Genocide by participating in the Armenian Genocide Commemorative Project. The Assembly prayer was led by His Eminence, Archbishop Hovnan Derderian of the Western Diocese of the Armenian Church and the nation of Armenia was represented by Deputy Consul General, Mr. Artak Galstyan

(Sacramento) – Each year the California State Assembly honors Holocaust survivors, liberators, and the children of survivors during California Holocaust Remembrance Week.  This year Assemblymember Mike Gatto (D-Los Angeles) read the poetry of Burbank resident David Meyerhof, a child of holocaust survivors, during the ceremonies on the Assembly floor.  Assemblyman Gatto read Meyerhof’s four-line poem “Silence.”  Another of Meyerhof’s poems, “My Mother,” was distributed to all Members in attendance.  “My Mother” tells the tale of Mr. Meyerhof’s mother escaping Germany in the aftermath of Kristallnacht.

The poetry of Burbank resident David Meyerhof, child of holocaust survivors, has been read around the world, and yesterday, was read by Assemblyman Mike Gatto (D-Los Angeles) on the floor of the California State Assembly. Meyerhof’s poetry was featured at the State Capitol’s Holocaust Remembrance Ceremony, at the request of Gatto.  The ceremony honors Holocaust survivors, liberators, and the children of survivors.

Meyerhof, a retired-middle-school teacher who taught for 33 years in the Los Angeles Unified School District, is the child of two Holocaust survivors.  During the ceremony, Assemblyman Gatto spoke of the courage of Meyerhof’s parents, and all Holocaust survivors, and described how generations now have used art – music, films, paintings, novels, and poetry – to better fathom the unspeakable horrors of the Holocaust.  The Assemblyman then read one of Meyerhof’s poems aloud to the chamber.

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A bill by Assemblyman Mike Gatto (D-Sliver Lake) that would allow solo drivers to use carpool lanes during non-peak hours on the Ventura (134) Freeway in Glendale and Burbank has been amended to possibly include other local freeways.

Gatto’s bill, AB 405, passed its first hurdle Monday after it was approved by the Assembly Transportation Committee on a 15-1 vote.

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Sacramento, CA – The poetry of Burbank resident David Meyerhof, child of holocaust survivors, has been read around the world, and yesterday, was read by Assemblyman Mike Gatto (D-Los Angeles) on the floor of the California State Assembly.  Meyerhof's poetry was featured at the State Capitol's Holocaust Remembrance Ceremony, at the request of Gatto.  The ceremony honors Holocaust survivors, liberators, and the children of survivors.

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The Los Angeles City Council is expected to consider a motion Tuesday to crack down on “swatting” incidents, in which police are dispatched to celebrities’ homes on false crime reports.

Councilman Paul Koretz will ask the council to consider assigning several city agencies to help with the effort.

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Sacramento, CA – Assemblyman Mike Gatto’s (D-Los Angeles) legislation to help increase the efficiency of Los Angeles County’s freeway system, one of the nation’s most notoriously congested systems, passed its first legislative hurdle today, Assembly Transportation Committee by a vote of 15-1.  The bill, AB 405, will create pilot project to help ease traffic congestion during non-traditional commutes, by permitting single-occupancy vehicles to access the high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes (also known as carpool lanes), during non-peak hours.

“It's happened to anyone who lives in Southern California.  A late-night accident or mysterious slowing clogs the rightmost freeway lanes, while the carpool lane sits empty,” said Gatto.  “AB 405 is a cost-effective way to expand capacity on the state’s highway system and ensure that non-peak hour travelers can travel to and from home and work and deliver goods and services efficiently.”

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Assemblyman Mike Gatto’s bill to help local governments create dog parks for their residents passed the Assembly Judiciary Committee yesterday with broad bipartisan support and a vote of 9-0. The idea for the bill came from a local city councilmember, who expressed to Gatto that cities would open more dog parks, but for the liability concerns. Gatto’s AB 265 limits liability for cities and counties which operate dog parks and protects them from litigants who claim, for example, that they were unaware of the potential dangers (i.e., dog bites) that can occur at such parks.

“Dog parks help build safer and stronger communities by providing a location for neighbors to interact while training and socializing their dogs,” said Gatto. “We should not allow liability concerns to be a major barrier to creating these valuable spaces, especially in small- and medium-sized cities that cannot afford to self-insure.”

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