Gov. Brown bill signing round-up, the status of the Nor Cal fires, will the Weinstein company sell?

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Which bills were signed and which bills were vetoed? Checking in on the fires blazing up north, following sexual harassment reports, will the Weinstein company sell?

Gov. Brown bill signing round-up, the status of the Nor Cal fires, will the Weinstein company sell?

Which bills were signed and which bills were vetoed? Checking in on the fires blazing up north, following sexual harassment reports, will the Weinstein company sell?

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Which bills were signed and which bills were vetoed? Checking in on the fires blazing up north, following sexual harassment reports, will the Weinstein company sell?

Here's the last of the bills Governor Brown signed — and didn't sign — this year

Just minutes before a midnight deadline, California Gov. Jerry Brown cleared his desk Sunday night by acting on the final few dozen of the nearly 1,000 bills sent his way this year by state lawmakers.

Round-up of bills

Brown signed SB 5 by Senate President pro Tem Kevin de León (D-Los Angeles), a $4 billion parks and water bond, sending it to the June 2018 ballot. He approved a first-in-the-nation bill, SB 258 by Sen. Ricardo Lara (D-Bell Gardens), requiring companies that make cleaning products to list hazardous ingredients on labels. And he signed AB 567 by Asm. Todd Gloria (D-San Diego) to allow the new process of "liquid cremation" to dispose of bodies.

SB 179 and SB 310: Nonbinary and transgender designation

Transgender Californians will be able to identify their gender as “nonbinary” on official state documents after the governor signed SB 179 by Sen. Toni Atkins (D-San Diego). California will become the first state in the nation to allow a third gender marker on birth certificates — and the second, following Oregon, to allow it on driver’s licenses. The governor also approved another Atkins bill, SB 310, that will allow transgender inmates in state prisons and county jails to petition courts for name changes.

SB 639: 5G cellphone network antennas

But it was Brown's vetoes that made the most news on the governor's final day of bill actions.

In a huge win for local governments and a setback to wireless companies, Brown vetoed SB 649 by Sen. Ben Hueso (D-San Diego), which would have eased approval of new 5G antennas by restricting the fees and permitting requirements that cities and counties could place on them, calling in his veto message for a "more balanced solution."

SB149: Presidential tax returns

Brown also rejected a publicity-grabbing measure that would have required presidential candidates to release their tax returns to qualify for the California primary ballot. State capitol reporter Ben Adler said, "It was not an adult bill. It was a trolling Trump bill."

Brown also questioned the constitutionality of SB 149 by Sen. Mike McGuire (D-Healdsburg). In his veto message, Brown wrote, "Second, it sets a 'slippery slope' precedent. Today, we require tax returns, but what would be next? Five years of health records? A certified birth certificate? High school report cards? And will these requirements vary depending on which political party is in power?" 

AB 1209 and AB 569: Gender in the workplace

The governor vetoed several workplace-related bills authored by Asm. Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher (D-San Diego), including one that would have required large employers to publicly report any disparities in pay between their male and female employees. The California Chamber of Commerce called AB 1209 a "job killer," and the governor appears to have agreed. In his veto message, he wrote that it could "encourage more litigation than pay equity."

In addition, Brown rejected a bill banning employers from taking adverse action against workers — or their dependents — for their reproductive health decisions. In his veto message of AB 569, he wrote that existing state law has long banned such action, except for religious institutions, and that those claims should remain within the jurisdiction of the state Department of Fair Employment and Housing. And he rejected AB 568, which would have required school districts to provide at least six weeks of paid maternity leave.

How many bills were vetoed

Overall, Brown vetoed just over 12 percent of the 977 bills that the California Legislature sent him this year. That's comparable to the previous six years of his latest governorship, in which he's vetoed between 11 and 15 percent each year.

In contrast, Brown signed the vast majority of bills that reached his desk in his first stint as governor. He holds the top three spots on the list of lowest percentages of bills vetoed in a year — including less than 2 percent in 1982.

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On the Lot: The latest on the Weinstein scandal

The Weinstein saga continues to unfold as more women come forward with sexual harassment and assault allegations.

So, what's next for the "mini-major" film studio? As of Monday morning, a sale is on the horizon. Vanity Fair's Rebecca Keegan explained:

Keegan also spoke to A Martinez about the Motion Picture Academy's unprecedented decision to oust Harvey Weinstein, and the people surrounding the scandal, such as agents. Is there more they could have done?

To listen to the full segment about the latest in the Weinstein saga, click the blue play button above.

On sexual violence: Why it takes time to come forward

Over the past week, more than 30 women have come forward to say they were sexually harassed or assaulted by film executive Harvey Weinstein.

As actress Alyssa Milano highlighted this weekend, sexual harassment in the workplace is a lot bigger than one bad seed. Milano called for sexual harassment victims to use #MeToo and share their experiences on social media, and hundreds of thousands of people are telling their stories, many of them from years ago.

So, why does it often take time for victims to either come forward publicly, or to even to come to terms with the event internally?

To find out more about how to identify sexual harassment and abuse Take Two’s A Martinez spoke with Patti Giggans. She's Executive Director of Peace Over Violence and an advocate in sexual violence prevention.

Giggans defined sexual harassment in the workplace as ranging from physical touching to verbal communication to visual images. She told Take Two that it isn’t so much that victims don’t realize what’s happened – it has more to do with the perception that coming forward is more dangerous than staying silent. In order to survive an experience that one feels powerless to change, the mind can compartmentalize that event in order to move past it.     

“Really recognizing what happened and how actually traumatized you might have been, or how you changed how you lived your life, or how you perform in your job, has to do with a real understanding of what trauma is,” Giggans said.     

Giggans said that while many have been advocating for awareness, the recent flood of stories is making it safer for others to come forward, and they’re doing so not just for their own healing, but to make a difference for others.

“They’re not necessarily going to have any redress for their particular situation over so many years,” Giggans said. “But the fact that they see there’s an opportunity to change the culture that minimizes these kinds of things is quite important.”

To hear the full interview with Patti Giggans, click on the media player above. 

Rising number of racist incidents at Cal State Long Beach

A racist message was found on the wall in a bathroom at Cal State Long Beach, last week, targeting black students.

The language was so offensive that university president Jane Close Conoley emailed the entire campus to vigorously condemn it.

But it's not the first incident of its kind at CSULB this year. Or the second. Or even third.

"Students of color probably do feel threatened on our campus right about now," says Miranda Andrade-Ceja, editor in chief of the school's newspaper, the Daily 49er.

Last month, members of the Latino/Latina student organization La Raza were sent death threats on Facebook. And earlier this year, there were several incidents of fliers plastered around campus bearing swastikas and anti-Semitic phrases.

"A lot of it has to do with our current political and social climate," Andrade-Ceja says. "We're kind of dealing with outside sources or anonymous sources threatening or making our students feel threatened."

Hear about the kind of atmosphere recent racist incidents are creating on the Cal State Long Beach campus. Use the blue audio player above.

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How to keep older adults safe in emergency situations

The wildfires in Northern California continue to burn, but firefighters say that containment efforts are finally starting to gain momentum.

"We're making really good progress," said Daniel Berlant, assistant deputy director of Cal Fire. "In fact, on a number of fires, we're seeing containment anywhere between 50 and 70 percent."

As of Monday, 41 people had  been killed by the wildfires. Of those, 27 were adults over the age of 65.

"I think if you look at older adults, they may have increased problems with mobility so that if you have just minutes to get away and if you're slightly slower, then that creates a huge danger," said Donna Benton, research associate professor of gerontology at USC.

Benton says that older people are more at risk to be killed in a crisis situation due to issues ranging from mobility to decreased cognitive ability. 

"If you can't make decisions as quickly, you may make poor decisions during a time of a crisis bcause of the stress," Benton said.

How to make sure older adults are ready for an emergency situation

1. If you live with elderly people, make sure they understand the emergency plan

2. Talk with those in your neighborhood, including emergency responders 

3. Keep your landline phone

For more on the California wildfires, click the blue player above.