Bill Leonard: Biography | Legislative Accomplishments

Legislative Accomplishments  

·       ACA 13 (2002) Reforming Our Tax System:  This bill would have improved the accountability of our tax agencies to taxpayers by consolidating the Franchise Tax Board and the Board of Equalization into the California Tax Commission.  Status: Failed Passage

·       AB 2672 (2002) Child Abuse Reporting:  This bill re-established a misdemeanor crime for individuals who try to impede their employees from reporting of child abuse cases.  Status: Chaptered.

·       (2001-02) Served on the Conference Committee on School Facilities and worked to place a school construction bond on the November 2002 ballot (Prop. 47).

·       ACR 5XX (2001) required the PUC to determine the real debt levels of PG&E and Edison during our energy crisis.  Status:  PUC took action

·       AB 1299 (2001) would have placed a $10 billion state school bond on the March 2002 ballot.  Status: Failed Passage

·       AB 1246 (2001) would have exempted college textbooks from sales tax.  Status: Failed Passage

·       AB 1926 (2000) Authored legislation to phase in Class Size Reduction for all grades, beginning in 2001 with fourth grade, and subsequent expansion through high school.  Status: Failed Passage

·       AB 1662 (1999) Successfully authored legislation to return $50 million to cities to reimburse booking fees they had to pay to book arrestees into county jail.

·       AB 1194 (1999) would have reversed the state’s seizure of local property taxes and return them to our local governments.  Status: Failed Passage

·       AB 1193 (1999) required out-of-state sex offenders who move into our state to register with California law enforcement agencies.  Status:  Chaptered

·       AB 1901 (1998) would have made a comprehensive overhaul of California’s public education system, including replacing the Superintendent of Public Instruction, improving the teacher credentialing process, expelling students for possession of controlled substances, and reducing class room sizes in additional grades.  Status: Failed Passage

·       (1998) Helped negotiate the passage of SB 50 which placed Proposition 1A, a $9.2 billion statewide school bond, on the statewide ballot.

·       AB 288 (1997) would have created the California Educational Research Institute to conduct research on effective educational methods and textbooks.  Status: Failed Passage

·       AB 110 (1997) the “Class Size Reduction and Educational Facilities Bond Act” would have placed a statewide school construction bond on the ballot.  Status: Failed Passage 

·       (1997) Expedited construction of the Foothill Freeway connecting La Verne to San Bernardino . The entire project should be completed in 2007.

·       AB 104 (1997) would have required prisoners to participate in educational, vocational, work, or hard labor for 40 hours per week.  Status: Failed Passage

·       SB 960 (1996) reformed the Public Utilities Commission to make them more accountable to the ratepayers of California . Status: Chaptered

·       (1996) Secured the construction on the state building in downtown San Bernardino after years of work with the Governor’s Office, the Department of General Services, and the Mayor of San Bernardino.

·       SB 505 (1995) Educational Accountability and Efficiency Act would have required that 95% of school districts’ budgets be spent on school sites rather than on district administration.  Status: Failed Passage

·       SB 215 (1995) Common Sense Inmate Disciplinary Act prohibited the restoration of good/work-time credits that a prison inmate has lost because of disciplinary action.  Status:  Chaptered

·       SB 826 (1994) lengthened the period between parole hearings for convicted murderers from one or two years to five years.  This law not only cut costs for the state, but helps keep murderers behind bars.  Status:  Chaptered

·       SB 23X (1994) permitted juveniles age 14 and older who commit a violent felony to be tried as adults and prevented their automatic release from Youth Authority at age 25, instead transferring them to prison.  Status:  Chaptered

·       SB 695 (1993) would have required local governments to gain 2/3rds voter approval for all fees and assessments.  While this bill failed passage, the voters of California approved it as law in 1996 in the form of Proposition 218.

·       SB 93 (1993) would have established tax-free Medisave Accounts, similar to IRAs, to pay for health care expenses and allow insurance providers to create a low-cost catastrophic policy for major illnesses.  Status: Failed Passage

·       SB 1114 (1992) California School Volunteer and Mentor Service Act created the statewide mentoring program with flexibility for local decision making.  This mentoring program was most recently augmented by the Governor’s 1997-98 budget proposal for increased use of this mentoring program.  Status:  Chaptered

·       (1992) Served on the Workers’ Compensation Conference Committee.  This conference committee reduced the fraud in the workers’ compensation system, as well as contained costs of spiraling workers’ comp insurance by several billions of dollars per year.

·       SB 1116 (1991) would have enhanced the prison term of an adult who gives or sells drugs to a minor or pregnant woman.  Status:  Failed Passage

·       SB 1115 (1991) prohibited schools from making or enforcing any rule that subjects students to disciplinary action solely on the basis of speech of communication that is protected by the First Amendment and Section 2 of Article 1 of the California Constitution.  Now known as the “Leonard Law,” this freedom of speech law protects the rights of all students to voice their opinions on campus.  Status:  Chaptered

·       SB 32 (1990) added methamphetamines, amphetamines and phencyclidines to the list of controlled substances for which a person who maintains any place for the purpose of selling or giving away or using said drugs may be sent to jail for one year.  Status:  Chaptered

·       SB 408 (1989) lowered the blood alcohol level necessary for presumption of drunken driving from .10% to .08%.  Status:  Chaptered

·       Served on the California-Nevada Super Speed Ground Transportation Commission. (1988)

·       AB 1439 (1988), the California Safe Drinking Water Bond Law, placed $75 million of general obligation bonds on the November 1988 ballot.  The voters overwhelming approved the funds for the construction, improvement and rehabilitation of domestic drinking water facilities.

·       Held the first annual Red Ribbon Week essay contest to provide students the opportunity to think about and express their commitment to leading drug-free lives. (1988)

·       AB 1617 (1988) authorized school districts to redirect money from particular programs to class size reduction.  While this measure failed passage, class size reduction was established as a key talking point in the education budget and was adopted by the legislature in 1996.

·       Secured $5 million in state funds to repair the unsafe Big Bear Dam.  Hosted the Bill Leonard Run for the Lake to raise money to help refurbish the dam. (1987)

·       ACR 11 (1987) required public school textbooks to recognize the role religion has played in the history and culture of California and the United States .  Status:  Chaptered

·       AB 234 (1987) created a 17-member Advisory Board on Air Quality to study low emission vehicles/fuels.  Status:  Chaptered

·       Sought funding to restore the historic Sepulveda Adobe in Yucaipa, San Bernardino County ’s oldest building.  (1986)

·       AB 3181 (1986) would have consolidated cashiering operations of the Board of Equalization, the Franchise Tax Board, and the Employment Development Department.  This reform would have saved taxpayers significant money.  Status: Failed Passage.
Served on bipartisan task force to reduce the number of high school drop-outs.  (1985)

·       Secured a grant to establish the Regional Youth Education Facility in San Bernardino to provide victim awareness and vocational training to teenagers in juvenile hall. (1985)

·       Fought to maintain security and patient care standards when the patient population at Patton State Hospital was expanded. (1985)

·       AB 631 (1985) required hospitals to develop procedures for the identification and use of donated organs.  Status:  Chaptered

·       AB 139 (1984) established Economic Development and Job Training Zones in economically disadvantaged areas to encourage business by loosening regulations and streamlining bureaucracies.  Status:  Chaptered

·       AB 3306 (1984) created an intensive, short-term residential program for youthful offenders.  In 1985 the Regional Youth Education Facility was opened in San Bernardino and focused on giving young offenders the opportunity to provide accountability and restitution for their crimes.

·       ACA 44 (1983) would have required that a certain amount of the state budget each year be allocated to public schools to ensure no decrease in education funding.  While this measure was defeated in the Senate Finance Committee, in 1990 the voters approved a similar proposal in the form of Proposition 98, which guarantees that a certain percentage of state funds be spent on public schools.

·       (1983-84) Served on the Budget Conference Committee.  As Vice-Chair of the Assembly Ways & Means Committee, worked with new Governor George Deukmejian to create a prudent reserve to protect the state’s fiscal integrity.

·       Served on the Medi-Cal Conference Committee, which reformed the Medi-Cal program to reflect changes in the management of health care and saved $400 million per year.

·       AB 49 (1982) established class size reduction pilot program in the Moreno Valley Unified School District .  Status:  Chaptered

·       Secured the return of the historic State Seal Carving to California . The carving had disappeared from the Capitol Building after a fire in the 1850s and ended up at Harrah’s casino in Nevada .  (1981)

·       Began advocating for tighter security at Patton State Hospital to protect surrounding neighborhoods.  (1981)

·       Supported the first version of the Victims’ Bill of Rights. (1981)

·       AB 226 (1981) would have established a tax credit for senior citizens who perform volunteer work.  This bill was meant to reward those seniors who choose to help their community.  Status:  Failed Passage

·       AB 1791 (1980) gave local governments the power to ban alcoholic beverages in parks and open-spaces.  Status:  Chaptered

·       AB 1748 (1979) allowed local agencies to sell vehicles seized because they were used to transport illegal drugs.  Status:  Chaptered

·       AB 1507 (1979) allowed traffic violations to be dismissed provided the offender took corrective action, giving California drivers the ability to, for example, update the registration on their automobiles instead of paying a fine upon receiving a traffic ticket.  Status:  Chaptered