Leland Yee's been busy

09.23.06 - Posted by AsiansVote

California State Assemblyman Leland Yee has authored at least three bills which have been signed into law in recent weeks.

From the California Chronicle:

... AB 790 allows the California Department of Real Estate to suspend or revoke a license if a lender knowingly misrepresents his/her background, education, training or expertise.

From the Sacramento Bee:

Legislation signed Aug. 28 ... makes California the first state in the nation to prohibit public university and college officials from censoring student journalists.

From the Monterey Herald:

State inspectors could immediately shut down an unsanitary nail salon under a new law signed Friday .... The law was passed after several incidents of bacterial outbreaks and the recent death of a Mountain View woman who contracted an infection during a pedicure.

At first glance, this batch of new laws seem progressive, consumer-friendly, and politically smart. It's great to see a legislator going out of his or her way to expand freedom of speech protections in a time when many national leaders seem fearful of fighting for basic civil rights. And Yee may deserve special thanks for stepping forward as an Asian American legislator to tackle the nail salon issue -- which, in an age of anti-immigrant hysteria and racist pandering, a different politician might have used to stoke up anti-Asian fears and resentments.

Yee is now running for the California State Senate. The Daily Journal (San Mateo) has profiled his Republican opponent, an 18 year old named Michael Skipakevich.

Click here to visit Yee's official campaign website.

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09.23.06 | Candidates & Leaders , Leland Yee