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Surfing as the state’s official sport? 10 reasons why California is so gnarly, dude

It wasn’t long ago that surfing was frowned upon — a sport, if you dare call it that, for slackers. Surely, this salty pastime would be just a fad, parents hoped, as they got calls from school informing them their child had, again, ditched class to chase swell.

Fast forward a few decades, and you never know if that flip-flop wearing surfer next to you is the head honcho of a million-dollar company. Your doctor or dentist surfs. Parents home school their kids in hopes that they are the next Kelly Slater.

Even your grandma surfs.

Assemblymembers Al Muratsuchi and Joint Author Assembly Majority Leader Ian Calderon announce bill establishing surfing as official California sport

Torrance, CA – Assemblymember Al Muratsuchi (D-Torrance) and Joint Author Assembly Majority Leader Ian Calderon (D-Whittier), today announced the introduction of AB 1782, a bill which will establish surfing as California’s state sport.  California is an iconic California sport that brings in significant economic activity to the state each year.  The state is home to several surfing museums, including the Surfers’ Hall of Fame.

Both Assemblymembers are avid surfers who have spent much time surfing in the waters off the coast of Southern California. 

Bill Establishing Surfing As California’s Official Sport Introduced

SACRAMENTO (CBSLA) — California could be riding the wave to surfing becoming the state’s official sport.

Assemblymember Al Muratsuchi (D-Torrance) and Joint Author Assembly Majority Leader Ian Calderon (D-Whittier) on Wednesday introduced AB 1782, a bill that would establish surfing as California’s state sport.

California vs. the feds over offshore drilling

The rubber is hitting the road, the gloves are coming off and California leaders are suiting up for battle. At least, figuratively.

When the Trump Administration announced that it would commence offshore oil drilling across all national waters — including six locations in California — federal agencies struck against decades of bipartisan environmental policy in California.

Political Round-Up, January 2018

On Thursday, Jan. 4, President Donald Trump signed an executive order expanding offshore drilling in federal waters in the Pacific, Atlantic and Arctic Oceans. In response, State Sen. Hannah-Beth Jackson, D-Santa Barbara Jackson and Assemblyman Al Muratsuchi, D-Torrance, reintroduced legislation (SB-834 and AB-1775, respectively) to ensure pipelines and other infrastructure can’t be built in California waters to support any new federal oil development.

Surf's up forever: California could make surfing the official state sport

Surfing could become the official state sport of California under a proposal from a Los Angeles-area lawmaker.

The legislation, Assembly Bill 1782, would declare surfing California’s official sport because the state is home to world-famous surf breaks, including Malibu, Trestles, Mavericks, Rincon, Steamer Lane and Huntington and has a long history of hosting major international surfing events.

Assemblymember Al Muratsuchi’s statement on Governor Brown’s 2018-19 Budget Proposal

Torrance, CA –Assemblymember Al Muratsuchi, a member of the Assembly Budget Committee and Subcommittee on Education Finance, issued the following statement on Governor Edmund G. Brown’s 2018 – 2019 state budget proposal:

“Education is my top budget priority.  As a longtime advocate for our schools and our children, I am pleased to see the Governor begin budget negotiations with a proposal to fully fund his K-12 education plan, the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF).  At the same time, I am working on legislation with local South Bay and state education leaders to increase the base grant portion of the LCFF, so that school districts throughout the state will have adequate funding to meet their basic operational costs.  I look forward to working with the Governor and the Legislature toward the goal of restoring California’s per pupil funding to rank among the top ten states in the nation. 

California bill would require hotels to ban guests accused of harassment

Two California state assemblymen have proposed a bill that would require hotels to equip housekeepers with portable "panic buttons" they can press when threatened.

Al Muratsuchi (D-Torrance) and Bill Quirk (D-Hayward) co-authored the bill, which is the first of its kind to be proposed on a statewide basis. Similar initiatives have been approved in Seattle and and Chicago.

Hotel Worker Panic Buttons Part Of Proposed Protections

Hotel workers would get panic buttons and other protections from sexual assaults under a new bill just introduced in the State Assembly.  

Assault and harassment is a problem that affects every industry, says Assemblyman Al Muratsuchi, who tells News Radio KFBK it's a well-documented problem in the hotel business.  The Torrance Democrat says a poll of Chicago-area hotel workers finds 58% said they'd been sexually harassed by a guest and 49% said they had a guest answer the door naked or exposing themselves.