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POLITICAL LANDSCAPE:
Krekorian’s bills keep him busy
As California’s legislators wrangle over the state’s multibillion-dollar deficit, Paul Krekorian, who lives in Burbank and has an office in Glendale, continues to work toward the passage of legislation he hopes will improve public safety, the environment and health for the area and the state.
Driven by his desire for safer streets, Krekorian introduced Assembly Bill 2669, which would increase penalties for those caught speeding and street-racing.
“There have been several traffic fatalities in Glendale and I know that there is a problem with street racing on Glenoaks [Boulevard] in both Glendale and Burbank,” he said. “It makes me pull my hair out to think that these young people don’t care about the consequences.”
The bill would stiffen sentences for habitual speeders from a ticketable offense to a crime where jail could be possible. It has been introduced but not yet heard in the transportation committee, he said.
Krekorian is also hoping to pass two bills that would improve drinking water safety and better utilize rainwater runoff.
A toxic water testing bill would require that drinking fountains in California’s schools be tested for lead and other contaminants, something that is not currently done.
“Some of these schools have very old plumbing systems that have lead,” he said.
The bill, number 2965 in the Assembly, will be heard by the education committee on April 2, then in the committee on environmental safety and toxic materials.
Krekorian is also pushing for a bill that would change what type of concrete is used by construction companies.
“When it rains on parking lots, most of it is channeled to the storm drain,” he said.
“We should be recharging our underground water reservoirs. We have 3 million acre feet beneath us and because we are so built out, that is underutilized.”
Assembly Bill 2013 would require builders to use permeable concrete that would allow water to trickle beneath its surface instead of funneling it down the drain on a path to the sea.
Healthcare bills are also on the docket for Krekorian, a member of the Human Services Committee.
Stemming from the recent recall of 143 million pounds of beef that may have been from sick cows at a Chino meat-packing plant, Krekorian is seeking to pass the Downer Animals Act that would make it illegal to sell beef from sick or diseased cows.
The measure would also regulate that the state test for contaminated beef.
Following the case of Northridge resident Nataline Sarkisyan, a 17-year-old leukemia patient who died Dec. 20 following an initial denial from Cigna HealthCare to approve a potentially life-saving liver transplant, Krekorian introduced a bill in her honor he hopes will turn the healthcare industry on its head.
Assembly Bill 2847 would ensure that doctors are able to recommend what they deem proper courses of treatment instead of insurance companies regulating healthcare procedures.
“The doctors need to make the decisions,” he said.
The bill will be heard in the Assembly committee on health April 1. Another healthcare bill, 2690 in the Assembly, takes aim at the pharmaceutical industry Krekorian says are able to avoid the prospect of being sued even if they leave out important warnings during their prescription drug commercials.
Under existing law, if a prescription drug manufacturer provides adequate warning of potential dangers of a drug to the physician, then the drug company has no duty to insure that the warning reaches the doctors patient for whom the drug is prescribed.
Krekorian’s measure would declare that pharmaceutical companies not be relieved of a duty to warn consumers of the risks and side effects solely because the product was prescribed to a patient by a physician.
The measure would diminish the learned intermediary doctrine shield under which pharmaceutical companies can avoid prosecution and seeks to decrease the liability doctors and pharmacists face.
Krekorian’s wife, Tamar, is a pharmacist but says she does not stand to be affected should the bill pass.
Legislators deal with a deficit
In January, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger announced that California is mired in a $14.5 billion deficit. Legislators have since proposed $7.4 million in cuts to multiple areas, including healthcare, education and public safety.
“We now have to fix a nearly $8 billion problem,” Assemblyman Paul Krekorian said.
In proposing the new cuts, legislators largely eschewed Schwarzenegger’s proposal of cutting 10% from every state agency, as he had proposed in January. Instead, lawmakers focused on specific ways the state can trim the fat from its bloated budget.
But their task was complicated by proposing cuts to some of the state’s most vulnerable citizens, such as children and seniors, Krekorian said. Some of those proposed cuts include delaying planned 10% Medi-Cal rate reductions that were scheduled to take effect July 1, providing $544 million in savings.
Other proposed cuts include temporary suspensions in the monthly advance counties were due to receive from the state general fund to the tune of $814 million and $3 million to child welfare services. Legislators also proposed cutting $475.5 million from K-12 education, $1 million from state parks and $2.4 million for disaster assistance.
The Assembly is legally bound to pass its budget by June 30.
Driven by his desire for safer streets, Krekorian introduced Assembly Bill 2669, which would increase penalties for those caught speeding and street-racing.
“There have been several traffic fatalities in Glendale and I know that there is a problem with street racing on Glenoaks [Boulevard] in both Glendale and Burbank,” he said. “It makes me pull my hair out to think that these young people don’t care about the consequences.”
The bill would stiffen sentences for habitual speeders from a ticketable offense to a crime where jail could be possible. It has been introduced but not yet heard in the transportation committee, he said.
Krekorian is also hoping to pass two bills that would improve drinking water safety and better utilize rainwater runoff.
A toxic water testing bill would require that drinking fountains in California’s schools be tested for lead and other contaminants, something that is not currently done.
“Some of these schools have very old plumbing systems that have lead,” he said.
The bill, number 2965 in the Assembly, will be heard by the education committee on April 2, then in the committee on environmental safety and toxic materials.
Krekorian is also pushing for a bill that would change what type of concrete is used by construction companies.
“When it rains on parking lots, most of it is channeled to the storm drain,” he said.
“We should be recharging our underground water reservoirs. We have 3 million acre feet beneath us and because we are so built out, that is underutilized.”
Assembly Bill 2013 would require builders to use permeable concrete that would allow water to trickle beneath its surface instead of funneling it down the drain on a path to the sea.
Healthcare bills are also on the docket for Krekorian, a member of the Human Services Committee.
Stemming from the recent recall of 143 million pounds of beef that may have been from sick cows at a Chino meat-packing plant, Krekorian is seeking to pass the Downer Animals Act that would make it illegal to sell beef from sick or diseased cows.
The measure would also regulate that the state test for contaminated beef.
Following the case of Northridge resident Nataline Sarkisyan, a 17-year-old leukemia patient who died Dec. 20 following an initial denial from Cigna HealthCare to approve a potentially life-saving liver transplant, Krekorian introduced a bill in her honor he hopes will turn the healthcare industry on its head.
Assembly Bill 2847 would ensure that doctors are able to recommend what they deem proper courses of treatment instead of insurance companies regulating healthcare procedures.
“The doctors need to make the decisions,” he said.
The bill will be heard in the Assembly committee on health April 1. Another healthcare bill, 2690 in the Assembly, takes aim at the pharmaceutical industry Krekorian says are able to avoid the prospect of being sued even if they leave out important warnings during their prescription drug commercials.
Under existing law, if a prescription drug manufacturer provides adequate warning of potential dangers of a drug to the physician, then the drug company has no duty to insure that the warning reaches the doctors patient for whom the drug is prescribed.
Krekorian’s measure would declare that pharmaceutical companies not be relieved of a duty to warn consumers of the risks and side effects solely because the product was prescribed to a patient by a physician.
The measure would diminish the learned intermediary doctrine shield under which pharmaceutical companies can avoid prosecution and seeks to decrease the liability doctors and pharmacists face.
Krekorian’s wife, Tamar, is a pharmacist but says she does not stand to be affected should the bill pass.
Legislators deal with a deficit
In January, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger announced that California is mired in a $14.5 billion deficit. Legislators have since proposed $7.4 million in cuts to multiple areas, including healthcare, education and public safety.
“We now have to fix a nearly $8 billion problem,” Assemblyman Paul Krekorian said.
In proposing the new cuts, legislators largely eschewed Schwarzenegger’s proposal of cutting 10% from every state agency, as he had proposed in January. Instead, lawmakers focused on specific ways the state can trim the fat from its bloated budget.
But their task was complicated by proposing cuts to some of the state’s most vulnerable citizens, such as children and seniors, Krekorian said. Some of those proposed cuts include delaying planned 10% Medi-Cal rate reductions that were scheduled to take effect July 1, providing $544 million in savings.
Other proposed cuts include temporary suspensions in the monthly advance counties were due to receive from the state general fund to the tune of $814 million and $3 million to child welfare services. Legislators also proposed cutting $475.5 million from K-12 education, $1 million from state parks and $2.4 million for disaster assistance.
The Assembly is legally bound to pass its budget by June 30.
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