Signatures and Vetoes

As the Senate and Assembly pass a torrent of legislation in the final week of session, much of it ends up on the Governor’s desk. So far he has signed far more bills than he vetoed (63 signed yesterday, versus 11 vetoed) but some of those bills will cause small political controversies. One veto is AB 738, a Joe Nation, D-San Rafael, bill that requires petition circulators who are paid to wear a badge that reads “paid signature gatherer.” “I am dismayed the Governor decided to veto a voter oriented, good government piece of legislation,” said Assemblymember Joe Nation in a press release. “However, I understand this bill would have adversely affected his govern-by-initiative approach by forcing paid signature gatherers to reveal their true identity to voters.” For a Governor who angles himself as a man of the people (which is increasingly difficult given his poll numbers), such some potatoes legislation seems to me like an obvious signature. Disclosure of that kind hardly seems unpopular. Let’s see what kind of press the Nation office can grab on the issue.