(Sacramento) – Six political reform bills, authored by Assemblymember Cristina Garcia (D-Bell Gardens) passed through Senate Elections and Judiciary Committee with bipartisan support yesterday. As part of Garcia’s “Political Conduct, Ethics & Public Trust Acts of 2014,” the bills are a wide ranging package of legislation written against a background of state and local corruption and political misdeeds that are have plagued California’s political system.

“Our political culture must change to make it clear that rules matter and that fundraising activities must be transparent to the public,” Garcia Said. “We must continue to restore the public’s trust in government so that our political institutions can thrive once again.”

(Bell Gardens) -- Assemblymember Cristina Garcia invites everyone in her Assembly district to join her for a community “Walk and Talk” on Saturday, June 7, 8:00am, at Rosewood Park, 2535 Commerce Way in Commerce.

Special community guest will be the Woman’s Club of Rosewood Park. The Woman’s Club is the oldest community civic organization in Commerce. It opened its doors in 1949 as a social group, but little by little, it changed into a non-profit that “promote culture and customs” to women of all ages.

(Sacramento) – AB 2621, a measure by Assemblymembers Cristina Garcia (D – Bell Gardens) and Kristin Olsen (R – Modesto) that would make substantiated inspector and complaint reports relating to child care centers available online, passed off the Assembly Floor with unanimous bipartisan support today.

Currently, California law does not provide a source for parents to learn about inspection and complaint reports that have been filed against state-licensed day care, pre-school and after-school programs.   If enacted, AB 2621 will give parents easy access to a more complete picture of child care facilities by requiring the Department of Social Services to post substantiated complaints on its website.

(Sacramento) – Three political ethics bills, authored by Assemblymember Cristina Garcia (D-Bell Gardens) have passed unanimously out of the Assembly Appropriations Committee. As part of Garcia’s “Political Conduct, Ethics & Public Trust Acts of 2014,” the bills are a wide ranging package of legislation written against a background of state and local corruption and political misdeeds that are plaguing California’s political system.

AB 1673 is a measure specifically written in response to a Sacramento based lobbyist who was fined heavily by the Fair Political Practices Commission for violations surrounding the use of his home for political fundraisers. The violations included lavish spending on gourmet food, floral arrangements, fine liquor and cigars.

(Sacramento) –Today a measure by Assemblymember Cristina Garcia (D – Bell Gardens) and Assemblymember Kristin Olsen (R – Modesto) to make inspector and complaint reports relating to child care centers available online, passed with bipartisan support in the Assembly Human Services Committee.

If enacted, AB 2621 will give parents access to a complete picture of what the state knows about child care facilities, instead of having the records remain stored away in government offices with little or no access by parents.

(Sacramento) –Assemblymember Cristina Garcia (D – Bell Gardens) has announced that AB 1716, a measure that is part of her “Political Conduct, Ethics and Public Trust Acts of 2014” package, was today passed off of the Assembly floor on a unanimous 71 to 0 vote.

AB 1716 would ban local administrative officials from switching sides, where officials leverage inside knowledge from their former agency position to later assist them in their new job, representing where they could benefit financially.

(Sacramento) – Building on the Assembly passage of a package of political ethics bills authored by Assemblymember Cristina Garcia (D – Bell Gardens) the Senate Elections and Constitutional Amendments Committee has passed Senate Bill SB 831, a bill to prohibit the expenditure of campaign funds for attorney’s fees in connection with criminal litigation and other provisions regarding behested payments, travel disclosures and expenditures of campaign funds.

Assemblymember Garcia, a Principal Co-Author of SB 831, commented “I’m encouraged by the Senate passing this legislation. In many ways this bill and others mirror my legislation, giving more support to restoring our system of political ethics and public transparency.”