If you've ever come across an issue or problem and thought, "there oughta be a law" about that, then this next story should interest you. State Senator Joe Simitian has announced the winners of his annual contest to see which Californians could come up with the best new bills. From Sacramento, Marianne Russ reports.
Democrat Joe Simitian says he read every single one of this year's 251 ideas. It's the sixth year for the contest, and he says its growing popularity is thanks to the success of people's ideas:
Simitian : We've had 10 bills that were signed into law. They're law today because 10 folks in or around my district said there oughta be a law -- and their good idea at the beginning of the year became law for 37 million Californians at the end of the year.
This year's winners include a bill requiring pharmacies to set up a system for people to drop off unused prescriptions. Another winning idea is a measure to expand voting precinct sizes to account for absentee voters. Simitian says that will help eliminate empty polling places in one part of town -- and long lines in another. The third winner is a bill to prevent credit card companies and lenders from increasing interest rates because of debt or a late payment a person has with another company -- commonly known as universal default.
Marianne Russ, KPBS News.
