California’s Confederate Flag Vote

Although it wasn’t noted on JoinCalifornia at the time, recent events and public interest in the Confederate Flag have led us to designate the three NO votes on AB 2444 (2014) as a “Notable No.”

Notable No Votes are a series of biographical notations on candidate biographies that note an officerholder’s vote against a particularly notable bill or resolution.

Prior examples of Notable Noes include;

• AB 616 (2001), which allowed California cities, counties and special districts to offer retirement benefit factors up to 3% at age 60. These higher benefit factors arguably led to severe unfunded pension liabilities in a number of cities a decade later, and
• AB 1728 (2000), which exempted from income tax any reparations received for forced labor performed during World War II.

In the case of AB 2444 (2014) by Isadore Hall, only three legislators (State Senators Joel Anderson and Steve Knight, and Assemblyman Tim Donnelly) voted against the bill, which prohibited the State of California from selling or displaying the Battle Flag of the Confederacy (with minor exceptions).