Cal. Gov. Code § 8301.2

Recognition and Acceptance of Responsibility for Harms and Atrocities Committed: Formal Apology

Redline — January 1, 2021 → current.View current text →

Current — January 1, 2025

As of January 1, 2021

(a) The Task Force shall consist of nine members, appointed as follows:

(1) Five members shall be appointed by the Governor.

(2) Two members shall be appointed by the President pro Tempore of the Senate and two members shall be appointed by the Speaker of the Assembly.

(b) The Governor’s appointees shall include all of the following:

(1) One appointee from the field of academia that has expertise in civil rights.

(2) Two appointees from major civil society and reparations organizations that have historically championed the cause of reparatory justice.

(d) Members shall be drawn from diverse backgrounds to represent the interests of communities of color throughout the state, have experience working to implement racial justice reform, and, to the extent possible, represent geographically diverse areas of the state.

(e) The term of office for members shall be for the life of the Task Force. A vacancy in the Task Force shall not affect the powers of the Task Force and shall be filled in the same manner that the original appointment was made.

(f) The Governor shall call the first meeting of the Task Force to occur no later than June 1, 2021.

(g) Five members of the Task Force shall constitute a quorum.

(h) The Task Force shall elect a chair and vice chair from among its members. The term of office of each shall be for the life of the Task Force.

(i) For attendance at meetings during adjournment of the Legislature, a legislative member of the Task Force shall be entitled to per diem compensation and reimbursement of expenses for not more than 10 meetings, upon appropriation by the Legislature.

(j) Nonlegislative members of the Task Force shall be entitled to per diem compensation and reimbursement of expenses for not more than 10 meetings, upon appropriation by the Legislature.

(a) The State of California recognizes and accepts responsibility for all of the harms and atrocities committed by the state, its representatives thereof, and entities under its jurisdiction who promoted, facilitated, enforced, and permitted the institution of chattel slavery and the enduring legacy of ongoing badges and incidents from which the systemic structures of discrimination have come to exist.

(b) The State of California apologizes for perpetuating the harms African Americans faced by having imbued racial prejudice through segregation, public and private discrimination, and unequal disbursal of state and federal funding and declares that such actions shall not be repeated. The State of California acknowledges the work of the Task Force to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for African Americans, with a Special Consideration for African Americans Who are Descendants of Persons Enslaved in the United States. This task force, established by Assembly Bill 3121 (2020), detailed the harms faced by African Americans in California and provided numerous legislative recommendations, including this formal apology. The State of California affirms its role in protecting the descendants of enslaved people and all Black Californians as well as their civil, political, and sociocultural rights. The State of California humbly asks for forgiveness from those affected by past atrocities, both deliberately and negligently, and acknowledges and affirms its responsibility to end ongoing harm. The State of California commits to restore and repair affected peoples with actions beyond this apology.

Official source: California Legislative Information. Reproduced from public-domain California statutes; confirm against the official source for the current text. Not legal advice.