Senate defeats measure to recognize Cesar Chavez as state/school holiday

Senator James Evans introduced Senate Bill 39 on the Senate floor to provide state and school recognition of labor leader Cesar Chavez, describing the measure as a reaffirmation of the nation’s commitment to equality and dignity for workers. "I am proud to sponsor Senate Bill 39, which is the state and school recognition of Cesar Chavez," Evans said as he framed the bill as part of a broader effort to honor civil-rights leaders.

Supporters, including one senator who said he had known Chavez personally and had visited migrant workers in the fields, urged colleagues to back the measure as an act of recognition. "There’s a lot more that could be said," the senator told the chamber, recounting time spent with farmworkers and describing Chavez’s work on behalf of dignity for laborers.

Opponents pressed that the bill’s language could be read to mandate school closures and complicate local calendars. Senators expressed concern about adding another named day that local school boards might feel compelled to observe. One senator said he had asked Evans to remove the school-day option and that, without that change, he could not support the bill.

Senator Valentine told colleagues his personal encounters with Chavez left him with reservations about the proposal’s character and practical effects on the school schedule. After extended debate and multiple senators explaining their votes, the Senate conducted a roll-call vote. The President announced that SB 39 received 12 ayes, 16 nays and one absent, and the bill failed to advance.

The Senate moved on to other business, placing more contested measures on the second- or third-reading calendars as the floor session continued.