BILL NUMBER:  AB 690
  VETOED	DATE: 10/12/2009




To the Members of the California State Assembly:

I am returning Assembly Bill 690 without my signature.

I vetoed similar legislation previously.  As I stated before, it is
unnecessary to statutorily authorize a person to attend a board
meeting in the absence of an ex-officio member since the meetings are
open to anyone from the public to attend and provide comment.

Moreover, ex officio members serve by virtue of their experience and
qualifications in sharing their perspective on issues impacting
higher education.  Allowing these members to appoint a substitute to
attend in their absence creates a disincentive for the member to
actually attend the meetings, and diminishes the value of an
ex-officio member's contribution to the public discourse.

For these reasons, I am unable to sign this bill.

Sincerely,



Arnold Schwarzenegger