BILL NUMBER: SCR 12 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE MARCH 9, 2009
INTRODUCED BY Senator Dutton
JANUARY 28, 2009
Relative to the Steve Faris Memorial Highway.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SCR 12, as amended, Dutton. Steve Faris Memorial Highway.
This measure would designate State Highway Route 330 in the County
of San Bernardino as the Steve Faris Memorial Highway. The measure
would also request that the Department of Transportation determine
the cost for appropriate signs showing this special designation and,
upon receiving donations from nonstate sources covering that cost,
erect those signs.
Fiscal committee: yes.
WHEREAS, Battalion Chief Steve Faris of the California
Department of Forestry and Fire Protection Battalion Chief
Steve Faris drove thousands of miles up and down State
Highway Route 330 with the purpose of promoting safety for mountain
top communities; and
WHEREAS, In 1998, Battalion Chief Faris helped
establish in the Inland Empire the Mountain Rim Fire Safe Council,
which was the first of more than 14 councils that are now active in
the Counties of San Bernardino and Riverside; and
WHEREAS, Chief Faris dedicated thousands of hours in spreading the
fire-safe concept throughout the Counties of San Bernardino and
Riverside; and
WHEREAS, In 2002, Chief Faris was instrumental in the
establishment of the Mountain Area Safety Taskforce (MAST), which
brought local, state, and federal agencies together to address the
critical fire situation presented by the bark beetle-drought tree
mortality issues; and
WHEREAS, Battalion Chief Faris was instrumental in bringing
together the fire safe councils to form the Inland Empire Fire Safe
Alliance; and
WHEREAS, In 2002, Battalion Chief Faris was intimately
involved in the establishment of the Mountain Area Safety Taskforce
(MAST), which brought local, state, and federal agencies together to
address the critical fire situation presented by the bark
beetle-drought tree mortality issues; and
WHEREAS, The consolidated efforts of MAST and the
fire safe councils contributed significantly to the safe
evacuation of more than 60,000 people during the Old Fire of 2003;
and
WHEREAS, There are not enough words to describe Chief Faris'
impact on the lives of the people in the San Bernardino mountain
communities; and
WHEREAS, Battalion Chief Faris was a friendly, giving,
and passionate person who included everyone and found a way to work
with anyone interested in his efforts to help save
lives and establish defensible space for properties in the
mountains; and
WHEREAS, Battalion Chief Faris died in an automobile
accident in September, 2006, but will always live on in
the hearts of the people in the communities he served; now,
therefore, be it
Resolved by the Senate of the State of California, the Assembly
thereof concurring, That the Legislature of the State of California
hereby recognizes the contributions made by Battalion Chief
Steve Faris of the California Department of Forestry and Fire
Protection Battalion Chief Steve Faris to the
people of the State of California and hereby designates State Highway
Route 330 in the County of San Bernardino as the Steve Faris
Memorial Highway; and be it further
Resolved, That the Department of Transportation is requested to
determine the cost of appropriate signs, consistent with the signing
requirements for the state highway system, showing that special
designation and, upon receiving donations from nonstate sources
covering that cost, to erect those signs; and be it further
Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies of this
resolution to the Department of Transportation and to the author for
appropriate distribution.