BILL ANALYSIS Ó ACR 76 Page 1 Date of Hearing: June 4, 2015 ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON RULES Richard Gordon, Chair ACR 76 (Jones) - As Introduced May 19, 2015 SUBJECT: Magna Carta: 800th anniversary. SUMMARY: Commemorates the 800th anniversary of the Magna Carta. Specifically, this bill: makes the following legislative findings: 1)In response to the accumulation of grievances, heavy taxation, and unsuccessful wars, a group of rebellious barons forced King John of England to agree to limitations on royal power and submit to the rule of law by affixing his seal to a charter of liberties known to posterity as Magna Carta, Latin for the Great Charter, on June 15, 1215, at a meadow beside the river Thames called Runnymede, near Windsor. 2)Magna Carta is an early milestone along the path toward freedom and constitutional government, followed by the development of Parliament in the 1260s, the 1606 First Charter of Virginia, the 1620 Mayflower Compact and other colonial charters, the 1628 Petition of Rights, the 1679 Habeas Corpus Act, and 1689 English Bill of Rights, the 1776 American Declaration of Independence, the 1787 United States Constitution, the 1789 United States Bill of Rights, and the 1948 United Nations' Universal Declaration of Human Rights. ACR 76 Page 2 3)In too many parts of the world, the right to jury trial, habeas corpus, the rule of law, fair legal procedures, reasonable taxation, and the proposition that no government is above the law, principles either enshrined or foreshadowed by Magna Carta, remain goals yet to be attained. 4)For as long as people celebrate freedom under law, Magna Carta will remain an inspiring example of a people's ability to resist tyranny and arbitrary government and will remain "the Great Charter" of liberties. FISCAL EFFECT: None REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION: Support None on file Opposition None on file ACR 76 Page 3 Analysis Prepared by:Nicole Willis / RLS. / (916) 319-2800