Bill Text: CA SCR57 | 2023-2024 | Regular Session | Chaptered
Bill Title: Sister state relationship with the Philippine Province of Bulacan.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Passed) 2023-08-23 - Chaptered by Secretary of State. Res. Chapter 138, Statutes of 2023. [SCR57 Detail]
Download: California-2023-SCR57-Chaptered.html
Senate Concurrent Resolution
No. 57
CHAPTER 138
Relative to a sister state relationship with the Philippine Province of Bulacan.
[
Filed with
Secretary of State
August 23, 2023.
]
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SCR 57, Portantino.
Sister state relationship with the Philippine Province of Bulacan.
This measure would extend to the people of the Philippine Province of Bulacan an invitation to join with California in a sister state relationship.
Digest Key
Fiscal Committee: NOBill Text
WHEREAS, The Philippines is a country in Southeast Asia in the Western Pacific comprised of more than 7,000 islands; and
WHEREAS, The Philippine Province of Bulacan started with small fishing settlements along the coast of Manila Bay and expanded into the interior with the coming of the Spaniards; and
WHEREAS, These settlements formed the nucleus of Bulacan in 1572; and
WHEREAS, In 1848, the town of San Miguel was annexed to Bulacan from Pampanga; and
WHEREAS, Bulacan was one of the first eight provinces to rise against Spanish rule; and
WHEREAS, The first phase of the Philippine Revolution ended with the signing of the Pact of Biak-na-Bato in San Miguel in 1987 between the Filipinos and the Spaniards, after which President Emilio Aguinaldo was exiled to Hong Kong; and
WHEREAS, The second phase saw the drafting of the constitution of the first Philippine Republic by the Malolos Congress at Barasoain Church in 1898; and
WHEREAS, The subsequently established republic had its capitol at Malolos until President Emilio Aguinaldo transferred it to San Isidro, Nueva Ecija, in 1899 when the Philippine-American War broke out; and
WHEREAS, When the Americans established a civil government in the Philippines, they held the first election in the country in the City of Baliuag on May 6, 1899; and
WHEREAS, As of the 2020 census conducted on May 1, 2020, Bulacan registered a total population of 3,708,890; and
WHEREAS, Bulacan, the largest province in terms of population in Central Luzon, shares 29.85 percent of the regional population (12,422,172) and 3.41 percent of the national total population (108,771,978); and
WHEREAS, Bulacan has a high literacy rate of 98.33 percent, meaning 2,230,000 of the population are literate; and
WHEREAS, Large-scale exposure to media enhances communication skills and marketing reach in Bulacan; and
WHEREAS, Bulacan has a highly educated, highly trainable workforce, highly skilled craftsmen, and design-oriented and entrepreneurially skilled people; and
WHEREAS, In 2021, the United States exported $9.26 billion to the Philippines, with computer and electronic products making up $2.49 billion of the total, followed by processed foods, chemicals, and agricultural products; and
WHEREAS, The United States imported $14 billion worth of goods from the Philippines in the same year, comprised of $6.68 billion of computer and electronic products, followed by electrical equipment and food manufactures; and
WHEREAS, The Philippines is the 33rd largest export partner for the United States; and
WHEREAS, In 2021, California exported $1.34 billion to the Philippines, making it California’s 27th largest export partner; and
WHEREAS, California’s main export to the Philippines is processed foods, making up $526,000,000 of the total, followed by computer and electronic products at $444,000,000, transportation equipment at $78,000,000, and chemicals at $63,000,000; and
WHEREAS, Imports from the Philippines to California totaled $4.7 billion, which includes computer and electronic products, which made up $2.8 billion of the total, followed by processed foods, electrical equipment, and apparel; and
WHEREAS, According to the most recent United States census, there are approximately 4,000,000 Filipino Americans living in the United States, with one-half, or about 2,000,000, living in California, many of whom are American citizens or dual citizens; and
WHEREAS, The Legislature wishes to recognize the Philippine Province of Bulacan as a sister state; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Senate of the State of California, the Assembly thereof concurring, That the Legislature, on behalf of the people of the State of California, hereby extends to the people of the Philippine Province of Bulacan an invitation to join with California in a sister state relationship, in order to encourage and facilitate mutually beneficial educational, economic, and cultural exchanges; and be it further
Resolved, That it is the intent of the Legislature through a sister state relationship with the Philippine Province of Bulacan to further promote the prosperity of both regions and to improve international understanding and goodwill between both regions; and be it further
Resolved, That any sister state agreement be developed through the mutual cooperation and engagement of the Legislature and the Legislature of the Philippine Province of Bulacan, formally known as the Bulacan Provincial Board; and be it further
Resolved, That any sister state agreement developed will identify objectives, identify areas of mutual interest, create a list of potential activities, and create an initial list of public and private partners that will help to advance the purposes of the sister state agreement, including one or more entities that will serve as a facilitator and general point of contact; and be it further
Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies of this resolution to the Governor of California, the Lieutenant Governor of California, the Governor of the Philippine Province of Bulacan, the Bulacan Provincial Board, and each Senator and Representative from California in the United States Congress.
