Congressman Takano sent the following letters to Members of the California State Legislature, including Mark Stone, Thomas J. Umberg, Bob Archuleta, Jacqui Irwin, Connie M. Leyva, and Jose Medina.

I write in regard to Assembly Joint Resolution No. 12 (April 15, 2021), currently before the Senate
committee for review.

First, I urge all California legislators in both the Assembly and the Senate to reach out to my office if you
ever have questions or concerns about federal legislation enacted by the House Veterans Affairs
Committee, which I Chair. The House Veterans’ Affairs Committee undertakes careful review of all
federal legislation before us and we could easily resolve any concerns or questions you may have prior to
your undertaking a Resolution regarding our work.

In regard to the federal Protect the GI Bill Act, please know this legislation underwent two years of
Congressional hearings and analysis, with extremely careful drafting by federal experts in the GI Bill and
was enacted with the unanimous and vigorous support of the nation’s largest veterans and military service
organizations and the technical assistance of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

I understand your concerns that the California bar has a higher “cut rate” than other states, leading some
California law schools to have bar passage rates that fail to meet the standards of the American Bar
Association. I encourage you to work with the California bar to ensure more California law schools meet
the standards of the American Bar Association. My Committee’s responsibility is to protect the nation’s
veterans and their hard-earned GI Bill, in particular their eligibility to sit for the bar exam in any state by
virtue of attending a law school recognized by the American Bar Association.

My staff stand ready to be of assistance to you as you seek to understand the federal GI Bill statute.

Sincerely,

MARK TAKANO

Member of Congress

 

Read Congressman Takano’s individual letters here:

20210614 - Stone Letter on Isakson Roe
 20210614 - Umberg Letter on Isakson Roe
 20210614 - Archuleta Letter on Isakson Roe
 20210614 - Irwin Letter on Isakson Roe
 20210614 - Leyva Letter on Isakson Roe
 20210614 - Medina Letter on Isakson Roe