Bill Text: CA SCR159 | 2025-2026 | Regular Session | Chaptered

California Senate Concurrent Resolution 159

Bill Title: California Rodeo Appreciation Month.

Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Republican 8)

Status: (Passed) 2026-05-13 - Chaptered by Secretary of State. Res. Chapter 67, Statutes of 2026. [SCR159 Detail]

Download: California-2025-SCR159-Chaptered.html

Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 159

CHAPTER 67

Relative to California Rodeo Appreciation Month.

[ Filed with Secretary of State May 13, 2026. ]

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

SCR 159, Alvarado-Gil. California Rodeo Appreciation Month.

This measure would designate the month of April as California Rodeo Appreciation Month.

Fiscal Committee: NO

WHEREAS, The word “rodeo” is derived from the Spanish verb “rodear,” meaning to gather or surround; and

WHEREAS, Historically, rodeos were utilized as a cattle business venue and were considered collections of cattle and horses, ultimately enabling ranchers to select their cows, count them, and, if desired, drive them to their pasture; and

WHEREAS, The demand for rodeos began with Wild West shows, which romanticized the culture of the west, started as massive spectacles with hundreds of performers, and attracted millions of attendees with 116 shows being recorded between 1883 and 1944; and

WHEREAS, California rodeos date back to the late 1700s when California was a province of New Spain; rodeos representative of the present day were first reported in the late 19th century; and

WHEREAS, Sherwood Park, formally known as the Sausal Park Race Track, was a 69.4 acre parcel graciously donated to the City of Salinas by Eugene Sherwood and Richard Hellman of San Francisco with the formal requirement of holding a fair and races every two years; and

WHEREAS, On August 1, 1911, the first rodeo was held at the racetrack grounds and was named by Frank Griffen as “The California Rodeo”; and

WHEREAS, The California Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association Pro Rodeo Circuit hosts 37 rodeos annually, the Banning Stagecoach Days, the Brawley Cattle Call, the California Rodeo Salinas, the Clovis Rodeo, the Desert Rodeo, the Folsom Pro Rodeo, the Glennville Round-Up Rodeo, the Gold Country Pro Rodeo, the Industry Hills Charity Pro Rodeo, the Jurupa Valley Community Rodeo, the Kern County Fair Rodeo, the King City Stampede, the Lakeside Rodeo, the Livermore Rodeo, the Marysville Stampede, the Mother Lode Round-Up, the Norco Mounted Posse Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association Rodeo, the Oakdale Saddle Club Rodeo, the Old Santa Ynez Days Rodeo, the Poway Rodeo, the Ramona Rodeo, the Red Bluff Round-Up, the Redding Rodeo, the Riverdale Rodeo, the Riverside County Pro Rodeo, the Rowell Ranch Rodeo, the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Rodeo, the Santa Barbara Rodeo Days, the Santa Maria Elks Rodeo, the Springville Sierra Rodeo, the Stonyford Rodeo, the Tehachapi Mountain Rodeo, the Valley Center Stampede, the Ventura County Fair Rodeo, the Wine Country Rodeo, the Wing and Barrel Western Days, and the Woodlake Lions Rodeo; and

WHEREAS, Senate District 4 is rich in California rodeo history, hosting rodeos in the Counties of Amador, Calaveras, El Dorado, Inyo, Madera, Mariposa, Merced, Mono, Nevada, Placer, Stanislaus, and Tuolumne; and

WHEREAS, Senate District 4 is home to the historic City of Oakdale, known as the “Cowboy Capital of the World,” which hosts the Oakdale Saddle Club Rodeo, attracting both local and international audiences; and

WHEREAS, World renown California cowboy and 2025 California Rodeo Salinas Hall of Fame recipient Ace Berry spent his childhood in the Cowboy Capital and was just 15 years and of age when he qualified for his first National Finals Rodeo (NFR), qualified for the NFR 6 times in bareback riding and 14 consecutive times in team roping from 1962 to 1975, inclusive, and made rodeo history in 1972 when he won NFR average titles at both ends of the arena in his two trademark events the same year; and

WHEREAS, California rodeos are not only rich in history, but rich in diversity, and while some may associate cowboy activities with Hispanic, indigenous, and White culture presently, it is imperative to acknowledge its pertinence to African American culture as well; and

WHEREAS, After the Civil War, it was estimated that as many as 1 in 4 cowboys was African American and Nat Love, one of the most prominent in the sport, began his career in 1876 as a legendary cattle driver; and

WHEREAS, California Rodeo Salinas Hall of Fame 2023 inductee Pat DuVal, known as the “Singing Sheriff,” overcame limitations in the segregated south before moving to California in 1966 where he became the first African American sheriff in the County of Monterey and is known for his musical performances at the California Rodeo Salinas each year;

WHEREAS, It is crucial to also highlight the role women have played in California rodeo history and in preserving its pivotal traditions, and, by breaking barriers, women have proven to be tough competition for what were considered more male-dominated events; and

WHEREAS, 2025 Women’s Professional Rodeo Association California Breakaway Rookie of the Year Jillian Murray has reiterated the theme that rodeo events are for all, praising women for what they bring to the table by stating, “I think that we feel that we have something to prove, and we want to prove it”; and

WHEREAS, Modern rodeo competitions test critical cowboy skills utilized on a ranch with timed and scored events, including bareback riding, saddle bronc riding, bull riding, team roping, barrel racing, tie-down roping or calf roping, breakaway roping, mutton bustin’, and steer wrestling or bulldogging; and

WHEREAS, Rodeo clowns, or barrelmen, play an essential role, ensuring rider safety, heroically luring the bull away to create a barrier; and

WHEREAS, Rodeo queens are crowned throughout the Golden State during their respective local, state, or national rodeo events, and these pageants have multiple divisions for different age groups, which include Junior Miss, Princess, and Queen; and

WHEREAS, Rodeo queens are talented and personable equestrians serving as a liaison between the public and the agricultural industry; and

WHEREAS, California rodeos drive the state’s economy upward and serve as tourist attractions, generating jobs for Californians with professional contestants, contract personnel, arena workers, and concessionaires; and

WHEREAS, In 2014, the California Rodeo Salinas and Bull Riding events generated $6,200,000; and

WHEREAS, Rodeo is an integral part of California’s rural mystique and preserves the culture of rural, western living, and, at a deeper level, is manifested by several symbolic themes that include the control of nature and lack thereof and the conquest of the “Wild West” by an industrialist culture; and

WHEREAS, California’s rodeos not only serve as a reminder of what life was, but what modern life wishes to be, representing longstanding cultural practices that ground California’s agricultural and western societies; now, therefore, be it

Resolved by the Senate of the State of California, the Assembly thereof concurring, That the Legislature hereby designates the month of April as California Rodeo Appreciation Month, signaling the peak of the rodeo season, which begins in the spring and ends in the fall; and be it further

Resolved, That the Legislature extends its warmest regards and appreciation to the thousands of volunteers, directors, participants, businesses, supporters, sponsors, and associations that maintain and nurture the network of California rodeos, permitting these events to remain vibrant, relevant, and successful; and be it further

Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies of this resolution to the author for appropriate distribution.