State cryptid., the official text

An act to add Section 425.18 to the Government Code, relating to state government.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

Existing law establishes the state flag and the state’s emblems, including, among other things, the golden poppy as the official state flower and the California redwood as the official state tree.
This bill would establish Bigfoot as the official state cryptid. The bill would make related findings and declarations.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.
The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(a) The most famous and beloved cryptid in contemporary California culture is the creature known as Bigfoot.
(b) A cryptid, for the purposes of this act, is defined as a creature that is believed to exist, but whose existence has not been proven definitively by science.
(c) Bigfoot is a legendary cryptid, with origins in the County of Humboldt in California.
(d) Willow Creek, California, is widely recognized as the Bigfoot capital of the world, hosting the annual Bigfoot Daze Festival, bringing in approximately 2,000 people annually from across the world, doubling the population of the local community, to appreciate this iconic cryptid.
(e) The Willow Creek - China Flat Museum reports that its Bigfoot collection draws the most attention, with the museum bringing in 2,000 to 3,000 tourists per year.
(f) While the legends of a large, hairy, elusive creature persist in many parts of the world, its etymological origins reside firmly in California, with the first use of the term “Bigfoot” in 1958 by Andrew Genzoli for the Humboldt Times newspaper.
(g) This documented first use of “Bigfoot” squatches any other region or state’s claim to the legendary creature.
(h) Over the ensuing decades, Bigfoot has come to be associated with the stunning forests and wilderness of California, being sighted across the state.
(i) Since Bigfoot was first sighted in the County of Humboldt, it has since captured public imagination and energized popular culture across the world.
(j) Bigfoot has come to represent California’s own meteoric growth as the premier storytelling capital of the world, capturing the hearts and imaginations of people from all backgrounds.
(k) The search for Bigfoot has generated unquantifiable growth in tourism in rural areas, particularly on the North Coast where Bigfoot has repeatedly been sighted. This robust economic activity is most visible in the many roadside stops throughout the region proudly selling Bigfoot-themed wares.
(l) Popular descriptions of Bigfoot have described the cryptid as a large, bipedal hairy ape with environmental zeal, making the mysterious hominid an excellent mascot for California’s wilderness and culture.
(m) Naming Bigfoot as the official state cryptid of California will promote tourism for California’s wilderness and rural communities, as well as education, appreciation, and cultural preservation of California’s local folklore and cultural heritage.

SEC. 2.
Section 425.18 is added to the Government Code, to read:
425.18.
Bigfoot is the official state cryptid.