California Governor Gavin Newsom on Friday signed legislation (法规) that makes Chinese Lunar New Year a state holiday. The move recognizes the diversity of cultures that Asian Americans have brought to California, the third     1     (large) state in the US.

The legislation lets any state employee take eight hours of vacation, annual leave or compensatory leave (补休)     2     (celebrate) Chinese New Year.

In a     3     (sign)letter, Newsom emphasized the diversity and cultural significance that Asian Americans represented in California and     4     (encourage)all Californians to participate in the festival.

Lunar New Year is celebrated by thousands of Asian and Pacific Islander Californians at community events that illustrate     5     state’s rich cultural history and commitment to racial, religious, and cultural diversity. Many jurisdictions (管辖区) in California have already made Lunar New Year an     6     (office) school holiday.

Also on Friday, a ceremony     7     (hold)in San Francisco’s city hall to raise China’s national flag in celebration of the 73rd anniversary of the founding of the     8     (people)Republic of China.

Zhang Jianmin, China’s consul general (总领事) in San Francisco, raised the flag with Meron Foster, a senior officer at the San Francisco Mayor’s Office of Protocol. Zhang expressed his gratitude     9     San Francisco’s very genuine gesture of friendship” toward China,     10     he spoke to an audience of us elected representatives, business figures and community members.