Free Cash for College workshops run through March 1 at area high schools

High school seniors, local elected officials and San Diego School District representatives gathered today with one message for students, “There is money for college and there are people to help you get it.”

In a unified effort to encourage seniors to find “cash for college” local educators and elected officials announced their efforts to promote 13 upcoming financial aid workshops in San Diego County schools with a special “promotional” incentive – a $1,000 Cash for College scholarship offered to one student at each workshop.

The events which run through March 1 help students complete the federal and state forms to apply for college aid assistance.

“California is facing a water drought this year, but we’re also facing another kind of drought – a drought of highly skilled workers and adults with baccalaureate degrees, post graduate certificates and two-year degrees,” said State Senator Marty Block (SD-39).

He added that it is critical that high school students not only meet the educational requirements for admission and success in college, but also have the financial support they need to further their education and become part of the skilled workforce critical to California’s economy.

“Only 35 percent of California’s adults now have a four-year degree or higher, but by 2025, 41 percent of the state’s jobs will require a bachelor’s degree or higher,” Block said. “One study estimates that we will need an additional 60,000 baccalaureate degrees a year, on top of the 150,000 baccalaureates now produced by California’s public and private colleges.”

In addition to Block, Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez (AD-80), U.S. Representative Scott Peters (CD-52) and San Diego Unified School District Board Trustee Richard Barrera participated in the news conference and said they would assist in promoting the workshops.

Students and parents may visit http://www.calgrants.org/applications/workshops.cfm?navId=25   to find a “Cash for College” workshop location in their neighborhood and to learn what students must bring with them.

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Proudly representing the cities and communities of San Diego, Del Mar, Solana Beach, and Coronado

WeAllCount Homeless Census to take place in San Diego County on Jan. 24

SAN DIEGO – Jan. 22, 2014 – An estimated 1,300 volunteers will participate in WeAllCount on Friday, Jan. 24 from 4:00 a.m. to 7:00 a.m.

Sponsored by the U.S Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and County of San Diego, the 2014 count of homeless persons in San Diego County will be directed by the Regional Task Force on the Homeless.

“We have an incredibly large task ahead of us and that is to accurately count homeless individuals including veterans, women and children in San Diego County,” said Dolores Diaz, Regional Task Force on the Homeless Executive Director. “Some very special volunteers and community leaders will be graciously giving their time to help us count the homeless.”

That list of names includes officials from the VA, members from the Board of Supervisors, Assemblymember Toni Atkins, San Diego Interim Mayor Todd Gloria and San Diego City Councilmembers David Alvarez, Kevin Faulconer, Mark Kersey and Scott Sherman among many others who are scheduled to help with the count throughout the county.

Mandated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), WeAllCount is the San Diego region’s annual Point-In-Time-Count (PITC) census conducted to identify the number of homeless individuals including sheltered and unsheltered, their locations and detailed demographic information.

This data enables the San Diego region to better understand the scope, impact and potential solutions to homelessness. It also enables the community to qualify for funding that is critical to addressing the issue and enable people to leave the street.

The aforementioned list of volunteers are scheduled to be deployed from Golden Hall in downtown San Diego, one of many deployment centers set up throughout the county, and will be available for media interviews upon request.

About the Regional Task Force on the Homeless
The Regional Task Force on the Homeless (RTFH) is an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation. It supports, empowers and collaborates with San Diego County’s homeless service providers on a myriad of issues. Working together, the organization’s purpose is to help prevent, alleviate, and work towards ending homelessness.

RTFH is the data center and technical resource for information on homelessness throughout San Diego County. It administers the region's Homeless Management Information System (HMIS), used by service providers who manage hundreds of distinct programs. Data gathered enables RTFH to provide analysis of demographics, trends, and more. Services include training, help desk, and critical data reports to service providers, cities, the County of San Diego, elected officials, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), and U.S. Congress.

Block: ‘We face more than one kind of drought’

“The Governor began his speech by celebrating the creation of one million new jobs in California. Unfortunately a skills gap exists that keeps many of these jobs vacant.

“Gov. Brown urged prudence warning of economic uncertainty caused by the drought – but we face more than one kind of drought. Like crops in California’s central valley, the supply of highly sought after, highly skilled workers has dried up in many parts of the state.

“We must rain resources on workforce development and community college programs that could end the drought of highly skilled workers threatening California’s future. Such rain is necessary for the growth of our economy.”

STATEMENT OF ASSEMBLY MAJORITY LEADER TONI ATKINS ON GOVERNOR BROWN’S STATE OF THE STATE ADDRESS

(Sacramento) The Governor has laid out a forward looking but strategic vision for our state’s future.  Achieving our state’s comeback, as the Governor calls it, is due to disciplined work by the Governor and the Legislature as well as the support of the voters of California for the temporary taxes enacted through proposition 30.  Our hard work and faith in the future has paid off.

Democrats in the Assembly agree  that our state is on the rebound, but that it is also important for us to be cautious and conservative as we look at how best to use state resources now that the crisis caused by the great recession is behind us. The most important principles we should apply as we go forward are maintaining stability and investing in opportunity.

I am particularly pleased to see that Governor Brown has embraced the idea of putting the creation of a rainy day fund before the voters this November.  We must not operate the state based upon a boom and bust mentality. The rainy day fund will insulate our state from the ups and downs of the economic cycle so that we can maintain a steady level of funding for programs, providing predictability and reliability for businesses and individuals, but also preventing over-spending in the good years by requiring that money be put into our savings account.

Another area of agreement is that we should make paying off the debt that we racked up during the great recession a priority. Number one on that list, as the Governor has suggested, should be restoring funds to our public schools that were deferred during the economic downturn.  These deferrals represented cuts to the operating budgets of schools that had a direct impact on students in the classroom.

I also agree that investing in education is the best use of our resources because the payback comes in terms of prosperity and quality of life for every Californian. Additional funding for K-12 and public colleges and universities and a new formula to ensure extra resources for school districts with the highest number of struggling students will help ensure that each student has access to a high quality, affordable education to prepare them to be adults and workers in a global marketplace.

Water has been a scarce resource that California has struggled with since before we were a state.  Even in good years, we have to balance the needs of agriculture, residents, and natural areas and wildlife.  In a drought year such as the one we are currently experiencing, we all must cooperate and sacrifice to ensure that basic needs are met.  I am committed to working with my colleagues in the Legislature to develop new approaches to water that ensures an adequate supply, even after we get past this year’s drought.

Our water shortage due to a lack of rain is just one of the many important reasons we must continue to seriously address the impact of climate change.  Air quality, sea level rise, threats to the cleanliness of our water, wildfires, and a host of other threats to our way of life are also a result of climate change.  I will be working with my legislative colleagues to continue California’s leadership on climate change.

Today, the Governor urged us to build for the future, not steal from it.  I look forward to working with him and my colleagues in the Legislature to produce another on-time balanced state budget and to adopt legislative proposals that make that goal a reality.

TONI ATKINS CHOSEN AS ASSEMBLY SPEAKER

 

(Sacramento) Assembly Majority Leader Toni Atkins of San Diego has been chosen by her Assembly Democratic colleagues to succeed Assembly Speaker John A. Pérez as the next Speaker of the Assembly.

“I am humbled, grateful, and ready to get to work,” says Atkins.  “From the drought we are experiencing to ensuring a healthy business climate and a world class educational system, California is facing important issues in the near future.  I look forward to leading the State Assembly in working with the Senate and the Governor to meet our challenges and to move our great state forward.  I thank my Assembly colleagues for their confidence and support.

I also am very grateful to Speaker Pérez for his support and mentorship and I look forward to working with him on a smooth transition.”

With her selection as Speaker, Atkins becomes only the second Democratic woman and second member of the LGBT community to hold the post.  As Majority Leader, she is already responsible for the day to day operation of the Assembly Floor and has served as a member of Speaker Perez's leadership team.

Atkins represents a coastal San Diego district and was elected to the Assembly in 2010 following eight years on the San Diego City Council.

Foul me once, shame on you, fool me twice shame on me. San Diego Police Officers Association, shame on you!

I find it interesting that on one hand San Diego City Councilmember Kevin Faulconer and his alliance of the radical right-downtown establishment-big business groups are touting his endorsement from the San Diego Police Officers Association, then hitting San Diego City Councilmember David Alvarez for his support from unions.  What the heck do you mean?

Well, you have the mixed-up world here in San Diego.  The San Diego Police Officers Association is a UNION!  They may not have the word UNION in their title, but they are a U-N-I-O-N.  In fact, they are a San Diego City U-N-I-O-N, which their members are part of the PENSION, which Councilmember Faulconer and his alliance of the radical right-downtown establishment-big business group blame for the city’s demise.  In fact, his backers would like to eliminate the polices pension, like they did for all the other unions at the city, just ask the UT Editorial Board.  While it is okay to denounce Councilmember Alvarez for getting support from unions it would not be right to do the same of Councilmember Faulconer, right?  There is a saying, “If you point a finger at someone else, three of your fingers are pointing back at you.” Try it.  They are just a bunch of hypocrites, but we knew that one.

Though, the bigger scratching of my head was over the San Diego Police Officers Association for supporting Councilmember Faulconer.  Some dogs just don’t learn it seems.  It is important to point out that Councilmember Faulconer told this union and the San Diego Firefighters in his first win for San Diego City Council to get their endorsement and money he would support them as councilmember.  How did that work out?  Well the firefighters are now supporting Councilmember Alvarez.  You see they both got screwed by Councilmember Faulconer.  He voted to cut their budgets, freeze their pay, not replace their equipment, actually made them pay more for benefits thus reduced their take home pay, made it harder for them to recruit new officers and he pals around with those same Wisconsin anti-labor alliance of the radical right-downtown establishment-big business group.  Now Councilmember Faulconer has a plan, just like former San Diego City Councilmember Carl DeMaio had a plan.  Just don’t look at the details, because you won’t really like it.  Details, details.  Also, this alliance of the radical right-downtown establishment-big business groups supports eliminating the police the right to have their union, which is spending their union money for Councilmember Faulconer’s election, which the Councilmember and his alliance of the radical right-downtown establishment-big business groups are now touting and using for his campaign material.  Crazy isn't it?

Let’s put it this way:  What ten year old kid would want to play after school with the another kid who took food off their dinner table, abuses you and tells it is becaus they love you, does not like the way you live your life and tells the neighbors they think your family should not have the right to exist?  I don’t think you would find one kid that gullible, but the police union just signed up for round two!  There is another saying, “actions are louder than words,” and for the past 7 years Councilmember Faulconer has been talking out of one side of his body about the police union, while signing petitions, writing op-eds and voting to hurt the same San Diego Police Officers Association

Interim Mayor Todd Gloria Endorses David Alvarez for Mayor Citing Readiness to Lead, Shared Values

Backing comes after ambitious State of City agenda roll out – Gloria picks Alvarez as best to carry forward

SAN DIEGO, January 17, 2014 – Today San Diego Interim Mayor Todd Gloria announced an enthusiastic endorsement of City Councilmember David Alvarez as San Diego’s next Mayor.


“I am pleased to endorse David Alvarez to be our next mayor,” said Interim Mayor Gloria.

Gloria cited Alvarez’s experience on the City Council fighting for a strong economy and healthy neighborhoods for all of San Diego as the top reasons Alvarez is the best choice to lead as Mayor.

Gloria also highlighted his partnerships with Alvarez.

“David Alvarez has been a valuable member of our City Council,” said Interim Mayor Gloria. “He and I have worked together to increase funding for affordable housing, update the Barrio Logan community plan, and passed the 2014 budget increasing vital city services.”

Alvarez’s opponent opposed all three of these in the interests of his corporate downtown campaign funders.

With less than a month until San Diego’s Special Mayoral Election on February 11, Gloria’s State of the City Address Wednesday night included an ambitious agenda that he’s confident Alvarez will carry forward.

“This week, I put forward a progressive vision for San Diego to be a great city.  It includes ending homelessness, increasing the minimum wage, aggressively funding infrastructure, and implementing a strong Climate Action Plan,” said Interim Mayor Gloria. “David Alvarez is the candidate in this race who shares my vision and who we can count on to make San Diego great.”

Alvarez stated he’ll work hand in hand with Gloria to ensure these initiatives are successful and congratulated him on his hard work to pull San Diego out of crisis mode and put the City back on course.

“I’m proud to have Interim Mayor Gloria’s support,” said Councilmember Alvarez. “I’m also excited about the path to prominence he laid out for San Diego and look forward to working with him on our shared vision.”

Gloria’s endorsement was added to a list of dozens of respected elected, community, and business leaders committed to helping elect Alvarez as “a Mayor for All of Us.”

Gloria is travelling until next week, but was eager to release his endorsement. The two will make a joint appearance soon.

Carl DeMaio Continues to Play Follow the Leader on Scott Peters’ Reform Proposals

Once again, Carl DeMaio is trying to claim credit for someone else’s ideas; this time, DeMaio is promoting an ad about “No Budget, No Pay,” an idea that Scott Peters championed and helped to pass. DeMaio has made it a habit to take credit for others’ work, and former San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders has pointed out this fact in the past.

“Carl DeMaio knows that his record of grandstanding, division, and a radical agenda won’t fly with San Diego voters, so once again he is trying to take credit for the good work others are doing,” said Matt Inzeo of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. “Carl DeMaio needs to quit his dishonest tactics if he wants to win voters’ trust.”


BACKGROUND:

January 2014: DeMaio Promoted “No Budget, No Pay” In A Web Ad.
In January 2014, DeMaio promoted “No Budget, No Pay” in an online advertisement. The ad stated the following: “’No Budget, No Pay.’ Permanently take away Congress’ pay for every day the budget is late.” [Fix Congress First YouTube ad, 1/15/14]
 
…But Peters Called for “No Budget, No Pay” Back In October 2012. In 2012, then-candidate Scott Peters launched a 30-second television ad calling for “No Budget, No Pay” as a way to hold representatives accountable for doing their jobs and passing a federal budget. In the ad, Peters said, “It’s time Congress worked for us. I say – no budget, no pay.  If Congress doesn’t do their job and balance the budget – they don’t get a paycheck.” [Scott Peters for Congress press release, 10/20/12]

…And Voted for “No Budget, No Pay” In January 2013. In 2013, Rep. Scott Peters voted for HR 325, which adopted a version of “No Budget, No Pay,” an initiative Peters declared his support for prior to being elected to Congress. In addition Peters co-sponsored HR 310, the No Budget, No Pay Act, which would stop Congressional pay if Congress fails to pass a budget on time. [HR 325, Vote # 30, 1/23/13; Rep. Scott Peters press release, 1/23/13]
 
Peters Co-Sponsored the Stop Pay for Members Act.
In 2013, Rep. Peters co-sponsored the Stop Pay for Members Act, which would ensure that Members of Congress would not get paid if the U.S. defaulted on its debt. [HR 1884, Cosponsors, 9/27/13]

WEBER TO ED BOARD: Focus Regulations on Closing Achievement Gap

Proposed guidelines would give districts too much discretion to divert funds from raising academic achievement for high-needs students

 SACRAMENTO-Assemblymember Shirley N. Weber (D-San Diego) called on the members of the State Board of Education Thursday to close loopholes in proposed regulations that would allow school districts to redirect funds intended for raising the academic achievement of high-needs students to other purposes.

“If we do not aggressively make sure that those dollars are focused on these children, we run the risk of doing what we’ve always done: a little bit for everybody and a whole lot for nobody,” Weber said. “Unless we do this right, we will find ourselves, once again, not closing the achievement gap.”

The Board is considering guidelines for the implementation of the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF), which provides greater flexibility in the spending of state education funds. As part of the overhaul of school funding passed by the Legislature last year, districts with large concentrations of low-achieving students can apply for grants to boost programs for improving student outcomes.

Weber, a former San Diego Unified School District Board President and Trustee, said the way the regulations are currently drafted, using vaguely defined terms without clear standards for where the money is spent, we run the risk of funds being diverted away from improving student outcomes.

“It does not reflect the tenor of the law we passed as a Legislature,” Weber said. ”There was a recognition that the Achievement Gap was a reflection of the issues of poverty, issues of language and issues of unstable households, and that when there is a concentration of these elements in any particular school, it makes it much more challenging to close the gap.”

“It is extremely important that these regulations are focused around student achievement and include meaningful and enforceable standards,” she said.

The Board will vote on adopting these regulations permanently later this year.

MAJORITY LEADER ATKINS BILL WILL PROTECT ASSISTED LIVING FACILITY RESIDENTS

 (Sacramento)  Assembly Majority Leader Toni Atkins will introduce legislation designed to ensure that residents of assisted living facilities, also called residential care facilities for the elderly (RCFEs), are financially protected in the event of injury or death by requiring the facilities to carry liability insurance coverage. The bill is sponsored by Consumer Advocates for RCFE Reform (CARR) and jointly authored with Assemblymember Shirley Weber of San Diego.

“I was very surprised to learn that these residences entrusted with the care of our seniors are not required to have insurance that would compensate them or their families in a case of neglect or abuse,” says Atkins.  “We require home child care facilities to be insured; we should have the same standard for ensuring adequate compensation for older Californians should a tragedy at an assisted living facility occur.”

This bill will be part of a comprehensive legislative package called the RCFE Reform Act of 2014.  Bills that are part of the Act are designed to address a variety of troubling failures to protect senior residents of assisted living facilities that have recently been brought to light by community activists and media reports.  Two of these activists are San Diegans whose personal family tragedies led them to take up the cause of improving safety and accountability at RCFEs.

“Having Assembly Member Atkins carry this bill demonstrates her strong commitment to frail and dependent elders living in California’s more than 8,000 assisted living facilities,” states Chris Murphy, Executive Director of CARR.  “This legislation offers a long-overdue consumer protection – an avenue to obtain accountability in cases of wrongful death or harm suffered by residents due to poor or neglectful care.”

"Liability insurance will provide protection for both residents and facility owners," says Aaron Byzak, founder of Hazel's Army, an advocacy organization dedicated to assisted living facility reform.   "I applaud Assembly Majority Leader Toni Atkins for authoring legislation that will promote safer assisted living communities."

Neither statute nor regulation requires any RCFE to carry liability insurance as a condition of licensure.  As a result, many facilities lack even the minimum liability coverage, exposing both them and residents to great financial risk. Currently, the only recourse for residents and their families is civil litigation, a lengthy process that requires plaintiffs or their attorneys to put substantial funds up front for the costs of litigation.

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Block aims to improve care for elderly in residential care facilities, prohibit reprisals for 911 calls

 

SACRAMENTO – State Senator Marty Block (SD-39) today announced he will introduce legislation to reform the decades-old laws regulating oversight of residential care facilities (RCFEs) in California.

“Over the past few years, 27 San Diego County seniors have died because of injuries and neglect suffered in residential care facilities,” Block said. “That is a shameful and unconscionable record.”

Block said the California Residential Care Facilities for the Elderly Act passed in 1985 has not changed despite an increase in the number of residential care facilities and new developments since its enactment. The non-medical facilities are now dealing with residents who need greater medical care. “We haven’t kept pace with the oversight of RCFEs as the care needs of our seniors have changed, especially in the area of staff training requirements,” Block said.

“If we want to treat a loved one to a manicure, the licensed nail technician would have 400 hours of training. If we want their hair cut, the licensed cosmetologist would have 1,600 hours of training and 3,200 hours of apprenticeship behind her or him.

“But for a residential facility direct care giver responsible for a frail and elderly patient who might need oxygen, suffer from dementia or bedsores or who might need a catheter, the initial  training is only 10 hours and four hours annually thereafter,” Block said. “It makes no sense.”

Block would increase training requirements as follows:

• Administrators: Increase certification training from 40 to 80 hours and continuing education from 40 to 60 hours every two years.
   
• Direct Care Staff: Increase initial training from 10 to 40 hours and continuing education from 4 to 20 hours per year.
   
• Dementia Care Staff: Increase initial training from 6 to 15 hours and continuing education from 8 to 12 hours per year.
   
• Self-Administration of Medicine: Increase training for staff that will assist in the administration of medicine. In facilities with 15 or fewer residents: increase training from 6 to 16 hours. In facilities with 16 or more residents: increase training from 16 to 32 hours. In addition, regardless of facility size, staff would be required to increase their continuing education hours from 4 to 8 per year.
   
• Staff Serving At-Risk Residents: Establish initial training of 15 hours and 12 hours of continuing education per year.
   
• Higher Acuity: Require facilities that accept and retain residents with restricted or specialized health conditions to employ appropriate medical personnel on a full or part-time basis as needed.

Block said his legislation will also prohibit retaliation against employees who call 911 when residents need urgent care. “Employees should not have to fear the consequences for doing the right thing in life and death situations,” he stated.

“We need to act now to end the dangers and abuse faced by those who have raised us and loved us, who have worked hard all their lives,” Block said. “They deserve caring, competent care and their families deserve peace of mind when trusting their loved ones to residential care facilities.”

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Sarah Boot Shows Early Strength in District 2

Shatters First-Time Candidate Fundraising Record

San Diego, CA – January 2014 – San Diego City Council District 2 candidate Sarah Boot announced today that her campaign fundraising has surpassed the $110,000 mark. This represents just a little over 4 months of activity on behalf of the Sarah Boot for City Council campaign and is the most ever raised during this period by a first-time candidate in a San Diego City Council race. Boot is running against City Councilmember Lorie Zapf in the newly drawn 2nd Council District.
 


Campaign finance reports to be released at the end of January will show Boot having raised over $110,000 from 527 individual donors. These impressive totals are indicative of the broad base of support that Boot enjoys.  "I'm proud that much of the support for my campaign has come from people who live in District 2 and who can vote for me in June,” she said.
 


“We’re raising money from throughout the district and across San Diego in small contributions. Lorie Zapf is raising money from special interests with business before the city. She is out of touch with the values of the hard working families of District 2. I believe it is time to send career politicians the message that we want our elected officials to represent us, not their wealthy special interest contributors.” 
 


She went on to say, “My donors share my message of reform and changing the way San Diego does business.  I am tired of seeing our city government dominated by a handful of downtown insiders. Like me, my donors feel the city is on the wrong track and want to see attention paid to our neighborhoods that have been neglected for far too long.”
 


Sarah Boot has been a federal prosecutor, community advocate, and public servant.  Her professional life has been distinguished by her commitment to making her community a better place to live, work, and raise a family.  Prior to serving San Diego as a prosecutor, she worked in a private law practice representing local technology and internet companies, as well as non-profit entities and foundations.  As a prosecutor and women’s rights advocate, she has a clear sense of right and wrong and believes this sensibility is needed as we work to restore the damaged reputation of City Hall.
 


Boot will fight against “business as usual” on the City Council and will make San Diego’s forgotten neighborhoods a priority.  She will be a fierce advocate for public safety - protecting our communities with more police on our streets and resources for our firefighters. She will also ensure that we guard the natural beauty of our city’s beaches, bays and parks. 


Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez’s Statement to Gov. Brown’s 2014-15 Budget Proposal

SACRAMENTO – (Thursday, Jan. 9, 2014) – California State Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez (D-San Diego) made the following statement regarding Gov. Jerry Brown’s proposed budget for 2014-15, which he unveiled at a press conference earlier today.

“I am most encouraged to see the $6 billion year-over-year increase to our K-12 schools, which were devastated by several years’ worth of deferred funding, as well as a 7 percent increase for community college funding. These alone are a huge boost to the future of the 80th Assembly District. I am also glad to see the Governor agrees with the Assembly Democrats’ wish to establish a ‘rainy day fund’ to prevent the kind of sharp cuts to vital state programs that we saw during down economic times in the past decade. Lastly, I am hopeful that, by the end of this process, more resources will be available for affordable quality child care and preschool for California’s working families.”

Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez represents the 80th Assembly District, which includes Chula Vista, National City and the San Diego neighborhoods of City Heights, Barrio Logan, Paradise Hills, San Ysidro and Otay Mesa. To interview Assemblywoman Gonzalez, please contact Evan McLaughlin at (619) 850-2790 or (916) 319-2080. For more information, visit http://asmdc.org/members/a80/.

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Budget Subcommittee Chair Weber Responds to Governor’s Budget Proposal

SACRAMENTO – Assemblymember Shirley N. Weber, Chair of the Assembly Budget Subcommittee No.1, which focuses on issues relating to Health and Human Services, issued the following statement today in response to Governor Jerry Brown’s Budget Proposal released this morning:

“I am largely pleased with what I heard today from the Governor regarding continued efforts to stabilize the state’s finances, decrease our debt, and focus on investing in opportunity, especially in the state’s K-12 and higher education systems.

“We have learned that unbridled spending and extreme austerity are not the answers to the state’s economic, educational, and healthcare challenges. Thoughtful, targeted investment of our resources towards jobs, education and infrastructure will be the approach will need to take if the state is to grow.

“My job as Chair of this important Subcommittee is to focus on investment in programs aimed at providing a safety net for our most vulnerable Californians, and efficiently and effectively moving people from poverty and dependence to self-sufficiency and independence. That means careful, deliberate examination of these existing programs to determine whether they deliver as advertised.”

Assemblymember Shirley N. Weber represents California’s 79th District.

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Assemblymember Weber Introduces Mandatory Kindergarten Legislation

SACRAMENTO – Assemblymember Shirley N. Weber (D-San Diego) inaugurated the 2014 Legislative Session by introducing AB 1444, a measure requiring mandatory kindergarten for the state’s schoolchildren.

“We are building a lot of the state’s educational policy – pre-school, pre-K, transitional kindergarten - around the assumption that California’s children will attend kindergarten,” Weber said. “But a lot of Californians will be surprised to find out kindergarten is actually not mandatory in the state.”
Weber, a former San Diego City School Board trustee and president noted that the voluntary status of kindergarten allows parents to delay their child’s entrance into school, leaving students unprepared for the educational environment when they enroll in first grade and undermining their academic success in later grades.

“We’ve long known the benefits of early childhood education, including kindergarten, on later academic outcomes,” she said. “We are making a significant investment in the state’s K-12 system. It’s time we made kindergarten mandatory to ensure that investment in student success is maximized.”

Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez Proposes Campaign Fundraising Reform at School and College Districts in Wake of South Bay Scandals

Gonzalez’s First Act in 2014 Legislative Year is To Propose Ban on School & College Board Fundraising by District Superintendents & Administrators

SAN DIEGO – (Monday, Jan. 6, 2014) – California State Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez (D-San Diego) will kick off the 2014 legislative session by introducing legislation to ban School and College District superintendents and administrators from raising campaign cash for the board members that they serve.

Under the legislation, administrators at California’s public school districts and community college districts would be prohibited from soliciting contributions on behalf of the campaigns and legal defense funds of candidates and incumbent board members that govern those districts. Violators would be subject to penalties assessed by the state’s Fair Political Practices Commission.

That practice – alleged in several of the ongoing corruption cases involving officials at southern San Diego County’s Sweetwater Union High School District, San Ysidro School District and Southwestern College – created a troublesome dynamic between staff and board members at those districts. In the allegations, administrators raised money for their board members from contractors with business before their districts, allowing them to exert inappropriate influence over their own job security with the boards that hired them as well as the process for selecting contractors to rebuild and revamp the districts’ campuses.

“These corruption cases have become a huge distraction to our goal of improving public education opportunities in the South Bay, and the common thread in these cases is that administrators were improperly acting as political moneymen for board members’ campaigns,” Gonzalez said. “Besides the pay-to-play nature of the corruption allegations in the South Bay, it’s just as offensive that school and college board members could become so beholden to their own senior employees. The administrators are supposed to carry out the wishes of the board members, not the other way around.”

Assemblywoman Gonzalez made the announcement Monday as the California State Assembly was reconvening for the 2014 legislative session in the State Capitol.

“If we are going to advance the public education systems that our communities depend upon to teach California’s workforce of the future, than it’s my duty as a legislature to do what I can to make sure that remains the focus of these school and college districts.”

To interview Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez, please contact Evan McLaughlin at (619) 850-2790 or (916) 319-2080.

Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez represents the 80th Assembly District, which includes Chula Vista, National City and the San Diego neighborhoods of City Heights, Barrio Logan, Paradise Hills, San Ysidro and Otay Mesa. For more information, visit http://asmdc.org/members/a80/.

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Carl DeMaio’s Extreme Record in San Diego

Carl DeMaio may be a relatively new name on the East Coast, but in San Diego and California’s 52nd Congressional District, voters know DeMaio and his extreme record painfully well. Among DeMaio’s most controversial positions and statements are the following lowlights:
 

1. DeMaio called the Ryan Budget and its devastating cuts “a starting point.”
   
While polls consistently show that most Americans oppose the Ryan Budget because it ends the Medicare guarantee and raises seniors costs while giving the wealthy a pass, Carl DeMaio would use that framework as his starting point. Not coincidentally, the Reason Foundation – DeMaio’s employer – has said the Ryan Budget does not go far enough in slashing benefits that people pay into over a lifetime of work.
      
2. DeMaio named Sen. Ted Cruz as a model legislator on the day the shutdown began. 

On the first day of the disastrous federal government shutdown, Carl DeMaio cited its architect, Ted Cruz, as an example of how he would try to stand out in Washington. He made clear that he would emulate Cruz’s divisive approach, saying, “it’s a question of whether you are willing to stand your ground.”
       
3. DeMaio wants to “make San Diego the Wisconsin of the West” and twice voted against benefits for widows and orphans of slain police officers. 

DeMaio made his name in San Diego politics by attacking workers’ retirement benefits. In addition to his rallying cry to local Republicans to “make San Diego the Wisconsin of the West,” DeMaio cast high-profile and controversial votes against death benefits for the families of slain police officers.
       
4. DeMaio earned a reputation for being “too polarizing” and left “behind a divisive legacy.” 

After DeMaio lost his bid for mayor, the Union-Tribune noted he had been “too polarizing” and left “behind a divisive legacy” on the San Diego City Council. Former San Diego Mayor and fellow Republican Jerry Sanders had a choice word to describe DeMaio’s reputation for taking credit for San Diego’s successes after doing nothing to help achieve them.

BACKGROUND:

• DeMaio: “The Ryan Budget Provides a Starting Point Of A Lot Of Good Ideas.” [The Hill, 12/12/13]
• Medicare Rights Center: “The Ryan Budget Would End Medicare As We Know It.” [Medicare Rights Center, 3/12/13]
• Reason Foundation: Tea Party Candidates Don’t Go Far Enough to Cut Entitlements. In 2010, Reason Foundation senior analyst Shikha Dalmia argued that the Tea Party movement did not go far enough in pushing for cuts in entitlement programs. [Reason Foundation, “Entitlement Reform? Not Their Cup of Tea,” 11/01/10]
• DeMaio Compared Himself To Sen. Ted Cruz At The Peak Of The Government Shutdown. In October 2013, DeMaio said the following: “Take a look at what Ted Cruz is doing. He’s a freshman Senator, he’s certainly creating a lot of stir. So I do believe one individual can make a difference. And it’s a question of whether you are willing to stand your ground.” [San Diego Lions Club Video 4, 10/1/13]
• Wanted To Make San Diego The “Wisconsin Of The West” by Eliminating Collective Bargaining. In 2011, DeMaio suggested that he wanted to eliminate collective bargaining rights for public workers. “Are you ready to make San Diego the Wisconsin of the West?” DeMaio said. [San Diego Union-Tribune, 10/28/12; Voice of San Diego, 4/12/11]
• Twice Voted Against Benefits for Widows and Orphans of Slain Police Officers. In July 2010, DeMaio twice voted against labor deals that would have provided survivor benefits to the widows and orphans of slain police officers. [Voice of San Diego, 10/30/12]
• Union-Tribune: DeMaio is “Too Polarizing” And “Le[ft] Behind a Divisive Legacy.” In 2012, the San Diego Union-Tribune wrote that DeMaio was “too polarizing” and that his defeat in the mayoral election “means that DeMaio will leave behind a divisive legacy.” [San Diego Union-Tribune, 11/08/12]

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Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez Applauds State Supreme Court Decision to Allow Sergio Garcia to Practice Law

Court Says Gonzalez’s AB 1024 Permits California to License Garcia and Qualified DREAMers to be Attorneys

SAN DIEGO – (Thursday, Jan. 2, 2014) – California State Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez (D-San Diego) applauded the California Supreme Court’s decision today to grant Sergio C. Garcia a license to practice law after it was rescinded earlier because of his status as an undocumented immigrant.
The historic decision comes just one day after legislation, Assembly Bill 1024 authored by Assemblywoman Gonzalez, became effective. AB 1024 empowers members of California’s immigrant community who pass the State Bar exam and are otherwise qualified to practice law as attorneys.
“Today’s decision is another leap forward for California in honoring our commitment to Sergio and so many others who want to serve our communities by practicing law as an attorney,” Gonzalez said. “This ruling gives tangible hope to the many hard-working, young members of our immigrant community, who, under no fault of their own, have been caught in the middle of a broken immigration system. I am very proud that I was able to play a role in making this happen.”

In issuing the opinion, the Court stated, “in light of the recently enacted state legislation, we conclude that the … motion to admit Garcia to the State Bar should be granted.”

Having passed the State Bar examination and fulfilled all other requirements, Mr. Garcia was routinely sworn into the legal profession in 2011. Two weeks later, his license was rescinded by the State Bar on the basis that a 1996 federal law prohibits undocumented immigrants from receiving professional licenses with the use of public funds, unless state law explicitly overrides it.
Directly inspired by Mr. Garcia’s case and the oral arguments heard before the Court last September, Assemblywoman Gonzalez authored AB 1024. The bill states that the State of California can grant DREAMers – who have graduated from law school, passed the moral character inspection, and passed the bar exam – a license to practice law. AB 1024 was passed in both houses of the Legislature with broad bipartisan support last September and signed into law by Governor Brown on Oct. 5, 2013.

“Sergio has paved the way for DREAMers and other aspiring attorneys who have worked hard, studied hard, passed the Bar exam and now just want the right to make a living for themselves in a profession they love.” Gonzalez said. “I am very grateful that my colleagues in the Legislature, Gov. Brown and the Court have recognized that California can lead the way in improving the lives of immigrants, even when the federal government fails to lead on the issues that impact the families of our communities.”

Linked: California State Supreme Court ruling in Re: Sergio Garcia, Jan. 2, 2014. Note: Reference to AB 1024 begins on bottom of page 2.

Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez represents the 80th Assembly District, which includes Chula Vista, National City and the San Diego neighborhoods of City Heights, Barrio Logan, Paradise Hills, San Ysidro and Otay Mesa. For more information, visit http://asmdc.org/members/a80/.

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Happy 2014!

Let's make it a Progressive year!

Cheers!

#CostsOfRepeal: DCCC Launches Paid Online Ads Highlighting the Faces of Candidate DeMaio’s Repeal

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee today is launching paid web ads highlighting the cost of Candidate Carl DeMaio’s repeal, as well as FacesOfRepeal.com, a web site where Californians can share their stories of how they would suffer under his and House Republicans’ reckless plan to repeal the Affordable Care Act.

The web ads and website are filled with the stories of Americans who describe how Candidate DeMaio’s repeal would damage their lives – on top of taking the country back to a broken system that led hardworking Americans into bankruptcy and let insurance companies do whatever they want to raise rates, drop coverage and deny care.

Candidate DeMaio’s House Republicans have voted nearly 50 times to repeal the Affordable Care Act, which would raise prescription drug costs for millions of seniors, allow insurance companies to deny coverage to 129 million Americans with preexisting conditions - including 17 million children - and to increase costs on middle class families.

Faces of Repeal: What Happens if Carl DeMaio Repeals Health Care Refrom?

“For every statistic, there are millions of seniors who are saving thousands on prescription drugs, countless Americans who won't face bankruptcy because of health care, and millions of sick kids who are guaranteed coverage – and those are the people who Candidate Demaio is hurting with his obsessive repeal efforts,” said Emily Bittner of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. “Not only would Candidate DeMaio’s repeal hurt millions of middle class Americans, his leaders refuse to put forward an agenda to solve these problems. The costs of Candidate DeMaio’s repeal are simply too high – and these are the faces of those who will hurt the most.”

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