Candidate for
Member of the State Assembly; District 9; Democratic Party

Restoring a World-Class Education System for California

Once the model for the nation, public education in California has struggled for decades now. Too often we're pulling up the rear, with students ranking near the bottom in math, reading and science. And while our students are suffering, our state continues to run short of adequate funding or fresh ideas about how to improve the situation.

Meanwhile, California's middle class relies on the opportunities afforded by quality public education. A high school diploma no longer provides access to the American Dream. We need a diverse, skilled labor force, trained in the latest technology and advances, to rebuild our economy. That means renewing our commitment to public education + from preschool through graduate school + and making sure our high school students are prepared to go on to higher education and meet the challenges of the 21st century and beyond.

Anything less for our students and our society is simply unacceptable.

I believe we can turn this situation around by focusing on priorities that yield the most tangible results for our students:

Provide an adequate, stable source of funding for higher education. We can no longer balance the state budget on the backs of lower and middle income students. Every year, tuition and fees go up, and class availability goes down + making the road to finishing a degree longer and more expensive. If we expect our higher education system to attract the best students and adequately prepare them for the future, then we need to make it a priority of our society and our State budget.

Make workforce development and skilled job training a priority. For those already working in their chosen fields, we need to make workforce development and skilled job training a priority, so we can provide the kind of highly skilled workers it takes to sustain a competitive, innovation-based economy.

Put education dollars into the classroom, not the bureaucracy. Good teachers and school staff are also essential to improving California's education system. Our tax dollars should be directed first to reducing class sizes, and to recruiting and retaining the best teachers and school staff. To help our teachers stay on the cutting edge of their field and learn from one another, we should require professional development programs for teachers, shaped by teachers.

Support parents and families. Parents are a child's first teachers. But many California parents face challenges that make it difficult for them to participate fully in their children's education. To ensure all students are able to maximize their potential, we need programs that will help promote and support good parenting and involvement.

Good Jobs And A Healthier Economy

California's economy is in a critical state. Right here in Sacramento, unemployment exceeds 12%, thousands of businesses are closed, and the foreclosure rate is the 10th highest in the country.

For too many years our politicians have allowed corporate and special interests to dictate state spending, while neglecting our long term needs. We have mortgaged our state's future with programs we can't pay for, a tax structure that can't sustain the needs of a growing state, and a chronic structural imbalance.

While an economic recovery must be led by the private sector, state policies need to encourage business growth and development, not drive businesses away. We need to grow our economy and create the good-paying jobs that help build a sound economic future. It is critical that California provides the climate for innovation that will help us retain our global leadership in the high-growth areas of technology, life sciences, and health care.

These are tough times. They demand common sense leaders who will find creative solutions and make hard decisions to help grow a healthier economy and provide good jobs for California families.

Common Sense Budgeting to Support Vital Services

It's time for California's leaders to step up, take responsibility and make the tough choices. We need to be willing to cut programs that are wasteful or duplicative and eliminate corporate tax breaks that are not helping create jobs and grow our economy. We need to find new revenue sources that will not disproportionately impact lower and middle income families. And we need to eliminate the two-thirds budget requirement that paralyzes our state year after year.

Public Employees

Public employees need to part of the solution when it comes to budget cuts. We need to listen to the people who do the work and have a stake in making government run well.

We also need to acknowledge the importance of the public sector workforce to state and local economies. Public employees bring billions every year to the state economy in tax income. They are a vital component of private sector spending in nearly every community in the state + particularly here in Sacramento - paying taxes, buying homes, and spending money in local businesses. And public sector retirees are able to live in dignity and continue to contribute economically to their community and their state. We need to support public employees, not apologize for them.

A Well-Educated Work Force

Our region's economy is changing, and our workforce needs to keep pace. We need well-qualified, highly-trained workers to meet the needs of a 21st century economy. Higher education and skilled job training must be a priority if California and the Sacramento region are to be competitive in a global economy where jobs are moving offshore every day.

Small Business is Big Business When It Comes to Jobs

The economic downturn has taken its toll on local businesses and commercial real estate, with hundreds of thousands of business properties now closed across the state, and over 9,500 right here in the Sacramento region. We can't grow jobs without supporting our existing employers. We must work with state and local leaders to look for creative ways to retain the businesses that we have and help them grow.

Innovation is Key to Keeping California and the Region Competitive

Innovation has been key to keeping California and the region competitive. Locally, the growth in the information technology and bio-tech sectors have provided thousands of new, good-paying jobs and brought billions in revenues to the region. Looking ahead, we know that investing in new, green technologies will not only promote a healthier environment but provide a source of good-paying jobs that can help diversify our economy and employ workers right here, right now.

Keeping Our Communities Safe

Keeping our communities safe is one of government's most important responsibilities. That means combining punishment with prevention... intervening with young people to break the cycle of crime, drugs and violence that destroys young lives and ultimately threatens our neighborhoods and the safety of us all.

To do that, I support:

• Job training, early intervention with at-risk youth, and community-based recreation and after-school programs
• Community policing and giving our public safety officers the tools and resources they need to patrol our streets and apprehend criminals
• Adequate funding for counseling, mental health and drug treatment programs for young people and repeat offenders
• Measures to keep our schools safe and secure places where teachers can teach + not police + and children can learn in an atmosphere free from fear
• Working with probation and parole officers to help stop the revolving door that causes more than 54% of prisoners to repeat offenses and find themselves once again incarcerated within three years. (http://www.cdcr.ca.gov/Reports_ Research/Offender_Information_Services_ Branch/Annual/RECID2/ RECID2d2005.pdf)

Millions of Californians continue to have little or no health coverage, while every year more and more middle class families are forced into bankruptcy because of unpaid medical bills. We have over 1,500 health insurance plans in our state, yet the cost for consumers and businesses continues to rise.

High quality, affordable health care is something we are all entitled to.

I support a health care system that:

• Expands coverage to all Californians
• Puts health care decisions in the hands of providers and ensures they are based on what's best for patient care, not profits
• Reduces the number of health care dollars that go to administration, rather than care
• Protects consumers from abuse by health insurance companies and providers

Sacramento is best known for its parks, trees and commitment to preserving a high quality of life. Sound environmental policy is not incongruous with job growth and a business environment that allows for sustainable growth. I am committed to the proposition that we can grow smarter, while preserving our way of life and the natural beauty that brought many of us to California in the first place.

I am committed to:

• Meeting the goals laid out in AB 32 for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and leading the country in the fight against global warming
• Working with all sides to ensure California has an adequate supply of clean, safe water, while protecting the Delta and the river systems that feed it
• Opposing boundless and unplanned development and efforts to weaken the existing regulatory safeguards that attempt to keep it in check
• Keeping our parks open, well-maintained and accessible to Californians today and into the future
• Encouraging conservation and recycling and promoting innovative ways to use recycled materials
• Finding energy solutions that provide an adequate, secure supply, based on long term planning that will provide the reserves we need today, tomorrow and decades from now
• Looking at all new energy alternatives to ensure we are taking advantage of the best that science and technology have to offer Protecting ratepayers and keeping energy costs down through choice and competition

This century's civil rights issue is securing equality for the LGBT community in all areas of the law. Whether in the workplace, schools or courts, we must embrace our common humanity and end discrimination.

I am committed to:

• Repealing Proposition 8 in California and ensuring that same-sex couples have the right to marry;
• Extending the same property rights to same-sex couples that straight couples enjoy;
• Enacting and enforcing the toughest hate crimes laws in the country to protect LGBT Californians from hatred and bigotry;
• Increasing state support for California's AIDS Drug Assistance Program (ADAP);
• Repealing the Defense of Marriage Act at the national level; and
• Fully integrating our Armed Forces, repealing Don't Ask, Don't Tell and celebrating the contributions that LGBT Americans have made in defense of our country.

California has long been at the forefront of animal protection. The adoption of Proposition 2 took us to the next level + but we can do better. Ending animal cruelty, in every form, is not inconsistent with sound agricultural policy, economic prosperity or cultural tradition. How we treat our animals is a direct reflection of our moral commitment to each other and to the animals who bring us joy, sustenance and clothing.

I am committed to:

• Meeting the goals set forth by Proposition 2 for the humane treatment of farm animals;
• Ending the cruel "sport" of animal fighting;
• Enacting sustainable, cruelty-free agricultural policies;
• Ending pet homelessness by curbing puppy mills and puppy imports, and promoting responsible pet ownership; and
• Increasing resources for animal protection and rescue programs.