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Assemblymember Ward said a bill was making its way through the legislature that would provide an opportunity to increase access and accommodation by virtual participation. There must be conversation and debate to move business forward. Public bodies are responsible for making sure strong public participation is afforded. It is important that there be a traditional in-person location to allow for that synergy. Civic organizations were in conversation last year trying to broadly open the availability of virtual access by elected members of counties, cities or other civic bodies. What came from that was a strengthening of participation of disabled persons. We shouldn’t default to it and we should make sure we meet in person, especially when dealing with a hot topic because there is a good chemistry when everyone is in the same room. Zoom allows people to multi-task or let their minds wander. Guardrails should be in place especially for advisory bodies, such as the Commission on Police Practices.

He operates through two lenses; as an assemblymember and a member of the public. A lot of the state’s climate response is trend setting and we are trying to make sure we are not falling prey to climate change that would set us behind in the world. Transportation and energy sectors must be kept in line with the targets. Middle and lower income families must be supported through a backbone of infrastructure and options for electrical generation even if they live in a multi-unit home. There should be more education about the options available. There must be support for mass transit infrastructure and more critical thinking about land use decisions to prevent people from moving further from their jobs. Reducing congestion and emissions is important. The real test will be in the budget and he is concerned about rollbacks in funding for energy investments. We should support moving to renewable energy and sustainable sources. He is concerned about some of the utility proposals. Recently the PUC’s decisions have alarmed him and he is looking for a counterbalance to the NEM3.0 proposal which is causing an 80% reduction in new rooftop solar installations. There is a need for conversation around how to support the state’s budget but continue the trends to meet the goals of climate support. California must lead by example and meet its goal to reduce emissions.

This is the #1 subject area he is working on. He is the Chair of the Housing and Community Development Committee and a member of the Budget subcommittee overseeing homeless subsidies. This is challenging with the current budget. The Governor wants to roll back some of the programs that have produced housing and we don’t want to be set back further. We have to find alternatives to that. There are competing conversations about what we need to put forward to the voters regarding affordable housing and climate issues. This is an important investment and the housing bond is fully extended. There isn’t enough being done for lower and middle income families. New permits have started to increase through local and state policies making it quicker and easier to start projects. We must continue to make sure the infrastructure including transportation infrastructure is aligned with policies put forth at the state. It takes an average of 3 years just to get through the pre stages. The faster they can break ground, the faster units get online. The building codes should be simplified. It has been a process of decades building onto the text and codes California is an outlier compared to other states for cumbersome building codes to produce the necessary product. He is also looking at working closely with cities and counties to make sure there is synergy with them. He is on the Local Government Committee as well. They must all tie together and be addressed through multiple lenses. The state continues to play a large role and must continue to work with local government, environmental, housing development, business and other sectors to see stronger solutions to accelerate housing production. There is also an earnest conversation about the end users. Are we doing enough to make sure the rental market is stabilized? What is the future if there is no place for your family? There is also debate about individuals and corporations. We see growing investment from Wall Street firms. We must turn around this trend of bulk sale of new homes for rent. This makes an unfair playing field.

His goals include continuing to advance housing and homelessness related programs and help more individuals who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless. His policy work and budget involvement is aligned with that. He is looking at the state investments over the last few years and they aren't that strong. Working with federal resources has achieved more state attention and he doesn’t want that to be walked back. He is crunching the numbers to show how effective these state programs are, keeping in mind we still have to balance the state budget. Other legislators have been “leaning on him” to keep them informed on his analysis of these programs. He continues his effort to support solar and solar recycling. Solar panels should not end up in landfills because they contain toxic materials. He suggested there should be recycling of some of this material. Another subject is recognizing expectations of public work. He doesn’t agree with shifting public work to private contractors. Core responsibilities have been moved out of the public sector and privatized. This reduces the accountability and provides less control of the work product. Constituents should be ensured that their tax dollars are being maximized. There are requirements that public workers must meet. Gun Violence prevention and its impact on schools is an important issue. Some schools are doing drills to make sure the school recognizes its weak points but there needs to be parameters on these drills. There have been extreme examples where schools have used paramilitary-type people causing mass trauma. He will work with the Department of Education to set guidelines that include parent participation and community resources to keep schools safe and provide access to resources for those experiencing gun violence. He will look at other measures to support gun violence issues.

Assemblymember Ward stated it is a question of funding and timing. He is very well informed about the train tracks and their importance regionally. He thanked Senator Atkins for her leadership when the budget had a surplus. She set aside $250 million to cover pre-construction to support a re-alignment. This rail line is essential for passengers and commerce. There will be things to mitigate to reduce impact and it will be expensive. We have to figure out how to fund it and how to expedite it. It has been estimated that this would take 10 to 12 years to open. The state has a role in helping SANDAG and the federal rail authority to come to the right decision and make it happen. Senator Blakespear’s committee is working on this. We have to work on the San Clemente portion as well. That pinch point is even further behind and that corridor was closed in the recent storms. We need to support that corridor for the next 100 years.