As a region, we are far behind the rest of the state when it comes to building sufficient rental and affordable housing options for working-class families, the homeless, and citizens on fixed incomes. We need to make every effort to bring stability to the housing market place. The key here is increasing supply at a price point that citizens can afford. It’s a supply issue.

We know from recent media accounts that some 17,000 Bay Area workers are living in our region because of their inability to find housing near their jobs. This influx of people living in our region is putting further pressure on our supply. The department of housing and community development estimates that California must build at least 180,000 units a year to keep pace with demand, not accounting for the backlog of approximately 2 million units that has accrued over the last several decades.

Two years ago, I voted in favor of legislation to help address California’s affordable housing shortage. However, the revenue generated by SB 1 is a drop in the bucket. California is a very diverse state and a one-size fits all approach for rent control could actually hinder economic growth and construction of new homes and affordable housing.

First, I oppose proposals that would tunnel under the Delta and transport northern California water south. Whether one tunnel or two, these proposals could have potentially devastating effects on Sacramento River communities in my district and across the river and should be stopped.

I do favor whatever we can do to conserve water, curb water abusers, reduce leakage and excessive runoff, limit evaporation from canals and reservoirs, and incentivize homeowners, farmers, businesses and public entities to reduce unnecessary water consumption.

I also support efforts to expand our water storage capabilities through non-intrusive methods like raising the height of existing dams and increasing groundwater storage projects.

Climate change is a serious, existential threat to our planet and our way of life, and coping with it – either to reduce emissions or to deal with the effects of it in the way of natural disasters and sea level rise – is going to take a significant toll on our economy and those around the world.

That’s why, since my election to the Assembly in 2014, my Democratic colleagues and I have passed several pieces of legislation aimed at combating global warming, including, passing SB 32 (Global Warming Solutions Act) and extending California's cap-and-trade program.

Additionally, I proudly authored legislation to help combat poor air quality in our region and incentivize low-income residents to replace older, high-polluting vehicles; and supported measures to encourage fleet-wide adoption of electric vehicles, make it easier for large energy consumers like agriculture and industrial uses to access energy efficiency programs, and allow more consumers to purchase power from independent sources rather than utilities.

Many of the objectives of the Green New Deal are attainable, and I agree with them. But I am also a realist, and I try not to make promises that I know we cannot keep. We need to move away from oil and gas as fuel sources; encourage the use of renewable energy by consumers, businesses and agriculture; and incentivize the tech industry to find ways to both reduce fossil fuel consumption and cope with what may be the inevitable effects of sea level rise.    

We need to stop the revolving door that has offenders constantly cycling in and out of our prisons.  This means restoring programs to reduce recidivism, including counseling, drug treatment, education and job training programs for prisoners along with discontinuing programs that don’t work as discussed earlier last year by the LOA.  The State must require CDCR to communicate with County jails to really track recidivism rates so we have a better understanding of the problem.  Currently that’s not happening.

We must also focus our efforts on early intervention and education programs – that’s why I’ve been a champion of our First 5’s, investing in youth enrichment programs, and ensuring every dollar possible is invested in our classrooms. If we provide our youth the opportunity to succeed in college and career, we divert them from the penal system and build a more equitable, just community.

In addition, we need to ensure that violent criminals are kept off our streets and out of our neighborhoods.  Over the last few years I have seen victims being forgotten.  For instance, right now in California some crimes are still considered “non-violent” and are even routinely referred to as “low-level”.  These crimes include; sexually trafficking a child, felony domestic violence, raping an intoxicated or disabled person, felony hate crimes, and even arson with all the damage fires have done to our state.  Through various avenues I have supported adding these obviously violent crimes, as violent.  I have also supported giving the public more authority over early release decisions, which are now made by unelected officials with little input from victims, prosecutors or the public.

Prop. 13 is an important protection that homeowners in California do not want to lose. At the same time, its strict hold over property tax revenues has had significant impacts on our communities and the abilities of local governments to deliver services and maintain the quality of our schools, infrastructure and vital services.  While I have not yet taken a position on the 2020 ballot measure to split tax rolls and allow reassessment of commercial and industrial properties, I am carefully considering it as more detail about the ramifications become available.

As a region, we are far behind the rest of the state when it comes to building sufficient rental and affordable housing options for working-class families, the homeless, and citizens on fixed incomes. We need to make every effort to bring stability to the housing marketplace. The key here is increasing supply at a price point that citizens can afford. It’s a supply issue.

That’s why I’ve led on streamlining the permitting and approval process in the Assembly, accelerating housing construction. This has helped bring new housing construction to Elk Grove, Sacramento and Lodi. We need to do more, but supply is picking up.

We know that sky-high prices in the Bay Area have resulted in greater rates of migration to our region, which puts further pressure on our already inadequate housing supply.

In terms of controlling the cost of housing, California is a very diverse state and a one-size fits all approach for rent control could actually hinder economic growth and limit construction of new homes and affordable housing. 

Clearly, the cost of prescription drugs is a huge burden for consumers, and I have supported efforts like SB 17 that attempted to bring down the price of drugs and prevent future increases. 

The Governor’s proposal to control costs by contracting directly with generic drug manufacturers, including international manufacturers, is an interesting one, and I applaud his efforts to seek new, bold, innovative solutions to a problem that is so important to virtually all Californians.  However, there is much detail that needs to be fleshed out regarding this plan, and I will closely follow the progress of this proposal as more detail emerges before rendering a final opinion.

As I mentioned  earlier:

regulations and fees should be reduced.

the permit process should be streamlined.

we should work with municipalities and counties to provide land for affordable housing and where possible. Establish public:private partnerships to lower the building cost. Providing for Truly affordable housing

Water storage is needed to be completed.

we must better manage our water resources. Stop wasting water sending it out to the ocean in amounts greater than is needed.

Establish a comprehensive water plan for this century and beyond.

I would first do a review of all pro and con climate science.

On the recent fires we had produced more pollution tha all of our C02 emissions this past year. I would support a deeper dive into cleaning our forest and national parks. 
Auto emissions standards are high and producing great results. our waterways should be cleaned more regularly. To provide better environmental quality.

Youth engagement

job training

skills develoment

use  some of the 81,000 per person to fund these programs.

No

californians should not be taxed further. Let Prop 13 stand.

look for cuts that can be made without impacting other funds.

There should be some attention paid to tenets rights. 
affordable housing should be built at the same time regulations and fees and the permitting process should be streamlined allowing for greater affordability.

No

the State should encourage competition between drug companies.

they should also investigate other sources of the same drugs for lower costs.

As I addressed affordable housing in a prior response, I will focus on homelessness.

First and foremost, we must stop criminalizing the way unhoused people survive. Immediately, we must stop arresting, confiscating the survival gear of, and ticketing people who have no choice but to sleep outside. Safe ground is the first step. We can provide sanitation infrastructure and services to people where they are it. Outreach to people experiencing homelessness should be done by health workers and social workers, not the police.

We should create a very high vacancy tax. There should not be one vacant home while so many sleep outside. I’m inspired by the commitment and power of #Moms4Housing in Oakland!

We need strong tenant protection and emergency assistance programs to keep people in their homes. We need more domestic violence, mental health and substance abuse funding, including wrap-around supportive services for people who are struggling. We need the wealthy and corporations to pay their fair share of taxes so we can build the social housing and create the services we need to help our communities thrive.

I believe that housing is a human right and that we should create a legally enforceable mandate that would force municipalities and the state to house people, comparable to the laws in California on providing for education.

We must treat homelessness like the crisis it is and fund solutions accordingly. There is no one solution to homelessness. Every solution to homelessness should come from a place of empathy.

My plans are to:

Protect and expand upon current reform legislation

In 2016 and 2018, after three decades of ‘tough on crime’ policies that led to over-incarceration and devastated marginalized communities, California voters passed Proposition 47 and Proposition 57 by wide margins. Both ballot initiatives served as a referendum on California’s failed approach to public safety. Proposition 47 reclassified certain theft and drug possession offenses from felonies to misdemeanors. Proposition 57 created opportunities to earn parole consideration for people serving prison sentences for nonviolent offenses. It also incentivizes participation in rehabilitation and education programs by creating a credit earning system for inmates who reach certain milestones, like earning an academic degree or graduating from a substance abuse course.

A ballot initiative that aims to roll back much of the progress made by Propositions 47 and 57 will appear on the November 2020 ballot. The Reducing Crime and Keeping California Safe Act of 2020 is premised on the falsehood that crime is on the rise in California, and that recent criminal justice reforms are to blame. In fact, according to the Public Policy Institute of California overall crime rates are at near historic lows.

As a victim of sexual assault, domestic violence and child abuse, I believe that the ‘nonviolent offenses’ category should be expanded, however this measure would also make theft of $250 a felony on the third offense,  and allow law enforcement to collect DNA samples from misdemeanor drug and property ‘suspects’ for future use. The measure is capitalizing on the ‘nonviolent offenses’ category to reintroduce a lesser form of the 3 strikes law and override DNA privacy protections.

Support the reduction of Recidivism through Justice Reinvestment

Justice reinvestment is a two-step data-driven approach to improving public safety and reducing long-term criminal justice spending: First, recalibrate state and local corrections budgets to reflect decreasing prison and jail populations. Second, reinvest the savings from California’s decreasing incarceration into evidence-based strategies that decrease crime and reduce recidivism. When Governor Brown signed AB 109 (Public Safety Realignment) in 2011, he implored that "California must reinvest its criminal justice resources to support community-based corrections programs and evidence-based practices that will achieve improved public safety returns on this state's substantial investment in its criminal justice system."

Support Juvenile Justice Reform

Early interventions for at-risk youth is a national best practice for keeping them from entering the criminal justice system, including trauma-informed mental health support, restorative justice-based accountability, education support, and family therapy. Research also demonstrates that justice-involved youth are best served closer to their homes and communities in small, therapeutic environments. Unfortunately, children in California, especially African American and Latino children, still spend a disproportionate amount of time in detention facilities.

Lowering rent costs requires a multifaceted solution. We must focus on rent caps and tenant rights as well as building not only housing, but affordable housing. For the short term, my policy priorities include the construction of affordable housing. However, what is truly needed is social housing - to decomodify housing and make certain that everyone has a comfortable and secure place to call home in their community.

Affordable housing is generally divided into three categories: low (50-80% AMI), very low (30-50% AMI), and extremely low (0-30% AMI) income housing. The more deeply affordable housing becomes, the more expensive it is to build and operate. We should be spending our resources to build for the most vulnerable.

To be clear, market rate housing must also be built. However, planning and zoning for all housing types is important to ensure that housing for low, very low, and extremely low-income people is distributed equitably, including in neighborhoods with high opportunity, good schools, parks, libraries.

increasing the supply ... The state's housing shortage 

Every house have water meter and limited supply

By balancing carbon emissions with carbon removal.

Capital Outlay, Infrastructure · Criminal Justice · Economy and Taxes ... How much does it cost to incarcerate an inmate? California's Annual Costs to ... It costs an average of about $81,000 per year to incarcerate an inmate in prison in California. Over three-quarters of these costs are for security and inmate health care

Lower rent costs helps all and especially working class guys

Yes , because it helps the residents  and specially of low wages.