Issues of water scarcity in California are due to 1) an intensifying climate crisis and 2) continued corporate greed. California has always dealt with issues relating to water scarcity, however, the recent historic droughts are a direct result of the climate crisis. We need to take immediate and bold action to address the climate crisis in the form of a Green New Deal for California. The State Legislature must enact a massive multi-year mobilization to protect our biodiversity, stop desertification, transition us to 100% renewable energy, create millions of good green jobs, and preserve California's water systems. As part of this process, we must also carefully analyze our water usage systems to ensure they are utilized in the best way possible. The indigenous people's of California maintained a robust and healthy water system for millennia, not only should we begin to adopt tried and true methods but also return public lands to Indigenous peoples who have cared for the land for thousands of years. 

Additionally, we must put an end to corporate abuse of California's water. According to Food and Water Watch, 80% of the State's water goes to agriculture including 910 billion gallons in 2019 for almond exports. 142 million gallons are used every day to operate our mega diaries and the oil/gas industry uses a billion gallons of water a year. If we prohibit the use of groundwater for water-intensive crops like almonds, ban new and expanding mega-dairies, and end new fossil fuel development in the state we can save billions of gallons of water for Californians. We need to reform California's antiquated water laws that favor corporations and ensure equitable and sustainable water for all Californias. 

As a State Assemblymember, I will fight to prioritize the building of affordable housing instead of luxury housing for top income earners. I am operating with a vision of ensuring Housing for All. We can begin this by repealing Costa-Hawkins to allow cities to bring rent under control. I will also fight to support tenants and tenant organizing by passing a Tenant’s Bill of Rights, repealing the Ellis Act, and giving more material rent support as a key way to make more units rent-affordable. 

Ultimately, however, the core issue is that there is a low supply of affordable housing and there are not many new units being added. 

In the last five years, LA added roughly only 7,300 new affordable housing units (some not even being affordable) even as the population grew by nearly 10x that. We need to dramatically expand the supply of affordable housing.  I would introduce legislation to: (1) require new developments to have at least 25% of units be designated as affordable (rent not exceeding 30% of income), (2) add anti-gentrification and affordable housing provisions into SB9 and SB 10, (3) implement a statewide vacancy tax (following Oakland’s model), and (4) allow cities to build higher-density urban developments as opposed to only allowing single-family homes. The City of Los Angeles and the State of California have relied on incentives to address affordable housing. That is not enough. New builds should require a percentage of the units to be allocated for affordable housing, as is required in New York City.

I would aggressively push to build public social housing and public affordable housing, such as AB 387. To that end, I firmly believe that homelessness is a policy choice and we have the resources to end it. We must champion legislation to lead with services and housing. That means advocating for funding to increase the hiring of more mental health professionals, crisis professionals, violence interruption professionals, and more to work with our unhoused neighbors as well as investing more support for existing mutual aid networks for those still on the streets. I disagree with the criminalization of our unhoused, including policies such as the LA City Council’s 41.18, and in the Assembly would support legislation to end the violent policing of our unhoused communities. We must center the voices most impacted and partner with our unhoused neighbors to create solutions that actually work for them. 

Ultimately, we must invest in creating enough transitional housing and permanent supportive housing for all unhoused residents. We can do this by converting abandoned buildings, vacant housing, and by building more housing. These facilities would not be a replication of the carceral system, but rather a place of healing where folks can stay until they are ready to leave. We must build a system that is compassionate, just and puts the needs of the unhoused first and foremost. 

By using government resources to build truly affordable housing, we can ensure that no Californian is rent-burdened and we live up to the promise of housing being a human right.

Despite efforts by students, teachers, parents, and community members, California remains near the bottom of the pack in spending per pupil. We spend well below the national average and none of our districts are receiving the needed funding to deliver the best possible education for our students. This is especially true for our most at-need school districts which are usually receiving on average 43% less than what is actually needed. The COVID-19 pandemic revealed truly how inadequately funded our public schools are, we are reaching a place of crisis for our public school system.

As the 5th largest economy in the world, we have the resources and power to dramatically expand our investment in public education and that is what I will fight for in the State Assembly. I want to pass a Green New Deal for Public Education that will dramatically increase funding to spend on retrofitting buildings, adding more collaborative spaces, hiring more teachers/staff, expanding PE/Arts programs, getting more learning materials, and spending more on students. As part of this vision, I hope to expand the mental health support network and college/work support network to ensure students have all they need to succeed. I am also in strong support of creating material aid for teachers/staff so that they can afford to live in the communities in which they teach. Additionally, I would champion free public universities for all California residents.

We can begin re-funding our schools by eliminating school law enforcement and closing corporate loopholes in Prop 13. Additionally, we should re-evaluate how we are distributing existing funding. I strongly support SB830 introduced by Senator Portantino that would shift the funding for schools from being attendance-based to being enrollment-based. In that spirit, I believe we must create Special Task Forces to evaluate every possible method for how we can ensure that every student is receiving a high-quality education regardless of where they live.

Public education is the bedrock of our society and should be a human right - there will be no stronger champion for our public schools than me in the State Assembly. 

Our district has long suffered from a range of environmental injustices. As a primarily working-class, BIPOC district we are the home to urban oil drilling next to our homes, a lack of green spaces in East Los Angeles, and our air is polluted by the 8 freeways that intersect our district. It is time to meaningfully address the climate crisis before it is too late. I believe that we must pass a Green New Deal for California: a massive 10+ year mobilization to create a green, just, and fossil-fuel-free state.

While a finalized Green New Deal will require the direct guidance of front-line communities, climate groups, and climate experts, the following are some provisions that I would hope to see in a Green New Deal:

• Commitment for CA to be carbon-free and running on 100% green energy by 2030

• Funding for cities to expand public transit, make streets more walkable/bikeable, improve accessibility, improve buildings/housing, replace toxic infrastructure, etc. 

• Institute reparations programs for frontline Black and brown working-class communities in the form of government programs, specialized support, and direct material aid. 

• Regulate power as a public utility 

• Replace all fossil fuel infrastructure with green energy by 2030

• Establish Commission to transfer public lands into Indigenous Stewardship 

• Create a Fund dedicated to cleaning up toxic and polluted sites in CA

• Formalize a public right to clean air, clean water, and clean land. 

• Mobilize government resources to build more green affordable housing, public housing, and public social housing. 

• Support Community Gardens, Community Food Markets, and anti-Food Desert programs

• Enshrine a Just Transition for Fossil Fuel Workers

• Create millions of clean jobs with a livable wage that are either union or in a pipeline to union membership.

The Green New Deal for California above anything else is an opportunity to make our economy and society work for ALL of us, not just for corporations and billionaires.