California State SenateCandidate for District 11

Climate change is an existential threat to our planet. I don't just vote the right way - I proactively lead on these issues.  Recently, I introduced, and the Board of Supervisors passed, legislation making San Francisco the first large city to require solar panels on the rooftops of new construction (https://sfgov.legistar.com/View.ashx?M=F&ID=4438267&GUID=99F24F0E-9F7C-4BAB-BB66-C52BE78AD5E7).  I have consistently supported Clean Power SF, San Francisco's community choice aggregation program. Furthermore, I authored first of its kind legislation to require water recycling in large new developments in San Francisco (https://sfgov.legistar.com/View.ashx?M=F&ID=3852092&GUID=C46BB8E2-D068-4E91-A7F1-EDBB2A90B5E3).  I also have pending legislation to make it easier for homeowners to install simple graywater systems in their homes and pending legislation to require water sub-metering in new multi-unit buildings. I am a strong advocate for trees, and I recently introduced a ballot measure - along with a coalition of environmental and community groups - to shore up and expand our street trees, with dedicated funding to stop their decline and allow for a more robust urban forest.

California must continue to lead the way. As described above, I am a strong advocate for solar energy - and other renewable energy (such as our local CCA) - and I will work on the state level to expand renewable energy. I support the full passage of SB 350 to ensure a 50% reduction in vehicle fuels by 2030.  Furthermore, I support Senator Pavley’s SB 32 which will require a 90% reduction (from 1990 levels) of greenhouse gases by 2050 as well as extend California's cap-and-trade system to 2050.  I also support a comprehensive regulatory framework around methane emissions.  Methane’s impact is 84 times more damaging in terms of climate change than carbon dioxide.  The Porter Ranch/Alisio Canyon Methane disaster in Southern California has had the same damage to the climate as driving a car 2 billion miles, and response and recovery to date has cost $665 million.

Because of my strong and proactive leadership on environmental issues, I received a solo endorsement from the California League of Conservation Voters and am the officially endorsed candidate of the Democratic Party. I am also honored to have endorsements from Senator Mark Leno, Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom, Attorney General Kamala Harris, and Congresswoman Jackie Speier.

The state of California needs to invest in housing, transportation and public education.  I support revenue measures including the reauthorization of Prop 30, split-role Prop 13 reform as well as restoring the Vehicle Licensing Fee to historic levels.

Reforming our approach to housing creation and housing affordability is a key priority for me. It’s no secret that San Francisco, and the Bay Area as a whole, is a wonderful place to live.  Our region has grown and will continue to grow, and we need local and regional solutions to address our housing shortage and escalating housing costs. For years in San Francisco, our housing production has failed to keep pace with population growth, we've put unnecessary restrictions on the kinds of housing that can be built, and we've made it way too hard and time-consuming to build affordable housing. These choices have driven rents and home prices to astronomical levels. We need to think differently about housing, and I work hard to do just that.  We also need to do more to stabilize people in their housing during these challenging times, and this goal is a priority for me. For example, I have long supported Senator Leno's efforts to reform the Ellis Act, and I've authored multiple pieces of legislation to help keep tenants stably housed. Addressing our housing crisis requires a clear-eyed commitment to three approaches – encouraging smart approaches to housing creation, building more affordable housing more quickly, and ensuring housing stability for existing residents.

I also push the envelope on sustainable housing policies. I've supported transit-oriented housing developments, ranging from large projects like Park Merced to smaller infill projects. I authored legislation to streamline the permit process for affordable housing, to provide developers with a density bonus to add more affordable units, to allow for micro-units, to make it easier to build student housing, to allow people to add in-law units in their buildings, and to provide a density bonus for property owners performing seismic retrofits.

I support raising California’s minimum wage. As a member of the Board of Supervisors, I have supported raising the minimum wage in San Francisco.  We need to make all efforts to support a vibrant working class in San Francisco.

I would support a “matching funds” program in State elections that is modeled after San Francisco’s matching funds program.  These would minimize the influence of moneyed interests in state politics.

We need world-class rail and public transportation systems - complemented by taxis, ride sharing, car sharing, and biking - to support it. If people live closer to where they work, shop, go to school, and go out and if they are able to get where they are going without owning a car or by driving their car less, we can significantly reduce our carbon footprint. The critical need for more and better transit is at the intra-city level, regional, and statewide. We simply need to do everything in our power to allow people to be mobile without having to drive.

Sustainable housing and transportation policy has been a high priority for me as a member of the Board of Supervisors, and it will be a high priority for in the State Senate. I represent San Francisco on the regional Metropolitan Transportation Commission and Golden Gate Bridge, Highway, and Transportation Commission, I chair the San Francisco County Transportation Authority, and I serve on the Board of Supervisors Land Use & Transportation Committee and previously chaired that committee. I've authored various pieces of legislation to promote sustainable transportation, including a ballot measure tying transit funding to population growth  (https://sfgov.legistar.com/View.ashx?M=F&ID=3186838&GUID=00B00AD2-E515-40AF-93D8-F0201DFA697A) in order to increase transit capacity, requiring (for the first time) residential development to pay transit impact development fees, requiring the preparation of a Subway Master Plan and a Late Night Transportation Plan, and making it easier for developers to include publicly accessible car sharing spots in new developments. I've strongly supported funding for bike and pedestrian infrastructure improvements, helped champion the rollout and expansion of Bay Area Bike Share, and authored legislation to remove bureaucratic obstacles to street design changes necessary to improve transit and to make our streets safer for all users, including cyclists and pedestrians.