Gov. Gavin Newsom and Sacramento lawmakers have one month left before they must pass a state budget, and it appears unlikely it’ll include a $5 billion bailout for BART, SFMTA and the state’s transit agencies.
Assemblymember Phil Ting (D-San Francisco), Chair of the Assembly Budget Committee, released the following statement about the Governor’s May Revision for the 2023-24 state budget:
Assemblymember Matt Haney (D-San Francisco) Chair of the Fentanyl and Overdose Prevention Select Committee, along with several other members of the Democratic Caucus held a press conference on Fentanyl Awareness Day to discuss Assembly Democrat’s legislative priorities to address the fentanyl crisis.
Fentanyl kills more Americans under 50 than any other cause of death, including heart disease, cancer, homicide, suicide, and other accidents. Last year 6,843 people died in California from opioid overdose, 5,722 of these deaths were related to Fentanyl.
National Fentanyl Prevention and Awareness Day was established in remembrance of the many loved ones that have died from fentanyl poisoning. Fentanyl prevention advocates across the country come together on this day to take coordinated action and warn the public about the dangers of fentanyl.
In honor of today’s national “Day Without Child Care,” the Assembly proposed a billion dollars cost-of-living-adjustment (COLA) from the state budget to bolster California’s child care system in an effort to stabilize the industry and help parents struggling to find providers. Assembly Budget Chair Phil Ting and Legislative Women’s Caucus Vice-Chair Cecilia Aguiar-Curry unveiled the State Assembly’s Budget Plan for the “Care COLA,” increasing child care funding by 25.44%. The figure accounts for unfunded inflation since 2016. The move is the first step in a multi-year effort currently being collectively bargained between the Governor and Child Care Providers United, which is the child care workers’ new statewide union.
Young Californians in extended foster care may soon get relief from rising housing costs if Assembly Bill 525, recently introduced by Assemblymember Phil Ting, is passed.
The bill seeks to create a housing supplement that would increase the monthly amount of financial assistance that youth in extended foster care can receive, based on the county they live in. The increased amount would supplement the base rate that youth currently receive, which is $1,129 regardless of their county of residence.
... However, a patchwork of state laws enacted over the last three years is generating fresh hope by prohibiting the use of PFAS in those and other uses. These laws – mostly passed in Democratic-controlled states – are quietly forcing many companies to phase out the chemicals as they become illegal to use in consumer goods in some of the nation’s largest economies.
Denise Pinkston said it felt like nobody in Sacramento was taking her seriously when she started pitching state leaders on the idea of using ADUs, or accessory dwelling units, to help reduce California’s housing shortage.
Jaheim Smith “aged out” of foster care just last week, a transition that can be distressing for young people who have spent most of their lives in the child welfare system and for the first time are living on their own.
But Smith, recently 21, is confident in his new life. He is renting an apartment in Sacramento and works as a behavioral consultant for children with autism, teaching them skills that help them thrive in school. He works shifts at McDonald’s to make ends meet.
Gov. Gavin Newsom’s push to extend the California film and TV tax credit has hit a snag over the issue of industry diversity.
Newsom’s budget proposal includes extending the $330 million filming incentive, which is currently set to expire in 2025, for an additional five years.