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Ting Proposal To Require School Reopenings In Most Cases During Pandemic

AB 10 Requires Schools To Reopen When COVID Cases Are Low(Sacramento) – Parents are worried about the effects distance learning is having on their children, especially when they look to markers such as student achievement, social development and emotional distress. Given the growing toll of shuttered classrooms, Assemblymember Phil Ting (D-San Francisco) today introduced AB10, requiring public schools to reopen under most circumstances during the pandemic when infection rates drop.

“As a father, I worry about all the learning loss occurring and the millions of kids who are falling behind, as a result of our sole reliance on remote teaching – not to mention the impacts of social isolation. Schools in other states and countries have prioritized in-person learning during COVID-19 and have done so without major outbreaks. California ought to follow that path,” said Ting.

Last month’s Journal of the American Medical Association study found learning loss experienced by elementary students in the first three months of the pandemic could shorten their life span, collectively resulting in more than five million fewer years of life. Under AB10, starting March 1, 2021, schools allowed to open under state and county health orders (those in the Red, Orange, or Yellow tiers) must implement a plan to do so within two weeks, setting a clear threshold for when in-person instruction resumes. Local districts can still decide for themselves which in-person model best fits their student and workforce needs, including a hybrid format of both in-person and distance learning.

“Schools should be ready to open as soon as public health authorities allow it.  Distance learning is ineffective for many students.  We must bring students back into the classroom with safety measures in place as soon as possible to prevent further learning loss,” said Joint Author Assemblymember Patrick O’Donnell (D-Long Beach), Chair of the Assembly Education Committee.

"This bill is essential to guarantee the safe reopening of our schools. We have to make sure measures are already in place to reopen, and we must protect the kids who have fallen behind in distance learning,” said Joint Author Assemblymember Kevin McCarty (D-Sacramento), Chair of the Assembly Budget Subcommittee on Education Finance.

Ting Bill Curtails Natural Gas Expansion To Combat Climate Change

(Sacramento) – To ramp up California’s efforts to slash greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, Assemblymember Phil Ting (D-San Francisco) today introduced AB 33, aimed at cutting back natural gas usage in residential and commercial buildings. Natural gas is essentially comprised of methane, a pollutant that contributes to climate change.

After its release, methane is 84 times more potent than carbon dioxide over the course of two decades. Nearly 10% of the state’s carbon emissions comes from the use of water heaters, furnaces, dryers, stoves and other appliances powered by natural gas, but the percentage can be much higher in big cities.

“We need to confront rising GHG emissions by reducing these harmful air pollutants where we can. No adjustment is too small. Now that California has committed to transitioning to cleaner cars, we must take action across other sectors to help address our climate crisis and meet our goals,” said Ting.

AB 33 seeks to ban natural gas connections in new public schools and state buildings. It also prohibits utilities from subsidizing expansion of the natural gas network. For example, they could no longer grant discounts, or “allowances,” on infrastructure costs associated with new gas pipe installations.

Electricity usage has a lower carbon footprint than natural gas in California because of the state’s growing investments in renewable energy, such as solar and wind, as well as efficiencies associated with electric appliances. Electrification also decreases indoor air pollution, which contributes to respiratory problems.

The first committee hearing for AB 33 is expected to be in the Spring. If approved, AB 33 would not affect local ordinances banning natural gas in newly constructed buildings. San Francisco, Oakland, Berkeley, San Jose, and Santa Monica are among the 40 California communities approving such regulations.

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San Francisco Delegation Calls on Superintendents in Their Districts To Make Plans to Reopen Schools

The San Francisco delegation, Assemblymembers Phil Ting and David Chiu, and State Senator Scott Wiener sent letters to all five school superintendents in their districts, calling on them to make a plan to bring back in-person learning. Full copies of the letters:

San Francisco Unified School District:  SFUSD Letter

San Mateo County Office of Education:  SMCOE Letter

Jefferson Union High School District:  JUHSD Letter

Jefferson Elementary School District:  JESD Letter

Bayshore Elementary School District:  BESD Letter

 

VIDEO: Assemblymber Ting Hosts Education Virtual Town Hall

On Thursday, November 19, Assemblymember Phil Ting and leaders from San Francisco & San Mateo County schools hosted a live discussion on November 19 on what it will take to re-open and how we can keep everyone safe. You can view the livestream on YouTube or below:

 

‘Silicon Valley Dudes Buying Teslas’: California Struggles To Expand Electric-Car Market

Publication: San Francisco Chronicle

Maya Katz-Ali said she never thought she would be able to afford an electric car. She thought it was something unattainable, something for the elite.

And in many ways, Katz-Ali is the opposite of a typical electric-car buyer in California: She’s 26, a woman and a person of color, and she doesn’t earn a six-figure salary. The Oakland native expected to drive her 1992 Volvo until it died.

That all changed last month, when Katz-Ali traded in her car for a new Honda Clarity plug-in electric hybrid with a fraction of the Volvo’s emissions. She bought it with the help of a state subsidy program.

“There’s lots of ideas that you have to be of a certain income bracket to be able to even think about” an electric car, Katz-Ali said. “It’s not just a Tesla thing. It’s not just a higher-class, higher-income thing.”

Electric-car advocates say her initial perception speaks to a diversity problem that the state must solve to reach Gov. Gavin Newsom’s goal of banning the sale of new gas-powered cars starting in 2035.

California drivers who buy electric vehicles overwhelmingly fit a narrow demographic profile. Most are male, white or Asian American, and between the ages of 30 and 49. The majority earn more than $100,000 a year and live in expensive coastal areas.

That’s according to data The Chronicle analyzed of buyers who received electric car rebates from the state Air Resources Board, California’s air-quality agency. 

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Assemblyman Phil Ting, a San Francisco Democrat and electric-car advocate, said one factor is a narrow range of electric car styles. Most are sedans or sports cars, models that appeal more to single, younger men.

“You have to offer the choices that people want,” Ting said. “The best-selling cars right now are trucks, SUVs and minivans.”

Ting said that will change dramatically in the next 15 years, as more automakers come out with larger electric models. He said the market for used, cheaper electric cars will also grow.

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State Budget Looking at $26 Billion Windfall Next Year, But Money Woes Remain

Publication: San Francisco Chronicle

A quicker economic rebound than anticipated has softened California’s budget woes and will bring the state an estimated $26 billion windfall by the next fiscal year, the Legislative Analyst’s Office reported Wednesday.

But the one-time cushion is not enough to offset the severe financial losses of the coronavirus pandemic. The nonpartisan legislative analyst’s fiscal outlook warned that a projected multibillion-dollar operating deficit would more than triple over the next four years as rising costs outstrip the growth in tax revenue.

By 2024-25, California will face a budget gap of about $17.5 billion. Legislative Analyst Gabriel Petek said policymakers should start considering solutions to the problem, which may require either spending cuts or new taxes, while there is time.

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Assemblyman Phil Ting, the San Francisco Democrat who chairs the Assembly Budget Committee, stressed the need for another round of financial aid from Congress, where negotiations for a relief package broke down last month.

“We cannot take our eye off the ball,” Ting said in a statement. “The improved fiscal outlook gives us a little breathing room, but we still need help from the federal government.”

Ting Statement on the Legislative Analyst’s Fiscal Outlook

Ting Statement on the Legislative Analyst’s Fiscal OutlookSacramento - Assemblymember Phil Ting (D-San Francisco), Chair of the Assembly Budget Committee, released the following statement about California’s latest Fiscal Outlook from the Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO):

Even though the state’s forecast projects a one-time surge in revenues, it also estimates large operating deficits in the near future. We cannot take our eye off the ball. Challenges related to COVID-19 remain, and while the wealthiest individuals and corporations have gotten richer during the pandemic, there are millions more struggling Californians and businesses that need support to weather ongoing economic uncertainty. That includes shoring up vital programs by reversing some of last year’s budget cuts and canceling scheduled funding suspensions, as well as preventing further reductions to core services.

The improved fiscal outlook gives us a little breathing room, but we still need help from the federal government to allow us to keep working on economic recovery, reopening schools, homelessness, rent relief, the climate crisis and wildfire prevention. I will be releasing the Assembly Budget Blueprint next month that will spell out our priorities in the coming year. I look forward to working with the Governor and the Senate in crafting a responsible spending plan that addresses the needs of all Californians.

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