Publication: Politico

OAKLAND — After California ordered 200 million masks a month to protect essential workers from coronavirus, will states and nations elsewhere lose out? Gov. Gavin Newsom says no.

Newsom announced Tuesday night that California — which boasts the fifth largest economy in the world — will channel nearly $1 billion toward obtaining 200 million masks a month for California’s healthcare personnel, grocery store clerks, homeless outreach teams and other frontline workers at heightened risk for the coronavirus.

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While legislators applauded Newsom’s aggressive move, some were frustrated that they have received scarce information from his administration on the huge volumes of medical supplies the state has been rapidly stockpiling — especially since the Legislature controls the state's pursestrings. The governor announced the deal on Rachel Maddow's MSNBC show Tuesday night.

“It would be great to get a heads-up directly from the governor’s office rather than watching it on national TV,” Assemblyman Phil Ting (D-San Francisco), who chairs the Assembly Budget Committee, said in an interview on Wednesday morning. “We don’t have any information as to how many masks we’re buying, who we’re buying them from, at what price. …What are we obligated? For how long are we obligated?”

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Publication: CBS 13-Sacramento/Associated Press

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Gov. Gavin Newsom said Tuesday he is working with the Legislature on an economic stimulus package for immigrants in the country illegally and others not covered by the federal stimulus package approved by Congress.

The federal government is dividing up about $30 billion to roughly 14 million California households this month, part of the federal CARES Act. But the checks — $1,200 per adult earning less than $75,000 and $2,400 per couple under $150,000 — only go to those who file their taxes using a Social Security number.

Those who use an individual Taxpayer Identification Number, including most living in the country illegally, are excluded.

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“This is definitely a priority. We know people are suffering and they are suffering because we are asking them to stay at home,” said Assembly Budget Committee chairman Phil Ting, a Democrat from San Francisco.

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Publication: Los Angeles Times

SACRAMENTO — To slow the spread of COVID-19, the California Department of Motor Vehicles has dramatically restricted customer visits to its field offices, barring people who do not have appointments and warning that no new slots to appear in person are currently available.

But some field office employees who spoke to The Times on condition of anonymity raised concerns that the measures don’t go far enough, leaving staff and customers vulnerable to infection while offices remain open.

The employees also say that a recent decision by the DMV to quietly waive knowledge tests that had previously been required for license renewals and those with an out of state license could potentially put the public at risk.

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Assemblyman Phil Ting (D-San Francisco) said that DMV officials need to determine whether the agency can continue to serve people at a safe distance while respecting orders from the Department of Health.

“I know the DMV is deemed an essential service. And the question is which services are the most essential and how many can be done remotely or virtually and which ones require people to come in,” said Ting, chairman of the Assembly Budget Committee, which has held hearings on DMV operations.

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Publication: KPBS/Associated Press

With nearly 40 million people stuck at home because of the coronavirus, California's governor on Tuesday warned state agencies to prepare for less money from the government that will likely postpone many of the state's ambitious spending plans.

Citing a “severe drop in economic activity,” Gov. Gavin Newsom's budget director wrote in a letter to all state agencies that they “should have no expectation of full funding for either new or existing proposals.”

That means some of Newsom's plans aided by a projected multi-billion dollar surplus could be on hold. His January budget proposal included plans for California to manufacture and sell its own generic drugs, create at least four new state agencies and give government-funded health insurance to low-income seniors living in the country illegally.

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Assemblyman Phil Ting, a Democrat from San Francisco who is chairman of the Assembly Budget Committee, said Tuesday he expects most state agencies to get the same amount of money next year as they got this year, with some exceptions. But he expects lawmakers to increase spending on three of the state's biggest problems: coronavirus, homelessness and wildfires.

“There really won’t be a whole lot of room for much else,” Ting said.

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Publication: KTVU/BayCity News

DALY CITY, Calif. - California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Thursday announced plans to lease out Seton Medical Center in Daly City to help with the expected increase in hospitalizations due to the novel coronavirus pandemic.

The hospital's owners filed for bankruptcy back in 2018 and, although, community members have been fighting to keep it open the owners, Verity Health, announced earlier this month its intentions to close the facility.

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According to Assemblymember Phil Ting, D-San Francisco, the hospital's closure would have left about 1,500 workers without a job and take away a much-needed emergency room for the southern San Francisco/northern San Mateo County area.

"I'm grateful the Governor saw the urgent need to keep Seton Medical Center open during this pandemic," Ting said. "But even after our current public health crisis passes, it would be imperative for this facility to remain open because of 27,000 patients, most elderly and low-income, are served there. Seton's immediate closure would have created a health care desert," he said.