California State AssemblyCandidate for District 21

Any plan to address our ongoing water shortages must begin with the root cause of the problem: climate change. Severe drought is the new normal for our state because of climate change. And, as I mentioned above, I will make addressing our climate emergency a top priority. But the impacts of climate change are already here and we must deal with them now.

The state must do a better job of helping local governments and agencies meet their reduced water usage goals. That means fully funding programs to meet these goals and investing in local agencies to reduce water usage around the state from personal and industry use. That must include focusing on developing water conservation programs that actually make a real impact on preserving our water supply.

We must also invest in our water infrastructure, including new water storage and conveyance, that will help build our water supply and reduce water waste.. Our water treatment infrastructure must also be a priority.

Much of our state, the Bay Area in particular, is dealing with a longstanding housing affordability crisis. My husband and I faced this crisis head on after we first moved to the Bay Area when our landlord evicted us from our shared rental because he wanted to sell. We were lucky and found a way to buy our first home – but saw firsthand how easy it is, even for working professionals in the Bay Area, to fall victim to housing insecurity.

I have made addressing the crisis a top priority and have found solutions to make a difference for thousands of people in San Mateo County by creating more affordable housing and developing programs to help those experiencing homelessness find a real path to permanent housing. I worked with Assemblymember Phil Ting to write and pass AB 2553 that allows certain vehicles to park 24/7 and get off neighborhood streets into areas where we can help people residing in RVs into services and housing - a program that now all cities in California can leverage. On the Planning Commission and City Council, I worked to establish my City as the leader on housing production and policies. 

In the Assembly, I will continue this work towards creating affordable housing for people at all income levels and making homeownership more accessible.

I was raised by a single mother, facing food and housing insecurity and often relying on social programs to get by. Education was my path to success – I want to make sure my own kids and every student in California have the same opportunity. That's why I have worked to support public education even before I had kids of my own and our schools will be one of my top priorities in the Assembly. 

Although California has made significant investments in education over the last two years, we must continue to raise our per pupil education spending. I will advocate for increasing overall funding to make California among the top states in the nation for per pupil spending. I know how systemic funding inequities hit kids in the most need the hardest, so I will also fight for policies that ensure equity - every student deserves a top-quality education, no matter who they are or where they live. That includes programs that give kids an early start, such as free, universal pre-K and other high quality early learning programs, as well as making higher education more affordable. Finally, I will always be a voice for the most vulnerable kids, supporting programs that provide mental health services in our public schools and ensuring programs for students with special needs are prioritized.

Helping our kids also means helping ensure their parents can care for them. Kids with access to daycare and preschool have better outcomes than those who don’t. As a working mother, childcare has long been something that I deeply care about. In Redwood City, I held developers accountable for producing new child care seats in their developments. And I was an advisor with the National Partnership for Women and Families, helping to secure sick days and parental leave for workers across the country.

During the pandemic, I focused on childcare recovery. I joined forces with childcare advocates  across San Mateo County to champion the San Mateo County COVID Childcare Relief Fund, providing $5M in funding to nearly 300 childcare programs in San Mateo County, ensuring thousands of kids had proper care in these difficult times – and their parents could keep their jobs.

This is perhaps the greatest challenge for our future and California must continue to be a worldwide leader as we approach the tipping point and see more and more real world impacts.

I have been an advocate for an equitable transition to a green economy and clean energy and addressing climate change and I will continue that work in the Assembly. As a board member of Peninsula Clean Energy, we are working to transition to clean energy while making sure it doesn’t increase energy costs and leave out underserved communities. I am also a firm believer in transit equity, which is why I helped build a local “E-Bikes for Everyone” program that emphasizes equity, getting e-bikes into communities and to people who can use them most (an ebike is much cheaper than a car!).

In the Assembly, I will be a champion for the transition to a clean energy economy, increasing our capacity for alternative energy sources, including wind and solar. I will also advocate for investing in technology and infrastructure that reduce our dependence on fossil fuels, including electric vehicles, electrification and more.

We must also ensure that studies on the impact of climate change and environmental issues, including air and water pollution, include examining disadvantaged communities, which are often ignored.