2023 District Budget Successes
DIY Girls - $2 million to increase program participation, expansion, and outreach in critical STEM education opportunities for 5th-12th grade students, predominantly in the Northeast San Fernando Valley.
El Centro de Amistad (The Friendship Center) - $1 million to expand facilities in order to increase access to mental health, family and legal services to members in my community.
San Fernando Community Health Center (Corazón del Valle II Project) - $2 million for tenant improvements and construction of a LEEDs certified complex of 180 units if supportive housing, for low-income families, adults and seniors in a mixed community. The onsite facility would also include upgrades to a 1500 square foot commercial space, which will be transformed into a small health center on the ground floor of Phase II of the project.
2023 End of Year Bill Summaries
AB 285 - Climate Change Education: This bill seeks to prioritize climate change awareness and education by making it a course requirement for grades 1-12 starting in the 2024-25 school year.
AB 393 - Identifying Dual Language Learners in Child Care Programs: This bill develops a standardized process to identify dual language learners enrolled in General Child Care Programs so that they may be identified and supported throughout their academic careers.
AB 499 - Job Order Contracting:This bill authorizes LA Metro to perform Job-Order-Contracting on smaller infrastructure projects to expedite their completion.
AB 706 - Public Lands Modernization and Transparency Act: This bill modernizes the existing mining extraction to allow the State Lands Commission to better incentivize safe exploration for valuable minerals that could help meet California’s clean energy goals while reducing the risk of destructive mining leases.
AB 799 - Homelessness Accountability and Results Act: The bill sought to reform California’s current homelessness approach to issuing funds by enacting meaningful accountability measures, promoting the use of State homelessness funds, and setting State goals to anchor local progress.
AB 847 - Sophia’s Act: This bill will allow young adults with serious illnesses, who have Medi-Cal to be eligible for hospice and palliative care after age 21 so that their home-based care will not be interrupted.
AB 885 - California Nonprofit Fairness and Equity Act: This bill sought to expand the use of two-year state contracts for nonprofits and expedite contract renewals for nonprofits meeting performance objectives to ensure nonprofits are not scrambling to pay staff salaries and program expenses.
AB 970 - Climate Resiliency and Insurance Project: This bill sought to expand insurance options, especially in vulnerable communities where climate risks are currently uninsured or underinsured. This bill establishes eight geographically distributed pilot projects where disadvantaged communities will receive $1 million in grants for pilot projects protecting residents from flooding and heat waves from the Department of Insurance.
AB 1097 – Service-Based Business Relief: This bill streamlines the Qualified Purchaser Program to remove cost and administrative barriers to small businesses that provide vital services, including but not limited to legal, dental, and medical services.
AB 1163 - The Gender Identity and Inclusivity Act: This bill seeks to reduce well-being disparities for LGBT communities by amending the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Disparities Reduction Act. The bill would require additional state entities to collect voluntary self-identification information pertaining to sexual orientation and gender identity.
AB 1178 - California Summer Caregiver Meal Act of 2023: This bill sought to combat household hunger by creating a state-funded Summer Food Service Program to provide meals to parents and caregivers of children who utilize the federal summer meal program.
AB 1251 - Computer Science Credentialing Working Group: This bill seeks to convene a workgroup to evaluate pathways toward establishing a computer science teaching credential.
AB 1290 - Eliminating Problematic Plastics: This bill sought to prohibit the sale of limited types of plastic packaging materials and additives identified by the PACT as harmful, toxic and unnecessary by January 1, 2026, to protect public health and facilitate greater levels of effective and affordable recycling.
Resolutions:
AJR 8 - Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day: This measure proclaims February 23, 2023, as Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day.
ACR 14 - Guillain-Barre Syndrome Awareness: This measure proclaims May as Guillain-Barre Syndrome Awareness Month.
ACR 50 - California Nonprofits Day: This measure declares June 7, 2023, as California Nonprofits Day in recognition of the importance of nonprofit organizations to the economy and well-being of the state.
ACR 114 – Cindy Montanez Day: This measure honors the life and legacy of Cindy by declaring January 19 as Cindy Montañez Day.