Friends,
My April newsletter contains some thoughts about Earth Day and the state of our environment, profiles of some outstanding Women of the Year for the 78th Assembly District, news about new state tax credits for businesses, and more. Please click on the links to read these features.
IN THIS ISSUE:
•A Note From Toni
The environment takes center stage again on April 22nd when we celebrate Earth Day. Earth Day is an annual opportunity to renew our commitment to a healthy planet. It is also a good time to focus on how a healthy planet leads to healthy people.Climate change is the number one challenge to our environment. It is projected to lead to rising temperatures and more extreme weather patterns, such as drought, wildfires and super storms. These can have a devastating impact on public health. For example, poor air quality leads to increased asthma, allergies and cardiovascular and respiratory diseases. Increased temperatures create a more hospitable environment for diseases such as West Nile virus, salmonella, Hantavirus, and even cholera and malaria. In addition, extreme weather events and wildfires increase the risks of death and injury.
The number one way to slow down climate change is through the reduction of greenhouse gases (GHG.) California has taken the lead in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. In 2006, the Legislature adopted AB 32, the Global Warming Solutions Act. AB 32 requires California to reduce GHGs to 1990 levels by the year 2020. One of the key steps in achieving this goal is the implementation of the Cap and Trade program, which sets maximum statewide GHG emissions levels for the highest polluting sectors (the cap) and allows those in the targeted industries to sell off carbon allowances they do not need (the trade.) In turn, the state Air Resources Board auctions off those carbon credits to businesses that need them and re-invests the revenue from those auctions into GHG reduction programs.
SB 375, the Sustainable Communities and Climate Protection Act of 2008, is another groundbreaking step taken by California. This law focuses on designing cities in order to fight climate change. Under SB 375, each region is assigned a GHG emissions reduction target. The region must then develop transportation and housing plans to reach its target. The result is communities that rely less on automobiles and more on mass transit, alternative fuel vehicles, biking, walking, and more compact building patterns.
In addition to leading to cleaner air, both of these measures will have a range of positive health outcomes. To learn more about how the State of California is addressing climate change as a public health issue, click here.
One other area with a focus on the connection between environmentalism and health is the growing campaign for environmental justice. Poor communities are in most cases more polluted and, as a result, their residents are less healthy. Organizations like the California Environmental Justice Association (CEJA), whose local member is the Environmental Health Coalition, are drawing attention to the business, land use, and other decisions that result in areas such as San Diego’s Barrio Logan becoming toxic hot spots, where emissions expose individuals and communities to an elevated risk of disease. Barrio Logan residents have an asthma rate that is as much as twice or three times the rate found in other parts of San Diego. CEJA and the California Environmental Protection Agency have both developed tools for determining which areas of the state have the worst environmental and health statistics. To learn more about environmental justice, visit the Cal EPA.
In celebration of Earth Day, I will visit Earth Fair in Balboa Park on April 19 to enjoy the gifts we receive from Mother Nature and to appreciate the fragility of our planet. I will also reflect on the impact climate change will have on the health of many generations to come. I hope you will also take some time to reflect on our relationship to the environment.
Warmly,
Toni
•Community Leaders Are Women Of The Year For The 78th Assembly District
In recognition of Women’s History Month in March, I recently honored nine leaders from throughout my Assembly district for their accomplishments at a ceremony at the State of California building in downtown San Diego. Hailing from all parts of the extended 78th Assembly District, these women have found success in medicine, law, entrepreneurship, community organizing, and environmental advocacy.I recently honored nine Women of the Year from the 78th Assembly District.
Following is a brief description of the honorees. I thank each of them for their outstanding contributions to our community.
Barbara Bry – La Jolla
Barbara is a serial entrepreneur whose passion is leveling the playing field for women and girls in business, health care and politics. Currently, she is the chief operating officer of Blackbird Ventures, which invests in and incubates early stage technology companies. She teaches entrepreneurship at UC San Diego and is the founder of Athena San Diego, the leading organization for women in the San Diego technology and life sciences community. She was the first editor of the non-profit investigative news site, Voice of San Diego.
Bry is also the founder of Run Women Run, a non-partisan political action committee that identifies, inspires, mentors, trains and supports pro-choice women in San Diego for both elected and appointed offices.
The Hon. Patricia Ann Yim Cowett – Coronado
Judge Cowett is a recently retired judge of the San Diego Superior Court. She was the first woman of Chinese descent to be appointed to the California bench and as best as records can tell, the first in the nation. She was a deputy city attorney for the City of San Diego, an attorney for the state Department of Transportation, and in-house litigation counsel for SDG&E before being appointed by Governor Brown to the bench in 1979.
She was the founder of the Pan Asian Lawyers of San Diego and the Asian American Judges of California. She served on numerous boards and commissions including the Judicial Nominations and Evaluation Commission of the State Bar. Since retiring in 2008, Judge Cowett has been acting as a private mediator and arbitrator for the American Arbitration Association and ADR Services, Inc.
Ms. Cindy Greatrex – La Jolla
Cindy is employed in the field of biotechnology, providing remote medical care via software and other medical devices, as well as genomics sequencing so that companies can decode and analyze molecular structures.
She serves on several boards in San Diego, and is currently president of the La Jolla Town Council and Independent La Jolla, a membership based community organization comprised of citizens united by their deep concern for La Jolla’s future.
In greater San Diego, Cindy serves as board member of Access Youth Academy; Adopt-a-Special Kid, a national organization enabling adoptions from foster care, focusing on LGBT and single-parent adoptions; International Orphan Care of San Diego, which assists orphans from Afghanistan to be productive and educated; Hatech, a telecommunication foundation for the deaf; and the San Diego-Jalalabad Sister Cities foundation, which provides medical and education services to Afghan civilians.
Dr. Elizabeth Jones – Coronado
Dr. Jones specializes in providing international programs promoting good health in infants and children. She has worked for Scripps Metabolic Clinic and Research Foundation; Scripps Green Hospital; Mercy Hospital; Wellstart International; and has volunteered in Tijuana since 1976, teaching nutrition for patients, families, paraprofessionals and physicians.
Together with Dr. Chong-King, a highly regarded Tijuana pediatric surgeon, she founded the Foundation for the Children of the Californias, a tri-national collaboration between Canada, the U.S. and Mexico. This pediatric facility has expanded to 25 specialties, providing more than 380,000 consultations; 9,500 surgeries; 280,000 hours of education; 350 volunteer hours and many outreach programs serving impoverished areas.
Linda LeGerrette – Golden Hill, San Diego
Linda is a founding member of the César Chávez Service Clubs, an organization dedicated to teaching our youth to believe in themselves and to know that they can make a difference and where they learn the values of leadership and organizational skills necessary for participation in a democratic society. Because of her hard work, leadership and direction, the Chávez Service Clubs are the fastest growing youth leadership club in San Diego.
Along with her husband Carlos, their dual achievements include being organizers and confidantes for the late United Farm Workers president, César E. Chávez. They are also pioneers and developers of the Price Club (now Costco), field office director and coordinators for San Diego City Schools’ successful $1.5 billion dollar school construction bond and numerous other political and neighborhood campaigns. For the past six years, Linda has successfully dedicated her life to the campaign of home health care workers and their struggle for collective bargaining rights and respect.
Pat McQuater – San Diego
Pat has been an attorney and manager for more than 25 years in the legal department of a Fortune 500 corporation - Solar Turbines/Caterpillar. Recently retired, she remains engaged in the legal profession as an arbitrator for the American Arbitration Association. She has been recognized as one of San Diego’s top corporate counselors.
As passionate about civic responsibility as she is about professional excellence, Pat’s leadership in the San Diego community includes serving on several high profile boards, including the San Diego Convention Center Corporation, Urban League of San Diego, Girl Scouts of San Diego/Imperial Council, Rady Children’s Hospital, and the San Diego Youth Symphony and Conservatory. She was the first African-American woman appointed to the San Diego Board of Port/Airport Commissioners, which she chaired for 8 ½ years.
Gerri Retman-Opper – Solana Beach
As a 30-year resident of Solana Beach, Gerri has managed numerous political campaigns, helping to change the Solana Beach City Council to a majority Democrat elected body. She served as the chair of the Parks and Recreation Commission, where she developed and organized many annual community-building events, including the well-known "Beach Blanket Movie Night," as well as the "Holiday Tree Lighting" and "Paws in the Park". She is a recipient of the California Parks and Recreation Society Volunteer Recognition Award.
Gerri is most proud of her successful effort to save the 3.44 acre parcel of land known as the Gateway Property for open space. She has also successfully fought against numerous development proposals that threatened public views, community character, and the fragile ecology of the nearby San Elijo Lagoon.
Nancy Weare – Del Mar
Nancy has played a key role in the protection of sensitive environmental areas in the Del Mar area. She helped found the Del Mar Lagoon Committee and the San Dieguito River Valley Land Conservancy for the purpose of protecting, revitalizing and managing two of the most important and productive ecosystems in the world. The San Dieguito Lagoon Resource Enhancement Program was ultimately adopted as an official planning tool by the City of Del Mar and received many national and local awards, including an Orchid for Environmental Design from the San Diego Architects Association in 1987. Nancy was also recognized for her work with a Joint Powers Authority to restore and preserve the San Dieguito Lagoon and its river valley watershed.
Nancy was president of the San Dieguito River Valley Land Conservancy for its first 6 years of existence. Its goal was to preserve and restore the 65-mile long San Dieguito River watershed from source to ocean and encouraged the formation of a multi-jurisdictional task force under the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) for the purpose of creating the San Dieguito River Valley Park.
Mayda Winter – Imperial Beach
Mayda works as a project/grant administrator for the Southwest Wetlands Interpretive Association, a non-profit organization dedicated to the protection and restoration of coastal wetlands. For the past 14 years, she has managed numerous restoration projects in and around the Tijuana River Valley, most notably, the South San Diego Bay Wetland Restoration Project that returned tidal exchange and improved water circulation to over 230 acres of former salt production ponds, restoring a wide range of historical coastal habitats.
Mayda was elected to the Imperial Beach City Council in 1996 and re-elected in 2000 and 2004. During her 12 years as a councilmember, she served as vice-chair of the Metro Wastewater Joint Powers Authority, on the board of directors for SANDAG, and two terms as president of the League of California Cities. Her community ties include five years as co-chair of the Imperial Beach Chili & Jazz Association and ten years on the executive board of the South Bay Union School District Education Foundation. She currently chairs the City of Imperial Beach Redevelopment Successor Agency Oversight Board.
•Young People And The Environment: Thinking Globally, Acting Locally
San Diego’s beautiful environment is a natural catalyst for engaging young people in learning about and protecting the earth. But not every young person has the opportunity to appreciate all the coast has to offer. Others doubt that one person can make a difference. The Ocean Discovery Institute and Kids Eco Club are proof that can be changed.Ocean Discovery Institute (ODI) uses science exploration and San Diego’s vibrant coastal environment to engage urban and diverse young people in three ways: education, scientific research, and environmental stewardship. Their accomplishments over the past decade include providing more than 400,000 hours of science education to more than 40,000 students; training 55 teachers through professional development workshops; mobilizing more than 15,000 volunteers to restore wildlife habitat, clean up pollution, and plant more than 14,000 native plants in the San Diego region. Eight out of ten of their after school students go on to attend four-year universities, as compared to three out of ten of their peers. Seven out of ten of these students select college majors in science and conservation, fields of study that our critical to our economic prosperity and protecting the environment. Through ODI, students, working with scientists, have had more than 30 professional publications and presentations. Their work was recognized at the White House when they received the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Mentoring, the highest honor bestowed by the United States government for efforts that advance those fields of education. They are the only San Diego County recipients of this award in history. Find out more about Ocean Discovery Institute, click here.
KidsEcoClub was started in 2010 by 10-year old San Diegan Max Guinn, who decided to teach his third grade class about protecting the planet. After watching films about animal protection and doing some internet research, Max felt it would be impossible for him, as just one kid, to make a difference to the monumental challenges facing Earth. He decided to enlist some help and, with the help of his Mom, founded KidsEcoClub to empower youth to fuel social change and take transformative action to support healthy people, healthy communities, and a healthy planet. KEC programs cover a wide range of science and environment related activities including field trips, cleanups, classroom presentations from professional scientists and ocean experts, and collaborations with numerous scientific, educational, and community organizations. The organization also helps young people establish their own KEC at their school so that they can make a difference, too. Visit KidsEcoClub or text KEC to 22828 to start receiving their news via email.
•California Competes Tax Credit Applications Accepted Until April 14
The California Competes Tax Credit is an income tax credit available to businesses that want to locate in California or stay and grow in California. Tax Credit agreements will be negotiated by GO-Biz (the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development) and approved by a newly created California Competes Tax Credit Committee, consisting of the State Treasurer, the Director of the Department of Finance, the Director of GO-Biz, and one appointee apiece from the State Assembly and Senate. This fiscal year, up to $30 million in credits will be allocated. In 2014/15, that number increases to $150 million and, in 2015/16 through 2017/18, $200 million in credits will be allocated. Twenty-five percent of the credits are reserved for small businesses.Go-Biz is currently accepting applications through April 14th. You can apply online at CalCompetes' site, which also offers information about the program and a webinar for potential applicants.
The amount of the tax credit offered to a business depends on a variety of factors:
The number of jobs the business will create or retain in this state;
The compensation paid or proposed to be paid by the business to its employees, including wages and fringe benefits;
The amount of investment in this state by the business;
The extent of unemployment or poverty where the business is located;
The incentives available to the business in this state, including incentives from the state, local government, and other entities;
The incentives available to the business in other states;
The duration of the business’ proposed project and the duration the business commits to remain in this state;
The overall economic impact in this state of the business;
The strategic importance of the business to the state, region, or locality;
The opportunity for future growth and expansion in this state by the business; and
The extent to which the anticipated benefit to the state exceeds the projected benefit to the business from the tax credit.
•Keeping Teens Safe Behind The Wheel
Obtaining a driver’s license is one of the milestones that teenagers eagerly await. Many parents look forward to having another driver in the household as that can help ease a family’s busy schedule. However, before you hand over those keys to your new teen driver, there are some things to consider. Did you know that car crashes are the leading cause of death for teens in the United States? On average seven teens are killed every day in car crashes. As tragic as that is, these deaths are largely preventable. What places these new teen drivers at risk? The biggest factors are lack of experience, risk taking, driving with other teens, impaired driving, night time driving and distractions while driving.What can you do to keep your new teen driver safe behind the wheel?
Be a good role model. Children, even your teens, watch what you do and often copy you.
The riskiest period of time for the teen driver is the first six months after obtaining a Provisional Driver’s License. This is the time to closely monitor and set limits on your teen’s driving until he/she has gained the valuable experience necessary to become a safer driver.
Always wear a seat belt and make sure that your children do as well. Close to 1/2 of teen deaths could be prevented if they wore seat belts.
Drivers under 18 are not allowed to use any sort of cell phone (even hands free). Make sure your teen driver knows that. Maybe when you are driving, your calls can wait too.
Limit other distractions for the novice driver like eating and playing with the radio.
Teens with Provisional Licenses cannot carry other teens unless accompanied by a licensed adult over the age of 25. Once they have an unrestricted license, consider limiting the number of teens they can carry to one.
Consider limiting nighttime driving to before 9 pm. Most nighttime accidents happen between 9 pm and midnight.
Never drive impaired. Make sure your teen understands the risks of drinking and driving. Let your teen know to call you for a safe ride home if impaired in any way.
Consider using a Parent Teen Driving Agreement to outline your and your teen’s responsibilities. You may find one at the California DMV.
Other resources for helping your teen stay safe and responsible behind the wheel can be found here and here.
•Around The Capitol And The District
I was honored recently to be elected by my Assembly colleagues to serve as the next Assembly Speaker. Pictured here with me on the Assembly floor the day of the vote are my spouse Jennifer LeSar and Assemblymember Richard Bloom, who looked on as Assemblymember Bocanegra gave me a Padres shirt with my name on it as a memento of the occasion. The official transition from current Speaker John A. Pérez to myself will come later this Spring.San Diego Councilmember David Alvarez and I enjoying the inspiring 16th Annual César Chávez Breakfast in San Diego.
I was honored by San Diego Congressman Scott Peters recently with a Record of Service, memorializing his remarks on the House floor about some of my successes in the Congressional Record.
The Assembly Select Committee on Homelessness, which I chair, recently held a hearing on education and homelessness. Testifying here are three graduates of Tubman House in Sacramento, which provides homeless, parenting youth and their children with a home, support, life skills, and an onsite child development program.
Dr. Margaret Leinen of Scripps Institute of Oceanography (SIO) and I recently met in my San Diego office. Dr. Leinen was appointed Director of SIO and Dean of the School of Marine Sciences last fall by UCSD. Founded in 1903, the Scripps mission is to seek, teach, and communicate scientific understanding of the oceans, atmosphere, Earth, and other planets for the benefit of society and the environment.
Warmly,
Toni Atkins
Speaker-Elect
78th Assembly District
Capitol Office:
State Capitol
P.O. Box 942849
Sacramento, CA 94249-0078
Tel: (916) 319-2078
Fax: (916) 319-2178
District Office:
1350 Front St.,
Room 6054
San Diego, CA 92101
Tel: (619) 645-3090
Fax: (619) 645-3094
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