With the November election quickly approaching, I thought I would take some time and help you sort your way through the dozens of propositions you will have the opportunity to vote on. Each of the measures on the ballot will impact your life in one way or another.
This week, let’s start with Measure A, which was spurred-on by my motion earlier this year to make the position of County Assessor an appointed one, rather than elected.
The role of Assessor has a huge impact on the lives of the residents and businesses of this County. He or she impacts what is for many taxpayers their most important asset. For the county and city governments, the taxes that are generated from the funds the Assessor oversees are the primary source of revenue to support critical services.
In addition to the extensive experience and specialized training that is required to be the Assessor, the position also demands the highest level of integrity. There cannot be even a suggestion of external pressures or influence-peddling. A strong, reliable, non-political manager must administer this critical function in order to meet the expectations of the constituents and government entities which rely on its honest, competent and prudent oversight.
I want to thank the commissioners, attorneys and staff who volunteered their time and expertise to the Los Angeles County Citizens’ Commission on Jail Violence.
After a thorough investigative process of numerous interviews, hearings and data review, the findings reflected in this report are obviously very troubling. They expose a systemic breakdown in leadership, inconsistent discipline and a lack of standardized policies. Unfortunately, this is not the first account illustrating these types of findings that the Sheriff’s Department has received. It is clear that small, incremental changes will not do. In order to affect the dramatic culture change that is required, the Sheriff must not simply agree to the findings, he must take bold action, and quickly. The people of Los Angeles County demand it.
Finally, it is important to note that this report focused on the jails – our patrol and traffic departments continue to receive positive feedback from the contract cities and unincorporated areas they serve.
In May 2011, the United States Supreme Court upheld the order of a federal judicial panel which required that the State of California reduce its prison population, following lawsuits alleging prison over-crowding which violated the rights of prisoners. To meet looming deadlines, the State is considering an early release program.
Despite all our protests and concerns, last year, the State began sending its prisoners to us through “realignment” – a fancy way of dumping their problems on local governments. Since last October, Los Angeles County has taken on over 7,700 prisoners. As we predicted, the State has not provided even half of the funding we need to take on these additional prisoners.
Now the federal government wants to force a further decrease in the jail population of almost 9,000 more prisoners. The State’s response cannot be to release prisoners early, without proper screening or procedures. Issues of recidivism and the lack of resources for supervision at the local level must be addressed. Releasing prisoners early only compromises public safety and puts more pressure on law enforcement. Enough is enough! Releasing prisoners early is a miscarriage of justice dumped on the people of California – what about their rights?
Today marks a very special birthday – the 225th anniversary of the United States Constitution!
On Constitution Day we recognize the thirty-nine men who created the document which still governs us today. With the accompanying Bill of Rights, our fundamental freedoms of religion, speech, press and assembly were guaranteed.
With last week’s anniversary of the tragedy of September 11, 2001 and the recent protests occurring in the Middle East, we are reminded of the basic tenants of our form of government and the challenges that can accompany the freedoms we hold dear. Over the course of two centuries, men and women have given their lives for these rights – some trying desperately to be a part of this democratic experiment by immigrating to the United States, others making the ultimate sacrifice to preserve our freedom.
Democracy can be messy. Two hundred and twenty-five years ago, there were debates and arguments, and some delegates even stormed out of the Constitutional Convention. Ultimately, however, a compromise was constructed, which, along with checks and balances, mark the core of our system.
As we celebrate this very special anniversary, let us also be reminded of our personal responsibilities in preserving and protecting our democracy – the need to inform ourselves, be active participants, to listen and respect other opinions and, despite the messiness, to be thankful and proud to live in the greatest nation on earth!
This week, I have asked the Board of Supervisors to declare September “School Attendance Month.” For many of us, attending school is a no-brainer. But for some children, it can be an ongoing challenge, with devastating results. Low-income children are four times more likely to be chronically absent in kindergarten than their peers from families with higher incomes. And older kids face even more challenges: chronically absent sixth-graders have lower graduation rates. Also, the more you miss school in ninth grade is a pretty reliable predictor that you won’t be graduating from high school.
It goes without saying that the more a student misses school, the more likely they will have significant challenges with literacy, math and all of the other skills that prepare them for college and the workforce. There are numerous reasons why children from low-income households are more likely to miss school – everything from unstable housing, unreliable transportation and probably most heartbreaking to me: a lack of a safe path to school, due to neighborhood violence.
In 2010, the Los Angeles County Education Coordinating Council (ECC) established the School Attendance Task Force to determine exactly why a child misses school, evaluate the current strategies in place to ensure kids don’t miss school, and develop recommendations to improve attendance and reduce tardiness. They released their findings earlier this year, and not surprisingly, they concluded that our current practices are not very effective. There is a lack of coordination between schools, the courts and law enforcement to address truancy, and what strategies we do have in place are outdated and punitive in nature.
I’m very pleased that the ECC has shined a light on this, and the strategies they recommend are sensible and based on best practices and current research. I’m particularly pleased that Long Beach Unified’s approach was highlighted as a model practice! The strategies are not complicated: it basically comes down to schools implementing and using an attendance-data system, early intervention with a student who misses school, actively engaging parents, incentivizing attendance (as opposed to penalizing non-attendance), addressing the needs of homeless students, and using the court system and law enforcement only when absolutely necessary.
At the end of the day, our students have no chance at high achievement in school if they don’t even make it through the door! Let’s work together to do everything possible to give them a chance at success.
With the presidential campaign in full swing, we have heard a lot of debate recently about business versus government and who creates jobs. For my part, you know how much I support small businesses because we know that two-thirds of new jobs created are the result of small entrepreneurs.
Here in Los Angeles County, many of those small businesses are dependent on the entertainment industry. When most people think of the industry, they think of the big names, like Disney, Warner, Fox, Universal… and those companies are absolutely critical to our region. But we must also recognize the small companies whose lifeblood depends on the success of this industry. In all, we must focus on protecting the more than 140,000 people who are directly employed by the film industry – and the estimated 375,000 jobs that also depend on the production of films and television in our region.
Other cities in the U.S. and around the world see the $30 billion that the industry spends in the Southern California region – and you bet they want a piece of it! By 2010, over 40 states and numerous countries around the world offered film incentives to compete aggressively for this business. As a result, the percentage of movies shot in California has gone from over 66% to less than 40% in a few short years. We, on the other hand, seem to be doing everything we can to dis-incentivize the industry from staying close to home.
Late last month, I put forth a motion to the Board of Supervisors to review our film policies across the County and consider revisions that align with the new Model Film Ordinance of the California Film Commission. Currently, the industry sees a mishmash of regulations and fees that can vary dramatically from one community to its neighbor. To attract this business, we must have a uniform set of policies and procedures, and a streamlined permitting process across the County and its 88 cities.
We cannot take for granted our position as the center of the entertainment industry and its importance to the economic well-being of this region. We must put out the welcome mat for filmmakers and the people who are the film industry – our neighbors and friends, so that we retain our coveted spot as the entertainment and arts capital of the world.
On Saturday, President Mohamed Morsi officially took office as Egypt’s first democratically elected president. This week, here in the U.S., we celebrate our independence in the midst of our own presidential election season. While some people may complain about the process, the tone, the seemingly endless ads and accusations, the fact remains that for over 230 years, we have had a peaceful transition of power to a president our citizens choose. Many people in the world are still battling for the experience of democracy, one we sometimes take for granted.
Of course, this freedom has always come at a price – in the lives of those who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our independence. From the first vagabond group of revolutionaries in the years leading up to 1776 who had the courage and bravery to take on the world’s most professional armed forces, to today, when our young men and women in uniform continue to risk their lives in the name of democracy.
As we enjoy our July 4th parades, fireworks, barbeques and special time with family and friends, let us pause and reflect on the great fortune we have for living in a country founded on freedom. And may we take a moment to pray for those who are in harm’s way, who risk their lives so that we may enjoy this freedom.
Two hundred and thirty-six years on, may God continue to bless the United States of America!
Last week, I had the great privilege of participating in a fundraising event for UpRising Yoga. For the last several months, Jill Weiss, the head of UpRising Yoga, and her team of volunteers have been going to our Probation Halls to offer yoga classes to our young people. In this short time, we have already seen a decrease in fights and altercations. While I am not much of a yogi myself, I am thrilled about the impact they are having at our Probation Halls!
I think that the most important part of my job as a County Supervisor is to protect the most vulnerable in our community. That is why I am absolutely committed to ending the child sex trafficking that is occurring right here on our streets in Los Angeles County.
I think of it like I do the Safe Surrender program, which I have been working on for 10 years. Through this program, 91 babies have been safely surrendered, giving a baby who might have ended up in a trash bin or the ocean a chance at a happy and productive life. Similarly, a new path forward is what we are trying to do for the victims of child sex trafficking.
What can we do to end this horrific crime? First, make people aware. I can’t tell you the number of people I talk to about this issue who can’t believe it is happening right here in our streets and neighborhoods. It is not a problem “over there.”
A few weeks ago, we publicly launched a new outreach campaign in collaboration with Metro and Clear Channel. All buses, trains and stations will have posters and fliers about child sex trafficking. Clear Channel generously provided over 65 billboards to be shown across the County. This is a great example of the public and private sectors coming together to address a community issue.
In addition to raising public awareness of this crime, our Probation Department is developing a comprehensive prevention and healing program which I am confident will be a model for other cities and counties across the nation. Because of the great success that UpRising Yoga is already having at our Halls, Probation has decided to make it a part of the healing for these victims. We hope yoga will be a big part of the physical and emotional process for these girls to move on to a better life.
Sadly, during last week’s event, we learned that a 10 year-old girl had been picked up for prostitution that evening. This was the youngest girl we have had enter our system for prostitution and a sickening example of the depravity of those behind this crime.
I would like to thank Jill and her team for their extraordinary commitment to be there for our kids, week in and week out. These incredible volunteers are spending a lot of their own time to help the most vulnerable in our community. This is not an easy topic to confront, but I know they can have a profound impact on a young person’s life, by giving them a chance for empowerment and control over their own bodies and lives.
Today President Barack Obama proclaimed May 20-26 as National Small Business Week, as presidents before him have done for the past 49 years. This week we celebrate all those who have followed a dream, taken a risk and “hung their shingle.”
The federal government says there are 27 million small businesses across the country. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration, small businesses employ about one-half of all private-sector employees and pay 43 percent of the total U.S. private payroll. They also generate about two-thirds of the nation’s new jobs.
Earlier this month, I was in Washington, D.C., asking our national leaders to expand subsidized employment programs, which have helped many small businesses keep their doors open during the recession. There has been a lot of debate about the stimulus funding and bail-outs, but this I know: the 10,000 Jobs program we implemented here in LA County worked.
By subsidizing employment for local companies and agencies, we put over 11,000 people back to work. They were able to pay their mortgage or rent, feed their families and stay off of public assistance. For many small companies, it was also a desperately needed lifeline to help them transition through tough economic times. Many of these companies had contracts coming in, but did not yet have the cash flow to hire new people. 10,000 Jobs helped them bridge that gap.
Subsidized employment is a great way to provide people with work experience, while lowering labor costs for employers. We must continue to find ways to support our local entrepreneurs. And so this week we recognize the contributions of small companies, from local manufacturers to start-ups and mom-and-pop stores, for all they do for our economy and our communities.
Last week, we were back in Washington, D.C. for the County’s annual trip to the nation’s capital. As the largest county in the United States, this trip is very important to ensure that the issues facing our constituents are top-of-mind with our congressional delegation and federal officials.
This year we were focused on two major areas, healthcare and public safety. The County has been preparing for the roll-out of the Affordable Care Act, regardless of the opinion the Supreme Court issues in June.
As the nation’s second largest health care system with the largest uninsured population (over 2 million people) it is critical that we understand the implications of the health care act on our operations. We also raised concerns over any funding impacts as California already receives the lowest per capita Medicaid funding in the nation.
We also advocated for funding for the Los Angeles Regional Interoperable Communications System (LA-RICS) which is technology that will tie together the communications systems our first responders would use in the event of a crisis. With LAX and the two ports in our backyard, this public safety system is absolutely critical to our region.
I also met with Michael Donley, the Secretary of the Air Force about the Los Angeles Air Force Base, Ray La Hood, the Secretary of Transportation on our transit goals in the LA region, and officials at the White House on our health care and public safety concerns.
We stopped in to see officials in the Foreign Affairs department to discuss our efforts to stop child sex trafficking and met with the Army Corps of Engineers to thank them for their support of the Marina del Rey dredging project.
It was a very busy couple days! While this was a terrific and necessary trip again this year, I will say that the general tone in D.C. was high on frustration and finger-pointing on both sides of the aisle.
Here at the County, we don’t have time for that kind of partisan bickering. Those who depend on our safety net services need us to just solve problems.
Thanks to those of you who “joined” us in D.C. via Facebook and Twitter. It was a great trip, but as always, it sure is good to be home!
