Accomplishments

Jobs and the Green Economy

• Authored energy efficiency legislation (AB 1103) that will generate thousands of good-paying jobs while helping California businesses improve their bottom line.
•  Co-authored the landmark Global Warming Solutions Act (AB 32) to reduce greenhouse emissions, create green tech jobs and expand the state’s renewable energy economy.
• Co-authored the California Solar Roofs Initiative to make solar power more affordable, to create good-paying jobs manufacturing and installing solar systems, and to decrease the use of climate-changing fossil fuels in California.
• Helped pass infrastructure bonds to repair crumbling roads, bridges and transit systems and generate hundreds of thousands of construction jobs and small business contracts.
•  Authored measures to expand the use of sustainable building materials and energy efficiency features in new construction and to stimulate employment by expanding green economic opportunity.
• Helped pass the Green Collar Jobs Act of 2008 to develop green job opportunities and training programs in California.
• Championed local renewable energy generation to create and keep good-paying green jobs here in San Diego.
• Helped pass a law directing the California Energy Commission to spend federal stimulus funding on energy efficiency, green building and renewable energy projects.
• Supported legislation to expedite the ability of cities and counties to develop their own green-building standards.
• Co-authored legislation to expedite the release $200 million of bond funding to stimulate jobs in traffic-oriented housing and infrastructure construction.
• Introduced measures to keep toxic materials out of California landfills and to protect the state’s public tidelands from predatory development.
• Authored legislation to increase the state’s Environmental Fund, to get more hybrid vehicles and reduced-emission buses on the road, to clean up cross-border sewage, and to prevent toxic chemicals from seeping into the soil and groundwater.
• Helped pass a package of bills to bring good-paying jobs and millions of dollars to San Diego to improve the region’s water capacity.

Equality & Civil Rights

• Twice Co-authored landmark Marriage Equality legislation.
• Co-authored legislation to expand California Civil Rights protections to Californians regardless of sexual orientation or marital status.
• Received 100% scores from Equlity California for all six years in the legislature.
• Authored legislation ensuring minors have legal recourse for bullying.
• Created a coalition of faith and community leaders to fight the growing problem of hate crimes in San Diego County.
• Authored legislation to revive the Human Relation Commission in San Diego County.
• Helped passed a law to prevent bullying and harassment in public schools.
• Signed onto an Amicus brief in opposition to Proposition 8.
• Signed a letter from the Legislature urging President Obama to repeal Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.

Education

•  Protected K-12 education funding and ensure that any reductions will be restored in the future.
• Supported legislation to increase pre-school funding, build new science and computer labs, and construct new classrooms.
• Authored two laws to ensure that children of active duty service members succeed in California schools.
• Successfully fought to open the doors of California’s preschools to children of armed service members.
• Supported legislation to increase pre-school funding, provide grants to expand music, art and physical education programs, and issue bonds to repair and renovate run-down schools, build new science and computer labs, and construct new classrooms.

Healthcare and the Social Safety Net

• Twice supported the single-payer option legislation to provide health care coverage to all Californians.
• FOUGHT AGAINST EFFORTS TO ELIMINATE essential services such as MediCal, IHSS and services to seniors and Californians with disabilities.
• Authored legislation that allows seniors to receive assisted-living services if they choose to stay in their own homes.
• Authored a law requiring more transparency from long-term care insurers who drop policyholders.
• Fought against efforts to disenroll hundreds of thousands of children from the Healthy Families program.

On military families and veterans

• Authored legislation to curb the abuse of military families by payday lenders.
• Wrote legislation to expand the state Cal-Vet Home Loan program and to provide free tuition for National Guard members at UC, State and Community Colleges.
• Carried legislation to provide expanded mental health services to California’s veterans.
• Passed a law to ensure that children of active duty service members succeed in California schools.
• Successfully fought to open the doors of California’s preschools to children of armed service members.

On public safety and consumer protection

• Authored legislation to make HOAs more effective and accountable to homeowners.
• Helped create a program to address the needs and to provide for the effective treatment for commercially sexually exploited children.
• Authored legislation to ensure insurance companies accurately report information on their policyholders.
• Authored a bill to increase financial penalties and jail time for repeat hit-and-run drivers.
• Introduced legislation preventing people with violent criminal records from training with paramilitary organizations.
• Fought to end the unscrupulous marketing of sweet alcoholic drinks to teenagers.
• Championed increased alcohol industry responsibility for funding underage drinking education and outreach programs.
• Co-authored a measure to increase penalties for illegal street racers causing serious injury or death.

On good government and fair elections

• Authored bills reform initiative process hijacked by big-moneyed interests.
• Supported legislation to expand public financing of elections.
• Passed legislation preventing hackers gaining access to the state’s electronic voting machines.
• Championed an audit of the California State Universities that could result in millions of dollars saved from reforms to CSU’s hiring and executive compensation practices.
• Authored legislation to increase competition and diversity in people serving in elected office through public campaign financing.

On women and families

• Chaired the bipartisan Legislative Women’s Caucus and served on the California Commission on the Status of Women.
• Helped pass legislation to continue vital funding for the state’s domestic violence shelters.
• Helped pass legislation to expand paid family leave law to allow workers to care for seriously ill siblings, grandparents, grandchildren and parents of spouses.
• Co-authored legislation to give victims of wage discrimination the tools to seek legal remedies.
• Passed a law preventing gender-based discrimination in pricing insurance premiums.
• Voted for a law requiring insurance companies to cover physician-ordered mammograms when screening for breast cancer.
• Helped pass a law requiring maternity, prenatal and post-natal care to be included in all insurance premiums.
• Helped rationalize the state’s rape statutes by voting to eliminate requirements that spousal rape had to be reported previously or corroborated by independent evidence in order to be prosecuted.
• Supported a law that would prohibit discrimination against an employee because he or she is the victim of domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking.