This past Tuesday, January 17 I took a personal vacation day from my day job to drive up to Sacramento to lobby our state legislature on behalf of the City of San Mateo.
The issue I was discussing with our state elected officials was the need for inclusionary, affordable housing in San Mateo.
As many of you know, the residents of San Mateo have stated repeatedly over the year that affordable housing in our City must create inclusive, diverse neighborhoods throughout our City, and not segregate families with low incomes into housing projects.
In 1991 (Measure H), 2006 (Measure P), and in 2011 (Measure G), voters in San Mateo have rejected the notion of separate housing units for people with low to very-low incomes. Instead, our City General Plan states that efforts to create affordable housing for residents must be spread evenly throughout our City.
However, due to a 2009 California court case known as Palmer v. Los Angeles, cities such as San Mateo are prohibited from requiring affordable, inclusionary housing in our City.
The California State Senate is currently considering a bill that would change the law to allow the City of San Mateo to once again allow affordable, inclusionary housing, as voters have consistently stated is their preference in our City.
So this past Tuesday, I took the day to meet with a number of State Senators from throughout California to urge them to give the power back to the people of San Mateo by allowing inclusionary housing ordinances in towns that want them.
For over six hours I walked the halls of the State Capitol, taking the voice of San Mateo to Sacramento.
The day spent off work was worth it to me in order to continue to represent the will of the people of San Mateo. I will continue to work hard on these and other issues.
To read more about this issue, click here.
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