My Values and Commitment to Change

We cannot have or sustain the quality of life we want and deserve in our communities if we do not take care of the environment in which we live. Job creation and economic development must be balanced by resource stewardship and environmental protection. 

I want to see communities prosper and develop with the ability to sustain businesses that provide employment and services to residents who live nearby.  I want to see neighborhoods that can support and nurture children, their families and the elderly in a healthy, safe and clean environment.  Elected officials must use the tools at their disposal to promote sustainable communities that limit the impact of pollution and environmental toxins, improve air quality, relieve traffic congestion, promote greater housing density near public transit, stimulate economic development that pays a livable wage and marshal the resources of the public sector to achieve these goals.  They must also use their office to encourage community participation in the decisions affecting their lives, as when I worked with the Eighth District Empowerment Congress to prevent a harmful "peaker" power plant from being located in my Council District and with Physicians for Social Responsibility to prevent the use of mercury in medications.

I use the knowledge and experience I gained as an advocate of environmental justice and environmental protection dating back more than 30 years. I work with the residents I serve because results matter.

On environmental issues and concerns I have produced a strong, consistent track record of which I am extremely proud.  As an advocate for environmental and social justice I have worked closely with environmentalists and constituents to find common ground for positive change. My work and record earned their support.  I am the only candidate supported by the Los Angeles League of Conservation Voters, Sierra Club, and leaders of the Coalition for Clean Air, Environment Now, Natural Resources Defense Council, UCLA Institute on the Environment, California Environmental Rights Alliance and Clean Power Campaign.

A Record of Results

Since the late 70s and early 80s, I have worked with environmental justice activists as a community organizer and Executive Director of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. From my strong support for the Los Angeles Conservation Corps as an advocate of increased funding to my efforts to defeat L.A.'s nightmarish LANCER waste incineration project, I partnered with activists who recognized that health disparities in rates of asthma, cancer and obesity are frequently the result of poor environmental conditions, air quality and a lack of green spaces.

While on the Los Angeles City Council, I was a leader on environmental issues and enacted City redevelopment policies to promote the construction of environmentally friendly "green buildings" through the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification process.  During my tenure, the first "green" building in the City of Los Angeles was constructed and the South Los Angeles sewer system was retrofitted and upgraded to halt toxic sewage spills and water pollution caused by old and decaying sewer pipes. 

As Chairman of the City Council's Environmental Quality and Waste Management Committee, I worked closely with the South Coast Air Quality Management District to led the Council to adopt the 1190 Series Rules to require government agencies to eliminate diesel vehicles, such as trash trucks, city-owned buses and street sweepers and to replace them with alternative fuel vehicles that use compressed natural gas (CNG) or liquefied natural gas (LNG).

As a member of the California State Legislature, I continued my leadership on a range of environmental issues by supporting legislation to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and require electric utilities to acquire a grater share of electricity from renewable sources and end our dependency on fossil fuels. I authored laws that strengthen protections against lead in our environment. 

That is why year-after-year I have been honored and recognized by local and state environmental organizations from the California League of Conservation Voters to the Sierra Club to California Greenworks and the Star ECO Station in Culver City for my work and accomplishments on important environmental issues.

My Plan

On environmental quality and protection:

• Launch a Green Jobs Initiative focused on ensuring that environmental job opportunities, training and placements benefit residents of the Second District.

• Establish an L.A. County Commission on Environmental Affairs to create a sound strategy and accountability for our County's environmental agenda.

• Conduct a comprehensive investigation of "brownfield" contamination in the Second District and work to inventory, redevelop and restore those areas hardest hit by contamination and toxicity.

• Develop a Second District Environmental Master Plan and Strategy to address issues of land use planning including transit-oriented development, solid waste management, air quality, transportation policy, urban runoff and open park spaces.

• Monitor land use decisions and where appropriate encourage greater coordination among jurisdictions.

• Seek access to state and federal resources to ensure that the Second District receives its fair share of funding for investment in transit corridors, disaster preparedness and mitigation of environmental hazards such as air, water and noise pollution.

More Key Issues

Jobs and Economic Development

Seniors, the Disabled and Foster Care

Public Safety

Healthier Communities