• Important Announcement: Noreen Designated New Budget Chair
• Noreen's View: Your Budget, Your Priorities
• The Governor's Revised Budget Proposals
• Hogan High Wrestling Champs Honored on Assembly Floor
• Rose Parade 2008
• An Update on Noreen's Legislation
• Preparing for College

IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT: NOREEN DESIGNATED NEW BUDGET CHAIR

I am pleased to announce that Assembly Speaker Karen Bass (D-Los Angeles) has named me to serve as the next Chair of the State Assembly Budget Committee.

I look forward to this opportunity to serve the citizens of the State of California and thank Speaker Karen Bass for her confidence. Our state budget should reflect the values of Californians. As the future Chair of the Assembly Budget Committee, my challenge will be to help craft a budget that is responsible, fair, and takes care of the most vulnerable in our society.

I will assume full duties as Chair of the Assembly Budget Committee in December, following the service of Assemblymember John Laird (D-Santa Cruz) who currently serves in the position. However, I will be working closely with Assemblymember Laird to 'learn the ropes' as budget negotiations move forward this year.

We face many budget challenges in California. Each year, we move from one fiscal crisis to another. I wholeheartedly support the Speaker's efforts to enact real budget reforms to put us on a strong financial footing to make California better for our children, and I look forward to working with her to accomplish that ambitious goal.

NOREEN'S VIEW: YOUR BUDGET, YOUR PRIORITIES

With state coffers $17.2 billion in the red, there are no easy or desirable choices to get us through our budget crisis. As Chair-designate of the Assembly Budget Committee, I strongly believe we must preserve California's values with a plan that puts our state on a strong footing into the future.

To help me better represent you through this challenging time, I sent a questionnaire across the 7th Assembly District last month to learn the budget priorities of our community. Responses have been coming in by the dozen each day. Now, with the results of 3,000 surveys tallied, I want to share with you some of the findings.

When asked their top priority in the state budget:

• 38% of respondents listed education
• 13% listed services to the disabled and the poor
• 13% listed public safety
• 13% listed tax cuts
• 10% listed public health programs
• 10% listed environmental protection
• 4% listed transportation
• 15% listed the "other" category, with responses ranging from immigration to homelessness to climate change.

(Please note that these responses don't add up to 100% because some respondents listed more than one issue as their top priority.)

When asked about state program cuts to balance the budget:

• 76% opposed cuts to services for the elderly and disabled
• 69% opposed cuts to K-12 education
• 60% supported cuts to state prisons
• 58% opposed cuts to higher education
• 54% opposed cuts in job training and welfare to work programs.

When asked about increasing state revenues to help balance the budget:

• 82% support closing tax loopholes
• 76% support increasing corporate taxes
• 65% support increasing taxes on the wealthy
• 30% supported increases to all income taxes.

THE GOVERNOR'S REVISED BUDGET PROPOSALS

On May 14, the Governor introduced his revised proposals for our state budget called the May Revise. The following is an overview of our state's finances and a breakdown of the Governor's proposals to balance the budget.

Unfortunately, due to the downturn in our economy and the housing market, the state's projected budget deficit has grown from $7.7 billion to $17.2 billion. The encouraging news about the Governor's May Revise is that he has abandoned the cuts-only approach that he initially proposed in January. The disappointing news, however, is that he proposes additional debt to balance California's books instead of enacting long term solutions to our finances.

The Governor proposes to close our $17.2 billion shortfall with the following mixture of cuts, funding shifts, revenues, and a funding reserve.

• Proposed cuts include:
• $4.3 billion in cuts to education
• $3.7 billion in other cuts contained in the January proposed budget. Fortunately, the Governor has withdrawn his proposals to close state parks and to release 22,000 prisoners early
• $627 million in additional cuts to health and human services, including cutting in home care and provider pay and taking federal disability payment funds intended for seniors and the disabled.
• Proposed funding shifts include:
• $1 billion in various other one-time revenues, including special funds loans and transfers, and fee increases
• $828 million in sales tax on gasoline and other public transit funds to the General Fund.
• Proposed revenue sources include:
• $5.1 billion in new debt by securitizing state lottery payments
• $2 billion for a budget reserve.

If you wish to contact the Governor to share your views about his budget proposals, you may send him an e-mail. Please visit my website for a link to our budget information page.

HOGAN HIGH WRESTLING CHAMPS HONORED ON ASSEMBLY FLOOR

Last month, I invited the state champion girls wrestling team and coaches from Hogan High School to be honored in the State Capitol.

Senator Patricia Wiggins (D-Santa Rosa) and I, along with Assembly Speaker Karen Bass, presented the team with a legislative resolution honoring the team's achievement.

When I was in high school, young women were not encouraged to play sports, so it always makes me happy to see the young women of today breaking new ground in sports. It was an enormous pleasure to honor the women of Hogan High for their inspiring achievements.

ROSE PARADE 2008

For over 100 years, the people of Santa Rosa have gathered to celebrate our wealth of natural and human resources with the annual Luther Burbank Rose Parade and Festival.

Over 4,000 people participated in this year's "Go Green and Extreme" parade which highlighted activities to reduce our carbon footprint.

Each year more than 100 community-minded business sponsors fund this event and countless volunteers donate their time. Thanks to their support this priceless tradition has continued in our community. It was great fun riding in the parade in a bicycle-drawn vehicle driven by my friend Gary Wysocky and wearing a hat decorated by my outstanding staffer, Veronica Stone. I was accompanied by my Woman of the Year, Dyan Foster.

Further information about the Rose Parade and how you can support it is available online. Visit my website for a link.

AN UPATE ON NOREEN'S LEGISLATION

At the end of May, legislation introduced in the Assembly moves to the Senate. I'm pleased to report that all of my bills subject to a vote on the Assembly floor are still active.

As your representative, I am committed to fighting for families, the environment, legal reform and our wine industry. I would like to highlight some of my legislation in this newsletter. If you would like to read more about my work and legislation, please visit my website here.

Protecting Our Foster Youth
Two years ago, Speaker Bass and I held a hearing on foster youth and medications. We heard from numerous foster youth and former foster youth that they were given behavior modifying medications without understanding their effects and benefits, that they were over-medicated, and that they did not receive the necessary counseling and other services to assist them in coping with their life circumstances. Assembly Bill (AB) 2117 establishes judicial safeguards to protect our foster youth from being overly medicated. The bill requires that prescriptions must be done by qualified professionals who have access to complete and accurate information about the child's medical history, that the foster youth be involved in the process as age-appropriate, and that medication is accompanied by therapy or other behavioral interventions as appropriate. This legislation is sponsored by the Children's Law Center.

Protecting Wilderness in California
This exciting legislation, AB 2923, requires the state to consider designation of new wilderness for state-owned lands in Northern California. We have not designated new wilderness lands in California for decades. We are long overdue in doing our part to protect our wild lands, watersheds, and wildlife for future generations to enjoy. This legislation is sponsored by the California Wilderness Coalition.

Fighting for a Free Press
Assembly Joint Resolution (AJR) 60 calls upon the United States Congress to enact a shield law for America's journalists. A federal shield law would provide journalists with some legal protections against the forced disclosure of confidential news sources. Absent such protections, potential whistle blowers may remain silent and the public remain uninformed about issues of importance to the public interest. AJR 60 is sponsored by the California Newspaper Publishers Association and has bipartisan support in the Legislature.

Expanding Wine Education and Marketing Opportunities
AB 2090 creates a new special temporary on-sale wine license enabling regional winegrape grower associations and professional winemaking organizations to conduct up to six winetasting events a year designed to promote a particular agricultural region or as part an educational event. It also allows those who sell products or services to the wine industry, such as barrel retailers, to demonstrate their products' impact on wine flavor at events occurring under the license established through the legislation.

PREPARING FOR COLLEGE

Attending college is a rewarding and life-changing experience. Getting there, however, can be intimidating.

College applicants often have many questions, like:

• When should I begin looking at colleges? How do I narrow my college search?
• What are college entrance exams like?
• How can I write an effective admissions essay?
• What resources are there to help me pay for college?

The California Student Assistance Center provides important information that will answer many of these and other questions you may have. It also gives practical advice on every stage of your higher-education journey.