Author Archive: DPCCC Secretary

Resolution supporting 100% ZEV new vehicle sales in California by 2030

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DPCCC membership approved the following resolution at the March 18, 2021 regular meeting.

A RESOLUTION OF THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY OF CONTRA COSTA COUNTY SUPPORTING THE GOAL OF REACHING 100% ZERO EMISSION VEHICLE SALES IN CALIFORNIA BY 2030

WHEREAS, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) tells us that we have until 2030 to transform our economy and the way we live to avoid the most catastrophic and irreversible effects of the climate crisis, and in California, the transportation sector is the largest contributor of greenhouse gas emissions; and

WHEREAS, zero emission vehicles and services are an important and growing sector of California’s economy, an opportunity for quality jobs and tax revenue in our state; and

WHEREAS, Democratic Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, along with pro-labor and pro-environment leaders in the Senate Democratic Caucus, have introduced the Clean Cars for America initiative that calls for no new internal combustion engines to be produced after 2030 and for 100% zero emission vehicles (ZEV) to be manufactured by union-represented labor forces;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Democratic Party of Contra Costa County supports the goal of exclusively 100% ZEV new vehicle sales in California by 2030 and urges the California Democratic Party to adopt this policy in its platform; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Democratic Party of Contra Costa County encourages Governor Gavin Newsom, the state legislature, and the California Air Resources Board (CARB) to use all available means to adopt the goal of exclusively 100% ZEV new vehicle sales in California by 2030.

Resolution in support of democracy in Myanmar

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DPCCC membership approved the following resolution at the March 18, 2021 regular meeting.

WHEREAS, the military claimed that the outcome of Myanmar’s people vote in parliamentary elections held in November, 2020 were fraudulent,  there was no basis in fact for such claims that was found by a government commission investigating the claims, that reported there was no evidence of fraud in this election;

WHEREAS, we (The Democratic Party of Contra Costa County) are strong believers in education, understanding that it is necessary to secure a democratic society;  

WHEREAS, we recognize that regardless of our different cultures, we have shared values with the teachers of Myanmar, including liberty and free inquiry.  

THEREFORE, it is our belief that their protest against this coup is an act of great courage that will stand as an eloquent example to the students of Myanmar and the world. For this reason especially we support their action and sacrifice.

THEREFORE, the Democratic Party of Contra Costa County, stands in solidarity with the civil servants, teachers, workers and other citizens of Myanmar in their strike and protest against the unlawful coup of Feb. 1, 2021 and call upon General Min Aung Hlaing and the army to respect the votes of the people of Myanmar, to free all political prisoners, and restore Myanmar to civilian rule.

Submitted By:
Nadine Peyrucain
DPCCC District 5 Representative

Resolution calling for Public Office Member support for endorsed candidates

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DPCCC membership approved the following resolution at the March 18, 2021 regular meeting.

WHEREAS, endorsements are one of the most valuable tools of the California Democratic Party. They express our values and our support of candidates who support those core values and principles and who have committed to moving our communities forward;

WHEREAS, although the CDP bylaws “hope and expect” our members to support our endorsed candidates, CDP organizations are required to support the endorsed candidate or their membership is suspended for a year or more. The CDP Rules Committee has determined the bylaw language means that members may support another candidate as long as they do not advocate voting against our endorsed candidate. Our local committees expect our delegates to support our endorsed candidates;

WHEREAS, the California Democratic Party works hard to ensure the CADEM endorsement is highly coveted by Democrats across the state, including putting legal weight behind an official CADEM endorsement. Our candidates are relying on the endorsement, and they have a right to expect that our entire membership protects their endorsement, supports their election, and that the endorsement is not weakened in any way. Elected Democrats who support non-endorsed candidates and work against the party’s endorsed candidate, especially by supporting non-Democrats, devalue the endorsement of the entire party;

THEREFORE, be it resolved by the California Democratic Party, we believe it is a core principle of the California Democratic Party for the Public Office Members of this Party, as defined in Article II Section 2 of the Party bylaws, to support and not work against our endorsed candidates. We further believe that to support our core principles, we must be consistent, we must protect the endorsement, and we must strengthen and follow our rules.

AUTHORED BY Jeff Koertzen, AD14

Resolution in support of SB 90 and AB 1416, the Ballot DISCLOSE Act

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DPCCC membership approved the following resolution at the March 18, 2021 regular meeting.

WHEREAS, one of the things voters most want to know about ballot measures is who supports and opposes them, but many voters don’t know that information for all the state ballot measures they vote on; and

WHEREAS, ballot measure campaigns supported by organizations people trust often don’t have the financial resources to effectively communicate that information to voters, giving an unfair advantage to campaigns backed by wealthy interests; and

WHEREAS, voters can find key supporters and opponents of ballot measures in the voter information guide by looking at who signed the official arguments in favor and against them, but many voters haven’t read or may not remember or have handy all that information when they go to vote because the voter guide is usually very long and dense;

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Democratic Party of Contra Costa  County supports SB 90 (Stern) and AB 1416 (Santiago), two identical and parallel bills which will add 15 words listing the supporters and 15 words listing the opponents who signed the official arguments for and against each state ballot measure in the voter information guide to the current title, summary, and fiscal analysis shown on the actual ballot for state ballot measures, giving voters information they need when they vote while adding minimal amounts to the current 75 word summaries on the ballot.

THEREFORE BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that a copy of this Resolution be provided to the Governor, Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon, Senate President pro Tem Toni Atkins, Assembly Elections Committee Chair Marc Berman, Assembly Appropriations Committee Chair Lorena Gonzalez, Senate Elections Committee Chair Steve Glazer, Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Anthony Portantino, Senator Henry Stern, Assemblymember Miguel Santiago, and to our area’s members of the California Legislature.

Respectfully submitted by Brodie Hilp, Elected Member, District 2

Resolution in support of Assembly Bill 1400, the California Guaranteed Health Care for All Act (CalCare) by Assemblymembers Kalra, Lee, and Santiago

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DPCCC membership approved the following resolution at the March 18, 2021 regular meeting.

WHEREAS, currently, 3 million Californians have no health coverage, nearly one-third of all Californians who do have coverage reported delaying or skipping necessary health care over the last year due to cost, and the Covid-19 pandemic continues to ravage the state of California, disproportionately infecting and killing people of color and forcing millions of people out of work, thus exposing the unsustainability of the employer-provided insurance model, AND; 

WHEREAS, a single payer system would enshrine health care as a human right in the state of California by guaranteeing comprehensive, high quality care to all Californians with the freedom to choose who provides that care, free at the point of service, at a lower overall cost than our current system, AND;

WHEREAS, implementing a single-payer program in California would require legislation to be passed by the State Senate and Assembly and signed into law by the Governor, in addition to federal waivers, as outlined in Title 42, Chapter 157 of the US Government Code;

NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the Democratic Party of Contra Costa County supports the passage of Assembly Bill 1400, the California Guaranteed Health Care for All Act, which would guarantee health care to all Californians as a right by way of a single-payer health care system, as outlined in the platform of the California Democratic Party, and urges the Democratic supermajority in the California State Legislature to pass and the Democratic Governor to sign the bill;

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Democratic Party of Contra Costa County shall submit its “support” position to the California State Legislature for inclusion in the bill analysis as a supporting organization

Submitted by: Ryan Skolnick, Associate Member, District 4

Resolution in support of Assembly Bill 988, The Miles Hall Lifeline Act

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DPCCC membership approved the following resolution at the March 18, 2021 regular meeting.

WHEREAS, For those unable to access care, the criminal justice system has become the default mental health system in California when, in times of crisis, individuals and their families feel they have no option but to call the police for help, and while law enforcement is often the most-relied upon institution during a mental health crisis, providing mental health services or care is not and should not be their role; and 

WHEREAS, The Miles Hall Lifeline Act is named for Miles Hall, a 23-year-old African American man who was shot and killed by Walnut Creek officers in 2019 while in the midst of a mental health crisis despite his mother, Taun Hall, having spoken to police officers about her son numerous times over several years; and

WHEREAS, Assembly Bill 988 will implement the new nationwide 988 Suicide Prevention and Mental Health Crisis Hotline created last year by the Federal Communications Commission and Congress and create call centers that will connect people calling or texting 988 with trained counselors and dispatch mobile crisis support teams—staffed by mental health professionals and trained peers instead of police officers—to help a person in crisis; 

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Democratic Party of Contra Costa County supports the passage of Assembly Bill 988, the Miles Hall Lifeline Act, and urges the Democratic supermajority in the California State Legislature to pass the legislation and the Democratic Governor to sign the bill into law;

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Democratic Party of Contra Costa County shall communicate this resolution to members of the State Senate and State Assembly representing any part of Contra Costa County and the Governor of the State of California. 

Submitted by: Rebecca Auerbach, Associate Member, District 4
                      Craig Cheslog, Associate Member, District 2

Resolution in support of Senate Bill 271, the Sheriff Democracy and Diversity Act

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DPCCC membership approved the following resolution at the March 18, 2021 regular meeting.

WHEREAS, County Sheriffs lead agencies of law enforcement officers that are vested with extraordinary authority, including the powers to detain, search, arrest, and use deadly force; and current California law requires that candidates for the office of Sheriff possess a Peace Officers Standards and Training (POST) certificate and some combination of salaried law enforcement experience; and 

WHEREAS, these eligibility requirements severely restrict who can run for Sheriff; resulting in few competitive elections, a compelling lack of accountability that harms statewide efforts to reimagine public safety, and a lack of candidate diversity that has led California to have only four females, three Latinx individuals, and two Japanese-Americans holding the office of Sheriff while white males hold the office in the other 49 counties as of 2020, a result that does not reflect California’s demographic makeup; and 

WHEREAS, Senate Bill 271 would repeal these restrictions, thereby allowing all registered voters to run for Sheriff, as was possible from 1850 through 1989;  

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the Democratic Party of Contra Costa County supports the passage of Senate Bill 271, the Sheriff Democracy and Diversity Act as introduced on January 28, 2021, and urges the Democratic supermajority in the California State Legislature to pass the legislation and the Democratic Governor to sign the bill into law;

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Democratic Party of Contra Costa County shall communicate this resolution to members of the State Senate and State Assembly representing any part of Contra Costa County, the members of the Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors, and the Governor of the State of California. 

Submitted by:  Craig Cheslog, Associate Member, District 2

Resolution in Support of Women’s History

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With prior authorization by the Central Committee, DPCCC’s Executive Committee passed the following Resolution in Support of Women’s History on March 4, 2021:

WHEREAS, American women of every race, culture, class, faith, gender identity, and ethnic background have made historic contributions to the growth and strength of our Nation in countless recorded and unrecorded ways; and

WHEREAS, American women have played and continue to play a crucial economic, cultural, and social role in every sphere of the life of the Nation by constituting a significant portion of the paid and unpaid labor force working inside and outside of the home; and

WHEREAS, American women were particularly important in the establishment of early charitable, philanthropic, and cultural institutions in our Nation; and 

WHEREAS American women’s contributions were instrumental in the perseverance of the Nation during the Second World War, and many other crises;

WHEREAS, American women of every race, culture, class, faith, gender identity, and ethnic background served as early leaders in the forefront of every major progressive social change movement; and 

WHEREAS, American women have been leaders, not only in securing their own rights of suffrage and equal opportunity, but also in the abolitionist movement, the emancipation movement, the labor movement, the civil rights movement, and other movements, especially the peace movement, which create a more fair and just society for all; and 

WHEREAS, the many women-owned businesses and women entrepreneurs contribute to the health and success of our local communities, their economies, create jobs, and demonstrate effective leadership;

WHEREAS, from local special districts to Sacramento to, now, the White House, women are leading and making change in government; and

WHEREAS, although Contra Costa Democrats celebrate the many women leaders who are elected or appointed throughout our county and nation, including electing in 2020 our first woman Vice President of the United States, Kamala Harris, who is of African American and South Asian descent; we recognize that women are still underrepresented in our legislatures, board rooms, and the judiciary;

WHEREAS, despite women’s contributions and proven talents and skills, the role of women in history is consistently overlooked and their qualifications undervalued and dismissed in literature, education, the study of American history, and government; 

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Democratic Party of Contra Costa County proudly recognizes the month of March as Women’s History Month and stands in solidarity and fully supports the contributions of all women throughout history. 

PASSED AND ADOPTED  by the Executive Committee, as authorized by the DPCCC, this 4th day of March, 2021.

Authored by Courtney Masella-O’Brien, Joey Smith, and Marisol Rubio, February 28, 2021.