SacTown Talks

SacTown Talks is a podcast about California politics, policy and culture. We feature interviews with California political leaders, and analysis by experts and insiders focusing on the Capitol. Like, share, and subscribe to learn more!

Today we welcome California Assemblymember Cottie Petrie-Norris of the 74th Assembly District, covering Costa Mesa, Laguna Beach, Laguna Woods, Newport Beach, and portions of Irvine & Huntington Beach. We start with the story of her first assembly campaign victory: a striking upset of a long held GOP seat, then turn to comparing her business experience to her time in government, her work with the California Problem Solvers Caucus, how California needs to dream and build big while still getting the boring details right, and finally on her Select Committee on the Orange County Oil Spill. 

SacTown Talks is a podcast about California politics, policy and culture. We feature interviews with California political leaders, and analysis by experts and insiders focusing on the Capitol. Like, share, and subscribe to learn more!

Today we welcome back Assemblymember Mike Gipson of the 64th Assembly District, which includes the communities of Carson, Compton, Gardena, Harbor Gateway, Lynwood, North Long Beach, Rancho Dominguez, South Los Angeles, Torrance, Watts/Willow brook and Wilmington. Assemblymember Gipson has been focused on police reform and he rejoins us to discuss progress on his bills and what he will be working on next term. He also discusses how the $2.28 billion he got for the 64th district will benefit the district, and his chairmanship of two different select committees: a select committee on Police Reform and another on Infectious Diseases. 

SacTown Talks is a podcast about California politics, policy and culture. We feature interviews with California political leaders, and analysis by experts and insiders focusing on the Capitol. Like, share, and subscribe to learn more!

Today we welcome Roxana Janka, coalition manager for the Good4U public awareness campaign. This coalition has done extension polling of California parents, teachers, and citizens and has come up with three ways California can help students, especially those vulnerable to dropping. The first is equity, the second is  personalized learning with trauma-informed practices, and the third is job and life skills training. Listen as Roxana Janka explains what the Good4U campaign means by these and how it hopes to implement them for the future of California students. 

SacTown Talks is a podcast about California politics, policy and culture. We feature interviews with California political leaders, and analysis by experts and insiders focusing on the Capitol. Like, share, and subscribe to learn more!

Today we welcome Heidi Harmon of the Romero Institute to discuss their Let’s Green California initiative. Heidi is a long time environmental activist who was on the San Luis Obispo City Council and Mayor of San Luis Obispo until transitioning back to activism at the Romero Institute. The Romero Institute is a nonprofit law and public policy center in Santa Cruz, California that focuses on environmental and indigenous justice. The Let’s Green California is a grassroots climate justice movement with the goal of creating a carbon-neutral California. 

SacTown Talks is a podcast about California politics, policy and culture. We feature interviews with California political leaders, and analysis by experts and insiders focusing on the Capitol. Like, share, and subscribe to learn more!

Today we welcome California State Senator Anna Caballeros of the 12th Senate District, which covers the Salinas Valley and a swath of the Central Valley between Modesto and Fresno. We discuss how her family’s journey from a company town to LA led to her becoming a lawyer and public servant, the differences between the CA Assembly and Senate, why she was focusing on housing, broadband internet, and water security for her rural district, and what she is working on for the next legislative year.  

SacTown Talks is a podcast about California politics, policy and culture. We feature interviews with California political leaders, and analysis by experts and insiders focusing on the Capitol. Like, share, and subscribe to learn more!

Today we welcome California Assemblymember Rebecca Bauer-Kahan of the 16th Assembly District that covers the eastern Bay Area. She starts with how the 2016 election had a profound impact on her and her family, the difference between working in the law and making laws, her bill AB988 that would establish a mental health crisis hotline that would provide a healthcare response instead of a police response for those in distress, as well as her work on transportation, juvenile justice and climate change.   

SacTown Talks is a podcast about California politics, policy and culture. We feature interviews with California political leaders, and analysis by experts and insiders focusing on the Capitol. Like, share, and subscribe to learn more!

Today we welcome California Senator Melissa Hurtado of the 14th Senate District which covers parts of the southern Central Valley between Fresno and Bakersfield. She starts the podcast with a lovely tribute to Scott Lay, then talks about how the Great Recession affected her, her road to the senate, and how reelection is shaping up. The majority of the conversation focused on her district and her work fixing water issues in California, and the connection between water, food and environmental security. She also discusses her work on President Biden’s Latino Leadership Committee.  

SacTown Talks is a podcast about California politics, policy and culture. We feature interviews with California political leaders, and analysis by experts and insiders focusing on the Capitol. Like, share, and subscribe to learn more!

Today we welcome California Assemblymember Blanca Rubio of the 48th Assembly District that covers Baldwin Park and the East San Gabriel Valley. We discuss what a day during the legislative recess looks like for legislators, then how the pandemic has affected her district and her family, and why getting people vaccinated is the key to reopening California fully. The conversation then turns to her legislation focused on seniors, children, and domestic violence victims, and how her next legislation will be banning expulsion for preschoolers. Finally, we finish with her advice on how and when interested parties should be discussing potential legislation with her office.  

SacTown Talks is a podcast about California politics, policy and culture. We feature interviews with California political leaders, and analysis by experts and insiders focusing on the Capitol. Like, share, and subscribe to learn more!

Today we are happy to have California Assemblymember Sharon Quirk-Silva who represents the 65th Assembly District, which includes portions of northern Orange County. She talked about helping to open up Disneyland and Knotts Berry Farm, and the opening up of the economy in her district. She also discusses her bills for the session including specific funding for projects in her district and priorities for helping build more housing stock and reminding homelessness. Finally, we discuss her role as Chair of the Assembly Arts Committee and the opening up of venues across her district and California. 

SacTown Talks is a podcast about California politics, policy and culture. We feature interviews with California political leaders, and analysis by experts and insiders focusing on the Capitol. Like, share, and subscribe to learn more!