• U.S. Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara) marked 20 years since the launch of Santa Barbara’s safe parking program—the first in the nation—by announcing bipartisan legislation to unlock federal dollars for similar programs designed to offer a “critical lifeline” to people experiencing homelessness, according to a Jan. 25 statement from Carbajal’s office. The Naomi Schwartz and Susan Rose Safe Parking Act—named in honor of the two Santa Barbara County supervisors who first developed the 2004 program—would make safe parking programs eligible for federal housing fund grants that could support their operation and expansion. Carbajal worked for the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors in 2004 when the county partnered with New Beginnings to launch the nation’s first safe parking program, which offers overnight parking to individuals and families living in their vehicles. “I am proud to have played a small part in helping get this critical program off the ground—one that now has served hundreds of Central Coast residents across the county through the remarkable stewardship of New Beginnings. But I am also proud to see the inspiration our program has been for communities across America,” Carbajal said in the statement. “There’s no reason why the federal government should not be recognizing the difference these programs make in responding to the housing crises we are facing.”
• U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla (D-California) led his colleagues in calling on Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona to consider additional student debt relief for borrowers experiencing financial hardship. Nearly 40 lawmakers from the Senate and House signed the letter, requesting Cardona host a fourth session of the student debt negotiated rulemaking, according to a Jan. 25 statement from Padilla’s office. Since the Supreme Court struck down President Joe Biden’s original student debt relief plan, the administration has pursued an alternative path for student debt relief through negotiated rulemaking (“neg-reg”) under the Higher Education Act. However, the Department of Education has not proposed language targeting relief to borrowers experiencing financial hardship, and negotiators were unable to take a vote on a hardship category in the third and last scheduled rulemaking session. Many negotiators asked for another session to be scheduled to consider “those experiencing hardship that is not otherwise addressed by the existing student loan system.” “While we appreciate the efforts of the department and the negotiating committee, we are concerned that, without full consideration of cancellation targeted toward borrowers facing financial hardship, the rule will not provide adequate debt relief for the most vulnerable borrowers,” the lawmakers said in a letter. “The department should announce a fourth session of the neg-reg to allow the appropriate time for negotiators to discuss and vote upon a relief proposal for borrowers experiencing financial hardship.”
• Gov. Gavin Newsom recently announced a reduction in the number of freeway shootings across California. New data released by the California Highway Patrol (CHP) showed the number of freeway shootings in California dropped from 349 in 2022 to 274 last year—a reduction of more than 21 percent from the previous year and a reduction of 38 percent from pandemic highs. “While this downward trend marks progress, let’s be clear: One life lost by gun violence is one too many,” Newsom said in a Jan. 23 statement. “California will remain relentless in our pursuit to improve public safety, reduce gun violence, and invest in smart crime-fighting strategies that deliver real results.” Newsom established CHP’s Highway Violence Task Force to address the rise of violent crimes occurring on state highways, which surged nationally during the pandemic. At their peak in California in 2021, 447 shootings resulted in 16 deaths and 88 injuries. The new data also indicates the number of victims killed and injured in highway violence incidents also decreased. In 2023, four individuals were killed in freeway shootings—a 60 percent reduction from the prior year. Additionally, there was an 8 percent reduction in the number of people injured, down from 74 to 68 last year. Reflecting CHP’s increased efforts to investigate and address freeway violence, the number of arrests by the CHP in freeway shootings increased nearly 9 percent from 2022.
This article appears in Feb 1-11, 2024.