• U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla (D-California) joined San Fransisco and state leaders to advocate for additional monkeypox vaccines and equitable distribution throughout California, according to an Aug. 25 statement from the senator’s office. Padilla toured San Fransisco’s main monkeypox vaccine site at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital as California surpasses 3,000 cases statewide. “One of the lessons we learned from the COVID pandemic was that a sustained period of limited vaccine availability early in a public health crisis is a recipe for disaster,” Padilla said in the statement. “But, unlike COVID, we already have an approved vaccine ready to deploy against monkeypox. That is why I’ve called on HHS [The Department of Health and Human Services] and the CDC [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] to ramp up their efforts to increase vaccine access, and I’ll continue working to ensure that all resources from the federal government are equitably distributed to all corners of California.” According to the statement, Padilla was one of the first senators in Congress to call on Health and Human Services and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to provide additional monkeypox vaccines, expressing concern over limited vaccines and the federal government’s ability to keep up with the increasing number of people seeking appointments.
• In one year, California cleared an average of 100 encampments per month with a total of 1,262 cleared sites, removing 1,213 tons of trash—enough to fill 22 Olympic-size swimming pools, according to an Aug. 26 statement from Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office. To highlight successful state efforts, Newsom joined an Aug. 25 Caltrans cleanup effort on Interstate 10 in Los Angeles, as he has for several other encampments across the state. On the Central Coast, Caltrans closed 161 encampments and collected more than 6,672 cubic yards of trash throughout Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, Monterey, San Benito, and Santa Cruz counties. “Leaving people on the streets and our highways is dangerous and inhumane. It’s unacceptable,” Newsom said in a statement. “California is investing billions of dollars to house thousands of people and clean up our communities and streets. Our efforts are a model for the nation, and more importantly, we’re getting people off the streets and into the housing and services they deserve.” This year’s budget includes $700 million for encampment resolution grants with $350 million earmarked for assisting those living on “state right-of-way property.”
• The U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro N. Mayorkas announced that the department issued a final rule that will preserve and fortify the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) policy for certain eligible noncitizens who arrive in the United States as children, according to an Aug. 24 statement from the Department of Homeland Security. Through this program, the removal of individuals under this program is deferred and they can access a renewable, two-year work permit. Since its inception in 2012, DACA has allowed more than 800,000 young people to remain in the United States with their families. “Today, we are taking another step to do everything in our power to preserve and fortify DACA, an extraordinary program that has transformed the lives of so many Dreamers,” Mayorkas said in the statement. “Thanks to DACA, we have been enriched by young people who contribute so much to our communities and our country. Yet, we need Congress to pass legislation that provides an enduring solution for the young Dreamers who have known no country other than the United States as their own.” After a careful review and response to more than 16,000 public comments, the final review codifies the policy—with limited changes—and replaces the 2012 guidance, which is effective Oct. 31, 2022.
This article appears in Sep 1-8, 2022.
