2004–2005 Year in Review
Since 2003, the Women’s Policy Institute has provided intensive policy advocacy and lobbying training for up to 28 women a year who are—through their existing leadership roles, prior experience in women’s issues and deep connections to the grassroots community—poised to play a greater role in advocating for public policy that advance women’s and girls’ agendas.
Building upon the successes of the program’s inaugural year, the 2004 – 2005 Women's Policy Institute class trained 24 more leaders in public policy development and legislative advocacy. fellows met for four three-day retreats and via several conference calls scheduled throughout the year. This time was used for trainings and presentations by policy experts and legislative staffers, for teams to assess the necessary next steps to advance their projects and for Fellows to network and collaborate with each other.
Over the past year, five Women's Policy Institute teams developed bill ideas, worked with other advocates, and supported or shepherded seven bills that were introduced into the State Assembly and Senate. Success for Institute fellows is measured not by the fate of these bills but by the invaluable experiences gained from navigating the complex legislative process and from building relationships with elected and appointed officials.
It is up to the fellows to find a legislative sponsor for their project and to meet with various committee members, budget analysts and policymakers to promote their bill. At every step along the way, they are using their voice and passion to champion their issues. As one Fellow put it, “I not only learned the system but used the system to challenge and change it.” For many of the fellows, this aspect of the Women's Policy Institute experience tapped into a personal power they had not realized before.
For elected officials and their staffers, the opportunity to capitalize on the expertise of community leaders and partner with Fellows is a tremendous advantage to crafting legislation that is truly responsive to women’s and girls’ needs. Said Giannina Perez, a Legislative Staffer to Assemblywoman Cindy Montañez, “It is so inspiring to see community activists take off as policy advocates.”
During the 2004–2005 year, Women's Policy Institute Fellows saw every possible outcome that can result in legislative efforts.
Assembly Bills:
AB 855
Author: Assemblymember Bass
Vetoed by Governor on October 7, 2005
Opts California out of the lifetime prohibition on receipt of benefits funded by the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block grant and establishes CalWORKs eligibility for otherwise ineligible persons convicted of a drug-related felony subject to specified conditions, except for persons convicted of unlawfully transporting, importing, selling, furnishing, possessing for sale, manufacturing, cultivating or committing similar acts related to controlled substances.
AB 788
Author: Assemblymember Montañez
Died in Assembly Appropriations on May 25, 2005
Requires that the State Department of Education (SDE) administer a three-year pilot project to provide continuing education and training for licensed family day care providers and requires SDE to submit an evaluation to the Legislature within six months of the project's completion. Requires the pilot to be conducted in a minimum of three community college districts, one of which must be Los Angeles and another of which must be in a rural area. Authorizes a participating community college to a) Offer classes targeted to family day care providers, b) Offer evening and weekend classes and classes at alternative locations, c) Offer classes targeted to limited English speakers and d) Coordinate with other quality improvement programs that provide early education services to underrepresented groups.
AB 450 (Changed to AB 1179)
Author: Assemblymember Yee
Signed by the Governor on October 7, 2005
Prohibits the sale or rental of violent video games to minors.
AB 908
Author: Assemblymember Chu
Failed passage in Assembly Health on April 19, 2005
Prohibits the manufacture, sale or distribution of any cosmetic that contains dibutyl phthalate (DBP) or di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP) and provides that any cosmetic is misbranded if it is sold by an Internet web site where the list of ingredients in the cosmetic is not easily and readily available to be viewed by the prospective purchaser before the purchase is completed.
Senate Bills:
SB 484
Author: Senator Migden
Signed by the Governor on October 7, 2005
This bill establishes the California Safe Cosmetics Act of 2005 and requires cosmetics manufacturers to disclose to the Department of Health Services (DHS) a list of ingredients in their products that are chemicals that have been identified to cause cancer or reproductive harm.
SB 24 (Died in Senate Appropriations May 2006)
Author: Senator Ortiz
Requires hospitals to implement a charity-care and reduced-payments policy.
SB 870 (Died in Senate Appropriations May 2006)
Author: Senator Escutia
Among other things, SB 870 would require that air quality violations within 1,500 feet of a school be subject to triple the minimum civil penalties and would require the district to mail notices to every parent teacher and school administrator at the school within one month of the occurrence of the violation, as well as the ultimate disposition of the notice of violation. Costs to the air districts would be significant.
2004 – 2005 Women's Policy Institute Fellows
Cynthia Lisa Babich, Del Amo Action Committee
Caroline Barlerin, Level Playing Field Institute
Susan Burton, A New Way of Life
Kim Carter, Time for Change Foundation
Sharon Cohen, Pharmacy Access Partnership, Public Health Institute
Abigail K. Coursolle, Planning for Elders
Audrey Estel Diaz, Hispanas Organized for Political Equality (HOPE)
Alejandra Domenzain, Sweatshop Watch-Los Angeles
Shannon Farley, W. Haywood Burns Institute
Gloria L. Flaherty, Sutter Lakeside Community Services
Britta Leigh Guerrero, Pregnancy Consultation Center
Dana Lanza, Literacy for Environmental Justice
Julia Liou, Asian Health Services
Anuja Mendiratta, The San Francisco Foundation
Yvonne Nenadal, Youth For Change
Karen Fox Olson, Arcata House Inc.
Veronica Rivera, Los Angeles Commission on Assaults Against Women
Joanne Seavey-Hultquist, Girl Scouts of Santa Clara County
Lisa Tobe, Women’s Mountain Passages
Tracy Weitz, UCSF National Center of Excellence in Women’s Health
Jess Wendover, Urban Ecology
Kynna Wright, Center for Healthier Children, Families and Communities
Cecilia Zamora, Latino Council of Marin
2004 – 2005 Women's Policy Institute Program Speakers, Mentors and Legislative Staffers
We would like to sincerely thank all of the speakers, mentors and legislative staffers whose invaluable time and expertise contributed to the caliber of the Institute during this past year. Thank you!
Women's Policy Institute Coordinator:
Marj Plumb, Plumbline Coaching and Consulting, Inc.
Speakers:
Martha Arguello, Physicians for Social Responsibility
Vicki Atwood, California Commission on the Status of Women
Lena Brook, Clean Water Fund
Patricia Diaz, Latino Coalition for a Healthy California
Aimee Durfee, Californians for Family Economic Self-Sufficiency (CFESS)
Michael Endicott, Assembly Committee on Environmental Safety and Toxic Materials
Alissa Friedman, Opportunities for Technology Information Careers (OPTIC)
Janet Gaard, Department of Justice
Rebecca Gonzales, California Budget Project
Nick Guroff, The National Environmental Trust
Rosemary Fei, Silk, Adler & Colvin
Virginia Hamilton, California Workforce Association
Michael Herald, Western Center on Law and Poverty
Wendy Hill, National Association of Social Workers
Richard Jackson, California Department of Health Services
Bruce Jennings, Senate Committee on Environmental Quality
Jennifer Kent, California Department of Health Services
Lori Low, Breast Cancer Fund
Charlotte Maxwell Newhart
Beth McGovern, California National Organization for Women
Linda Michalowski, Vice Chancellor for Student Services
Kathleen Mossburg
Romel Pascual, Environmental Justice Program
Erin Peth, Olson, Hagel & Fishburn, LLP
Debbie Rogers, California Health and Human Services Agency
Jean Ross, California Budget Project
Bhavna Shamasunder, Urban Habitat
Diana Spatz, LIFETIME
Mentors:
Dion Aroner, AJE Partners
Jenya Cassidy, Labor Project on Working Families
Nick Guroff, The National Environmental Trust
Vivian Huang, Asian Americans for Civil Rights and Equality
Nancy Lyons, State of California – Little Hoover Commission
Katie Silberman, Center for Environmental Health
Jane Williams, California Communities Against Toxics
Legislative Committees, Departments and Staffers:
Vanessa M. Baird, California Department of Health Services
Merlyn Calderon, Office of Assemblymember Judy Chu
Tiffany Chung, Office of Senator Carole Migden
Djibril Diop, Office of Senator Carole Migden
Nolice Edwards, Office of Assemblymember Karen Bass
Jessica Gunderson, Office of Assemblymember Karen Bass
Peter Hansel, Office of Senator Deborah Ortiz
Manny Hernandez, Office of Assemblymember Joe Baca
Jodi Hicks, Office of Assemblymember Leland Yee
Bernadeen Kaleikau Valdez, California Department of Health Services
Tam Ma, Office of Senator Sheila Kuehl
Margaret Peña, Office of Senator Gloria Romero
Giannina Perez, Office of Assemblywoman Cindy Montañez
Sara Elizabeth Rogers, Office of Senator Sheila Kuehl
Erin Ryan, Office of Senator Jackie Speier
Melissa Scolari, Office of Assemblymember Carol Liu
Wendy Umino, Office of Senator Martha Escutia
Nicole Vazquez, Senate Committee on Health and Human Services
Selection Committee:
Kristin Aldana-Taday, Pacoima Beautiful
Aspen Baker, Exhale
Connie Chan Robison, Center for Collaborative Planning
Therese Hughes, Venice Family Clinic
Lorraine Kennix Provost, Alameda County Commission on the Status of Women
Mary Rosas, Eli Lilly Company
Karen Shain, Legal Services for Prisoners with Children
Mary Wiberg, Commission on the Status of Women
