Marin Leader

California State Assembly District 10 issued the following announcement on March 16.

 Assemblymember Marc Levine (D – Marin County) joined a bipartisan agreement to make over a billion dollars in emergency funding available to the State of California to address the COVID-19 pandemic.

SB 89’s billion dollar appropriation supports Governor Gavin Newsom’s emergency declaration to address the COVID-19 pandemic and gives the Governor significant resources to both increase the capacity of our healthcare system while supporting preventative efforts to reduce transmission of the coronavirus across the state.  The bill also includes language to begin the conversation about the long recovery period the state will likely experience after the crisis has abated. In particular, SB 89 lays the groundwork to support small business, non-profits and individuals that experience economic hardship as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

SB 117 waives the current Average Daily Attendance requirement in K-12 public and charter schools for the remainder of this academic school year. As of Monday, more than 100 school districts serving more than 2 million students were closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This bill will ensure that all school districts receive their full enrollment funding for the year and makes an additional $100 million available to school districts to purchase personal protective equipment or for supplies and labor costs necessary to conduct additional deep cleaning of schoolsites.

Earlier this year, Levine introduced AB 2646 to permanently eliminate ADA and fund K-12 public education based upon enrollment, not attendance. That legislation will be considered later this spring.

“Success will define us, failure will destroy us,” said Assemblymember Marc Levine. “Today’s actions build a foundation from which California will meet this moment. We will make every resource of the State of California available to curb this pandemic and its impact on our society and economy.”

“Earlier today, six Bay Area counties declared a Shelter in Place Order for its residents from midnight on March 17 until at least April 7,” continued Levine. “I want my constituents to know that my office and I are here to support you and offer our assistance to families during this difficult time. There are a lot of resources available to help families through this crisis and I encourage constituents to reach out by phone or email for immediate support. Californians are strong and resilient. I am confident that by following the guidance of public health officials, practicing social distancing, washing our hands and doing our part to stay healthy, we will flatten the curve and reduce the transmission of COVID-19. These important temporary measures will undoubtedly save lives.”

Assemblymember Levine can be contacted by phone at 415-479-4920 or by email at Assemblymember.Levine@assembly.ca.gov. 

Governor Newsom is expected to sign SB 89 and SB 117 into law. Once signed, these bills will take effect immediately opening up critical resources necessary to address this growing pandemic across the state.

Original source can be found here.