SacTown Talks by The Nooner W/ Scott Lay

Today we welcome Julie Baker, Executive Director of Californians for the Arts. Julie explains how badly hit the arts were by the pandemic, why the California government needs to communicate clear guidelines for reopening, and proposals to help fund California arts to survive and create a cultural Roaring Twenties going forward. 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 Congressional Candidate Nicole Parra. Nicole is a former California Assemblymember running in the 21st Congressional District, which covers 4 counties in the Central Valley. We discuss her time in the Assembly, her bipartisan approach to politics, why she started her campaign so early, and why she thinks she's the right person to fight for the Central Valley. 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!

We welcome our most frequent legislative guest Senator Bill Dodd of the 3rd Senate District, covering parts of Napa and five other counties. We start by discussing his new clean look, then segue into the serious topics of wildfire prevention and protection in 2021, including his new bill for an Office of Wildfire Technology and Research, how the state should manage our water resources, and his hope that the budget will have room for more items than just the priorities of covid and vaccinations. They also discuss the potential return of tourism to his district, the eviction moratorium, and why he feels safe returning to the Senator to work with his colleagues. Finally, on a lighter note, the Senator gives us his pick for the Super Bowl and tells us which athletes make the best wine. All this and more on this episode of SacTown Talks.

The Rose Bowl parade, how his office is working with the governor's office to communicate with the public, how the assembly will be able to function more smoothly this year because of covid-related planning and budget priorities will be focused on vaccines, and opening up both CA schools and the economy more generally. Then they turn to his work as chairman of the Utilities and Energy Committee where they recognize that wildfires are now a year-round possibility that has to be dealt with while working with energy companies to have smart and safe plans that reduce shutoff while maintaining safety. Personally, Assemblymember Holden will be working on issues around systemic racism and use of force with a focus on clear guidelines and penalties around California’s Duty to Intervene Law, diversity in the corporate boardroom and in the upper levels of the California civil service. He also discusses the importance of seeing Dr. Shirley Weber became the Secretary of State,  his focus on ensuring minority small busine

Sactown Talks is about more than policy and politics, it’s also about the culture of the Capitol community. So today we bring you something a little different: an interview with Ryan Hammonds of R. Douglas Custom Clothiers. R. Douglas is blocks from the Capitol, and well known among the more sartorially inclined. Today he and Jarrett discuss how he got into the custom suit game, how his business has fared during the pandemic, style trends for 2021, including some fine details about fabrics and texture, and how many suits you need for daily wear. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter 

This week we interview Catherine Reheis-Boyd, the President of the Western States Petroleum Association. WSPA is a non-profit trade association representing the companies in five Western states – California, Arizona, Nevada, Washington, and Oregon. She joins us to discuss the complicated nature of modern energy policy in the age of climate change, and what California can and should do going forward. We discuss rolling blackout, Governor Newsom’s executive orders, fracking, cap, and trade policy, carbon sequestration, climate change, natural gas, and how moving to a zero-emission future will take longer than we think but is possible with a combined effort and a smart, scientific approach. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter

This week we have Assembly Sharon Quirk-Silva of the 65th assembly district. The 65th covers northern Orange county centered around the city of Fullerton and also includes the amusement parks Knott’s Berry Farms and Disneyland. We begin by discussing the events in Washington, D.C. on January 6th, with her calling it “an assault on democracy,” reminding her of the 2019 anti-vaxxer protest but assuring us that democracy will prevail. We then discuss her budget priorities for 2021, including covid and vaccine distribution, the internet and the digital divide, and housing and homelessness. Her housing and homelessness focus will also be combined with mental health access and a focus on early treatment. As a former teacher married to a current teacher she will also be working on hybrid learning to return students to the classroom in a safe manner. She is the new chair of the Assembly Arts and Entertainment Committee so we also discuss the plans to safely reopen theme parks in California.  Follow us on Facebook and

Today’s guest is Assemblymember Laura Friedman who represents the 43rd Assembly District covering Glendale and the eastern part of the San Fernando Valley. She is a returning guest so we just touch on her past and how she moved from the film industry into politics, first at the city level in Glendale and then to the assembly. Then we discuss her new committee chairpersonship of the Transportation Committee, why she took the job and what are her goals for this year, including her transportation safety bill and desire to move the committee in a progressive direction. Finally, we discuss covid, how it affected her family and community, and what it will take from the state and all of us to be safe as the vaccine is rolled out in California. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter

Welcome to a holiday edition of SacTown Talks. Today we are bringing you a slightly different type of show. One of the major issues confronting the legislature in 2021 is broadband access. This isn’t a new issue but exacerbated by the pandemic, has taken on new relevance and urgency. Listeners of this podcast have been hearing about it for the past six months as legislators have expressed the need for newer, faster, and better broadband access. Today’s episode is a look back at those interviews and how the issue developed over the legislative sessions. From Asm Aguiar-Curry, and Rivas, or Sen. Dodd discussing broadband access as a rural issue or Asm Muratsuchi, Irwin and McCarty as an equity issue or Senator Gonzalez detailing how the state can put money to work on the problem, along with showing in real-time why connectivity isn’t just a rural issue, we explore many sides to the problem on STT.  We hope you enjoy this look back. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter

We welcome Assemblymember Cristina Garcia of the 58th Assembly District to the program. The 58th district covers southeast Los Angeles County, including her hometown of Bell Gardens. We start quickly, jumping right in with a discussion of AB 1, how she got the first bill of the new session together, why reforming the department of toxic substances control is important, and why she thinks her bill will succeed this session. Then we discuss her background before turning to a conversation about covid. She relates stories from her district, how residents are seeing disproportionate infections and death due to working in low wage and the longtime environmental issues in southeastern LA county and residents are having to choose between unemployment and food insecurity, and why assistance will be a priority during the next session. Finally, on a more upbeat note, we discuss her becoming chair of the women’s caucus, her free menstrual products proposal, her “there ought to be a law” contest and her advice to new legi

In this interview we welcome Senator Susan Rubio of the 22nd Senate district. Senator Rubio joins us to discuss her background, why she ran for California senate, covid, and her legislative priorities for this upcoming session. We begin by discussing her background as an undocumented immigrant who was deportetd, how the education system in two state failed her family and caused immense trauma to her twin brother, and how it sparked her passion for teaching, and eventually politics. Then we discuss her work on Early Childhood Education, including upcoming collaboration with other legislators, and her groundbreaking domestic violence legislation to extend the laws to cover coercive control and not just physical violence.Follow us on Twitter and Facebook

Today we welcome Alex Vassar, former legislative staffer, current California State Library employee and prolific California state political history tweeter to the program. They begin by discussing the CA Library, what it does and how it has responded to covid. The conversation then turns to Alex’s journey to the Capitol, working as a legislative staffer, and the history of legislative staffers and the Capital Fellows programs. He and Jarhett then compare the disruption of covid to previous disruption of routine capitol life, including the Spanish Flu, a coup against the Assembly speaker and constant construction. Finally they finish talking about the library's COVID Diaries project, which is collecting stories about experiences during the pandemic from around the state. Follow Us on Twitter and WATCH the full episode on Facebook

This week we welcome back Senator Bob Archuleta of the 32nd Senate District, which covers southeastern LA county. We discuss working on state campaigns during covid, and how his paired down legislative package of five bills were all passed into law. We discuss the details of all five bills, then advice for incoming senators on how he chose his staff, priorities for the next term including his belief that small business relief should be a priority. We end with his Thanksgiving charitable efforts and a discussion of how Governor Newsom has great options of who to appoint to replace Vice President-Elect Harris.Follow Us on Twitter and Facebook

Today we welcome Jim Wunderman the President and CEO of the Bay Area Council. The Bay Area Council is a business association in San Francisco, founded in 1945, and dedicated to economic development in the San Francisco Bay Area. Jim takes up through his personal history and then the history of the Bay Area Council, including the building of BART. Then the conversation turns to COVID, the cyclical nature of the economy in the Bay Area, the nature of the housing crisis and how to fix it. Finally Jim discusses trips to China to observe their building, plans for a larger region council, and how the demise of California is very overstated. Follow Us on Facebook and Twitter

In this episode we welcome Assemblymember Joaquin Arambula of AD31. Dr. Joaquin Arambula represents Fresno and west Fresno County. He is an emergency room doctor and son of former Assemblymember Juan Arambula. We discuss his recent legislative victory and what he has learned about campaigning during covid. Then the discussion turns to healthcare: specifically covid, telehealth and future of healthcare in CA. He explains how his father tried to talk him out of running and why he feels he can do more to help underserved and low income Californians serving in the legislature than seeing patients one at a time.Follow us on Twitter and Facebook

Today we welcome Carmela Coyle, the CEO of the California Hospital Association. She discusses her background in health policy, then segues to an in depth discussion of health policy in California. We discuss how CA is a microcosm of the United States, how covid has affected the hospital system by increasing workloads and decreasing revenue, and how CA needs to plan for the future with both healthcare for all CA and increased capacity for CA hospitals. We also discuss covid testing, flu shots and why this isn’t the right time to focus on seismic retrofitting.  Follow us on Twitter and Facebook

Today our interview is with Lance Hasting of the California Manufacturers and Technology Association. The conversation begins with his background in the legislature and trade associations, and the history of the CMTA. Then the conversation turned to manufacturing in CA, focusing initially on safelymade.org, which organized PPE supplies and distributors across CA. He then discusses the impact of covid on manufacturing, regulation in CA, and how we need to adapt for climate change. Finally he discusses the upcoming election, and how CMTA  companies are all technology companies.  Follow us on Twitter and Facebook

Another special Wednesday episode: this one dedicated to voting in CA. Today we hear from Senator Tom Umberg, chair of the Senate Elections and Constitutional Amendments Committee. He’s an expert on voting in CA, he has been elected in two different decades to both the CA Assembly and Senate, and chaired the elections committee in the Assembly in 2008 which determined there were no problems with mail in or absentee voting. We discuss voting security in CA, how voting in person will be safe during covid, and how we should expect a voting period over a voting day. We also discuss his background as a federal prosecutor, what it was like in the Assembly before term limits, and why racist poll watchers got him to run for office in the first place. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook

Today’s guest is April Verrett, the President of the SEIU, Local 2015. Local 2015 represents 400,000 long term care workers across CA, the largest local union in CA, the largest long term care union in the US, and 2nd largest union in the SEIU. We start by discussing her background organizing hospital workers in Chicago. Then the conversation focuses on long term care in CA, how her membership fared during the budget, and the composition of the union. They then discuss how the union is focused on the November election both nationally and statewide. The conversation finishes about priorities for 2021 and how to fight covid in a way that’s safe for long term care workers and patients, and what makes the SEIU different. Follow Us on  Twitter and Facebook

We welcome Mary Creasman of the League of Conservation Voters to the show. The League is the oldest grassroots environmental organization in the United State with the goal of building political power for the people and the planet. We start by discussing the history of the League and her personal history with environmental justice and labor organizing. Then she discusses the intersection between climate change, racial and social justice, and job growth for the 21st century. She also explains that Governor Newson’s executive orders are significant but the legislature must follow up with new legislation, how voter understand the importance of climate change, and what the League’s goals. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook