Senate Standing Committee on Rules

We are grateful to be with you at this August 14 edition of the Senate Rules Committee. This is going to be our last Committee of the year, and we are grateful that each of you are with us as we approach the legislative deadline here in the California State Senate, in the Legislature.

Before we move on any of today's business, what we'd like to be able to do is open up with a quorum call. We're going to establish a quorum. We're going to turn it over to Madam Secretary.

[Roll Call]

Quorum has been established. We want to take a moment of personal privilege to be able to acknowledge two individuals today, and that is first and foremost, Senator Eggman. Senator Eggman will be retiring from the California Legislature here at the end of the year. This is going to be her first excuse. I keep saying first, last Rules Committee.

And we want to take a moment to be able to celebrate her, her distinguished service, first as a veteran, as a social worker, and, of course, as an amazing Legislator here in the State of California who was delivered time and time again, truly the pride of Stockton.

I think we need to give her a round of applause, please. My goodness. Thank you. And speaking of veterans, I'd like to better turn it over to Senator Grove. Madam Vice Chair, if there are any items that you'd like to be able to say.

Thank you, Mister chair. As soon as we came in together in 2010 in the California State Assembly, and it's been my honor to work with you.

We don't always agree, but what I love about you most and a few other Members is that, you know, we can disagree and get into a knockdown, drag out fist fight, and then we do go have champagne and talk and laugh and tell jokes later.

And I don't think that there's anybody who has joined Senator Atkins and I on our Dolly Parton, Glenn Campbell, all those songs. You know, we all sing pretty good with a hairbrush in our hand and. But on a serious note, I want to thank you for one, putting your hand in the air and swearing.

Defend this country against all enemies, foreign and domestic, and providing excellent service in your military career and then coming back to the civilian world and working on mental health issues as a social worker and then coming to the California State Legislature and being one of the, if not only the leading champion of mental health and social service worker.

Social service. Because there are people that are damaged. And you said one time in a floor speech, you don't want to say, damaged beyond repair. But there are people that have different life experiences that create damage, and you really understand how to help those people. And the legislation that you've put forth is.

Is going to be so beneficial, especially the one that the Governor signed last year. It's been my honor to work with you, fellow veteran. I think the way you take care of your family, Emmy and Renee, is just extraordinary. You are raising one incredible young lady that is.

Gosh, God has opened doors before her, and she really is just an amazing young woman. And so I just want to thank you for letting me serve with you. Thank you for bailing me out when I have my meltdowns, especially when I was confronting that drug dealer on the street. You were awesome. She's like, come to work.

Just get in the car and come to work. And so you're just. You're one of those people that are going to be hard to replace. You can't be replaceable, because not only are you professional, but you're also personal, and you're a really good friend. And I appreciate you, my friend.

Thank you, Madam Vice Chair. We'd like to be able to turn it over to Doctor Eggman for any remarks.

Well, thank you. I don't know all you people, but thank you. Glad you came to my party. Nice. But just to thank this body, I really have only been able to do rules for a year, but I thoroughly have enjoyed it. The deliberation and always the professionalism of the staff and the Members and our behavior.

I think this really helps. I mean, it provides a different view. People always think of politics as very dysfunctional and not working. And I think we just provide a lovely model of people who respect each other and are really interested in doing the people's work, who come together and get it done.

So I have appreciated my time with each and every one of you, as well as the staff, again, to thank you and all of us. So thank you. I'm gonna miss it. I'm gonna miss it. It's been a good run.

Thank you so much. And best days are still ahead. And really grateful, Senator Eggman. And if we could please give Senator Eggman another round of applause and say thank you. Very grateful. Thank you. We also want to be able to acknowledge our Committee Secretary Chinook has been delivering for the people of California for over 30 years.

In fact, 33, to be exact. She has served this Legislature both in the Assembly and the Senate. And the best thing that has ever happened to the Senate is right before the pandemic hit. She came back to be able to finish her career. She is professional. She is butting up tenacious and candidly.

This Committee and everything that we do would fall apart without her. And she is truly one of the best. And we cannot say thank you enough. And I think we need to give her a round of applause and say thank you for service.

I'd like to be able to turn it over to Madam Vice Chair as well as to the secretary. Madam Vice Chair, please. Any remarks?

Well, all that you said, I just affirm what you said. And, Chinook, you know, I served on this Committee with you for four years now, and you really are the wheel. You are what makes the wheels move in this community.

And even when they leave me the mic, which is just beyond compare, why they would give me the mic, it's under my. What do you call it? My governorship. What do you call it? Yeah. My Administration. So when they leave me here and I'm in charge and it's my Administration, you don't let me miss a beat.

And you are just really incredible. And for you to come back after Covid to make sure that we still had the order in the house that we needed, because the Rules Committee is a vital part of our process in running the house.

And for you to do that and give up that four years of your time with family, retirement and all that kind of stuff, that just shows the kind of leader that you are and that you really do deeply care about this state. So, thank you. We will miss you.

Big shoes to fill for whoever's coming up behind you. But we just thank you for all your dedicated 30 years to the people of the State of California. So, thank you.

Thank you so much. Now I'd like to better turn it over to the secretary of Senate, Erica Contreras.

So I'll just clarify that when we hired Chinook, she actually was hired to do a different job. She did not anticipate that she was going to be helping the Rules Committee during a global pandemic.

And so I was just very grateful that three weeks into her job, when the pandemic hit, she agreed to stay with us and reinvent the Senate so that we could continue to serve the public, that we could work with our Rules Committee to support the Legislature and reinvent ourselves in a way that allows the legislators to serve the public, pass a budget, and approve essential legislation during those years that we were in crisis.

And so thank you so much for your commitment and your help and for not running away after those three weeks. Thank you very much.

Thank you so much. I thank you for your amazing work. We were just talking how you're feeling and you said, I'm really excited. Please, we're going to turn the floor over to you if you'd like to better say any words. Would you like to say anything? All right. See, there we go.

Believe me, she said she's really excited. There we go. Am I right? Yes. Yes. And it is an emotional time as well. And just on behalf of the entire Committee, we want to say thank you for serving the people of California. Can we please give a round of applause?

Chinook is going to whoop upside the head after this because she does not like spotlights. So. Hey, there we go. But thank you. And congratulations, ladies and gentlemen. Committee. Thank you, Madam Vice Chair as well. And Madam Secretary, for those beautiful words of both.

We'd like to be able to look towards our agenda and focus on the business of our day. What we'd like to be able to do is take up some administrative items here. We appreciate the Governor appointees who are required to appear.

We're going to take out these administrative items and we'll get right into our first book of business. First and foremost is item number two. Governor's appointment. Not required to appear. We'd like to go to see if there's a motion. We have a motion by Madame Vice Chair. Please. Madame Vice Chair.

E, F, G, H, and I

Yes. Yes, please. E through. I to e through I. To e three. I. To e through I. We have a motion by Madam Vice Chair. Madam Secretary, can you please call the room?

[Roll Call]

It's a 5-0 vote. 5-0 vote. That motion passes. We're now going to be moving on to Bill referrals. Is there a motion to approve?

So moved.

We have a motion by Madam Vice Chair. Madam Secretary, can you please call the roll?

[Roll Call]

That's a 5-0 vote. That motion passes. We're now going to be moving on to rule waiver requests. Easy for me to say. Item four is request by the Committee on Budget and fiscal review to suspend joint rule 61 to allow AB's 157, 158 and 176 through 185 to be heard in the Committee during the blackout period.

Is there a motion?

I so move.

We have a motion by Senator Laird. Madam Secretary, can you please call the roll?

[Roll Call]

3-2 vote. That motion passes. We're now going to be moving onto Committee appointments. Changes to Committee appointments. Items five through 12. Removing Senator Alrato Gill from all Committee assignments, leaving a vacancy in those committees to be filled at a date to be determined. We will seek a motion.

I move items five through 12.

We have a motion by Senator Laird. Madam Secretary, may I speak to the motion? Oh, yes, please.

Obviously, this is an interesting time in the Legislature to have a Member change parties, and I kind of understand the reasoning behind the Committee chair position. I would hope that there is precedent in the Senate for a Republican to hold a chair of a Committee.

I'm not saying that this is necessarily the Committee that we would particularly ask to have a chairmanship of, but I'm hoping that we can get back to that precedent at some point in time. I'm deeply concerned and opposed specifically to the removal of all the remaining committees.

Senator Alvarado-Gil represents a million constituents of the State of California.

She has a very important role in the agricultural industry in her area, in addition to the insurance, in addition to other committees that she serves on, she has an important voice to lend to the legislative process of California and to this House and to Legislature in total.

And I will be, I don't want to say fighting, arguing, advocating that should be put on very specific committees going down the road from here. But I am a little bit disappointed in this action today.

Thank you so much, Leader Jones. Appreciate that. Please, Madam Vice Chair.

Thank you, Mister chair. I do concur with Leader Jones. Comments. You know, we have a Latina woman. We're looking at parity for us as legislators in the body to get parity so that women can have their positions in this body.

We have a Latina woman who is being ostracized and removed from committees, every other Republican, even though there's only, well, there's nine of us now, but there's only eight of us before. We all serve on committees that represent our districts.

You've been very gracious in making sure that we sit on committees that are associated to our district so that we can have a voice for the people that have elected us to be here. All 40 of us, whether you're in the Democrat party or the Republican Party, represent almost a million people.

And to take retaliatory action against Senator Marie Alvarado-Gil, I think, is not appropriate and not worthy of what this body should do. She has a right to represent the people that she's been voted in by and represent her district.

And she may have a difference of opinion with sometimes both parties, but she's doing what she wants to, what she feels she needs to do to represent her district. And that includes what she did last week and the boats that she takes. She doesn't align with either of us 100% of the time.

And to take this action, I think, is inappropriate. I do agree with my colleague, Senator Jones. When Senator Borges was given the chairmanship of agriculture because he ran the top. It was the top food producing county in the entire State of California, actually, the world.

And I know that the chairmanship is very important, almost always held by Democrats. So I understand the reason for removing her from a chairmanship. But for the life of me, I don't understand removing her from all the committees.

We all serve on committees, and we all have a voice, and we all need the opportunity to represent the people that elect us. So I just. I'll be voting no again on these motions as well. Thank you, sir, for letting me say that.

No. Thank you so much, Madam Vice Chair. Thank you, Mister Leader. Today's action is under the normal course of business. And when there's a significant change, like when we had last week, we need to evaluate the balance of committees, including the size and geographic makeup. We're beginning to evaluate these issues.

And we'll be back in front of this Committee in the coming weeks. And that is also something that I have shared with Leader Jones. And you have my commitment on that. We currently have a motion on the floor by Senator Laird.

And I want to say thank you so much, Leader Jones and Madam Vice Chair, for the comments. Appreciate that, Madam Secretary, can you please call the roll?

[Roll Call]

That's a 32 vote, and the motion passes. Thank you so much, ladies and gentlemen of Committee. We're now going to be moving onto floor. Acknowledgments. Is there a motion to approve? We have a motion by Senator Eggman. Madam Secretary, can you please call the roll?

[Roll Call]

That motion passes. Thank you so much. That is now going to bring us back up to the first part of our business. We're going to start with Members of the State Board of Education. We're going to invite each of the three to be able to please come forward to the dais.

We'll take a 30 second recess as each of the Members please come forward. We welcome you to Committee. We'll get you situated, and we appreciate you being here.

It is often a thankless job, and it's incredible work that you do on behalf of the hundreds of thousands of kids here in the State of California. We're going to ask each of you to be able to provide one to two minutes of an opening statement.

During that time, we welcome you to be able to provide any welcoming remarks to friends or family who may be here in the audience or watching online. After that, we're going to open it up to the Committee for any questions or comments. And again, we appreciate each and every one of you for being here.

We're now going to have Miss Brownson start us off. We welcome you to Committee. You have one to two minutes. And thank you so much again for your service.

Thank you.

It's already on. Okay. Good afternoon. And I just want to start by thanking Chairman McGuire and the Members of the Senate Rules Committee. Thank you also to your staff from the Senate rules consultants and staff and the State Board of Education and Governor's office staff who have helped us navigate this process.

And lastly, I, of course, want to say thank you to Governor Newsom for putting our names forward. Much of the State Board of Education's work, I think, centers on fairly technical rules and regulations, and our formal written application, I think, speaks to much of that.

But what I really wanted to anchor on today is why this work matters and what has really animated not just my interest in continuing to serve on the State Board of Ed, but really my broader 20 plus year career in education policy and implementation.

I think California public schools offer incredible opportunities for strong beginnings, for transformation, and for a brand of fairness that is uniquely californian. In my own case, I went to urban public schools, largely Low income public schools, and I've seen firsthand what it looks like when kids fall through the cracks.

I have also seen what it looks like when things work gloriously well, when the adults are aligned, when the focus is always on improvement and making the systems work.

And in my own personal experience, I had the great fortune of graduating from public schools and going off to Harvard College and had this epiphany moment when I came back and fortuitously ran into my high school principal with Marian Collins, who was still a legend.

And it was a moment where she said to me, how did we do? Did we prepare you? And I think every college and high school kid knows that they don't do it alone.

But I very much feel the weight of a debt of gratitude to the people and systems that made my own educational journey possible and see incredible opportunities ahead for the next generation.

So when I think about what we can do in the future, those values around fairness and transformation and strong beginnings are what I look to for the term to come. So thank you for your consideration.

Thank you so much madam board Member. Grateful you're here. We'll be opening up for questions and comments from the Committee in just a moment. Mister McQuillen, it's good to see you sir. You have two minutes. The floor is yours.

Thank you. Let's see. Ayaqui knacknow. Jim, I greet you in the language of the Yurok people. I'm Jim McQuillen. I'm honored to be asked to be reappointed by the Governor and all of you to come back again for four more years on the State Board of Education.

It is a lot of work and a lot of preparation on top of being a full time employee. And I oversee a tribal education Department up north with lots of employees. I want to give a shout out to my co pilot in the back. My wife Christine is in the back.

And we made the long drive to Sacramento. We know the drive very well. We're both alumni from up the street, J Street here, California State University, Sacramento, where we met. And we have six children together who have done very well in public education.

They're all out there working heavy equipment operators and one who just became a licensed chiropractor and one public policy graduate from Berkeley. So we're products of the public education system. Also got an earlier question with Senator Laird about what motivates us to do this type of work.

And I thought about all the kids up north who are struggling and those who have benefited from education and seen the power of education and Members of my own family and myself and want to see that achievement gap close also and want to make a difference by serving on the State Board of Education.

I've enjoyed the service to the great State of California and being a rep from way up north or for once way up in the last County of California on the north coast, up in Crescent City. That's where I'm from. But thank you, Mister Bomer.

Thank you. Thank you for all your work on behalf of all the kids, but in particular your work with the Yurok tribe. We are very grateful and you bring such a unique perspective to the board of education and we are so appreciative of your willingness. We had to step up again. Thank you so much. Walk now.

Walk now.

Thank you so much. We're now going to be looking at board Member Rodriguez. Madam board Member, thank you so much for being here. The floor is yours. You have two minutes.

Thank you so much. It's an honor to be here. My name is Haydee Rodriguez, and I'm a national board certified teacher. I teach at a high school in El Centro, California. And I want to acknowledge that my students and my colleagues couldn't be here, but they are watching live. So hello, Spartans. Thank you.

And I also have the mayor of City of imperial, Dennis Morita, who I'd like to acknowledge that is also watching, and a few other people who said they would be tuning in, family Members. And I want to echo the gratitude to the Senate Rules Committee for hosting us today and gratitude to the governor's office and the staff.

I'm very grateful to Governor Newsom for believing that I would be a good representative on the State Board of Education and especially having the teacher voice sitting in this Member body that tells us that, you know, we get to talk about where the policies land right in the classroom and how they affect our students.

And so that is very unique perspective. So also what motivates me. In 2011, I was in a, I had a near death experience. I was hit by a semi. We were t boned. And because I live in a very remote region in Imperial County, won't talk about Salton Sea, I live in Imperial County.

And I had to be helicoptered to Palm Springs unconscious. And I was in a coma for a month. And when I came out of the coma, my surgeon, who saved my life, said, so you're the teacher? And I didn't know. I was all tubed up. I didn't know what he was talking about.

And he said, this is Palm Springs. We have celebrities who come here. We had 4000 calls the first two days. We had to ask people to stop calling. And I was teaching theater at the time, so I know that some of my students disguise their voice, so maybe that, you know, 100.

But I remember lying there in bed, and then I looked around at all the posters, all the rapper names my students had given me throughout the years. Fr Izzle was the most popular one. And I thought, wow, did I make the right decision to be a teacher? Right.

To have access to young minds is just an incredible privilege. To watch the transformation that my colleague talked about and to see that day in and day out. And now to be able to do this at a statewide level. Right.

You know, the classrooms, the schools throughout the State of California is just a tremendous privilege, and that is what motivates me. In addition to the fact that I dropped out of high school, I didn't, I didn't feel that I didn't like my rebellious side.

And I come from a family of educators, so it was not, it didn't fall well. The multiple measures that we talk about today and different ways of demonstrating what we know, what our students know is very powerful. And when I was in high school, there was only one way, there was only one right answer.

And I like that our state and I want to continue this work is able to give our students multiple abilities to demonstrate their knowledge, their mastery. And I like to continue that work.

Thank you. We are so grateful. And we are going to start calling our new board Member rizzle. All right, hay c. There we go. That was a wonderful story and the impact that teachers have on the lives of people. Right. Thank you. And just so appreciate you sharing that.

And thank you so much for stepping up to serve. We're so appreciative that you're here. Thank you so much. Thank you. We'd like to be able to open it up to the Committee to be able to seek any questions. Comments, Senator Laird on the Salton Sea, please.

We have to adjourn by five, so I will not be speaking at the Salton Sea. Let me thank all three of you for meeting with me, and two of you just jumped the gun a little.

But let me try anyway and start with Member Brownson, because I realized when you left my office that I was really moved by each of you talking about what your motivation was and also how you would take your life experience and turn it into action at the board.

And so I'll put that to Member Brownson and then let the other two add if they think their previous answer wasn't enough.

So I think two of the themes that I named at the beginning were around strong beginnings or strong foundations and also of addressing the achievement gap in the last couple of years.

With both the advent of transitional kindergarten, but also, I think, a bolstering of the sort of preschool to third grade trajectory, the state has an incredible opportunity to actually get the ground laid so solidly so that we could really, I think, transform K through 12.

The study that I had shared in our conversation with Senator Laird earlier is when you look at California's school performance on a grade by grade growth level, California actually does slightly better than the rest of the nation on year to year growth from each grade.

But where our most challenge is that in the very first year of testing in third grade, California kids start so much behind the eight ball that there's just not enough time to actually make up that differential of foundations that have not yet been built.

And so particularly as I think about what can be done in this next term, with the State Board Continuing to build that strong foundation of PK to three, is a place where the state has already been making massive and really unprecedented investments, both in transitional kindergarten, in the literacy roadmap, in literacy coaches.

And these are all investments that properly sort of brought to bear at the school level, could transform the foundations that kids rely on for the rest of their k to 12 career. And that is a really, I think, exciting moment, a promising moment, and one that I'm hoping we can lean into in the next couple of years.

Thank you. Member McQuillan, do you have anything you want to add?

Hard to follow that, but I think of my own experience and how that plays out in my role in the state board of education. And I'm thinking of the new ethnic studies graduation requirement that California has going to be implemented very soon, and how rich our cultures are throughout the State of California and diverse and up north.

The kids call this thing success in both worlds and American Indian kids that you don't have to necessarily give up your own culture in order to be successful in today's world. And I think it's a wonderful message that native kids have up there for all, all cultures that you can retain your own culture.

We have our language offered in the four major districts up there, school district, our native language, and it's articulated to meet the entry into CSU and the UC system. And there's a way now our graduation rates are going up for American Indian kids up north.

And kids don't no longer have to feel that they have to give up one in order to be successful in today's world.

It's a great goal for all of the cultures and I think of the statewide model curriculum projects that are moving forward to support the ethnic studies and how that can play out throughout so many cultures and how diverse our state is. Thank you.

Thank you. Member Rodriguez.

Yes, thank you. So as I mentioned, I dropped out of high school and I would do not want anybody to go through the pain that I went through by making that short sighted, rebellious decision. One of the advantages that I had is that I came from a family of educators and I was in a college prep school.

So I knew, I mean, I didn't know. I went through a couple of years of depression. Eventually I did get back and was able to continue and go to college and study. I want to prevent that pain for other students.

And I want, when we look at, you know, the CTE programs, for example, that we offer at our schools, I watch students who didn't feel like they had a purpose in school and they're walking around Taller. They're. Miss Rodriguez, I'm in the, you know, I built that pergola, you know, that's like right outside of my classroom.

And they're just so proud and they have plans for what they're going to do, whether it's with music, theater. You know, we offer a lot of CTE opportunities for our students. And so making decisions and sitting with Member McQuillen on the Quapjack, the California Workforce Joint Advisory Committee, I forgot what the P was for Preparation. Right.

And we make decisions about CTE and offering programs for students that are even younger. It doesn't have to be high school, but where they're actually using what we just spoke about with the experiential learning, where they're not just telling us what they know, but they're showing us what they can do with what they know.

That's very valuable for me because I think it's purpose that we build into our young people's lives by providing these opportunities.

And so that is, you know, when I make decisions on the state board, I think about my own experiences and the high schools that I would have loved so that there are enough spokes, like the spokes of a wheel in place so a child doesn't have to make a bad decision.

And thinking about, you know, again, you know, the multiple measures that we have for schools to show us, right. Are they doing well on tests? Do we have community participation with the LCAP model? How are they, what's the school climate? Right. You know, and teachers, we can do that for our students as well.

Give them multiple measures to show us what they know, to create environments where there's a variety happening. And I'm excited to be part of this change, this transformation in education.

Our current state board, I really appreciate that response. And it occurs to me, and maybe it's prurient interest, have you encountered students in your own classes that were rebellious the way you thought you were rebellious in high school? And how does that allow you?

Do you have a way to reach them in a way you thought you weren't reachable when that happened?

Absolutely. I just don't give them anything to rebel against because if

I want to be a rebel in your class

You know, if they feel like they have something to rebel, they will. And so, and, you know, over a thousand years ago, St. Augustine said that, you know, it's important for a student to know that you love them.

And while that's, you know, very General, General word and concept, but my students know when they walk into my classroom that they're welcome there, that they're accepted, and that they, if they're, if they want to push, which is a very natural aspect of adolescence. Right.

If they want to push the envelope, there will be a consequence, but not punishment. And so they just, you know, they know that what I'm, what I'm proposing to them is for their own good. They know that.

That's impressive. Well, thank you, all three of you. Thank you for your willingness to serve. I appreciate the response.

Thank you, Senator Laird. Senator Eggman, did you have questions?

These are three reappointments to three very clearly qualified people, and I just thank you for your continued service. Thank you. Inspiration for California.

Thank you, ma'am. Senator Jones, did you have questions?

Yeah, just a quick one that maybe each person can address.

I've got in my notes from some of the research, and then it reminded me I've heard from a couple of public school teachers and some administrators and some parents that are concerned about, I guess I'll use their term, the new math that the State Board of Education passed last year.

And it seems to have been not, it seems to be not working out very well. My understanding is a unanimous vote by the board, and I just wondered if you have some comments on that. Is it working out the way you expected? Is it a disaster?

You know, what are your, you know, if there was my understanding, there wasn't a very robust discussion about this when it came up as robust as many of our school administrators would have hoped for.

So I just wondered if you could speak to that issue, and if I need to get you some more information, I'll try to spin through my notes here real quick and try to get it.

If you need it, I can start. It was the framework that we passed I last year, and we're moving into the process. So our selection of materials will take place next of a workgroup out there exploring different materials that will be used for the framework.

My understanding of the framework is it's much different in terms of building the background for students so that they know how mathematics affects, affects them in everyday life before they plunge in and talk about algorithms and other parts of it so that they can be more turned on to math rather than turned off building that background.

There's a lot of flexibility on the local level where leas can develop their sequence within their own parameters locally, can be encouraged to accelerate if they're ready to. It meets the students at their level, that framework, and they can accelerate.

Or if they need extra supports, it builds those supports around them, whether they need extra help after school or before school or tutoring, it allows for that. And then possibly if there are barriers, social emotional barriers, with all the support systems trying to remove those social emotional barriers so they can learn. So that's all in the framework.

So thank you.

One of the early presentations on the math framework that I remember particularly related to the ideas presented in early math is that in a recent poll, top two phobias named by Americans across the board is public speaking and math.

And so I think a lot of the math framework is really aimed at creating different points of entry to make something that's vital and necessary for kids to learn, but to make it more approachable to work with word problems more, for example, that is much more a practical application rather than just sort of more abstract concepts right away.

And to board Member McQuillen's comments earlier, this idea of meeting where, meeting students where they are, rather than having a set trajectory of in this grade, this student shall take this course and there's no flexibility, but instead to preserve flexibility so that local school administrators and math teachers can actually help a student navigate what content they're ready for.

And when there's a lot of discussion around, and we had a lot of public comment around what grade algebra begins in.

And that, by the way, is one where we preserve the option to continue to have algebra in 8th grade if the student is ready to have acceleration pathways ways later into high school, if that is more appropriate.

And if I could say, and thank you for that. And I'll give you an example of when I was teaching avid. In avid, we have what are called tutorials. So the students bring in something that they're struggling with. They sit in the group and they ask questions to help guide them to solve the problems, right?

And we have tutors, but the tutors don't give him the answers. So they ask him, what do you think this looks like? How should this look? So I had a student who came in one day and she's like, Miss Rodriguez, is it okay if I don't participate in the tutorial? And I said, why? What's going on?

And she's like, I'm struggling with equations and I just don't want to see math right now. And I said, well, okay, but maybe I'm going to have you help me with something. I'm planning a party and I need some help. So she's like, well, how much are you going to spend?

I knew she was really good at party planning, and so I told her, x amount of money, right? And so she wrote it down, and I'm going to have this. And how much is this going to cost? And so anyway, when we were done, she. I told her, oh, I'm going to invite this many people.

She's like, no, you can't, because this and the food. So before I knew it, she was. I said, okay, thank you. I'm really not having a party. But you just used equations in all of the problems that you solved. And that's when I voted for the new math framework.

That's what I thought about giving students different opportunities to use the mathematical brain that we all have. I think we were all born with the mathematical brain to solve problems. And so when students are given problems, especially as their brains are growing and they're pruning in adolescence, they become problem solvers.

And they don't feel that fear of math, right. Because it just, you know, I tell them the numbers aren't going to jump out and, you know, start, like, scratching you. They're just numbers. But that fear is very real.

Thank you, Senator Jones. Senator McGuire did have to step out as Senate pro tem and chair of rules, and he has a big plate and he asks for his forgiveness and he will be back as soon as he possibly can.

You guys mentioned CTE, just for everybody watching online that don't follow education as much as all of us do. Career technical education. Career technical education was taken out of the school system for quite a long period of time where we threw every kid on an avenue to college.

Excuse me, I like you in my high school dropout, and I'm one of 40. Go figure. So I guess my question is that are you guys promoting CTE on a regular basis? And there's other avenues because not every kid's going to go to college. We need mechanics.

If they like mechanic work, we like the kids that like to work with their tools. I mean, I look at my 11 grandkids, I've got one that wants to talk about Mount Vesuvius and how tornadoes start. And is the Earth's core really this? And then I've got one that's like, you know, he could care less.

So I think every kid is different. And so I'm just asking about your career technical education foundation in the schools and what your recommendations are.

Miss sure.

Oh, sir, go right ahead.

Miss I recently began to chair the Subcommitee on Career technical education that we have. It's a joint advisory between state board and community colleges board Members, and the state has made significant investments in career technical education. We do appreciate that and see that not everyone needs to go to college or will go to college.

We need those folks who are going to work on our electric cars, who are beyond just plumbers and woodworkers. It's very technical. Those health professions. When our computers go down, who's going to fix those computers? Who do we call? And those are the folks that we're talking about, those jobs for the future.

And many of them, we can't even visualize what they are yet because they're down the road for that next generation. So we need to be ready. There are so many different jobs out there that require that technical hands on. In my introduction, I have a daughter who just became licensed as a chiropractor and she's very busy.

She'll see 40 people in a day. That's the same area that we're talking about. So very important for us all for those positions, and they're nothing. Typically four year college degrees. There are folks who are ready to go to work in a year or a couple years of training. So very important.

Thank you. Either. Yes. And I serve with Member McQuillan on the Committee. And thank you for clarifying career technical education. I think that sometimes we use so many acronyms. Yes, yes, exactly. We have made a huge investment and definitely support the pathways.

We have also found that when it comes to attendance, students in high schools who are participating in career pathways tend to have better attendance. Right. And that says, that goes back to purpose. They feel like they're working towards something. We have a lot of great partnerships and they're, of course, tailored toward community needs. Right.

I'm from a very similar agricultural community like Bakersfield, and so we have certain needs that perhaps they don't have in Los Angeles. And so we find the professionals to come in and work with our students and model, and there's something very powerful about mentorship.

Absolutely. Thank you. The next question I have is that, you know, I'm one of those people that thinks that every parent pays taxes. Whether you're a parent and have a kid in school or a grandparent or you have no children in school, you still pay taxes for the education that's provided to. Obviously, the constitution says that.

California Constitution says that every child is entitled to a free public education, but it doesn't say it be in a public building. That's very clear.

I'm interested to know your position on school choice, specifically charter schools, but also money following the student, because there are a lot of students that left behind in our traditional public schools that may need. And let's just be honest, I love teachers, and I think teachers are great, but there's not a teacher like you.

In every single school, there's a kid. If a kid comes to some teachers and says, I don't really want to do equations today, well, too bad you're going to do equations. And then there's a Defiance, a rebellion, whatever happens, right?

That's more of the stuff that I get coming into my office than the exemplary teacher that you have described about how you handle students. So I'm interested in your opinion on school choice and what that looks like to you. If you are interested or you're opposed to it, Miss Rodriguez, we can start with you. Sure. I apologize.

No, that's fine. Yes. Actually, when in 2001, I was one of 10 teachers that founded a charter school in East Palo Alto, and I believe that sometimes it's necessary. There wasn't a public high school in East Palo Alto, so students were being sent off up to 30 miles from their homes to go to school. Right.

So that's why we started that particular school, and it's thriving today, I'm happy to say.

And that gave the parents in that community the choice, the necessary choice to be able to be on top of, you know, going to visit the school, being able to know how their students were doing, their children were doing, knowing the teachers, which is a lot harder when they're being bussed out so far away.

And not all students learn the same. And so sometimes there are schools that are tailored for particular student needs or certain communities. Right. And that's. And I've seen in my years some wonderful charter schools. And like public education, like traditional public schools, accountability is always necessary, right. Because, like you said, it's public funds.

And so I just want to make sure that all students are welcome, that they're all having their needs met, that they're following the same guidelines that the state has established for all other public schools.

Thank you. Yes, sir.

I'm thinking about, up north, all the options we have within our existing public system. Not as many options as some of the urban areas, but there are. There's magnet type programs within the districts up there, outdoor education.

There are a few charters that offer options also for students that need accelerated learning or who, for whatever reason, need something a little bit different or who need extra support. Some of the charters offer that up there. It's pretty good, though, some of those options.

Thank you. Member Brownson.

Yeah, I definitely have seen and support the wide variety of school options that are available to parents and children in my home town in Los Angeles Unified. It's actually called the choices brochure, and it includes a whole variety of bilingual schools, of magnet schools, of charter schools.

Actually, we've had a number of appeals previously come our way around international baccalaureate schools. And I think that set of options enables parents to effectively navigate a system and figure out what their kids need and where they can best be served.

And we have, particularly in the context of appeals, seeing a wide variety of schools come and testify before the state board. Thank you.

Just a comment on the comments that you made. I asked that question because I have a friend that has a Down syndrome child who's not high functioning but mid level functioning.

And all of her, all the way up to 8th grade or freshman year, she was told by the public, your kid's never going to be able to do this. Your daughter will never be able to do this, won't be able to do this. And they found a private school, cost them $12,000 a year, and it's very expensive.

They don't get any state help for that. She goes to that school. She's in drama. She's in language arts. She started selling art. She's developed an art skill. She auctions off artwork for a lot of money. Like she raises a lot of money for veterans. $50,000.

I think the last piece that she did on a flag was some trees in front of it. She's really gifted. She's in cheer. She plays soccer. And like I said, the language arts program and her speech therapy that she gets from that school that her parents have to pay for after paying taxes.

The speech pathologist or the speech person that's assigned to that school has really increased her vocabulary where she's actually very well communicative. She started her own instagram page. And so it's just really a good success story. And I just don't know why that's not offered to every student.

You have to be wealthy to be able to get your student the right education that you want them to go to because we don't allow the money to follow student. And then on your comment, Miss Rodriguez, there are a lot of parents who don't agree with what's going on in our public school. System.

And they want an option. So for you to say that they can have that option. As long as we follow these rules that are set by the state. I disagree with you on that, but I thank you very much for your comments. I clarified CTE, and I think that's all I had. But thank you.

Any other questions from the dais? We're good. We are now going to go to public comment. If there's anybody in the audience that would like to come forward and make a statement. In support. In support. Please come forward to this microphone right here. Please state your name and brief comments and where you're from or who you represent.

And brief comments on your support position.

Perfect. Sara Bachez with ChildrenNow, the Board of Education reappointments for Kim Pattilla Brownson, Haydee Rodriguez and James McQuillen. Thank you so much.

Thank you, ma'am. Welcome, sir.

Thank you. Madam Vice Chair Members Tristan Brown with CFT, union of educators and classified professionals. We have the honor to speak to every candidate. And have had the pleasure to work with them over the last few years in their first appointment. I think Senator Talamata Zegman said it perfectly. We've heard amazing testimony here today.

We're looking forward to another four years. So we ask for their support today. Thank you.

Thank you, sir. Yes, ma'am.

Thank you. Madam Chair. Alice Kessler. I'm here on behalf of the California Charter Schools Association. And we are also pleased to support all three of the board Members and their confirmation. Really appreciate the dialogue today on school choice and charter school issues. And I just think this panel represents great diversity. In terms of their experience.

Where they are in the state and the students that they're each uplifting. So I wanted to strongly encourage their confirmation. Thank you.

Yes, ma'am. Thank you.

Diana Vu On behalf of the Association of California School Administrators in strong support of Members Pattillo Brownson, McQuillan, and Rodriguez. Thank you.

Thank you. Yes, ma'am.

Good afternoon. Lindsay Tortnatore on behalf of the California County Superintendents, in strong support of each of the three appointees.

Thank you. Any others in the room? With support? We'll go to opposition. Anybody in the room for opposition? Seeing none in opposition, I'll bring it back to the diethyde for questions or a motion. Yes, Senator Laird?

I would move approval of all three nominees. And that we forward their names to the Senate Floor for confirmation.

Thank you, Senator. Secretary, will you please call the roll? Pardon me. Together on all three? Together, yes. Yes.

[Roll Call]

So we will wait for Senator McGuire to come back and cast his vote. And knowing Senator Mcguire, I know that he will probably be an aye vote. I can't speak for him, but we look forward to your confirmation on the floor. Thank you for being here today.

Thank you. Thank you for your time. Thank you.

I'm looking at our court reporter. Do you need a break? No. Okay. So next we are going to take up Mrs. Delbar. Please come up to the table. These are Governor's appointees still required to appear. The item is 1D, colleagues, for the appointment of Katherine or Katie Delbar to the Board of Forestry and Fire Protection. Please feel free to open. We'll give you a couple of minutes to open and share if you have family or guests here. And then just tell us a little bit about yourself and why you're seeking this appointment.

Thank you. Good morning. And I just wanted to say congratulations to Ms. Shin for retirement and for you as well. I retired for 33 years with the federal government, so you're, you're gonna really enjoy it. I wanna introduce today my husband, Michael Delbar is with me in the back.

I have served eight years so far on the Board of Forestry as their Livestock Range Representative Director and have really enjoyed that. I come from a background of cattle and hay, and we grow in Potter Valley, California, so with strong roots. My family settled there in 1859, and we're still there going as strong as you can go with costs and everything else that goes on in agriculture. So we... I'm apologizing. I'm a little nervous this morning.

That's okay. We're nobody. Trust us.

I don't know. You caught me up on all the education. I'm also sitting on the board of the school board in our little town. And so that was really interesting. Well, thank you. So after I came on the board, in 2016 and 2018, our ranch was taken by the Ranch Fire in Mendocino County and went into Lake County, and we lost 5000 acres, 1800 acres of timber that just will never come back to the way it was.

And then it was, it headed out into the national forest where we also have a permit, and we lost 40 head of cattle out there and worked it every single day for about 45 days to try to rescue what we could and bring back. I bring this up because by being on the board, I've seen both sides of what the timber industry and also landowners go through. And I've been on this side without the fires and trying to figure out how to do the work that needs to be done on land to make it resilient.

And I've also been on the other side now where we've lost it all. And how do you restore and bring back what was once there? And both are extremely difficult as small landowners. So I feel like that gives me one side to be able to speak out on the board and help.

And the other side is trying to remind people that livestock plays a huge role in helping California fight fires. And I feel like we've kind of lost that perspective along the way. There once was a poster that CAL FIRE had that showed cattle, and it said, you know, these are your neighbors that help prevent wildfires.

And I haven't seen that in a very long time. And I'm sure it's not one that's used anymore, but it's very true. And we could really see that on our ranch when it burned through, one side of it was grazing and the other side, when you got to the top, you hit the timber. And the part that was grazed was slower.

We didn't have any help besides our own family that were on the ranch during the time to help put it out. We saved our home, and we saved some of the fencing around it, but that was it. But when it hit the timber, it really went, and the oak trees flourished where the fire went through.

And there was actually some real nice benefits from what happened on that side, but on the other side it destroyed. So I'm a real advocate for trying to get livestock back out on the ground. It needs to be managed, and if it's done properly, it can be a real advantage to help fight fires in the future.

Thank you. Thank you very much. Thank you for that testimony. I was actually sitting on this Committee and my husband sent me a text and he says, there's a fire at the ranch. And before we finish this Committee, my husband goes, comes straight to the ranch. The ranch is on fire.

And that's a big difference in a text. And we lost 2600 acres, and it was, and livestock. And then when we had the Erskine Fire, we were hauling horse trailers and going over the backside of hills and just trying to rescue cattle. Burned hooves, early walks. Calves who couldn't hardly walk because their hooves are burned off. It was a pretty traumatic experience. So I totally get where you're coming from. I get the grazing piece. I really do. I get the grazing piece.

I think cattle mitigation and grazing creates a very safe environment on mitigating fuel for fires in the future, especially when the grass is green, it provides feed, and when it's brown, we eat off some of it. But at least it mitigates the wildfire situation that we have.

So thank you very much for being somebody with real world experience to be appointed to this Committee by the Governor. And that's... I shouldn't have commented first, I apologize, but I can come back to the dais. Does anybody have any questions? Senator Laird.

I actually want to thank you for meeting with me, and it was an inspired conversation. I really enjoyed it. I can see why you've been serving and why you're doing a great job. And I think that I'm totally satisfied based on our conversation and record. And the only thing I was going to ask you was the perspective you bring from somebody, because you're in a category of appointment, and you answered that question, and you answered it well. So I look forward to supporting your confirmation.

Thank you.

Thank you. Senator Eggman.

I would concur with Senator Laird. I mean, certainly you're on as a public member, and the experience that you bring to it through your own ranching experience, I think is invaluable. You have as much motivation as anybody else to make sure that our forests are managed in the appropriate way.

I will ask, do you... My father in law's a forest boss up in the mountains hauling out timber and the times that they can haul and can't haul. Do you have thoughts on some of the new regulations that we've put in place having to do with fires? Like if it gets too hot, you can't be working lands with equipment and any kind of impact that'll have.

Not that as much. You know, we sat through, we were in the middle of the fire, and I wouldn't advise that for most people. Are extremely hot. So I know what heat is now in that kind of a situation. But there's more concerns with just processing facilities, biomass, how we get things moving so that there's a place for byproducts to go. I think that's maybe, I mean, I brought the rules book. And I mean, I can't read it with my glasses on. If anybody's never seen it, this is something someone should go through. But...

Rules for biomass?

This is rules for the forestry. So this is the practice, forest practice rules. But with that, I just, I really think that we have to have a spot because you could go out, but if you don't have anywhere for your logs to go or for your waste to go, then it just ties your hands.

And when we logged on our property, we went up and, one, it was an emergency permit, which are supposed to be faster, and it was, but it still cost us $80,000 to do so. And then, because you'll have to meet all your, which is fine, all your environmental needs that are out there, but just the cost of doing it. After that, when you're done, you have to pay the timber tax, which you've lost everything.

So to me, that doesn't make a whole lot of sense. But also just finding a home for them. Everything had burned in the valley at that time, and people don't want burned pine and they didn't need it. They had plenty of their own, and then fir, and so the market just kept dropping as time went.

And then if you have anything over a large, like if you think of a 28 inch tree, anything larger than that, there's very few mills in California that can take those. So our infrastructure, that's really the point that slows down anybody from being able to, whether you have 15 acres, 100 acres, or 5000 acres of timber, if you don't have a home for it, then you're really in a hard position.

I know the Rural Counties Association has got some plans for biomass. Do you work in conjunction with them at all?

Not, no, not, but I do know that there is one I read in Yuba City that's supposed to be coming online, and I think then it's just the cost, you know, are they going to be able to get enough? And maybe there they'll get some almond holes and some different things that will boost that energy, because that would help them. But there's three up in Humboldt County, and I don't know that any of those are still running just because of the cost of keeping them going as well.

Thank you. Thanks for being willing to serve.

Oh, thank you.

Senator Jones.

Thank you. I represent San Diego County and the rural part of San Diego County. What a lot of people in California don't know is that there is several thousand head of cattle raised in San Diego County. So I'm interested, as you're working through the cattle grazing situation, anything I can do to be helpful in that, please don't hesitate to reach out to my office. And also, looking forward to your confirmation today. Thank you.

Thank you very much.

I just have a follow up question. You said that there's three mills in Humboldt County, but they're not operational because of the cost. Was that because a policy passed out of this building? We used to have several timber operations.

Not mills, but biomass.

Oh, biomass. Okay, so biomass.

Biomass.

So is it the cost? You said $80,000 for a permit. Is that for a biomass?

That's 80,000 was so that we could actually log the timber off of our property after it all burned.

You were charged $80,000 by who or by what agency?

Professional forester. So you have to have a forester that knows all of these rules that are in this book, and then they do a plan for us, and then we submit it to CAL FIRE, and it goes through the process. And then you're able, you're able to log. But just the cost.

Just the permit.

Just the permit so that you can...

Was $80,000 for you to take burned trees off your property?

Correct. Correct. Just the cost of doing business.

Sounds like a bill next year.

Just out of curiosity, and if you don't want to answer this question, you don't have to. What was the cost to have the contractor remove the dead trees?

We paid... It was 200... So they do it by board feet and loads, log loads. And so I want to say he was $230. We probably logged a million dollars worth and probably came out with about 300,000. And that's not minus the expenses when we were done.

And a lot of it couldn't leave the property because when pine starts to turn blue, when it dies, they'll get, and it looks really pretty in the stores, but they don't pay for it. So when pine stands too long, it'll turn blue on the inside. And so then the companies don't want it anymore. So you end up leaving... We ended up leaving more behind than we wished to.

Can I ask a clarifying question on that real quick?

Absolutely.

On the blue, is it because it's deteriorating and it's not as the quality of It's not as good or is it just the appearance. People don't like the appearance?

I think it's just the appearance. I mean, there does come a time when the logs are going to deteriorate, but it can take three to six months, and then they'll turn blue. And, of course, right after 18 and 29, our fire hit in August. End of July. August. It wasn't... It was a long fire. By the time we got up there to get ready to log, it started raining. And we got 60 inches of rain on the ranch that year. So that put out our ability to log until May.

If we would have been able to actually log in November, if it was stayed dry and be able to get in there and do so, then we would have been probably able to get rid of more of that because we were going to take the pine first because that's the most vulnerable, and then go to the fir. But as luck would have it.

Thank you.

You're welcome.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you very much. I appreciate you taking the Governor's ask or request to be on this appointment. I think you bring real world experience to the board. A lot of times, policymakers, like all of us make policy, and we've never had any experience in the policy that we're overseeing, regardless of what it is.

And so I just appreciate you bringing real world experience and life experience to this board, and I look forward to your appointment. Any other questions from the dais? We'll go to members in the audience in the Committee room in support. Any of those in support? Seeing none. Anybody in opposition? Anybody in opposition? Seeing none. I'll bring it back to the dais for a motion or a conversation.

I would move approval and that we forward the nomination to the floor for formal confirmation.

Thank you, Senator Laird. Madam Secretary, you want to call the roll?

[Roll Call]

Thank you, Ms. Delbar. And I look forward to having your confirmation on the floor, and thank you for what you're doing and just bringing some common sense to a situation that really desperately needs to be addressed.

Thank you. And I'm sorry to hear about your fire. I know it's...

It's hard.

It's hard. It's difficult. And I still have one cow that I just won't let anybody get rid of that we got out of the fire, and my kids are always like, mom, she's not producing a calf. She's just... She's... I said, no, I don't care. She earned it. So she's staying here.

I can show you a picture of a calf I put in the lawn, the mud room. And my husband goes, what are you doing?

I know.

It's either gonna live or die. He's one of those people that's like, it serves a purpose or it doesn't. And I'm like, leave it alone. I'm calling the vet.

That's right. Exactly. Good for you. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you. We are... I think, is that it? Okay. Okay. So that is the conclusion of our regular Rules Committee. We are going to take a brief recess, and we will be going into Executive Session. Oh. We are going to take a brief recess and wait for the pro tem to come back. Thank you.

30 seconds. Are we still on it? Oh, we're good. Sorry. The Rules Committee will reconvene now. We are going to open the roll, Madam Secretary, on Governor's appointments required to appear, Items A, B, and C. Call the absent Members.

[Roll Call]

Three to zero. That moves to the Senate Floor. And then we can close that out. Were there any other... Can you help me out, Madam Secretary. Were there any other...

Okay, so Item D.

Item D.

Yeah, I need to close that roll.

Yes. Oh, Item D. We need to close the roll on Item D or call the absent Members again?

[Roll Call] Four to zero.

We will close the roll on that. Does that cover all of our items today? Then we will adjourn for the day. Our last Rules Committee hearing for the year, and we will move into Executive Session.