Senate Standing Committee on Rules

All right, ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Senate Rules Committee for June 25th. Welcome to our appointees who are here today. We're really grateful and again, sorry to keep you waiting. And to all who have joined our appointees, we do apologize about the delay. Why don't we establish a quorum? Madam Secretary, can you please call the roll?

[Roll Call].

Quorum has been established. I know that Senator Laird is going to need to roll out to a committee here shortly. Folks are going to be in and out today because we are in our thick of it season. So, we'll have Senator Caballero and Senator Jones, who will be joining us here.

Shortly before Senator Laird leaves, we'd like to better take up Governor appointees not required to appear. We're going to take up some administrative item in the meantime. We are going to have Mr. Krausse, if you don't mind. We're going to do this a little out of order here today.

So, we're going to have Mr. Krausse first, and then we're going to go to our state board of education members, if that works. Mr. Krausse, if you want to come on forward. Thank you so much. We're going to do Mr. Krausse first, but as he makes his way up. Why don't we get into today's agenda?

We're first going to be moving forward on Governor appointees not required to appear. Is there a motion for item 2D?

So moved.

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

[Roll Call].

2-1. 2-1 vote. We're going to keep that on call. We're now going to be moving on to item 2F for a motion. Senator Laird.

Aye. So moved.

We have a motion by Senator Laird. Do we have discussion or debate from the dais? Discussion or debate from committee. Last call. Madam Secretary, can you please call the roll?

[Roll Call].

2-0 vote. We're going to keep that on call. Last one. And Senator Laird is going to bop over to committee. We are now going to be taking up 3E, G. I'm sorry, let me back up. We're taking up 2E, G, H, and I. I'm going to repeat. Is there a motion to approve 2G.

H and I. Madam Vice Chair has made the motion. Discussion or debate hearing Seeing none. Madam Secretary, can you please call the roll?

[Roll Call].

That's a 3-0 vote. We're going to keep that on call. Senator Laird is going to be heading to committee. We're now going to be moving on to bill referrals is there. We have a motion by Madam Vice Chair. Discussion or debate from committee. Last call hearing scene. None. Madam Secretary, can you please call the roll?

[Roll Call[,

3-0 vote. We're going to keep that on call. Ladies and gentlemen, committee, we're now going to be moving on to floor acknowledgments, items 4 through 6. Is there a motion? We have a motion by Senator Laird. Discussion or debate from committee hearing. Seeing none. Madam Secretary, can you please call the roll?

[Roll call].

Thank you so much. Senator Jones, you want to vote on floor acknowledgments?

[Roll call].

4-0. 4-0. We're going to put that item on call. Thank you so much to the committee. We're now going to be moving into our Governor appointees who are required to appear.

And first and foremost, we want to say thank you so much to Mr. Krausse, who is here as a Public Employee Relations Board Member. Sir, this is at times a thankless job and very grateful for your service to the people of California. Let's talk a little bit about how we're going to roll with the presentation and the discussion.

We'll open up the floor for you to be able to provide three minutes of testimony. During that testimony, we offer time to be able to welcome anyone who may be here with you today or watching online. Then what we'll do is we'll open it up for the committee to ask questions, provide comments, any criticisms.

After that, we're going to roll to public comment. The folks who are in support, who are opposed, and then we'll take a vote. Mr. Krausse, again, we're really grateful that you're here. Thank you so much. Thank you for the audible. Thank you, board members, for allowing for the audible. What we're going to do.

Sir, you have three minutes. The floor is yours. Welcome again to committee.

Thank you. Mr. Chairman and members of the committee, I am honored to have been appointed by Governor Newsom to the Public Employment Relations Board.

And I'm equally honored to be here before you today, having worked as legislative staff to former Senator Henry Mellow, who sat on the Rules Committee, I know how important this process is, and I'm frankly honored to be sitting before you and humbled.

I'd like to thank the staff of the Rules Committee and the members staff as well for their fair and vigorous vetting in the process and to the Governor's Appointments Office and Labor Agency for shepherding me through that process.

During the nearly nine months I've served with PERB, I've been moved by the dedicated public servants and labor relations experts who as an appellate court has written, bring expertise and uniformity to the delicate task of stabilizing labor relations. Their commitment to public service has validated my decision over a year ago to return to the endeavor myself.

Joining me today, I'd like to introduce my daughter, Talia Kraus, who's headed to UC San Diego this fall, and my wife, Jennifer Roach, who's in the audience. Our son Asher isn't able to be here. He's working on a fishing boat, commercial fishing boat up in Alaska. And I want to thank them all for their love and support.

Also in the audience, and to whom I owe a great deal of appreciation, is my advisor, Seth Williams. Seth's been instrumental in helping educate me through the understanding the 18 or so acts that we adjudicate and our PERB Executive Director, Susan Davy.

I also welcome the staff in the audience and any of those online and thank them for their tireless contributions to the agency's mission. And with that, Mr. Chairman, I'm happy to answer any questions I can.

Again, Mr. Board Member, we are grateful that you're here. Thank you so much. And it is a thankless job, one of the more complicated commissions that the State of California has and one of the most critical. So, we're very grateful for your service and we thank you for being here today and again, apologize about being late.

What we're going to do is we're going to open it up for questions or comments. Madam Vice Chair, if you'd like to be able to kick us off, thank you.

It's a pleasure to meet you in person, even if it's across the dais. I've sat on this committee, I think, for four years, maybe five, and my phone has never rang as much as it has with you coming before us today.

And I've assured all of them that based on what staff had investigated on you and brought forward and the questions that you answered that you were going to get my vote for confirmation. And it continued to ring to make sure.

So, in fairness, I only asked one person.

Okay, well, more than one person called, so maybe they shared that with everybody else. So, thank you. I do have a couple of questions. I know it's a very balanced approach that you have. So, what's your thought process and how do you convey that to other members?

Because apparently you are very balanced when it comes to making decisions that are balanced and right for the labor part of the public employees' piece and the employer piece; you have to protect taxpayer resources. So, you have, from what other people are telling me, the most balanced approach.

And so, what's your thought process on that and how do you convey that to your other members?

Well, thank you, Senator Grove. I guess I see the other members as similarly balanced. I think we all come to the casework looking at it from kind of the facts and trying to apply the law to the facts.

And I suppose my balance in terms of my background, my experience, I've never worked for a union, but I've worked with union members, I've worked with unions themselves. And so, I suppose from that perspective, maybe I look more balanced than those who've litigated on behalf of unions and that kind of thing.

But my experience with them is they take the same approach. They look at the case, each case uniquely. So, I'm pleased to be with what I feel is a very balanced board.

Okay. And then the only other question I have is, given there's ongoing litigation and union challenges regarding school boards and constitutional parental rights or concerning rights for parents in various public-school districts around our state, how's PERB addressing the complex balance between collective bargaining units and for school employees and the legal and constitutional considerations about student privacy and parental rights?

And so that piece for us. And is there a concern and are or are you following the federal government's new inaugural commission on parental rights and religious freedom and liberties regarding education of students, and how do you think that's going to affect California's policy?

Yeah, and I appreciate the way that you asked the question because it doesn't necessarily implicate a case that's before an appellate court right now that I couldn't comment on.

I think what I would say is from my brief nine-month education so far on some of these social issues, the board hasn't had to weigh in on a social issue. We've applied the law and that hasn't required us to delve into what that social issue is, but instead just apply the law.

Okay, well, thank you very much. I look forward to your confirmation.

Thank you so much Madam Vice Chair. We'd like to go see - please, Leader Jones, floor is yours, sir.

Thank you. Potentially a short question, maybe. We had another appointee here a couple weeks ago in another department, and one of the questions that came up was the Governor's return to office order, which I personally support, and I think, you know, is well within the Governor's right. And I mean not right.

I mean, he should be doing that. So. And I understand there are some cases working their way through PERB. Now, I'm not asking you to necessarily speak to one particular case or another, but do you have some general thoughts on the Governor's authority to do that and.

And maybe share, you know, how you're going to, you know, look at those cases?

Sure. I think I do have to be careful. I was warned by our general counsel about commenting on. We have about seven cases on the topic of return to office before us right now. But what I can tell you is - yeah, we may have more.

What I can tell you is that PERB has let employees know that we're to return to office, you know, pending a change, which I'm reading in the newspapers, there may be a change coming, that our employees will return to office four days a week starting July 1st.

Okay. So, you're more comfortable speaking toward the how PERB is going to respond to it rather than how. - And I understand. Okay, thank you.

Thank you so much, Leader Jones. Senator Caballero.

Thank you very much. Mr. Chair and pro-tem, thank you very much for being here. Tough job you've decided to take on or go to. You know, one of the issues that is critically important to the legislature is efficiencies.

There's different ways to operate within the institution and create the efficiencies that move things along and shorten timelines. Could you talk a little bit about. There may be disagreement about whether there was a backlog and how it was taken care of.

Could you comment a little bit about how the board has either taken care of the backlog or, if there wasn't a backlog, how you operate in order to be efficient, I guess, number one. And number two is, well, let's get that one, and then I can pass the second one.

Sure. Thank you. Senator Caballero.

The board has made amazing inroads and at the board level, which is once a case has come through the administrative law judge process or been adjudicated by the Office of General Counsel and maybe been a complaint has been issued or it's been dismissed, when those appeals come to us, that entire process we now have down to.

We don't have a single case that's been before us more than four months. So, we're able really to stay ahead of the work at the board level. It's in large part thanks to some automation. We created a program, ePERB, where parties are able to file online. And so, we really have made great inroads.

And I will say there's, at the board level, no backlog. I think we are working to try to give the staff the tools to move cases as quickly as possible.

But I go back to the days when, you know, long ago, the 1988 and 90s, and PERB really had a serious backlog in those days, and that's just not the case anymore.

That's great. And I was wondering if the fact I had read that the backlogs had been resolved that the turnaround was fairly quick. And I - do you see the same level of filings, the same number of filings, or is it that once you get rid of the backlogs, people see, employees see that things are resolved fairly quickly, and so, and they see how they're resolved and that helps.

Right. So, the roughly. And this varies from year to year, but the roughly 600 complaints that come in each year, I don't know that that's varied by more than 10% up or down, at least in the period I've looked at the last five or so years.

COVID, of course, had an impact on some of that, but I don't. So, I don't know that the, you know, processing more quickly at the board level has caused people to be less likely to bring complaints. I don't think that's the case at all.

Yeah, there's also, I learned as I delved into this, you know, litigation by the parties sometimes can be delaying. Right. The way that parties maybe how long it takes for them to submit all their filings, that kind of thing.

Got it. All right, thank you very much. I don't have any further questions. Thank you.

Thank you so much, Senator Caballero. Would like to be able to see if there's any additional discussion or debate. Seeing none. What we want to be able to do is say welcome if you want to come on up, any individual who would like to be able to speak in support, come on down. Hey, hey.

If you don't mind, person, last name organization, the floor is yours.

Thank you, Mr. Chair, members of the committee. Meagan Subers, on behalf of the California Professional Firefighters and our 35,000 members; proud to be in support today and on behalf of my colleague, on behalf of the California Federation of Labor Unions. In support. Thank you.

Thank you. Subers. It's good to see you. Hey, good afternoon.

Good afternoon. Senator Mcguire, other Senators, good to see you all. Tim Carmichael with the California Council for Environmental and Economic Balance. I've had the pleasure of working with Mr. Krausse for best part of a decade and most recently he served on my board of directors at CEIB.

And what's intriguing about that is our board and our membership is a mix of the very largest employers in California and. And about a half a dozen labor unions working together trying to find common ground in that middle path to sustainable solutions in California. I just want to emphasize two things in my experience of working with Mr. Krausse. One, he's incredibly hardworking. He's always been available, was available, to us whenever we needed him and it was a volunteer position, to be clear. And then secondly, he cares a lot about people.

And one thing that I think about with state appointments commissions boards is how mindful are you about the people that you're serving and you're working with? And that's always been a strong suit for him.

Really appreciate it.

Thank you.

Thank you so much. Some very personal words, appreciate you being here today. Thank you. Good afternoon.

Good afternoon. My name is Al Fortier. I'm a senior assistant business manager with IBEW 1245 and we're in support of Mr. Krausse's appointment with.

We appreciated his fair-minded approach to the applications of the rule of law and also his past support in regards to maintaining the reliability of the electric grid.

Thank you so much for that was great. Appreciate you. I'd like to be able to see if there's anyone else who would like to be able to speak in support. If you could please come forward. Seeing no one rise, we're now going to look for anyone who may be in opposition. If you could please advance.

Seeing no one advance, we're going to bring it back to committee for any additional conversation. We'll also welcome a motion.

Just one additional comment because. Or question because of the information that was just provided by the IBEW representative. Chris Branson was the person or - Chris Patterson was the person that called me and was adamant, who I think shared my number with other people that called me as well.

Since you're so highly connected, how do you - how are you going to help influence PSPF shut offs so that they don't affect my district?

Oh, dear lord. Hey, there we go.

All right, great.

I retired from PGE in September.

So, I move the confirmation to the Senate Floor, Sir.

Thank you so much. We have a motion on the floor by Madame Vice Chair. Final call for discussion. Debate. Madam Secretary, can you please call the roll?

[Roll Call].

It's a 4-0 vote. We're going to keep that on call. Mr. Krausse, congratulations. Next up, Senate Floor. Appreciate you. It's good to see you. Thank you so much. Great to have your family here as well. Thank you. What we're going to do is we're going to have our board members come on down. Welcome.

Welcome, madam board members, as you make your way up to the dais here. What we're going to do is we're going to get some additional votes real quick. So, Madam Secretary, let's head on over to item two, which are Governor appointees not required to appear. We have three separate motions. I'm going to start with our first.

That is 2D. Current vote is 2-1. Madam Secretary, can you please call the absent members?

[Roll Call].

3-2 vote. Motion passes. We're closing down the vote. We're now going to be Moving on to 2F. 2F. Under Governor appointees not required to appear. The current vote is 2-0. Madam Secretary, can you please call the roll?

[Roll Call].

3-0. Final vote. We're closing the roll. Thank you so much. We're now going to move on to items - the last item under number two, which is Governor appointees. The current vote for items E, G, H and I is 3-0. Madam Secretary, can you please call the absent members?

[Roll Call].

5-0 vote. That's the final vote. We're closing down the roll. All right, this is everybody's most exciting time. We're going to go to bill referrals. Current vote is 3-0. Madam Secretary, can you please call the absent Members?

[Roll Call].

Bill referrals.

[Roll Call].

We are smooth as silk. All right, so there we go. We got 5-0 vote. We're shutting down the roll. If you thought that was good, I think we need to go to floor acknowledgments. This was a nail biter. Am I right? Madam Secretary? This is a 4-0 vote. If you want to call the absent members.

[Roll Call].

5-0 vote. Look at that. Unanimous. Final vote. We're closing down the roll. All right, madam board members, welcome. They're thinking, "Where the hell are we at right now?" My goodness, it's really good to see you. Thank you so much. Let's talk a little bit about how we'd like to move the run of show here.

Over the next several minutes, each of you will be given three minutes to be able to advance opening testimony. During that time, we welcome you to acknowledge any individual who or individuals who are here in the room watching online. We'll then open it up. Questions, comments, any concerns, criticisms, we'll have that back and forth.

After that happens, we're going straight to public comment. Support, oppose, and we're bringing on back to committee. Madam board member, it's wonderful to see you. Thank you so much. The floor is yours. You have three minutes, and I'll give you a 30 second heads up when you get close to that three.

Thank you. Chair Mcguire, Madam Vice Chair, and members of the Senate Committee, thank you for having us today at this hearing. It's an honor. My name is Alison Yoshimoto-Towery.

I am, I usually say a fourth generation Angeleno, but I'm actually a fifth generation Californian and my great-great grandfather immigrated from Japan, and they worked the farm, different farm routes, picked sugar beets. The other side of my family picked chili peppers in Garden Grove area. And I come from a family of small business owners.

Each generation of my family had a little bit more education, a teeny bit more. And my brother and I were the first generation to have an opportunity to go to a four-year college. And so, I take this appointment very seriously. And so, it's truly, truly an honor. My experience that led me here was really paraprofessional, teacher, principal, district leader. And I think what's been instilled in me is just hard work, the value of an education, the value of community, giving back to the community and serving. And although my husband and my children and my mom are not watching today, we're going to have a watch party.

I'd like to just say thank you to them as well for all their support.

Grateful that you stepped up. We're grateful that you're here and thank you for your patience as we work through the agenda. Madam board member, it's wonderful to see you. Thank you for your service to the people of California. The floor is yours. You have three minutes. And I'll give you a 30 second prompt.

Thank you so much. Good afternoon, Chairman Guire and distinguished members of the Senate Rules Committee. Thank you for the chance to speak with you today. I'd like to start by introducing my wife Nancy, who's in the back. Thank you for the ride and also, probably more Importantly, for the 18 plus years of love and happiness.

I'd also like to thank the staff of the State Board of Education, both those who are here and those who are probably watching from afar. I just feel so fortunate to be supported by such an extraordinary, wise, hardworking and caring team.

I'm also very grateful to Governor Newsom for appointing me and all the people along the way who have helped get us to this moment. A little bit about why I am here. So, I too am a California native. As we like to say. I am a proud resident of the Bay as in the Bay Area.

I was born in San Francisco, spent my childhood in the Santa Cruz Mountains, attended high school in Oakland, spent some time in my adult life in both Palo Alto and Sonoma. And now San Francisco, with its blend of diversity, creativity and challenges, is my home. I became a teacher because of my own experience as a child.

So much of my early life was uncertain. My mom and I moved a lot. Her jobs, partners changed frequently, and we had little money for food, clothes or other necessities. But through all that, school was my safe place. I was literally that kid who stayed after school to clean my teacher's chalkboards and pound the erasers.

We still had that back then, so I could stay in the warm building a little bit longer. Under the supportive and watchful eyes of my teachers and coaches and extended family. I learned to work hard. I learned to be good at school. And I thrived. I know how lucky I was.

However, I know how many different ways my story could have unfolded. So, I became a teacher hoping to make that same impact on others. I think about the thousands of students I've come to know and love over the past 30 years. Students who face incredible barriers and obstacles. Students who are often villainized in our culture or underestimated.

I see their faces. I think of some of my advisees. Paulina, Diana, Ollie, Marquis, Renneka. These are students who were the first in their families to go to college. Students who struggled with learning but persevered. And students with quirks, talents, and challenges that were definitely unique to each one of them.

Now these young people are firefighters, doctors, artists. They're community leaders, teachers, parents. I can't walk the streets of San Francisco without running into them. And they are making California a more inclusive and resilient state. They are ensuring our shared future.

So that's why I love my work as an educator and as a member of the State Board of Education, because what we do matters.

I've seen firsthand in my own work in schools and across the state since I was able to take on this awesome role, the impact that schools have on students' lives when we invest in them as whole people, when we pair high expectations for all students with targeted support, and when we provide engaging and meaningful learning opportunities that light them up.

So, I'm humbled by the opportunity to continue working with my fellow members and educators across the state in support of California's nearly 6 million public school students, their educators, and their caregivers. I can't think of anything that makes me more proud.

Thank you for your service and your time in this really crazy period you're in, and I look forward to answering any questions that you have.

Thank you so much, both of you. Beautiful remarks. And it's wonderful that your wife is here and 18 and a half years, and I've been with my wife 19 years, so that is a heck of accomplishment. My goodness, that is amazing and wonderful to have you here. It's good to you see you. Thank you so much.

All right, let's open it up and see if there's any questions, please. Madam Vice Chair, thank you.

Thank you both for being here. You know, it's, you have a tough job ahead of you, especially with the things that are changing every day in culture and with the federal government and the state, and you do it for 100 bucks.

So, God love you and thank you for putting forth your time and effort to do that. I do have a couple of questions. Obviously, there's growing concern of parents about enrollment and the state's overreach and what they think is the state's overreach and I think is the state's overreach in public education.

Specifically, in light of AB 1955, which remains tied up in litigation, how does the State Board of Education plan to reassure families and that California education policies comply with both federal and state policies that because obviously the Feds overlap and there's, you know, two entities or two forms of government that you guys are going to have to respond to and comply with the. Family Education Rights Privacy Act, Title 9, with the, you know, Administration now saying that, you know, it is unfair for boys, biological boys, to compete in girls' sports.

And what's the message? The state board has for parents who feel increasingly alienated from these policies. Most parents in my district and the ones I talk to around the state think they have an obligation as a parent and that they have a constitutional right to raise their child as they see fit.

Whether it's a Catholic person who wants to send their child to Catholic school to formalize their moral and religion.

Religious properties that they want to pass on to their children. A Jewish family, it doesn't matter, right. Christian family, it doesn't matter. Muslim family, it doesn't matter. What's the message that you have while this is tied up in limbo.

And what do you think the state boarded education is going to do to comply with both the state and Federal Government. And I can start with you, Ms. Yoshimoto-Towery

Thank you. And if it's easy here, you can just refer to me as Tower. That's fine. Thank you. Yeah, you know, thank you for raising the question. Madam Vice Chair. I think that there's, and I'll speak from a practitioner's standpoint at this point is that there's a lot of potential for conflicting information while things are being litigated.

And so I know we're not going to comment specifically on anything that's being litigated today, but at the same time, I do know the current law that's in place that we have been referring. It's a little bit outside the jurisdiction of the state board, but as an educator we've been referring our colleagues to.

We have a website at this, at the CDE that the refers to the attorney general's information, our state Superintendent's information. And sometimes when information's in flux and flowing, people just want like one source of information to go to. So we're happy to share that information, that website with you or your staff Members.

But it's been what I've heard from people who are working in schools, a helpful place to be, to go to, to get information in real time as things are evolving.

Thank you.

Thank you.

I'm not sure I have a whole lot more to add other than our role on the state board is really to, you know, once our board, our role is once the, once the laws have been determined and once the litigation has been settled to implement and help schools fulfill those requirements as well as possible.

And so we are eager and watching, we're keeping. Keeping our eyes on all of the things that are going on in relation to this field because it really matters to kids and families across the state.

Thank you. So I guess I realize that was a litigation question and I apologize because I know there is litigation. This issue is AB 101 on ethics studies, that are mandated. The language was written upon appropriation. There has been no appropriation that I am aware of. There could be that you are aware of.

And I didn't see it in this year's budget. But again, we just got the language a couple of days ago or day before yesterday. If what's the, the big issue that people contacted my office about when they saw that you guys were up were, that they have grave concerns this, ethnic studies will become anti Semitic.

And there is a grave concern within the Jewish population in the Bay Area, San Francisco, Los Angeles, a lot of organizations from the Jewish community have reached out to see what your thoughts are, because even though it hasn't been appropriated, there are different districts implementing what they believe ethnic studies should look like.

And how are you going to make sure that these ethnic studies do not turn to the anti Semitic, which we've seen already in a lot of our college campuses. So I can start with you, Ms. Olken.

Thank you. I mean, first and foremost, any, any, every student should feel safe in school and should. And any type of discrimination is not tolerated. And there is a very formal and required complaint process that students or staff can use, the Uniform Complaint Process if there's concerns about implementation of something that is discriminatory in nature.

My understanding about the Just to follow up on what you mentioned with ethnic studies in particular, my understanding is there is, at least as far as the last I heard, you probably know more than I do, but it has not, there's no, there's no appropriation that would trigger it becoming an actual graduation requirement in the state.

And so we're still in a position, we're still in a place where there is a model curriculum that was passed by the state board. It's not required. That curriculum itself is not required, although it went through extensive revisions to ensure that all populations felt good about it.

But it's still just, there's no, nothing has been triggered to make ethnic studies a graduation requirement.

Thank you, Ms. Yashimoto.

Tory thank you, Madam Vice Chair. I agree that to my knowledge there has been no appropriation or even, even in pending conversations this year from either the Legislature or the Governor. So that doesn't trigger the graduation requirement for ethnic studies.

Just to add what my colleague said, what board Member Olken, said is that there was an initial version of ethnic studies that raised many of these concerns and that was taken, went through a series of a process where there was a large public comment period, major revisions done to end up with the current model ethnic studies curriculum.

And there was some action previously taken to ensure that districts understand that they are not to implement the initial version, but they're to implement the model curriculum version of ethnic studies. And just to reinforce what my colleague said, Sharon said, we having overseen a Rollout of ethnic studies in a district. It's a people business.

You really have to build the relationships with all aspects of the community and assure people that there is a complaint process, that there is a way, the model way, to implement the curriculum.

And it's designed actually to have all students feel seen and heard and make sure that all students have their histories and pride in their cultures and their. What they bring to the table. So it's an important concern that's being raised.

Thank you. For the seventh year in a row, student enrollment in public education traditional, traditional public education, has declined.

There are a growing number of parents who feel that their taxpayer dollars should be used for the educational choice of their student, which they think will benefit their student to be the most productive Member of society that that student can achieve.

The Legislature I know, has to act on that if that's something that they're going to accommodate the parent or, you know, to side with the side of parents. Because there's an overwhelming number. The decline in traditional public school has again declined over the last seven years and anticipated to decline again this year. What's.

What is your plan or your thought process to, number one, try to, you know, stop that if you can, or has it already gone to a point where there is a lack of. There is a lack of confidence in our traditional public school system by parents, and they're choosing different alternatives.

And some parents are working 2 and 3 jobs just to pay for that education that they want to make sure their child gets, which they're guaranteed a free education under the constitution in California, but are choosing the alternative of not a traditional.

It says you have to free education, but it doesn't say it has to be in a public building. So there's the argument. What's your plan to try to bring some of those parents back into the traditional public school setting. Yes, and I should have called you a board Member. I apologize to both of you.

Okay, go ahead. Yes, ma' am. And I just did it again. Yes, board Member.

Thank you for the question. I, I just wanted to clarify, do you mean declining enrollment in schools.

Okay.

I, and I think there's a lot of factors for that. As we looked at a district lens at declining enrollment, some of that was due to. I understand what you're saying.

It's also due to lower birth rates and at least in, as we looked in certain areas, the economy changing, housing markets being difficult, job markets being difficult. So, you know, and also parents choice, right.

And where they want to send their children, and so it's a nuanced situation that we're looking at when we talk about declining enrollment, I would say, and actually thank each of you also for the investments that have been made in recent years, because back in the 50s and 60s, there was a documentary done by John Marrow that talked about from first to Worst.

And in that documentary he talked how California was really the highest funded state, one of the highest funded states in the 50s and the 60s, and that reversed by the mid two, by about 2,000. And now we're inching back up quite a bit.

And so we've made huge investments in the, for example, the California Youth Behavioral health initiative, over $4 billion, over $4 billion in the California Community School Initiative. And these are efforts, you know, the extended learning opportunities dollars, the educator effectiveness dollars.

These are opportunities that as principals or superintendents, they're using to really ensure that there's a strong community effort at the school site, that there are services being provided at the school site. That there is conversations beyond just what normally we think of as school, where you are doing learning, but you're actually getting health and human services referrals and being able to have eyeglasses or dental support at the school school site.

And I really believe that that's also part of that is distributed leadership and listening to parents and families and what they want and what they need, as well as our ALP process is really focused on hearing the voices of the people we're serving and ensuring that we're meeting their need.

Thank you, Board Member Olken.

Thank you. I agree with all of the points that my colleague made. And I would just add one more piece, which is in my introductory comments, I said that I've seen the impact public schools make when lots of things are present. And one of them is when we provide engaging and meaningful learning opportunities that light students up.

And that was. I said that intentionally because I think one of the ways we not just bring kids and families back into the public school system, but ensure that those who are in it are excited to be there and they're getting the most out of it, is we provide them with opportunities that speak to them.

So examples of that are things like the career technical education pieces that students can opt into. Dual immersion programs that students can opt into. I think charter schools can play that role, magnet schools can play that role. So programs within schools, I think project based learning.

I think there's lots of ways that the seal of civic engagement or the seal of biliteracy those are ways that I think we're helping young people see that who they are and what they care about can be found in their schools.

And I think that is a real attractor of kids and families to our public schools.

Okay, I'm glad you brought up charter school. I wasn't going to ask this question. I voted for you last time. You were before us because of your connection to charter schools. And I think charter school is a very viable option for parents.

And the reason why I say that, because just as you both maybe didn't say it exactly, but every student is different. Every student has unique talents, gifts that they bring to the table. I recently worked with a parent that had an autistic kid who had a very difficult time sitting still in a classroom.

So for years they were ousted out of the classroom, sent to the principal's office, sent to after school care, the whole bit. They finally made the decision to sell their home and downsize. And then they use those resources to put that child in a different learning environment.

And that child is now within six months building robots and putting things together.

Now, the child is still in a classroom setting, but they might put a few people, this person, this child might put a few pieces together and then jump up and run around and spin around and then sit down where that child got in trouble for doing that before. That child has limited verbal, some verbal, but limited.

Like eye contact, very not. But that child's learning ability is different. The traditional public school system does not offer that. But charter schools, in some cases, like this robotics charter school that offers this program does allow that you have a background in connection you Director or board Member with charter schools.

But your votes and the comments that you have on the board don't reflect that over the time that you've been elected. Can you explain why, since I really do believe that you think charter schools play an important role.

Sure. I mean.

Education.

I would say a couple of things to that and I appreciate your question for sure. Thank you. First, I wasn't going to ask. I know. So first, I just want to say I believe that students with all different types of learning profiles can be well served in our traditional public schools and in charter schools.

I've seen incredible learning and opportunities for kids across different types of public schools, traditional and charter. So I just want to start with that in terms of my votes. My job is to vote in keeping with statute. And so that's what I do.

So we make you do it.

Maybe. My job is certainly to fulfill what the law says and I work really hard to make sure that's what I'm doing.

Yeah, that's a fair answer. I appreciate that. Thank you, Mr. Pro Tem. Thank you.

Thank you, sir. No, thank you so much, Madam Vice Chair, to your point, Madam Board Member. both of you, in regards to school funding, you're absolutely right. I think it was just 10 years ago we were 50th in the nation behind Mississippi, and at that time, the fifth largest economy in the world. About $7,000 per student.

We fast forward here to today, 24,000 per student. Do dollars equate to success, Not always, but we have been climbing significantly in the pack. And I think the other really important piece is $1.0 billion every year in continuous funding for cte, as you all mentioned.

And I think the other piece is recognizing we have to have a holistic approach. A billion school meals will be served this year, right through free breakfast and lunch for all students TK through 12th grade. So I think the best investment we can make is in our kids in public schools. I am absolutely biased public school kid.

My wife is a public school elementary school principal. And it's truly an investment for our future. Right. And I don't mean to go on that soapbox, but very passionate about that. So let's see. Please, Mr. Leader.

Thank you, Mr. McGuitr. And on that note, my mom was also a public school teacher for a period of time. One of my best friends just retired for 33 years with San Diego Unified, most recently as a principal in inner city school, where he loved his work there.

And he now actually works for a different school district in special education, special needs education, and is loving it. So I have a high level of respect for everybody that chooses that career because it is a tough career.

And as the Vice Chair mentioned, your enormous amount of pay that you get for this, I know you get a lot of personal satisfaction out of your work that you do there. I have two questions regarding curriculum and then one question regarding funding. We'll just take them each one at a time.

I'm glad that the pro tem mentioned Mississippi. And it's actually. It's just coincidental we didn't coordinate this. 2023 state data in California suggests that 57% of California students are not reading at grade level by third grade. And I think we can all agree if you're behind in third grade, you're behind for the rest of your life.

And I wasn't intending to share this, but I will now that I'm specifically third grade. I had so much fun in Third grade, I did it twice.

You know, my parents made the very tough decision because I was one of those kids that couldn't sit still and, you know, held me back in third grade so that I could get my birthday's in August. You know, there's lots of science behind that as well.

Kids that are birthdays are in August and September when they start kindergarten early. So one of the greatest things, toughest, but best things my parents did was hold me back. That's just a sidebar to my question. There's efforts now in California to mandate phonics instruction, which I just learned.

This is now called the science of reading, which I'm very pleased by. Mississippi moved from 48th in reading to 21st in reading within 10 years after mandating phonics education.

Can you share some thoughts on, you know, what are your thoughts on the science of reading phonics and is it time to move away from the balanced literacy approach that we're in now in California and move towards phonics. Or is there a balance, you know, what's the state board. I'd like to get your personal thoughts on that.

And then as board Members, where do you think the board's going in that in regards to that and whatever.

I'm also a mom of younger boys. They were born in November and so I understand that decision. On a personal note, you mentioned phonics. I would just say that my personal metaphor that I use for the teaching of phonics, some people say, was it so important. Is it not important.

I view it as if you think about learning to read music as learning how to read the notes, learning how to read music, that it's very important because you can't access a sheet of music without being able to read the notes. But just being able to read notes alone doesn't allow you to play the symphony.

And so it has a time and place to be taught. There definitely is an evidence base that we've learned over time about how to teach reading and how young people learn. Reading is not one of the things that is innate for human beings. It's speeches.

But reading is not something that really most of the time has to be taught explicitly. And so we've.

In California you mentioned, the data have been really focusing since 2014, a renewed focus with our new ELA English Language Arts, excuse me, English Language Arts, English Language Development Framework, which tells all of the educators in California and parents what needs to be taught and at what level things need to be taught at Each grade level and the frameworks.

We in 2017 established dyslexia guidelines and an English learner roadmap to help our English learners also acquire those skills. And is 2022 we began the Literacy Coach Reading Specialist Educator training program as a state which is looking at the highest need schools and supporting them with special specialists to provide extra instruction to students and many other things.

I'll keep it short, but also I will mention that in 2021 we passed Senate Bill 488 which rehauled how we were doing teacher education for our new teachers candidates that were going through school. And all of those pieces are becoming really important in the continued effort to build coherence across the state.

And as a state board, you know, we really do affirm evidence based, the evidence base that. And there is some pending legislation that may be close to being finalized around a possible, English language arts English language development curriculum adoption. If that should be finalized, then we look forward to that.

Can you speak specifically to phonics though and how that plays in. And I appreciate all those answers, that answer and the explanation because that is beneficial. But specifically to phonics, how to has it, what role does it play in.

It's essentially sound symbol relationship. So students look at an ambiguous symbol and they have to be able to say zero, that symbol makes the mmm sound. And if they're not able to.

I'm sorry, I don't mean to. Sorry, I'm sorry to interrupt. I apologize for interrupting your personal thoughts on it. Your approach towards phonics. Are you supportive of the concept, yes. Okay. Thank you.

Explicit systematic instruction in phonics along with the other foundational skills, phonological awareness, oral language, vocabulary comprehension, writing, etc. Board Member.

I was just going to say where my colleague just got to, which was. I mean I love the symphony metaphor because I think that's actually. Yeah, I think that's actually gets to the real point of it. Learning to read. There really is a research base. Some call it the science of reading, some call it evidence based strategies.

Either way, phonics is an important part of it. It's not the only part of learning to read because you also need to learn. This is what Allison was just saying. Phonemic awareness. Need to learn to decode. You can't be a good reader if you don't. If you can't write and don't have vocabulary.

But phonics is an important part of learning to read and it's built into a lot of the strategies that we are implementing in the state at this point.

So you think the board's moving in that direction as well. The board, I'm hearing from both of you, you're supportive of the concept. And then I think in that last remark you're saying the board is kind of, as a whole is kind of.

I think the way I would put it is that the board is committed to evidence based reading, which includes phonics. And if we have an adoption of English language arts curriculum coming before us, which it looks likely we will. Then. We'Ll have the opportunity to work towards the adoption of curriculum materials that include phonics.

Okay, my second curriculum question, and it's regarding a specific vote on a curriculum that the board adopted in 2023 regarding the new math framework. There was many concerns from UC Berkeley and Stanford professors regarding Algebra 1 in high school. And you both, despite the concerns from the professors and others, voted to confirm the new math framework.

And I was just wondering if you could speak to that. I'm glad you mentioned San Francisco and part of the background, San Francisco voters. This is interesting. I didn't know people put stuff on the ballot regarding curriculum, but San Francisco voters repealed the new math framework.

And I'm just wondering if you could speak to that because that is a really big concern of mine on moving forward.

I'm not, I'll be honest, I'm not entirely sure if the concerns that you're referring to continue to be part of the math framework. Because the framework that we passed provided opportunities for students who are ready to take algebra in middle school. It provided multiple opportunities to accelerate at the high school level.

And so it really is a framework that allows for students to take math that the level and speed for which they're ready. In a way, I think that previously in California, I think there are more options for students to accelerate their math coursework when they're ready for it.

And I would agree with my colleague Sharon and I mentioned earlier, I have twins and they're very different. And one was really attuned to math and really loved it and wanted to partake in the acceleration aspect of the current math framework. And the other is more creative.

And it turns out he wants to be a firefighter but chose not to take advantage of that accelerated aspect until a little bit later, towards the end of middle school as opposed to the beginning. And so it does allow for multiple entry points.

And the whole idea, the big idea is to avoid tracking students from, from the very get go and that we have the ability to grow our minds and change.

You Know, I mean, may not be ready for it in sixth grade, but I may be ready for it in eighth grade to accelerate to a different level of math. And so providing those multiple on ramps for students is really important.

Okay, so then kind of what I'm gathering is you're standing by your vote on that math framework. Okay, great. The funding question I have is some of my locals have shared some concerns about the lcap, the local control and accountability plans and the spending there.

They're feeling like there isn't really a pushback after the LCAP process to make sure districts actually spend the funds on students as they outlined. And then people are surprised when a district is then identified as a low performing student school. Now that we're several cycles into the LCAP process, how can we make districts accountable for their spending.

Should they be required to show how the proposed funding for programs has been proven to work in prior LCAP plans. And I think you can throw into that there's some concerns about career technical education kind of falling short in that as well.

So maybe speak to LCAM generally and you know, the accountability concerns and then career technical education as well, please.

How about we alternate. So you went first last time and I'll go first. Great. The LCAP. Thank you for the question, sir. The by nature of the LCAP in the title Local Control Accountability Plan, it really was a design, as you know, it's in its 10th year, just past its 10th year.

And it really was designed to be something that local voices had control over. It has to be shared by multiple committees. It has to go before the board at least twice. It has to be approved by the county office. And so the concept really is that the local voices know our students the best.

They live in the community. There's, you know, there live and breathe there every day. And I think that's a little, what's a little bit different about California's LCAP is that then it also requires local voices holding districts accountable for their results and their actions at the State Board.

What our role is really to look at, to set up the tools like the dashboard, the California Dashboard, and the LCAP technologies template to then allow for differentiated assistance for school districts to take part in.

In 2023, we had a shift in, in the policy so that if a school district fell into differentiated assistance, they stay in that category for two years instead of just one year to ensure like more touch points to make improvement. And I think that was a positive change.

The, the longer differentiated assistance and again, the community accountability, I think is really big in the LCAP process.

I'm glad you mentioned the dashboard because one of the concerns is that the dashboard has college and career over emphasizes college prep and college course credits, but it doesn't really emphasize career tech education. I'm glad you mentioned your son wanting to be a firefighter.

I've shared several times in the Rules Committee that my two oldest graduated from San Diego State. They're both nearly straight A's. My youngest is wired more like me and is becoming a firefighter as well. And so, you know, there's different avenues for everybody to succeed.

And so before we switch over to board Member Olken, maybe speak to the career technical education and how you see that working into the. I mean, adding it to the dashboard or making it a priority.

Yes, absolutely. In fact, at the next state board meeting, we have an item on just that. We're continually evolving that career college and career indicator and listening to voices in the field.

There are a number of items that are being added that are career related or pending approval by the State Board at the next meeting in July. And continuing to evolve the college aspects as well, including like earning the state seal of biliteracy or this, I'm sorry, the state seal of civic engagement and other other items like that.

But we do want it to be comprehensive.

Thank you. When I was leading Gateway Public Schools in San Francisco, leading the LCAP efforts each year was one of my major jobs. And it is a intensive, action packed, community based, complicated, but really important process.

And I think one of the things that matters most to me now that I have the chance to have some impact on the template that we all have to fill out in the state is to make sure it both helps us understand how students are doing, how money is being spent, and.

And the link between them, which is, I think, part of your question and also is simple enough that it can be understood by people who don't have a PhD in education. And I think this year we'd had some really good. I think some of the changes we made on the template this year do both of those things.

They help ensure that the money. There's a clear line between the strategies that are supposed to improve student achievement, how the money is being spent, and then if they were effective. So that's one piece that was changed and then the second piece is simplifying the overview so that more of our community can understand.

And so I think you're raising really good points and I think we're actually moving in a direction that hopefully will get us where to where you're hoping.

Thank you so much.

Thank you, Mr. Pro Tem. First, let me thank you very much for being here and also thank you for your service to family and children. I thought I wanted to be a teacher, and then in college I got into a classroom and I realized probably not a good idea.

So it takes incredible patience and you can love kids but not love them. You know what I mean? So let me just say that I'm really honored to be a product of California schools. They are the best we have to improve the economic success of people in families. Right.

And so I really do appreciate the challenges of an educational system that's trying to provide the best for people who learn differently, for children who learn differently. So let me just say that I have an organization in my district called the Black Parallel School Board.

And it's a group of African American parents and grandparents who are concerned with. With LCAP and how the supplemental and concentrated Fund resources are used. And it's the reason that I worked so hard on the bill that requires the LEAs to post the information on a public system. Right.

And partly because I tried a million different ways and that was finally the only way that we were able to get it, a governor's signature.

And the reason that became important is because it was very clear in the Conversations that I had with the superintendents in the region that the, the those funds were being rolled over into the next year. In other words, they were, they were not utilized.

They were rolled over and then put in the General Fund of the, of the school district so that they really were not going to the student students that had been identified as the neediest for which they had been allocated. So how money is spent becomes a really important issue. And I believe it was on the.

I truly believe that the reason that this became such a focus of a group of parents is because they felt like the results were not. The results showed that there was no improvement.

And to second what my fellow Senator said here, the data, past data has shown that the literacy rate of third graders has a direct correlation to youth violence in the community. That the number of incarceration beds is directly related to whether third graders, not that those are the kids, but that it's.

That if you can improve the literacy rates it will make a difference in getting rid of or reducing youth violence. So that's critically important as well. But my question really has to do with, with a crystal ball if you can.

Can you tell us what you foresee as the, as the potential impacts of the federal budget cuts to education that we see coming down the pike and what its impact could be on California? Dr. Yoshimoto, maybe you can start with that question.

Sorry to. Well, I will start by saying I wish I had a crystal ball. That's often wished that. I think that that is the question on many of our minds and you know, we share that question.

I do know what we've been reiterating is that again the guidance that we do know in helping schools implement the guidance that we do have the guidance, the laws, interpretation of the laws and that we have confidence in the leaders of California that if and when something does come through that is a funding cut that there will be like leadership matters more now at this time than ever to really understand how to utilize dollars.

And if there's flexibilities given how to use those also to meet students needs.

I will say in the lcap, which is a process that we currently have, the equity multiplier has also been one that has been an important addition, I believe to supporting more high need students and high need communities which is we already have the, you know, the formula which is the base, the supplemental and the concentration and then on top of that the equity multiplier really trying to again tie the money to the need to the actions that we'd like to see.

And then what accountability is there in result?

So I guess the question I would have in regards to all of that is because it's local control, we give a lot of deference to local leaders to determine how the resources are used. And. And that also gives them the discretion to not use it in a way that. For which it was intended.

And so my concern is the reason that we ended up with LCAP was to get away from the. Gosh, now I'm drawing a blank on what we used to call them, their categorical spending. Right.

You have to use it for these students, but the reason that that was set up was because you had to use it for those students. And the challenge, quite frankly, is we're talking about family. I had two sons who had a hard time sitting, and there were different reactions to both of them.

They both had learning disabilities, but. To. This day, they hate school because for them, they got punished for excess energy. That just was really hard for them to deal with. While if you sent them out to do something, they would do it. They could do it, and they'd come back and they'd be excited about it.

But the number of times that that happened was few and far between. So if you have funds that go specifically to help students that have different learning modalities, then it's a lot easier for parents and I think also for teachers, because I was sympathetic.

You know, I had to let them stand at the dinner table to eat their dinner because otherwise they were all over the place.

So the challenge, from my perspective is you can have these funds, you can talk about equity, but if we don't have some prescriptions that have to be followed, then parents don't know where the money's going, and quite frankly, kept asking over and over, where's the money going? And couldn't get an answer.

So we had to mandate that they post where it's going. And now I need to get into the dashboard and find out if it's understandable. Right. Because it's easy enough to confuse people.

And I'll just add, in terms of the jurisdiction of the State Board, the LCAP template is mostly determined by statute. Right. And which is outside of.

Which is why I had to do the bill.

And. And so I think changes to that template would also require some type of legislation.

Get it? I have two quick responses for you. The first one is based on what I've heard in the room so far, we should probably just get rid of desks in schools. Right. They don't seem to be serving anybody. When I was in third grade, I had second grade, I had my own desk.

We had those long tables. But because I talked too much, those who know me are not surprised. But they just. My teacher said, you're going to go sit over here. And it's right by the books, so if you get bored, you can read. And it worked. Right?

So I think for me, our job is to figure out what works for each person. And if it isn't a desk, it isn't a desk. So that's first. And then the second is just about the Crystal ball question. And I have no Crystal ball.

But I would say the metaphor in my head is, when I was a principal, well, first I was a teacher, and we had no budget for things like office supplies for the kids or, you know, classroom supplies. So I would just buy them.

And then when I became principal, I created a budget for each teacher to buy supplies so that they'd have them in their classroom. And the amount of money that teachers spent above and beyond that didn't change because the need is always greater than whatever the resources are.

And people who dedicate their lives to serving kids want to fill that need. And so whatever happens with federal funding, I think educators in California still have the same beliefs about what young people are entitled to in terms of a free and appropriate education.

And we'll just continue to fight and to do our darndest to serve the kids.

I appreciate that. Thank you very much, Madam Vice Chair. I'm done.

Thank you, Senator Caballero. Senator Laird, thank you.

And I apologize because I was out presenting a bill and I missed a lot of discussion. But just to join in, everybody talking about their own connection, not. Not just my parents having 50 years as teachers between them, but my grandmother was one of the last teachers in California to not have a college degree.

She went to South Dakota Normal School, and she had to take units to keep current and in Senator Mcguire's district, so. And she invited me when she taught first grade as a kindergartner to go to her class. And then I shouted out all the answers, and she was so mad.

But then she bragged about it after that, which sounds like some of the problems some of us had. This is the second time around. I was on rules when you were both originally confirmed. So let me just ask one question of each of you, which is, what sort of surprised you?

What did you have to get to speed up to speed on that sort of has made you a good Member since then. We'll start with the Doctor.

Thank you. What surprised me, I think the level of respons, it wasn't a surprise, a level of responsibility, but the depth of information, the history of the legal aspects of the policies, the waivers that come to board that are, you know, wavering out of ed code.

There's a lot of depth and thought put into each of the policies that come before the State Board.

And the preparation to prepare for a board meeting is fairly in depth and is one of the things that makes me nervous to sit in front of you today because a lot of the times on the board, we're constantly getting information from the staff and they're amazing at the State Board of Education, but they're helping us understand the history of the policy.

And it's not always just top of mind because it's something that's been ongoing for decades in some cases or years in some cases. And so again, not a surprise, but just to reinforce the level of depth that we need to.

And, and also I would say the necessity to tap into the whole ecosystem of California, the voices of the folks that are impacted by policy that we make that many of you hear from often the community based organizations, the professional organizations, many of whom are here today.

And just the engine that it takes to drive educational policy in the state is vast. And I'd like to hear more also from communities that sometimes are quieter. And so I think that that is an ongoing thing that I kind of think about when I go to sleep is how do we get more voices involved?

That sort of speaks to Senator Caballero's question as well.

Thank you. Thank you. Is it a cop out to say everything? I really was. I felt, first of all, very honored to have been appointed to the State Board. I felt like I was a solid teacher and school leader working in the environment I was in.

I felt like my job was very clear that I was supposed to help create the conditions where for teachers and kids to do their best work. And I had 900 kids and 100 teachers, so I had 1,000 people plus other families.

But now we're talking 6 million students and how many schools and school districts and how do you make change and even know what everybody's doing at this huge scale? So I felt like I just had so much to. To learn and I really love to learn.

And so the challenge of it has really engaged me and been really fun and also very humbling. And I would just add one other thing that I really had no idea how many people there are across the state working hard to make sure we're doing a good job on behalf of kids.

I have met so many incredible educators and our educational partners and students who are doing incredible work to make our schools better. Just recognizing how many people there are that are working you. All the work you're doing to improve our schools, that's really been surprising and exciting to me.

Thank you very much.

Thank you. Senator Laird, are there any other comments from the dais? No. We're going to move to public comment. Those who wish to publicly come up and support the nominees, one or both, please come to the microphone. State your name, position, and brief comments of why.

Good afternoon, Madam Vice Chair, Members of the Committee, Sarah Petrowski, on behalf of the California Association of School Business Officials, representing over 30,000 school business leaders across California, here to support the reappointment of board Members Olkin and Yoshimoto-Towery to the State Board of Education. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you for being here. Hi. Welcome.

Thank you. Good afternoon. Lindsay Tornatori here on behalf of the California County Superintendents and also the Association of the California School Administrators, both associations in support of the reappointment of Members Olkin and Yoshimoto-Towery.

Thank you. Thank you for being here. Welcome.

Thank you. Madam Vice Chair and Members, Andrea Ball, on behalf of the California Association of Suburban School Districts, here in support of both of these outstanding candidates. Allison Yoshimoto Towery and Sharon Olkin really appreciate the conversation today, the work they've done and the work we know they're going to continue doing. Thanks.

Thank you. Any others in support? We'll move to opposition. Anybody wishing to be in opposition of either or both of the nominees, please come to the microphone. See? None. Or I guess I have to. Last call. Last call. Board. See None. I'll bring it back to the dais for comments or a motion, I would.

Move that we advance both of these appointments to the Senate Floor for full confirmation.

Thank you. Senator Laird. Madam Secretary, please call the roll.

[Roll call]

So that vote is currently 2 to 2. Senator Mcguire will be back shortly. He had to step out and handle something. And we'll open the roll back up and. Or. And recall the roll. Thank you. Okay, thank you. Thank you both for being here.

Thank you.

Okay, we are going to lift the call on item one, C. Mark Krause. Madam Secretary, please call the roll.

Laird, Aye.

Laird, Aye. Five to zero. That vote is five to zero. It's out. Thank you very much.

Thank you.

Thank you. With all due respect to everybody who's watching Senator Laird and I have to go down to budget. Senator Mcguire Pro Tem is not yet back. We are going to go into a recess briefly until he returns. Are you guys good with that? You're good with that? Okay. zero, I was just reset.

We are not recessing until Mr. Mcguire gets back. Pro Tem McGuire gets back.

No problem at all.

To Madam Board Members. I apologize sincerely about having to step out with our secretary, so I do apologize. What we're going to do is we're going to lift the call on the deadbeat absent Member. Madam Secretary, can you please call the roll?

[Roll call]

Three. Two. That vote is final. We're closing the roll. Congratulations, Madam Board Members. Next stop will be the Senate Floor. We're really grateful for your service and so happy both of you are here. Congrats. Thank you so much. All right, ladies and gentlemen, even though folks want to keep going, we're going to have to end this one.

So we are going to be adjourned. We're grateful that each of you are here, and again, thank you so much for your patience. We made our way through today's book of business.

Thank you.