For Immediate Release December 4, 2023 Media Contact: Sumeet Bal, Director of Communications, 917-647-1952 School Districts Fail to Submit Critical Data to Inform Teacher Shortages, Student Investments Civil Rights Law Firm Issues Warning to Fifteen Districts Out of Compliance San Francisco—Today Public Advocates, a statewide public interest, civil rights law firm and advocacy organization, wrote to 15 school districts* who failed to submit critical assignment and credentialing information on their teachers. The letter warned them of their obligation to provide and certify these n ..read more

October 30, 2023—Regarding “Newsom signed over 60 housing bills this year. Here’s how they’re going to change California” (Letters to the Editor, SFChronicle.com, Oct. 24): Alfred Twu’s op-ed highlights some bills that, Twu argues, give California the potential to “turn the corner on the housing crisis.” However, Twu omits one bold housing bill that targets the market-driven housing system as a whole.  As Managing Attorney Richard Marcantonio writes, “SB555 [the Stable Affordable Housing Act] sets us on the path to a future in which public and nonprofit ownership of housing ..read more

October 11, 2023—TheLos Angeles Times’* California Politics Reporter Hannah Wiley covers new housing laws Gov. Gavin Newsom signed before the October 14 deadline including SB 567 which will strengthen tenant protections in an effort to prevent marginalized low-income renters from displacement and “worsening one of the state’s greatest crises.” The Homelessness Prevention Act, SB 567 (Durazo), will protect our neighbors who rent from unjust evictions and enforce Governor Newsom’s historic 2019 policy, The Tenant Protection Act (AB 1482). Now, if a landlord tries to evict a tenant in order ..read more

October 18, 2023 –Earlier this month, California passed a bill requiring the state to produce a study and recommendations on expanding the state’s social housing sector. Organizers hope it will be the first step in providing de-commodified shelter on a large scale. As Managing Attorney Richard MarcAntonio writes, “Given the extent to which housing has been commodified — diverted from its role in meeting human needs into an investment vehicle — the bill proposes a bold vision for ending the crisis: meeting the state’s target of building 1.4 million units of below-market-rate housing by 2030 thr ..read more

“Empowering Students” Means Building Actual Student Power You may have read about the recent discord surrounding Assemblymember Kevin McCarty’s bill “University of California Degree for Transfer Pilot Program,” (AB 1291), which seeks to, as he puts it, “once and for all create a simplified, streamlined path for transfers from community college to UC and CSU.” The bill takes an initial step towards establishing the same Associate Degree for Transfer for the University of California system as currently exists for the California State University System. An admirable goal given how difficult tr ..read more

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASESeptember 30, 2023 Press Contact: Sumeet Bal, Director of Communication, 917-647-1952, sbal@publicadvocates.org    Governor Newsom Signs Homelessness Prevention Act Strengthening Eviction Protections and Enforcement Sacramento (Calif.) — Governor Gavin Newsom signed the Homelessness Prevention Act (SB 567) today ensuring more Californians can thrive. Authored by Senator María Elena Durazo (D-Los Angeles) SB 567 responds to the lived experience millions of California’s renters face—evictions, displacement, and homelessness—by strengthening the historic California ..read more

Senior Communications Manager  For more than 50 years Public Advocates Inc. (PA) has been on the frontlines of social justice movements in California, making rights real. As a bold and highly regarded nonprofit law firm and advocacy organization that challenges the systemic causes of poverty and racial discrimination, we pride ourselves on our ability to skillfully deploy a three pronged approach to create systemic change.  Using litigation and enforcement advocacy, policy advocacy, and hard-hitting communication strategies, PA has not only been able to achieve tangible legal and pol ..read more

July 11, 2023 – Counterpunch’s Sonali Kolhatkar writes about the homelessness crisis in California. The articles mentions Public Advocates’ 2018 report on the growing financialization of the state’s housing supply. Read the article. The post Counterpunch: It’s Not That Hard to Solve Homelessness appeared first on Public Advocates ..read more

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEJune 29, 2023 Press Contact: Sumeet Bal, Director of Communication, 917-647-1952, sbal@publicadvocates.org  In Deficit Year Budget Deal Provides Bright Spots for Education Equity and Transit But Low Income Renters Still Await Relief  Sacramento, Calif.—This week Governor Gavin Newsom signed a $310 billion state budget for 2023, despite a $31 billion deficit. The governor and legislative leaders remained steadfast in their commitment to bolstering K-12 accountability and advancing education equity by maintaining and strengthening school funding levels. They also ..read more

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE May 24, 2023 Press contact: Sumeet Bal, Director of Communications, 917-647-1952, sbal@publicadvocates.org Hannah Esqueda Freeman, Communications Director, 559-367-7158, hannah@caljustice.org Mariel Matze, Communications Manager, 650-380-1973, mmatze@edtrustwest.org Education Equity Orgs Release First-Ever Community Informed Recs on Recruiting and Retaining Diverse Educators in California Schools San Francisco Bay Area—Today, as we approach the end of the school year and appreciate educators for their dedication and commitment to California’s school childr ..read more