Great news! Asm. Chris Holden's AB 1919 to make transit free for all California students passed through the Senate Transportation Committee this week with a 17-0 vote! Before that, it got off the Assembly floor 74-0 (and out of Assembly Appropriations 12-1 and Assembly Transportation 14-0 before that). However. . .
...the bill is on its way to the Senate Appropriations Committee on August 1, where the going gets tough. We need your help to set up meetings, calling, and emailing with members of the Senate Appropriations Committee.
Having so many organizations, transit agencies and the California Transit Association support the bill has been very important, but we now need to mobilize!
We did try unsuccessfully to pass a bill like this several times before—going back as far as 2015. However, COVID, concerns about climate change and air pollution, the escalating problem of traffic and traffic accidents, and all the money that Congress provided in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill have changed the landscape. The legislature seems more interested in encouraging transit over cars.
You can start contacting your senator and assemblymember using our very-easy-to-use "Take Action" feature here so they know that their constituents want to make transit free for all students in California!
If you want to help set up meetings with key Senators, please email Eli Lipmen at eli@movela.org directly.
Comments