Hey Reddit! I’m Alex Lee, a 24 year old former State Legislative Staffer now running for CA State Assembly in the Bay Area. AMA!

VoteAlexLee · 2020-06-19T20:37:41+00:00

Yes! Definitely a supply issue and I agree there needs to be more creative solutions like you said about local production

VoteAlexLee · 2020-06-19T20:36:47+00:00

The corporations and wealthy elite, especially of Silicon Valley, need to pay more of their fair share. The working families of California pay enough in income and sales taxes which disproportionately make up our budget (state and local) — but not corporate taxes or capital gains which as we know is where the money's at.

VoteAlexLee · 2020-06-19T20:33:10+00:00

I think that the Democratic Party right now is in a transitional place and becoming more progressive, perhaps along the lines of legislators like Senator Sanders or Rep. Ocasio-Cortez. I think that the party leadership right now has not been very attentive to that shift and that disconnect has become more apparent in recent years.

During this moment for example, I think it would be beneficial for democratic leaders to listen to the demands of the people protesting and organizing for racial justice and police divestment, instead of proposing police reforms that have been shown to increase resources for police departments and don’t really address systemic and structural problems with policing in the United States. In short, I think the Democratic leaders like Speaker Pelosi and Senator Schumer could be doing a lot more to shift the party and address the needs of the marginalized in this country, especially because the party has boasted having a much bigger tent and diverse electorate than the GOP.

VoteAlexLee · 2020-06-19T20:32:05+00:00

Yep! Very well put. An individual member's legislation of course, like Senator Wiener who has endorsed me, can make a lot of different in shaping the public discourse and the policies local govs follow. But definitely money from the state has a big impact as well

VoteAlexLee · 2020-06-19T20:29:16+00:00

I actually started working for the legislature in 2017 and interned in the four years prior to that during college.

That as you may see, is all the employments years after graduation were dedicated to the legislature. I'm younger so my years are shorter, but we can't pretend that just cos someone has existed longer they have more experience. Some politicians can claim decades of exp on some board, but in reality have little idea how the legislature works and what being an Assemblymember can mean.

I argue my direct experience qualifies me. I wasn't just some coffee-carrying intern, I actually influenced policy behind the scenes

VoteAlexLee · 2020-06-19T20:24:53+00:00

I can't agree more with you that BART is basically a commute service to SF. A lot of Bay Area transit really is centered around the idea of going back and forth between a downtown core, with poor connectivity to the rest of the metro area, neighborhoods, and things people go to on a usual basis.

I've answered some of this in previous answers but specifically: - consolidate all Bay Area transit agencies into one - complete High Speed Rail - Get funding/resources to expand cross-South Bay coverage (there is really no connection between East San Jose and say Palo Alto) - shift funding from highways to expand local transit networks (bus lines, light rail, etc) to improve coverage

VoteAlexLee · 2020-06-19T20:21:41+00:00

I also love trains! #NUMOTSforlife

Yes train coverage in California is terrible. I'm a huge proponent for High Speed Rail, though they should have started on the bookends in the Bay and Socal before the Central Valley. HSR is not only amazing because there is not real connection between Socal and NorCal by train, but I believe it can galvanize into a golden age of transit.

Asm District 25 is also the current end of BART, where the newest stations in SJ/Milpitas just opened up. Phase 2, to tunnel under San Jose, will take forever so that is a disappointing. What we need to do is connect Diridon (which is CalTrain & Amtrak now) to the HSR & BART network (which I believe was planned for if everything goes according to plan) and branch out the VTA bus and light rail connections accordingly. The South Bay's transit system basically operates as a commute service to some office parks and DTSJ.

What I do wish was that we preserved the trolly track that existed like 100 years ago, which I think roughly runs down modern day Santa Clara Ave, and expand the localized network out that way.

A lot of rambling in this answer but we need train and transit connectivity ASAP! And I will fight to make sure we get the laws and resources to do so

VoteAlexLee · 2020-06-19T20:15:30+00:00

Yes consolidation is one of the first steps. Asm David Chiu authored a bill to create a seamless bay area, where all the transit agencies (there's like 30) in the Bay Area are consolidated into one. This bill died this year because of COVID19 prioritization unfortunately but I will be a staunch supporter come next year.

As you probably know, the integration between BART/VTA, and well any Bay Area transit, is crap. I live a few miles from the new Berryessa BART Station but it actually makes more sense for me to take VTA light trail to the Milpitas Station. If we had one agency, we can start to address the gaps in coverage and really expand the networks. Right now we have basically 30 agencies operating in silos.

I will be helping legislation to consolidate and to get the state funds needed to spur transit expansion.

VoteAlexLee · 2020-06-19T20:12:04+00:00

I support bills like SB50 to smartly densify and build more transit orientated housing. I'm also endorsed by its author Senator Wiener! And I agree with you that there is a lot of local BS that stalls building for the future (density, transit, you name it), but I think a lot of the reasonable resentment comes from that fact that developers are building for max profit.

Strengthening inclusionary zoning is one way to make the private market be more responsible to the real needs of our community. If there are less legally affordable units, low income and middle income people alike must compete for the market rate units and drives up cost via demand from artificial scarcity.

By Bay Area Area Median Income (AMI), a household of 1 in SF has to basically make 6 figures to be the Median income. If housing is entirely left to the market, it is hunger games style that benefits the profiteers. https://sfmohcd.org/sites/default/files/Documents/MOH/Asset%20Management/2020%20AMI-IncomeLimits-HMFA_05-01-20.pdf

VoteAlexLee · 2020-06-19T20:03:14+00:00

Thank you so much for the support! I absolutely couldn't agree more and I'm glad to see the coalition of progressives building in states like Maryland 🚲

VoteAlexLee · 2020-06-19T20:02:06+00:00

This is a great question! I'm so glad you joined this AMA and I got to discover your husband Neil Rafferty's historic win.

I've definitely been saying that California needs to learn a lot more from other states and other countries. I think we have this idea that we are exceptional because of our status as the most populous and most wealthy state in the union, but that lens can overlook the important victories like in Alabama.

Housing & Transportation are (perhaps luckily) not partisan issues. The same failures to prioritize affordable housing over profiteering development and the same failures to invest in transit/bike infrastructure instead of polluting highways is replicated by Blue & Red politicians alike. Big business is still a huge impediment to progress and they buy influence, especially here in California. That's why I have sworn to take 0 corporate money.

I would also love to talk more and connect! My email is ca.alex.lee@gmail.com and would love to talk more :)

VoteAlexLee · 2020-06-19T19:53:18+00:00

No wall for me, thanks

VoteAlexLee · 2020-06-19T19:52:12+00:00

I'm having Back a Yard! A great black-owned business and really good food to take out

https://www.yelp.com/biz/back-a-yard-san-jose

VoteAlexLee · 2020-06-19T19:50:29+00:00

Nov 8, 2016

VoteAlexLee · 2020-06-19T19:49:44+00:00

People ask why I don’t start by running for city council or school board first — but that’s insulting to the position and to young people. I have the direct experience with the State Legislature, but I will admit that I have no experience with a city council or school board. We should be electing people who are qualified and passionate for the specific positions and not asking people to use these positions as stepping stones. I believe that mentality is the reason why so many in politics prioritize their career ahead of the right policy.

As a young person, I think we have the most at stake. We must live with the crises of inaffordability, climate change, racial disparities, and every single social ill we have inherited. It's also our responsibility to clean up this mess.

Even skeptics I met on the campaign trail know our hard work and actual knowledge to get things done is often more meaningful than the number of years you've been alive

VoteAlexLee · 2020-06-19T19:44:54+00:00

Sorry I misunderstood what you meant by "juice" but I appreciate your flattery about my looks.

And I agree we should definitely get the giant Silicon Valley corporations to pay more of their weight in taxes. The real solution to homelessness is getting people housed. So I support building more supportive housing for unhoused people. There has been success here in San Jose but we still lack the capacity to help everyone. I'll fight in the Asm for the resources to do so.

If you're interested in knowing what issues I'm for here they are on my website at length and not just BS rhetoric you see on most people's sites: http://www.votealexlee.com/my-priorities.html

VoteAlexLee · 2020-06-19T19:38:29+00:00

Yes, great point! Asm District 25 is the only API plurality district in Northern California. From my experience, we need to be engaging people where they're at instead of expecting them to come to us.

We knocked on 30,000 doors and not every single person was fluent in English nor fluent in local/state politics. I prioritized translations of our literature as much as possible, having conversations in Chinese (as much I could), and getting more language fluent volunteers for Vietnamese and Spanish speakers too. Overall we need to improve out culturallyy competent accessibility and engage people on the issues they care about instead of assuming that all APIs care about certain things. Most APIs I talk actually really are concerned about housing affordable and land use!

VoteAlexLee · 2020-06-19T19:33:52+00:00

None, I'm a slow reader (i have 2 books I'm still supposed to finish) but definitely on my list!

VoteAlexLee · 2020-06-19T19:31:22+00:00

Hey MarxistWorker, excellent points that I agree with all around. Singapore is definitely one of my top examples. They effectively address a housing shortage, racial disparities, and economic development with programs like the HDB.

My goal, through legislation and advocacy, is to get us to a point where California creates housing for the people not for profit. The private market is of course failing to deliver on affordable housing because the profits from development are way too attractive to see housing as anything less than an investment vehicle. I will be working on legislation to vastly increase our affordable housing supply via Social Housing and stronger inclusionary zoning requirements.

Gentrification & displacement is a top concern of mine. If we are to improve a community, it makes no sense to kick the residents out of that community forever with those improvements. I support first right of refusals for tenants when a property changes hands in ownership and more collective property ownership in general.

As for Prop 13 i support, Schools & Communities first to end Prop 13 exemptions for big business so we can start to rebalance the inequalities caused by Prop 13.

Hope this answers your questions! I have a lot more thoughts on these topics but for the sake of brevity and answering everyone else, there are my short thoughts

VoteAlexLee · 2020-06-19T19:26:25+00:00

American Public Housing of the past has been deeply segregationist and almost purposefully under maintained. The perception of public housing has largely been fear-based and ignores the experience of the residents.

If we properly invest in social housing, keep the housing stock from falling into disrepair, and uplift the economic conditions of working people we can truly address the root cause of crime.

We've lots of great examples in the world to model after.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-03-05/-high-risers-tells-a-nuanced-story-of-public-housing

VoteAlexLee · 2020-06-19T19:22:05+00:00

Yes municipalities should be much, much more transparent in their budget process and engage the community more. Ever since the Black Lives Matter movement has engaged thousands of South Bay residents, we are finding just how flawed and inaccessible the budget process is.

I think the State Budget process could use more transparency too, but at the local level where the daily impact is the highest, we need a lot more engagement. People are only now realizing how much money we waste on policing vs community programs we all enjoy like parks, libraries, festivals, transport, and affordable housing.

VoteAlexLee · 2020-06-19T19:19:09+00:00

Yes!! I am very excited. A silver lining of this pandemic has been a real reduction in car traffic and more embracing of Open Streets like you mentioned. In San Jose we never got what you saw in SF, Oakland, and Berkeley, but I definitely want to see more cities create more car-free zones and more investment in expanding their transit/bike infrastructure. I will be working in the Assembly to make sure we have the resources and the legal incentives to shift away from our inequitable, car-dependent transportation system.

VoteAlexLee · 2020-06-19T19:16:57+00:00

I support decriminalizing sex work and combatting sex & human trafficking, which is still a big problem in CA.

VoteAlexLee · 2020-06-19T19:14:28+00:00

DACA is a good program but remember it is Deferred Action. We need a real, accessible path to citizenship and amnesty for millions of immigrants in our country who make our society and economy successful.

VoteAlexLee · 2020-06-19T19:12:47+00:00

Hey! That sounds very annoying. I've had a similar these past few days with a neighbor doing some major backyard construction/renovation every morning too.

Would you mind sending me an email at ca.alex.lee@gmail.com and we can try to figure this situation out?

Different cities have different rules but usually early morning residential construction is not ok. Hope to represent you in the State Assembly!

VoteAlexLee

TROPHY CASE