A Busy Spring in the Legislature
Welcome to my inaugural newsletter!
As your State Assemblymember, I look forward to informing you about important state issues, what I am doing on your behalf and critical state services and programs that impact local residents.
My first few months in the Legislature have been busy.
In Sacramento, I have introduced a wide range of legislation, including bills to ensure that polluters pay the fines levied against them to clean-up affected communities; improve technology and equip first responders with tools to prevent and fight wildfires; improve access to paid family leave and remove toxic chemicals from everyday products that can be harmful to people and the climate.
In the District, I am working hard to engage with the nearly 500,000 residents and stakeholders in the communities that I represent.
In late February, I was pleased to hold my first district office hours in the City of East Palo Alto to hear from residents and local leaders about their concerns.
I am meeting with city and school leaders throughout the District and attending community events to continue hearing from you about your needs and concerns for our San Mateo County communities. We will host future events to ensure that we continue to hear from you.
Sincerely,
Diane Papan
Assemblymember, 21st District
In the District
East Palo Alto Community Forum on Power Outages
On March 16, I organized and co-hosted a community forum in East Palo Alto with the city's Mayor Lisa Gauthier, State Senator Josh Becker and Supervisor Warren Slocum.
At the forum, representatives from PG&E reviewed the recent extended power outage affecting the community and PG&E's response.
Members of the public spoke directly to PG&E representatives to ask questions and comment about their own experiences and concerns.
Residents spoke passionately about the hardships they endured during days without power - from disposing of spoiled food, to withstanding cold days and nights, to schools closed without warning, forcing families to quickly adjust under already stressful circumstances.
The forum was just the start of a bigger conversation. In the coming months I will be gathering key stakeholders to review what we have heard from residents and PG&E with the goal of developing proposals to reduce prolonged power outages and respond better when they do happen given that climate emergencies are becoming more intense and more frequent. We will work to significantly improve communication before, during and after storms. Our communities must be prepared, and provided timely, actionable information to get through days without power. Stay tuned.
Woman of the Year
My inaugural selection of the 21st Assembly District Woman of the Year is San Mateo resident Gloria Rhodes Brown.
Annually, the California Legislative Women's Caucus celebrates Women's History Month with the "California Women Making Herstory" event inviting each Assemblymember to elevate a woman in their district for her ‘herstory making' activities and honor her on the Assembly floor.
Ms. Brown is a native of San Mateo County, devoting her life and career to improving the health of her community. She began her work in the community at age 22 joining the University of California Cooperative Extension and spending over 36 years teaching county residents, especially low-income immigrants, to improve their health through good nutrition. In addition, she co-founded the Mills-Peninsula Health Services African American Community Health Advisory Committee (CHAC) in 1995 and has spearheaded innovative health educational programs including annual events such as the Women's Health Conference, Men's Health Symposium, and the Soul Stroll for Health Walk and Resource Fair.
Gloria Brown's contributions are many and she is truly an inspiration and an asset to our communities. It is my great honor to recognize her.
San Mateo NAACP Herby Dawkins Freedom Fund Gala
Community Service Award winner Kathryn Haysbert
On March 12, I attended the Herby Dawkins Freedom Fund Gala held by the San Mateo Chapter of the NAACP.
This wonderful event featured excellent speakers and, more importantly, honored the contributions of many community members and organizations for their community service and leadership.
The uplifting event was a great reminder of the many community members doing good work for all of our benefit.
I have introduced a number of bills this year. Below are brief summaries and links to a few of these.
Assembly Bill 246: (Banning Harmful "Forever Chemicals" from Tampons) This bill will ban manufacturers of menstrual products from adding Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) to their products.
Assembly Bill 753: (Directing Polluter Penalties to Impacted Communities) 
This bill will reform the State Water Board's Cleanup and Abatement Account to ensure that fines and penalties paid by water quality violators are sent back to the impacted community for cleanup of the affected waterway.
Assembly Bill 755: (Water Rate Equity) This bill will require public water utilities to identify how major water users drive up water system expenses and provide greater focus on the root cause of increasing but inequitable rates. This analysis will also serve as a necessary foundation for a more fair and equitable rate structure.
Assembly Bill 575: (Better Access to Paid Family Leave) This bill will remove cumbersome barriers for individuals looking to access their paid family benefits.
You may have assets sitting with the State. California's Unclaimed Property Law requires banks, insurance companies, corporations, and certain other entities to report and submit their customers' property to the State Controller's Office when there has been no activity for a period of time (generally three years). Common types of unclaimed property are bank accounts, stocks, bonds, uncashed checks, insurance benefits, wages, and safe deposit box contents. Property does not include Real Estate. The State Controller safeguards this lost or forgotten property and there is no deadline for claiming it. Searching for unclaimed property is easy. To begin your search please follow this link.
Until Next Time!
If you are experiencing challenges or problems with a state agency, want to know more about state programs or services or to voice your opinion about pending state legislation feel free to reach out to my office. I look forward to hearing from you. And you can always check out what I'm up to on Twitter at @AsmDianePapan or Instagram @asmdianepapan.