S1: Welcome in San Diego. It's Jade Hindman. As we embark on a new year , we are talking with elected officials to hear more about who they are and their policy goals. This is KPBS Midday Edition. Connecting our communities through conversation. Midday edition is interviewing newly elected officials to hear their goals for the next term. Mike Levin has been re-elected to represent the 49th district for a fourth term. It was a tight and competitive race against Republican challenger Matt Gunderson. The 49th district includes parts of San Diego's North County and South Orange County. And Mike Levin joins me now. Welcome to Midday Edition.
S2: Thank you. It's great to be with you.
S1: So glad to have you here. Some big news for you this week. You've been asked to join the House Appropriations Committee.
S2: It's something that I've been , uh , hopeful , uh , to , uh , to achieve now for quite a number of years. And , uh , it is the committee that has the jurisdiction over all the discretionary spending , uh , for the federal government. Uh , so it's it's certainly , uh , a great committee , uh , with significant influence. And I think it'll help our entire region. And , uh , I'm honored to , uh , to be representing , uh , San Diego and Orange counties is the only appropriator , uh , of either party , uh , on the House Appropriations Committee. So it's not something I take for granted. Uh , and , uh , you know , I'm really excited to , uh , to be the the new person on that committee to figure out the subcommittees. Of course , you have to go through all that selection of the subcommittees. But when I think about what we've been able to achieve in the last six years , uh , representing , uh , North County , San Diego and South OC. We've gotten about $1 billion of federal funding back to our district. These are our tax dollars that we pay into the federal government , and bringing those back for so many different projects in our communities , whether it's for sand replenishment or trying to deal with the nuclear waste at San Onofre , or all the roads and bridges and water systems and so many other things that we've been able to do these last six years. And what the House Appropriations Committee will enable is for me to have now a even bigger opportunity to secure those investments for our region. And I'm very eager to get started. I can tell you that my colleagues , all our wonderful colleagues in San Diego and Orange counties are excited to to try to do all we can to get our fair share of federal dollars back to our region and to really work on the problems that we face. Wow.
S1: Wow. And as you've touched on , you'll have a bigger role in shaping funding packages.
S2: And it's so critically important. You know , every time we have a near government shutdown , I immediately think about our young men and women who are serving in the military. And I'm so grateful and honored to serve a marine Corps base , Camp Pendleton. And I'm thinking about those junior enlisted Marines and sailors and the thought of them potentially having to go without a paycheck. To me , is just unconscionable. Uh , of course , there are so many other things that happen as well. Uh , for all of the , the , uh , inconveniences that it causes. But at the end of the day , if we're not able to pay our essential government employees like our military service members and , you know , also folks like our air traffic controllers and TSA agents , uh , that's unacceptable. And so doing everything we can to work across the aisle in good faith to get things done whenever possible. but of course , stand up to extremism whenever necessary. And my , uh , my big concern now is , you know , just at the end of the year , we had the opportunity to work with Speaker Johnson on a bipartisan spending package that , uh , unfortunately , Elon Musk inserted himself into the , you know , discussion at the very last second. And then President Trump. President elect Trump wound up siding with Musk over Mike Johnson and over House Republicans , uh , with , uh , you know , everything on the line. And and at the end of the day , Johnson had to renege on the deal that he had , uh , you know , spent months crafting with House Democrats. And that did not engender trust between Johnson and House Democrats. So , you know , we're going to fight for our values and our priorities and our districts , uh , and we're going to stand up for common sense and try to find common ground , uh , but Recognize that it's very tough to negotiate with Johnson when you have Musk and President elect Trump standing in the background. Yeah.
S1: Yeah.
S2: The work that we've been able to do over these last six years is demonstrated to me that we can get things done. When Donald Trump was president or when Joe Biden was president , I've been honored to have 34 of my bills signed into law these last six years. And I can tell you that 16 of them were signed by Donald Trump and 18 of them were signed by Joe Biden. So I'm very proud of that. And we're going to continue to work as we can to achieve good public policy , whether it's for our veterans , for everything from their housing , homelessness , the GI Bill transition , workforce development , everything we're trying to do on climate and the environment , the spent nuclear fuel challenges we face , the rail corridor infrastructure , making sure that we're doing all we can to stabilize our rail corridor. Uh , you know , as I said , getting the the , uh , nuclear waste is also an area that I think is really , really ripe for bipartisan action to deal with spent nuclear fuel , not only at San Onofre but across the country. I co-lead a bipartisan caucus , uh , to , uh , to address that challenge. And being on the Appropriations Committee will be a big help in that regard as well. Yeah.
S1: Yeah. Well , your win , uh , keeps this seat in the Democrats hands. But Republicans took the House and Senate this election.
S2: But I think not all hope is lost. As I said , when Republicans controlled , uh , the House back , uh , you know , and when Donald Trump was president , uh , in each of those scenarios , we were able to get our legislation across the finish line. This will be my first two years with a Republican trifecta , so that is a new scenario , but I'm already having positive and productive conversations with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle about what is achievable in this new Congress. And I continue to believe that the key around here , the reason that we've been able to get 34 bills signed into law in six years , the reason we've been able to deliver over $1 billion in federal funds back to our communities is that it's preparation plus opportunity. So you have to be prepared. You have to do your homework. You have to have great staff. I'm very blessed to have , I think , the best staff on Capitol Hill , just doing a tremendous job. And then you have to find those opportunities to to execute on the things that you've prepared. It might be a annual reconciliation or budget measure. It may be a National Defense Authorization Act or a must pass standalone bill. Uh , who knows what the right opportunity will be ? But if you're prepared , then you can take advantage of those opportunities as they come.
S1: You've said that lowering costs and addressing the cost of living is a big priority for you.
S2: So seniors only have to pay now 2000 out-of-pocket maximum on Medicare , or whether we reduce the price of insulin and other prescription drugs , whether we reduce the cost of energy. Now , we may have disagreements on how we get there around energy , but nonetheless , we share the same objective of having an energy supply that is cost effective and reliable. And look , we've got to continue that work. I will not allow myself to get distracted. Uh , when president elect Trump talks about , you know , Greenland or renaming the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America , or , you know , trying to make Canada a state. Any of that sort of stuff. I'm not going to get distracted by that. I'm going to focus on lowering costs. And I think that's what president elect Trump ran on to. He promised to lower costs. So let's work together and roll up our sleeves and find ways to do that. And I think every member of Congress , in one shape or form , has made promises in that regard. I'd like to think that among those , we House Democrats have taken concrete actions to actually address costs. But let's work together and try to get things done , if we can , here in the next two years.
S1: Immigration is also a major issue of importance here in San Diego.
S2: A year ago , we had a bipartisan border security deal that I and many others supported and had provided input Uh , to , to , uh , you know , what I thought was a fair and reasonable work product. And once again , that was , uh , you know , uh , president elect Trump and and Speaker Johnson at the time decided to kill that bipartisan deal , uh , even though it been negotiated in part , in large part by very conservative Republican Senator , uh , Lankford of Oklahoma , we have to now pick up the pieces and try to work together and recognize that , yes , we need border security , but we also need a path to citizenship. For those who've been here for many years , I'm encouraged that the president elect had talked about working with us on dreamers , trying to do something for DACA recipients. Farm workforce modernization is necessary as well. Uh , and visa reform , all those are things that ought to be a bipartisan , uh , endeavors. Uh , I can tell you that , uh , a lot of this is posturing and politics , and that's unfortunate. I think it's a matter of national security that we have secure borders , that we have a asylum system that's actually orderly , that's serving people in a manner intended rather than a disorganized , free for all as it had become , unfortunately. I think we've come a long way since the presidents , President Biden's executive actions back in June of last year. I go to the border very frequently , and we'll continue to do so for as long as I have the opportunity to serve , because I am committed , as are many of my colleagues , to not only securing the border , but also providing a path for those who are here for all the right reasons , who are , you know , contributing positively to our economy , to our society. And I think of my own grandparents who came to the US on my mom's side from Mexico when they were very young. They were able to live the American dream , start a small business. Despite having never graduated high school , they were able to have four daughters , each of whom graduated from college , a couple of couple of them , including my mom , got advanced degrees and now their youngest grandson is in the House of Representatives. That's how it's supposed to work in the United States. And I worry that when we , um , try to , uh , you know , just use immigration or , uh , try to , um , paint immigrants , uh , as , uh , you know , something that they are not , uh , that , you know , when we engage in xenophobia , uh , or or fear of , uh , immigrants , uh , for purely political reasons , that we are losing our way. We are losing what made America great in the first place.
S1: And unfortunately , it's a it's a place this country has been at , uh , before , you know , as we gear up for Inauguration Day.
S2: And I think in any democracy , you cannot only , um , you know , support the result when it suits you politically. You have to support that result in that democratic process. Uh , whether you win or you lose. And so I was there just a few days ago when Vice President Harris , uh , she was responsible for the certification process. It was a bit surreal , to be honest with you , to see Vice President Harris there certifying the result , uh , for president elect Trump. But I really do think that's what makes America still , uh , a democracy that we must fight for and recognize that it is not something that is automatic. We all have agency in upholding our democratic values. And , uh , on January 20th , I will be , uh , probably very cold out there. Uh , given the recent weather here in D.C. , I think it's going to be very cold , but nonetheless , I'll be there on Inauguration Day as a member of Congress , representing not just those who voted for me , but those who did not and those who didn't vote at all.
S1: I've been speaking with Mike Levin , representative of the 49th district. Thank you so much for joining us on the show today.
S2: Thank you for having me.
S1: Coming up , San Diego County Supervisor Tara Lawson Reamer on her policy goals.
S3: Trying to level the playing field , trying to make sure that , you know , everyone in this country has a fair shot and has a fair chance.
S1: KPBS Midday Edition is back after the break. Welcome back to KPBS Midday Edition. I'm your host , Jade Hindman. On today's show , we're sitting down with elected officials to hear their goals for their next term. I'm joined now by Tara Lawson Riemer. She is vice chair of the San Diego Board of Supervisors representing district three. She was first elected to the seat in 2020 , shifting the majority on the Board of Supervisors to Democratic for the first time in decades. Now she's heading into a second term. Tara , welcome to Midday Edition.
S3: Great to be here.
S1: So glad to have you here. You've said your top priorities for reelection include homelessness , housing and behavioral health. Those three things really go hand in hand. How do you plan to get people into supportive housing ? Yeah.
S3: You know , I think as I look forward to the next four years , um , there's just some really fundamental , um , issues that I'm very focused on. And , you know , you mentioned three of them. And to me , it's just , uh , you know , there's just a core orientation we have to have to observe as a society and a community. People should have the right to clean water and healthy water and a healthy environment. People should have the ability and the right to get quality health care and not be dying when they're sick because they can't see a doctor. People should be able to get a roof over their heads and not be sleeping on a street corner. And so focusing on tackling these main issues , um , are , you know , what I've been working on for the last four years and what I continue to be focused on for the , for the next four years. So , um , you know , when you start getting into the how you got , you start getting into the nitty gritty of funding sources and strategies. But I think very big picture. Um , number one , we're very much looking forward to leveraging some new money called prop one funding that we're going to be getting from the state. Uh , we've put in applications already , uh , for as a county for nearly $600 million in prop one funding , and that would be able to to build out a lot of the supportive services that we know are so vital. Um , and second of all , looking at how we can better leverage Medicaid funding. You know , most of the health care services , behavioral health services , mental health , substance abuse treatment , um , that that we need in our community for folks that are , um , that are on Medicaid that don't have private insurance. That funding comes through the federal government , and we are not really getting our fair share right now of Medicaid. And our hands are really tied on how we utilize that funding. It's really , uh , very top down , very circumscribed. So we're working on getting more flexibility and also just getting a bigger share of the pie on Medicaid.
S1: Yeah , it's such a broad issue. Um , you also mentioned quality health care , though , and that includes mental health care. So when it comes to addressing behavioral health , what solutions are you pressing for there.
S3: So there's a lot of different aspects. So first of all , uh , the Medicaid funding and the prop one funding that's all about behavioral health. That's all about substance abuse treatment centers and about mental health treatment. So I'll talk a little bit about the programs that we've been pushing on. And because we're really looking to scale those up. So first of all , we've built out already six on our way to seven crisis stabilization units at the county. And those are really important because that's where people can go if they're in a crisis and an immediate acute crisis , instead of ending up in an emergency room if you're having a behavioral health crisis. And they've been really successful already at stabilizing people and then connecting them with with services and with care. Um , we've also continued to scale up our mobile crisis response teams. Um , when I was elected , there was really nothing no alternative to just basically calling the police if someone was having a mental health crisis. And now we have these teams all across our county working 24 over seven. So if people are having a mental health crisis , there is an alternative. Um , and these is there trained clinicians that can respond and help and help people in crisis ? So these are some of the examples we've been continuing to build out. Uh , detox beds. Um , looking at expanding access to sober living , you know , basically residential , uh , facilities where people who are in treatment and need a , in need housing , uh , could live as well as inpatient residential treatment facilities.
S1: Well , and , you know , the cost of living is a major stressor for members of our community.
S3: Um , you know , there is there are these vast , vast inequities in the housing market. And I'm very focused on how do we level the playing field. Um , you know , one of the things I'm really concerned about are all the properties that Blackstone has been gobbling up and they've bought up , you know , nearly 6000 units in San Diego County , driving up the the cost of rents. And one of the things that we're looking at is how many more private equity firms and Wall Street investors are buying single family homes and townhomes and potentially driving out just , you know , regular people who are trying to get their foot in the housing market. In addition to the impact that we know that they're having on renters. Um , so that's a big part of it. And we're also really looking at , um , all the work that we've been doing , uh , to build more affordable housing on county owned land. Uh , we're on track to build , uh , 10,000 affordable units on county owned land , and that's a huge contribution. And then the last thing is that there's a lot of parts of San Diego County. You know , they're not on the coastline there. You know , a little bit inland and they're a lot more affordable. But the problem is , is that they're , uh , the way that that the zoning works. Um , you can only have , like , one house on an acre or something crazy. And so we're really trying to fix a lot of these , uh , zoning regulations so that , uh , there there's the ability to , you know , if you're near a sprinter station , if you're near a bus stop , if you're near , uh , good , good transit or good freeways , that we'll actually be able to build more housing instead of just sprawl McMansions. Mhm.
S1: Mhm. Well , let's move along to environmental issues because of course , top of mind is the Tijuana River crisis. You've been working to request a Superfund designation from the EPA. Tell me about that effort and where it stands. Yes.
S3: Yes. Uh. Great question. Um , so bad news. We just got a letter back from the EPA denying our request. So this is sort of breaking news. I'm pretty livid. Um , we're trying to figure out what we can do to push back. Uh , because they didn't even come out and do a site inspection. They just said , hey , based on what we know , um , we don't have enough evidence that there are toxic contaminants. And my response to this is , you know , a person who spent over a decade as a researcher , uh , absence of evidence is not evidence of absence. And I'd like to the EPA to come out here and take soil samples and sample the water and sample the groundwater so they can tell us what's what the deal is and whether there are soil contaminants or whether there are toxic contaminants in the water. And they said , you know , we don't we don't know for sure that there are. So we're not coming. I my my view is they're the science experts. They should be out here taking those soil samples so we you know , I think this is not right. And we now we just got this letter. So we kind of got to regroup and figure out what else is next. What's plan B CD on this. Wow.
S1: Wow. Well that is shocking to hear. And of course we know there have been many studies that show there are contaminants not only in the water and the soil , but also in the air. Um , let's let's peel a layer of that onion back. Tara.
S3: Pass the buck. Um , because it's complex. It's trans trans boundary. Trans border. Um , you know , we've got Mexico involved. We've got State of California involved. It's a water issue. It's a soil issue. So the jurisdiction is a little bit unclear. And it's also really expensive. And so they don't I think they just don't want to be stuck , uh , with the cost of the cleanup. Mm.
S4: Mm.
S1:
S3: It's just one is there's a , you know , immediate needs. And we're continuing to work to get , uh , air filters distributed as well as strengthen the apd's ability to do , um , air quality monitoring in real time , and they just haven't prioritized that. And I've really been pushing to say , hey , this has got to be a priority. We need mobile air quality monitors , and we're making a lot of progress on that front. Um , but bigger picture. That's sort of the immediate but in the bigger picture , how are we going to get this cleaned up ? You know , Congress has been doing a great job. Uh , or at least I should say our congressional delegation , uh , Scott Peters and Juan Vargas and Sarah Jacobs of of and Mike Levin of pushing for funding. And unfortunately , there was more funding that was , um , earmarked for this issue in that bipartisan , uh , budget package that got scuttled by , uh , Trump and Elon Musk. Um , just a couple weeks ago. So there was a little sliver of hope and it got shut down. But they're continuing to fight in Congress. And , you know , I think locally we're continuing to advocate and support their efforts to get the money that we need to fix the sewage treatment plant on our side of the border. Um , and we also , as a county , just recently said , decided to join litigation against Veolia , which is the company that's responsible for operating the sewage treatment plant , to hold them accountable because they've been , in my opinion , completely negligent in how they're operating this plant and just allowing all this , these contaminants to flow into our river ways and waterways. And by the way , it's the same company. Um , that was in part responsible for the the water crisis in Detroit. So , you know , there's there's some threads there that we're pulling on also. Um , and then we're going to continue looking at , you know , what are some other options under the Clean Water Act. Um , what are some of the what are some other tools that we can bring and and then , you know , I do want to say I am appreciative of the progress that we've made with the Mexican government and especially with the new , um , the new president of Mexico being quite supportive of rebuilding the sewage treatment plant in Punta Bandera on their side of the border. And that , um , to the best of my understanding , is actually almost complete that plant rebuild. So hopefully in the next couple of months that will be online. And that's going to take care of a big part of the problem , at least in the medium term.
S1: And we are also nearing one year since a historic storm devastated our community , displacing more than 1000 families.
S3: Um , not not in the county. And , uh , you know , I think in the county , we , we do have some , some stormwater systems that do need to be updated and repaired. And I think we need to be looking at some potential revenue measures that might be able to finance stormwater , um , repairs , because the way that our , our funding runs in is allocated from the state and federal government and our local tax base. Uh , none of it's really dedicated at all for the stormwater , um , upkeep and maintenance. So I think there's there could be a real need to look for some other revenue sources. Now , one of the challenges with that is that many times , the most efficient way to to move forward with the stormwater revenue measure would be , uh , for local , uh , impacted property owners to , to vote for that to be enacted. Um , but that has its own challenges because it means , you know , renters wouldn't have a voice. It might only be like a really small part of the county and wouldn't impact the entire county. Even those are county wide issues. issue. So we're definitely looking at different options on stormwater and stormwater revenue and some kind of stormwater infrastructure.
S1: Um , and moving away from that topic , I want to ask you about County Supervisor Nora Vargas resignation. She announced she's stepping down. In her resignation letter , she cited personal safety concerns.
S3: Uh , you know for sure. They're tough jobs. And it's a it's a privilege. It's an honor to represent my community and , uh , to lead San Diego County. But , um , you know , there's definitely always , always challenges. And and there's always a little bit of a safety risk.
S1: And as far as , you know , what happens next.
S3: I think these are bipartisan issues. Right. Like tackling homelessness , tackling the rising cost of housing , um , Expanding access to mental health care. Expanding access to substance abuse treatment. Um , these are very much , uh , bipartisan issues. And I really think we're going to be able to keep moving forward in the immediate term , um , in the trajectory that we've set at to make real progress. I don't think it's going to really impact , um , the next couple of months of work at the county. And , you know , I know that my big priorities around , uh , health care and health care access and making sure that everybody in San Diego County can see a doctor when they're sick and , uh , the kind of core point that one job should be enough and we should people should be able to work a job and be able to put a roof over their heads. Uh , these these are also issues where we've begun building a lot of momentum. And I don't see that momentum slowing down in any noticeable way over the next few months. Um , so it's just going to be a process. We did this already with , uh , former supervisor Nathan Fletcher. Um , so we'll have to talk as a board and discuss whether we want to call a special election or appoint someone to fill the vacancy. That meeting is going to be on the 14th. And if a special election is called , there'll be a primary , and then there will be a general. The general would be , um , in the end of June. And so someone would be sworn in , uh , probably late July. So if we did do the special election , um , option.
S1: Um , and , you know , you've said you're , you're committed to rising above divisiveness or despair as we approach a second Trump presidency.
S3: Have a seat at the table and have a voice. And that's my job , and that's what I'm going to be doing. Um , and if the new administration takes measures that threaten those interests and those values , then we will be ready to act to defend our our interests and values here and the interests of and values of everyone in our community. Um , but my hope is that we're really going to be able to just continue the work at our county of tackling these , these major issues. And like I said , I think some there's some pieces , there's some ways in which this rhetoric at the , at the national level can become really toxic and partisan and finger pointing. Um , but there's some core values that I think everybody shares. You know , you should be able to see a doctor when you're sick if your kid's diagnosed. They shouldn't wait six months to see a specialist. Um , you know , your claims shouldn't just be denied or delayed. Um , if you are trying to go swimming in a lake or drink water out of your faucet or surfing in the ocean , uh , you should be able to be confident that it's clean and you're not going to be swimming in toxins or drinking microplastics , uh , or PFAS , um , that we should be able to be confident that our kids are not getting sick from what they're eating. That we can get health care. That if you work hard and you play by the rules , you can , you know , save up to buy a house or , uh , pay your rent and provide a decent quality of life for your family. Like , these are very , um , core values. And when I look around at our society , I do think that there are some people and some big multinational corporations that are not playing by the rules and they're not paying their fair share. They're hiding their profits and offshore bank accounts in the Cayman Islands and in Ireland and , um , you know , exploiting their workers. And we've got these cases at the county that we've started investigating of wage theft , where people work and they go to work every single day. They punch their time card , and then they're never paid , or they go to work every single day and they punch their time card , and then they go to submit their taxes at the end of the year. And it turns out there's no tax record for them. And so their , their employer , uh , totally failed to pay taxes and failed to contribute to Social Security. This is not right. This is wrong. These are these are big companies , um , who think they're above the law and they , you know , they can't just get away with that. So this is the kind of work that I'm focused on , um , for my second term is trying to level the playing field , trying to make sure that , you know , Everyone in this country has a fair shot and has a fair chance. Um , and there's that. The that it's not just , um , a place where only a few wealthy people or big companies , uh , get to get to win all the winnings.
S1: The list is long for things that need to be addressed. I've been speaking with Tara Lawson Remer. She's the vice chair of the San Diego County Board of Supervisors representing district three. Thank you so much for being here today , Tara.
S3: Thank you.
S1: That's our show for today. I'm your host , Jade Hindman. Thanks for tuning in to Midday Edition. Be sure to have a great day on purpose , everyone.
