Tag archives: legislation

Pursuing Sound Walls
By Sharon Byrne   |   March 15, 2022

On February 3, we learned in a public meeting the Montecito segment of the 101 project would no longer have sound walls. The reason was hydraulic modeling that showed significant flood water rise in a major weather event. This was a major shock to the community. We’ve been looking at the project in our Land […]

So Many Words, So Little Action! It’s time for Corporate America to step up its game
By Rinaldo Brutoco   |   July 22, 2021

As almost everyone in the U.S. is now aware, Georgia’s Republican legislators passed legislation to: a) actively suppress voter turnout, making it significantly harder for minorities to vote by adding new vote-by-mail identification requirements, limiting drop boxes, and an assortment of other measures designed to resuscitate “Jim Crow” voting in the state; and, b) provide […]

Many Priorities, One Team — US!
By Sharon Byrne   |   June 3, 2021

Last week, we helped three Santa Barbara City Councilmembers host a very important community conversation on the California Housing Legislation with our state legislators Senator Monique Limón and Assemblymember Steve Bennett. You know we’ve been working on this closely with our former State Senator, Hannah-Beth Jackson. You can watch the Town Hall at our website: […]

Attention California Legislators: Stand with Your Community!
By Sharon Byrne   |   March 25, 2021

There are two particularly bad bills wending through the legislature, proposed by Senate President pro Tempore Toni Atkins (Senate District 39, San Diego) and Scott Wiener (Senate District 11, San Francisco). They are determined to fulfill Governor Newsom’s pledge to build 3.5 million units of housing in California. Prior attempts that have failed to date: –Wiener’s […]

Santa Barbara’s Wonder Woman
By Leslie Westbrook   |   December 24, 2020

Hannah-Beth Jackson may have run out of time as State Senator, but she never ran out of the fierce will that got her to Sacramento. She looks back on a legacy of fighting for disaster relief and equal rights for all. Q. Which superhero do you visualize yourself as? A. “I love Wonder Woman – […]

Voting Matters
By Sara Miller McCune   |   September 24, 2020

Most of us take voting as a right, which we may (or may not) choose to exercise. To me, voting is a privilege that I cherish and use in every primary and election. How else can I – together with my fellow citizens – put leaders in place with the authority to govern us wisely […]

Legislative Update – the Mega Late Night Assembly Session Finale
By Sharon Byrne   |   September 3, 2020

The California legislature raced to get a slew of bills passed before the legislative session closed on August 31. Nine bills were proposed by the Senate leadership to create up to three million units of housing in California. Some of these bills directly impact Montecito, so we worked with Assembly Member Monique Limón and Senator […]

Retirement Plan Changes
By Christopher Gallo   |   February 27, 2020

A new Federal law passed in December has made sweeping changes to the retirement plans used by most Americans. The SECURE (Setting Up Every Community for Retirement Enhancement) Act brings with it many benefits, including pushing back the mandatory retirement distribution age for IRAs, but the cost is the removal of the popular “stretch IRA” […]

Letters to the Editor
By Montecito Journal   |   September 12, 2019

Understanding Tragedy As our hearts grieve the loss of our beloveds in the Channel Island boating accident, we search from a deep place within our soul to find a way to process such a tragedy. Every day I look out to the Channel Islands from my home in Montecito. So many times my children and […]