June 2022 Election 2022 California Assembly District 12 Candidate Questionnaires

2. If you own a bike, what type of bike(s) do you have and ride? If not, when was the last time you rode a bike, and where (on vacation, for example)?

Damon Connolly:

I own a Marin Nicasio Road Bike, which I use for commuting and recreational purposes. I am in the market for a new/used mountain bike as my Scott mountain bike is beyond its useful life.

Ida-Times Green: 

No response

Sara Aminzadeh:

Yes, our family has an e-bike, which you use to take our 4-year-old son and recreational rides on the bike paths and sometimes to activities/friends homes.

Steve Schwartz:

I have a mountain bike (hardtail) and an old GT hybrid. Last time I rode a bike was a couple months ago, campaigning is a lot of hours.

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E-Bike Subsidy

Recent research shows that electric bicycles can be an important tool to decarbonize the personal transportation sector, which currently accounts for 28% of the state’s greenhouse gas emissions. However, the up-front cost of e-bikes (high relative to traditional bicycles) acts as a barrier to uptake, particularly among lower-income families. 

California is developing a $10M e-bike subsidy program. While a great start, this is less than 1% of the funds thus far allocated to electric car subsidies, the large majority of which has gone to wealthy households.

3. Do you see a role for increased e-bike subsidies for California? If so, how would you push to expand the program?

Damon Connolly:

Yes, I support increased subsidies for e-bikes in California. Expanding this program, and the availability of grants to buy e-bikes, should be included in the state’s transition plan toward environmentally-friendly transportation.

Ida-Times Green: 

No response

Sara Aminzadeh:

Absolutely! Low-income communities are disproportionately directly impacted by pollution and lack access to convenient public transportation. I frequently hear concerns about additional needed service (more frequent service) by Marin Transit, especially in the areas around the Canal neighborhood. Offering e-bike subsidies would provide a parallel and autonomous transportation option for our workforce.

Bike subsidies, Vehicle electrification, accessible walking paths, pedestrian only streets, expanded bike paths, and affordable housing near the workplace can improve communities and save lives. E-bike subsidies will take us a long way in reducing disproportionate localized pollution. 

I will always push for legislation supporting low-income and communities of color is critical as we transition away from fossil fuels and prioritize more walkable, breathable, and livable communities. Race is the single most significant predictor of a person living near contaminated air, water, soil, or toxic waste sites. Breathing polluted air and drinking polluted water directly contribute to life-long respiratory complications and cancers and congested streets increase pedestrian deaths. If environmental and climate injustices are left unaddressed, existing racial health disparities will be exacerbated.

Steve Schwartz:

I plan to serve on the budget committee and would support allocation of funding for e-bike subsidies. A lens of equity and inclusion of BIPOC communities needs to be built in from the start. For example, if a state grant program helps non-profit organizations promote the subsidies, priority in awarding these competitive grants needs to go to applicants with a commitment to working with underserved communities.

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Bike Parking

After purchasing a bike, a new owner has to have somewhere to put it. This is usually fine as long as someone has a garage, but for residents of multifamily housing, parking a bicycle (particularly a heavy e-bike) can be very difficult. Two years ago a bill was written to incentivize secure bicycle parking in new developments, with a similar bill being introduced in April of this year to help make housing ‘e-bike ready.’

4. Do you see bills like these, that would remove a key barrier to e-bike ownership, as an important part of improving transportation? If so, how would you support them?

Damon Connolly:

Yes, I support bills to improve bike parking infrastructure. I see this as an integral part of our state’s housing and transportation plans, and would vote for AB 3153 and AB 2863 to increase bicycle parking in new developments and incentivize bike riding. If elected to the State Assembly, I would be a champion for this type of legislation and would work with MCBC and other stakeholders to bring it to fruition statewide.

Ida-Times Green: 

No response

Sara Aminzadeh:

Yes. This is critical as a matter of equity and climate policy.

Steve Schwartz:

This is very important. I will definitely support and champion incentivizing secure parking.

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Car Parking

Cities across the state require large amounts of car parking to be built with every development, from bars to swimming pools, from hotels to houses. Research shows that more parking leads to more driving and drives up the cost of development. Recent bills to free developments from costly mandated parking have been stymied, but this year has seen the introduction of another bill to remove parking mandates near transit, which would facilitate car-free or car-light living.

5. Please discuss your views on the subject of parking reform and whether you would support or oppose efforts to repeal parking mandates at the state level.

Damon Connolly:

Demand for parking varies widely by community, and I don’t think there’s a one size fits all approach to this issue. It’s certainly the case that many communities have overbuilt parking to the detriment of livable communities. I generally support removing parking requirements, especially near transit, but I’m skeptical that a single statewide guidance could reflect the entirety of circumstances in which parking may or may not be needed.   Near transit, parking spaces can be reduced and often eliminated, and where they are built, especially in new apartments, we must increase electric vehicle charging infrastructure. Overall, we need to increase the number of spaces for bikes, e-bikes, and other forms of car free mobility and invest heavily in regional transit and safe bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure. Car share spaces are also often a good fit for apartment complexes to incentivize more residents to live without a personal vehicle. New housing should be located near transit to facilitate the ability of residents to live a greener lifestyle that reduces the need for car travel.

Ida-Times Green: 

No response

Sara Aminzadeh:

I would support mandates to repeal parking mandates. More parking indeed leads to more driving and we have to embrace the climate reality we face as well as space constraints which require less time in our cars, and more time walking, biking, scooting or on public transportation.

Steve Schwartz:

Parking mandates have been shown to have significant unintentional consequences. We need to encourage use of transit, carpooling/ridesharing and bike to events and work. Broad brush parking mandates can work against this.

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Highway Expansion

According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the hour is very late to reduce emissions and hit a 2 degrees C warming target. While EVs have a key role to play in California meeting its greenhouse gas emissions goals, according to the California Air Resources Board, the shift to EVs will not happen fast enough and overall driving must decrease statewide. We know from decades of research that added freeway capacity leads to increases in driving.

6. Do you agree that we have enough freeway capacity and should adjust our spending to focus on repair rather than expansion? What other policies to reduce vehicle miles traveled (VMT), such as smart growth, increased transit frequency, or roadway pricing, do you support?

Damon Connolly:

I agree we should focus on repair of existing freeway infrastructure rather than expansion. And in the limited cases where some expansion is warranted, it should be in the form of adding HOV capacity with additional policies to encourage carpools and reduction of single-occupancy vehicle trips. When looking at projects like bridge and tunnel connections (see the Bay Bridge), prioritizing complete connectivity for pedestrians, bicyclists, and transit is also a priority. I am a huge proponent of increasing and improving transit options, and will push hard for seamless mobility solutions as a State Legislator. I was an early proponent of SMART and I’m working hard as a board member to make it successful. This will include robust first and last mile options and completion of the promised multi-use path. I will continue to push for electrification of our transit fleet. Congestion management pricing is a concept that has been applied successfully in other countries like the Netherlands and could be part of the solution in California. I’m interested in further pilot projects to see its impact, including with an equity lens.

Ida-Times Green: 

No response

Sara Aminzadeh:

Yes. It’s critical that we diversify our commuter options as it reduces vehicle miles traveled and localized air pollution. While bikes and scooters are not accessible to every member of our community, they can offer a great solution to those who have shorter commutes. We must also continue to expand and electrify public transportation such as buses and trains. The state can play a key role in making sure that communities can get to work and school safely and sustainably.

Steve Schwartz:

For me, the low hanging fruit on reducing vehicle miles is around changing state law so that school districts can transport students from outside of their district boundaries. This legislation would need to be written carefully (to address school district’s concerns about losing enrollment), but will make an immediate impact on Sir Francis Drake and many other areas of the District.

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Alto Tunnel, SMART, and the Great Redwood Trail

While Marin has seen several important active transportation projects advance to completion (the Cal Park Hill Tunnel, the nearly-open Corte Madera Creek Bridge), other crucial projects have been slower (the SMART pathway), face large barriers (the Great Redwood Trail) or continue to languish (the Alto Tunnel).

7. What role does Sacramento have in advancing larger-scale projects that provide stepwise improvements, but often suffer from funding shortfalls or environmental lawsuits?

Damon Connolly:

It’s the role of the North Bay’s representative in the State Assembly to champion these kinds of projects, and that’s exactly what I intend to do. Serving as Marin County’s representative on the MTC and as a Board Member of SMART, I’ve been a leader in pushing for regional, state, and federal funding for our regional transportation and trail needs, and I could do so much more in the Assembly.

In short, our state government has the capacity to finance visionary projects that help communities develop better transit hubs, pathways, and access to trails, and our regional needs on this front are something I have an intimate understanding of and passion for.

Ida-Times Green: 

No response

Sara Aminzadeh:

Our next Assemblymember must be a champion for supporting active transportation projects and be able to secure funding to complete these projects. It’s a priority for me to fund the completion of the vision of the multi-use Pathway that serves north-south and east-west throughout the county and ensure they serve the major bus and train stations, the major employers, and serve our schools.

Steve Schwartz:

Again, as your Assemblymember I want to serve on the Budget Committee where we can bring resources back for projects like the Great Redwood Trail. Senator McGuire has been a champion, I will work closely with him on the Assembly side.

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Parks And Trails

As more people head outside for health, exercise, and discovery, available funding to build new trails and maintain existing trails does not meet the substantial needs. In recent years there has been a lack of direction and support at the State level for the establishment of an equitable, diverse and sustainable trail system across California.

8. Do you support AB 1789, the bill that would create a California Trails Commission to promote policies and investment $75,000,000 for opportunities that maximize the health, fitness, and social benefits of non-motorized natural surface trails, trail networks, and greenway corridors?

Damon Connolly:

Yes, I strongly support AB 1789.

Ida-Times Green: 

No response

Sara Aminzadeh:

Yes, I strongly support this bill.

Steve Schwartz:

I like the concept, I need to study it more. For now, I can say I’ll prioritize District projects, including the Great Redwood Trail, to make sure we get the resources we need.

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Wrap-up