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Thank you for helping make Public Advocates’ 38th Anniversary Celebration a success! a 2009 Sponsors a Revisit memories of Public Advocates' 2009 and other past events. |
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| FROM THE PRESIDENT | |
The theme of our annual event was “Raising Our Voices.” To us it means turning up the volume, amplifying the ambition of our advocacy. Our emphasis is always on “our,” on the collective power of courageous clients and community groups. Public Advocates also devoutly believes in our mission to raise new voices, in the sense of bringing up and forward a new generation of powerful leaders. Raising our voices also captures the notion of harmony, singing from the proverbial same page with ever wider circles of allies. Right now that includes standing up together for Judge Sotomayor’s confirmation. And sometimes we mean it in the sense of “Don’t raise your voice at me!” Well, we DO raise our voices -- in outrage and protest -- when nothing else will do. As you can read in our snazzy new annual report, we don’t JUST raise our voices. We are skilled and nimble in using every advocacy tool possible to make real change with and for very real people.
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| PUBLIC ADVOCATES TAKES ACTION | |
Court Strikes Down Raid of $1 Billion in Transit Funding June 30, 2009— Today the California Court of Appeal, Third District, held that $1 billion in "spillover" gas tax revenues dedicated to public transportation by Proposition 116 may not be diverted by the California Legislature to the General Fund. This ruling is a significant victory for all Californians, and especially for low-income communities where transit services have been scaled back as a result, in part, of the misappropriation of funds that has now been found illegal. |
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Parents & Students Call on Feds to Make CA Increase Education Spending June 24, 2009— In a letter to Education Secretary Arne Duncan, a coalition representing more than a half million low-and moderate-income California families, today urged the US Department of Education to require California to increase its proposed education spending by approximately $2 billion in order to qualify for $2.56 billion from the State Fiscal Stabilization Fund Program. The group, Parents and Students for Great Schools (PSGS), asserts that the State has not met the “maintenance of effort” requirements set forth in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). |
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New Williams Resource Now Available June 22, 2009— Part “how to” guide, part inspiration, Your Schools, Your Rights, Your Power: A Grassroots Guide to Effective Williams Campaigns tells the story of how savvy, effective grassroots groups across California have successfully used the complaint process resulting from the Williams v. California settlement to enforce their hard-won new legal rights. To supplement the guide, we’ve created a Williams resource web page. |
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District Court to Revisit SFPD Consent Decree |
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Students of Color Talk Back:
Thousands Rally Against Sacramento Budget Cuts |
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Decision in LA BRU Appeal May 5, 2009— A divided panel of the 9th Circuit ruled against extending federal jurisdiction over the consent decree that required the Los Angeles Metropolitan Transit Authority to expand bus service. The decision drew a powerful dissent from Judge Marsha Berzon. |
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Appeal Filed in MTC Discrimination Case April 23, 2009— The plaintiffs in Darensburg v. MTC appealed to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals today from a lower court's ruling that the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) adequately justified its unequal treatment of minority bus riders. |
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SFPD Violating Consent Decree, Officers Charge April 16, 2009— Officers of color and women today asked the U.S. District Court in San Francisco to enforce a longstanding consent decree against the San Francisco Police Department (SFPD). The enforcement action accuses Chief Heather Fong and the Department of violating the terms of the consent decree that settled an employment discrimination case in 1979 and which requires that promotions be based on objective, job-related examinations. The officers charge that Chief Fong is instituting a systematic plan to place un-tested sergeants into investigative positions in lieu of eligible female and minority inspector candidates who have demonstrated their job-readiness. |
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Most Schools Meet New Accountability Report Card Deadline April 15, 2009— A just-released report finds that the majority of California schools met a new February 1 deadline for publishing their School Accountability Report Cards (SARCs) and continue to make gains in accountability reporting in the wake of four years of private investigation and enforcement by Public Advocates Inc., a nonprofit law firm and advocacy group. press release SARC report (temporarily unavailable) more about our SARC work |
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National Transit Justice Campaign Launched April 8, 2009— Civil rights and environmental justice groups across the country are today launching a national campaign to ensure the upcoming Congressional re-authorization of the $500 billion Federal Surface Transportation Act (FSTA) prioritizes the needs of transit dependent riders in low-income communities of color who form the backbone of urban transit ridership. San Francisco-based Public Advocates Inc. and Oakland-based Urban Habitat are among the founding members of the campaign, Transit Riders for Public Transportation (TRPT). media alert campaign information more about our transportation justice work |
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Court Finds Racial Bias in Bay Area Transit Funding
But Grants Reprieve to MTC |
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Public Advocates Files Brief in U.S. Supreme Court in Support of English Language Learners March 25, 2009— Public Advocates and other civil rights organizations today filed an amicus brief with the U.S. Supreme Court in support of English Language Learner (ELL) students in Horne v. Flores. On appeal from the Ninth Circuit, this case addresses the rights of ELLs in Arizona under the Equal Educational Opportunities Act (EEOA). The core argument presented in Public Advocates’ amicus brief is that the Court should not permit a state’s compliance with the No Child Left Behind Act to substitute for its obligation under the EEOA to take “appropriate action” to overcome “language barriers” for ELL students. In addition to helping to draft the legal arguments, Public Advocates worked with researcher Lisa Chavez at the Warren Institute at U.C. Berkeley to develop data for the Court on the hundreds of thousands of ELLs in NCLB compliant districts and schools in California who are not covered by the accountability provisions of NCLB and/or failing state assessments. |
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Public Advocates Urges Public Officials to Fund Public Transit Operations February 25, 2009— Arguing that federal stimulus money should be used to preserve current transit service and jobs to help stave off a looming transit crisis, clergy, community leaders, transit advocates and bus riders today insisted that MTC Commissioners reject a staff plan diverting $70 million in federal stimulus money to a costly rail expansion project. press release press coverage February 20, 2009— Tools for Transit Advocates: How to leverage up to $5.5 billion in stimulus funds to protect transit service. Using Stimulus Funds to Mitigate Cuts to Local Transit Service January 22, 2009— Statement to the House Committee on Transportation & Infrastructure and House Committee on Appropriations urging the Congress to include emergency support for transit operations in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, arguing “Without an infusion of emergency funding for transit operations, there will be insufficient funds to operate existing bus, rail and paratransit services, much less operate new transit projects” included in the current version of the stimulus package. Transportation & Infrastructure Committee statement Appropriations Committee statement December 22, 2008— Request to Governor and Legislature to preserve state funding for public transit operations. The Governor's recent proposal to eliminate this important source of transit operating funds would have ten-fold adverse impacts on the economy, set back state policy on climate change, and harm the most vulnerable California communities. Preserving Transit Operating Funds in the State Budget December 19, 2008— Request to the new administration to include $4 billion in economic recovery assistance for public transit operations, to promote social equity, stimulate economic recovery, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Why Transit Operating Funds are an Essential Component of a Successful National Economic Recovery Package |
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Ninth Circuit Hears Case on “Highly Qualified Teacher” Loophole February 11, 2009— A U.S. Department of Education regulation allows teachers still in training to be concentrated in low-income schools and deprives parents of accurate information about the qualifications of their child’s teacher. That’s the argument heard today in an expedited hearing in front of a three-judge panel in the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in Renee v. Duncan. The case was brought by a coalition of California parents, students, and community groups represented by civil rights law firm Public Advocates Inc. and pro bono lawyers from Goodwin Procter LLP. |
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City of Pleasanton General Plan January 13, 2009 - Today, the California Attorney General sent the City of Pleasanton a strongly-worded letter in response to the city's proposed General Plan update and Draft EIR. The letter states that the city's failure to plan for needed affordable housing "is not acceptable" and that "Pleasanton's environmental review shirks its responsibility to fully analyze and address the greenhouse gas emissions stemming from its proposed development plans and is therefore legally inadequate." |
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Concord Residents and Community Groups Respond to Latest Plan for Concord Naval Weapons Station; call on council to commit to public benefits now January 12, 2009— "Once the City chooses a preferred alternative to study, full state and federal environmental review must be undertaken," said Sam Tepperman-Gelfant, an attorney at Public Advocates and member of the Community Coalition for a Sustainable Concord. "The City may still need to modify its plan to address public comments and concerns of regulatory agencies. A transparent and inclusive public process continues to be crucial to completing the planning process." |
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| PUBLIC ADVOCATES NEWS | |
Public Advocates' Sacramento Office Has Moved The Public Advocates Sacramento office has moved to a new suite within the same building. Please send all mail to: 1225 Eighth Street, Suite 210, Sacramento, CA 95814. The phone and fax numbers remain the same: 916/442-3385(o), 916/442-3601(f). |
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| Public Advocates Welcomes Law Firm Fellowships/Deferred Attorneys
Public Advocates welcomes applications from firm attorneys who have been deferred or granted fellowship or sabbatical arrangements with public interest organizations. We believe we could provide an excellent experience and supervision for lawyers interested in our practice areas and our multipronged approach to advocacy. Attorneys who join us under these arrangements will have a chance to do challenging cutting edge work on education, housing, community development and/or transit equity, on behalf of low income communities, taking on a mix of litigation, policy and legislative, coalition, and strategic communications work. |
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Staff Update Angelica Jongco has completed her two-year Public Advocates Fellowship, focusing on education and transportation justice issues, and has joined Lewis, Feinberg, Lee, Renaker & Jackson P.C., Oakland, CA, our co-counsel in Darensburg v. MTC, as a staff attorney. Mónica Henestroza has joined the San Diego Unified School District as Legislative Affairs Manager. A search is underway for a Policy Advocate. Read the job description. We congratulate them both, thank them for their many contributions to Public Advocates and wish them all the best. |
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In Memoriam: Steven M. Klein Public Advocates mourns the death of Steven M. Klein, who made an immense contribution to the organization as interim administrator and CFO in 2002-04. He helped stabilize the firm during a time of transitions, bringing to the challenge a strong commitment to our mission and staff; leadership, common sense and practical skills; and great sensitivity and thoughtfulness. He continued to follow Public Advocates' progress and in October wrote:
We send our sincere condolences to Steve’s wife, Joy, son, David, and the rest of his family and friends. We will miss our Pillar and great cheerleader, and honor his devoted service to Public Advocates and to our clients. |
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