On June 3, residents of Senate District 9 will have a chance to vote for a true environmental champion, Loni Hancock. Hancock, who must leave her Assembly seat this year because of term limits, is running to replace outgoing Sen. Don Perata (also termed out). In this heavily Democratic district, the winner of the Democratic primary in June is virtually assured of winning in November. The Sierra Club is working to ensure that Hancock - with her exceptional environmental leadership and commitment - will be taking that seat.
For the past three years Hancock has chaired the Assembly Natural Resources Committee and has been one of the key legislators the Club can turn to for strong leadership on environmental issues. She has been one of our strongest leaders for climate-change legislation, habitat protection and restoration, water quality, watershed restoration, waste reduction and recycling, and park protections.
Hancock co-authored AB 32, the groundbreaking state legislation to cap greenhouse-gas emissions. Equally importantly, she has been fighting to implement that legislation forcefully and fully, even when interest groups push her to back off.
Hancock has been a force from the very start to establish and fund the East Shore State Park along the San Francisco Bay shoreline, and cites its completion as one of her "main goals" for the future. She also authored legislation creating the San Francisco Bay Area Water Trail to increase recreational opportunities throughout the Bay Area. In concert with Save San Francisco Bay, she secured money in the state budget for a program monitoring pollution of bayside beaches, and was one of the critical legislative voices to initiate and conduct public hearings about last November's Bay oil spill.
Hancock has brought her leadership to toxics and waste problems. In her own district, Hancock led the fight to stop a housing development project slated for the contaminated former Zeneca chemical-manufacturing site, and followed up by passing rigorous legislation to prevent a repeat of such situations anywhere in the state. She also worked for landmark laws on the recycling of electronic waste, as well as for the creation of the Sierra Nevada Conservancy and for container fees dedicated to port clean-up. She authored additional electronic-waste legislation to prohibit mass mailing of unsolicited CDs and DVDs.
Hancock is working to change our automobile-dominated land-use patterns. She has authored legislation to expand opportunities for cities with transit-oriented development to take advantage of transit-village incentives, and carried laws to require government agencies to adopt transportation plans that accurately reflect the impacts of sprawl and infill development.
Time and again Hancock has helped create innovative solutions, improve standards, expand protections, and adopt smarter policies for tackling the complex issues facing California's environment - and she knows how to get legislation passed. On all levels, Hancock has had a remarkable career in public service, spending more than three decades as a forceful advocate not only for environmental protections but for open government, educational reforms, health care, economic development, and social justice. She has served at the local, state, and federal levels, including under Presidents Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter.
Hancock's voice would be a huge force in the state Senate for strong, effective environmental policies. To help the Club get out the vote for Hancock, contact conservation organizer or call (510)848-0800, ext. 312
Hancock's campaign web site is www.hancockforsenate.com
