On The Issues

DEFENDING PUBLIC EDUCATION, HEALTH CARE & OTHER VITAL SERVICES BY REFORMING CALIFORNIA'S BROKEN FISCAL SYSTEM

California is in a cycle of financial crisis that creates a cycle of crisis in neighborhoods across the state. If we don't change we face a disastrous collapse in education, public services and infrastructure, sacrificing the very investments that made California so successful and that working families rely on for their path to self sufficiency.

There is another way. Instead of bankrupting our state, our elected officials could give California a brighter future by fixing California's broken fiscal system through:
- Asking those in the highest income brackets to contribute more in taxes
- Demanding that corporations pay their fair share of property taxes
- And closing the loopholes that let big corporations off the hook, putting a greater burden on the rest of us.

That's why ACCE is organizing families most impacted by the crisis to help lead a multi-year effort to achieve real reform. Our strategy is to think about long-term goals and start early; understand the statewide challenges, but go local and go deep, with common-sense policy objectives that have broad appeal. We will demonstrate that the state has great needs that can't be met by current resources, and show that the failure to reform harms our economic future.

ACCE is building alliances with civic, labor, religious, business and policy partners that will translate into the campaign infrastructure needed to win progressive tax, budget and policy reform for California communities. One important piece of this work is with the California Alliance, a coalition of grassroots organizations engaging in a multi-year campaign that will move 500,000 targeted voters in eight regions to become consistent voters in support of progressive tax and fiscal reform. ACCE is involved in this coalition effort in four regions of the state, and expects to contribute some 60,000 supportive voters in 2010 alone.

GIVING OUR CHILDREN THE OPPORTUNITY TO SUCCEED

We know that budget reform won't happen overnight, so ACCE is working to make sure that every child, regardless of their race, parents' income or zip code has a qualified teacher, a textbook to call their own and the opportunity to succeed.

ACCE chapters in several cities are working in local coalitions to develop school reform models that deliver on solutions and help pave the way for statewide consensus and reform. ACCE is also a coalition partner for Parents and Students for Great Schools (PSGS), a statewide coalition composed of ACCE, PICO, Californians for Justice (CFJ) and Public Advocates. Together we are working to impact state policy on school funding, teacher quality and the use of data to address inequalities and improve instruction.

FIGHTING TO SAVE HOMES

California faces another 1.7 million bank foreclosures over the next three years. In the low and moderate income communities where our members live, homeownership has been the way in which families have managed to build up some equity and savings and create stability and opportunity for the next generation. This hard-earned wealth is now being ripped away.

ACCE is fighting to save homes by:
- Working with local partners and city and state officials to implement strategies that encourage lenders to modify more loans;
- Getting cities to implement the state law that allows them to collect a $1,000 per day fine on banks and other property owners who fail to maintain vacant, foreclosed properties;
- Creating model local alliances and projects like community land trusts and benefits agreements that will rebuild California's neighborhoods.

IMPROVING ACCESS TO HEALTH CARE

All families should have access to quality health care but the sad reality is that California has one of the highest uninsured rates in the country. ACCE is working to make sure that communities know what health care services are available, receive help in accessing them, and are organized so that they're protected from cuts. Along with Health Access and California Partnership, ACCE is coordinating the Health Care for America Now Coalition in California to educate and train local community leaders to help advance national health care reform implementation efforts, while continuing work to protect the health care safety-net in the state.

RAISING CALIFORNIA UP, COMMUNITY BY COMMUNITY

While some issues are statewide, ACCE is also dedicated to overcoming the most pressing challenges that face historically marginalized neighborhoods community by community. By developing leadership, increasing civic engagement and empowering working families, local ACCE chapters are making a real impact, such as replacing a toxic factory across from a school in South Los Angeles with community-centered development, holding citizenship workshops and advancing the fight for immigrant rights in San Jose and San Diego, and working to reduce foreclosures and bank blight in the Bay Area, Fresno and San Bernardino.