Yaroslavsky Cautions Against Splintering Electorate

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Director of the Los Angeles Initiative Zev Yaroslavsky was featured in the Orange County Register discussing the lengthy requirements for political parties to qualify for the California ballot. Only 19 parties have been on the ballot in the 112 years since California started the nomination process, and California state laws make it difficult for new parties to break through. “I don’t think it should be impossible, but it also should not be so easy that you could have 30 parties on a ballot,” Yaroslavsky said. “I don’t think most voters like to throw away their vote to very minor parties.” Yaroslavsky expressed concern that lowering the bar for new parties to get on the ballot can further complicate and splinter the electorate. If a party can’t even drum up enough support to get on the ballot, he asked, what kind of impact could it actually make?

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Gas Hike a Litmus Test for Mass Transit, Matute Says

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Juan Matute, deputy director of the UCLA Institute of Transportation Studies, spoke to the Los Angeles Times about the impact of soaring gas prices on transit ridership in Los Angeles. The article said many Angelenos are concerned about the number of homeless people and the increase in violent crime on the Metro, which slashed its bus and rail service this year amid a COVID-fueled driver shortage. Many transit planners have argued that the cheap cost of driving vehicles keeps commuters from jumping on a bus or train. Matute noted that the spike in gas prices will now serve as a litmus test for mass transit. “If driving gets 50% more expensive because of the increase in gas prices and you’re not seeing a corresponding increase in ridership, maybe there’s something you have to look at about their service, improving it, whether it be reliability, safety or passenger experience,” Matute said.

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Karimli, Marshall Encourage Shift in Gender Norms

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Assistant Professor of Social Welfare Leyla Karimli and MPP student Emily Marshall co-authored a Medium op-ed about the complicated relationship between economic empowerment and female agency. While “economic empowerment, village savings, loans associations and poverty alleviation programs are essential to improving the lives of women around the world,” they do not necessarily result in improved agency and power, the authors wrote. Even when women earn the same or more than their partner, women disproportionately leave the workforce to care for children and relatives. “There are cultural and social norms at play and gender constraints that are typically embedded in larger patriarchal structures,” they explained. Karimli’s research shows that economic strengthening is more effective when coupled with family coaching to address gender norms. “We need to shift social norms, cultural expectations and attitudes by working with men as well as women,” wrote the authors, who are affiliated with the Global Lab for Research in Action at UCLA Luskin.

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Bills on Leveraging Data for Transportation Equity

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Assistant Professor of Public Policy Tierra Bills discussed her work on transportation demand, modeling and equity in an interview with SiliconAngle during a recent Women in Data Science event. Bills leverages data to understand how transportation decisions impact distinctive groups. New data analysis tools are key to understanding transportation equity and prioritizing the needs of vulnerable communities who often get left out of the conversation, she said. “Ignoring the conditions of vulnerable communities can lead to devastating outcomes,” she said, noting that some travel models might not paint a true picture due to issues of bias and underrepresentation. Bills, who has a joint appointment in the department of civil and environmental engineering, called for using new computational tools to pinpoint mobility constraints that people have. “Behavior change is tough, but it’s necessary,” she said. “It’s critical, especially if you’re going to improve conditions for vulnerable communities.”

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Blumenberg on Car Access and Upward Mobility

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Urban Planning Professor Evelyn Blumenberg spoke to station WFAE about attempts to increase transportation options for low-income residents of Charlotte, North Carolina. Officials have adopted a plan to make the city more dense, walkable and transit-accessible, but it would take decades to implement. Since the city was designed around the automobile, some are advocating increasing access to cars. Options include subsidies to purchase a vehicle, vouchers for ride-share services and neighborhood car-sharing programs. Blumenberg, director of the UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies, said her research shows that low-income people with cars are able to move to better neighborhoods and are more likely to find and keep a job. “A car gives you a lot of flexibility and a lot of choice,” she said. Blumenberg also described the Los Angeles program BlueLA, which subsidizes the sharing of electric vehicles, noting that encouraging the use of EVs could make increased access to cars more politically palatable.

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Yaroslavsky on Newsom’s Message to California

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Zev Yaroslavsky, director of the Los Angeles Initiative at UCLA Luskin, spoke to CBS2 News ahead of Gov. Gavin Newsom’s 2022 State of the State address. Californians are concerned about pressing issues including homelessness, public safety and criminal justice reform, Yaroslavsky said. “The average person does not see the progress that’s been made, and I think that’s what the governor has to address,” he said. On the state’s response to COVID-19, “There’s a lot that went right with it just as there was a lot that went wrong with it. He ought to thank the people of California for what they’ve done to put this, so far, in the rear-view mirror.” Newsom survived a recall attempt last year and is running for re-election. Yarsoslavsky commented, “Now people are asking the question, ‘What are you going to do going forward? What’s your plan? You’re asking us to re-up you for another four-year contract. What are you promising and what can you deliver?’ ”

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Roy on Court-Ordered Psychiatric Care for the Unhoused

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Professor of Urban Planning and Social Welfare Ananya Roy spoke to the Guardian about Gov. Gavin Newsom’s proposed Care Court program, which would force some unhoused people with severe mental illness and addiction disorders into psychiatric treatment. The plan aims to address the growing issue of homelessness in Los Angeles by requiring people with serious mental health issues to accept treatment and also mandating that counties provide services. However, the proposal has received backlash from disability rights and civil liberties advocates. Roy, who serves as director of the UCLA Luskin Institute on Inequality and Democracy, said the court proposal is part of a trend in California of criminalizing the unhoused. “There is seemingly a lot of compassion for the unhoused, but that is coupled with a deliberate and enforced state of stripping the unhoused of rights in the name of saving them and doing good,” Roy said.

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Vestal on Barriers to Addressing Homelessness

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Assistant Professor of Urban Planning Mark Vestal spoke to LAist about Section 8, a federal program that subsidizes housing for low-income individuals and families, the elderly and disabled. This program allows individuals experiencing homelessness to secure housing through vouchers. However, Vestal noted that about 50% of the people who get vouchers still can’t find housing. Landlords are incentivized to accept housing vouchers when they are in communities in decline and they are unable to get market-rate rent, but the incentive disappears when neighborhoods start to gentrify. “Landlords can discriminate against voucher holders and they have complete discretion,” Vestal explained. Furthermore, once an individual finds an apartment, it can still take a long time for the housing voucher to be approved. Vestal concluded that unhoused people have ideas about how they want to live with belongings and social space, and we should have a housing system that respects their needs and wants.

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Millard-Ball on Moving Past Easy, Cheap, Quick Climate Fixes

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Associate Professor of Urban Planning Adam Millard-Ball was featured in a CapRadio article about Sacramento County’s in-progress climate action plan, one of many plans adopted by California cities to combat climate change at a local level. Several of the plans have been criticized for sticking to safe solutions and failing to address equity. ​​“Cities aren’t really getting outside of their comfort zone,” Millard-Ball said. “They don’t force the city to do something it wasn’t already going to do.” Radical change will be required for these plans to be effective in the future, he said. “In order to make change, there’s not going to be 100% agreement on these difficult decisions if cities are serious about reducing emissions,” he said. “We’ve already done most of the kind of easy, cheap, quick fixes that everyone can agree on.” The article cited research co-authored by Millard-Ball on equity in urban climate planning.

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Shoup Recommends Recalibrating Parking Rates Often

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Donald Shoup, distinguished research professor of urban planning, was mentioned in a TAPinto article about the debate surrounding parking permits in Princeton, New Jersey. Princeton created a task force to invite public comment on allocation and pricing of parking permits. The task force is considering an increase in the price of parking and the establishment of a timeline to review parking demand and prices. Shoup has long argued that the price of parking should be adjusted until you have the right balance of occupied and vacant spaces. The article cited Columbus, Ohio, which adopted a parking permit plan based on Shoup’s recommendations. The Columbus system recalibrates parking rates every three months to balance supply and demand. It also uses a license plate recognition system to enforce paid parking and identify open parking spaces in real time.

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