Nonprofits get big bucks for Census + Healing childhood trauma + Newsom hires from White House
Good morning and happy Thursday to you, alerters!
Don’t forget — Gov. Gavin Newsom and First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom are scheduled to host the annual ceremony to light the Capitol Christmas tree tonight. The ceremony begins at 5 p.m. You bring the hot chocolate, I’ve got the marshmallows. See you there!
PAYING FOR A COMPLETE COUNT
California officials have spent a good chunk of the year preparing for the 2020 Census, with Secretary of State Alex Padilla hosting townhalls and workshops from the Central Valley to the coast to make sure every resident is considered in next year’s head count.
The counting of some demographic groups will be easier than others. Renters, households without internet, crowded units, foreign-born residents, those without a high school degree, families on public assistance, limited English speakers and lower-income Californians are among the hardest to tally.
The California Black Census and Redistricting Hub announced on Wednesday that they are one of many community organizations and nonprofits across the state who will receive a portion of more than $180 million from state officials to help “spread the word” of the Census to hard-to-count communities of color. The hub said the organizations will use the money in different ways, but that it will spread the dollars among field teams, digital ads and training programs to mitigate an undercount of black residents.
The hub said organizers had reached more than 20,000 households in California in recent weeks, and “will continue to share background about the upcoming census requirements and deadlines at churches, town halls and volunteer recruiting events.”
“Staff and volunteers are utilizing their experience as trusted messengers in communities across California to elevate trust in the system and encourage members of the black community to participate,” the press release reads. “The black hub is committed to the residents of California and understands how critical it is for the census to reflect the full breadth of its population. The group is making sure that every member of the California community is counted between March and June 2020, especially black households.”
You can check out this nifty interactive map that details which neighborhoods throughout California are considered harder to reach.
Editing note: this section was edited to clarify the state’s allocation of Census funding.
CHILDHOOD TRAUMA
California Surgeon General Nadine Burke Harris and Karen Mark, medical director of the Department of Health Care Services, announced a screening initiative on Wednesday aimed to help identify patients for adverse childhood experiences.
The state will now offer a two-hour online training for 10 categories of the experiences, which “include abuse, neglect and household dysfunction,” according to a press release for the announcement.
Adverse experiences, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, can lead to health conditions that range from heart disease to depression, from cancer to substance abuse. Public health data for the Golden State show that more than 60 percent of Californians have endured at least one childhood experience.
Addressing the issues early on, the training announcement says, will mitigate the long-term, detrimental effects.
“Detecting (adverse experiences) early and connecting patients to interventions, resources, and other support can significantly improve the health and well-being of individuals and families,” the announcement reads. “ (The experiences) are stressful or traumatic events experienced by age 18. A consensus of scientific research demonstrates that cumulative adversity, especially when experienced during critical periods of early development, is a root cause to some of the most harmful, persistent, and expensive health challenges facing our state and nation.”
ANOTHER NEWSOM V. TRUMP DUSTUP
Via Sophia Bollag
Amid an escalating fight between California and the federal government over homelessness, Gov. Gavin Newsom on Wednesday announced he’s hiring a former Trump administration official as a homelessness adviser and expediting funding to build shelters.
The announcement to hire Matthew Doherty comes as Newsom’s office accuses the federal government of withholding data on homelessness populations that the state uses to allocate aid money. Doherty served as the top federal homelessness official until he resigned at President Donald Trump’s request last month. The Washington Post reported Doherty was forced out as the Trump administration prepares to launch a new homelessness policy targeting California cities.
Local governments survey their own homeless populations once every two years to determine how many homeless people live in their area.
Sacramento County and other local governments submitted their data to the Trump administration earlier this year, but federal regulators have not yet released the official point in time numbers for 2019. That’s a problem for California officials, who allocated $650 million for homeless aid though the state budget, but tied that funding to 2019 federal homeless data.
Newsom announced Wednesday that local governments could use their preliminary data to apply for the funding as a workaround while waiting for the official federal numbers.
Newsom spokesman Nathan Click said the governor hired Doherty to fight back against the Trump administration’s targeting of California over its homeless population. Trump has repeatedly criticized California for failing to address its homelessness crisis and threatened federal action against the state over the problem.
“We can’t let Los Angeles, San Francisco and numerous other cities destroy themselves by allowing what’s happening,” Trump told reporters in September. “The people of San Francisco are fed up and the people of Los Angeles are fed up, and we’re looking at it and we will be doing something about it at the appropriate time.”
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“As the Bible says: For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat — when I provided a pay stub. I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink — with proof of work. I was a stranger and you invited me in— once I was employed.”
- Gov. Gavin Newsom, in response to a federal announcement to tighten work requirements for recipients of food stamps.
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A former state government union leader who lost an election for a seat on the CalPERS Board of Administration in October has withdrawn a challenge he filed alleging state officials and pension board members helped his opponent win, by Wes Venteicher
This story was originally published December 5, 2019 at 4:55 AM.