ASSEMBLYMEMBER ED CHAU STATEMENT ON GOVERNOR’S BUDGET PROPOSAL

On January 8 Assemblymember Ed Chau (D – Monterey Park) released the following statement upon announcement of the Governor’s 2021-22 State budget proposal:

“I appreciate the commitment by the Governor to propose an immediate plan of action to reopen schools, assist small businesses, to get money into people’s hands, and keep them housed. Assisting people with the necessities of daily living is critical at this time, but investments into our future must not be overlooked.  To that end, I was pleased to see money designated to address the learning loss experienced by students to strive to ensure all our children have equal footing academically in California.

“As Chair of the Assembly Committee on Privacy and Consumer Protection, I was also pleased to hear the Governor’s investment in cybersecurity and consumer-based services. These are important investments needed to propel government into the digital age, in addition to responsibly implementing a comprehensive statewide data strategy regarding the efficient, effective, secure and responsible use of data by the state. Additionally, the interest expressed by the administration in the concept of a Digital ID system brings with it many promises, especially in rendering critical government services effectively and efficiently, and is certainly not a challenge from which we should shy away. Cybersecurity will be key in implementing this endeavor in a responsible way, so I look forward to hearing more from the administration on this effort and working on it collaboratively where possible.”