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Alex Padilla on Technology
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Bill created statewide Earthquake Early Warning System
In 2006, Alex was elected to the State Senate. As an engineer, he fought for the ethical advancement of science and technology.
He authored legislation protecting Californians from discrimination based on genetic information and wrote the bill creating a statewide Earthquake Early Warning System.
Source: 2022 California Senate campaign website Alex-Padilla.com
, Dec 23, 2020
Election security is ongoing effort, not once a generation
Padilla has led some of the most robust efforts in the nation to secure voting systems and combat disinformation. "I would advocate fiercely for ongoing appropriations and financial support for election modernization and security,"
Padilla said. "The work is ongoing," Padilla said, arguing that the handful of recent grant disbursements aren't enough. "Election security and integrity is not something you can invest in only once in a generation."
Source: Politico e-zine on 2022 California Senate race
, Dec 7, 2020
States run elections, Feds can standardize administration
States run elections, Padilla said, but "there's a strong role for the federal government to play" in improving the process, and "it's not as if Congress appropriating dollars and leveraging policy in the process is unprecedented." Padilla said he'd
embrace this approach, arguing, "A lot of the reforms we're talking about are no-brainers." "We're not talking about federalizing or centralizing elections nationally," he said. "We're talking about standardizing election administration."
Source: Politico e-zine on 2022 California Senate race
, Dec 7, 2020
Census "citizenship question" affects CA's voice in congress
In 2019, organizations and a number of states filed suit against the Trump administration [for attempting] to add a "citizenship question" to the 2020 census survey. California secretary of state Alex Padilla helped lead his state's lawsuit, along
with state attorney general Xavier Becerra. They argued that the citizenship question was intended to artificially suppress the count, and the consequences for California would be dire. In an interview with NPR, Secretary Padilla laid out the potential
effect: "the whole point of the census is to get an accurate count of the entire nation's population for a couple important reasons. Yes, it does determine federal funding for the next decade--transportation dollars, education dollars, housing dollars,
and so forth. But more fundamentally, it is the census numbers that drive the reapportionment process and the redistricting. So we're literally talking about California's voice in congress, and the level of representation being at stake."
Source: Our Time Is Now, by Stacey Abrams, p.170-2
, Jun 9, 2020
Require search warrants for police use of drones
AB1327: This bill would generally prohibit public agencies from using unmanned aircraft systems, including when the purpose is unrelated to the gathering of criminal intelligence.Analysis by Slate.com: AB 1327 requires law enforcement
drone-users to get a warrant. A warrant requirement does not prevent police from using drones; it checks the scope of drone surveillance by involving legal standards and a judge. California's drone bill includes exceptions for emergency situations,
search-and-rescue efforts, traffic first responders, and inspection of wildfires.
Veto message : There are undoubtedly circumstances where a warrant is appropriate. The bill's exceptions, however, appear to be too narrow and could impose
requirements beyond what is required by either the 4th Amendment or the California Constitution.
Legislative Outcome: Passed Senate 22-8-10 on Aug/26/14; State Sen. Padilla voted YES; Passed Assembly 68-4-7 on Aug/27; Vetoed on Sep/28.
Source: Slate.com blog analysis of voting record AB1327
, Aug 26, 2014
Page last updated: Dec 15, 2021