Meet State Assembly District 12 Candidate Ida Times-Green

MARIN COUNTY, CA –School Board Trustee Ida Times-Green is among four candidates in the District 12 state assembly race.

California Coastal Commissioner Sara Aminzadeh, county Supervisor Damon Connolly and farmer/nonprofit director Steve Schwartz, are the others.

The candidates are running to replace outgoing Assemblyman Marc Levine, who is running for state insurance commissioner.

Patch sent questionnaires to all candidates in selected races, including this one.

Age (as of Election Day)

61

Party Affiliation

Democrat

Family

I am a widow, having lost my husband to cancer in 2019. I have 3 brothers and numerous aunts, cousins, and nieces and nephews

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government?

Not currently, but my mother Betty was an elected official on the Board of Education for the Sausalito-Marin City School District, Marin County Commission on the Status of Women, President of NWPC, Chair MDCC, Marin General Hospital Board Member, and service on numerous local and regional boards.

Education

Graduate Degree, Social Work

Occupation

Social Services Worker II County of Marin

Previous or Current Elected or Appointed Office

Board Trustee, Sausalito-Marin City School District

Campaign website

www.idatimesgreenforassembly.c...

Why are you seeking elective office?

I joined this race because I believe this election is crucial in so many ways. Not for just our district, but for California. I have a unique perspective and a voice for change that we have not seen in our AD 12 representation before. I believe there is an ethical imperative to solve all our critical issues simultaneously with the crisis of inequity. We must listen to the voices that often go unheard. As a resilient Black woman, I know what it is like not to be heard. I want to change that.

What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

I’m a native Californian and a longtime resident of Marin City, one of five children born to working class parents living in public housing. As a child, I was part of Marin City and Sausalito’s school integration at Central Elementary and was bussed across town to school. As a social worker for the County of Marin, and a Trustee for the Sausalito Marin City School Board, I do the work every day to bridge the gap of racial and economic inequities, to house the unhoused, to recover from the pandemic, and to fight for affordable housing for my clients and teachers in my district. None of these issues are abstract to me.

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform.

Finding solutions to homelessness. As a social worker, I see in my day-to-day work that the housing crisis is taking an extra toll on the most vulnerable members of our state. Project Homekey is a good start and has housed 12,000 people statewide so far, with a goal of 50,000 in the coming two years, but that is nowhere near enough. A “Housing First” approach is also a positive step. Moving people to permanent, supportive housing is a primary stabilizing factor in ending the cycle of homelessness. We need greater support and resources from the state if we’re going to make significant progress on the challenge of housing the unhoused. I will be a leader with frontline experience on this issue in Sacramento.

Affordable and workforce housing, while linked, are not the same issue as homelessness. Certainly, affordable housing helps keep people from becoming unhoused. Affordable housing also creates a more diverse community where our seniors can age in place, our young people can live where they grew up, and our essential workers can be part of our community. Many of our workers commute from other areas causing traffic congestion and greenhouse gas emissions. While infill, ADUs and repurposing existing sites are part of the solution, I also support thoughtful, non-profit development of affordable housing, built to green standards, in transit areas, close to jobs, and shopping and services

Most municipalities and their residents are grappling with new housing laws and the latest housing mandates which seem out of touch to many. The state needs to invest in affordable housing with additional funding to our local governments and be more helpful with articulating useful guidelines to support these programs and their implementation. That being said, locally we need to seek creative, sustainable and equitable ways to meet these goals.

I want to make single payer healthcare a reality in California. I have the endorsement of Healthcare for All California, a leader in this issue. While AB 1400 failed to pass this year, it incorporated all the principles we should be looking for in a single payer healthcare bill. It had universal coverage with fully comprehensive benefits and the freedom to choose care providers. Additionally, AB 1400 provided for a robust jobs conversion program for those currently working in the health insurance industry.
Patient care must be based on the needs of the patient and the advice of their medical professionals.

As an Assemblywoman, I see my mission as finding out what the roadblocks to the passage of AB 1400 were, and then working collaboratively with other legislators to craft a bill that is ready for the Governor’s signature in 2023. We have the roadmap in AB 1400 and ACA 11. Electing legislators like myself, people who are fully committed to single payer healthcare, will bring us one step closer.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

I accepted the appointment as a Sausalito Marin City School Board Trustee in 2014 and subsequently won election as the top vote-getter in 2018. In the 8 years I have served on the Board, we have been fighting to desegregate one of the most unequal school districts in the state. We brought people together to confront historic racism, economic differences, and a legal mandate from Attorney General Becerra to change. I was President of the Board as we worked through the challenges of the pandemic. I’m proud to say that today, though there is still work to be done, we are forging a bright, inclusive, new future for the children of our district.

The best advice ever shared with me was:

Be your authentic self. I am not a polished politician or your typical candidate. I am a resilient Black woman living in America who will never lose sight of my commitment to the people I serve and who will listen to all the voices that are often unheard.

What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

In addition to issues I have addressed, there are many challenges facing our district and our state – recovering from the pandemic, wildfire resiliency, sea level rise, drought and water management, a living wage, quality public education and more. It is with the same determination and grit that I brought to my school board work that I approach this Assembly race. I’m running to bring people together and confront the biggest challenges of our time. We’ve done it before, we can do it again. With so much at stake in this election — and so many new members of the Assembly being elected this year — I look forward to going to Sacramento to fight for our values.

CHECK OUT THE FULL CALMATTERS 2022 VOTER GUIDE HERE.