Cut Red Tape
Cut Red Tape Our Vision Sacramento should deliver housing, businesses, and modern infrastructure faster and at lower cost by cutting unnecessary red tape. Policy: Why This Matters
Scott For City Council District 7
Cut Red Tape Our Vision Sacramento should deliver housing, businesses, and modern infrastructure faster and at lower cost by cutting unnecessary red tape. Policy: Why This Matters
Finish Our Bike Trail Our Vision Sacramento should finish its bike trail in a way that improves connectivity while protecting neighborhood safety and security. Actionable Policy:
Our Vision Sacramento must make it easier for small businesses to open, operate, and grow by removing unnecessary barriers and treating entrepreneurs as partners in our city’s success. Policy Context Small businesses are the backbone of our neighborhoods, providing jobs, stability, and opportunity for families across Sacramento. Yet today, many entrepreneurs face a permit process that is slow, expensive, and unpredictable. These barriers often delay openings for months or stop businesses from opening altogether, leaving storefronts vacant and commercial corridors struggling. Sacramento should streamline and modernize its permitting process to reduce red tape, shorten approval timelines, and lower unnecessary costs. By lightening the load on small businesses, we can encourage new restaurants, shops, and services to open their doors and bring life back to empty retail spaces. Supporting small businesses is not only about economic opportunity. It is also a smart fiscal policy. Thriving local businesses generate sales tax revenue, create jobs, and strengthen the city’s long-term funding sources. A healthier business environment helps stabilize the city budget while reducing reliance on short-term fixes and one-time revenues. When small businesses succeed, families succeed, neighborhoods thrive, and the city benefits from a stronger and more sustainable local economy.
Our Vision Affordability means lowering the total cost of living, not just the price of housing. Policy Why This Matters Affordability is about more than the price of a home. It is about the total cost of living and whether families can realistically build a stable life in Sacramento. Housing, transportation, and access to basic services all work together. When one becomes too expensive or unreliable, it puts pressure on everything else. For decades, homeownership followed a ladder. People started with smaller, more affordable homes, built equity, and moved up as their lives and careers grew. That ladder has broken down. New housing is often built at price points far beyond what first-time buyers can afford, while development is frequently disconnected from transit and everyday services. This forces families to rely on multiple cars, long commutes, and rising fuel costs just to get by. Affordability also depends on infrastructure that supports modern life. Reliable transit options give residents alternatives to car ownership. Safe walking and biking routes reduce transportation costs and expand access to jobs and schools. At the same time, internet access is no longer a luxury. It is essential for work-from-home jobs, remote learning, telehealth, and everyday communication. When we upgrade utilities and infrastructure, we should also expand broadband access and explore free or low-cost internet programs so families can participate fully in today’s economy. By designing housing alongside transit, alternative transportation, and modern utilities, Sacramento can lower everyday costs for residents while expanding opportunity. This approach does not just make housing more affordable. It makes life more affordable and gives families more choices in how they live, work, and move around the city.
The Vision Public safety should be built into our streets, neighborhoods, and public spaces through smart design, targeted services, and practical enforcement. Policy: Context: Public safety is more than policing alone. It starts with how our streets are designed, how our public spaces are maintained, and how we address complex issues like homelessness and mental health. Sacramento must take a layered and realistic approach that prioritizes prevention, accountability, and compassion while ensuring residents and businesses feel safe. Better Roads Safe streets save lives. Many traffic-related injuries and fatalities are preventable through better roadway design. Sacramento should invest in clearer lane striping, highly visible crosswalks with flashing beacons, and improved pedestrian infrastructure near schools, parks, and commercial corridors. Speed control should rely on proven safety measures such as rumble strips, road narrowing, and visual cues rather than relying solely on speed bumps. Designing streets that naturally slow traffic protects drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians alike. Better Lighting Well-lit spaces deter crime and increase community confidence. Parks, trails, sidewalks, and public gathering areas should be adequately illuminated so residents feel safe using them during early mornings and evenings. Better lighting improves visibility, discourages illegal activity, and supports families, seniors, and workers who rely on public spaces outside of daylight hours. Homeless Mental Health Addressing homelessness requires prioritizing mental health while recognizing that not all situations are the same. A clear three-tier approach is necessary. The first tier includes individuals who are easiest to help and can quickly return to stable housing and employment with targeted support. The second tier includes individuals who require medical or mental health treatment but can still be rehabilitated into productive members of society with structured intervention. The third tier includes individuals who cannot care for themselves and repeatedly refuse help. Compassion does not mean allowing people to deteriorate on the streets. For this group, the city must prioritize mandated treatment and structured care rather than offering a perpetual free pass to refuse assistance. Public Security Sacramento should better utilize a mix of public and private security to improve everyday safety. Security guards can help prevent loitering, vandalism, and disruptive behavior in commercial corridors and business districts while acting as additional eyes and ears. This approach helps businesses stay open and safe while allowing police officers to focus their limited resources on serious and violent crimes amid ongoing staffing shortages.