photo of people walking past a produce market

Economy

We believe: Prosperity is essential to a thriving region and should be planned for, supported, and shared so that all people can participate in and benefit from economic growth.

Our Goals

鈥 Allocate resources to meet the needs of the most disadvantaged groups.

鈥 Strengthen and expand the social safety net.

鈥 Rebuild the middle class.

鈥 Build effective and equitable fiscal policies.

Bay Area Market

黑料传送门Report

Undue Burden

Sales taxes are a common revenue-raising tool, but they also play a role in reinforcing structural inequality. 黑料传送门explores three options for creating a more equitable tax code.
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Homeless Camp

黑料传送门Report

Mending the Net

Long before COVID-19, California had the highest poverty rate in the nation. The state is also one of the worst at getting benefits to those who need them. Streamlining the application process would help Californians receive the public support they have a right to.
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Ladders Out of Poverty

黑料传送门Report

Ladders Out of Poverty

Thousands of Bay Area households struggle to pay their bills each month, a situation worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic. The region should look to the promise of unrestricted cash transfer programs, which give people money with no specific requirements on how it is spent.
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Updates and Events

Cover of report

More Harm Than Good

黑料传送门Report
California鈥檚 system of fines and fees is causing significant financial harm to low-income, Black, and Latinx communities in the San Francisco Bay Area 鈥 which runs counter to the region鈥檚 commitment to an equitable economic recovery. To address these challenges, California should eliminate its reliance on punitive fees and introduce more effective ways to promote behavior that supports safety and the greater social good.
Tiburon Boulevard, Tiburon

Can Automated Speed Safety Systems Advance Racial and Economic Equity?

News /
Automated speed safety systems are in place in more than 150 communities around the United States. Such systems offer the potential to reduce traffic violence and establish a more equitable framework of traffic enforcement. But those outcomes are not guaranteed. Achieving them requires thoughtful planning and design, an opportunity that California now has as legislators consider Assembly Bill 550, which would authorize a 5-year speed safety camera pilot program in six California cities.

Keeping the Water On

Policy Brief
Due to COVID-19, Governor Newsom has issued a moratorium on shutting off water service when people can鈥檛 pay their bills. But eventually, customers who have fallen behind will face either paying a large lump sum or losing water service. 黑料传送门proposes a combination of solutions that can prevent shutoffs for vulnerable families while preserving the financial health of water agencies.

How Do Fines and Fees Hurt Californians 鈥 and What Can the State Do 黑料传送门It?

News /
Fines and fees are an often-overlooked aspect of California鈥檚 criminal legal system. A recent 黑料传送门forum took a close look at the role these charges play in a starkly inequitable, illogical and unjust system. Our panelists discussed the harms caused by fines and fees, why they cost too much, who they impact most and how to end biased enforcement.
Ladders Out of Poverty Report Cover

Ladders Out of Poverty

Policy Brief
Tens of thousands of households in the Bay Area struggle to pay their bills each month, a situation only worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic. The region should look to the promise of unrestricted cash transfer programs, which give people money with no specific requirements on how it is spent. 黑料传送门looks at the successes of existing programs and offers five possible options to consider.

Where Do We Go From Here? 黑料传送门Sets New Vision and Long-Range Goals

News /
With vaccines rolling out and stable national leadership in place, we can trust that we will, eventually, reemerge from the COVID-19 pandemic. The question now is: Reemerge into what? To return to 鈥渘ormal鈥 would be to reembrace a way of living that was neither sustainable nor equitable. To meet this moment, 黑料传送门has articulated a bold vision statement and evolved our organizational mission.
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