Action plan sought for abortions in San Mateo County

Pine and Supervisor Warren Slocum co-sponsored a resolution affirming the county’s “unwavering support for women’s reproductive freedom and health care privacy” and calling for officials to craft an action plan that identifies infrastructure support and investment opportunities the county can help fund to protect those rights.

Pine said he, Slocum and Deputy County Executive Peggy Jensen have already begun drafting the plan after being in conversation with officials from Planned Parenthood Mar Monte, an affiliate of the health care giant providing medical care to more than 220,000 patients from the Bay Area to Northern Nevada. That plan could come back for consideration in June.

Supervisor David Canepa lauded his colleagues for bringing forward the resolution and advocated for making the county an abortion sanctuary. Like Pine and Slocum, Canepa has also lobbied for reproductive protections and is in the process of drafting an ordinance that would create a buffer zone around a Planned Parenthood site in North Fair Oaks.

Canepa’s measure, which Supervisor Carole Groom volunteered to co-sponsor, could also come before the board in June following review from County Attorney John Nibbelin.

The eager push to implement protections around reproductive health in the county has been spurred by a leaked U.S. Supreme Court decision by Justice Samuel Alito that argued in favor of a Mississippi law that bans abortions after 15 weeks. The document, labeled as a first draft and leaked to Politico, declared that Roe v. Wade, the 1973 landmark decision that determined abortion access was a right, must be overruled given that “Roe was egregiously wrong from the start.”

A formal decision is expected later this summer but, if the current draft holds up, supervisors and advocates have raised concerns more pressure will be put on services in states where abortion services remain available and could call into question the fate of other decisions.

“It may be cloaked as giving this issue back to the states for action but in my opinion and my perspective it’s pure and simple gender discrimination,” Slocum said. “This is a very slippery slope because what could be done in the name of states’ rights other personal rights like same-sex marriage could be in jeopardy. And right now this moment for us is a moment to take action to protect women’s rights here in San Mateo County.”

In other business, the board also approved a spending plan for more than $74 million, the second portion of the nearly $150 million the county will receive through the federal American Rescue Plan Act, a COVID-19 relief effort.

Jensen said the county is expecting to receive the $74 million this week and officials plan to spend the dollars on uplifting communities hit hardest by the pandemic including low-income households and communities of color.

Of the funds, $24.5 million will go toward housing initiatives like securing land and setting up assistance services for new home buyers or people looking to build accessory dwelling units. An additional $9 million will go toward supporting children and families through grants for child care and day care centers, technical support for center development and school enrichment grant programs.

The financial backing comes as the county considers how it will meet its Housing Element, a state-set housing goal that requires jurisdictions to detail how they would facilitate housing production in the next eight years. A draft Housing Element is expected to come before the board in the near future.

Another $5 million will be directed to small business support, $3.5 million to vulnerable communities through Second Harvest Food Bank and other financial assistance opportunities and $3.5 million to Wi-Fi infrastructure and maintenance, leaving about $29 million to be allocated based on need.

“Our highest and first priority was to align all these allocation proposals with community priorities and needs,” Jensen said. “The second priority was always advancing equity and helping those most impacted by COVID.”

sierra@smdailyjournal.com

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