Mullin holds 1st congressional town hall in South San Francisco

Many asked about federal support for combating climate change and expanding green infrastructure, an issue Mullin noted was felt intimately in the county when historic winter storms wreaked havoc on local communities. Part of the solution, he said, will be investing in green energy, a step the federal government took as part of the Inflation Reduction Act, he noted.

“We are all going to have to deal with the challenges of climate,” Mullin said. “The federal government has the power to create markets and help markets move forward.”

Mullin’s first bill introduced in Congress was the Weatherization Resilience and Adaptation Program Act, which would provide financial assistance to low-income homeowners and affordable housing providers to adapt their property to be more resilient to disasters and extreme weather driven by climate change.

San Mateo Councilmember Adam Loraine expressed his hope for the bill after the town hall, noting major flooding following the historic storms was one of the first major issues he dealt with since entering office. The issue will likely become more pressing, he said, as an El Niño year potentially brings with it a wetter winter season.

And on public transportation infrastructure, Mullin acknowledged ridership has failed to return to pre-pandemic numbers, adding strain to transit agency budgets. While state and local officials look for solutions to increase revenue like increasing or creating new tolls, Mullin said the federal gas tax will need to be replaced as more drivers turn to electric vehicles.

“These public transit agencies are the lifeblood, moving people up and down this Peninsula and they are still recovering from the pandemic,” Mullin said. “I will do whatever I can at the federal level to look for opportunities.”

Like Loraine, South San Francisco Councilmember Eddie Flores said he appreciated hearing Mullin’s take on transportation relief funding and shared his confidence in having a representative “immersed in the problems of back home.”

Mullin also stressed the importance of balancing medical innovation with access to health care and spoke in favor of a federal overlay to help fund medical programs. He advocated for letting transgender children play sports as their identified gender, encouraged youth to get more politically involved and argued more states should adopt California’s vote-by-mail and district map crafting processes. He also argued the federal government should have been doing more to help address the housing crisis.

On the economy, Mullin put his faith in President Joe Biden who he said will be known as the “jobs president” as employment numbers continue to grow. But he also noted price gouging and inflation needs to be addressed to ensure individuals feel economic improvements.

Further speaking on economic stability, Mullin said the nation will need to develop stronger revenue streams to support both Social Security and other elements of the nation’s safety net. One way to do so would be to raise the payroll tax and to reinstitute some version of the child tax credit, a COVID-19-era program that helped pull thousands of children out of poverty, he said.

“I believe we need to be mindful of the debt that we are accruing because future generations will have to deal with that debt,” Mullin said. “Folks on my side of the aisle, we need to be careful when we talk about our spending plans but the Trump tax cuts have resulted in a full third of the debt that has been accrued … corporate tax breaks and tax breaks for the wealthy when frankly it wasn’t needed.”

When asked about his stance on altering the Supreme Court and the filibuster, a Senate procedure requiring at least 60 votes for a bill to pass, Mullin said he’d like to see term limits for justices and an end to the filibuster. He also vowed to work across the aisle on solutions, noting that while he was elected as a Democrat, he also represents Republican constituents and is open to their views.