Mayor Newsom announced today that the State of California has put $73 million into SF's Health Access Plan. The HAP is the linchpin of the city's efforts to provide universal health care to its residents. Supervisor Tom Ammiano said it best: "the state has put their money where their mouth is." The federal government has failed for years to get any kind of solution to our health care crisis. Gavin Newsom has said, you can complain about it, or you can do something about it. We're doing something about it. Read more »

By Rachel Gordon
San Francisco Chronicle
Originally Published March 29, 2007

The "NextMuni" system, which tracks the location of vehicles via satellite, is now up and running on all the city's electrified trolley bus lines. It had been available only on the Metro streetcar lines and the 22-Fillmore, a trolley bus line that served as an early test. The whereabouts of the Global Positioning System-equipped vehicles are fed into a centralized computer system that translates the data into user-friendly updates available on the Internet and on cell phones and personal digital assistants. Read more »

Our neighbor to the south, Los Angeles Mayor Villaraigosa has a great idea to help give kids a head start in life. The idea -- have the federal government create a savings account for every child born in the United States, with an initial $500 deposit. The plan proposed by a task force of the nation's mayors also calls for the government to match up to $500 a year -- until a child turns 18 to help pay for higher education or job training. Read more »

By Heather Knight
San Francisco Chronicle
Originally Published March 17, 2007

Calling the quality-of-life crimes that plague downtown San Francisco appalling and frustrating, Mayor Gavin Newsom said Friday he plans to clean up the area by opening a new courthouse to crack down on such infractions as public urination, aggressive panhandling, graffiti and prostitution.

Newsom returned Thursday from New York City, where he toured the Mid-Town Community Court. Opened in 1993, the court is heralded by supporters as one of the keys to former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani's transformation of Times Square. Newsom said he will open a similar court in the Tenderloin as soon as this summer. Read more »

If you support same sex marriage in California, the new Field Poll has some encouraging news. According to a release on their website, “Californians stand out for both their level of support for same sex marriage and the rate at which it is growing.”

According to the same release, about 43% approve of same sex marriages while about half of residents disapprove. This is pretty remarkable stuff when you look at it in the context of the rest of the nation. Read more »

All over America, the public sector is renowned for being slow to consider new ideas and innovation.  For the past three years, the Newsom Administration has tried to shatter that notion at every turn.

Today, Gavin Newsom took another step in that direction by saying that he is willing to consider making Muni free. That’s right, free. Now, here is the important part: he said it is an idea worth considering. No commitment to do it, because it might be a terrible idea.

But, it might be a brilliant idea that will change this city and show how acting locally really makes a difference in the world. Read more »