National politics are impacting our community. We can’t afford to ignore the rhetoric from Washington as a far-off place that won’t have consequences for the Tahoe Basin. It’s critical that all of us in our community pay attention to the changes in policy that are affecting our neighbors, those who look after our children, or provide us with our healthcare. So what is the plan from our representative to help us in our community?
Kevin Kiley represents the 3rd district of California, stretching from the Sacramento area all the way to Mammoth. The diverse landscapes come with unique challenges that we are all aware of and deal with on a daily basis: The constant threat of home insurance cancellation, roads in disrepair from our harsh seasons, and the seasonal swings to the Basin’s $5 billion a year tourism economy. Kevin Kiley, educated not in our community but in Ivy League schools, has the opportunity to use his influence as a member of Washington’s elite to engage local industries and look for solutions. He could work with California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara to bring down fire insurance costs. He could help steer state and federal dollars to fix our roads or work with our communities to build a sustainable tourism economy. Instead, he has drafted a bill going after the California Coastal Commission to help support Elon Musk’s SpaceX company.
About twice a week, I pick up my son from school and pop into the grocery store, rolling the dice on which one will have eggs in stock. I bring my son to the roads out by Pope Beach to go for walks and a bike ride, wondering if the recently laid-off Forestry workers will have impacts on our crowds this summer or reduce the ability to respond to wildfires. In a year or two, we’ll be exploring the options for kindergarten at the elementary schools, wondering how the 50 percent cut in the Department of Education this week will impact our ability to access a quality education. Kiley’s support for the new Federal Budget, which is potentially targeting $800B+ cuts across entitlement funding, reminds me that Barton’s revenue relies heavily on Medicaid and Medicare patients. Is our healthcare access also at risk?
At the time of this writing, Representative Kiley has announced to hold a virtual town hall by phone, in response to local efforts to hold an in-person event at LTCC. Given the above impacts to our community are being felt by all of us, and Lake Tahoe’s outsized standing in District 3, we deserve more than a sanitized Zoom call to hear his solutions for each of us in South Lake Tahoe.
Brett Richardson
Full-time Bijou resident