Public Policy - Business - Energy - Health - Insurance - Education - Employment - Civic Engagement - Finance
IN THIS EDITION - Week of August 24, 2020

  • CA May Require Hispanics, Asians, Blacks and Native Americans on Corporate Boards
  • Authors of Proposed Law AB 979
  • Congresswoman Jaime Beutler (R-WA)
  • The Future of Energy is Green ... and Hispanic!
  • Champion and Pioneer of Supplier Diversity Gwen Moore Passed on August 19, 2020
  • Presidential Election Conventions
  • Select Stories
  • Read Past Issues of Latino Journal Digital
Assembly Bill 979 (Holden, Garcia, Chiu, Hueso, Reyes)
Sacramento - California is on the verge of adopting a requirement for corporations to include Hispanics, Aisans, Blacks and Native Americans on their boards of directors. The legislation, AB 979, authored by Assembly Members Chris Holden (D), Christina Garcia (D), Eloise Reyes (D), David Chiu (D), and Senator Ben Hueso (D), has cleared the Assembly and appears to be on its way to passage by the California Senate. It then goes to Governor Newsom who has supported pushing the envelope on social equity issues, so, he is likely to sign the Bill into law.

The legislation is a reaction to the delayed response by top corporations to be inclusive in their governance by better reflecting their communities and customers. Read the proposed text here.

Esther Aguilera, President & CEO of the Latino Corporate Directors Association (LCDA), stated, "LCDA researched all 662 publicly traded California-headquartered companies and found 87%, or 571 corporations, do not have a Latino on their board. It is unacceptable that in California, where Latinos make up 39.4% of the population, the most underrepresented community in the boardroom is the Latino community."

The Washington D.C. based Latino Corporate Directors Association (LCDA) is a key data source to review the inclusion of Hispanics and other minority groups in corporate governance.


The proposed law is supported by:


Some CA companies possibly impacted by AB 979
based on research done by Latino Journal:
Apple
McKesson
Chevron
Wells Fargo
Alphabet
Intel
Disney
Hewlett Packard Enterprise
Cisco Systems
HP
Oracle
Gilead Sciences
Facebook
Qualcomm
Amgen
PG&E
Aecom
Gap
Visa
Synnex
CBRE Group
Western Digital
Ross Stores
Farmers Insurance Group
Core-Mark Holding
PayPal Holdings
Applied Materials
Pacific Life
EBay
Netflix
Reliance Steel & Alum.
Salesforce
Live Nation Entertainment
Charles Schwab
TESLA
Nvidia
A-Mark Precious Metals
Franklin Resources
Activision Blizzard
Sanmina
Avery Dennison
Lam Research
Adobe Systems
Clorox
First American Financial
Symantec
NetApp
Mattel
Robert Half International
Yahoo
Uber
Authors of the Proposed Law
Senator Ben Hueso
(D-San Diego)

Signed up as a principal coauthor, he says, "This is about making our businesses more competitive, the population, the consumer base, of not only our state, but of the world, is diverse and it requires people of diverse language, culture and ideas to communicate with our own state and the world."
Assemblymember Chris Holden (D-Pasadena)

The author of AB 979, stated "If we are going to address the racial injustice and inequality in our society, people of color must have a seat at the table where an overwhelming amount of the wealth is based, especially in a state as diverse as California."
Assemblymember Christina Garcia
(D-Bell Gardens)

"Assemblymember Holden and I have been urging corporations, especially in the tech industry, to diversify their boards and workforce, and promises were made in 2014, as a studies have shown, little progress has been made. In California 39% of the population is Latinos, but we only hold 2.3% of the director positions of the Fortune 1000 companies headquartered in California."
Assemblymember Eloise Reyes
(D-San Bernardino)

"Ensuring diversity on our corporate boards is just the right thing to do. It is a prudent step in the direction of inclusion and equity so that the boards of California companies reflect the diversity of our state. We have an opportunity to show the world, the United States and most importantly our youth that California is going to lead the way on doing what is right and doing what makes sense."
Assemblymember David Chiu
(D-San Francisco)

"As a member of the Commission on Asian & Pacific Islander American Affairs, established in 2002 to advise the Governor and the Legislature on the views, needs and concerns of the state's API communities, AB 979 will require companies to accommodate the growing population of California APIs."
Senator Anna M. Caballero
(D-Salinas)

Senator Caballero, who served as a Secretary in Governor Jerry Brown's Cabinet, has well rounded experience as an attorney and local elected official. She testified in favor of AB 979 in the Senate Banking Committee and is very much in favor of its passage.
Latina Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler (R WA)
The Amazing and Rare Experience of Having A Baby While Serving In Congress
A moving story about Congresswoman Jaime Herrera Beutler (R-WA) giving birth to a child without kidneys and the miracle that followed.
THE FUTURE OF ENERGY IS
GREEN ... AND HISPANIC
Hispanic American Energy STEM Institute
by Zack Valdez, PhD
Washington D.C. - The Covid-19 crisis brought uncertainty into the future of workplaces and educational systems. Yet, the trend toward a carbon neutral business plan from major tech, clothing, and even conventional energy companies is no surprise. It should also be of no surprise that Hispanics will continue to dominate U.S. growth in our K-12 and post-secondary educational systems… but will they be prepared for the future energy careers of tomorrow?
Honorable Gwen Moore of California
Assembly Member From 1978 to 1994
Mother of Supplier Diversity in America, Passes
Los Angeles - Our dear friend and ally, former CA Assembly Member, Gwen Moore, passed away on August 19, 2020.

While chairing the Assembly Utilities and Commerce Committee Gwen championed to pass California's resoundingly successful supplier diversity law. It requires utility companies regulated by the CA Public Utilities Commission to create effective supplier diversity programs. The policy achieved the highest supplier diversity benchmarks in America. Other states have been working to emulate the program to make progress and increase spending with diverse-owned businesses.

Gwen partnered with José L. Pérez, founder and publisher of Latino Journal, and former President Michael R. Peevey, CA Public Utilities Commission, to create the first of its kind and highly successful CA Utilities Diversity Council (CUDC). The CUDC helped the CPUC make dramatic progress on inclusive and diverse supply chain contracting. Thanks to Gwen's law, diversity spending by CA utilities increased from $1 billion in 2003 to nearly $10 billion in 2018.

Countless Latino business leaders around the country admire and recognize Gwen for her passion and tireless efforts to promote inclusion and diversity. She will be sorely missed by all minorities, women and service disabled veterans groups. She will be remembered for her remarkable contributions and enduring friendship.

Rest In Peace, Amiga,
José L. Pérez
Latino Journal
2020 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS
Click Each To See Schedule
AUGUST 17 -20
AUGUST 21 - 24
SELECT STORIES - Week of August 24, 2020

COVID-19

HISPANICS AND OTHER MINORITIES ON CORPORATE BOARDS

EDUCATION

WASHINGTON D.C.

CALIFORNIA WILDFIRES

2020 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION

LOCAL POLICE & VIOLENT CRIME


MEXICO / CANADA

PRESIDENTIAL APPROVAL
Read Past Issues of the Latino Journal Digital Weekly
The opinions and perspectives offered in the contents of the Latino Journal Digital do not necessarily reflect the view or endorsement of Latino Journal's leadership or advisors. Latino Journal, a privately held non-partisan information source, is a First Amendment company that offers a platform for different opinions as long they are respectful, factual and well-written.
WHY SUBSCRIBE TO THE LATINO JOURNAL DIGITAL?

Please consider subscribing to the Latino Journal Digital to continue receiving cutting edge information about America's 60 million Latino movers and shakers in public policy, corporate America, business, labor, authorship and academia.

The Latino Journal Digital, like no other news service, covers the most pressing issues of concern to America's vast Latino community. Coverage includes Mexico and Canada. Subscribe today!
www.latinojournal.net
Twitter: @latinojournal96