As the congressman representing the 17th District of California, I’m proud of Silicon Valley and its accomplishments. Still, we have our challenges. We’ve created a community that has unintentionally pushed out all but those who work in tech. A community of software engineers is a boring place to raise a family. That’s why we don’t want Google and Facebook driving the market price on housing. When I grew up, our neighborhoods consisted of executives, to be sure, but we were also neighbors with plumbers, electricians, and nurses. During Little League, I didn’t know whether my teammates’ parents were CEOs or mechanics. Such diversity created a dynamic sense of community. Now, teachers, firefighters, and blue-collar workers are struggling to afford housing in the area. A push toward affordable living There is movement toward a solution, however. Currently, rent control ordinances allow little security for renters. I’d like to repeal some of those laws, because our communities need reasonable rent control for its middle-class workers. We’re also working with HUD to allocate funding for public housing and affordable rent. We must continue to push for affordable housing. Additionally, there needs to be a massive investment in public transportation. By allowing people to commute into the big cities like Cupertino or Sunnyvale, we’re giving them an opportunity to live outside the most expensive parts of Silicon Valley while earning a livable income and residing in affordable housing. Silicon Valley is a great location for tech headquarters, but distributing some of these jobs opportunities across the …
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