Laura Friedman announces plans to run for reelection
State Assemblywoman Laura Friedman, a Democrat whose district includes Glendale and Burbank, announced on Friday she will be running for a third term.
“Serving the people of my district has been one of the greatest experiences of my life,” Friedman wrote on Twitter after filing for reelection. She was referring to the 43rd district, which also includes Silver Lake, Los Feliz and the Hollywood Hills.
“I look forward to earning the opportunity to continue working for the good of the community,” she added.
Elections for the state Assembly will be held in November of next year. First elected from a crowded candidate pool in 2016, Friedman ran unopposed in 2018.
A former Glendale City Council member and film industry executive, Friedman gained national attention this past year for authoring a statewide fur ban.
The bill, signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in October, made California the first state to make it illegal to sell, donate or manufacture new animal fur products.
Friedman said homelessness and affordable housing are at the top of her agenda in a recent statement.
During the most recent legislative session, Friedman helmed a pair of bills that aim to make it easier for people to build an accessory-dwelling unit, also known as a granny flat, on their property. Newsom signed those bills in October.
In the same statement, Friedman credited herself and colleagues with securing $500 million in the recently passed state budget to address the homelessness crisis across California. Of those funds, $166.1 million will be going to L.A. County and $625,114 will go to Glendale.
She also said the legislature invested around $3 billion toward tools local governments can use to add housing and provide homelessness services.
Homelessness jumped 12% in L.A. County and 16% in the city of Los Angeles this past year, according to the most recent point-in-time count results that were released in June.
“While homelessness is an issue that may right now seem hopeless, substantial work is being done, investments are being made and solutions are being implemented every day,” Friedman said in the statement. “However, we need to think beyond just putting a roof over someone’s head.”
That means investing in services to address addiction and mental health issues, she added.