In an on-air interview with KHTS on Wednesday, Assemblywoman Suzette Valladares (R-Santa Clarita) revealed how the Problem Solvers Caucus is tackling some of California’s greatest issues including energy needs, climate change and health care. 

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Affiliated with the Problem Solvers Caucus, a bipartisan group in the United States House of Representatives that intends to foster bipartisan cooperation, Valladares shared her progress in creating policies that she is expected to present in Sacramento this January. 

“Partisanship gets in the way of legislation too often,” Valladares said during the on-air interview. “Our object is not necessarily to kill bad policy, although that would be nice, but to create good policy. Policy that makes sense to California.”

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During her first policy retreat, climate change was on the docket for discussion and Valladares intended to approach the issue in a way that “balanced our climate goals with our economic needs.”

Nine scientists and experts in the field gathered within a room for about three hours, openly discussing the best ways to get creative, according to Valladares.

“We brought in experts, not just political people that want to talk about the politics behind it, to talk about the issue,” Valladares said. “What needs to be done?”

California has been the most proactive state in trying to reduce CO2 emissions, but carbon capture may be another step in the right direction, according to Valladares.

During the meeting, the group discussed the logistics of transforming existing oil fields that are no longer in use to store carbon, according to Valladares. 

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The same set-up occurred within a meeting regarding healthcare access across California.

“We brought together pharmaceuticals, insurance companies, doctors and hospitals to talk about this,” Valladares said. “How do we address the affordability factor in health care?”

Valladares had been tasked with looking into ways to grow the healthcare workforce amid a national healthcare professional shortage. 

“The government is very good at few things,” Valladares said. “But some of the things we’re good at are education and infrastructure, so if we can create the infrastructure and education for building and growing our workforce, that is going to be a huge step when it comes to the affordability crisis.”

The Problem Solvers Caucus fights for bipartisan cooperation in creating policies for some of the country’s most controversial subjects, but Valladares is eager to share her findings to officials in Sacramento in July.

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