Last week, the Superior Court ruled in favor of Orange County to stop the state-approved needle giveaway.  If not stopped, the program would have given drug users 20 needles in exchange for one, for up to 200 needles at a time from a mobile distribution vehicle.

The Court found the harm of the needle giveaway to the public outweighed the social effectiveness of the Orange County Needle Exchange Program (OCNEP), enjoining the California Department of Public Health and OCNEP from operating the needle exchange program in Orange County.

“The public safety of our residents comes first,” said Supervisor Andrew Do, Chairman of the Orange County Board of Supervisors. “We fought to make sure our sidewalks, parks and libraries did not become hazardous waste sites.”

The Court found that OCNEP does not have sufficient staff and capacity to provide required services, nor does it adequately provide for the safe recovery and disposal of used syringes. OCNEP “created a ‘syringe litter’ condition harmful to health,” and placed that burden on the County and cities.

“This drug needle giveaway is a serious threat to public safety,” said Supervisor Do. “Drug addicts dump their dirty needles all over our community, putting our kids at risk.”

In August 2018, the Orange County Board of Supervisors approved Supervisor Do’s proposal to filing a lawsuit to stop a state-approved drug needle giveaway in Anaheim, Costa Mesa, Orange and Santa Ana. The Orange County Flood Control District and the cities of Costa Mesa, Orange and Anaheim joined on to the lawsuit. 

For more details, read the full press release here.

Thank you to everyone who came out to our Garden Grove Community Forum on Public Safety. We had a great turnout and an informative Q & A session covering topics from traffic safety to homelessness to the needle exchange and more. Also, a big thank you to the City of Garden Grove, Garden Grove Mayor Steve Jones, Garden Grove Police Captain Tom DaRe, and the Garden Grove Chamber Commerce for partnering with us to put on this event for the community!

If you are interested in learning more about public safety in Garden Grove, check out the full video from Friday’s event on our Facebook page.

Last Friday, we broke ground on the OC Streetcar. The OC Streetcar will run on a 4.1 miles route serving Santa Ana’s thriving downtown and dense employment areas that include county and local government offices and courthouses in the Civic Center. The Streetcar will carry passengers between the busy Santa Ana Regional Transportation Center and a transit stop at Harbor Boulevard in Garden Grove, running along Santa Ana Boulevard, Fourth Street and the Pacific Electric right-of-way and connecting with OCTA’s busiest bus routes.

The OC Streetcar will make it easier for Metrolink, Amtrak and OC Bus riders to travel fast and efficiently, and will help us get cars off the road, improving our air quality. The project is scheduled to be up and running by late 2021.

Thank you to the Federal Transit Administration and California State Transportation Authority for collaborating with the Orange County Transportation Authority to make the OC Streetcar a reality!

Chairman Andrew Do received the Leadership in Public Service award at Orange County Business Council’s 8th Annual Turning Red Tape Into Red Carpet Awards.

Chairman Do, along with other state and local leaders, were recognized for developing solutions to Orange County’s homelessness crisis. In this year alone, the County has allocated more than $189 million towards homeless-related programs, including shelters, permanent supportive housing, mental health facilities, treatment programs, landlord incentive programs and more. We have embraced coordination between local and state leaders creating the Orange County Housing Trust that will help bring private and public funds to facilitate the development of affordable and supportive housing. And we have engaged Orange County’s business community and philanthropic leaders to supplement public funds with private donations.

Thank you to Fullerton Councilmember Jennifer Fitzgerald (and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Association of California Cities-Orange County) and Dan Young,who both played crucial roles in developing solutions to Orange County's pervasive homelessness epidemic. Assemblymembers Tom Daly and Sharon Quirk-Silva and Senators John Moorlach and Patricia Bates helped fast-track Assembly Bill 448 Orange County Housing Finance Trust-to accept public and private funding for supportive housing projects to end homelessness.

There is still more work to be done. But for the first time in decades, Orange County has developed a responsible path forward and comprehensive approach to combating this national problem.

Are you a veteran looking for a job? Do you know a veteran who needs services? Come to the Veterans Job and Resource Fair on Friday, December 14 from 8:30am – 4pm at Orange County One-Stop in Irvine.

You can register for the event at this link. For more details, see the flyer below.