Assemblyman Heath Flora (Ripon) on Tuesday issued the following statement in response to Governor Gavin Newsom’s State of the State address:

“It was a pleasant surprise to hear Governor Newsom talk about the Central Valley so much. The Valley deserves an equal seat at the table with the Bay Area and Southern California.

“The Governor and I agree on the need to cut red tape that holds up housing development, increase Medi-Cal reimbursement rates and ramp up the fights against homelessness and mental illness.

“While we’ll partner with the Governor when we agree, there are still major issues in the Central Valley that are made worse by lawmakers in Sacramento. It’s my job to make sure that we get the respect and consideration we deserve.”

Assemblyman Flora represents the 12th Assembly District, which includes the communities of Denair, Empire, Escalon, Farmington, Hickman, Hughson, Keyes, Lathrop, Linden, Lockeford, Manteca, Modesto, Oakdale, Ripon, Riverbank, Salida, Turlock, Victor, and Waterford.