Los Angeles Community College Board trustee, Mike Eng, spoke to students about the importance of voting and political involvement at the Wray Theatre September 29.

Eng is the current Vice President of the Board of Trustees for the Los Angeles Community College district, elected last July. He has served in the California State Assembly and the Monterey Park City Council. Eng was invited to the event to speak to students on the importance of voting, with an emphasis on explaining the propositions on this year’s ballot.

“People make choices when deciding what car to buy, what kind of food to buy, what kind of house to buy, or when naming their children,” the trustee explained. “The best thing about the initiative progress, is that it is more of a reflection of the will of the people.”

Eng explained that the voting power of people allows them to support initiatives that directly benefit. Being a board trustee member and speaking to a group of community college students, he highlighted support of proposition 55. The passing of Prop 55 would increase personal income taxes for individuals making over $250,000, to fund both education for K-12 schools and community colleges, and an additional $2 billion to support medi-cal. This bill is an extension of Prop 30 that passed in 2012, which has since raised $6 billion dollars a year, for an additional twelve years passed its 2018 expiration date.

Trustee Eng also used the opportunity to speak of bills he supported on this year’s ballot, including prop 56 and 58.

Prop 56 would increase tax on tobacco and tobacco related products by $2, and large portions of the revenue would be allocated toward services related to medi-cal, tobacco prevention education programs, and cancer research.

“My father passed away of residual lung cancer and emphysema,” Eng explains, expressing bias, but showing the audience his humanity. “I feel kind of personally connected to voting for this bill.”

The other bill publicly supported by Mike Eng during the presentation was Prop 58. The proposition would repeal Prop 227, known as the ‘English in Public Schools’ initiative and enacted in 1998, that banned non-English languages in public schools.           

The passing of 58 would mean students identifying as English learners would no longer be required to complete a year-long Intensive English course before being immersed into general courses, and English-only classes.

“My good friend, Ricardo Lara, who I served with in the state legislature, [is the] author of the of the legislation to repeal the ban on bilingual education,” says Eng. He refers to the passing of Prop 227 in 1998 as a product of “immigrant hysteria,” and gladly supports its repeal.

A major point of discussion during the presentation was on the importance of voting and and also about young voters. Eng examined and rejected some of the critiques of voting and reassured the audience of the significance of their vote.

“This is gonna be the first election in which [young people’s] vote collectively will outnumber the vote of the baby boomers,” Eng explained to the audience of college students.

“The issue confronted by younger adults versus older adults are different, they’re generational differences, because they’re at different stages in their life,” explained Moderator Baca. “It’s very important to be engaged, because if [younger voters are] not, then the government moves in ways that not be beneficial to younger generations.”

Election day is November 8. The last day to register to vote, by mail, online or in person, is October 24.