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UC Davis experts: State Infrastructure Spending

The following University of California, Davis, faculty will be available to comment on aspects of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's proposed infrastructure financing plan, to be outlined in his Jan. 5 State of the State Address and Jan. 10 budget briefing. If you need assistance on similar topics, please contact Sylvia Wright, News Service, (530) 752-7704, swright@ucdavis.edu; Claudia Morain, News Service, (530) 752-9841, cmmorain@ucdavis.edu; or Julia Ann Easley, News Service, (530) 752-8248, jaeasley@ucdavis.edu.

Transportation and planning

Education

The media and politics

TRANSPORTATION AND PLANNING

Transportation priorities and air quality 

Deb Niemeier, a UC Davis professor of civil and environmental engineering, can discuss transportation project priorities and transportation air-quality issues related to the infrastructure initiative. Niemeier's research is focused on quantifying the effects of transportation on air quality and studying the processes used to select projects and to manage major transportation infrastructure. She has served on the expert independent review teams to assess the cost increases associated with the San Francisco Bay Bridge and to review the cost methods used for the proposed third locks of the Panama Canal. Niemeier serves as a UC Davis associate vice chancellor for research, is director of the John Muir Institute of the Environment and directs the UC Davis-Caltrans Air Quality Project. Contact: Deb Niemeier, Civil and Environmental Engineering, (530) 752-8918, dniemeier@ucdavis.edu.

Investing wisely in a changing world

Robert Johnston, a UC Davis professor emeritus of environmental science and policy, can discuss the balance in the types of investments proposed in the infrastructure initiative, along with the appropriateness of project priorities in a future with much higher fuel prices, more oil wars and global climate change. Johnston, an expert on urban transportation planning, has degrees in architecture, urban planning and resource management. He has served in the past on transportation advisory panels for the California governor and Caltrans. He currently is a member of two committees of the National Academy of Sciences: the Transportation Research Board Committee on Transportation and Land Development, and the Committee on the State of the Practice of Regional Travel Demand Modeling. His research has been funded by Caltrans and the California Energy Commission. Contact: Robert Johnston, Environmental Science and Policy, (530) 582-0700, rajohnston@ucdavis.edu.

Transportation planning and policy

Susan Handy, a UC Davis associate professor of environmental science and policy, is an expert in transportation planning, land-use planning, the connections between transportation and land use, and travel behavior.  She has just published two papers on the impact of neighborhood design on driving and walking in eight Northern California neighborhoods, in addition to recent papers offering a critique of assumptions associated with “smart growth” efforts and an assessment of the transportation benefits of “the new urbanism.”  She has given many talks at professional conferences in the U.S. and abroad on the role of transportation planning in efforts to increase physical activity, a major public health concern.  Contact: Susan Handy, Environmental Science and Policy, (530), 752-5878, slhandy@ucdavis.edu.

Engineering and the state

UC Davis sociologist Patrick Carroll, who studies the influences of technology and science on government decision-making, is now focused on the Peripheral Canal proposal and the influence of the California Bay-Delta Authority. "I plan to research how the Delta, as both a natural and technological entity, became the center of gravity for an enormous range of organizations and interest groups (governmental and nongovernmental),” he says, “and also how it became so important to the stability and welfare of the entire state of California.” Even though he is at the beginning of this multi-year project, Carroll would be a good source to talk about the Delta in a larger context, since he recently completed a new book, "Science, Culture and Modern State Formation," due out next summer. In it, he explores similar issues with his home country of Ireland under the occupation of Great Britain.  Besides sociology, Carroll is affiliated with the Science and Technology Studies Program. He teaches about science and power. Contact: Patrick Carroll, Sociology, (530) 752-5388, pcarroll@ucdavis.edu.

EDUCATION

Education finance

Tom Timar, an associate professor in the UC Davis School of Education, is an expert in education finance. He can comment on the state budget and its implications, including Proposition 98 and categorical programs. Timar is author of “Categorical School Finance: Who Gains, Who Loses?" published by the Policy Analysis for California Education (PACE). He also wrote "Policy, Politics and Categorical Aid: New Inequities in California School Finance" in the journal Education Evaluation and Policy Analysis and the chapter "Allocation of Educational Resources and School Finance Equity in Ohio" in "Where Does the Money Go?: Resource Allocation in Elementary and Secondary Schools." He has also published on school governance, the politics of school restructuring and other equity issues. As an international education consultant, he rewrote the state finance system for Montenegro. Contact: Tom Timar, School of Education, (530) 754-6654 or home (707) 259-1067, cell (707) 299-9473, tbtimar@ucdavis.edu.

THE MEDIA AND POLITICS

Communicating through the media

Just how effective are the messages coming from Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and the Republican and Democratic leadership regarding their positions on the proposed infrastructure initiative? Is Schwarzenegger looking to replicate Gov. Pat Brown's legacy? John Theobald, a lecturer in the UC Davis Department of Communication, can discuss these questions as well as how the major players are able to position themselves through the media to persuade the public regarding the potentially fractious economic and political proposal. Theobald teaches "The Media Industry," "Media Analysis" and "News Policies and Practices" and is a former television news producer. Contact: John Theobald, Communication, (707) 322-6340 cell, (530) 752-4916 office, (707) 942-1132 home, theobald@att.net.

The governor's high-stakes gamble

Can an ambitious plan to upgrade California's infrastructure regain the popularity lost to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in the past year?  UC Davis political science professor emeritus Edmond Costantini can talk about the political pros and cons for the governor on his newest gambit.  He can discuss the political problems inherent in adding more servicing debt to the state economy from such a large bond. To offer historical context, Costantini can talk about former California Gov. Pat Brown's California Water Project, which gained the Democratic politician a reputation four decades ago of being the man behind the greatest American water-engineering feat in history. Costantini, who is writing a book about the creation of the U.S. Constitution using modern-day political perspectives, specializes in political parties, public opinion and campaign management. Contact: Edmond Costantini, Political Science, (530) 752-0974 office, (530) 756-2009 home, egcostantini@ucdavis.edu.

Partisan politics 

UC Davis political science professor Robert Huckfeldt can talk about how the partisan politics that divide Californian Democrats and Republicans will likely play out on this issue. Huckfeldt is co-author of "Political Disagreement: The Survival of Diverse Opinions Within Communication Networks," which examines the circumstances that give rise to persistent disagreement among citizens, as well as the consequences of disagreement for politics. A scholar of public opinion, participation and voting in national elections, Huckfeldt is the author of several books, including "Politics in Context," "Race and the Decline of Class in American Politics" and "Citizens, Politics, and Social Communication." Contact: Robert Huckfeldt, Political Science, (530) 752-0975, rhuckfeldt@ucdavis.edu.

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Last updated Aug. 15, 2006