Encinitas Teens Take on City Hall

Youth and Government is a program for middle and high school youth to simulate the government and bill development processes. Since 1948, California YMCA Youth and Government has seen over 70,000 youth participants developing bills, presenting ideas, lobbying, leading peers and taking part in social and leadership experiences. 

This year, the Magdalena Ecke Family YMCA’s Youth and Government program has 45 active high school participants. This is an extra-curricular activity that brings students from all schools in the area together for civic learning and advocacy. These students come from varying walks of life, different neighborhoods and diverse motivations but they all find common ground in the belief that they can change the world for the better.

One student explains, “Youth and Government has helped me realize that I have a voice, that I have an opinion that matters and that I am worth something. I have become a better listener, I am able to acknowledge differences that we all have and to better appreciate and consider other perspective.” The participants from the Y will present two researched and developed bill proposals to a panel of city council members on Monday, November 18.

The Delegation Bill Hearing Night will take place at 6:00pm at Encinitas City Hall. The bills these students have decided to present focus on recycling taxes for renewable energy procedures and mandating California schools to be equipped with a mechanism that will allow doors to quickly be locked by anyone inside the room in case of a campus intruder.

 Mayor Theresa Barth will begin the evening with an invocation at 6:00pm with student presentations to follow. Panelists will include City Council members Kristin Gaspar and Tony Kranz, as well as Deputy Mayor Lisa Schaeffer and local attorney Ron Blumberg. This hearing night will help the Magdalena Ecke Family YMCA Youth and Government students get one step closer to refining their own bill proposals and presenting them in Sacramento.

In February, the statewide assembly will bring together nearly 3,000 students for Parliamentary procedure of debates, elections and voting completely carried out by the students. In the past, delegates from San Diego have moved forward as candidates for Youth Governor, cabinet members and National Issues Commission candidates.

The ultimate goal is to pass a bill and send it to the desk of Governor Brown for a final signature of approval. Seatbelt and helmet laws are examples of past Youth and Government successful bills.

 The Bill Hearing Night on November 18 at 6:00pm is open to the public. Encinitas City Hall is located at 505 S Vulcan Avenue.