[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 206 (Monday, December 7, 2020)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1105-E1106]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    IN HONOR OF CATHERINE MAHANPOUR

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. JACKIE SPEIER

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Monday, December 7, 2020

  Ms. SPEIER. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize Catherine 
Mahanpour for her service as she departs the city council of Foster 
City and the board of directors of the Estero Municipal Improvement 
District. As she leaves office, a dignified voice for neighborhoods and 
a high quality of life is departing.
  Catherine graduated from the University of Maine in 1990 with high 
distinction and a B.A. in Political Science. Five years later she 
matriculated to Golden Gate University School of Law and attained her 
degree in 1998. She was licensed to practice in 1999. She served as an 
adjunct professor at her alma mater on multiple occasions since, and as 
a member of the Advisory Board of the California State Bar of the East 
Bay. Since 2013, she has been a court appointed special advocate for 
foster children in San Mateo County.
  When she ran for election in 2015, Catherine stressed the need to 
prevent the ``overgrowth'' of Foster City and the deleterious impacts 
of traffic on the quality of life of residents. She called for a pause 
in housing construction and a dialogue with regional agencies to find 
choices about population growth that met the sensibilities of the 
neighborhoods she hoped to represent. She also called for a different 
tone in council meetings, urging respect for differing opinions during 
council meetings. She supported a local school bond and promised to 
watch over the funds should voters approve the measure.
  During her service on the council, she was chair of the C/CAG 
legislative committee, the city's representative to the mosquito 
abatement district, and served on the county's longrange planning 
committee and the Silicon Valley Recovery Roundtable for COVID-19 
Response. She was the driving force for the council's new Code of 
Conduct, adopted on November 2, 2020. She helped change the agenda-
setting process and brought transparency to the process of setting 
agenda topics.
  Foster City is laced with beautiful lagoons that are the 
responsibility of the city. Dangerous accidents can also happen on 
these

[[Page E1106]]

waterways and Catherine encouraged the creation of a safety outreach 
campaign to prevent deaths and injuries. She also advocated that Foster 
City become an ``age-friendly'' city and progress was made in 2020 with 
an application submitted to AARP/WHO in November.
  When the creation of the countywide electricity aggregation joint 
powers authority (JPA) was considered, she was a strong advocate. This 
JPA results in 98 percent of city households and businesses receiving 
cleaner electricity at lower prices, saving nearly $1 million annually 
for city residents. The JPA will also reduce greenhouse gas emissions 
from electricity usage by 85 percent when compared to 2016.
  Importantly, Catherine and her colleagues approved the construction 
of an improved levee, and city residents responded with an affirmative 
vote of 80 percent. Construction of this project began this year.
  As the pandemic hit, Catherine and her colleagues on the city council 
hit back. They approved $10,000 grants to fifty small businesses to 
assist with rent payments and negotiated an additional year of reduced 
rent for many elderly, low income, residents at Fosters Landing when 
those residents would otherwise be forced to move during the pandemic. 
Catherine and her colleagues also approved a $10,000 grant to the San 
Mateo Foster City Education Foundation to assist families with the cost 
of hot spots for distance learning, and an additional $10,000 grant to 
the school district for its free meal program. A $5,000 grant was made 
to The Foster City Village to assist senior residents of the community. 
Catherine is a collaborative councilmember, and she has much to be 
proud of in these and other accomplishments during this tremendous time 
of challenge.
  Foster City is a wonderful place to live and to raise a family. As 
Catherine Mahanpour departs her position of leadership, she leaves a 
legacy of progress. Despite the trials of our times due to the 
pandemic, the city is fiscally strong and prepared for its future. 
Catherine shares in the credit for meeting the test of a century. 
Public service is the shared sacrifice of a family. We wish her and her 
family many joyful years to come, and many warm memories of the time 
when Catherine was leading the community during times of optimism and 
times of trouble, but in any event always toward a better tomorrow.

                          ____________________