In a report at Tuesday’s City Council meeting, City Manager Debra Figone will talk about efforts to save city jobs and services while noting the sacrifices employees have made in recent years. Also on Tuesday, the council will discuss the county’s Habitat Conservation Plan and the transfer of several properties.

When the calendar ticked over to 2013, a slew of bills authored last year by our local state senators and assembly members became actual law. Moving forward, those lawmakers have until late February to introduce bills, which means they’re in the middle of planning a legislative agenda for the coming year. We compiled a list of their just-enacted bills and called up those same representatives to ask them what they have planned for the upcoming year.

The National Rifle Association heard about a local attorney’s idea to crack down on assault weapons in San Jose and hired a law firm to write up a disapproving missive to City Council. Other items going before the Rules and Open Government Committee on Wednesday include support for a Constitutional amendment acknowledging companies aren’t people, a report on how transparent the city is in holding meetings and disseminating information and more rants from City Hall critic David Wall.

An old industrial lot northeast of the Tamien Caltrain station, slated to house a two-story elementary charter school, contains toxic levels of herbicides, oils and arsenic, according to an environmental report from the city of San Jose. The Santa Clara County Board of Education at its Wednesday meeting plans to discuss a zoning exemption for the new Rocketship charter school. The county board will also discuss in closed session the potential special election over Trustee Darcie Green’s seat.

My professional life has been filled with many ups and many downs. One big down moment came in a Jan. 9 email from District Attorney Jeff Rosen to Superintendent De La Torre, with a “cc” to the SCCOE Board of Education. In this email, Rosen said he had received a complaint that Darcie Green’s recent Board appointment was unlawful.

This year, working with newly elected Santa Clara County Office of Education President Grace Mah and Trustee Darcie Green, as well as city and county leaders, we will launch a grassroots effort to secure quality preschool for all of the county’s 3 and 4 year olds. There is a roadmap to achieve the goal.

In a bid to move on from the scandal ignited by county Supervisor George Shirakawa abusing his taxpayer-funded credit card, the Board of Supervisors will discuss P-Card audits Tuesday morning instead of later this month. Also on the agenda for the first meeting of the year, the supervisors will discuss $15 million in bonds for YMCA, low-income childcare, a new farmers market, ridding the county of illegal pot and a commendation for outgoing San Jose Police Chief Chris Moore.

A neighborhood I grew up in was the focus of a land use discussion raised last week at the City Council meeting. The principal question before the council was whether or not a new school should open up in this neighborhood.

Six years ago, I found some friends and formed a band. Two years ago, I joined the board of a local theater company. And last year, I took the opportunity to fuse my passions by applying for and being appointed to the city of San Jose arts commission. The common reaction when I tell people about my moonlighting gig goes something like: “What does an arts commission do in a city with no culture?”

The Federal Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced on Dec. 18 a new initiative for addressing homeless young adults ages 18-24, usually referred to as “transition-age youth.” According to the NY Times, the Obama administration is focusing on this new and growing homeless population. While the recession hit all age groups, young adults were particularly hard hit with unemployment.

The Newtown tragedy is more about the resources we need as a nation to care for our fellow citizens who are mentally ill than gun control. And yet, we will not advance the cause of decreasing violent incidents until we discuss both issues openly and honestly with a subsequent call to action.

In a state of more than 18 million registered voters and a city of nearly one million people, it’s easy for any one person to feel insignificant. That’s why it’s important to remember that we’re all in this together; that our collective opinions add up to something greater than ourselves; that this grand experiment called “democracy” works best when we all stand up to be counted.

If I had one request for Santa this holiday season, I would want him to work with each of our 31 school districts—too many, for sure—and make certain they have plans to expand STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) curricular planning to include the Arts.

We can argue over whether it is a fiscal cliff or slope, but the real challenge for America in the coming decades is improving the mediocre results of public education. The facts show that we are in a precarious position as a nation and as the largest state—11 percent of America’s children are enrolled in California schools.

I fear we are entering a new cycle of benign neglect of school reform, where the status quo continues and student achievement results do not match the urgency of the time. Yet there are some true reformers that should be mentioned.

A tip came in Monday afternoon that Andrea Flores Shelton, formerly a deputy chief of staff for Supervisor George Shirakawa, would get the nod as Alum Rock school district’s new trustee. In the end, that’s exactly what happened. Now the question is whether or not opponents of the process will gather signatures for a special election to challenge her appointment.