Gregg Hart and Sari Domingues shared their stances on housing, affordability and federal policy during a candidate forum Wednesday as they vie for the State Assembly District 37 seat.

Hart, the incumbent assembly member, is a Democrat and Domingues, a retired business analyst, is a Republican.

They both said that the high cost of living is the most pressing issue for California and District 37, which includes Santa Barbara County and a portion of southern San Luis Obispo County.

Hart believes in prioritizing building more housing, specifically workforce and affordable housing that aligns with city and neighborhood characters.

He added that lawmakers must consider the efficacy of proposed changes too.

“We are on the right track, but too often the results aren’t matching the urgency that people feel in their daily lives.”

Domingues agreed with Hart but also asked why those initiatives are not being implemented. 

“There are root causes to a lot of these things,” she said. “It is how we plan and what we find that is blocking our moving forward, what’s causing all the cost.”

The forum was hosted by the League of Women Voters of Santa Barbara and the American Association of University Women Santa Barbara-Goleta Valley Branch and moderated by Claire VanBlaricum, the league’s voter service co-chair and a board member.

Wednesday night was a familiar scene, as the two candidates faced each other in 2024 and discussed similar topics.

The two were also asked about their opinions on the current tax system and both said it is unfair. 

Hart said it is unfair that California taxpayers, through federal government systems, are paying for other states’ budgets. 

Domingues also called the system “unequitable” and proposed cutting rather than adding taxes, and envisioned bringing more business into California.

“If we have more businesses back into our state and people working, we could create more revenue,” she said. 

On the housing topic, the two were also asked about balancing state concerns with providing housing with local control over community land use issues. 

“I know that trying to build something is very difficult and very expensive and we need to work with our communities to find out what the root causes are of these,” Domingues said. 

She said she wants to be able to make it so first-time buyers and low-income buyers can afford a home and live the American Dream. 

Hart pointed to a partnership between state legislature and Governor Gavin Newsom to reduce construction barriers and streamline the regulatory process. 

“Frankly, at this stage, we have done a lot, and it is becoming more difficult for local governments to absorb the changes we are making in Sacramento and implement them locally,” he said. 

Hart also said one of the biggest housing issues are builder’s remedy projects which override some local control if local governments do not have state-approved housing elements. 

He said this occurred because the state did not have enough staff to review and adopt plans.

“I think it is not a good way to do housing policy, punishing neighborhoods for the failure of the state bureaucracy to be ready to handle the requests of local governments,” he said. 

The candidates disagree on many federal issues including cuts to public health and social services funding, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations and the Supreme Court’s decisions on reproductive rights. 

Hart said one of the biggest challenges he faces in office is being attacked by federal partners. 

“The cost cuts that were done by the big horrible bill to social services and healthcare are going to have devastating consequences in our communities,” he said.

Domingues said, if she were to be elected, she would work with federal government partners and questioned to what extent the government should be helping people.

“How much money and how many people do we need to help and give health insurance, give food when we really need people to be able to work on their own,” she said. “I do believe in helping people but there is a difference between helping and enabling. ”

On the topic of ICE enforcement operations, Hart said: “ICE has evolved to be a really rogue agency. Their mission has evolved from what was promised to be going after criminals to be racial profiling.”

He pointed to a California law that aimed to ban federal agents from wearing masks as an example of how state leaders are trying to push back against ICE. 

Domingues visibly shook her head during Hart’s response and asserted that she knows ICE is going after criminals. 

“If ICE is doing things that aren’t proper then they need to be addressed,” she said. 

On the topic of reproductive rights, the two had similar answers as they did about two years ago. 

Hart condemned the Supreme Court’s decision to strike down Roe v. Wade and said he believes in women having the right to control their bodies. 

Domingues said she is pro-life. She said she supports women having a right to their bodies, but she would never talk someone into getting an abortion. 

“We shouldn’t just be going out and getting pregnant so easy,” she said. 

The virtual forum had technical difficulties, with audio cutting out for several minutes, leaving viewers frustrated in the livestream chat box. 

However, the candidates were given time to restate answers. 

At the end of the event, both candidates said young voters should be aware of the issues in their communities and urged everyone to vote. 

The State Assembly District 37 seat is on the June 2 primary election ballot. Since Hart and Domingues are the only two candidates running, both will progress to the November general election ballot, when voters will make the final decision.