Commentary Of all the bills I introduced while serving for six years in the California State Senate, the one that seemed to capture the Central Valley and national media’s attention the most was SB 319 in 2019. Customarily, a senator can only author twenty bills each year. My staff and I would have nearly 100 great ideas for potential legislation which we would have to winnow down. I insisted on doing this particular bill because I wanted to make several points. When it was submitted, it specifically asked for the California Department of Transportation, famously known as Caltrans, to build four dedicated lanes in the middle of Interstate 5 and the 99 Highway between Bakersfield and Stockton. To spice things up, there were to be no restrictions on the speed limit. In essence, it would have built the Golden State’s autobahn. Autobahns have been successful in Germany and have a …