In May 2020, Ma began operating the COVID-19 Emergency HELP Loan Program to provide financial assistance to health facilities impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Loans authorized include: $250,000 to Operation Samaha in San Diego to increase space for a drive-thru COVID-19 screening clinic and other renovation's. $250,000 to Asian American Drug Abuse Program in Los Angeles County By May 2020, California had spent $2.2 billion on safety gear to prevent coronavirus infection. No-bid contracts were used because of the emergency and unprecedented need for personal protective equipment. The state's standard purchasing processes were disrupted and Ma's office, which normally just carries out final stages of financial transactions, took on an oversight role. Accusations of impropriety In summer of 2021, a former staffer filed a civil rights complaint against Ma, alleging sexual harassment and wrongful termination for declining the harassing behavior. In the court filings, Judith Blackwell complained that Ma created a hostile work environment by making overt and unwanted advances while the two shared a hotel room on a work trips. Such behavior included exposing her bare rear end to Blackwell on multiple occasions. Ma also showered Blackwell in gifts, such as jewelry, a prime parking spot and marijuana edibles, up until the time she was fired according to Politico. Ma is also accused of accepting inappropriate gifts. Ma had also shared hotel rooms 13 times with her chief of staff over a two-year period. And while the practice of sharing rooms with subordinates does not violate departmental policy, the situation was criticized as, according to the Associated Press. Ma has denied any wrongdoing in her defense against Blackwell and has said the sharing of hotel rooms was a cost-saving measure. Personal life She is married to Jason Hodge, a Ventura County firefighter of Native American descent and an Oxnard Port Commissioner with the Port of Hueneme in Ventura County. She also has a dog named Henry. Political positions Business taxes A top priority for Ma while on the Board of Equalization was to get everyone to pay "their fair share of taxes", particularly "the $8 billion in unpaid taxes in the underground economy." This included efforts to get Amazon to collect sales tax on transactions from third-party sellers as a way of helping local brick-and-mortar retailers to compete – estimated at between $431 million and $1.8 billion in new revenue for California every year. In her first year, Ma