In the News
Dredge Report
The Journal tagged along with North Coast Congressman Jared Huffman and the Humboldt Bay Harbor, Conservation and Recreation District earlier this week on a visit to the dredge Bayport, which is clearing winter storm shoaling that made Humboldt Bay's entrance super dangerous and prevented several cargo ships from docking this spring. Huffman was joined by Harbor District commissioners Mike Wilson and Larry Doss. Bar Pilot Tim Petrusha piloted the fire boat shared by the Harbor District and … Continue Reading
June 08, 2016
Congressman Huffman congratulates local CA Gold Ribbon School
Congressman Jared Huffman is on the north coast and Monday morning he paid a special visit to a Eureka elementary. Alice Birney students gathered in the school’s courtyard to greet Huffman, as he was there to congratulate them. The elementary was recently named a California Gold Ribbon School. To win the honor a school must display outstanding educational programs and practices. Huffman and the students discussed everything from the Golden State Warriors to why he became a congressman. … Continue Reading
June 03, 2016
Marin’s efforts lead to healthy soil regs
Buoyed by innovative environmental practices created by the Marin Carbon Project, Congressman Jared Huffman introduced the Healthy Soils and Rangelands Solution Act — legislation that would direct federal land managers to rigorously evaluate how to increase the amount of carbon captured on public lands. “This legislation holds significant promise for advancing the health of American soils, and represents a triple-win; for working lands, for producers and consumers, and for the climate,” … Continue Reading
May 27, 2016
PD Editorial: Another water grab surfaces in Congress
House Republicans are trying a new approach to divert more water from Northern California. Check that. They’re dusting off a stale and disreputable tactic: attaching a proposal that can’t pass on its own to unrelated legislation that has bipartisan support. In this instance, they’re hitching a ride on Senate-approved energy measures that reached the House floor this week. One is a must-pass bill that contains $37.4 billion in funding for the upcoming fiscal year. The other is a broader … Continue Reading
May 26, 2016
Huffman Thumps Trump
North Coast Congressman Jared Huffman blasted presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump’s planned visit with the leaders of the Westlands Water District in an absolutely scathing press release sent out this afternoon. “Donald Trump, who continues to refuse to release his tax returns and show the public his personal accounting, will be sitting down with the perpetrators responsible for one of the largest municipal bond fraud cases in SEC history,” Huffman wrote. He accuses … Continue Reading
May 24, 2016
Marin reformers prevail on shark fin ban as U.S. Supreme Court takes pass
The U.S. Supreme Court this week upheld legislation prohibiting the sale of shark fins in California — a movement with Marin origins — by refusing to hear an appeal. Gov. Jerry Brown signed into law AB 376 — co-sponsored by then-Assemblyman Jared Huffman of San Rafael — in October 2011, banning the sale of shark fins for food. Shark researcher David McGuire of Sausalito started the effort to ban fin sales. Among other efforts, he worked to get the town of Tiburon — which means “shark” in … Continue Reading
May 20, 2016
Huffman votes against Fiscal Year 2017 National Defense Authorization Act
This week, North Coast Congressman Jared Huffman voted against H.R. 4909, the Fiscal Year 2017 National Defense Authorization Act on the House floor. “This year’s defense authorization bill would do real harm to many Americans while playing budget games that jeopardize our men and women in uniform,” Huffman said in the release. “It is unacceptable that this bill enables defense contractors to discriminate against LGBT employees and prevents the implementation of the Fair Pay and Safe … Continue Reading
May 19, 2016
House Backs Huffman Bid to Limit Display of Confederate Flag in National Cemeteries
The House of Representatives on Thursday agreed to legislation by North Bay Rep. Jared Huffman to ban the use of federal funds to fly Confederate flags in 131 national cemeteries managed by the Department of Veterans Affairs. The legislation would not bar small individual flags from being placed on graves in the cemeteries. Rather, it would end the current practice in VA-run cemeteries of allowing the Confederate battle flag to fly from flagpoles at the facilities on two days each year: … Continue Reading
May 16, 2016
Reps. Huffman & McClintock Slam Inclusion of Zombie Coal Earmark in 2017 Defense Appropriations Bill
Representatives Jared Huffman (D-CA) and Tom McClintock (R-CA) slammed the House Appropriations Committee for reviving a “zombie” coal earmark in the newly released 2017 Defense Appropriations Bill. On a bipartisan basis, the House voted last year to approve a Huffman-McClintock amendment to ensure that the Defense Department would not need to spend money to unnecessarily ship Pennsylvania coal 3,000 miles to American bases in Germany. In drafting the fiscal year 2017 bill, however, the … Continue Reading
April 21, 2016
Four Mendocino County community health clinics to receive $5.5 million from federal government
Four Mendocino County community health clinics were awarded approximately $5.5 million in federal funds Thursday, U.S. Rep. Jared Huffman, D-San Rafael, announced. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Health Resources and Services Administration awarded more than $16 million in one-time discretionary funds to 11 health centers throughout the North Coast. The funding is expected to be used to support the ongoing work performed by the health centers, which provide primary and … Continue Reading
April 21, 2016
Two Marin health clinics will get promised federal money
Two of Marin’s federally qualified health clinics received confirmation Thursday they will receive their full year’s funding from the federal Health Resources and Services Administration. Marin Community Clinics was notified it will receive an additional $1.55 million this year, and the Coastal Health Alliance received word it will get an additional $1.15 million. Rep. Jared Huffman, D-San Rafael, announced that the Health Resources and Services Administration has awarded more than $16 … Continue Reading
April 20, 2016
Huffman applauds Brown for emergency proclamation for roads
North Coast Congressman Jared Huffman thanked Gov. Jerry Brown on Wednesday for signing a Proclamation of a State of Emergency due to damage to North Coast roads from winter rains. “I thank Gov. Brown for understanding the North Coast’s dire need for immediate assistance to restore this critical transportation artery and for taking the first step today by signing an emergency proclamation,” Huffman said in a release. “I will continue to work tirelessly with Caltrans and the federal … Continue Reading
April 16, 2016
House Votes To Remove Confederate Flag From VA Cemeteries
In a sign of just how quickly things can change on Capitol Hill, the House adopted an amendment on Thursday to remove Confederate flags from cemeteries run by the Department of Veterans Affairs. Less than a year ago, it was a Confederate flag amendment that derailed the entire appropriations process in the House, with Republicans unwilling to vote on a proposal to remove even one Confederate flag image — found on the Mississippi state flag — from one hallway in the Capitol. On Thursday, … Continue Reading
April 16, 2016
Korean War vets receive medals recognizing their service
They might walk a little slower than they did 60-some years ago when their boots met the Korean Peninsula, but they move with the same resolve and determination. The names of more than 100 Korean War veterans were read Saturday in Eureka at a ceremony to remember the men and women who served during what some have called “The Forgotten War.” Bob Palmrose said he was pleasantly surprised when he was notified by mail that he would be receiving a medal bestowed by the South Korean … Continue Reading
April 15, 2016
Ukiah airport awarded $216,000 grant
The Ukiah Municipal Airport will receive $216,000 to help design the reconstruction of its runway as part of $1.7 million worth of Federal Aviation Administration grants allocated locally. Congressman Jared Huffman (D-San Rafael) announced Friday that the FAA awarded more than $1.7 million to eight airports in Del Norte, Humboldt, Marin, Mendocino and Trinity counties. “Continued support for our small public airports helps to provide services and access to people living in our rural … Continue Reading
April 14, 2016
Democratic reps call for probe of deal over toxic-runoff cleanup
WASHINGTON — Northern California Democrats called for an investigation Thursday into a settlement agreement between the Obama administration and the Westlands Water District that would end a long-running dispute over toxic irrigation runoff that led to an environmental disaster at the Kesterson National Wildlife Refuge in 1983. The agreement relieves the federal government of its obligation to provide an estimated $2.7 billion to drain selenium-polluted runoff from Westlands, a … Continue Reading
April 13, 2016
Army Corps announces $7.5M in funding for dredging
Millions of dollars from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will allow for dredging needed to correct unusually heavy winter shoaling that has nearly closed the entrance and channels of Humboldt Bay. The Humboldt Bay Harbor, Recreation and Conservation District announced Wednesday that the Corps has allocated $7.5 million, which is $5 million more than the amount budgeted for annual dredging. “The cavalry is on their way,” Peter Mull, a civil engineer and project manager for the Corps, … Continue Reading
April 08, 2016
Regional dredging partnership taking shape
An unprecedented regional partnership to dredge several neglected river channels connecting to San Pablo Bay is now taking shape, offering new hope for removing the accumulating mud that increasingly chokes the Petaluma River. With Petaluma as the lead agency, the collaborative spanning Sonoma, Marin, Napa and Solano counties would bundle a number of dredging efforts together to lower overall costs while raising the project’s attractiveness for federal support, the city’s top public works … Continue Reading
April 06, 2016
Dam removal along Klamath River moves forward with agreement
KLAMATH, Calif. - A historic agreement to remove dams along the upper Klamath River was signed Wednesday in a event that was attended by various federal, state and tribal stakeholders. Representatives included Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell, California Governor, Jerry Brown, Oregon Governor Kate Brown, Congressman Jared Huffman, and Karuk and Yurok tribal leaders. The agreement will bring forth the largest river restoration and dam removal project in U.S. history. Three dams in … Continue Reading
April 06, 2016
Klamath River dam removal deal signed by top federal, state officials
KLAMATH RIVER — It was déjà vu for what could be the largest dam removal project in U.S. history. The governors of California and Oregon stood side-by-side with the U.S. Secretary of the Interior to sign their commitment to remove four hydroelectric dams from the 236-mile Klamath River. But unlike the previous version of the agreement signed in 2010 that failed to gain traction in Congress, the new agreement signed Wednesday contained a new set of signatures, a new game plan, and a new … Continue Reading