In the News
PD Editorial: An attack on states’ food safety laws
It's easy to assume that partisan squabbling defines every dispute in Congress. This editorial, however, is about a subject that may defy the usual Democrats vs. Republicans storyline: states' authority to enact laws governing food safety and farming practices. Beginning in 2015, barely 13 months from now, a voter-approved law requires California farmers to provide hens, sows and veal calves with enough room to move — to stand or lie down, to turn around or extend their limbs — in their … Continue Reading
November 14, 2013
Huffman: Haiyan a climate change ‘wake-up call’
Rep. Jared Huffman, D-San Rafael, took to the House floor today to say the world should hear Typhoon Haiyan - which devastated part of the Philippines this week - as a “wake-up call on climate change.” “Thank you Madam Speaker.” “I rise today to once again speak about the issue of climate change, which is affecting every country, but as the World Bank has found, the impacts are not distributed equally. It is likely that the poorest nations on earth will be the hardest hit. The UN ranks … Continue Reading
November 05, 2013
Conservation leader receives national advocacy award
Ann Cole, Executive Director of the Mendocino Land Trust, received the Advocate of the Year award from the Conservation Lands Foundation. This award is granted for exhibiting outstanding leadership, courage, creativity, and effectiveness in defending, promoting, and expanding the National Conservation Lands. Cole received the award for her exceptional work advocating for the inclusion of the Stornetta Public Lands in the California Coastal National Monument. The award ceremony took place on … Continue Reading
October 30, 2013
Huffman introduces Trinity County land exchange bill
Congressman Jared Huffman, D-San Rafael, last week introduced H.R. 326, a bill to help Trinity County’s economy by facilitating a land exchange between the Trinity Public Utilities District, the U.S. Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management. The bill would swap federal land adjacent to the Weaverville Airport for county land along the Trinity River. Trinity County has very little land suitable for economic development — 76 percent of its land is held by the federal government — and … Continue Reading
October 18, 2013
Marin national parks poised to re-open as federal shutdown winds down
The gates to the Muir Woods National Monument and Stinson Beach are expected to swing open as soon as Thursday morning as the federal shutdown appeared to be coming to an end. Visitors to Muir Woods were still being turned away Wednesday afternoon, as they have been since Oct. 1. "As soon as the order is lifted we will begin ramping up again and resume operations," said Alex Picavet, spokeswoman for the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. "The gates at Muir Woods and Stinson could open … Continue Reading
October 06, 2013
Snow Mountain a good deal for land, people
The issue: National Conservation Area offers benefits from consistent land management One of the benefits of living in California is the ready access to breathtaking natural landmarks. While the rest of the country is familiar with such awe-inspiring landscapes as Yosemite Valley and Lake Tahoe, we locals know we’re only a short drive away from a variety of primeval beauty spots from shore to mountain. One particularlywell-hidden gem is the Berryessa Snow Mountain region. Stretching from … Continue Reading
September 26, 2013
Northern California members of Congress ask about federal funding for the Sacramento Delta tunnels
As both chambers of Congress discuss federal spending for the next fiscal year, a group of Northern California members sent a letter to the U.S. Department of the Interior requesting specific information on past and future federal funding for the proposed Peripheral Tunnel project in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. The letter’s signatories also expressed strong concerns about the plan’s impact on Northern California’s economy. The group has met with Interior Secretary Sally Jewell … Continue Reading
September 23, 2013
Statesman Journal: Bill Keeps Timber Issue Relevant
A forestry bill approved by the GOP-majority House on Friday likely won’t advance in Congress, but it will keep logging and federal payments to rural Oregon counties on the legislative agenda. The House bill would increase logging in federal forests, continue payments to cash-strapped rural counties and adopt a new policy for 18 western Oregon counties that have land that once belonged to the Oregon and California Railroad. The Democratic-majority Senate is unlikely to take it up. The … Continue Reading
September 17, 2013
State, local issues mesh during legislative update in Oroville
Illegal pot grows and water issues dominated the discussions at the Oroville Area Chamber of Commerce Legislative Series conference Monday, although whiskey was also mentioned. Congressman Doug LaMalfa (R-Richvale) and Butte County Supervisor Bill Connelly addressed a room full of people in City Council Chambers who came to hear how federal and county legislation and regulations impact the area. LaMalfa co-authored legislation for sentencing people convicted of illegally growing marijuana. … Continue Reading
September 12, 2013
Marin Voice: Saving wilderness from exploitation
The Obama Administration understands that the Drakes Bay Oyster Co. is leading the public down the slippery slope to the Koch Brothers and their extremist agenda to exploit public lands. Thankfully, two courts have now upheld the administration's decision to let the company's lease expire as planned. To extend Drakes Bay's lease would have set a dangerous precedent for mining and drilling interests to exploit the same public lands that extremist politicians want eliminated. The company is a … Continue Reading
September 09, 2013
Editorial: Huffman’s ‘careful’ approach on Syria makes sense
Rep. Jared Huffman has an important vote to cast. He will be voting on whether to support President Barack Obama's plan to launch a military strike on Syria for that civil war-torn regime's use of chemical weapons on its civilians. The administration estimates 1,429 people, including more than 400 children, were killed. It was a horrific and despicable act, deserving global condemnation. The issue for Huffman, Americans and other nations is whether the appropriate remedy is firing … Continue Reading
August 29, 2013
California lawmakers split over Syria, but not along party lines
Congress is out of session until September 9th, but that hasn't stopped lawmakers — including many Californians — from weighing in on whether the U.S. should get involved militarily in Syria following allegations of a chemical weapons attack against civilians. Congresswoman Barbara Lee of Oakland and 12 other California Democratic colleagues were among those who signed a letter to President Obama, saying they join "the unequivocal condemnation" over reports the Syrian government used … Continue Reading
August 27, 2013
Huffman urges Interior Department to act quickly; address Humboldt County’s water share
Congressman Jared Huffman (D-San Rafael) welcomed the decision by a U.S. district court judge to allow the release of water from Trinity Reservoir to the Lower Klamath River to reduce the chances of a devastating fish kill. Huffman, who represents the North Coast of California in congress, remains concerned that a temporary restraining order obtained by Central Valley irrigators in the case may mean cold, clear water will not reach the Klamath in time to protect a large run of chinook salmon … Continue Reading
August 24, 2013
Dick Spotswood: Huffman’s political challenges in Washington
Congress is now taking its traditional August recess. Like most of his colleagues, the North Bay's new congressman, Jared Huffman, D-San Rafael, is "back in the district" meeting and greeting. In Huffman's case, that's a major task given that his six-county district stretches from the Golden Gate to the Oregon border. As part of his rounds, Huffman dropped by the Independent Journal's editorial board and spoke at the Marin Forum, the San Rafael movers-and-shakers' breakfast club. While an … Continue Reading
August 23, 2013
Congressman braving rough and tumble town halls
Summer used to be the season of the "town hall" meeting, a traditional forum for voters to meet, question - sometimes confront - congressional representatives who return to their home districts during the August recess. But increasingly, such unpredictable public forums have provided embarrassing fodder for YouTube and cable television, prompting many elected officials in the era of social media to opt for more easily controlled formats like Twitter, Facebook and "tele-town halls" to … Continue Reading
August 14, 2013
Congressional representatives urge Brown to sign immigration
Sacramento -- Twenty-eight of California's congressional representatives are throwing their weight behind state legislation that would make it harder to deport immigrants who are in the country illegally. The representatives -- all Democrats, including House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of San Francisco -- sent a letter to Gov. Jerry Brown urging him to sign the bill if it reaches his desk. The bill, known as the Trust Act, "establishes a bright line standard between local law … Continue Reading
August 14, 2013
Congressional representatives urge Brown to sign immigration
Sacramento -- Twenty-eight of California's congressional representatives are throwing their weight behind state legislation that would make it harder to deport immigrants who are in the country illegally. The representatives -- all Democrats, including House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of San Francisco -- sent a letter to Gov. Jerry Brown urging him to sign the bill if it reaches his desk. The bill, known as the Trust Act, "establishes a bright line standard between local law … Continue Reading
August 14, 2013
North Coast congressman diverge on phone data mining
Rep. Jared Huffman wants major changes to the government's mass collection of telephone records, a recently revealed program he says may be trampling on the Fourth Amendment's prohibition of unreasonable searches. Judges who oversee the National Security Agency's telephone data collection program should be openly appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate, Huffman said. Telephone companies — not the federal agency — should maintain the records. "That's got to change," said … Continue Reading
August 10, 2013
Grocery lifeline
Amber Barretto makes spaghetti for her two boys two or three nights a week. It's cheap, filling and has refrigerator shelf life. "It's always good the second day," said Barretto, 30, a Larkfield single mother who is one of nearly 35,000 food stamp recipients in Sonoma County. Barretto, who said she was laid off from a $14-an-hour job at a local tourist attraction in December, gets $330 a month in food credits from the safety net program known as CalFresh in California. The money runs out 10 … Continue Reading
August 09, 2013
Coastal Voices: Unproductive Congress can function better
It’s disappointing that U.S. John House Speaker Boehner just adjourned the House of Representatives for August “recess” instead of staying in session to tackle the pile of unfinished congressional work — including votes on comprehensive immigration reform, gun violence prevention, replacing the “sequester” cuts that are undermining our economic recovery, and key appropriations bills that are needed to avoid a government shutdown in October. Instead of holding votes on these critical … Continue Reading