In the News
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
August 01, 2013
Red States Fixin’ to Gut Progressive California Laws
We Californians have been pretty smug about it for years now — even decades. But it all may be coming to an end. I’m talking about our laws addressing climate change, the way we treat animals, consumer protections and workplace safety — you know, all that effete left-coast stuff. We’ve congratulated ourselves on how advanced, far-seeing, humanitarian and generous we are. We didn’t seem to know, or care, that the California approach to issues was resented by those in other parts of the … Continue Reading
July 29, 2013
PD Editorial: Thumbs up, thumbs down
A monumental step for Mendo CoastA spectacular two-mile stretch of the Mendocino Coast moved a step closer to becoming a national monument with approval last week by the House of Representatives.More than 1,200 acres of bluffs and sand dunes, featuring cypress groves and sand dunes, would be added to the California Coastal National Monument. Supporters say the designation will boost tourism in the Point Arena area while providing additional protection for the publicly owned land.For freshman … Continue Reading
July 29, 2013
Wild & Scenic Chetco: Protected from mining for 5 years!
On July 26, the Interior Department announced its approval of a mineral withdrawal for 17 miles of the National Wild and Scenic Chetco River in the Federal Register, Authorized by Public Land Order #7819, the mineral withdrawal protects 5,610 acres of National Forest land along the Wild and Scenic Chetco River from mining for five years. Action by the Department of Interior will protect the National Wild and Scenic Chetco River from mining for 5 years, while Senator Wyden, Senator Merkley … Continue Reading
July 28, 2013
How 'green' is your pot?
In Humboldt County, money does in fact grow on trees -- or, more precisely, closer to the soil, indoors or out. It's what's being done by some to cultivate the North Coast's cash crop that should give anyone pause. The evidence confronts North Coast residents every day. Forests are being trashed. Trees clear-cut. Waters polluted. Wildlife poisoned. While it would be irresponsible to lay these offenses at the feet of conscionable mom-and-pop pot growers, no one with an Internet connection and … Continue Reading
July 28, 2013
Businesses enlist Congress in fight against California laws
WASHINGTON - California has a reputation for having some of the nation's most aggressive rules on workplace safety, consumer protection and environmental quality - regulations that force companies to make costly adjustments to the way they do business worldwide.Now some of those companies, banking on congressional gridlock and sympathetic Republican leaders in the House, are fighting back. And officials in Sacramento worry that some of the state's landmark laws may be in danger.At the … Continue Reading
July 28, 2013
Sunday's Letters to the Editor
Saving our heritageEDITOR: As the operator of a tourism-dependent business in Fort Bragg, I offer my congratulations to Rep. Jared Huffman on the passage of his bill in in the House of Representatives to protect the Point Arena-Stornetta Public Lands as part of the California Coastal National Monument. At a time when Congress is stymied by politics, this is a demonstration of the shared understanding of the importance of public lands to local economies and communities.The historic Skunk Train … Continue Reading
July 22, 2013
House votes to add two miles of Mendocino coast to national monument
The U.S. House of Representatives voted Monday to add more than two miles of stunning Mendocino coastline to the California Coastal National Monument.Monday's vote to pass the bill backed by Jared Huffman, D-San Rafael, brings the Point Arena-Stornetta Public Lands a significant step closer to achieving monument status.As a national monument, the lands would benefit from stricter protections for the delicate coast ecosystem as well as greater access to money for improvements and … Continue Reading
July 22, 2013
California coastal monument to pass House Monday
The GOP-controlled House is expected to pass without controversy (on suspension) the California Coastal National Monument Expansion Act of 2013, a Democratic bill to add 1,255 acres near Mendocino to the marine monument. Rep. Mike Thompson, D-St. Helena, introduced the bill in the last Congress and it became the first bill introduced by his successor in the redrawn district, Rep. Jared Huffman, D-San Rafael.The area is known as the Point Arena - Stornetta public lands, and will constitute the … Continue Reading
July 22, 2013
California Coastal National Monument to expand in Mendocino County
WASHINGTON - The House on Monday approved expansion of the California Coastal National Monument north of San Francisco, adding about 1,255 acres to "this jewel of California's North Coast,'' the area's congressman said.Once the bill clears Congress and is signed into law by President Obama, as expected, the Mendocino County site would be the first onshore addition to the monument, established in 2000 by President Clinton to protect small islands, reefs, rocks and pinnacles … Continue Reading
May 30, 2013
Huffman rallies support for bill to prevent student loan interest rates from doubling - Marin Independent Journal
Rep. Jared Huffman visited the College of Marin on Wednesday to rally support for legislation that would prevent a doubling of student loan interest rates on July 1. Huffman, D-San Rafael, gathered a group that included Marin County educators, nonprofit executives serving the student population, parents, and students at College of Marin to discuss the urgency of the situation. "We are in an economy that has been globalized; the competition for jobs is greater than it has ever been … Continue Reading
March 30, 2013
Reps. Mike Thompson, Jared Huffman host Santa Rosa town hall to tout fellow Democrat’s bill on Social Security reform
North Judi Lutsky, a 72-year-old retired Rohnert Park teacher, is counting on Social Security to augment her pension as a career educator. The federal benefits system, she said, is a cornerstone to civil society and a key to her own well-being. “We must keep it,” Lutsky said. “We have to do whatever it takes.” Lutsky, one of about 40 million retired workers who receive $54 billion a month in Social Security benefits, was one of about 150 people, most of them middle-aged or older, at a … Continue Reading
March 28, 2013
Point Arena-Stornetta lands need protection too
Last week, President Obama announced the designation of five new National Monuments across the country, from the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Monument in Maryland to the San Juan Islands National Monument in Washington state. With this important action, the President is using his authority under the Antiquities Act to preserve our nation's history and our natural and ecological treasures for future generations. Closer to home, the President has proposed new federal … Continue Reading
March 27, 2013
Looking out for the fishing community; Rep. Jared Huffman announces bill to refinance decade-old fishing industry loan
During a visit to Eureka Tuesday, Congressman Jared Huffman announced plans to introduce legislation aimed at alleviating the financial hardship of a federal loan that has been weighing on Pacific Coast groundfish fishermen for just under a decade. Huffman's “Revitalizing the Economy of Fisheries in the Pacific Act” picks up where a bipartisan bill introduced in Sept. 2012 by former North Coast Congressmen Mike Thompson left off and would allow for the refinancing of a $35.7 million buyback … Continue Reading
February 28, 2013
Locals react to potential loss of federal funds; 'very few positive signs' in D.C., says Rep. Huffman
As potential federal sequester funding cuts loom, officials on the North Coast weighed in on how services and recipients will be affected. Calling from Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, North Coast Congressman Jared Huffman, D-San Rafael, said a sequester would have a “very serious impact” around the state. ”There are very few positive signs around here this week,” he said. “I am concerned we're going to drift past Friday and these cuts are going to take effect.” He said … Continue Reading
February 28, 2013
Local effects of federal budget cuts still unknown
Local government officials are scrambling to assess the impact — still largely unknown — of the $85 billion in federal spending cuts due to begin taking effect Friday. Unless or until President Barack Obama and Congress reach another budget agreement, the so-called “sequester” cuts are expected to trim long-term unemployment benefits, cause airport delays and reduce services at national parks, among other national impacts. In California, a nearly $90 million funding cut for public … Continue Reading
February 28, 2013
The sequester will affect us all
The "Sequester" of federal funds that you've been reading about isn't just an abstract budget concept—it's a set of abrupt, indiscriminate, across-the-board cuts that will have real economic consequences for the North Bay and for California. Unless Congress takes action, these spending cuts will affect every American. We are facing a total of $85 billion dollars in cuts — approximately $42.7 billion from the defense budget, and $42.7 billion from the rest of the discretionary budget. This … Continue Reading