• On Feb. 17, U.S. Sen. Adam Schiff (D-California) visited Guadalupe, where he toured the Guadalupe Senior Center and Guadalupe Union School District’s Early Learning Center. Both facilities are undergoing upgrades with federal dollars that Schiff, U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla (D-California), and U.S. Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara) jointly helped secure, according to Schiff’s office. “I am very proud to have helped bring back federal funding to support an early childhood education center and to update the senior center in Guadalupe,” Schiff said in a statement. For the Early Learning Center, Schiff helped secure $1.9 million in federal funding to support the construction of an outdoor play area. He also helped secure $275,000 in congressionally directed spending to enhance Guadalupe’s ability to maintain its Senior Center as “a vibrant hub for the community’s senior citizens,” according to Schiff’s office. “I want every child to get a great start in life, and every senior to have a nice place to gather and enjoy a meal together,” Schiff stated. During his tours of both project sites, Schiff heard from Guadalupe community leaders and stakeholders about how the federal investments are making a difference locally. “These projects would not be possible without the support and efforts of my colleagues, Sen. Padilla and Congressman Carbajal, as well as great local leaders,” Schiff stated, “and I’m grateful for their partnership in fighting to bring these federal investments to the Central Coast.”
• Shortly after Yosemite National Park announced that reservations won’t be needed to visit the park this summer, U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla (D-California) described the decision as diminishing “the visitor experience for Californians and tourists alike,” in a Feb. 19 statement. “Yosemite’s reservation system has proven effective at preventing overcrowding, especially during peak season, while increasing visitations to this natural treasure,” Padilla stated. “With our national park system already strained by Donald Trump’s funding and staffing cuts, this decision will limit outdoor recreation opportunities, degrade the park’s natural resources, and strain local businesses that rely on a steady stream of park visitors.”
•U.S. Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara) recently completed his Central Coast Affordability Tour, which brought him to visit colleges, child care providers, and small businesses across Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, and Ventura counties. “I heard firsthand that the economy is simply not working for everyone,” stated Carbajal, whose recent site visits included City Farm SLO, where he sought feedback from community members impacted by federal SNAP cuts and tariffs. Other spots on his tour included Cuesta College, where Carbajal discussed the impact of the cost-of-living crisis with students, and Los Agaves Restaurant in Santa Barbara, to speak with the eatery’s owners about how tariffs and other federal policy changes have impacted their business. “With the rising cost of housing, groceries, health insurance, and other necessities, families are in a crisis right now. The Trump administration has done nothing to fix this. In fact, their policies have made the affordability crisis worse,” Carbajal said in a Feb. 23 statement. “The tariffs are one of the broadest tax increases on families and businesses in American history.” As vice chair for outreach for the New Democrat Coalition, Carbajal co-led the creation of the Affordability Agenda with an aim to lower everyday costs related to groceries, household essentials, health care, housing, and energy.
This article appears in February 26 – March 5, 2026.