Political Watch

• The California Legislative Central Coast Caucus, co-chaired by Assemblymembers Gregg Hart (D-Santa Barbara) and Dawn Addis (D-Morro Bay) and vice chaired by state Sen. Monique Limón (D-Santa Barbara), announced its bill priorities for the 2025 legislative session on May 2. “From protecting our coasts from offshore drilling to protecting our homes from wildfires, this […]

• U.S. Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara) announced on April 25 that he and U.S. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pennsylvania) reintroduced two bipartisan bills focused on addressing the effects of climate change on U.S. coastlines, coastal communities, and marine ecosystems. “The climate crisis is hitting our coasts hard—from eroding beaches and stronger storms to declining fisheries. […]

• U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla (D-California) and U.S. Reps. Ted Lieu (D-Torrance) and Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara) recently announced the reintroduction of the Housing for All Act, described as “a comprehensive approach to address the homelessness and affordable housing crises in California and across the nation,” in an April 21 statement from Padilla’s office. The […]

• On April 3, Assemblymember Gregg Hart (D-Santa Barbara) recognized Tere Jurado with the 2025 California Woman of the Year award as part of an annual celebration of women’s leadership. According to a release from Hart’s office, he presented Jurado with the award in a standing-room-only ceremony attended by family members, friends, and special guests, […]

• U.S. Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara) joined a group of House Democrats asking for answers after five regional Head Start offices were shut down, including the regional office in San Francisco that serves Central Coast residents, his office said in a press release. The closures came after the Department of Health and Human Services […]

• Assemblymember Dawn Addis (D-Morro Bay) spoke at the 10th annual Association of California School Administrators Mid-State Conference held in San Luis Obispo about growing challenges to public education at the federal level, according to her office. “As a former public school teacher of 21 years, I know firsthand the dedication and resilience it takes […]

• U.S. Sen. Adam Schiff (D-California), a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, led a group of 31 senators demanding a reversal of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s cancellation of food purchase programs across the country, according to a March 17 statement from Schiff’s office. The senators warned that the cancellations would have far-reaching negative […]

• U.S. Sens. Adam Schiff and Alex Padilla (D-California) sent a letter to the Department of the Interior on March 6 asking it to ensure that there are no more cuts to the Bureau of Reclamation, which is set to lose about 100 employees in California. That’s about 10 percent of its regional staff, according […]

• U.S. Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara) joined congressmen from Washington state, Texas, and New Mexico in introducing the Aerial Firefighting Enhancement Act to improve the nation’s aerial firefighting capabilities through expanded use of excess military aircrafts and parts, according to a Feb. 20 press release from Carbajal’s office. The bipartisan legislation would reauthorize military […]

• On Feb. 20, Assemblymember Gregg Hart (D-Santa Barbara) led a budget subcommittee hearing over federal funding in California. “America’s hub for innovation, entrepreneurship, agriculture, and diversity, California is the fifth largest economy in the world. California subsidizes the rest of the country, contributing $80 billion more in federal tax dollars than we receive back […]

• U.S. Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara) helped introduce legislation that would restore guardrails on federal enforcement activities to protect immigrant communities at sensitive locations, according to a press release from his office. Since 2011, the Department of Homeland Security’s sensitive locations policy prohibited immigration enforcement actions in places that provided vital services such as […]