Political Watch

• Santa Barbara County Registrar of Voters Joe Holland reminds voters that as Election Day approaches, voters have several options for returning their ballots, according to an Oct. 24 statement from the county. “All registered voters in Santa Barbara County were mailed an official vote-by-mail ballot and voting materials in early October,” Holland said in […]

• U.S. Sens. Alex Padilla (D-California) and Thom Tillis (R-North Carolina) applauded the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for making improvements to the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline to help callers access localized, lifesaving behavioral health resources, according to an Oct. 17 statement from Padilla’s office. The FCC Board of Directors unanimously voted to finalize the […]

• U.S. Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara) celebrated the launch of California’s first federal home energy rebates program to help lower utility bills and home energy costs for Central Coast residents, according to an Oct. 8 statement from Carbajal’s office. The rebate program will make it cheaper for California residents to install heat pumps, electrical […]

• Assembly Bill X2-1, co-written by Assemblymembers Gregg Hart (D-Santa Barbara) and Cecillia Aguiar-Curry (D-Davis), passed the Assembly floor with a 44-17 vote and will advance to the Senate, according to an Oct. 1 statement from Hart’s office. Designed to bring stability to California’s oil market, the bill requires refineries to maintain sufficient fuel reserves […]

• Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 1866 into law during a signing ceremony in Inglewood, according to a Sept. 24 statement from Assemblymember Gregg Hart’s (D-Santa Barbara) office. The bill, written by Hart, mandates that oil companies meet targets to plug the estimated 40,000 idle oil wells in California. “The health of our communities […]

• Bipartisan legislation to reduce wildfire risk, written by U.S. Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara), was unanimously approved by the House Natural Resources Committee, according to a Sept. 19 statement from Carbajal’s office. The Fire Safe Electrical Corridors Act would reduce procedural steps for removing hazardous vegetation near power lines—cutting red tape to allow for […]

• U.S. Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara) called on his colleagues in the U.S. House of Representatives to act on legislation to avert a pay cut for federal wildland firefighters on Sept. 30, according to a Sept. 11 statement from Carbajal’s office. “As Californians have been baking this week in an extreme heat wave, our […]

• U.S. Reps. Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara), Juila Brownley (D-Ventura), and Jimmy Panetta (D-Monterey), along with U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla (D-California) hailed the release of the Biden-Harris administration’s environmental impact study for the proposed Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary, the final step that puts the federal designation on track to be finalized by the end […]

• State Assemblymember Gregg Hart (D-Santa Barbara) announced that Assembly Bill 1866 passed the Legislature and was on Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk for his signature, according to an Aug. 29 statement from Hart’s office. The legislation addresses the urgent climate and public health crisis posed by idle oil wells by mandating that companies meet ambitious […]

• U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla (D-California) joined a bipartisan group of 20 senators in calling on President Joe Biden to establish a White House Task Force on Global Sporting Events in preparation for the 2026 FIFA World Cup (which will include matches held in California), the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic and Paralympic Games, the 2031 […]

• Assemblymember Gregg Hart (D-Santa Barbara) announced that Assembly Bill 1866, which addresses idle oil wells, has made it to the California Senate floor, according to an Aug. 15 statement from Hart’s office. The legislation specifically mandates that oil companies plug an estimated 40,000 idle wells in California and prioritize plugging wells within 3,200 feet […]

• U.S. Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara) applauded the Biden-Harris administration for announcing a change in housing policy to benefit veterans, a policy that he proposed as part of the recently adopted Home for the Brave Act, according to an Aug. 8 statement from Carbajal’s office. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) […]