The Cal Poly Humboldt Chapter of the California Faculty Association has issued a blistering statement condemning the police clearing of Arcata campus last night that led to more than two dozen arrests, calling it “another dangerous escalation,” while North Coast state legislators released a joint statement calling for unity and healing in the wake of […]
Jim Wood
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Wood Introduces Bill to Prioritize Patient Care Over Nursing Home Profits
North Coast Assemblymember Jim Wood is again trying to ensure that more of government funds allocated to care for some of California’s most vulnerable residents are actually spent on patient care. Wood announced Feb. 27 that he had introduced Assembly Bill 1537, which would require that skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) spend a minimum of 85 […]
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Newsom Stops Short of Single-Payer Healthcare
Don’t ask Gov. Gavin Newsom about Democratic lawmakers’ proposal to create a state-funded single-payer health care system — he hasn’t read it. “I have not had the opportunity to review that plan, and no one has presented it to me,” Newsom said Monday while unveiling his record-high $286.4 billion budget proposal — which includes an […]
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California Redistricting: Four Key Questions
It took weeks of long, late-night meetings full of wonky debate and digital line drawing — as well as a haiku and at least two songs as public comment. But Wednesday night, California’s independent redistricting commission reached a key milestone: Its first official maps are out. (Find an interactive map viewer here.) The citizen panel […]
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Humboldt Residents Could See a Change in Representation Under Draft Redistricting Maps
Humboldt County residents’ representation on the board of supervisors, in Congress and in the state Legislature is on the line as two commissions look at redrawing boundaries of those districts. The process happens ever 10 years after the federal government publishes census data to ensure the populations of the districts are evenly distributed. The last […]
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Governor Signs Wood’s Wildfire Prevention Bill
Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed North Coast Assemblymember Jim Wood’s bill creating a wildfire prevention entity in the Office of the State Fire Marshal into law. “It is clear that we cannot firefight our way out of this wildfire crisis,” Wood said in a press release. “California needs both a world-class firefighting force and a […]
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Open Door Breaks Ground on New Arcata Health Center
A host of local officials gathered in a dirt lot on Foster Avenue Tuesday afternoon to get their golden shovels dirty and celebrate the groundbreaking of the state-of-the-art Arcata Community Health Center, which is slated to open in 2023. Once complete, the 33,000 square-foot facility will use a solar array — and an emergency backup […]
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‘People are Dying as We Wait’: Bid to Tighten California Nursing Home Oversight Sputters
An effort to fix problems with the oversight of California’s nursing homes has stalled, sparking fears that the bill is doomed — and prompting elder care advocates to warn that even a delay jeopardizes residents’ safety. “I’m incredibly frustrated,” said Democratic Assemblymember Al Muratsuchi of Los Angeles, author of Assembly Bill 1502. “The pandemic has […]
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UPDATED: Two EPD Officers on Leave, Investigation Underway into Report of Offensive Text Exchanges
Eureka Police Chief Steve Watson placed two officers on administrative leave Wednesday after the Sacramento Bee published an article about obscene, denigrating and sometimes violent texts reportedly exchanged by them and others in their squad over several months in 2020. In a letter to the community, the chief said he had not been aware of […]
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Ryan’s Law: Bill to Allow Dying Patients Access to Cannabis is Back
State legislators, including North Coast Assemblyman Jim Wood, are reintroducing a bill that would require hospitals and healthcare facilities to allow terminally ill patients access to certain forms of medical cannabis. Known as Ryan’s Law, the Senate Bill 311 is named for late San Diego resident Ryan Bartell, who died in April of 2018, just […]
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State Approves $40 Million for Environmental Studies at Last Chance Grade
The California Transportation Commission has agreed to provide $40 million in funding to complete environmental studies of the Last Chance Grade project, North Coast State Sen. Mike McGuire announced this morning. “We all made a commitment four years ago to get the job done with the Last Chance Grade and today’s vote moves the project […]
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Wood, McGuire Applaud Gov.’s Budget Plan
California Gov. Gavin Newsom released the first budget proposal of his tenure today, proposing a $209 billion spending plan that would increase funding for schools, healthcare programs and the fight against homelessness. The budget proposal — which came in at about $8 billion more than Gov. Jerry Brown’s last spending proposal — also would increase […]