In the News
ABC 23 Bakersfield
Over $2M Awarded to Bakersfield, McFarland, Delano Police Departments
June 27, 2012
Rep. Jim Costa announced that $2 million has been awarded to the police departments in Bakersfield, Delano, and McFarland from the Department of Justice's Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS).
The funds from the COPS Hiring Program (CHP) will allow the 3 police departments to hire 14 officers.
Federal funds pay for new Mendota cop
The Fresno Bee
Monday, Jun. 25, 2012
Congressman Jim Costa announced Monday that the Mendota Police Department has been awarded $125,000 to hire an additional officer.
The grant, presented by the Department of Justice's Office of Community Oriented Policing Services, has previously helped police departments maintain forces.
Costa said this year the grant specifies that new hires must have served in the military in order to utilize veterans' skills learned while on active duty.
David Mas Masumoto named to National Council on the Arts
By Michael Doyle - Bee Washington Bureau
Wednesday, Jun. 20, 2012
WASHINGTON -- The White House on Wednesday named Del Rey farmer and writer David Mas Masumoto to the National Council on the Arts, a prestigious position that combines high honors with some good, honest work.
LOIS HENRY: Charity helps veteran gain a new smile, set of choppers
The Bakersfield Californian | Wednesday, May 30 2012 04:30 AM
Last Updated Wednesday, May 30 2012 04:30 AM
The military gave George Kinney a lot. It gave him a career and a sense of pride. And it's given him medical benefits he wouldn't otherwise have.
He has no complaints against the Veterans Administration, which he praised for all it has done for him.
Even so, it couldn't give the Bakersfield Air Force veteran something most of us take for granted: his smile.
Rep. Jim Costa, D-CA, has announced a $5.3 million award for five Central Valley water districts to improve efficiency in water delivery, storage and management.
Four of the five are in Central California: Tulare Irrigation District, Firebaugh Canal Water District, Central California Irrigation District and Henry Miller Reclamation District. The fifth is Rancho California Water District in Southern California.
The funds were part of a cooperative program between the agencies of the Department of the Interior and the Natural Resources Conservation Service.
California lawmakers met Monday with Central Valley immigration advocates and community organizations to discuss concerns about immigration enforcement, detention facility conditions and access to legal services following an unannounced visit to an ICE detention facility in Kern County.
U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla and U.S. Rep. Jim Costa made an unannounced visit Monday to Golden State Annex in McFarland, saying they wanted to inspect conditions inside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facility amid what they described as a surge in immigration enforcement across California.
FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Rep. Jim Costa and several California lawmakers have sent a letter to Acting ICE Director David Venturella seeking greater transparency about ongoing immigration enforcement operations they say have been carried out across the state.