Welcome to the Indivisible Santa Barbara group. We are part of a national movement inspired by indivisibleguide.com. (También en Español.) Groups exist in every state, and in almost every city.  (Not from Santa Barbara? Find your group here.)

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De La Guerra Plaza

11:00am MUSIC   •   11:30am SPEAKERS   •   12:00 MARCH !!

JOIN US • SIGN UP HERE!

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7/30 – Town Hall on Drought and Fire Preparedness

Participants:
Salud Carbajal, Congressman, 24th Congressional District
Nic Elmquist, Deputy Fire Management Officer, Los Padres National Forest
Tom Fayram, Deputy Director, Santa Barbara County Flood Control
Eric Peterson, Fire Chief, Santa Barbara County

The event began with a presentation on water resources and the ongoing drought by Tom Fayram.  He covered the history of drought in Santa Barbara and where our water comes from: ground water, recycled non-potable water, desalination plant, state water and Lake Cachuma.  He emphasized the historic nature of the almost 7 year drought and its significant impact on the region.

This was followed by a presentation by Eric Peterson who began his talk explaining the differences between fuel- and wind-driven fires.   He next discussed fuel breaks and how they are not a passive tool but an active means to rapidly attack a fire, keeping the fire from spreading and offering evacuation routes for endangered citizens.  He commended the extreme bravery of everyone involved in stopping the Thomas Fire from spreading further into Santa Barbara county.

Nic Elmquist talked about the  triad of fire, topography, weather and fuels.  In our area, the sundowner winds create some of the most extreme fire danger in the country.  He finally discussed  what makes an effective fuel break and that over the long term, smart fuel reductions can limit damage from future fires.

Salud Carbajal  summarized the devastation of the recent disasters and the recovery/building that is underway. He emphasized the year-round nature of the  fire season and the high number of fires over the last calendar year.   He participates in bipartisan efforts to address the challenges our area faces with fire and other natural disasters, including the Thomas fire and the Jan 9 debris flow.  He was also instrumental in the passage of an amendment to the now passed spending bill that  characterizes wildfires as natural disasters, correcting previous legislation that treated wildfires differently than hurricanes, tornadoes and other natural disasters.  This will allow communities and victims to apply for federal funds and other federal programs.

Congressman Carbajal discussed his meeting with Vice-President  Mike Pence to argue for additional resources to be included in the current Omnibus Bill for local and state fire fighting efforts.  He also noted there is currently no federal program to help strengthen resiliency of water infrastructure in the US. To remedy that he has introduced H.R. 5596, a bipartisan effort to provide $50 million annually for communities to improve water infrastructure.

A Q&A followed with some of the following information highlighted:

• Congressman Carbajal  repeatedly emphasized that citizens should call the offices of your Members of Congress  and other politicians to let them know we need to get additional fire safety and water acts passed.
• There is a storm water recapture plan in the works to recharge ground water basins with captured storm water.
• The current administration does not support the mitigation of climate change.  As a result, California is leading the way with climate solution policies and any active opposition to these policies from the federal government will end up in the courts.

The event was live streamed on Facebook and can be viewed on Congressman Carbajal’s Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/repsaludcarbajal/

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ISB Steering Committee Updates

Indivisible Santa Barbara has just completed its nomination process for selecting next year’s Steering Committee.  We have an outstanding group of nominees offering to contribute their wide range of skills, experience and energy, and we are grateful to them for choosing to run.  Our thanks to all of you!

The new Steering Committee will be elected at a members’ meeting on August 23, and will be announced here on this site shortly afterward.

The newly elected committee will be guiding ISB policies and initiatives, and will seek to involve all of us in becoming active in the upcoming elections. The next few months before the midterms will be an exciting and intense challenge for ISB.  Our mission is to help achieve the political change we are continuously working for, and we  encourage everyone to stay engaged and to stay informed!

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On November 15 2017 Indivisible Santa Barbara hosted a movie and panel discussion on Voter Integrity. The evening started with the movie My Vote Is Mine (see below), followed by a panel discussion. Watch the meeting here.

Watch the full length My Vote is Mine in high resolution.

In California, we are in a unique position to embolden not only our Members of Congress, but also our California state legislators, who have declared California’s intent to lead the charge against harmful federal policies. Our leaders need to hear our voices: our calls, letters, emails, personal stories, and in-person meetings count. These actions directly strengthen our Elected Representatives in Congress.  This group is dedicated to providing  the most effective daily and weekly actions possible, and we encourage our members to make them part of their daily routine.

We are growing daily and need YOU to become an organizer, spearhead a committee, make calls, write letters, blog, attend meetings, and more.

Guiding Principles:

1. We are an inclusive community.
2. We are Indivisible. We do not propose policy, but are united in our pursuit to oppose harmful legislation.
   • We have a zero-tolerance policy toward in-fighting. As long as Liberals, Progressives, Democrats, and Moderates engage in a circular firing squad, we give our power to the minority–Extreme Conservatives win.
3. We believe that citizens must act where we live, interacting with our own Members of Congress. We strive to take regular action, daily, weekly, monthly.
4. We are patriotic Americans.
5. We believe in peaceful actions, we do not condone violence.

Take Action Now!

Contact Your Local Representatives

Subscribe to Indivisible SB activities, news and updates

Like us and follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

Our “Take Action” page is updated regularly, but our Facebook group and Twitter @IndivisibleSB have instant updates of current, daily calls/actions.

You may also sign up at Daily Action https://dailyaction.org –separate from Indivisible –for mobile alerts of suggested actions.