Marin set to receive $5.6M in federal earmarks

Four Marin organizations will receive a total of $5.1 million in earmarks now that several packages of bills to fund the federal government have been approved.

Earmarks allow members of Congress to direct federal funds for specific projects to their states and districts. The Marin funding approved in recent weeks includes $2 million for Marin Municipal Water District infrastructure projects; $2 million for a workforce housing project in Point Reyes Station; $850,000 for safety upgrades at the Fairfax-San Anselmo Children’s Center; and $250,000 for the Oak Hill workforce housing project near Larkspur.

Another earmark, $500,000 for the purchase and renovation of the West Marin Pharmacy, was approved in November when Congress passed an earlier funding bill.

All five of the earmarks were requested by Rep. Jared Huffman, a Democrat from San Rafael. However, Huffman was among the 197 Democrats in the House who voted against approving the final funding package. The bundle included a bill to provide funding for the Department of Homeland Security through Feb. 13. Only 21 Democrats voted to approve the package.

“I am voting today against any funding, even short-term funding, for the Department of Homeland Security,” Huffman said in a video on social media, “because of the abuses that we’re seeing with this out-of-control secret police force of ICE that’s running amok in Minneapolis and other places in our country. Unfortunately, my Republican colleagues seem to think it’s all just fine.”

Twenty-one Republicans voted against the funding package, which had the backing of President Donald Trump. The package passed on a 217-214 vote, and Trump signed it Tuesday.

Supervisor Dennis Rodoni praised the earmark for the Point Reyes housing project.

“As the community navigates the impacts of ranching and dairy closures in the Seashore, this funding for future affordable housing comes at an important time,” he wrote in an email.

Six dairies and six beef ranches operating in the Point Reyes National Seashore agreed to cease operations a year ago following a confidential legal settlement with environmental organizations that had long sought to ban agricultural uses of the park. It was estimated at the time that some 90 people lived on the properties, most Latino workers, some undocumented.

The agreement calls for all of the farms and ranches to be closed and vacant by March or early April. Marin County is working with the Community Land Trust of West Marin to create a temporary homeless shelter in Point Reyes Station to house these people and others who have left substandard housing in West Marin.

“We’re incredibly grateful for the support from Huffman’s office around this project,” said Tom McCafferty, director of properties at the trust.

The trust has purchased 14 recreational vehicles that will provide the initial housing at the site, but the location is still being prepared. McCafferty said the $2 million earmark will be used when the housing emergency has ended and the site transitions to permanent affordable housing.

In her letter requesting the earmark, Supervisor Mary Sackett wrote, “The development will ultimately provide housing for up to 50 individuals.”

The $2 million earmark for the Marin Municipal Water District will support projects identified in the district’s water supply “roadmap,” which outlines a strategy for ensuring a reliable water supply in the face of climate change and droughts.

The district will work with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to identify an eligible project to be incorporated into the federal agency’s 2026 work plan. One possible example is a project to capture high winter storm flows from the Russian River and store that water for use during dry periods.

“Water infrastructure projects are expensive, and the scale of investment needed to build long-term resilience is significant,” said Jed Smith, president of the water district board.

Smith said pursuing federal and state funding “is essential to helping manage costs for our customers while continuing to invest in a reliable water future.”

The 2022 Water Resources Development Act authorized $28 million for Marin Municipal Water District infrastructure, but the money still has to be appropriated, and earmarks are the only politically viable means of doing so, said Talia Smith, the county’s director of legislative affairs.

The $850,000 earmark for the Fairfax-San Anselmo Children’s Center will help pay for renovations to the 70-year-old property to keep it open. The work includes fire safety upgrades, seismic retrofitting, Americans with Disabilities Act improvements and heating, ventilation and air conditioning.

The $500,000 earmark for the West Marin Pharmacy provided funds to update and remodel the business. The Petaluma Health Center and the Point Reyes Good Luck Fund took over its operations in October. The pharmacy is one of Marin’s few independent drugstores and the only one along the coast. The next nearest pharmacy is about 17 miles away in Novato.

The $250,000 for the Oak Hill workforce housing project will provide a bit more breathing room in its budget, which has been challenged by high interest rates. The plan is to reserve 92 of its apartments for local teachers and other education employees. The remaining 43 apartments would go to Marin County employees. The apartments would be affordable to households earning between 50% and 80% of the area median income.

“This funding is an important piece of the overall financing that will allow this project to move into construction,” said Rodoni, who serves on the Marin County Public Financing Authority, which is overseeing the project.