Harder wades into water issues as new District 9 representative
He’s only been on the job in his new digs for about a couple weeks, but Rep. Josh Harder, D-Stockton, said the northern region of San Joaquin County is not as different at Stanislaus County as some might think.
“I’ve always represented San Joaquin County, it’s just that it was the south county,” he said. “This is still a district that is Stanislaus and San Joaquin, it’s just a different proportion, and it shifted north.”
Harder, who previously the U.S. Congress’ District 10 representative, said the issues and concerns of his former constituents are the same as those voiced by residents in Stockton and Lodi, the most pressing of those being water, healthcare costs and economic development.
Just this week, Harder hosted a town hall in French Camp that focused on flooding, water and the Delta Tunnel project, which are issues Lodians want addressed at both the state and national level.
He noted that last spring he voted to pass the Affordable Insulin Now Act, which would ensure Americans with diabetes pay no more than $35 for their insulin, and that he’s working on bringing more doctors to the Central Valley.
And when it comes to economic development, Harder said he is working on ways to ensure the district’s youth have a clear path to the middle class without having to obtain a degree from a four-year university.
What’s different between his former area and his new home -- the 9th District – is the presence of the San Joaquin Delta.
“We’ve done work on the Delta, and I’ve always opposed the Delta tunnels and focused on water issues,” he said. “But I think that has a bigger impact when folks are living on the banks of the Delta, rather than dealing with the tributaries. We held a town hall in Discovery Bay, where everyone’s number one concern was seaweed getting into people’s boats and boat motors,
which is not something you hear from people in Stanislaus.”
Also different is Stockton’s size compared to Modesto, the locations of his new and former officers, respectively.
“Stockton is a bigger city than Modesto, and has a lot of deep dynamics,” he said. “I think as an urban city, crime is much more present. Obviously, with a serial killer on the loose last year, that was something a lot of people wanted to talk about. But I do think (crime) is just a much bigger concern.”
Some of the things he’s done to combat crime, he said, include working to get more officers on local streets and supporting efforts to reduce crime in every city he represents.
He said 95% of the issues residents in Lodi and Stockton want to address, are the same topics of concern in Tracy, Manteca and Ripon, all of which he represented in the 10th District.
And although he’s only been representing the 9th District for a couple of weeks, he said he’s already made the rounds through the north county, and noted he’s worked with many organizations in the past.
“We’ve always had great relationships with the (San Joaquin Farm Bureau Federation) and various interest groups,” he said. “They always play an important prominent role, given their proximity to the Delta.”
Coming out of this week’s town hall, Harder said he plans to put forth legislation proposing a ban on the Delta tunnel project and essentially not provide any federal permitting.
He said if passed, the legislation would end the project once and for all.
Stopping the tunnel project and ensuring the Central Valley’s water stays n the region is one of his goals at 9th District representative, as is improving healthcare and bringing more jobs to the area.
Something he’s working on to address those two goals is to create a new loan repayment program in which 100% of a physician’s student debt would be paid in full by the government if they agree to work in underserved areas of the state.
Harder said that would bring 10,000 new physicians to the Central Valley over the next decade, and plan is in place to implement that program this year.
He noted that some companies have already begun bringing more jobs to the valley, including Tesla and Ghirardelli, the latter of which moved its entire chocolate production from San Francisco to San Joaquin County.
Bringing more jobs to the valley is dependent on improving education, he said, stating that only 18% of the residents in San Joaquin County have college degrees.
“We can and should double the number of kids going to college,” he said. “But even if we do, that’s still going to leave a lot of kids out. Lodi has been a huge success story in tech education, working with the wine and grape growers to make sure they are helping students find a career option that pays well. I think the federal government needs to be much more involved with that.”
Harder noted that if one wants to obtain a degree in philosophy, they can apply for a scholarship to a four-year university. However, someone who wants to be a mechanic -- a job he said is “desperately needed” and pays $100,000 a year -- is ineligible for any scholarships.
He said he is currently working on a bill that would level the playing field and ensure students can apply for scholarships no matter what career path they choose.
Harder, like many Central Valley candidates that won their respective elections in November, said his goal is to put the region first and work on bills and legislation without party labels playing a role.
“We are considered a purple region,” he said. “We tend to elect moderate members of Congress that can have outside sway. Water is not a Republican or Democrat issue. It’s an everybody issue. The same is true with health access and jobs and all the rest. I think we can build some surprising coalitions, and I think that’s the best chance we have to get anything done.”