SACRAMENTO – North Coast State Sen. Patricia Wiggins (D-Santa Rosa) has earned a perfect score from Sierra Club California for her votes on the organization’s priority legislation in 2008.

Wiggins was a perfect seven for seven in voting for the Sierra Club’s targeted bills when they were considered on the floor of the Senate.

In a recent letter to the Senator, Sierra Club California Director Bill Magavern noted that she had voted to “protect California’s families from toxics in the products they use every day, to safeguard your home state against fire danger, and to give kids an opportunity to learn and play outside.

“You backed Senate Bills 974, 1113 and 1313, and Assembly Bills 1879, 2175, 2447, 2911 and 2989,” Magavern wrote, “casting strong, green votes that exemplify a genuine commitment to sustainability and environmental health.”

Wiggins introduced a number of environmental bills that were signed into law this year, though they were not included on the Sierra Club’s priority list.

Among them were SB 562, which provided $5.3 million for coastal salmon and fishery restoration projects to preserve and improve their habitat, and SB 1690, protecting the state’s crab fishery by creating an industry task force to help state legislators prevent fishery depletion like that which has occurred in the salmon industry.

She also introduced SB 1431 (also signed into law), to enable the state Department of Parks and Recreation to expand the use of conservation easements to protect open spaces and create buffer zones around pristine wildlife areas.

Wiggins represents California’s 2nd Senate District, which includes portions or all of six California counties: Humboldt, Lake, Mendocino, Napa, Solano and Sonoma.

Visit her Web site at http://dist02.casen.govoffice.com/.

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