Congressman Sam Farr announced that his current term will be his last, as he will not seek re-election next year after 23 years in Congress. Here is the statement that he released:
On the next 4th of July, I will turn 75-years-old. For over half of my life, I have been in elected office, the last 23 as a member of Congress. I love public service and I am proud of what I have accomplished while in office. I’m proud to have followed in my father’s footsteps, the late Senator Fred Farr, and I’d like to think between the two of us we have had a tremendous impact on this region, the state of California and the country we love so much.
When I first came to Congress Fort Ord had just been closed and the community was going through an economic upheaval. Gangs were starting to take hold in Salinas and agriculture was slowly evolving from canned and frozen packaging to fresh-to-table.
I saw all these challenges as opportunities and I acted on them. Fort Ord is now economically stable and growing. We have new federal resources to fight gangs in Salinas and provide opportunity for our youth. Our agriculture is second to none and is the world leader in fresh, organic produce.
But there is still a lot to do and I know I can still make a contribution. Our sanctuary is protected but the rest of the world’s oceans are not. They need a champion. The immigrant labor force that underpins our local economy lives in the shadows. That has to change. Water resources that have become scarce need solutions. I am eager to find answers to all of these challenges. But I intend to do so as a citizen politician, rather than as an elected one.
Today, after over 40 years in elected office I am announcing that I will not seek re-election in 2016 and will retire at the end of my current term in January 2017.
For years my wife Shary has asked me to come home. She’s right. It’s time.
It’s time to come home and spend time with her. To spend time with my daughter Jessica and my grandkids Ella and Zach. Time marches on and I am getting older; I want to spend more time with them. It almost sounds trite but there comes a time when you know it’s the truth and the truth demands respect.
