Alameda County
Congressman Garamendi is proud to represent the Alameda County city of Livermore in Congress.
Created in 1853 from portions of Contra Costa and Santa Clara counties, Alameda County began as a small rural community of ranches and farms. Now California's seventh most populous county, Alameda County is a global center of research and trade. Home to UC Berkeley, America's top rated public university, Alameda County also hosts Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratories, CSU East Bay, and Las Positas College. With some of the busiest roads in the country, Alameda County's 15 highways, Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART), Amtrak's Capitol Corridor, and regional bus and ferry services are utilized by millions of commuters yearly. The port of Oakland, California's third busiest port, provides American businesses an important conduit to Pacific trade partners.
Congressman Garamendi's top priorities for Solano County include:
- Bringing more stimulus and other federal dollars to the county to help put residents back to work;
- Revitalizing and widening the county's aging highway infrastructure while broadening the availability and reliability of public transportation to reduce congestion (See Transportation and Infrastructure for more information);
- Securing resources for Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratories, UC Berkeley, and other important research facilities to make sure that Alameda County remains the region's center of groundbreaking research and world class education;
- Developing solutions to prevent home foreclosures;
- Safeguarding the county's treasured natural wonders and scenic waterfronts from pollution and blight;
- Expanding financial aid availability to encourage more young adults to apply to college while providing additional federal assistance to public schools; and
- Defending the civil rights of all of the county's diverse residents.
According to the 2008 U.S. Census Department estimate, 1,474,368 people live in Alameda County. Alameda County is 56.4 percent White, 24.9 percent Asian, 13.5 percent Black, 0.8 percent Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, and 0.7 percent American Indian or Alaska Native. 21.8 percent of Alameda County residents are of Latino or Hispanic origin, and 3.5 percent of residents report being of two or more races. 37,626 nonfarm private establishments employ 623,806 employees in Alameda County. As of September 2009, 11.3 percent of Alameda County residents are unemployed. Alameda County has a household median income of $68,263, and 10.3 percent of residents are below the poverty line.