Press Releases

Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-San Jose) released the following statement today paying tribute to life of Cindy Avitia, a former Congressional assistant in her San Jose, Calif., office who was killed in a car accident on August 22, 2013. Avitia, an immigration attorney and advocate for justice, most recently served on the board of directors for Alpha Public Schools:

"It is with profound sadness that I and my office learned the news of the passing of our former colleague and friend Cindy Avitia. All of us who knew and worked with Cindy are shocked and devastated by her passing.

Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-San Jose, Calif.) issued the following statement on the ongoing Time Warner Cable-CBS contract dispute that has resulted in the television blackout of millions of people in markets across the country:

"When contract disputes between cable and content providers arise, it is often customers who bear the brunt of the effects. In a trend that is becoming all too common, the recent blackout between Time Warner Cable and CBS has left millions of customers without access to the programming they were promised.

Today twenty-eight Members of the California Democratic Congressional Delegation (CDCD), led by House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco); Zoe Lofgren (D-San Jose), the Chair of the CDCD; and Mike Honda (D-San Jose), released the following letter to California Governor Edmund "Jerry" Brown expressing their support for A.B. 4, the Transparency and Responsibility in Using State Tools Act ("TRUST Act"), and urged him to sign the bill. The following is the full text of the letter:

August 12, 2013

Governor Edmund G. Brown, Jr.

Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) and a bipartisan coalition of leading Congressional voices calling to rein in overreaching surveillance programs have introduced legislation today that would enable companies to shed light on the number of surveillance orders they receive and how many of their users are affected by those demands for information.

Reps. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) and Loretta Sanchez (D-CA), co-Chairs of the Congressional Caucus on Vietnam, released a letter they have sent to Vietnamese President Troung Tan Sang calling for the immediate release of Nguyen Van Hai, a blogger and peaceful activist better known by his pen name "Dieu Cay – the Peasant's Pipe." Nguyen, a founding member of the pro-freedom of the press Free Vietnamese Journalist Club who was sentenced to 12 years in prison in 2012, has been on a hunger strike since June 23rd to protest his inhumane detention conditions.

Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-San Jose) announced today that San Jose State University (SJSU) has been awarded a substantial grant totaling $622,316 by the National Science Foundation (NSF) benefitting students pursuing degrees in the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) fields. Rep. Lofgren noted the grant will be distributed over a four-year period as scholarships to help motivated, deserving students continue towards advanced degrees and careers in STEM fields.

Reps. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Immigration and Border Security Subcommittee, delivered the following statement during a hearing entitled "Addressing the Immigration Status of Illegal Immigrants Brought to the United States as Children":

Following a meeting today at the White House, Reps. Zoe Lofgren (D- CA), Susan Davis (D-CA), Alan Lowenthal (D-CA), and Scott Peters (D-CA) said they had received a commitment from President Obama to address human rights concerns with Vietnam President Truong Tan Sang during an upcoming meeting of the two leaders. The lawmakers welcomed the President's assurances, and said he told them that the human rights issues they raised were a priority for his upcoming meeting with Sang.