{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://barragan.house.gov/2024/12/31/daily-breeze-los-angeles-lomita-to-take-ownership-of-san-pedro-ballfields/", "DAILY BREEZE: Los Angeles, Lomita to take ownership of San Pedro Ballfields", "2024-12-31", "2024", "2024-12", "Democrat", "House", "CA", "Nanette Diaz Barrag\u00e1n", "B001300", "barragan.house.gov", "barragan", "https://barragan.house.gov/news", "scraper", "Los Angeles and Lomita will take ownership of some baseball fields from the U.S. Navy\u2019s Defense Support Point in San Pedro, officials announced Tuesday, Dec. 31.\n\nRep. Nanette Barrag\u00e1n, D-Los Angeles, said she secured language in the National Defense Authorization Act to help transfer the federal land, which would happen after negotiations between the Navy and the cities are complete. President Joe Biden signed the bill into law last week, the congresswoman said.\n\nFour years ago, the Secretary of Defense issued a memo stating that the Department of Defense would no longer support nonprofits that use and maintain the sites, according to Barrag\u00e1n\u2019s office. As a result, the Defense Department was planning to dramatically increase fees for using the ballfields, at 2981 N. Gaffey St. and 3181 N. Gaffey St., in San Pedro, and at 26800 S. Western Ave., in Lomita.\n\nRelated: San Pedro, Lomita youth sports fields get new lease on life\n\nThe San Pedro Girls Softball Association, the San Pedro Athletic Complex and the Lomita Little League \u2014 which had used and maintained the fields for nearly 50 years \u2014 would have been priced out from using the fields, Barrag\u00e1n said.\n\n\u201cBaseball is America\u2019s pastime,\u201d Barrag\u00e1n said in a statement, \u201cand our communities in the Los Angeles Harbor Area have long relied on these fields to provide access to youth athletic programs and other outdoor recreation activities.\n\n\u201cI\u2019m so proud to have secured this language in this year\u2019s NDAA to begin the transfer of the ballfields to our communities,\u201d she added, \u201cproviding our kids with access for years to come.\u201d\n\nThe language gave the Secretary of the Navy the authority to transfer the San Pedro ballfields to the cities of Los Angeles and Lomita, but requires a \u201cmutually satisfactory agreement\u201d between the parties, according to Barrag\u00e1n\u2019s office.\n\nThe congresswoman previously led efforts on an interim agreement that allowed community organizations to access the fields.\n\nEarlier this year, Barrag\u00e1n and Rep. Ted Lieu, D-Torrance, introduced similar legislation to protect community access to the fields. They sent a letter in September 2021 to U.S. Navy Secretary Carlos del Toro that helped prevent a dramatic fee increase, they said.\n\n\u201cI\u2019m pleased that with this bill becoming law, our communities will continue to have access to these vital recreational spaces,\u201d Lieu said in a statement. \u201cBy allowing Los Angeles and Lomita to gain permanent ownership of the San Pedro ballfield, we are ensuring accessibility for future generations. No family should have to pay sky-high fees for their children to enjoy sports and play ball.\u201d", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T19:07:19Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://barragan.house.gov/2024/12/31/daily-breeze-los-angeles-lomita-to-take-ownership-of-san-pedro-ballfields/"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.4484808780252934, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}