Press release from the Humboldt County Office of Education:

Enrollment for the 2026-27 school year has begun! For those interested in obtaining an interdistrict transfer, please contact your child’s district of residence to begin the process. This process is for both new and renewal requests. Check with the office of your district of residence for the deadline to submit forms. All forms will be submitted electronically.

“Families sometimes look beyond their district of residence to find the school setting that best supports their child’s learning and aspirations. Submitting an interdistrict request early helps schools plan thoughtfully and ensures a smooth enrollment process for everyone,” said Michael Davies-Hughes, Humboldt County Superintendent of Schools. “We are fortunate to have exceptional programs within schools across Humboldt County, and I encourage families to learn more about them as they make enrollment decisions for the 2026-2027 school year.”

For more information or to access the current forms, please visit this link.

This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters.

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The game of musical chairs in the race to be California’s next governor lost another player last week.

After Democratic businessman Stephen Cloobeck — who was polling at below half a percent — dropped out of the race and endorsed Rep. Eric Swalwell on Monday, at least 10 candidates remain.

Voters are hardly to blame if the names don’t ring a bell. Though it’s wound on for more than a year now, the 2026 governor’s race remains unexpectedly wide open. In one poll released last month, 44% of surveyed voters did not have a preference for governor and no candidate polled above 15%.

The primary election is next June. Here’s a look at the field right now:

XAVIER BECERRA

If former Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra was looking for attention for his campaign, he found it in the form of negative headlines.

Last month, federal prosecutors indicted a Sacramento powerbroker in an alleged corruption scandal that rocked the state’s Democratic establishment. At its center? A dormant campaign account held by Becerra, from which prosecutors allege Gov. Gavin Newsom’s former chief of staff Dana Williamson conspired with other political consultants to steal $225,000. Williamson is charged with helping to divert the funds to the wife of Becerra’s longtime aide, Sean McCluskie, who has pleaded guilty in the alleged scheme.

Becerra was California’s first Latino attorney general before serving as a cabinet secretary for former President Joe Biden. He is running primarily on a platform of lowering health care costs.

He has not been accused of wrongdoing in the case and has said he was unaware of what was happening. But it’s still possible the association — and the implication he wasn’t paying attention — will taint his campaign, already polling at just 8%.

The controversy is one of a few moments of intrigue in an otherwise quiet race.

KATIE PORTER

In October, former Orange County Rep. Katie Porter, a Democrat, was caught on camera trying to walk out of a TV interview with a reporter who pressed her on whether she needed Republican support in the race. A second video followed, showing Porter berating a staff member during a Zoom call. At the time considered the front-runner, she rode out the news cycle and later said she “could have done better” about the behavior in the videos, but they appeared to have dropped her approval ratings. She is essentially tied with the top Republican candidate.

Porter made a name for herself as one of a “blue wave” of female, Democratic lawmakers elected to Congress during the first Trump administration in 2018. A law professor at UC Irvine who ran unsuccessfully for U.S. Senate last year, she gained attention for her tough questioning of corporate executives using her signature whiteboard.

TOM STEYER

Joining a wide field of other Democrats, billionaire investor and climate activist Tom Steyer announced last month he is jumping into the race.

Steyer, who made his fortune by founding a San Francisco hedge fund, has used his wealth to back liberal causes, including the environment. He’s never held public office before, but ran a short-lived campaign for president in 2020.

CHAD BIANCO

Pro-Trump Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco is neck-and-neck with Porter in the polls, though he is unlikely to last near the top of the pack in a state where Democrats outnumber Republicans nearly two-to-one and a GOP candidate hasn’t won a statewide seat in nearly 20 years.

The cowboy-hat-toting Bianco has heavily criticized Democratic governance. He argues for loosening regulations on businesses and says he wants to overturn California’s sanctuary law that restricts local police from cooperating with federal deportation officers.

ERIC SWALWELL

Other Democrats have focused on their biographies and experiences in government to try to distinguish themselves in a race where name recognition is low across the board. All have said they want to make California more affordable and push back on the Trump administration’s impact on the state.

Swalwell, a former prosecutor and Bay Area congressman, will likely lean heavily on his anti-Trump bonafides. He was one of several members of Congress appointed by former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to help lead the second Trump impeachment after the attempted Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection and is now the latest Democrat under attack by the Trump administration over his mortgage.

ANTONIO VILLARAIGOSA

Former Los Angeles mayor and former Assembly Speaker Antonio Villaraigosa is among the more moderate of the Democratic field. He boasts of his time running the state’s largest city, during which he boosted the police force. He ran for governor unsuccessfully in 2018.

BETTY YEE

Former state Controller Betty Yee emphasizes her experience with the state budget and the tax system, having been a top finance office in ex-Gov. Gray Davis’ administration and having sat on the state Board of Equalization.

TONY THURMOND

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond, a Democrat, is the only candidate currently in a statewide seat. He emphasizes his background as a social worker who grew up on public assistance programs in a low-income family. He has stated an ambitious goal of building two million housing units on surplus state land.

IAN CALDERON

Ian Calderon, a former Democratic Assembly majority leader, is emphasizing his relative youth. He was the first millennial member of the state Assembly, and is part of a Los Angeles County political dynasty. He has some ties to the cryptocurrency industry and has name-dropped it in ads and debates.

STEVE HILTON

Republican Steve Hilton, a Fox News contributor, was an adviser for British conservative Prime Minister David Cameron before pivoting to American politics. Before launching his campaign he released a book this year calling California “America’s worst-run state.”

Corey “Bubba” Tyler Shannon-Johnson — beloved son, brother, uncle, buddy and friend — passed away on October 28, 2025, at 33 years old.

He was preceded in death by his grandparents, Carol and Charlie Johnson; his uncles, Emery Johnson and Skip Lawrence; aunt Laurie Howsman; niece Penelope Staley; cousins, Justin, Cameron, and Savannah Johnson.

Corey is survived by his mother, Kimberley O’Neal Johnson and her partner Corey’s best buddy Dan Yocom; his sisters Caitlyn Bell-Johnson ( Nick), Courtney O’Neal, and Casey Day ( Maliq); Brother Tony Shannon; nieces and nephews Austin and Hayden Ham, Avery Cortz, Zaylee Day and Emmett Staley. His aunts Lisa Lawrence, Jennifer Johnson, Sandy McKay, and Charlene Rosenstiel; uncle Darrin Johnson ( Emily), Cousins; Josh, Amanda, Chelsea, Anthony, Adam, Crystal, Nicholas, Elijah, Cheyenne, Kenny, Lena, Russ Jr, Tabitha, Lena May, and Syrina. Corey is also survived by numerous extended family members.

Corey was born March 19, 1992 and grew up in McKinleyville. Corey enjoyed playing baseball and basketball growing up, as he got older Corey enjoyed surfing, spending a lot of time at the local beaches. He loved being outdoors whether it was at the beach surfing the waves or in the trees being one with nature. Corey was a great artist. He loved drawing and writing poetry. He loved being around his family, and annoying his sisters was his job.

Corey could make anyone happy and always showed his beautiful smile. Corey never met a stranger everyone was his friend. His friendly nature impacted many.

At 15 years old Corey wanted to make some money. He went door to door in his neighborhood asking for work. He ended up at The Jonsteen Company, and from there his love and passion for trees and nature began. From that day on Corey could be found working at the Jonsteen Company — they became Corey’s second family, and we are forever grateful to the Company and crew for loving Corey and guiding him all those years.

We will be having a Celebration of Life for Corey on January 17, 2026 at Azalea Hall in McKinleyville from 1 to 4 p.m. Corey had a love for sneakers and long, bright, colorful socks. Please feel free to wear bright colors to honor Corey.

Please come join us as we celebrate our Bubba and your friend Corey.

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The obituary above was submitted on behalf of Corey Shannon-Johnson’s loved ones. The Lost Coast Outpost runs obituaries of Humboldt County residents at no charge. See guidelines here.

Jayme Seehafer, of Arcata, died in October of cancer. She was raised outside of Sacramento, where she loved the green oasis her father built in their backyard in the grassy woodlands, with a pond, a small fruit orchard, a treehouse and chickens. She discovered the Grateful Dead and their followers as a teenager, and she and her sister adopted their tie-died festival wear as well as their rebellious vibe. She continued to love music and would often attend local and distant shows, and spent one summer on the road with one of her favorite bands.

Jayme moved to Humboldt to attend HSU. She loved the setting and the community and decided to stay, taking on various jobs while being a single mom and attending school. Once she earned her degree in biology, Jayme joined the U.S. Forest Service Redwood Sciences Lab in Arcata, first as a Watershed Steward with Americorps and later as a permanent employee. While there, she mastered a series of tasks including stream surveying, storm flow monitoring, data entry, and lab processing, which led to her niche as a data and lab manager for the Caspar Creek Experimental Watersheds and various other projects.

Jayme was smart, hardworking, kind, generous and creative. She was always interested in learning, including programming computers, how fungi fit in our world, carpentry and painting. She used her skills to create elegant data processing procedures, accurate and accessible data publications, fun toys in her office, and beautiful paintings on the walls of her home. Her family and friends miss her terribly, but we’re glad to have known her.

She’s survived by her son, Kinder Seehafer of Arcata, father Jon Seehafer and sister Nika Seehafer, her husband John, and their child Echo Valor in the Sacramento area, and sister Kia in Minnesota. If you would like to honor Jayme, please consider a donation to the ACLU of Northern California, Indivisible, a cancer or women’s health organization, or someone who needs your support.

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The obituary above was submitted on behalf of Jayme Seehafer’s loved ones. The Lost Coast Outpost runs obituaries of Humboldt County residents at no charge. See guidelines here.

A limb has fallen from our family tree but remains in our hearts forever.

Born Paul Adrian Hass to Paul Hass and Johanna Ross in London, England, on December 20, 1968; died September 9, 2025. Adrian was the eldest son and brother to seven siblings.

Adrian possessed a heart of gold and would give the shirt off his back to help his family and friends. A generous (to a fault), funny and intelligent man whose knowledge was as broad and eclectic as his colorful humor. A collector of all things, mechanical, historical and ironical, with an uncanny ability to rebuild or utilize them in a surprising variety of practical applications.

Adrian was nothing if not resourceful. A humble collector, recycler and a spiritual warrior, he was very proud of his Scottish heritage. A historian and storyteller who could bring a smile to your face with his humorous rendition of events. Adrian was fiercely loyal, he loved his family, friends, animals and he dearly loved the land. He loved to garden and mushroom hunt. He knew more about the Humboldt hills he lived in than anyone!

He had an amazing memory for quotes and lines from movies and books, actors and musicians, television shows, song lyrics and family events. He loved to rewrite the lyrics of popular songs and then sing them to you with his own revised lyrics (always hilarious and inappropriate).

Adrian loved motorcycles, cars, trucks and heavy equipment of all kinds but particularly what he considered “classics.” He was a true “junkyard man” and could create a mode of transport out of practically nothing except discarded parts and pieces. He towed, tinkered and collected for most of his life, which tragically ended far too soon.

Family, friends and neighbors relied on him regularly for maintenance and repair of generators, pumps, water systems etc. “A jack of all trades and master of none,” if he couldn’t fix it and make it work you could sometimes hear him say “they can’t all be winners” or “we can’t have everything, now, can we?” He never asked for much in return except maybe some beer, smokes and company. He loved a good hang and some social interaction and a Payday candy bar.

Adrian was preceded in death by his beloved wife Joanne. He is survived by his parents, aunts, uncles, sisters and respective spouses — Joey (Mike) Bommer, Amber (Kyle) Schlagenhauf, Tessa Hass, Tara Hass, Cailun (Justin) Lyon, and his brothers Jade Hass and Torrey Hass and many other friends and family members too numerous to list . May he rest among the stars, knowing he was deeply loved.

A celebration of life date and location to be determined at a future time.

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The obituary above was submitted on behalf of Adrian Hass’s loved ones. The Lost Coast Outpost runs obituaries of Humboldt County residents at no charge. See guidelines here.

Paul Martin Perrault died on Nov. 2024. Paul had been living with the Yurok Tribe for past few years and was a great pool player, had a generous spirit, and believed in looking after nature. He could often be found hiking along the roadways picking up trash. Or in the local casinos at the beginning of every month.

He has lived in many places — Crescent City, Red Bluff, Sacramento, International Falls, Minn. He is survived by his brother Brad,and his three daughters (Paula, Josie, and Theresa), plus several grandchildren.

Paul made friends wherever he went and enjoyed helping others. Paul did not want anyone to mourn him but to celebrate. If you knew Paul or of him, please wish him well on his journey home.

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It was once the largest redwood mill operation in the world, but Scotia’s “Mill A” and the adjacent sorter building have been steadily and visibly deteriorating in the 24 years since the Pacific Lumber Co. shut them down.

A testament to the financial power of the region’s once-booming logging industry, these towering industrial buildings and their underlying parcels are now in escrow with an undisclosed party, according to Town of Scotia Company President Steven T. Deike.

But don’t expect them to be restored to their former glory. Deike said that while it’ll be up to the new owners to decide the structures’ fate, a professional survey and analyses conducted some years back revealed their lack of potential.

“It was deemed to not even be close to economically feasible to rehabilitate [the buildings],” Deike told the Outpost earlier today. In fact, he said, the analysis concluded that even demolition would be a break-even proposition at best: The salvage value of raw materials, including virgin redwood timbers, would only maybe cover the cost of remediating hazardous waste onsite. 

“Everything was steam heated [during the mill’s operations], and they wrapped all the pipes in asbestos,” Deike said. “Of course, that’s a no-no nowadays.”

He added that Pacific Lumber Co. conducted some environmental hazard assessments and addressed some soil contamination from petroleum products before going belly-up. “It’s not a toxic dump!” he stated emphatically.

The two parcels that host the mill and sorter building have been in escrow for close to a year, but ownership can’t be transferred to the mystery buyer until Phase Four of a prolonged subdivision project receives all necessary agency approvals.

In a phone interview, Deike said the Town of Scotia Co. had to complete a variety of infrastructure improvements along Williams Street — upgrading sewer and water lines, building new sidewalks, etc. — and the “as-built” diagrams are awaiting approval from a long list of entities, including the County of Humboldt, the Scotia Community Services District, PG&E and others. Deike said he’s hopeful that those approvals could come through as soon as February.

The Town of Scotia Company, LLC, assumed ownership of most assets in this former company town during PALCO’s 2008 bankruptcy proceedings. In recent years it rented space in Mill A to a variety of tenants, including Eel River Brewery, AquaDam and a sheet metal company. The sorter building was used as an RV storage facility for awhile. 

But the structures are no longer suitable for occupation, as you can plainly see when you drive past on Hwy. 101. 

“Nobody gave a rat’s ass about that property until the roof caved in,” Deike remarked in our phone conversation. He said public interest has skyrocketed since the roof collapse at the sorter building became visible this past spring. But this deterioration isn’t new.

“It’s been falling down from the inside out since, shoot, probably when PALCO had it,” Deike said.

He’s not at liberty to disclose the identity of the buyer or the purchase price, he said. A real estate deck from 2015 listed the parcels for $6,150,000, with the sales copy highlighting “ample power” from PG&E and water drawn from the adjacent Eel River.

Deike predicted that the new owners will likely dismantle Mill A and the sorter building. 

“It’s not safe,” he said, noting that while the buildings may have some historical significance, preserving them simply isn’t pragmatic.

“All you’re doing is saving nostalgia, I guess,” Deike said.