SACRAMENTO - CDF Firefighters have named Assemblywoman Patty Berg, D-Eureka, their Legislator of the Year.

“We love Patty and she’s done a great job,” said Bob Wolf, president of CDF Firefighters. “She certainly understands public safety and especially the needs of rural California.”

Berg represents one of the largest districts in the state, a huge swath of the North Coast that includes many small communities and large tracts of forested land. During this year’s legislative session, she carried AB 1365, which, among other things, makes it easier for rural cities and counties to receive fire protection services.

“Patty Berg negotiated the legislation that will allow local government and state firefighters to work together to protect otherwise vulnerable communities,” Wolf said. “She handled the discussions with a professionalism that allowed everyone at the table to write a bill that is both cost effective and critical to the overall public safety of Californians."

“It’s a great honor to be recognized by this wonderful organization,” Berg said. “I’m proud to receive this award, and I’m proud of the bill that was passed and signed into law.”

Wolf said he took personal pleasure in naming Berg the Legislator of the Year.

"Sometimes the award goes to someone you just plain like and admire,” he said. “That has happened in this case. The firefighters think of Patty as family.”