May 11, 2018

11May

POLICY & POLITICS

 

Valley:

 

Islas, Nelson respond to Whelan's negative campaign ads

The Fresno Bee

Veva Islas, who is running for Fresno City Council in District 7, took to Facebook Wednesday to respond to negative mailers paid for by one of her competitors, Brian Whelan.

 

Candidates speak at Lemoore chamber's luncheon

Hanford Sentinel

In a room filled with business owners and employees, a few of the mid-term election candidates stated their stance to people from public, private and nonprofit businesses.

 

The mobile city hall's slow roll

Stockton Record

Whatever happened to the City of Stockton's mobile city hall? More than a year ago, the council approved spending $100,000 on a customized vehicle loaded with electronics and information.

 

State:

 

Gubernatorial candidates on the difference between coastal and inland California

Fresno Bee

Some of California's top contenders in the gubernatorial race told the Sacramento Bee about their thoughts on the divide between coastal and inland California ahead of the June 5 primary.

 

California Today: In Governor's Race, Echoes of North vs. South

New York Times

Perhaps it’s not surprising that hometown papers endorsed their former mayors. But how significant will the North-South dynamic and the rivalry between San Francisco and Los Angeles be in the governor’s race?

 

Translating Newsom doubletalk: We don't celebrate diversity, we avoid talking about it

Sacramento Bee

"In California, we don’t tolerate diversity, we celebrate it,” he said. The crowd in liberal San Jose went wild as Newsom struck a gallant pose, and like-minded liberals cited this quote on social media, which is precisely what's wrong with this picture.

See also:

     PolitifactCA: Gavin Newsom's Half True claim on reducing San Francisco’s homeless ‘street population’ Politifact CA

 

Candidates for California governor: The Union-Tribune interviews

San Diego Union-Tribune

Twenty-seven candidates are running to replace termed-out Gov. Jerry Brown.  The San Diego Union-Tribune Editorial Board interviewed the seven candidates for about an hour each. Here are those interviews, lightly edited. The two top vote-getters in the June 5 primary will advance to a runoff election in November.

 

Where Are Big GOP Donors Giving in Governor's Race? To Democrats

The California Report - KQED News

With less than a month to go until California's top-two primary sends two gubernatorial candidates to the general election, Republicans face an imminent challenge: coalesce behind one candidate or risk a split vote that could allow two Democrats to advance to November's ballot.

 

EDITORIAL: We're sticking with Feinstein for US Senate

Modesto Bee

Dianne Feinstein has earned the respect of virtually every political ally and foe she has ever encountered. She also has earned our endorsement – despite some serious concerns – for six more years in the U.S. Senate.

See also:

     EDITORIAL: Why California Sen. Dianne Feinstein has amply earned re-election San Diego Union-Tribune

As Californians shed their political party labels, independent voters are close to outnumbering Republicans

Los Angeles Times

California Republicans, who haven't won a statewide election in 12 years and are fighting a pitched battle for the political ground they now hold in the state's congressional delegation, found themselves facing a new dilemma Thursday.

See also:

     California's Republican voter ranks sink to almost even with independents Los Angeles Times

     Can California Republicans go from lovable losers to world champions? OCRegister

     More Californians Choose To Register Without Political Party capradio.org

     GOP Fears It Will Be Shut Out Of California Governor's Race NPR

 

EDITORIAL: Don't put California's elections at risk. Vote Alex Padilla for Secretary of State

Sacramento Bee

In the crowded field of candidates competing in the June 5 primary, incumbent Alex Padilla is the only serious choice.

 

Hard-fought attorney general's race highlights down-ballot California contests

San Francisco Chronicle

An attorney general’s race featuring a pair of well-known and well-heeled Democrats and two GOP longshots heads the list of down-ballot contests in the June 5 California primary.

 

State Capitol Staffers Urged to Fill Out Sexual Harassment Survey

KQED

The leaders of the California Assembly and Senate are encouraging legislative staff to complete a "workplace climate survey." In a memo obtained by KQED, Senate Leader Toni Atkins and Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon say the purpose of the survey is to gather data about the workplace culture in the Capitol, specifically related to sexual harassment.

 

Ex-Fox Host Backs Bill Aimed At Nondisclosure Agreements

Capital Public Radio

The bill would prohibit employers from forcing people into nondisclosure agreements related to sexual misconduct in order to get or keep a job. It also would bar employers from requiring forced arbitration agreements, which can compel employees to settle workplace complaints instead of going to court.

 

Rebelling against California’s ‘sanctuary’ law—from inside California

CALmatters

“A California city announcing it won’t follow state law? I haven’t been aware of that happening before,” she said. “The question is, can the (California attorney general’s office) force compliance? In this case, I think it can.”

 

The 100th Anniversary of Women in the California Legislature

PPIC

But the predominance of women voters is not reflected in the composition of the California Legislature. After the path-breaking elections of 100 years ago, the following decades saw relatively few women serving in the assembly. And it wasn’t until 1966 that women of color won assembly seats. A decade later, the first woman was finally elected to the state senate.

 

Federal:

 

Both California senators will oppose Gina Haspel for CIA director

Los Angeles Times

Both of California’s U.S. senators will vote against Gina Haspel to lead the CIA, and her confirmation in the full Senate appears increasingly shaky.

See also:

     EDITORIAL: Gina Haspel’s evasive answers about CIA torture are disqualifying Los Angeles Times

     CIA director nominee Haspel and the destruction of interrogation tapes: Contradictions and questionsWashington Post

 

Net neutrality set to end on June 11

CNN

The Federal Communications Commission said in a notice filed Thursday that new rules repealing the net neutrality protections are set to take effect 30 days from this Friday, or June 11.

 

Documents Reveal How Russian Official Courted Conservatives In U.S. Since 2009

NPR

Kremlin-linked Russian politician Alexander Torshin traveled frequently between Moscow and various destinations in the United States to build relationships with figures on the American right starting as early as 2009, beyond hispreviously known contacts with the National Rifle Association.

 

Thirty million reasons campaign finance laws are a joke

CNN

According to a Politico report, the Republican megadonor is giving $30 million to the Congressional Leadership Fund, a super PAC dedicated to electing GOP House members.

 

Other:

 

Why we love to like junk news that reaffirms our beliefs

PBS NewsHour

Facebook is exquisitely designed to feed our addiction to hyper-partisan content. In this world, fringe players who are apt to be more strident end up at the top of our news feeds, burying the middle ground.

 

How misinformation spreads on social media and what to do about it

Brookings

After a journalist’s tweet mistakenly identifying the Toronto van attacker as Middle Eastern traveled faster and wider than the truth, Chris Meserole calls on social media platforms and users to do more to prevent the spread of falsehoods online.

 

David Von Drehle: After the newspapers are gone

The Salt Lake Tribune

Lots of journalists don’t understand business — not even our own.

 

Mark Zuckerberg's control of Facebook is like a dictatorship: CalSTRS

CNBC

The capital markets are a democracy, but that's not how Facebook is being run, said Christopher Ailman, the chief investment officer of the California State Teachers' Retirement System, known as CalSTRS.

 

California and Texas need a peace treaty – or at least an agreement to disagree

Sacramento Bee

If North and South Korea can have a peace summit, why can’t California and Texas do the same?  The United States desperately needs its two biggest states to figure out how to keep the country together.

 

 

AGRICULTURE/FOOD

 

Lanna Coffee Company fuels growing coffee shop scene in the Valley

ABC30

The coffee scene in the Valley is growing, with more shops opening up. At Cornerstone Coffee Company in Downtown Fresno, baristas serve up a tasty and meaningful cup of Joe.

 

Call to action for cage-free farming in California

The Mercury News

Hundreds of animal activists across California are caught up in campaign preparations as a new cage-free farming initiative to ban cages for chickens, pigs and veal calves is expected to hit the ballot in November.

 

The new Republican farm bill will dismantle our programs to feed the needy

Los Angeles Times

Rather than trying to improve food-for-the-poor efforts such as California's CalFresh, the federal farm bill that recently passed the House Agriculture Committee would begin those programs' dismantlement.

 

Pot sellers want a say in any rules being written for marijuana sales in Fresno

Fresno Bee

Legislation is expected to be introduced to the Fresno City Council by June that would allow medical marijuana businesses to operate in the city, Councilman Clint Olivier told cannabis industry members.

 

CRIMINAL JUSTICE / FIRE / PUBLIC SAFETY

 

Crime:

 

FBI raid raises questions in Visalia neighborhood

Visalia Times-Delta

FBI agents surrounded a Visalia home early Thursday morning. With bullhorns and assault rifles in tote, agents demanded the suspect to come out with his hands up, neighbors said. The suspect wasn't home, though.

 

Lawsuit filed against Bakersfield restaurant T.L. Maxwell's alleges employee was fired for complaining about vermin and being forced to serve rotten food

Bakersfield Californian

A wrongful termination lawsuit filed against downtown Bakersfield establishment T.L. Maxwell's Restaurant & Bar alleges a server there was fired for repeatedly complaining about health and safety concerns including vermin in the kitchen and being told to scrape mold off rotten food and serve it to customers.

 

A gang member killed a cop nine days after he got out of jail. Did California's justice reforms play a role?

Los Angeles Times

The killing of Officer Keith Boyer and wounding of another officer have galvanized a movement to ask state voters this November to reverse some of the recent changes to sentencing laws and the prison system.

 

Public Safety:

 

Rabobank Arena getting metal detectors, new camera

The Bakersfield Californian

The Rabobank Arena in Downtown Bakersfield will soon be beefing up its security. During its May 9 meeting, the Bakersfield City Council approved a $57,915 bid with CEIA USA Ltd. for the installation of 15 walk-through metal detectors at the facility.

 

Fire:

 

California governor signs order to reduce wildfire danger

Sacramento Bee

Gov. Jerry Brown signed an executive order on Thursday that aims to reduce the dangers of wildfires following some of the deadliest and most destructive blazes in state history.

See also:

     Gov. Brown orders major offensive against wildfire threat San Francisco Chronicle

     Drones, mountain cameras, wildfire simulators - Orange County's latest tech for fighting fires KPCC

ECONOMY / JOBS

 

Economy:

 

How California regained title of world’s 5th largest economy

The Mercury News

This isn’t just about a mythical scorecard showing the huge scope of the state’s economy. The turnabout in the business climate — by no means perfect, but a reversal that stunned by doubters — has created job opportunities, boosted salaries, overheated real estate markets and lifted numerous Californians out of poverty

 

Millennials to Democrats: It’s the Economy, Stupid

The Nation

When it comes to economics, the party is in danger of losing young voters to the GOP.

 

How American populism is reshaping economic policy

PBS NewsHour

If President Trump has had one consistent message since the beginning of his campaign, it's that America is getting a raw deal in the global economy.

 

Trump’s trade threats are hurting growth

AEI

Economic uncertainty and prosperity are sworn enemies. When uncertainty reigns, prosperity fades. Today, the Trump administration’s trade policies have increased economic uncertainty to a level that threatens to bring back the stagnation of the Obama years.

 

Fed risks overshooting its inflation targets

AEI

Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell would do well to disregard Megan Greene’s overly sanguine assessment of the US inflation outlook (“ US inflation is not a cause for alarm just yet ”, May 2).

 

Jobs:

 

Time off report: Americans are working less and feeling better about it, study finds

ABC30

If you used all of your vacation time last year, you're in the minority of American workers -- but it's a minority that is growing steadily.

 

EDUCATION

 

K-12:

 

Brown's inconsistent education policies

CALmatters

Brown’s Local Control Funding Formula hands billions of extra dollars to those districts and trusts them to spend the money effectively to close a yawning “achievement gap” separating poor and “English-learner” students – about 60 percent of K-12 enrollees – from their more privileged classmates. By all accounts, those billions have had almost no effect on closing the gap, as demonstrated by the latest round of federal English and mathematics testing.

 

On California campaign trail, a push to strip school funding for undocumented students

EdSource

It has been a quarter century since a Republican candidate for governor has argued that taxpayer funds should not be spent on educating undocumented children.

 

California's education funding model has fatal flaw

Fresno Bee

Schools across California are cutting programs and laying off employees in the midst of a booming economy. Why? A fatal flaw in California’s five-year old Local Control Funding Formula, or LCFF, is pushing many school districts to the brink of financial insolvency.

 

YUSD announces Superintendent Greenberg's resignation agreement

Sierra Star

After much anticipation and community concern on May 10, Yosemite Unified School District's Interim Superintendent Mike Berg, announced a settlement agreement had been reached with former Superintendent Ceclia Greenberg.

 

Students step into a world of opportunities

Hanford Sentinel

April Hermosillo was nervous and sweating before having to give a speech, but when the time came, her skills kicked in and she was able to pull it off with ease. It’s something she admits she would never have been able to do without the Business Technology Center.

 

Palo Verde school to use by-district election system

Visalia Times-Delta

The Palo Verde School board has started the process to switch to the by-district election system, becoming the latest elected body in Tulare County to adopt the California Voting Rights Act.

 

Afternoon Newsletter: 'The system is broken.' Decorated teacher says Merced Union fails to protect victims

Modesto Bee

A highly decorated veteran teacher blasted Merced Union High School District officials Wednesday in a fiery public speech, saying when she asked an administrator for protection from a coworker she was "mocked" and "belittled." At the district’s regular school…

 

Simple math: Close a tax loophole to help California schools

Sacramento Bee

In March, California joined a small but growing number of states fighting back against last year’s enormously regressive Republican tax bill when Assemblyman Mike Gipson, D-Carson, introduced a bill that would close one of the most egregious pieces of the tax code, the carried interest loophole.

 

Higher Ed:

 

State audit finds colleges did not accurately disclose campus-area crimes

San Francisco Chronicle

A number of California colleges, public and private, are out of compliance with a federal law requiring disclosure of crimes at or near their campuses, the state auditor said Thursday.

 

CSUB Spring BBQ raises money for athletic program

Bakersfield Californian

Thousands of people came out to the California State University, Bakersfield campus on Thursday night to help support its athletes.

 

UC Nurses, Hospital Staff Join Service Workers' Strike

KQED

Striking University of California service workers got reinforcements Tuesday, as nurses and technical staffers joined them on the picket lines outside medical centers around the state.

 

Job program for foreign graduates of U.S. colleges has quadrupled in size

Los Angeles Times

Almost 1.5 million foreign students have been allowed to stay and work in the United States after graduation as part of a work permit program that now is larger than the controversial H-1B program for highly skilled foreign workers, according to a new report.

 

For once it isn't the students boycotting a politician speaking at graduation

Washington Post

This year's commencement season features a particularly high-profile boycott. Sen. Kamala D. Harris (D-Calif.) was scheduled to deliver the keynote at Saturday's graduation ceremony at the University of California at Berkeley. But on Monday, she announced that she was skipping the event in support of a labor strike.

 

ENVIRONMENT/ ENERGY

 

Environment:

 

Here are some of your top California governor candidates on climate change

Merced Sun-Star

California gubernatorial candidates Antonio Villaraigosa, Delaine Eastin, Travis Allen and Amanda Renteria told the Sacramento Bee about their views on climate change ahead of the June 5 primary.

 

Want to know the Air Quality Where You Live?

San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District

The Valley Air District launched its newest Real-Time Air Advisory Network (RAAN) website myraan.com this month.

 

EPA signals it will ban toxic chemical found in paint strippers

Washington Post

The Environmental Protection Agency signaled on Thursday it will follow through on an Obama-era proposal to ban paint strippers containing a toxic chemical – leaving lawmakers, environmental groups and the families of victims cautiously optimistic.

 

New Museum Exhibit Near Shaver Lake Explores A Changing Forest

Valley Public Radio

In recent years, the forests of the Central Sierra have changed dramatically. Drought, bark beetles and climate change have helped to kill millions of trees across the region, and years of fire suppression have also contributed to an unhealthy ecosystem in many areas.

 

Energy:

 

The City of Hanford Partners with California Choice Energy Authority for Community Choice Aggregation Feasibility Study

PublicCEO

CCA programs allow local governments to purchase energy and generate electricity for residents and business owners within City limits. CCAs serve as an alternative to investor-owned utility companies like Southern California Edison (SCE) and Pacific Gas & Electric Company (PG&E), Hanford’s current electricity provider.

 

Yucca Mountain’s Lone Ranger Finally Corrals House Attention

Roll Call

Visiting Nevada’s Yucca Mountain in 2011 was like walking through a ghost town, Rep. John Shimkus recalled in an interview this week.

 

HEALTH/HUMAN SERVICES

 

Health:

 

New center improving pediatric care in Fresno

ABC30

New options for pediatric services are helping serve a growing need in the valley. The new Pediatric Specialty Center takes up the entire third floor of the North Medical Plaza across the way from Community Regional Medical Center.

 

EDITORIAL: Hits & Misses: Dip-stick test may help fight valley fever

The Bakersfield Californian

Bakersfield Congressman Kevin McCarthy has sent a letter to the National Institutes of Health expressing support for grant funding to help bring a diagnostic tool for valley fever to doctors’ offices.

 

UC hospitals resume normal operations as three-day strike ends

San Diego Union-Tribune

UC San Diego hospitals in Hillcrest and La Jolla returned to their normal operating schedules Thursday, removing the emergency bypass orders that had sent ambulances to other facilities since 1 p.m. Friday.

 

When Cancer Patients Ask About Weed, Many Doctors Say Go For It

NPR

Thirty U.S. states have enacted medical cannabis laws, and all but one of them include cancer in the list of conditions allowed. Such laws give cancer patients across the country access to a substance that remains illegal under federal law.

 

California counties sue drug makers over opioid epidemic

Washington Post

Dozens of California counties are suing drug makers and pharmacy chains that officials say created a public nuisance by manufacturing and distributing prescription painkillers they say contributed to the deaths of 64,000 people in the United States in 2016 alone.

See also:

     Abuse of Opioid Alternative Gabapentin Is on the Rise PEW Charitable Trust

 

Trump to Drop Call for Medicare to Negotiate Lower Drug Prices

New York Times

President Trump will lay out on Friday a broad strategy to reduce prescription drug prices, but in a break from one of his most popular campaign promises, he will not call for Medicare to negotiate lower prices with drug manufacturers, senior administration officials said.

See also:

     3 things to look for in Trump’s speech on drug pricing Marketplace

 

Human Services:

 

Hiltzik: New evidence shows that our anti-poverty programs, especially Social Security, work well

Chicago Tribune

Few U.S. government efforts are consistently more vilified than anti-poverty programs. They’re dismissed as ineffective and ridiculed as giveaways to undeserving recipients.

 

IMMIGRATION

 

California National Guard begins border training

The Bakersfield Californian

After a contentious standoff between the state and federal government, California National Guard troops started training Thursday with the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol to be camera operators, radio dispatchers, and to fill other support roles.

See also:

     California National Guard Begins Border Training KPBS

 

California lawmakers pass bill to prevent disclosure of immigration status in court

The Mercury News

California lawmakers on Thursday gave final approval to a bill that would place strict limits on the disclosure of a person’s immigration status in open court, continuing the sanctuary state’s rebellion against the Trump administration’s illegal immigration crackdown.

 

'We know that ICE is in our courthouses.' California lawmakers send governor measure restricting disclosure of immigration status in court

Los Angeles Times

Adopting another measure to counter the Trump administration, the California Senate on Thursday sent Gov. Jerry Brown a bill that would bar the disclosure of the immigration status of alleged crime victims and witnesses in open court unless a judge rules the information is relevant to the case.

 

Rebelling against California’s ‘sanctuary’ law—from inside California

Calmatters

The political whirlwind raging around California’s “sanctuary” laws isn’t doing much damage to the laws themselves, according to many state legal experts. In fact, the brunt of any legal damage may be felt most by the small city that started the rebellion.

 

One More Immigration Try

WSJ

Courts this year have deferred the end of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, but the issue will return soon enough. So bravo to 19 Republicans who have signed a discharge petition to debate a fix for the so-called Dreamers, which would be an instructive exercise.

 

LAND USE/HOUSING

 

Land Use:

 

City relaxes RV and boat parking ordinance for peak summer months

Clovis Round Up

Clovis residents who tire of having to go back and forth from their mini storage unit each summer weekend to get their boat or RV will be able to enjoy relaxed restrictions to the city’s recreation vehicle ordinance from Memorial Day to Labor Day.

 

Clovis dog park meeting gets heated

Clovis Roundup

Tempers flared when the City of Clovis held a meeting on May 1 to discuss dog parks.

 

Volunteers, nonprofits reviving some California state parks

San Francisco Chronicle

Brandishing a pair of industrial-strength loppers longer than her arm, Elisa Rogalado plunges into a blackberry thicket lining the main road in Sonoma County’s Sugarloaf Ridge State Park.

 

Housing:

 

Gimme Shelter podcast: Housing in the governor's race

CALmatters

Housing has become a major issue in California’s race for governor. With the June primary less than a month away, Matt and Liam dive into each of the candidate’s plans to solve our affordability crisis.

 

As millennials buy more homes, developers strategize to bring them in

Los Angeles Times

Don't believe the naysayers: Young people are buying homes. Millennials, defined as buyers between the ages of 18 and 37, are the nation's largest block of home buyers by far, accounting for 42% of home sales in a 12-month span, according to a 2017 housing survey from Zillow.

 

EDITORIAL: Of course California should require solar panels on new homes

Los Angeles Times

Starting in 2020, California will be the first state in the nation to require newly constructed homes and low-rise apartment buildings to have solar panels to generate electricity. This mandate may be the simplest, most logical policy yet to help wean the Golden State off fossil fuels and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

 

The only city in California to solve veteran homelessness is on a mission to go bigger

Calmatters

There are around 40,000 homeless veterans in the United States, according to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. More than 11,000 of them live in California. The state has seen a 17 percent rise in homeless vets since 2016.

 

Why is HUD being sued?

Brookings

With the Department of Housing and Urban Development facing a lawsuit for postponing an Obama-era fair housing rule, Jenny Schuetz discusses the ways in which Secretary Ben Carson has consistently deprioritized policies that counter discrimination and segregation during his time leading the agency.

 

PUBLIC FINANCES

 

California's budget surplus is billions bigger than expected. Will Jerry Brown spend it?

Fresno Bee

Gov. Jerry Brown is releasing his final budget on Friday, May 11. The state is projecting a surplus, and lawmakers want to boost funding for homelessness, higher education, welfare and affordable housing.

See also:

     California governor to release budget amid growing revenue Sacramento Bee

     CA budget surplus grows in Jerry Brown's last year The Sacramento Bee

     Governor Brown To Release Updated California Budget Proposal Capital Public Radio

     California's budget surplus is billions bigger than expected. Will Jerry Brown spend it? Sacramento Bee

 

Unfunded debt for California teacher pensions up $11 billion

The Bakersfield Californian

California's unfunded debt for teacher pensions has grown by nearly $11 billion after officials lowered its outlook for investment earnings.

 

EDITORIAL: Proposition 68 will leave California with more unnecessary debt. Vote No.

OCRegister

Proposition 68 calls for authorizing $4 billion in general obligation bonds to cover a mash up of desirable investments in parks, water quality and supply and flood control protection. Bond measures like this merely enable the Legislature to continue spending on wants rather than needs.

 

The new tax law may only boost incomes for foreign investors—not for Americans

Brookings

A recent Congressional Budget Office analysis suggests that the Tax Cut and Jobs Act will have virtually no impact on U.S. incomes after the next 10 years, but will result in higher payments to foreign investors as a result of lower tax rates on capital income.

 

Will California Voters Blame High Gas Prices on Democrats or on Trump?

New York Magazine

In most of the country, the likelihood that the president’s new fight with Iran will boost gas prices just as voters start thinking about the November midterm elections is some additional grief already embattled Republican candidates could really do without.

 

Will future retirees depend more on Social Security to get by?

AEI

Today’s retirees are a lot less dependent on Social Security benefits than some government statistics would lead you to believe. And we know that private retirement plan benefits are rising, and not just for the rich.

 

TRANSPORTATION

 

Gas prices are topping $4 at some Fresno stations. Ready to pay more at the pump?

Fresno Bee

Gasoline prices in Fresno already increased beyond $4 per gallon this week at some places in town.

 

Closure on Rose Avenue in Fresno County Begins May 14

Calif. High Speed Rail

The California High-Speed Rail Authority (Authority), in cooperation with design-build contractor Dragados-Flatiron Joint Venture (DFJV), announces intermittent road closures on Rose Avenue between Cedar Avenue and BNSF railroad in Fresno County for utility relocation activities. Work is scheduled to begin Monday, May 14 and will continue through Friday, May 25.

 

Auto executives head to the White House to avert a collision with California over fuel economy rules

Los Angeles Times

A lot is on the line for California on Friday in the White House, where top auto company executives will be meeting with President Trump.

See also:

     Automakers Seek to Use Trump Summit to Avert War With California Bloomberg

     Trump to sit down with major automakers on Friday on fuel rules Reuters

 

Here's how to rent electric bikes in Sacramento and two other local cities next week

Sacramento Bee

Three Sacramento-area cities will launch what they call one of the most sophisticated bike-share programs in the country next week - starring a fleet of 900 candy red motorized bikes that do half the pedaling.

 

WATER

 

California's Brown stresses support for water tunnel project

Sacramento Bee

Fresh off recent victories securing billions of dollars in financing for his ambitious plan to reroute California's water system, Gov. Jerry Brown offered a genial yet urgent reminder Thursday of the need to set the project on stable footing before he leaves office next year.

See also:

     Gov. Jerry Brown warns that delta tunnels project could be jeopardized if momentum is not maintained Los Angeles Times

 

Impact of a Warming Climate on the Sierra Nevada and California's Water

KQED

Imagine a California where springtime temperatures are 7F warmer than they are today, where snowmelt runoff comes 50 days earlier and the average snowpack is just 36 percent of the 1981–2000 average. That may be the reality by the end of the century if we don’t curb greenhouse gas emissions, say researchers from the University of California, Los Angeles.

 

“Xtra”

 

Grizzly Fest is next weekend. Start planning now with these parking dos and don'ts

Fresno Bee

By now, you should know the basics about Grizzly Fest.

 

Local shoe store receives more than 4,500 shoe donations for the homeless

Bakersfield Californian

This year marks the most successful shoe drive Guarantee Shoe Center has had since the local shoe store began the tradition 26 years ago.

 

Valley Cultural Calendar

Valley Cultural Coalition

Great things are happening in the Valley. Here's a list of VCC member offerings to keep you busy and entertained!

 

Who loves ya, Mom? Ways to celebrate Mother's Day

Bakersfield Californian

Mother's Day is near, and we're suspecting some of you might still be scrambling for ideas for Mom. Luckily, we've got a few suggestions to help procrastinators get set for Sunday.

 

 

Test yourself with our new free game: PolitiTruth

Think you can tell the difference between True and False?

Do you really know what is fake news?

 

 

Maddy Institute Updated List of San Joaquin Valley Elected Officials HERE.

 

The Kenneth L. Maddy Institute at California State University, Fresno was established to honor the legacy of one of California’s most principled and effective legislative leaders of the last half of the 20th Century by engaging, preparing and inspiring a new generation of governmental leaders for the 21st Century. Its mission is to inspire citizen participation, elevate government performance, provide non-partisan analysis and assist in providing solutions for public policy issues important to the region, state and nation.

                                                     

This document is to be used for informational purposes only. Unless specifically noted, The Maddy Institute at California State University, Fresno does not officially endorse or support views that may be expressed in the document. If you want to print a story, please do so now before the link expires. ​​​​​​​

 

 

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