Political Stories
Top stories
Forecasters increasingly see victory for Valley congressional incumbents — On Thursday, “Sabato’s Crystal Ball” – a national look at federal races published by University of Virginia political scientist Larry Sabato – moved Jim Costa’s race from “likely” Democratic to “safe” Democratic, and both David Valadao and Jeff Denham’s races from “leans” Republican to “likely” Republican. Fresno Bee article
Prosecutors’ lawsuit challenges Jerry Brown’s crime initiative — California prosecutors have asked a judge to block a newly amended ballot measure championed by Gov. Jerry Brown that would make it easier for non-violent prisoners to get parole. Sacramento Bee article; AP article
State budget
Analyst says California governor undercounts crime savings — California’s nonpartisan legislative analyst says Gov. Jerry Brown is undercounting the savings from a voter-approved measure that cut penalties for drug and property crimes. AP article; Sacramento Bee article
Joe Mathews: S&P undermines the argument that budget spending is up — An assessment of the budget from Standard & Poors, the credit rating agency, undercuts the idea that spending is up. S&P emphasizes how the budget spending base remains low. Mathews in Fox & Hounds
Valley politics
Stockton City Council applicants meet deadline — The four residents who had been expected to seek appointment to replace Moses Zapien on the City Council met Friday afternoon’s application deadline for the seat, with a date for the selection still to be determined. Stockton Record article
Statewide politics/Ballot Measures
Rocky Chavez endorses Duf Sundheim for U.S. Senate — After retiring his campaign for U.S. Senate last week, Republican Assemblyman Rocky Chávez endorsed his former GOP challenger Duf Sundheim on Friday. Sacramento Bee article
Other areas
California Politics Podcast: Rocky road ahead – This week: Rocky Chavez bows out of the U.S. Senate race; a heated debate over the Coastal Commission; and the new politics of gender and the workplace. With John Myers of the Los Angeles Times, Marisa Lagos of KQED, and Anthony York of the Grizzly Bear Project. California Politics Podcast
Coastal chief’s ouster prompts bill to require transparency between lobbyists and panel – Reacting to the dismissal of the California Coastal Commission’s executive director, Assembly members on Friday said they plan to introduce legislation to require people who lobby the commission to register with the state and disclose their clients with business pending before the powerful land-use agency. LA Times article
News Stories
Top Stories
Research raises UC Merced’s standing on Carnegie list – UC Merced moved up in ranking on the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education list, which officials say highlights the campus’s research activity. Designated a “doctoral-granting university with higher research activity,” the second-highest classification for U.S. research universities, UC Merced made its first appearance at that level on the Carnegie list. Merced Sun-Star article
Flu outbreak declared in Fresno County; two die from virus — A flu outbreak has been officially declared in Fresno County after testing showed rising infection rates. In addition, one person died from the virus earlier this month. That fatality marks the second death linked to the virus since October, the Fresno County Health Department reported. Fresno Bee article
Jobs and the Economy
Merced County CEO cashes out $40,000 in common but costly practice – A practice that allows Merced County’s top executives to claim cash for their unused vacation and sick time resulted in at least 15 public servants pocketing an extra $168,000 total in addition to their salaries in 2015, including more than $40,000 paid out to county CEO Jim Brown, a Merced Sun-Star investigation shows. Merced Sun-Star article
Pete Weber, Fresno Bridge Academy win $200,000 Irvine award – Fresno business leader Pete Weber and the Fresno Bridge Academy are one of five recipients of the 2016 James Irvine Foundation Leadership Awards, an honor that comes with a $200,000 grant to continue their work in the community. The Bridge Academy, founded by Weber in 2010, works with low-income families to help them get off of public assistance and into jobs. Fresno Bee article
McClatchy contributes real estate to pension plan – The McClatchy Co. said Friday that it contributed $47.1 million worth of company-owned real estate to its pension plan, including The Bee’s downtown Fresno property. Sacramento Bee article
Victor Davis Hanson: Fixing a fossilized U.S. economy – Reducing regulations would encourage businesses to invest and expand. Government growth and red tape not only stifle creativity but also encourage costly abuse — at least if recent serial scandals in government agencies are any indication. Hanson column in Fresno Bee
More Hanford businesses slated to close – The recent news of clothing retailer Forever 21 closing its Hanford Mall location came as a surprise to many in the community. Now, three more stores are closing too: R-N Market on Hanford Armona Road, Gifts of Hope inside the Hanford Mall and Brown’s Shoe Fit Company on Seventh Street in downtown Hanford. Hanford Sentinel article
Disparity in life spans between rich and poor is growing – Experts have long known that rich people generally live longer than poor people. But a growing body of data shows a more disturbing pattern: Despite big advances in medicine, technology and education, the longevity gap between high-income and low-income Americans has been widening sharply. New York Times article
Foon Rhee: The Numbers Crunch: We should all want pay equity – It’s well-known that women typically make less than men, 79 cents on the dollar. Most of us also have an inkling that the gender pay gap is worse for African American and Hispanic women. Rhee in Sacramento Bee
Councils to tackle safety tax, finance committees – Both Hanford and Lemoore’s city councils are meeting Tuesday and will tackle issues ranging from a proposed safety tax to a new finance committee. Hanford Sentinel article
Commercial flights between U.S. and Cuba could resume as early as this fall – The Obama administration will allow U.S. air carriers to start regular scheduled commercial flights to and from Cuba as early as this fall for the first time in more than 50 years, U.S. officials said Friday. LA Times article
How crowdfunding has made flipping houses a lot easier — David Berneman isn’t developing an app. His company isn’t venture backed. In fact, his business is about as low-tech as it gets: He buys houses, fixes them up and flips them. But he too is funded by the crowd. LA Times article
NFL toasts Bay Area Super Bowl; feeling not totally mutual — The NFL left its heart in San Francisco. But the city isn’t quite ready to return the love, a stance that could complicate the Bay Area’s prospects to host another Super Bowl, or as a few of its politicians call it — a “corporate marketing party.” Contra Costa Times article
Michael Hiltzik: Do customers still want landlines? Telecomm companies doesn’t want anyone to hear the answer — Consumer advocates want to know whether the big carriers are goading landline customers into shifting to their wireless or Internet plans by raising prices on the traditional service, letting its quality go to hell, and steering unhappy customers to newer, more lucrative and largely unregulated options. Hiltzik in LA Times
Agriculture/Water/Drought
Despite drought, government to release water for San Joaquin River restoration – Despite promises that El Nino storms will not bring an end to California’s drought, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation announced Friday that it will begin releasing more water into the San Joaquin River. The release is part of a program to restore the river’s long-extinct salmon population on a 60-mile stretch of the channel that is typically dry. KVPR report
Record attendance closes out successful World Ag Expo – Good weather and a stable agriculture economy contributed to record attendance for the 2016 World Ag Expo in Tulare. A record-breaking 106,349 visitors attended the three-day event that ended Thursday. Last year, the expo attracted 102,867 attendees. Fresno Bee article; The Business Journal article
World Ag Expo volunteers share their stories – Every year, not long after the World Ag Exp in Tulare ends, planning begins for next year’s event. But before that happens, many of the more than 1,200 volunteers who do much of the work to get the World’s largest agricultural trade show off the ground, take time at the end each three-day event to celebrate together. Visalia Times-Delta article
Selling Amazon to farmers – Normally, John Reiser and his fellow Amazon.com, Inc. representatives interact with sellers and potential sellers online and by phone to answer questions about how to sell on the e-commerce website. So it was highly unusual that he and two fellow Amazon executives left their Seattle headquarters and headed south this week to the 2016 World Ag Expo in Tulare. Visalia Times-Delta article
Dry spell isn’t uncommon for Merced in El Nino years – The Merced area did not see any measurable rain through the first 12 days of February, but that’s not unusual, even during an El Niño year, forecasters say. Merced Sun-Star article
Where did El Nino go? Heat, dry spell stoke drought worry– Where did El Niño go? Winter has suddenly switched off the rain and flipped on heat up to 95 degrees in California, raising jitters that the strong El Niño might not be the drought-buster the crispy state had hoped. AP article
Vance Kennedy: Understanding how subsidence works in the Valley – The Modesto citrus farmer and retired U.S. Geological Survey scientist writes, “Subsidence is known to be related to the pumping of groundwater from aquifers, but how that happens is not generally understood. This is an attempt to explain, in general terms, what occurs.” Kennedy op-ed in Modesto Bee
Criminal Justice/Prisons
Was second plane involved in fatal crash of Tulare County aircraft? ‘Likely improbable,’ sheriff says – Tulare County Sheriff’s Department is casting doubt on an eyewitness report that there was another plane near where the Sheriff One spotter aircraft crashed Wednesday, killing two. Fresno Bee article
Kings County Sheriff’s Office grounds plane after Tulare County crash – Following the fatal crash of a Tulare County Sheriff’s Office airplane, the Kings County Sheriff’s Office has grounded its recently acquired plane. Hanford Sentinel article
Witness to fatal Sanger police shooting said suspect had hands up – The bystander who used his cellphone to record Sanger police shooting and killing Charles Salinas in June 2012 testified Friday that the mentally ill Marine Corps veteran was unarmed, had his hands up near his shoulders and was complying with officers’ orders to come out of a flower bed when he was shot. Fresno Bee article
Stockton police chief pursues speedy driver, nabbing man with gun – Stockton Police Chief Eric Jones took it upon himself to take an armed suspect off the streets Friday afternoon when he spotted a reckless driver in downtown Stockton. Stockton Record article
San Francisco district attorney: Police lawfully killed Mario Woods — The San Francisco police officers who shot and killed Mario Woods acted lawfully to protect themselves and bystanders from a man who was armed with a knife, refused to obey commands and tried to flee while under the influence of methamphetamine and other drugs, the city attorney’s office said. San Francisco Chronicle article
Retrial in Chandra Levy murder case pushed back till May – A D.C. Superior Court judge on Friday pushed back by nearly three months the retrial of the man convicted of killing former federal intern Chandra Levy. McClatchy Newspapers article
Staff cuts at Orange County jail made escape easier, deputies’ union contends – Staff cuts at an Orange County jail removed obstacles that would have otherwise prevented three dangerous inmates from breaking out last month, according to a lawsuit filed by sheriff’s deputies. LA Times article
San Quentin puts on a happy face — What if, instead of building prisons in remote locations, we put them near cities, accessible to family members and to the resources — educational, vocational, therapeutic, recreational, cultural — that are scarce in most prison towns? Capitol Weekly article
Recorded interview reveals former LA Sheriff Lee Baca lying to federal prosecutor — The sheriff’s lie came 25 minutes into the interview. It was an April afternoon in 2013, and a federal prosecutor was bearing down on Lee Baca, trying to find out how much he knew about his underlings’ attempts to obstruct FBI agents investigating corruption and brutality by deputies inside his Los Angeles County jails. LA Times article
Education
Fresno Unified trustees pushing for district to release records – It’s been 75 days since a request was made to Fresno Unified seeking emails between district and Harris Construction officials, despite school board members urging administrators to release the information to the public. Fresno Bee article
Kings districts struggling to hire teachers – The Hanford Joint Union High School District offers bonuses for teachers who sign on at the beginning of the school year. The district’s superintendent, Bill Fishbough, said the district also offers to help with expenses for teachers who are relocating from a different state. He said that last year, the district helped two teachers relocate from Louisiana. Hanford Sentinel article
Soccer games teach science and math to kids, good behavior to boot – At the sound of a whistle, four teams of kids raced across a grassy field at Frank West Elementary School Thursday, dribbling soccer balls to a cone at the far end of the field. The squads of students are not just playing soccer – they’re giving up part of their lunch hour to learn about Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, while getting a little exercise at the same time. Bakersfield Californian article
He’s a Cal State Long Beach professor, lawyer – and felon — James Binnall, an assistant professor of criminal justice at Cal State Long Beach, brings a unique crime-and-punishment perspective to class. Long Beach Press Telegram article
Energy/Environment
Firing leads to questions on California coast’s future — The decision by the powerful commission that controls development along California’s coastline to fire its executive director threw the agency into turmoil Thursday, raising questions about why it acted and the future of the state’s 1,100 miles of coastal land. New York Times article
Leaders in two California cities reject oil trains – Amid safety concerns, the state’s two highest-profile crude-by-rail project proposals, one in the north and one in the south, have run into roadblocks, throwing into question the future of rail oil transport in California. Sacramento Bee article
Symposium on California’s Energy Future coming to Bakersfield March 3 — California is experiencing great challenges and opportunities as the nation’s energy future evolves amid plunging oil prices and climate change mandates. Those challenges and opportunities are no more evident anywhere than in Kern County, whose economy has long been linked to petroleum extraction and whose vast, open land has proved ideal for wind and solar power projects. Bakersfield Californian article
Berkeley scientists develop quake-detection phone app — Scientists at UC Berkeley began mobilizing a global smartphone network Friday to detect earthquakes and someday send out life-saving early warnings before dangerous temblors shake the distant ground. San Francisco Chronicle article; LA Times article; KQED report
Joel Fox: The dangers of a ‘shut it all down’ solution for Porter Ranch — Now that the Porter Ranch gas leak has been temporarily stopped there will be renewed pressure to shut down the entire storage area of 115 wells. Local and state officials are walking a tight rope between the demand made by some environmentalists and residents who suffered from the leak to close the entire storage facility and the consequences of closing a major energy reserve. Fox in Fox & Hounds
Channel Island foxes are doing so well officials want to take them off the endangered species list — Marking the end of a remarkably successful recovery effort, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on Friday proposed taking three subspecies of fox native to California’s Channel Islands off the endangered species list. LA Times article
Health/Human Services
Fifteen vie for seat on hospital authority board – Fifteen people, from corporate CEOs and political party bosses to doctors and retired administrators, have raised their hands hoping to be on the new Kern County Hospital Authority board. On March 1, the Kern County Board of Supervisors will chose among them. Bakersfield Californian article
Ana Ibarra: Let’s Talk Health one more time — This here, ladies and gents, is my final column. So I thought it appropriate to write from the heart and about the heart. Ibarra in Merced Sun-Star
Blood banks put restrictions on donors as Zika virus spreads – In an effort to keep the Zika virus out of the nation’s blood supply, many U.S. blood banks, including BloodSource in Sacramento, are imposing a 28-day blood donation waiting period for people who have traveled to countries where the disease has spread. Sacramento Bee article
3-D printers in public places create prostheses, change lives — The robotic-looking plastic hands are an unexpected benefit of the swell in 3-D printers. The devices have dropped in price and become a fixture in schools, homes and libraries. More precise medical devices can cost thousands of dollars and often are not sized for children. Even if a family can make the investment, a child will outgrow an artificial hand in a few years. San Francisco Chronicle article
Land Use/Housing
Hanford property owners now responsible for tree upkeep – If a tree between the sidewalk and curb in front of your home needs trimming, watering or removing, don’t wait for the city to take care of it. An updated street tree law places that responsibility on the property owner’s shoulders now but you still must get the city’s permission to remove or trim it. Hanford Sentinel article
Housing to rise above historic Sacramento R Street building — More housing is coming to Sacramento’s booming R Street corridor with plans underway to convert a historic red-brick building into a retail complex topped with 26 upscale apartment units. Sacramento Bee article
Transportation
BART removes some seats to give passengers more room — It’s like finding a needle in a haystack, but some BART riders are noticing a row of single seats on their train cars have replaced the standard double seat layout — a feature officials said they are testing on 3 percent of cars to relieve crowding. San Francisco Chronicle article
Other areas
Turlock city, university, religious leaders come together – Civic and religious leaders came together to listen and learn in a joint city-university Leadership Summit on Inclusivity, an ivory-tower name meant to spur tangible change. Modesto Bee article
LAFCO limits terms for public members – Public members on San Joaquin County’s Local Agency Formation Committee will be limited to a total of eight years served after a lengthy discussion Thursday regarding term limits. Stockton Record article
‘Dream big and work hard’: Stockton girl delighted with reply from presidential role model – Late last year, second-grader Nylah Missouri wrote a letter to her role model to invite him and his family to dinner. A couple of months passed with no response. But on Monday — four days before her birthday — she received a reply. “In the years ahead, always remember that nothing is beyond your reach as long as you are willing to dream big and work hard,” the letter read. “If you stay focused on your education, I know there are no limits to what you can achieve … Sincerely, Barack Obama.” Stockton Record article
Sacramento Bee: Sacramento’s next mayor has a full plate — After eight years of Kevin Johnson, Sacramento’s next mayor will be a very different politician and personality. Which is fine because what the city requires right now is less celebrity and drama. It needs a steady, intelligent leader to build on Johnson’s accomplishments – and take on new challenges. Sacramento Bee editorial
Andrew Fiala on Ethics: Reproduction has gone way beyond the birds and the bees – The professor of philosophy and director of The Ethics Center at Fresno State writes, “Birds do it. Bees do it. So do we. But unlike the birds and the bees, we have created amazing new ways to reproduce. Scientists are developing a technique by which a human embryo could be created from three different “parents,” by combining mitochondrial DNA from one mother with regular DNA from another. In related news, scientists in the UK have been permitted to do research involving human gene editing.” Fiala op-ed in Fresno Bee
Christopher Meyers: Two who embody the exemplary behavior of Wendy Wayne – The director of the Kegley Institute of Ethics at CSU Bakersfield writes, “On behalf of CSU Bakersfield’s Kegley Institute of Ethics and the awards’ co-sponsors, Kaiser Permanente and San Joaquin Community Hospital, I have the privilege of announcing this year’s recipients of the Wendy Wayne Awards for Exemplary Behavior: Karen Goh, president of Garden Pathways, and Carly Riddle, a senior at North High School. Meyers op-ed in Bakersfield Californian
Richard Johanson: Memories and dreams at 90 — As a native Fresnan, I am finding that one of the privileges of entering my 10th decade of life is that of meditation. To dwell upon memories of the Great Depression of the ’30s, the worldwide turmoil of the ’40s, the optimism of the ’50s, and the hopes and disappointments of the years that followed are but a preamble to reflecting upon my dreams for tomorrow. Let me share a few memories with you, gathered over a span of 90 years. Johanson op-ed in Fresno Bee
Valley Editorial Roundup
Fresno Bee – Thumbs up, thumbs down.
Sacramento Bee – After eight years of Kevin Johnson, Sacramento’s next mayor will be a very different politician and personality. Which is fine because what the city requires right now is less celebrity and drama. It needs a steady, intelligent leader to build on Johnson’s accomplishments – and take on new challenges; Sacramento art fans ask: Where is the love?
Maddy Events
Sunday, Feb. 14, at 10 a.m. on ABC 30 – Maddy Report: “Californian’s View of State Regulation and the Environment: Too Much, Too Little or Just Right?” – Guests: Public Policy Institute of California analyst Dean Bonner. Host: Maddy Institute Executive Director Mark Keppler.
Sunday, Feb. 14, at 10 a.m. on Newstalk 580 (KMJ) – Maddy Report-Valley Views Edition: “Adapting to Climate Change: Implications for the Valley” – Guests: John Capitman, executive director of the Central Valley Health Policy Institute, and Seyed Sadredin, executive director of the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District. Host: Maddy Institute Executive Director Mark Keppler.
Sunday, Feb. 14, at 7 a.m. on Fresno Univision 21 (KFTV)– El Informe Maddy Report: “Clean Energy Alternatives” – Guest: Margarita Fernandez – Chief of Public Affairs, Office of the California State Auditor. Host: Maddy Institute Executive Deputy Director Ana Melendez.
The Maddy Report airs throughout California on The Cal Channel. Check http://www.calchannel.com to find the Cal Channel and schedule in your area. You also can view previous Maddy Report programs in their entirety at http://www.maddyinstitute.org/policy-analysis/the-maddy-report-tv.
Community Events
- Fresno State President Joseph Castro and other university officials will hold a Community Conversation in the West Hills Community College conference facility, 555 College Ave., Lemoore on Tuesday, March 1, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.Seating for this free event is limited, so RSVPs should be made by February 26 at www.fresnostate.edu/presidentrsvp using the code “Lemooreforum.”
- The International Green Industry Hall of Fame will hold its sixth annual conference and induction ceremony at Buchanan High School in Clovis on March 9. Registration information is available here.
Interactive
Next 10: UPDATED California budget challenge – For the first time in a decade, California’s budget is largely in balance. However, the state has outstanding debts of $28 million, not counting long-term pension and retiree health care costs. Budget choices affect us all. Take the Challenge and decide how much should be spent on programs and where the money should come from. Next 10 California Budget Challenge
Next 10: Federal budget challenge — The Federal Budget Challenge is based on The Concord Coalition’s Principles and Priorities budget exercise, which has been used in numerous town hall meetings across the country by members of Congress from both parties, as well as in hundreds of high school and college classrooms. Next 10 Federal Budget challenge at www.federalbudgetchallenge.org.
Next 10: California Water Challenge – As our state faces some of the most severe drought conditions in its history, Next 10 wants to issue a new challenge to Californians: can you create a plan to make sure there’s enough water for everyone? Next 10 California Water Challenge
LEGISLATORS’ VOTING RECORDS: How often has a California legislator broken party ranks, abstained or switched sides? The Sacramento Bee has a database of the voting records of every member of the state Senate and Assembly. Enter a lawmaker’s last and first names to see how he or she voted, or enter a bill number to see how every legislator voted on it. Check it out at this link. http://www.sacbee.com/votingrecord/
More Information
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Maddy Institute Updates List of San Joaquin Valley Elected Officials – The Maddy Institute has updated its list of San Joaquin Valley elected officials. The list is available here.
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