February 5, 2020

05Feb

POLICY & POLITICS

 

Report:  California has some of the best -- and worst -- places in U.S. for raising children (The Valley has some of the worst...)

CalMatters

Bakersfield, Fresno and Stockton are near the bottom for giving children the best chance of achieving economic success and good health.  San Jose area scores near the top.  The new report measures which U.S. neighborhoods give children the best chance of achieving economic success and good health.

 

APPLY BY February 28 for a $56,000 Wonderful Public Service Graduate Fellowships

The Maddy Institute

Through the generosity of The Wonderful Company, San Joaquin Valley students will have the opportunity to become the next generation of Valley leaders through The Wonderful Public Service Graduate Fellowship. This program helps students obtain an advanced degree from a top graduate program, return home, and apply what they have learned to help make the Valley a better place. 

 

North SJ Valley:

 

Mariposa Supervisors’ Pay Hike Riles Residents; Referendum Launched

Sierra News

Earlier this month, four members of the Mariposa County Board of Supervisors voted to increase their base pay by $30,000 per year — and now a significant number of county residents are expressing their displeasure on social media, and through the referendum process.

 

Can the GOP reclaim this California district? Its rookie Democrat has a flush campaign account

Modesto Bee

Rep. Josh Harder has consistently blown past his Republican challengers in fundraising and is sitting on millions of dollars in donations while one Republican opponent has more debt than cash on hand and the other has posted underwhelming numbers quarter after quarter.

 

EDITORIAL: Here’s who The Modesto Bee recommends in the March 3 election, plus what to do to vote

Modesto Bee

All endorsements are the result of deliberation among members of The Bee Editorial Board after in-person forums or debates featuring candidates in a given race. All such forums were streamed live and now may be viewed at youtube.com/user/TheModestoBee/videos.

 

Central SJ Valley:

 

Fresno Bee plans move to downtown’s historic Bitwise 41 building

Fresno Bee

After more than 40 years at 1626 E St., The Fresno Bee will move downtown – a change that reflects the company’s own transition from a newspaper company to a digital news organization.

 

Teach-In at Fresno State: You’ve received your Voting Guide, now what?

Fresno State Political Science

Hey registered voters, ballots are hitting your mailboxes this week. If you have questions about what is on the ballot or how the process works, including discussions of the top-two system, come to the Voting Information Teach-in next Tuesday, Feb 11, 2pm in IT 101.

 

Clovis Unified teacher wins State Educator of the Year

abc30

A Clovis Unified teacher is receiving top honors for her work inside the classroom. Liberty Elementary School teacher Stephanie Patterson won the California League of Elementary Schools State Educator of the Year in January.

 

Fresno County axes homeless administrator position. It came with a $20,000 raise

Fresno Bee

The Fresno County Board of Supervisors adopted a plan Tuesday that continues funding homeless triage centers and other services, but denied a proposed administrative position for homeless efforts, axing the nearly $20,000 raise that came with it.

 

Egan, Treisman line up big endorsements in race for Fresno County judge. Here’s our Q&A

Fresno Bee

Former colleagues in the Fresno County District Attorney’s Office are vying to become a Fresno County Superior Court judge, and each has lined up high-powered endorsements.

 

Rescue mission on Council agenda

Porterville Recorder

The New Porterville Rescue Mission (NPRM) was at the forefront of discussion at the last Porterville City Council meeting on January 28, and tonight’s meeting is calling for another discussion revolving around the NPRM.

 

2020 Census: Tulare County struggles to get counted

Visalia Times Delta

For the thousands of families living in hundreds of rural and unincorporated Central Valley communities in California — often without formal addresses or precariously piled under one roof — getting an accurate census count is an issue.

 

South SJ Valley:

 

Taft Correctional Institution takes steps toward closure as deadline approaches

Bakersfield Californian

The company that operates the Taft Correctional Institution says it has not heard back from the U.S. Department of Justice’s about its plan for the facility, and has taken steps to lay off workers on March 31.

See​​ also:

 

State of Downtown Breakfast to take place next week

Bakersfield Californian

The Downtown Business Association and the Downtown Bakersfield Development Corporation will host the State of the Downtown Breakfast on Feb. 13, according to a news release.

 

In-home care union says workers need more than minimum wage to survive

Bakersfield Californian

A union of workers who care for Kern County’s elderly and disabled say they need a pay increase to survive in the state’s costly environment.

 

Grand jury report highlights major upgrades needed at coroner's division

Bakersfield Californian

The Kern County Coroner’s facility desperately needs an update, according to a Kern County grand jury report made public on Tuesday. And that’s not really news, it noted in the report. Four previous grand jury reports in the past two decades reached similar conclusions.

 

Possible bond measure for November ballot, Foothill stabbing addressed at KHSD meeting

Bakersfield Californian

Future growth, a possible bond measure and student safety following a fatal stabbing near Foothill High School were hot topics during Monday night's Kern High School District Board of Trustees meeting.

 

New Valley Fever Run in Taft Brings Disease Awareness To Rural Kern County

VPR

Preliminary state data suggest nearly 8,700 Californians were diagnosed with valley fever in 2019, which would be a record high. The state’s highest case rate is consistently reported in Kern County where, this past weekend, one rural town held its first race to raise disease awareness.

See also:

 

State:

 

Video: A Conversation with Governor Gavin Newsom

PPIC
Governor Gavin Newsom’s conversation with PPIC president Mark Baldassare last week focused on energy policy and climate change. After noting that it had been one year since PG&E declared bankruptcy, Baldassare asked the governor about his vision for the future of California utilities. Newsom responded by broadening the question.

 

Statewide rent control measure heading to November ballot

San Francisco Business Times

The proponents are the same team that was behind Proposition 10, a rent control measure that appeared in 2018.

See​​ also:

 

Uber, Lyft drivers tell state to enforce AB5, get us back wages

San Francisco Chronicle

Uber and Lyft drivers did not become employees when AB5, California’s landmark gig-work law, took effect Jan. 1. The ride-hail companies are battling to keep drivers as independent contractors rather than converting them into employees, as the law envisions.

 

California faces $1.2 billion budget hit after Trump administration rejects Medi-Cal proposal

Sacramento Bee

The federal government notified Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration Friday that it is rejecting California’s Medicaid financing proposal, a decision that could cost the state $1.2 billion.

 

PG&E clears another bankruptcy hurdle with debt refinancing

Porterville Recorder

A federal judge on Tuesday approved a settlement that moves Pacific Gas & Electric closer to getting out of bankruptcy, but the troubled utility still must navigate nettlesome obstacles from the state of California.

See​​ also:

 

Commentary: Does AB 5 Violate Publishers First Amendment Protections as Well as Freelancers?

Fox & Hounds

Freelance writers and photographers challenged AB 5 in court as a violation of their First Amendment’s rights to freedom of speech.  A second line of attack could come from those who hire the writers and photographers. The way some publishers run their publications, whether print or digital, could be drastically altered and potentially put out of business by the dictates of AB 5. Isn’t that a First Amendment violation “abridging …freedom…of the press?”

 

California bill would require all registered voters to cast ballots

San Francisco Chronicle

Assemblyman Marc Levine, D-San Rafael, introduced a bill Tuesday that would require all registered voters to return their ballots, either by mail or to a vote center, even if left blank. The measure, AB2070, would leave it up to the secretary of state, California’s chief elections official, to decide how to enforce the law.

 

Federal:

 

His brother was killed by undocumented man. He’s Trump’s special guest for State of Union

Fresno Bee

Tulare County’s Jody Jones was among President Donald Trump’s 11 special guests at the White House on Tuesday for the State of the Union.

See​​ also:

 

State of the Union: rally atmosphere, tensions with Dems, Pelosi rips up speech Stockton Record

President Donald Trump delivered his State of the Union address Tuesday night, a day before he is expected to be acquitted by the Senate on two articles of impeachment, a topic notably absent from the night.

See also:

 

Senate so far split neatly along party lines on Trump impeachment

Los Angeles Times

The Senate is so far cleaving neatly along party lines in advance of Wednesday’s virtually certain votes to acquit President Donald Trump on two impeachment charges, with just two or three undecided members even considering breaking with their party.

See​​ also:

 

Elections 2020:

 

Myers: Iowa’s caucuses saw several changes all at once, a cautionary tale for the California primary

Los Angeles Times

After years of national heckling for holding elections that last longer than the time it takes to binge-watch several seasons of a TV show, it’s no wonder that California political insiders are breathing of sigh of relief: At least we’re not Iowa.

See​​ also:

 

Michael Bloomberg ramps up California campaign as rivals finish race in Iowa

Los Angeles Times

The huge sums that billionaire Michael R. Bloomberg is dumping into ads for his presidential campaign have impressed Leslie Chiles of Sacramento. It’s not just that she agrees with him. It’s also that the money he’s devoting to oust President Trump seems limitless.

See​​ also:

 

Buttigieg, Sanders lead as Iowa releases partial results

Fresno Bee

The Iowa Democratic Party has released additional results of its kickoff presidential caucus after a long day of delay.

See​​ also:

 

New Hampshire could play ‘tiebreaker’ for Trump in 2020 general election

Fresno Bee

New Hampshire is the one that got away in 2016 for President Donald Trump. It could be the state that counts the most in 2020.

See​​ also:

 

Election misinformation tricks Democrats and Republicans alike. Voters beware

Sacramento Bee

Jon Favreau and Melissa Melendez have little in common. He’s a former speechwriter for President Barack Obama and co-hosts the staunchly anti-Trump Pod Save America. She’s a Trump-supporting Republican Assemblymember. But they found some common ground in 2020. Both helped spread falsehoods about California’s primary election on Twitter.

 

Other:

 

Commentary: A Republic, If We Can Keep It

The Atlantic

In the days leading up to the Senate’s impeachment trial, some people hoped that Chief Justice John Roberts, presiding over the trial, would use his position to send a strong message to the senators on what the Constitution requires of them.

 

Comparative Democratic Development Part I: Conditions of Democracy

edx

Conditions of Democracy is the first course in a two-part series intended as a broad survey of the political, social, cultural, economic, institutional, and international factors that foster and obstruct the development and consolidation of democracy.

 

 

MADDY INSTITUTE PUBLIC POLICY PROGRAMMING

 

Sunday, February 9, at 10 a.m. on ABC30 – Maddy Report: pre-empted

 

Sunday, February 9, at 10 a.m. on Newstalk 580AM/105.9FM (KMJ) – Maddy Report - Valley Views Edition: How Will AB5 Impact the Valley? - Guests: Dillon Savory, Executive Director of the Fresno-Madera-Tulare-Kings Central Labor Council; Nathan Ahle, Executive Director of the Fresno Chamber of Commerce; and Jamie Bossuat, member of the Stockton Chamber of Commerce and attorney with the law firm Kroloff, Belcher, Smart, Perry, & Christopherson. Host: Maddy Institute Executive Director, Mark Keppler.

 

Sunday, February 9, at 7:30 a.m. on UniMas 61 (KTTF) – El Informe Maddy: Como Entender las Reservas del Presupuesto Estatal - Guests: Jacqueline Barocio & Lourdes Morales, investigadores de LAO y Alexei Koseff, Reportero de San Francisco Chronicle. Host: Maddy Institute Program Coordinator, Maria Jeans.

 

AGRICULTURE/FOOD

 

Future of Stockton tomato-processing plant uncertain

Stockton Record

Mizkan America, the company that operates the longtime tomato-processing plant bordered by Waterloo Road and D Street in east Stockton known for its Ragu and Bertolli pasta sauces, is looking to get out of the business.

 

Gov. Newsom’s Proposal May Ripple Beyond CA’s Cannabis Industry

Forbes

When California Governor Gavin Newsom announced his proposal to consolidate three existing agencies with a hand in regulating cannabis in his state into a new Department of Cannabis Control, the industry reacted with optimistic skepticism.

 

CRIMINAL JUSTICE/FIRE/PUBLIC SAFETY

 

Crime:

 

Merced’s Loughborough area getting new attention from city, after years of violent crime

Merced Sun-Star

A nine-month pilot program has already kicked off goals and initiatives set on revitalizing the neighborhood, which has been racked by violent crime and outdated infrastructure.

 

Google and YouTube send cease-and-desist letter to facial recognition app that helps law enforcement

CBSNews

Google and YouTube have sent a cease-and-desist letter to Clearview AI, a facial recognition app that scrapes images from websites and social media platforms, CBS News has learned. The tech companies join Twitter, which sent a similar letter in January, in trying to block the app from taking pictures from their platforms.

 

Public Safety:

 

California shooting shows security vulnerabilities on buses

Porterville Recorder

Would-be plotters bent on staging an attack aboard a passenger plane know they've first got to pass through a gauntlet of security measures at an airport, from body scans and spot interrogations to pat-downs and even close scrutiny of their shoes.

 

Grand jury report highlights major upgrades needed at coroner's division

Bakersfield Californian

The Kern County Coroner’s facility desperately needs an update, according to a Kern County grand jury report made public on Tuesday. And that’s not really news, it noted in the report. Four previous grand jury reports in the past two decades reached similar conclusions.

 

Taft Correctional Institution takes steps toward closure as deadline approaches

Bakersfield Californian

The company that operates the Taft Correctional Institution says it has not heard back from the U.S. Department of Justice’s about its plan for the facility, and has taken steps to lay off workers on March 31.

See​​ also:

 

Do people with guns sleep better or feel safer at night? Here’s what a study found

Sacramento Bee

Gun owners don’t feel safer or sleep better at night, nor are they happier than people who don’t own guns, according to two studies headed by University of Arizona researcher Terrence Hill.

 

With Cybercriminals on the Attack, States Help Cities Punch Back

PEW
When the city of Lodi, California’s computers got hit by a ransomware attack last April, the strike disabled phone lines, forced police officers to write reports by hand and prevented workers from sending out utility bills.

 

ECONOMY/JOBS

 

Economy:

 

Why the new coronavirus will hit the world economy harder than SARS

Los Angeles Times

During the 2003 SARS epidemic, Starbucks barely had 100 stores in China to worry about. The company responded by postponing staff meetings, and pushing stricter hygiene and store-cleaning procedures for employees.

 

U.S. trade deficit falls for 1st time in 6 years

PBS
The U.S. trade deficit fell for the first time in six years in 2019 as President Donald Trump hammered China with import taxes. The Commerce Department said Wednesday that the gap between what the United States sells and what it buys abroad fell 1.7% last year to $616.8 billion. U.S. exports fell 0.1% to $2.5 trillion. But imports fell more, slipping 0.4% to $3.1 trillion. Imports of crude oil plunged 19.3% to $126.6 billion.

 

Commentary: The child poverty gap by race and ethnicity has shrunk in the US

AEI
In a recent report, I called attention to the substantial decline in poverty among children in the United States over the past half century, which contradicts much of what the popular media and some elected officials like to say. As I noted, proper measurements show that US child poverty has fallen by at least 50 percent since the 1980s, and likely more. 

 

Commentary: Why the purchase commitments in the US-China trade deal should not be replicated, ever

Brookings

As the dust settles on the U.S.-China Phase One deal signed on January 15, we want to give credit where credit is due, but also draw attention to what we see as the deal’s most troubling aspects. For a start, we applaud the Trump administration’s identification and bringing to a head the systemic challenges that China presents the U.S. and the world trading system—though we have fundamental disagreements on strategy and execution (as we wrote here).

 

Jobs:

 

California grocery store fired Valley worker who needed medical leave. Now they must pay her

Fresno Bee

A supermarket chain with several locations in the San Joaquin Valley must pay out $100,000 in a discrimination lawsuit, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission announced Tuesday.

 

Macy's to close 125 stores, shed 2,000 corporate jobs

Porterville Recorder

Macy's said Tuesday it is closing 125 of its least productive stores and cutting 2,000 corporate jobs as the struggling department store tries to reinvent itself in the age of online shopping.

See​​ also:

 

California Child Care Workers Will Hold The Biggest Union Election In Years

HuffPost

Child care workers in California plan to file for a massive union election Wednesday that will cover an estimated 40,000 people, potentially reshaping jobs within the state’s government-funded child care system for low-income families.

See also:

 

Unions should give back millions in fair share fees, groups argue in dozens of failing lawsuits

Sacramento Bee

Union leaders can’t predict the future. That’s what judges around the country are saying in rulings rejecting a batch of lawsuits filed by anti-union groups that are trying to capitalize on a 2018 Supreme Court decision by forcing bargaining groups to pay back fees they collected from non-union workers.

 

With 31,000 job openings, California government ramps up recruitment in tight labor market

Sacramento Bee

California state government is making it easier to get a job in public service as its vacancies rise amid historically low unemployment. Department recruiters are showing up in underserved and rural areas and hosting rapid-hire events along with its recruitment at colleges and the other usual places, said Brandon Littlejohn, CalHR’s state recruitment coordinator.

 

Roseville’s Adventist Health signs outsourcing deals that will cut nearly 650 jobs

Sacramento Bee

Adventist Health will be outsourcing its security and environmental services starting in March. As a result, it will be eliminating 649 workers from its employment rolls at 13 facilities statewide. Roseville-based Adventist said in letters to the California Employment Development Department that it was transferring jobs related to security and linen services to contractors that would be providing the services, adding that the company expected the contractors to offer positions to all the workers.

 

Uber, Lyft drivers tell state to enforce AB5, get us back wages

San Francisco Chronicle

Uber and Lyft drivers did not become employees when AB5, California’s landmark gig-work law, took effect Jan. 1. The ride-hail companies are battling to keep drivers as independent contractors rather than converting them into employees, as the law envisions.

 

Federal Court Halts Enforcement of California Arbitration Law

Littler

A California federal court has granted a preliminary injunction blocking enforcement of Assembly Bill 51, an expansive anti-arbitration law enacted in October and set to take effect on January 1, 2020.

 

EDUCATION

 

K-12:

 

Clovis Unified teacher wins State Educator of the Year

abc30

A Clovis Unified teacher is receiving top honors for her work inside the classroom. Liberty Elementary School teacher Stephanie Patterson won the California League of Elementary Schools State Educator of the Year in January.

 

LMCHS is Kings County Academic Decathlon champion

Hanford Sentinel

Forget the Super Bowl, the real competition this weekend was at the 38th Annual Kings County Academic Decathlon, where Lemoore Middle College High School took the top spot for the eighth year in a row.

 

California may pause student fitness tests due to bullying

Porterville Recorder

California Gov. Gavin Newsom wants to pause physical education tests for students for three years due to concerns over bullying and the test discriminating against disabled and non-binary students. The move also comes after annual test results show a growing percentage of students scoring not healthy.

See​​ also:

 

Possible bond measure for November ballot, Foothill stabbing addressed at KHSD meeting

Bakersfield Californian

Future growth, a possible bond measure and student safety following a fatal stabbing near Foothill High School were hot topics during Monday night's Kern High School District Board of Trustees meeting.

 

Mind the achievement gap: California’s disparities in education, explained

CalMatters

Few goals in education have been as frustrating and urgent as the effort to fix the deep, generational disparity in achievement between the haves and the have-nots in California schools.

 

California parents sharpen their computer science skills alongside students

EdSource

Parents are playing a more hands-on role in California’s ongoing quest to grow the number of students who pursue technology professions — and tech-savvy workers in all kinds of fields. At schools around the state, parents are learning how to code alongside their young children as a way to increase interest in computer science as a potential career path.

 

EDITORIAL: California ballot measure brings fairness to school bonds. It deserves your vote in March

Sacramento Bee

Prop. 13 – not related to the historic property tax law of the same name passed in the 1970s – would right the balance. It gives top priority to projects that impact health and​​ safety. Next would be applications from districts facing financial hardship. Third priority would go to projects that test for or mitigate lead in school water.

 

Commentary: If education procurement is broken, is teacher choice the answer?

AEI
In most schools, the end user of education products and programs—the teacher—has little or no control over what gets purchased; education products and programs are bought for teachers by school and district leaders.

 

Higher Ed:

 

Teach-In: You’ve received your Voting Guide, now what?

Fresno State Political Science

Hey registered voters, ballots are hitting your mailboxes this week. If you have questions about what is on the ballot or how the process works, including discussions of the top-two system, come to the Voting Information Teach-in next Tuesday, Feb 11, 2pm in IT 101.

 

CSU faculty, workers air concerns

Capitol Weekly

The fiscal outlook at California State University is good and the sprawling, 23-campus system that serves nearly a half-million students is in the midst of expansion. But there appear to be segments of CSU that aren’t all that happy — the faculty and the university’s workers.

 

UC freshmen applications dip for a second straight year. But why?

Los Angeles Times

After more than a decade of robust growth, applications to the University of California from would-be freshmen dipped for the second year in a row while those from transfer students continued to rise, according to preliminary UC data released Tuesday.

 

UC task force: Keep the SAT, for now

CalMatters

Weighing in on a charged debate that could influence college admissions across the country, a University of California faculty task force recommended Monday that the university continue requiring applicants to submit SAT or ACT scores, but work to develop its own admissions test.

 

Admissions scandal: Prosecutors seek longest prison sentences yet for four California parents

Los Angeles Times

College admissions scandal prosecutors recommend that a judge sentence four parents who have pleaded guilty to prison terms ranging from 18 to 26 months.

 

ENVIRONMENT/ENERGY

 

Environment:

 

Extra precautions you can take during the freezing Valley temperatures

abc30

The cold and windy weather that hit the Valley had some residents heading to local hardware stores. The freeze warnings issued this week also have experts reminding residents to cover any sensitive, exposed vegetation and to bring pets inside.

 

Teens drench themselves in fake oil in climate change protest at California pension fund

Sacramento Bee

Dozens of young people staged a dramatic march from the Capitol to the headquarters of California’s teacher pension fund on Thursday, imploring CalSTRS to withdraw its investments from oil and gas companies.

 

California communities suing Big Oil over climate change face a key hearing Wednesday

Los Angeles Times

Sea-level rise. Floods. Storm damage. For nearly three years, a group of California communities has been suing fossil fuel companies for their contribution to climate change and the damages resulting from it.

 

State will prevail in Trump emissions fight, California Air Resources Board chief says

Los Angeles Times

Even if the White House declares null and void California’s ability to regulate greenhouse-gas emissions from motor vehicles — a move expected within weeks — the state will continue to fight in court and and keep its clean-air rules in place, unless a court orders otherwise.

 

Here’s what it could cost for California to hit zero-emissions goal

ARS Technica

In September 2018, California Governor Jerry Brown set a greenhouse goal for the state: net-zero emissions by 2045. It's a very aggressive goal. The easiest part of the energy transition is the first bit: growing the meager share of renewables on the grid. But cleaning up the last 20 percent or so of our energy use is a bigger challenge and one that has yet to be tackled. From industry to air travel to agriculture, some things look like a very heavy lift.

See​​ also:

 

Column: How California’s recycling culture may have inadvertently made us even more wasteful

Los Angeles Times

California has been a pioneer in recycling, but takers for our recyclable trash get harder to find, and even redemption-value recycling centers for nickel- and dime-deposit bottles and cans are going under.

 

BLM weighs cutting environmental review when crafting public lands plans

The Hill

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is mulling a plan that would exempt the agency from considering environmental impacts when weighing how to use large swaths of public lands.

 

Energy:

 

$15M Biomass Project Shifts into High Gear in North Fork

Sierra News

Project proponents say plans are quickly moving forward and construction of North Fork’s long-anticipated, new 2-megawatt biomass plant should get underway “sometime this spring.”

 

Coal plants are closing across the West. Here are the companies sticking with coal

Los Angeles Times

For nearly half a century, the deserts and plains of the American West have been punctuated by coal-burning furnaces and towering smokestacks — hulking power stations that have sustained small-town economies and fueled the growth of the region’s major cities, from Los Angeles to Phoenix to Seattle.

 

HEALTH/HUMAN SERVICES

 

Health:

 

Flights carrying coronavirus evacuees from Wuhan, China, arrive at Travis AFB in California

Fresno Bee

Two jetliners carrying 350 American evacuees from the epicenter of China’s deadly coronavirus outbreak landed early Wednesday morning at Travis Air Force Base near Fairfield. The first of two flights aboard privately contracted Boeing 747-400s touched down at 3:59 a.m. at the Northern California military installation after its 11½-hour, 6,500-mile flight. The second landed 25 minutes later.

 

How the way you sleep can impact your health

abc30

Do you sleep on your stomach, back or on your side? Which way is best? Some sleeping positions offer more benefits than others.

 

New Valley Fever Run in Taft Brings Disease Awareness To Rural Kern County

VPR

Preliminary state data suggest nearly 8,700 Californians were diagnosed with valley fever in 2019, which would be a record high. The state’s highest case rate is consistently reported in Kern County where, this past weekend, one rural town held its first race to raise disease awareness.

See also:

 

Flavored tobacco ban, redux

CalMatters

California Democrats once again are pushing to ban flavored tobacco and e-cigarettes, as a way to discourage underage vaping, CalMatters’ Elizabeth Aguilera reports. A quarter of high-schoolers reported using e-cigarettes in 2019.

See​​ also:

 

Trump’s claim that he ‘saved’ pre-ex conditions ‘part fantasy, part delusion’

PolitiFact

President Donald Trump attempted to take credit for one of the most popular elements of the Affordable Care Act: Its protection for people who have preexisting medical conditions. "I was the person who saved Pre-Existing Conditions in your healthcare," Trump tweeted on Jan. 13.

 

Human Services:

 

Adventist Health signs outsourcing deals that will cut nearly 650 jobs

Fresno Bee

Adventist Health will be outsourcing its security and environmental services starting in March. As a result, it will be eliminating 649 workers from its employment rolls at 13 facilities statewide — including three in the Fresno area.

 

New Valley Fever Run In Taft Brings Disease Awareness To Rural Kern County

VPR
Preliminary state data suggest nearly 8,700 Californians were diagnosed with valley fever in 2019, which would be a record high. The state’s highest case rate is consistently reported in Kern County where, this past weekend, one rural town held its first race to raise disease awareness.

 

Calif. bill would ban virginity tests

Visalia Times Delta

Lawmakers on opposite sides of the country are considering new legislation that would be the first in the nation to ban "virginity testing."

 

Kings County Department of Public Health give Novel Coronavirus update

Hanford Sentinel

Dr. Milton Teske, Health Officer for the Public Health Department, would like to provide updated information regarding the new Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) that is causing an outbreak of respiratory illness in the city of Wuhan, Huebei Province, China.

 

Is Medicare short-sighted? Why home health care services are harder to come by for some

Sacramento Bee

The decision came out of the blue. “Your husband isn’t going to get any better, so we can’t continue services,” an occupational therapist told Deloise “Del” Holloway in early November. “Medicare isn’t going to pay for it.”

 

States weigh expansion of their Medicaid programs

Roll Call

State officials are seeking to change health care coverage for the nation’s poorest individuals, with Democrats trying to expand Medicaid to cover more people while Republicans aim to save costs over time. Democratic governors in at least three states with Republican-controlled legislatures are ramping up efforts to pass legislation to expand the program.

 

Burden of Health Care Payments Is Greatest Among Americans with the Lowest Incomes

Rand Corporation

Higher-income American households pay the most to finance the nation's health care system, but the burden of payments as a share of income is greatest among households with the lowest incomes, according to a new RAND Corporation study.

 

IMMIGRATION

 

Fact check: Is Trump right about California’s health care for undocumented immigrants?

Sacramento Bee

President Donald Trump warned Tuesday that California is among the states that would “bankrupt our nation by providing free taxpayer-funded healthcare to millions of illegal aliens.” But if his State of the Union address left viewers with the impression that all undocumented immigrants are eligible for health care benefits in California, that’s not true.

 

Fact Check: Does California’s sanctuary law protect criminal illegal immigrants?

Sacramento Bee

President Donald Trump in his State of the Union speech Tuesday night called out California for what is known as its “sanctuary state” law. “The State of California passed an outrageous law declaring their whole state to be a sanctuary for criminal illegal immigrants — with catastrophic results,” Trump said.

 

Trump takes aim at 'sanctuary cities'

The Hill

President Trump used two examples of criminal acts by foreign nationals to bash so-called "sanctuary" jurisdictions in New York City and the state of California. Trump, at his State of the Union address, talked about the case of a man in New York who was charged with raping and murdering a 92-year-old woman.

 

LAND USE/HOUSING

 

Land Use:

 

The Fresno Bee plans move to downtown’s historic Bitwise 41 building

Fresno Bee

After more than 40 years at 1626 E St., The Fresno Bee will move downtown – a change that reflects the company’s own transition from a newspaper company to a digital news organization.

 

Find out which stores, restaurants opening soon and being built in Modesto, Turlock

Modesto Bee

What’s coming to busy shopping areas on McHenry and Briggsmore avenues in Modesto, Tegner Road in Turlock and more.

 

Is California ready for a new state park?

CalMatters

Gov. Gavin Newsom has budgeted $20 million to create California’s first new state park in a decade, a proposal that was greeted with bipartis an support. But with the park system facing a billion-dollar maintenance backlog, how can the state ensure that the beaches are clean, the toilets flush and some two million archaeological specimens are in safe hands?

 

The Geography of Inequality: How Land Use Regulation Produces Segregation

Cambridge University Press

Public goods in the United States are largely funded and delivered at the local level. Local public goods are valuable, but their production requires overcoming several collective action problems including coordinating supply and minimizing congestion, free-riding, and peer effects.

 

Housing:

 

Former tenants sue Fresno eviction lawyers over debt collection practices

Fresno Bee

Two of Fresno’s most prominent eviction attorneys are facing lawsuits from evicted tenants who say the lawyers should be ordered to stop their debt collection practices.

 

Price: It was below freezing last night. What did the unsheltered homeless do?

Bakersfield Californian

It's cold, and Bakersfield has more homeless people than sheltered beds to accommodate them all.  So, what do folks do when the temperature drops below freezing, as it has done the last two nights?

 

Statewide rent control measure heading to November ballot

San Francisco Business Times

The proponents are the same team that was behind Proposition 10, a rent control measure that appeared in 2018.

See​​ also:

 

Column: Does it have to be so hard to pass a housing bill? Not really, and here’s a bold path forward

Los Angeles Times

Rents, up. Homelessness, up. Housing bill, down. Senate Bill 50, which could have produced a massive amount of desperately needed new housing in California, didn’t even die a humane death last week in Sacramento.

 

PUBLIC FINANCES

 

EDITORIAL: California ballot measure brings fairness to school bonds. It deserves your vote in March

Sacramento Bee

Prop. 13 – not related to the historic property tax law of the same name passed in the 1970s – would right the balance. It gives top priority to projects that impact health and safety. Next would be applications from districts facing financial hardship. Third priority would go to projects that test for or mitigate lead in school water.

 

TRANSPORTATION

 

American Airlines halts Hong Kong flights, United to follow

Porterville Recorder

American Airlines said Tuesday it has suspended flights to Hong Kong through Feb. 20 due to weak demand, and United Airlines will do the same next weekend.

See also:

 

RTD’s new CEO focused on ‘participative environment’ to benefit employees, riders

Stockton Record

Gloria Salazar is laser focused on meeting one key objective in her new leadership post. “What do the people need,” said Salazar, appointed two weeks ago as the new chief executive officer of the San Joaquin Regional Transit District.

 

Audit of California high-speed rail finds inadequate federal oversight

Los Angeles Times

Federal regulators were not aggressive enough in reacting to the California bullet train’s problems since 2009 while overseeing a $2.5-billion grant to the troubled project, a federal audit released Friday found.

 

Clean Transportation: An Economic Assessment of More Inclusive Vehicle Electrification in California

Next10

California’s transportation sector is the largest contributor of greenhouse gas emissions in the state, accounting for 41 percent of statewide emissions. Electrification of the light vehicle fleet is an essential component of the state’s ambitious plans to reduce global warming pollution.

 

Every Street In Paris To Be Cycle-Friendly By 2024, Promises Mayor

Forbes

Should she get reelected as Mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo plans to turn the French capital into a myriad of neighborhoods where “you can find everything you need within 15 minutes from home.” But, preferably, not by car. Instead, the Socialist Party politician wants more Parisians to walk and cycle.

 

WATER

 

California canals damaged by sinking soil, groundwater pumping. New bills aim to help

Fresno Bee

Democratic congressman from Fresno introduced two pieces of legislation that aim to repair aging canals and water infrastructure in California that’s been damaged by sinking ground levels – called subsidence, caused by groundwater pumping.

 

California governor proposes new plan for managing water

Bakersfield Californian

California's governor revealed a plan on Tuesday that would keep more water in the fragile San Joaquin River Delta while restoring 60,000 acres of habitat for endangered species and generating more than $5 billion in new funding for environmental improvements.

See​​ also:

 

Gov. Newsom: California must get past differences on water. Voluntary agreements are the path forward

CalMatters

Water is the lifeblood of our state. It sustains communities, wildlife and our economy—all of which make California the envy of the world. Reliably securing this vital and limited resource into the future remains a challenge, especially with a warming and changing climate.

 

To study atmospheric rivers, scientists need to get close. So they fly to them

San Francisco Chronicle

The U.S. Air Force reserve “Hurricane Hunter” squadron has been dropping weather-sensing devices into “atmospheric rivers” over the Pacific Ocean to gather information that could help Californians prepare for violent storms and prevent flooding.

 

As forests burn around the world, drinking water is at risk

PBS
Fabric curtains stretch across the huge Warragamba Dam to trap ash and sediment expected to wash off wildfire-scorched slopes and into the reservoir that holds 80% of untreated drinking water for the Greater Sydney area.

 

“Xtra”

 

Which seven bands are playing FresYes Fest? Check out this year’s lineup of music

Fresno Bee

Some of the details about this year’s FresYes Fest are still under wraps. What we do know is that the annual beer, food and music festival is happening 1-11 p.m. March 21on the stretch of Fulton Street near the Brewery District in downtown Fresno.

 

Pitbull just announced a residency in Las Vegas. Fans can catch him first in Fresno

Fresno Bee

We’re in February already, but Pitbull is kicking off 2020 in Fresno. The Miami-born rapper, singer, style icon and entrepreneur performs at the Save Mart Center on Friday night.

 

Don't miss February's supermoon and snow moon

abc30

The first of four supermoons will rise on the night of Saturday, February 8. This will be the first of four supermoons this year, with others expected in March, April and May. The moon will appear much brighter and larger than usual.

 

Celebrate Black History Month at Colonel Allensworth State Park

Porterville Recorder

Colonel Allensworth State Historic Park and the Friends of Allensworth would like to invite the public to celebrate Black History Month on February 8, from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m.

 

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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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