POLICY & POLITICS
Valley:
The Wonderful Company gives Community Food Bank its biggest donation ever
Fresno Bee
Stewart and Lynda Resnick, founders of The Wonderful Company, have donated $2.5 million to the Community Food Bank, the largest cash donation the agency has received in its 26-year history.
Devin Nunes refers 17 DOJ, FBI officials to Trey Gowdy, Bob Goodlatte to grill on surveillance abuse
Washington Examiner
House Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes, R-Calif., wrote a letter to fellow GOP chairmen referring the names of 17 current and former Justice Department and FBI officials to be interviewed for information related to potential surveillance abuse during the 2016 election.
Janz has raised four times more than every previous Nunes challenger –- combined
Fresno Bee
Overall, the campaign has raised around $2.5 million – a number Greven said could make Janz the highest fundraising House challenger in the country.
A Dairy Town, A Facebook Argument, And The Unseating Of A Mayor
Valley Public Radio
Last week, the city of Tulare ousted its mayor after he got involved in a heated argument on Facebook. The argument centered around agriculture and its impacts on the environment and the economy—but the story is far bigger than a few punches thrown on social media.
State:
Brace yourself, Californians: Here are the 12 ballot measures you get to decide in November
CALmatters
On the list are proposals to slash the gas tax, split the state in three, re-introduce rent control, absolve major corporations of their legal debt, and borrow billions to fund houses, hospitals, and water canals.
See also:
● The Big Decisions Voters Face This November New York Times
● California voters will weigh these 12 propositions on November's ballot Los Angeles Times
● Skelton: The November election just got a lot less confusing for California voters Los Angeles Times
California bans local soda taxes
Los Angeles Times
California cities and counties won’t be allowed to tax soda for the next 12 years after Gov. Jerry Brown signed fast-moving legislation Thursday.
See also:
● California, home of the first soda tax, agrees to ban them Washington Post
● California just banned soda tax — it should set off alarm bells everywhere The Hill
● Special interests win as lawmakers cut last-minute deals to pull initiatives off your ballot CALmatters
● The Big Decisions Voters Face This November New York Times
Walters: GOP's long slide into irrelevance in California
CALmatters
It may be difficult to envision now, but a half-century ago, coastal California – from San Diego on the south to tiny Del Norte County on the north – was a Republican bastion.
U.S. News
Kevin de Leon looks like the future of California politics. But he may have moved too soon. Kevin de Leon also soberly acknowledges what he's up against.
Federal:
Supreme Court this year gave a preview of things to come: Wins for Trump, Employers & Republicans
Los Angeles Times
The Supreme Court term that ended last week gave a preview of the new era ahead, when Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. may finally lead a solidly conservative majority — that doesn’t include an unpredictable justice sometimes willing to go his own way.
See also:
● Fox: The U.S. Supreme Court Adds to California’s Treasury Fox & Hounds
● GOP Celebrates Supreme Court’s Most Conservative Term in Years Roll Call
Abortion is already emerging as a top issue in the midterms with Supreme Court vacancy
Washington Post
Senators seen as potential swing votes in confirming President Trump’s next Supreme Court nominee weigh-in on their vetting process on June 28.
See also:
● Will Dems ‘gum up the works’ to try to block a Trump Supreme Court pick? San Francisco Chronicle
● Supreme Court: Democrats Can’t Block Donald Trump’s SCOTUS Pick National Review
● An explosion is coming Washington Post
● Meet the Conservative Activist Who Plays Critical Role in Supreme Court Picks Wall Street Journal
US intel agencies believe North Korea has increased nuclear fuel production
The Hill
U.S. officials believe North Korea has increased fuel production for nuclear missiles at several secret research facilites and that Kim Jong Un may plan to hide the sites amid negotiations over the country's nuclear program, according to a report Friday.
See also:
● North Korea Keeps Enriching Uranium Wall Street Journal
Washington Post
On Thursday, after five people were brutally gunned down in a newsroom in Annapolis, Md., President Trump was repeatedly pressed to comment on the bloodshed and to offer condolences to grieving family members, but said nothing.
See also:
● Opinion: The community newspaper is America’s vigilant guardian, and it’s under siege PBS NewsHour
Trump treats politics like a knife fight. Democrats can’t pretend it’s a garden party.
Washington Post
Those who see the Trump administration as an abomination have many things to spend their time worrying about. Whether the resistance behaves less than graciously to Trump and his accomplices —including his water-carriers in Congress — is far down the list.
As Trump Consolidates Power, Democrats Confront a Rebellion in Their Ranks
The New York Times
The pitched battle looming over the Supreme Court is threatening to shatter the already fragile architecture of the Democratic Party, as an activist rebellion on the left and a lurch to the right in Washington propels the party toward a moment of extraordinary conflict and forced reinvention.
Infographic: The Institutions Americans Trust Most & Least In 2018
Forbes
The issue of trust has been increasingly called into question in this era of "fake news", whether it's the accuracy of the president's tweets or the creepy notion that Alexa is recording your private conversations with sinister intent.
Other:
López Obrador, an Atypical Leftist, Wins Mexico Presidency in Landslide
New York Times
Riding a wave of populist anger fueled by rampant corruption and violence, the leftist Andrés Manuel López Obrador was elected president of Mexico on Sunday, in a landslide victory that upended the nation’s political establishment and handed him a sweeping mandate to reshape the country.
See also:
● Analyst View: Leftist wins Mexican election, exit polls show Reuters
● Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador wins Mexico's presidential election in a massive landslide Los Angeles Times
● Mexico's López Obrador wants to take his country toward a future that looks a lot like its grim past Los Angeles Times
● With Mexico presidential election, another step in global populism — but this time from the left Los Angeles Times
● Did Mexicans just elect their own populist strongman? AEI
● Here’s what you need to know about Mexico’s presidential election Washington Post
● Mexico’s AMLO Sweeps to Power in Historic Left-Wing Landslide Bloomberg
● Mexican Election Could Accelerate Nafta Talks Wall Street Journal
● Andrés Manuel López Obrador, Mexican Leftist, Wins Presidential Election Wall Street Journal
Thomas Jefferson helped define Americanism as the pursuit of happiness. But what does that mean?
Los Angeles Times
Our annual celebrations of American independence fit neatly into this mental zone of confident presumptions. To the extent that we think about it at all, the Fourth of July is the time for summer vacation schedules to start, fireworks to appear at dusk and patriotic rhetoric to evaporate amid the airbursts.
Arnold Forde, Longtime California Political Consultant and Direct Mail Pioneer, Dead at 82
Voice of OC
The publicity-shy Forde, known as Arnie, was a pioneer in the use of direct mail to target voters and worked on political campaigns for both Republicans and Democrats up and down the state, although he frequently was accused of high-profile ethical violations.
Facebook Reveals Apps, Others That Got Special Access to User Data
Wall Street Journal
Answers in a 747-page document to Congress contrast with previous statements that it restricted access to outsiders in 2015.
Senator Cory Booker: The American Dream Deferred
Brookings
For millions of Americans—white and black, men and women, Latino and Asian, straight and LGBTQ, people from every walk of life and every religion—the barriers to opportunity and success are higher than ever.
Demographics are Destiny? Data Suggests Otherwise
National Review
The Democratic theory of dominance rests on simple demographics. As young people grow up, old folks pass from the scene, and America becomes more diverse, the GOP as we know it will come to an end.
Religious-Freedom and LGBT Advocates Offer Rare Lessons in Pluralism
National Review
At a conference in Utah, rivals in the culture war call a truce and find common ground.
EDITORIAL: Protecting the public’s right to know sometimes means waging legal battles
Fresno Bee
The Fresno Bee has waged legal battles recently in two different cases to uphold the public’s right to know what its government has done and why. It is a fight that The Bee considers central to its mission.
EDITORIAL: Thumbs up: Good police work, former Californian First Lady loves Fresno
Fresno Bee
Thumbs up to Clovis police for busting two individuals who allegedly stole $100,000 worth of fireworks one week before the Fourth of July.
MADDY INSTITUTE PUBLIC POLICY PROGRAMMING
Sunday, July 8, at 10 a.m. on ABC 30 – Maddy Report: “Fighting Fire with Fire: Rethinking Forest Management” – Guest: Pedro Nava, Chair of California Little Hoover Commission. Host: Maddy Institute Executive Director, Mark Keppler.
Sunday, July 8, at 10 a.m. on Newstalk 580AM/105.9FM (KMJ) – Maddy Report - Valley Views Edition: “How Prepared is California for Natural Disaster, Generally and Forest Fires, in Particular?” – Guests: Christina Curry, Cal OES Deputy Director of Planning, Preparedness and Prevention and Pedro Nava, Chair of California Little Hoover Commission. Host: Maddy Institute Executive Director, Mark Keppler.
Sunday, July 8, at 7:30 a.m. on UniMas 61 (KTTF) – El Informe Maddy: “Fighting Fire with Fire: Rethinking Forest Management” – Guest: Little Hoover Commission Representative, Julissa Delgado. Host: Maddy Institute Program Coordinator, Maria Jeans.
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AGRICULTURE/FOOD
Best advice to U.S. dairy farmers? 'Sell out as fast as you can'
NBC
Small-dairy farmers are getting squeezed out by corporate agriculture. “That is not what America is about," a struggling farmer said.
Source of romaine lettuce E. coli outbreak identified
CBS
Tainted irrigation water appears to be the source of a national food poisoning outbreak linked to romaine lettuce, health officials said Thursday.
See also:
● Officials Identify a Source in the Romaine Lettuce E. Coli Outbreak New York Times
Sacramento Bee
The skirmish between Harley-Davidson and Donald Trump spotlighted the president’s spiraling trade war, but it’s small potatoes compared to the devastation that could befall California agriculture.
See also:
● Opinion: Millions of jobs, billions of dollars – don’t sacrifice California farms to trade war Sacramento Bee
Children’s exposure to food insecurity is still worse than it was before the Great Recession
Brookings
An important indicator of economic health, food insecurity, remains elevated over pre-recession rates despite the best labor market in more than a decade.
The Overlooked Children Working America’s Tobacco Fields
The Atlantic
Kids as young as 10 and 11 are picking cash crops for giant international companies—and hardly anyone is watching to make sure the work is safe.
Pot businesses urge California to delay strict testing rules
ABC
Nearly 150 marijuana businesses in California warned Friday that they could face crippling financial losses unless the state extends a July 1 deadline imposing strict standards for pot testing and packaging.
See also:
● CA Pot Shops Urge Brown to Postpone Strict Testing Requirements KMJ-AF1
● California pot retailers say state rules could force them to destroy millions of dollars' worth of product Los Angeles Times
CRIMINAL JUSTICE / FIRE / PUBLIC SAFETY
Crime:
Dismantling California At-Risk Inmate Housing Brings Hurdles
AP News
Special California prisons intended to protect gang informants, disgraced cops and child molesters have become so violent, gang-riddled and crowded that officials are dismantling what's become the United States' largest protective custody program.
Public Safety:
Proposition 47 is working, despite glitches
Capitol Weekly
The Legislative Analyst’s Office estimates that Proposition 47 reduced the state prison population by 4,700 during the first year of the measure.
EDITORIAL: ‘Permit Patty’ is the latest in an ugly crowd
San Francisco Chronicle
Here’s a pro tip: Don’t move into a neighborhood and try to change the established culture to fit your values. Also, don’t call the police unless it’s an emergency.
Fire:
Hot weather and gusty winds worsen some blazes
Modesto Bee
This weekend, parts of Northern California have been issued red flag weather warnings — meaning high heat, high winds and low relative humidity— which have sparked or worsened some fires.
See also:
● Fire crews making progress on 12,300-acre blaze that sent smoke into Central Valley Modesto Bee
County Fire grows to 32,500 acres, crosses into Napa County as evacuations are ordered
Fresno Bee
The huge blaze that sparked Saturday in Yolo County grew substantially overnight Saturday and throughout the day Sunday, now at 32,500 acres with 2 percent containment, according to Cal Fire.
See also:
● Evacuations ordered as winds fuel Northern California fires CNBC
ECONOMY / JOBS
Economy:
Latest minimum wage hike comes as some employers launch bidding wars for scarce workers
Los Angeles Times
Karen Quintana is keenly aware of how hard it is for companies to find workers who can handle the government red tape and other complexities of shipping containers in and out of the nation’s largest port complex in San Pedro Bay.
See also:
Will $15 minimum wage in San Francisco slow down the Bay Area exodus? Here’s what the numbers say Sacramento Bee
Despite strong economic growth, clouds loom on the California horizon
OC Register
It appears that things are looking up for the California economy. I think it’s important to point out cracks beneath the surface — economic cracks that reveal long run challenges that confront the state.
US fiscal policy may burst asset bubble
AEI
If there is one point on which almost all economists can agree, it is that a country’s trade balance is the difference between its savings and its investment rates.
Trump: Additional corporate tax cut under consideration
The Hill
President Trump said in a television interview that a second round of tax cuts may include an additional reduction to the corporate tax rate, from 21 percent to 20 percent.
See also:
● Trump calls for another round of tax cuts, further reductions to corporate tax rate Washington Post
● Kings of Tax Reform Wall Street Journal
● Here are some of the bad arguments being made about the Trump tax cuts AEI
● The White House is living in an alternate economic universe Washington Post
Is The U.S. Headed For Recession?
Capital Public Radio
The economic tea leaves right now are getting hard to read. The latest measure of economic growth showed the economy expanded at a lackluster 2 percent rate in the first quarter.
See also:
● Some Economists Boost Estimates for U.S. Growth Wall Street Journal
U.S. Inflation Rate Hit 6-Year High in May
Wall Street Journal
A price measure watched closely by the Federal Reserve hit the central bank’s target after running below it every month for six years, as a strong labor market nudges wages higher and robust economic growth squeezes slack out of the economy.
See also:
● U.S. Consumer Spending Moderated in May Wall Street Journal
Canada hits $13 billion of US goods with new tariffs
CNN
Canada has retaliated against US steel and aluminum tariffs by slapping its own penalties on American exports.
See also:
● Canada pushes back and slaps tariffs on U.S. goods from ketchup to pizza Los Angeles Times
● Trump says he won’t sign any NAFTA deal until after midterms Washington Post
● Exclusive: Largest U.S. business group attacks Trump on tariffs Reuters
Washington Post
Mass-mailing checks to strangers might seem like risky business, but Mariner Finance enables some of the nation’s wealthiest investors and investment funds to make money offering high-interest loans to cash-strapped Americans.
Jobs:
Now they have a choice. Will California teachers and cops stay in their unions?
Sacramento Bee
California public workers have a choice for the first time in decades about whether they want some of their wages to support the unions that bargain for their contracts and provide legal services when they or their colleagues get in trouble.
See also:
● Walters: Supreme Court decision could hit unions hard CALmatters
● Privacy deal comes together; What’s next after Janus CALmatters
When robots take California jobs, what happens next?
McClatchy
Even while California enjoys record-low levels of unemployment, readers responding to our California Influencer series express concerns for the future of the state’s changing economy.
To ease trucker shortage, Trump team considers dropping age requirement to 18
Los Angeles Times
The Trump administration is advancing a program to let some younger workers drive big trucks across state lines, signaling an openness to lowering the driving age more broadly amid a massive trucker shortage.
See also:
● America’s severe trucker shortage could undermine the prosperous economy Washington Post
How Americans Spend Their Time: Working Less Despite Job Growth
Wall Street Journal
An aging population spends more time on leisure, less on work. Below is a graph detailing these trends.
EDUCATION
K-12:
California superintendents give mixed reviews of funding formula at year 5
EdSource
Hundreds of district superintendents in California have offered both support and criticism of the Local Control Funding Formula in a survey coinciding with the fifth anniversary of the law that transformed how districts are funded and held accountable for improvement.
Why California Is Losing Teachers and Laying Off Secretaries
Wall Street Journal
Sacramento is flush, but cities and school districts can’t keep up with rising public pension costs.
This charter school network is positively affecting voting
Brookings
At a time when many are concerned about civic knowledge and discourse within the United States, a New York-based charter school system with the potential to add 2.5 million young adults to voter rolls provides a unique model for strengthening civic engagement.
Schools collect a massive amount of student data. But advocates want to see more
Fresno Bee
Fresno Unified School District now takes over 1 million attendance records every week — all clicked in by teachers on an online platform — and merges them with other data on behavior and grades to predict in real-time which students might be having trouble.
What teachers' unions should expect from the Supreme Court's 'opt-in' ruling
AEI
The Supreme Court‘s widely expected decision in Janus v. AFSCME struck down public sector unions’ ability to charge agency fees to public employees who aren’t union members, delivering a significant blow to teachers unions’ power.
Starting at zero: Reimagining education in America
AEI
In our single-minded focus on “fixing” the K-12 schools, we’ve been missing something very important: the critical importance of the earliest years, before kids even get to school.
Opening School-Based Health Clinics Can Lower Teacher Health Costs
RAND
Opening onsite health clinics to provide comprehensive primary care to teachers and their families can lower a school district’s health care costs and decrease teacher absenteeism, according to a new RAND Corporation study.
Tying high-school diploma to college entrance requirements could hurt some students
EdSource
Requiring students to meet the eligibility requirements of a four-year college does not ensure that students are prepared for college. More than a third of all freshmen enrolled in the CSU system are now required to take remedial classes.
Higher Ed:
What are they teaching journalism students, anyway?
Bakersfield Californian
The only thing responsible news media does "constantly" is report what your government is doing with your money, your security and your future.
California sues nation's largest student loan servicer
SFGate
California's attorney general announced Thursday he is suing the nation's largest student loan processor, alleging it is harming consumers by failing to properly service the debts.
California’s growing Latino college population brings attention and extra funds
EdSource
To be considered a Hispanic Serving Institution, at least 25 percent of the schools’ full-time undergraduates describe themselves as Hispanic, Latino or other related terms.
You Graduated Cum Laude? So Did Everyone Else
Wall Street Journal
With more students boasting flashy GPAs, academic honors lose their luster.
ENVIRONMENT/ ENERGY
Environment:
Record-high levels of toxic algae detected in Isabella Lake
Bakersfield Californian
Kern County Public Health Director Matt Constantine said state testing found concentrations of blue-green algae 20 times the level considered dangerous at Paradise and Kissack. Never have such high levels been seen in the Central Valley, he added.
Cap-And-Trade Money Goes To Rebates For Zero-Emission Vehicles, Fighting Forest Fires
Capital Public Radio
California lawmakers have voted on how to spend almost $1.5 billion collected through the state’s cap-and-trade program.
See also:
EDITORIAL: California's Costly Global Warming Campaign Turns Out To Be Worse Than Useless Investor’s Business Daily
Pruitt to meet with California air regulator amid car rules debate
The Hill
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt is planning to meet Friday with California’s top air quality regulator as the two parties try to hash out plans for car efficiency standards.
Top EPA ethics official discloses that he has urged additional investigations into Scott Pruitt
Washington Post
The Environmental Protection Agency’s chief ethics officer disclosed this week that he has urged the agency’s inspector general to investigate various allegations that Pruitt misused his government position.
China Has Refused To Recycle The West's Plastics. What Now?
NPR
For more than 25 years, many developed countries, including the U.S., have been sending massive amounts of plastic waste to China instead of recycling it on their own. Now that China won't take it, what's happening to the leftover waste?
Energy:
World’s Biggest Battery Proposed in California
Wall Street Journal
PG&E is asking for approval to build storage projects, including a battery behemoth to be owned by Vistra Energy Corp.
Lithium and cobalt: A tale of two commodities
McKinsey & Company
What does the rise of electric vehicles mean for two critical raw materials that go into their batteries—and for the players in this ecosystem?
EDITORIAL: Link California's clean energy to the rest of the west? Sounds great, but it's risky
Los Angeles Times
The state of California is considering forming a regional electrical grid to jointly manage power transmission in multiple western states, and the potential benefits are enormous.
The Tragic Cost of Energy Poverty
Real Clear Politics
Today, over 1 billion people worldwide have no electricity. Almost 40 percent of humanity – nearly 3 billion people – still use biomass, animal dung or other fuels that are dangerous for indoor cooking and heating, no different than was done hundreds of years ago.
Sorry OPEC, Oil’s Surge Is Made in America
Wall Street Journal
Oil is up a lot, but the reason is not OPEC’s decision to boost production.
HEALTH/HUMAN SERVICES
Health:
California Medical Board puts top vaccine skeptic on probation
The Hill
The Medical Board of California placed one of the leading vaccine skeptics on probation after accusing him of gross negligence.
See also:
● California pediatrician placed on probation for exempting child from all vaccines Fox News
Air pollution linked to 3.2 million new diabetes cases in one year
CNN
Levels of air pollution well below what is considered safe by the US Environmental Protection Agency and the World Health Organization are causing an increased risk of diabetes worldwide.
Opening School-Based Health Clinics Can Lower Teacher Health Costs
RAND
Opening onsite health clinics to provide comprehensive primary care to teachers and their families can lower a school district’s health care costs and decrease teacher absenteeism, according to a new RAND Corporation study.
‘Conversion therapy’ for gays would be sharply limited under California bill
San Francisco Chronicle
The practice of trying to change someone’s sexual orientation or gender identity is opposed by leading medical groups such as the American Psychological Association, which say it is ineffective and often harmful.
Palliative Sedation, an End-of-Life Practice That Is Legal Everywhere
Pew Charitable Trusts
Under palliative sedation, a doctor gives a terminally ill patient enough sedatives to induce unconsciousness. The goal is to reduce or eliminate suffering, but in many cases the patient dies without regaining consciousness.
EDITORIAL: FDA dawdles around while consumers get sick
Bakersfield Californian
Talk about dragging your feet. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s failure to implement the 2011 Food Safety Modernization Act is putting American consumers at risk.
Human Services:
Adventist Health take over of Tulare hospital approved
Fresno Bee
The board voted 4-1 Wednesday evening to accept the plan by Adventist that could have the hospital open within four months, which would meet a deadline for Tulare Regional Medical Center to reopen before a one-year temporary license suspension expires in October.
See also:
● Can Adventist Health open Tulare hospital this fall, as promised? Visalia Times-Delta
Check-up: How health care fares in California’s new spending plan
CALmatters
California has been a national leader in the effort to expand health care coverage, but some advocates say this year’s state budget marks a step backward in the quest to reduce and ultimately eliminate the number of uninsured people.
Immigration
Los Angeles Times
A woman named Mirian and her 18-month-old son reached Brownsville, Texas, early this year after fleeing Honduras, where the military had teargassed their home. She made her way to a port of entry and asked for asylum, according to court records.
See also:
● Trump administration may seek to detain migrant families longer than previously allowed Washington Post
'Even the cops don’t like us anymore': Under Trump, ICE is despised and divided
Los Angeles Times
Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents were spotted in Union Station. Their appearance triggered a phone call to Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti’s office. An LAPD officer reached out to David Marin, the director of Enforcement and Removal Operations for ICE in L.A.
Trump’s Immigrant-Detention Plans Benefit Private Prison Operators
Wall Street Journal
CoreCivic, Geo Group, both Trump campaign contributors, have become more reliant on ICE revenue in recent years
Fact Check: A Look at Illegal Immigration Statistics
NBC Los Angeles
With the controversy over family separations, much of the political rhetoric in recent weeks has focused on illegal immigration. We thought it would be helpful to take a step back and look at some measures of illegal immigration in a larger context.
Moderate Republicans and Democrats tried to convince Congress to help Dreamers. Why the plan failed
Los Angeles Times
Rep. Jeff Denham (R-Turlock) sat down with the Los Angeles Times the day the bill failed in the House for a behind-the-scenes look at how the effort faltered, where Congress goes next and why the issue is so personal for him.
Thousands Gather in Cities Across U.S. to Protest Trump Immigration Policies
Wall Street Journal
‘Families Belong Together’ event demands reunification of families separated by now-reversed administration policy
See also:
● ‘This fight is all of ours’: Stockton joins nationwide immigration protests - News Stockton Record
● Tulare County activists demand compassion at Families Belong Together Rally Visalia Times Delta
● Hundreds march to advocate for keeping immigrant families together Bakersfield Californian
● Photo Gallery: Families Belong Together march Bakersfield Californian
Los Angeles Times
There are more people displaced now by war and instability, primarily in the Middle East and Africa, than any time since the end of World War II.
LAND USE/HOUSING
Land Use:
Sundale Country Club faces foreclosure
Bakersfield Californian
Another Bakersfield golf course is fighting for survival after falling on hard financial times, as much a reflection of local economic conditions as the sport's fading popularity.
Housing:
California housing crisis podcast: Why landlords and tenants couldn't make a deal on rent control
Los Angeles Times
California voters will decide on four housing measures in the November election. No issue will be more contested than rent control.
See also:
● Gimme Shelter podcast: The rent control war CALmatters
● Is Rent Control Working and Should We Have More or Less of It? KQED
● California home prices called ‘rational’ when climate is factored in OC Register
Dispelling myths about California’s homeless
PolitiFact
City and state leaders are paying more attention to California’s surging homeless population. They’re pushing for more housing and money to curb a crisis made worse by the state’s lack of affordable housing.
PUBLIC FINANCES
Los Angeles Times
From the first time decades ago he was lampooned as a quirky upstart until now, the final stretch of his unprecedented fourth term as California’s governor, Jerry Brown has reveled in his reputation as a cheapskate.
See also:
● Here's why California faces fiscal risks despite its largest budget surplus in more than a decade CNBC
Gas taxes: Where does your money actually go?
Mercury News
Nearly 59 percent of those funds go to highway maintenance, road repairs and public transit, according to the Department of Finance.
Online sales tax ruling could bring 'hundreds of millions of dollars' to California
Sacramento Bee
California was already trying to wring more tax out of online retailers months before the Supreme Court handed down a ruling that gave states permission to do so.
Towns Must Stop Treating Residents Like ATMs
Investor’s Business Daily
In their quest for cash, municipalities across the nation are trampling individual rights and human dignity by imposing arbitrary and abusive fines on residents.
Trump Economist Lawrence Kudlow Wrongly Says Deficit Falling
NY Magazine
President Trump’s chief economic adviser Lawrence Kudlow has made a career out of being extraordinarily wrong about everything without ever reconsidering his absolute devotion to the supply-side economics dogma that has produced all the wrongness.
See also:
● Is the Deficit 'Coming Down Rapidly' as Larry Kudlow Claimed?
Weekly Standard
Republican tax law hits churches
Politico
Republicans have quietly imposed a new tax on churches, synagogues and other nonprofits, a little-noticed and surprising change that could cost some groups tens of thousands of dollars.
AP fact check: Trump’s tax ‘miracle,’ immigration claims
PBS NewsHour
Boasting about his tax cuts, President Donald Trump inflated his role in boosting the economy to mythical proportions, claiming full credit for U.S. growth that was already in the making and ignoring the reality of a mounting deficit.
Stress test results signal more flexible new-look Fed
Reuters
This year's Federal Reserve stress test results suggested a more flexible approach, a further sign the regulator's new leadership is responding positively to a Wall Street push for pragmatic bank supervision, analysts and lawyers said.
TRANSPORTATION
State revs up the plan to build high-speed-rail system faster by focusing on the Valley
Modesto Bee
California's beleaguered high-speed rail agency, mired in delays in property acquisition and construction in the Valley and environmental clearances elsewhere in the state, hopes to pick up the pace of its work in the coming year.
Tesla Finally Hits Model 3 Target, Turns Focus to Sustainability
Bloomberg
Tesla Inc. reached a milestone critical to Elon Musk’s goal to bring electric cars to the masses -- and earn some profit in the process -- by finally exceeding a long-sought production target with the Model 3.
WATER
If Gov. Brown wants a legacy, he must follow through on clean water
Sacramento Bee
While Gov. Jerry Brown is busy trying to secure his legacy with the Delta tunnels and high-speed rail, he appears to have abandoned one of the most important tasks of his career: Making sure all Californians have clean drinking water.
Cutler Park water tests positive for coliform and E. coli, notices posted
Visalia Times-Delta
Recently, park staff tested the water, part of standard quarterly requirements. The tests came back with bacteria levels not suitable to drink or use.
See also:
● Residents of this California city have been ordered to boil tap water SFGate
Water woes continue in Exeter. Residents can't flush for 9 hours
Visalia Times-Delta
Just weeks after Exeter residents complained about low water pressure, soon all of the city will be without water for 9 hours, and can't drink it for more than 24 hours.
As Modesto rain year ends, there remains gratitude for the very wet 2016-17 season
Modesto Bee
With the Modesto Irrigation District's rainfall season — July 1 to June 30 — at its end, district and farming officials indicated they're feeling OK about the water picture. Especially since they're still feeling the benefits of the very wet 2016-17 year.
Lower Kern River will flow as lake managers shrink Isabella for planned work on dam
Bakersfield California
Bakersfield residents should see more water than usual tumbling and crashing over rocks and boulders in the Kern River Canyon this summer.
New Groundwater Woes, and Regulations, in California Wine Country
News Deeply
Four groundwater basins in Napa and Sonoma counties may be in worse shape than previously thought. The state of California recently signaled they should be subject to new groundwater sustainability rules.
“Xtra”
Freedom Fest: A Clovis Tradition
Clovis Roundup
The annual Clovis Freedom Fest celebration has grown and blossomed into one of the largest fireworks shows in the Central Valley.
Want to celebrate America? Modesto, surrounding communities prepare to have a blast
Modesto Bee
There’s no lack of patriotism among communities throughout the rest of the Modesto and Mother Lode regions. Here’s a look at what’s still in store.
Bottle rockets lighting up your neighborhood? Visalia firefighters want to know
Visalia Times Delta
From now until Thursday, fire and police departments will be canvassing the city to stop the use of illegal fireworks.
Fireworks sales start Sunday in Bakersfield, starting busy week for firefighters
Bakersfield Californian
Independence Day is only a few days away and that means one thing for more than a few people in Kern County: fireworks. All the activity leading up to the Fourth of July — and the day itself — creates a huge workload for local fire departments.
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