IN THIS ISSUE:
Top Policy/Political Stories
- Valley
- State
- Federal
- Agriculture/Food
- Criminal Justice/Public Safety
- Economy/ Jobs
- Education
- Environment/Energy
- Health/Human Services
- Immigration
- Land Use/Housing
- Public Finances
- Transportation
- Water
- “Xtra“
- Editorials
TOP POLITICAL STORIES
Valley Politics:
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.
Valley Home to California’s Least Health Counties Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the University of Wisconsin’s Population Health Institute released their annual analysis of the healthiest and least healthy of California’s 58 counties in California. Here’s how Valley Counties ranked (most rank in bottom third): · Stanislaus Co: #35 · Merced Co; #37 · Kings Co: #41 · San Joaquin Co: #42 · Madera Co: #43 · Fresno Co: #46 · Tulare Co: #47 · Kern Co: #54
National school walkout against gun violence at Fresno High The Fresno Bee Hundreds of Fresno High School students left class Wednesday morning and stood outside the school holding signs that asked “Am I next?” in a protest to end gun violence. The names of the 17 victims of last month’s Florida school shooting were read aloud as rows of students sat or laid in the grass to represent each victim. See also: ● National school walkout The Fresno Bee ● Bullard High speaker: ‘I wanted it to mean more’ than just saying their names Fresno Bee ● 250 Yosemite High students silently participate in ‘walkout’ Sierra Star● Visalia, Tulare students rise up for the National School WalkoutVisalia Times-Delta ● Modesto, Turlock, Ceres, Riverbank student walkout protest The Modesto Bee ● Modesto area students join walkout over gun violence Modesto Bee ● At Independence High, a solemn show of solidarity for Florida shooting victims Bakersfield Californian● Students gather at Tehachapi High School to advocate for gun control, remember dead in Florida school shooting Bakersfield Californian● More than a hundred Franklin High School students gather at walkout Stockton Record● Huge student walkouts in Sacramento a call to action for young people nearing voting age Sacramento Bee ● California students walk out to protest gun violence Merced Sun-Star ● California legislators join student protests over gun laws Los Angeles Times ● California voices from the National School Walkout EdSource ● Why Demonstrating Is Good for Kids The New York Times ● National School Walkout: Thousands Protest Against Gun Violence Across the US New York Times ● Seaside teacher, councilman and reserve officer accidentally discharges weapon in a classroom Montereycountyweekly.com ● Teacher accidentally fires gun in California class, 3 hurt ABC30 ● Teacher with gun accidentally shot a student in classroom safety demo Business Insider ● Real lock-down comes amid training for school threats ABC30 ● South Carolina governor: Student walkouts are ‘shameful’ TheHill ● Zero tolerance discipline policies won’t fix school shootingsUPI.com ● NRA tweets during student gun-control protests: ‘I’ll control my own guns, thank you’ TheHill
New Business Plan Reveals A More Distant, Expensive High-Speed Rail Dream Valley Public Radio Last week news broke that California’s High-Speed Rail Authority is facing another setback – increased costs and a delayed timeline as indicated in the authority’s new2018 Draft Business Plan. The effort to connect Los Angeles and San Francisco with bullet train running through the Central Valley will now cost over $77 billion. On top of that, phase one of the project will not be fully operational until the year 2033. That’s 25 years after California voters first approved spending bond funds on the rail line. To learn more about the new plan we spoke with The Fresno Bee’s Tim Sheehan, one of the state’s leading reporters on high-speed rail. See also: · Warszawski: I believe in the bullet train The Fresno Bee · Walters: Is state’s high-speed rail system still a ‘train to nowhere?’ Fresno Bee
Hundreds of valley residents sworn in as US Citizens at naturalization ceremony ABC30 Nearly 1,000 people were sworn in as American citizens today in downtown Fresno. Nine hundred Central Valley residents from 47 different countries celebrated the naturalization process.
Two die in Kern Co after vehicle overturns fleeing ICE agents The Fresno Bee When federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents flashed emergency lights at an SUV just before 7 a.m. Tuesday in rural California, the driver initially pulled over. But when agents emerged from their vehicle, the driver took off again, according to a Delano Police Department release. The SUV drifted onto a dirt shoulder at high speed, overturned and slammed into a power pole. Santo Hilario Garcia, 35, and Marcelina Garcia Profecto, 33, died in the crash, police said. See also: · Skelton: Trump should tour Central Valley farm fields — and leave his immigration agents at home Los Angeles Times
Family of man shot and killed by police marches to Tulare city hall The Fresno Bee Carrying signs that read “Justice for Jontell” and “Treat the Ill, Not Kill the Ill,” about 100 marchers took to the streets of Tulare on Wednesday, showing their displeasure at the recent fatal police shooting of a 27-year-old man. The family of that man, Jontell Reedom led the marchers, most of whom were from the local African American community.
Mudslides in Tulare County and a rockslide near the Yosemite entrance caused by heavy rain Tulare County crews are cleaning up after heavy rain in burn scar areas caused flooding and mudslides. Dirt and debris covered Highway 190 east of Springville Tuesday night near the hydro-electric plant. Crews worked through the night and into the early morning hours to get the road back open to local residents.
Cottage homes break ground, other Old Town projects in the works Clovis Roundup The city’s first two cottage homes, to be located along alleyways in Old Town, broke ground last month and Clovis Director of Planning Dwight Kroll couldn’t be more excited to see the Cottage Home Program unfold. “This is a unique opportunity for Old Town residents to earn some equity, maybe cause a positive cash flow from renting or having an Airbnb, and at the same time improve the appearance of our alleys and our downtown area,” Kroll said at a recent city council meeting. “We have 300 potential lots within the Old Town area. Two lots are under construction right now and six permits are out.”
Linn turning supes probe over to state attorney general Madera Tribune Madera County District Attorney David A. Linn announced Monday that California Attorney General Xavier Becerra will take charge of Linn’s criminal investigation of members of the Madera County Board of Supervisors. This is due to the potential conflict of interest between Linn and the supervisors. Kern County defends its ambulance plan from state lawsuit Bakersfield Californian The fate of Kern County’s ambulance service system dispute continued for a second day of hearings as a state legal challenge proceeded before Administrative Law Judge Samuel Reyes. Kern County and the California Emergency Medical Services Authority all but wrapped up their cases before a judge on Wednesday after witnesses for the County of Kern were interviewed on the stand.
Regional economy is steady, summit speakers agree, but state has challenges Bakersfield Californian Things are looking up. If one can apply that kind of blanket judgment to a topic as broad and subjective as economics, most people must have surely reached that conclusion at Wednesday’s 18th annual Kern County Economic Summit. U.S. job growth is expanding, key regional employment indicators are solid and optimism pervades.
Modesto backs homeless shelter plan, but mayor raises questions Modesto Bee Modesto leaders are backing a proposal to open a temporary, 60-bed homeless shelter and day center near downtown, which could open as soon as June and be in place for as long as three years until a permanent facility with more services opens.
Opinion: Ignore Nunes’ drama; wait for Mueller Modesto Bee You know how most every year there’s drama in the early rounds of the NCAA Tournament – big upsets and at least one underdog school high-stepping it to the Sweet 16? It’s great entertainment. It’s good TV, even though we know that most every year, the teams that are actually ranked in the Top 25 are the teams that inevitably end up playing for the title. It’s like that with the Donald Trump investigation.
State Politics:
Brown proposes more funding for California Census effort The Sacramento Bee California lawmakers are in the thick of the state budget review season, with budget subcommittees in the Assembly and Senate combing through Gov. Jerry Brown’s funding proposals. All five Senate budget subcommittees meet today, including the Senate Budget Subcommittee on State Administration and General Government. As the 2020 Census nears, the subcommittee will debate Brown’s proposal to support a California effort to reach hard-to-count populations. See also: · The U.S. will become “minority white” in 2045, Census projects Brookings
Commentary: Democrats allow GOP to game top-two primary CALmatters California’s Republican Party hasn’t shown much political acumen in recent years, which is one reason why it’s been, in the words of former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, “dying at the box office.” However, the GOP may be pulling off one of history’s most audacious political coups, one that could save the seats of several embattled Republican members of Congress and potentially preserve the party’s control of the House. See also
Capitol reporters ask Legislature to release harassment records routinely CALmatters Last month, legislative leaders broke from their custom of keeping records about sexual harassment in the Capitol secret when they released a decade of documents about misconduct by lawmakers and high-level staff. But in the weeks since, reporters who cover the state Capitol have faced a mishmash of responses when we’ve sought additional harassment records from the Legislature—including long delays for some reporters. See also: · Sexual harassment training for nearly all California workers if Democrat gets her way Sacramento Bee
CA lawmakers tackle health care bills to improve Obamacare The Sacramento Bee Obamacare is unraveling. California can’t create its own replacement, at least not yet. So health care advocates and lawmakers are working on a piecemeal approach. They want to offer a public insurance option to compete with private companies. They want to increase subsidies for those buying insurance through Obamacare. They want to cover most undocumented immigrants. They want to lower prescription drug costs.
Constitutional Constraints on Moving Toward Universal Coverage in California California Budget & Policy Center Achieving universal health coverage in California could require tax increases to support additional, ongoing state spending. For example, a tax increase of over $100 billion would be needed to help finance a single-payer system.
Don’t play politics with dying Californians Sacramento Bee Lawmakers have to strike a balance between rules that safeguard patients and excessive regulations that make it difficult for patients to access health care. Adding more rules sometimes does more harm than good, and new legislation to amend California’s End of Life Option Act is a classic example.
How California went from anti-immigration to ‘sanctuary state’ KPCC Amparo Cid traces her work as an attorney helping recent immigrants and their families in the Central Valley fight injustices and potential deportation, to her experience as a child in 1994.
CA Senate names undocumented immigrant to financial aid post The Sacramento Bee The Senate Rules Committee on Wednesday appointed the first undocumented resident to a statewide post, according to Senate President pro Tem Kevin de León’s office. Lizbeth Mateo, a 33-year-old attorney and immigrant rights activist, will serve on the California Student Opportunity and Access Program Project Grant Advisory Committee. The committee advises the California Student Aid Commission on efforts to increase college access for California students from low-income or underserved communities.
Attorney wants $4.6 million after Caltrans porn lawsuit The Sacramento Bee The attorney who represented a former Caltrans employee in a salacious workplace pornography lawsuit is taking credit for the resignations of two high-ranking state executives and requesting millions of dollars in legal fees for his work over the past five years. The recent resignations of California Department of Transportation Director Malcolm Dougherty and Chief Deputy Director Kome Ajise coincided with milestones in the lawsuit. Dougherty testified in the case. Ajise was on the witness list, but did not testify.
California needs new laws to boost earthquake safety, assemblyman says Los Angeles Times A Los Angeles lawmaker says California needs new statewide laws that boost earthquake safety, and wants to toughen rules on how strong new buildings should be and require cities to identify buildings at risk of collapse.
State lawmaker unveils proposal to preserve net neutrality in California Los Angeles Times A state senator on Wednesday unveiled his full proposal to restore net neutrality in California, a set of rules to prevent internet service providers from manipulating or hindering access to online content.
Audio: California stopped being a middle class paradise — and lost a million residents on the way 89.3 KPCC California’s lush coastline, balmy climate and post-World War II economic promise made it an easy sell as America’s middle class paradise in the 1950s. “The California Dream of two or three generations ago was, `I’m going to move from a place that’s cold and flat to a place where there’s lots of opportunity,’” said Joel Kotkin, a presidential fellow in Urban Futures at Chapman University in Orange. “’I’ll get a job in an aerospace factory, in an oil company. I’ll buy a house with a pool. I’ll die and go to heaven. And I’ll do it all in good weather.’”
Democrat’s apparent win in GOP stronghold holds lessons for California San Francisco Chronicle Democrat Conor Lamb, who shocked the nation with an apparent win in a strongly pro-Trump Pennsylvania congressional district, is anything but the “San Francisco liberal” that Republicans love to scorn. And that’s one reason why his surprise victory could be bad news for the true progressive Democrats looking to flip GOP seats in California. See also: · What makes Democrats run — besides loathing Trump San Francisco Chronicle · Fox: Trump vs. California — Final Round in 2020 Fox & Hounds · Where were California GOP candidates Tuesday? Not with TrumpLos Angeles Times
Federal Politics:
Bill to raise age to buy assault weapons to 21 is dead The Fresno Bee Forget the idea of raising the age limit for buying an assault weapon to 21. Not even the momentum from Wednesday’s school walkouts around the nation, or an emotional congressional hearing on gun safety, were enough to ensure enough congressional votes for an idea that as recently as last week was seen as a small but doable step in bolstering gun safety. Once President Donald Trump left the plan out of his gun safety package this week, after warming to the idea last month, it was dead. See also: ● House Passes School Safety Bill But Unlikely to Take More Action on Guns Roll Call
California doesn’t want this towering water project. Trump administration may build it anyway Los Angeles Times The Trump administration is pushing forward with a colossal public works project in Northern California — heightening the towering Shasta Dam the equivalent of nearly two stories. The problem is that California is dead-set against the plan, and state law prohibits the 602-foot New Deal-era structure from getting any taller.
Trump Picks CNBC’s Larry Kudlow as Top Economic Adviser New York Times President Trump loves big personalities, live television, the stock market and loyalty. In choosing Larry Kudlow, a CNBC television commentator, to serve as the next director of the National Economic Council, he has checked all those boxes.
Senate passes rollback of banking rules enacted after financial crisis Washington Post The Senate on Wednesday passed the biggest loosening of financial regulations since the economic crisis a decade ago, delivering wide bipartisan support for weakening banking rules despite bitter divisions among Democrats.
Message to Trump: California isn’t in the deportation business Washington Post The Trump administration and California can agree on this point: Public safety must be a top priority. But in California, we believe our communities are safest when we have trust between our law enforcement and the communities they serve.
Other:
Is most gun crime committed by those who illegally possess guns? PolitiFact New York U.S. Rep. John Faso says he opposes some gun-control measures because they target the wrong people. Laws that limit the rights of law-abiding gun owners don’t make sense because most gun crime is committed by those who illegally possess a gun, said Faso, a Republican. “The vast majority of crime that is gun related is committed by people who illegally are possessing that firearm,” Faso said in an interview on C-SPAN. Faso – who represents parts of the Hudson Valley and Capital Region – supports strengthening background checks for gun buyers, banning bump stocks and raising the age to purchase a firearm to 21. He does not support other measures, like a ban on assault-style firearms. See also: ● Improving Gun Policy Science RAND ● U.S. Gun Policy in a Global Context RAND East Bay Express Last Thursday was a normal day for the East Bay Times’ staff: On the transportation beat, Erin Baldassari had an eyebrow-raising story about racial inequality and car insurance rates. Courts reporter Angela Ruggiero wrote about Home Depot’s $27.8 million fine for illegally dumping hazardous waste into local landfills. Investigative reporter Thomas Peele and crime reporter Nate Gartrell published a shocking clip about alleged police corruption in Kensington.
What Is An American Conservative? National Review Jonah Goldberg has a highly interesting column today about Steve Bannon, the European Right, and conservatism. Recently, Bannon was in France, rallying with the National Front. “History is on our side,” he said. There are always people, on right and left, who claim that they are on “the right side of history” while others are on the “wrong side.” I wrote an essay about this in 2011 (here). In his column, Jonah writes that Bannon’s “blood-and-soil nationalism and racially tinged populism” is at odds with “the best and highest ideals of conservatism” and with America.
Topics in More Detail… AGRICULTURE/FOOD
California doesn’t want this towering water project. Trump administration may build it anyway Los Angeles Times The Trump administration is pushing forward with a colossal public works project in Northern California — heightening the towering Shasta Dam the equivalent of nearly two stories. The problem is that California is dead-set against the plan, and state law prohibits the 602-foot New Deal-era structure from getting any taller
CRIMINAL JUSTICE / FIRE / PUBLIC SAFETY
For stories on ”gun control and gun violence,” See: “Top Stories – Valley, Federal and Other Politics,” above
Crime:
Family of inmate beaten to death in Merced jail files $2 million lawsuitModesto Bee The family of a Los Banos man who was beaten to death last year at the Merced County jail has filed a wrongful death lawsuit seeking $2 million. Aaron Bonilla, 31, was attacked June 11, 2017, while in custody in Merced. Authorities have said at least three other inmates were involved in the attack on Bonilla, which investigators said lasted about 12 minutes.
Man accused in California’s largest raptor poaching case left hawk carcasses to rot Sacramento Bee They found them dead, lying in piles around the base of telephone poles and trees – dozens and dozens of dead hawks and other birds blasted from their perches.
Commentary: Irvine Study on Prop 47 Disproves Its Own Conclusion PublicCEO A recent study by a University of Irvine professor and a doctoral student purports to examine whether Prop 47 was responsible for the rising crime rate in 2015, the year after its passage. The authors, in what they admitted was a “quasi-experimental” study, invented “a synthetic control group” to compare California’s crime rate to this “synthetic” California. They concluded that Prop 47 was not responsible for the upticks in crime after its enactment.
5 facts about prisoners and work, before and after incarceration Brookings About one third of all 30-year-old men who aren’t working are either in prison, in jail, or are unemployed ex-prisoners. Almost half of ex-prisoners have no reported earnings in the first several years after leaving prison; among those who do find work, half earn less than $10,090 a year or less than a full time job at minimum wage.
It’s Time to Stop Fixating on Punishment The Nation President Trump wants to execute drug dealers. It’s not a new idea. He’s been floating it for a few weeks now, crediting it as a big idea he got from the Chinese president, Xi Jinping. (As we have already learned, President Trump holds autocrats in high esteem.) But the notion landed as one of Trump’s more popular lines at a March rally in Moon Township, Pennsylvania, an almost entirely white region in the shadow of the increasingly vibrant metro area around Pittsburgh.
Public Safety:
Kern County defends its ambulance plan from state lawsuit Bakersfield Californian The fate of Kern County’s ambulance service system dispute continued for a second day of hearings as a state legal challenge proceeded before Administrative Law Judge Samuel Reyes. Kern County and the California Emergency Medical Services Authority all but wrapped up their cases before a judge on Wednesday after witnesses for the County of Kern were interviewed on the stand.
ECONOMY / JOBS
Regional economy is steady, summit speakers agree, but state has challenges Bakersfield Californian Things are looking up. If one can apply that kind of blanket judgment to a topic as broad and subjective as economics, most people must have surely reached that conclusion at Wednesday’s 18th annual Kern County Economic Summit. U.S. job growth is expanding, key regional employment indicators are solid and optimism pervades.
EDUCATION
For stories on “School shootings,” See: “Top Stories – Valley Politics,” above
K-12:
Plain talk from MUSD at ‘We Believe’ conference Madera Tribune Two hundred fifty people responded to Madera Unified School District’s invitation to join in a celebration of the district’s new theme, “We Believe.” In what was labeled as the first annual “We Believe” conference, virtually every aspect of MUSD was put on display via photographs, videos, slide shows, and individual participants, including demonstrations from Madera High School’s robotics team.
Greater local control over charter schools Capitol Weekly When Sacramento’s Paramount Collegiate Academy abruptly closed in February and sent families scurrying for new schools, it wasn’t the first time the charter school had disrupted the local public education system.
State Board postpones vote on revising California’s education plan to meet federal requirements EdSource California could be close to resolving differences with the federal government over the education plan it is required to submit to receive federal funding for low-income students. But the State Board of Education on Wednesday put off voting on revisions that its staff have negotiated with federal officials to satisfy the requirements of the Every Student Succeeds Act, the law that replaced the No Child Left Behind Act. And some board members indicated they might not fully support the compromise and instead might press for waivers from the law.
Community engagement is the key to making California’s school funding formula work EdSource Four years ago, a team of researchers embarked on a journey to follow the implementation of California’s landmark change in how it funds public schools: The Local Control Funding Formula, or LCFF.
Bill Seeks To Ban “Willful Defiance” Suspensions In California Schools Valley Public Radio A new bill in the California Senate would ban so-called “willful defiance” suspensions in k-12 schools throughout the state. The legislation (SB 607) comes amid a recent push from social justice organizations for schools to adopt “restorative justice” or PBIS approaches to school discipline issues, as well as a looming sunset for an existing law that bans “willful defiance” suspensions in grades K-3.
Brooks: Good leaders are crucial to creating good schoolsFresno BeeThe solutions to the nation’s problems already exist somewhere out in the country; we just do a terrible job of circulating them. For example, if you want to learn how to improve city schools, look how Washington, New Orleans and Chicago are already doing it. Since 2011 the graduation rate at Chicago public schools has increased at nearly four times the national average, to 77.5 percent from 56.9 percent. The percentage of Chicago students going to two-or four-year colleges directly after graduation increased to 63 percent in 2015 from 50 percent in 2006.
Higher Ed:
UC regents committee approves tuition hike for nonresident students Los Angeles Times The proposed 3.5% tuition increase would boost the supplemental tuition that nonresident students pay by $978 — from $28,014 to $28,992 for the 2018-19 school year. The increase would raise nearly $35 million.
UC students aim to ‘shut down the vote’ on tuition increase for nonresidents at regents meeting Los Angeles Times University of California students from across the state plan to converge on the Board of Regents meeting Wednesday at UCLA to protest a proposal to raise tuition on out-of-state students.
The Rising Cost of College: Student Fees Public Policy Institute of California Students, parents, and lawmakers often express concern about tuition increases at California’s public universities. But tuition is not the only college cost that has been rising. Students also pay fees that cover many non-instructional costs, and between 2013 and 2016, student fees increased an average of 21% at both the UC and CSU systems, even as tuition itself stayed flat.
At California’s top public universities, why a dearth of Latino professors matters CALmatters In the middle of a talk on immigration policy, UC Berkeley lecturer Pablo Gonzalez suddenly gets personal. Standing at the front of a windowless classroom on this prestigious public university campus, he recounts how his mother and other women in his West Berkeley neighborhood each year would mark the anniversary of their arrival to the United States.
University of California Makes Big Push Into Passive Investing Bloomberg The University of California’s $11.5 billion endowment has made a sizable move into passive investing. Since 2014, passive investments increased to $1.9 billion, or 17 percent of assets, from $400 million, or 5 percent, according to a presentation Tuesday at a board of regents meeting.
ENVIRONMENT/ ENERGY
California Lawmakers Consider Jointly Managing Electric Grid With Other States A key priority of Gov. Jerry Brown before he leaves office is a proposal to integrate California’s power grid with surrounding states — and it’s regaining momentum at the Capitol after stalling last year.
HEALTH/HUMAN SERVICES
Health:
Constitutional Constraints on Moving Toward Universal Coverage in California California Budget & Policy Center Achieving universal health coverage in California could require tax increases to support additional, ongoing state spending. For example, a tax increase of over $100 billion would be needed to help finance a single-payer system.
Healthcare: It’s The Prices, Stupid. Isn’t It? Forbes A new analysis of why the U.S. spends more on healthcare than other rich countries joins the chorus researchers began singing in 2003: “It’s the prices, stupid.” “The United States spent approximately twice as much as other high-income countries on medical care, yet utilization rates in the United States were largely similar to those in other nations,” wrote study authors Irene Papanicolas, Liana Woskie and Ashish Jha of the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and the London School of Economics and Political Science.
Americans spend more on health care, but have shorter life spans CNN Money Americans spend nearly twice as much on health care as other wealthy countries, but it’s not doing much to improve their health, a new study finds. The United States has the shortest life expectancy and highest infant and maternal mortality rates among any of its peers.
Human Services:
Kern County defends its ambulance plan from state lawsuitBakersfield Californian The fate of Kern County’s ambulance service system dispute continued for a second day of hearings as a state legal challenge proceeded before Administrative Law Judge Samuel Reyes. Kern County and the California Emergency Medical Services Authority all but wrapped up their cases before a judge on Wednesday after witnesses for the County of Kern were interviewed on the stand.
Supreme Court challenge to California law could hand abortion foes a victory—or backfire on them CALmattters Should an organization that opposes abortion be required to tell women where they can seek an abortion? It’s a question the U.S. Supreme Court will face this month as it considers a challenge to a California state law
IMMIGRATION
2 dead in Kern County after vehicle overturns while fleeing ICE agents San Jose Mercury The SUV had pulled over after a car activated its emergency lights behind it. But when federal immigration agents got out of the car, the undocumented couple in the SUV drove away, police said. They would end up dying in a fatal crash in the city of Delano. See also: · Skelton: Trump should tour Central Valley farm fields — and leave his immigration agents at home Los Angeles Times
Undocumented immigrant appointed to state post in California Sacramento Bee The Senate Rules Committee on Wednesday appointed the first undocumented resident to a statewide post, according to Senate President pro Tem Kevin de León’s office. Lizbeth Mateo, a 33-year-old attorney and immigrant rights activist, will serve on the California Student Opportunity and Access Program Project Grant Advisory Committee. Hundreds of valley residents sworn in as US Citizens at naturalization ceremony ABC30 Nearly 1,000 people were sworn in as American citizens today in downtown Fresno. Nine hundred Central Valley residents from 47 different countries celebrated the naturalization process. How California went from anti-immigration to ‘sanctuary state’ KPCC Amparo Cid traces her work as an attorney helping recent immigrants and their families in the Central Valley fight injustices and potential deportation, to her experience as a child in 1994.
LAND USE/HOUSING
Land Use:
Fast-growing church buying 52 acres in Clovis for expansion projectThe Fresno Bee A historic piece of Clovis farmland that for decades grew sweet-tasting peaches could soon be growing a different kind of crop. The owners of the property, the Smittcamp family through the Smittcamp Foundation, are partnering with The Well Community Church to build a spiritual training and community center on the 52-acre Wawona Ranch at Minnewawa and Nees avenues in Clovis. The ranch is just east of Buchanan High School. See also: ● Major land acquisition has a Fresno church excited about its vision to better serve local youth ABC30
Housing:
Modesto backs homeless shelter plan, but mayor raises questions The Modesto Bee Modesto leaders are backing a proposal to open a temporary, 60-bed homeless shelter and day center near downtown, which could open as soon as June and be in place for as long as three years until a permanent facility with more services opens. The City Council voted 7-0 on Tuesday evening in favor of “supporting the vision of an immediate action plan for a temporary low barrier emergency shelter/day center with minimal supportive services (shelter) for the homeless population,” according to the resolution passed by the council.
U.S. Home Prices Rise Almost 9%, the Biggest Gain in Four Years Bloomberg Home prices in the U.S. surged 8.8 percent in February — the biggest monthly gain in four years — as buyers battled for an increasingly scarce resource: homes. While sales were little changed amid the thin inventory, the median price across 172 large metropolitan areas jumped to $285,700, according to a report Thursday from brokerage Redfin Corp. It was the 72nd straight month of year-over-year increases since the market bottomed in 2012.
PUBLIC FINANCES
Caltrans porn ring could cost taxpayers more than $5 millionSacramento Bee The attorney who represented a former Caltrans employee in a salacious workplace pornography lawsuit is taking credit for the resignations of two high-ranking state executives and requesting millions of dollars in legal fees for his work over the past five years.
TRANSPORTATION
New Business Plan Reveals A More Distant, Expensive High-Speed Rail Dream Valley Public Radio Last week news broke that California’s High-Speed Rail Authority is facing another setback – increased costs and a delayed timeline as indicated in the authority’s new2018 Draft Business Plan. The effort to connect Los Angeles and San Francisco with bullet train running through the Central Valley will now cost over $77 billion. On top of that, phase one of the project will not be fully operational until the year 2033. That’s 25 years after California voters first approved spending bond funds on the rail line. To learn more about the new plan we spoke with The Fresno Bee’s Tim Sheehan, one of the state’s leading reporters on high-speed rail. See also: · Warszawski: I believe in the bullet train The Fresno Bee · Walters: Is state’s high-speed rail system still a ‘train to nowhere?’ Fresno Bee
WATER
Late-winter storms flood roads in California Sacramento Bee The Latest on storms in California: Flood advisories are in place for parts of Northern California as a winter storm that dumped snow in the Sierra Nevada brings thunderstorms to lower elevations.
California doesn’t want this towering water project. Trump administration may build it anyway Los Angeles Times The Trump administration is pushing forward with a colossal public works project in Northern California — heightening the towering Shasta Dam the equivalent of nearly two stories. The problem is that California is dead-set against the plan, and state law prohibits the 602-foot New Deal-era structure from getting any taller.
“Xtra”
Historical Society holding St. Patrick’s Day Walking Tour The Bakersfield Californian The Kern County Historical Society is holding its St. Patrick’s Day Walking Tour on Saturday. The tour focusing on some of Bakersfield’s history will begin at 10 a.m. at Mexicali Restaurant, 631 18th St., and will continue throughout the eastern part of Downtown Bakersfield until it reaches Confucius Church on 22nd Street. The tour will be led by KCHS President and Bakersfield High School History Teacher Ken Hooper.
Kennedy Center displays Avenal students’ artHanford Sentinel Students from Avenal Elementary School attended the Turnaround Arts Talent Show held Sunday at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., where a piece of artwork the students made is being displayed.
Valley Cultural Calendar Thursday, March 15 , 2018 Valley Cultural Coalition Great things are happening in the Valley. Here’s a list of VCC member offerings to keep you busy and entertained!
Where to See California Wildflowers in Bloom in 2018 Travel + Leisure If you’re not spending your spring vacation in California hunting for wildflowers, you might want to reconsider — and quick. Each year, starting in March and lasting through mid-May, parts of the Golden State’s coastline come alive with bright hues of red, purple, orange, and yellow as native wildflowers are roused for the season.While there are hundreds of species of native wildflowers growing here, the state flower might just be its most stunning genus.
EDITORIALS Classrooms emptied in the name of curbing gun violenceSan Francisco Chronicle Another kind of education is taking place in the nation’s schools. By the tens of thousands, students up and left classrooms to demand action on gun violence and upbraid do-nothing lawmakers. Just as important: The students did it on their own. National school walkout: The biggest voice missing on gun violenceSan Diego Union-Tribune One month after the latest school massacre, countless students coast to coast walked out of class for at least 17 minutes Wednesday — one for each person fatally shot at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, on Valentine’s Day. The emotional demonstrations at thousands of schools targeted the appalling failure of the GOP-led Congress on the issue of gun violence.
Sober up, Weedmaps. Refusing to follow California’s cannabis laws is bad for businessSacramento Bee The executives of Weedmaps must have been smoking something when they decided they could have it both ways with California’s cannabis laws. Just two years ago, the Irvine-based company, known across the web as the “Craigslist of cannabis,” was spending mightily on Proposition 64. The company was instrumental in getting the ballot initiative to legalize and regulate pot before voters, who overwhelmingly approved it.
Prop. 71 fixes potential ballot measure confusionMercury News For decades, California’s Constitution has dictated that voter-approved propositions go into effect the day following an election, unless otherwise specified. No one anticipated when Section 10, Article 2 of the Constitution was written that by 2018, more than half of California voters would vote by mail. Or that vote-by-mail ballots would be counted by election officials if they were cast by Election Day and received no later than three days after the election. Invest in UC or lose a key asset of Golden StateOCRegister Public universities in our nation, very much including the massive “land grant” institutions of the Midwest and then the West, were 19th-century America’s great good gift to both general knowledge and economic progress in the world.
Trump’s steel tariffs could hurt steel jobs in CaliforniaOCRegister President Trump’s tariffs on steel and aluminum imports are widely anticipated to do more harm than good, especially to businesses and industries that depend on those resources. |