POLICY & POLITICS
Valley:
Kevin McCarthy makes his pick in the race for governor
Los Angeles Times
House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy just endorsed John Cox for governor, the day before CAGOP meets. They will vote on a party endorsement on Sunday.
Fresno council candidate Brian Whelan zooms ahead of opponents in race for money
Fresno Bee
Brian Whelan, a candidate for District 7 on the Fresno City Council, has raised nearly three times the money of any other candidate running for election, according to campaign finance records released last week.
State:
California governor warns against trade war with China
AP
California Gov. Jerry Brown on Thursday urged greater cooperation with China to resolve a trade dispute, while taking an apparent swipe at President Donald Trump. “Globalization is here. We are not going to get rid of it. And a trade war is stupid,” Brown said.
Los Angeles Times
Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, the Democratic front-runner in the 2018 governor’s race, is releasing a new campaign ad attacking Republican rival John Cox for being pro-gun and pro-President Trump.
GOP fights to hold ground in Democratic bastion California
AP
If history is any guide, this weekend’s California Republican convention will be another prelude to Election Day disappointment. With the June 5 primary closing in, hundreds of party delegates will spend the weekend in San Diego debating endorsements for candidates seeking statewide offices that are all held by Democrats. For the GOP, the outlook is challenging.
California Republican Party meets in San Diego for endorsements
The Sacramento Bee
Thanks to a rule change, the California Republican Party could for the first time this year back a candidate in the governor’s race before the primary.
Newsweek
Overt anti-Semites have been slowly creeping into Republican politics in the aftermath of President Trump’s successful, populist candidacy, and now one of them has a fighting chance of representing the Republican Party in a Senate race. The man in question is Patrick Little, an extremist with hardline anti-Semitic views who is backed by David Duke and other far-right extremists.
How California candidates use three words to sway voters
CALmatters
When Californians step into their voting booths on Election Day—finally shut off from the daily deluge of campaign ads—every candidate will still have at least one last word. And a maximum of three. Right on the ballot, just below his or her name, California law affords each person running for office a designation. Like an ultra-pithy, last-minute advertisement, this short biographical description gives candidates an opportunity to tell voters just a little bit more.
Backers of data privacy measure submit signatures for ballot
Fresno Bee
Supporters of a California initiative aimed at giving consumers more control over their personal data say they have collected enough signatures to qualify for the November ballot.
Los Angeles Times
The three companies, ConAgra, NL Industries and Sherwin-Williams, announced Thursday that they have started to submit more than 680,000 signatures to ensure their initiative appears on the ballot. The companies’ plan would eliminate a court order for them to pay an estimated $700 million to clean up lead paint. It would replace it with a $2-billion taxpayer-funded bond to finance the cleanup of lead, mold and other hazardous materials.
Xavier Becerra on California vs. Trump
New York Times
When Gov. Jerry Brown and Attorney General Xavier Becerra announced this week that California would lead 16 other states in suing the Trump administration over federal efforts to roll back this state’s fuel emission standards, it was the 32nd time that California sued Washington.
Federal:
Ban assault weapons, buy them back, go after resisters: Ex-prosecutor in Congress
USA Today
Ban assault weapons and buy them back. It might cost $15 billion, but we can afford it. Consider it an investment in our most important right, the right to live.
What to Watch as Supreme Court Prepares Major Decisions
Roll Call
The Supreme Court will decide on several big issues before the end of its current session. CQ legal affairs reporter Todd Ruger breaks down what to watch from the high court, including a ruling on President Donald Trump’s travel ban and decisions on partisan political gerrymandering.
Senate to consider Ryan Bounds’ 9th circuit judge nomination
The Sacramento Bee
The Senate Judiciary Committee plans to consider next week a presidential nominee to a federal appeals court, despite opposition from both the nominee’s state senators. No nominee has gone that far with that sort of objection since 1985.
Other:
Covering politics in a “post-truth” America
Brookings
Journalism has never been better, thanks to these last few decades of disruption. So why does it seem to matter so little? Reflections on the media in the age of Trump.
What Stops Political Campaigns From Forging Signatures? Not Much.
The Pew Charitable Trusts
The issue is especially relevant now, as record numbers of candidates, especially women, rush to compete in the 2018 midterm elections. In some states, election officials are receiving more petitions than ever before. But people have been forging signatures for as long as there have been petitions.
Can Humans Survive a Faster Future?
RAND
Life is moving faster and faster. Just about everything—transportation, weapons, the flow of information—is accelerating. How will decisionmakers preserve our personal and national security in the face of hyperspeed?
This is what a Sikh child faces in America (Opinion)
CNN
Two decades ago, when I was in the second grade, a substitute teacher asked me to stand up in front of my class and talk about my religion: Sikhism. At 7 years old, I tried to explain it as best I could and avoid being ridiculed. I remember feeling totally unprepared and struggling afterward with the fear of being exposed like that again. At 7, I was already afraid of public speaking.
MADDY INSTITUTE PUBLIC POLICY PROGRAMMING
Sunday, May 6, at 10 a.m. on ABC 30 – Maddy Report: “Candidate for Governor: Amanda Renteria” – Guest: Amanda Renteria. Host: Maddy Institute Executive Director, Mark Keppler.
Sunday, May 6, at 10 a.m. on Newstalk 580AM/105.9FM (KMJ) – Maddy Report – Valley Views Edition: “One California: Immigration and Gubernatorial Candidate Amanda Renteria” – Guest: Amanda Renteria. Host: Maddy Institute Executive Director, Mark Keppler.
Sunday, May 6, at 7:30 a.m. on UniMas 61 (KTTF) – El Informe Maddy: “2018 Race for Governor: Amanda Renteria” – Guest: Amanda Renteria. Host: Maddy Institute Program Coordinator, Maria Jeans.
Support the Maddy Daily HERE.
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AGRICULTURE/FOOD
Solar is in, biomass energy is out—and farmers are struggling to dispose of woody waste
Los Angeles Times
A record-setting drought forced growers to bulldoze thousands of acres of trees, and hardly anyone in the Central Valley has permission to light bonfires anymore. But more than trees have withered in California’s sun. The state’s biomass energy plants are folding in rapid succession, unable to compete with heavily subsidized solar farms, many of which have sprouted up amid the fields and orchards of the San Joaquin Valley.
Vincent Smith on US agriculture policy and the 2018 Farm Bill
AEI
Vincent Smith discusses the history of US agriculture policy and provisions of the 2018 Farm Bill, including farm subsidies and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program work requirement measures.
Proposal would allow marijuana delivery to all of California
Sacramento Bee
California voters legalized marijuana in 2016, but the state allows cities and counties to bar certain pot businesses, and residents in about 40 percent of California are 60 miles or more from a legal dispensary.
First recreational marijuana store in central San Joaquin Valley opens in Woodlake
Fresno Bee
The first store to legally sell recreational marijuana in the central San Joaquin Valley has opened in Woodlake, a town of about 7,700 people east of Visalia in Tulare County. Valley Pure opened Monday, said general manager Wes Hardin.
Also See:
- Valley Pure becomes first recreational marijuana dispensary in Tulare County Visalia Times-Delta
CRIMINAL JUSTICE / FIRE / PUBLIC SAFETY
Crime:
Clovis police arrest 46, seize drugs in city-wide sweep
Fresno Bee
Clovis police made 46 arrests while conducting probation and parole searches, traffic stops and other proactive work throughout the Clovis area.
Judge OKs DNA collecting from suspected Visalia Ransacker
Visalia Times-Delta
Authorities can collect DNA, fingerprints and body photos of the man suspected of spending 10 years raping women and killing people. Sacramento County Superior Court Judge Michael Sweet ruled Thursday morning in favor of prosecutors.
Zodiac Killer case: DNA may offer hope of solving the mystery
San Francisco Chronicle
Inspired by the apparent success of DNA searches in the Golden State Killer case, detectives at the Vallejo Police Department have sent decades-old letters from the infamous Zodiac Killer to a forensics laboratory with the hope of getting a genetic profile they can use to identify a suspect, investigators said.
Also See:
Public Safety:
Settlement reached for $3.8 million in fatal crash involving Kern County sheriff’s sergeant
Bakersfield.com
A $3.8 million settlement has been reached between the county and the family of an Oildale motorcyclist who was killed in a 2015 crash with a sheriff’s sergeant. Reached last week, the settlement will be split between the spouse of Larry Maharrey, his stepson and two children. Maharrey died after his motorcycle collided with a Sheriff’s Office patrol car at Norris Road and Airport Drive.
ECONOMY / JOBS
Economy:
California Trade Report for March 2018
California Business Roundtable
These are highlights from the recently released trade data from the US Census Bureau and US Bureau of Economic Analysis.
WSJ
The forecast for political news may be stormy, but the owners of American small businesses are seeing blue skies in the economy as they continue to create jobs and increase wages.
Area 45: Unleashing the Economy With John Cochrane
Hoover Institution
Four of the Dow Jones’ greatest single-day swings occurred in a one-week stretch in February. Was it an aberration, or the new normal in the Trump economy?
Editorial: Is the Phillips Curve Dead? And Other Questions for the Fed
WSJ
Markets are aflutter over whether the Federal Reserve will bump up interest rates twice or thrice more in 2018. But members of the Federal Open Market Committee have bigger questions to worry about.
Jobs:
U.S. Payrolls Rise 164,000 While Jobless Rate Falls to 3.9%
Bloomberg
U.S. hiring rebounded in April and the unemployment rate dropped below 4 percent for the first time since 2000, while wage gains cooled by more than forecast in a sign that the labor market still isn’t tight enough to spur inflation.
Also See:
- Unemployment rate falls to 3.9 percent as U.S. economy adds 164,000 jobs The Washington Post
Is an urban youth unemployment crisis on the horizon?
Brookings
Despite falling fertility rates and various international jobs initiatives, the combination of a rapidly growing youth population, urbanization, and technological disruption could create a full-blown and potentially violent unemployment crisis in many of the world’s cities.
EDUCATION
K-12:
PPIC
An overwhelming majority of Californians are concerned about the threat of a mass shooting in their local schools. But a majority don’t want teachers to carry guns. These are findings from the latest PPIC Statewide Survey on education.
Higher Ed:
Fresno State community forum on Randa Jarrar controversy draws angry speakers
Fresno Bee
That’s how Fresno State president Joseph Castro characterized Randa Jarrar’s tweets in an open-mic forum at the Save Mart Center that drew approximately 250 people Thursday night. The event was the second of two forums Fresno State held to address the firestorm Randa Jarrar created when she tweeted about Barbara Bush hours after the former First Lady died.
Elevate CA: California’s near completers deserve new, innovative higher education pathways
CAFWD
California has almost 4.5 million adults who are “near completers” — nontraditional students who have some college units but no degree. For the economic and civic future of the state, policy makers and education leaders must consider additional higher education pathways for this large population if we are going to have the future workforce we need to maintain our economic strength.
Trust students, not tests, to open pathway to community college success
EdSource
In California alone, more than 170,000 students are placed in remedial, or basic skills, math courses — with more than 110,000 never completing the math required to earn a degree. Even worse, data show students of color are more likely than white students to be sent to multiple remedial courses that do not count toward their college degree.
Immigrants and Educational Attainment
PPIC
About half of adult immigrants arriving in California today have college degrees—a marked increase since 1980, when only 15% had graduated from college.
ENVIRONMENT/ ENERGY
Environment:
Apply for Air District Grant and Incentive Programs
San Joaquin Valley Air Control District
The District develops and administers a comprehensive suite of highly-successful voluntary incentive programs targeted at reducing harmful emissions throughout the Valley. These innovative programs provide an opportunity for Valley residents, businesses, public agencies and other organizations to get involved and make a positive impact on the Valley’s air quality.
Editorial: Defending California’s right to clean air
LA Times
On Tuesday, Gov. Jerry Brown and state Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra announced that they have filed the state’s 10th, and potentially most consequential, lawsuit against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Joined by 16 other states and the District of Columbia, California is trying to preserve a planned increase in vehicle fuel-economy standards, which were designed to make passenger cars more fuel efficient and less polluting
Opinion: Don’t let the Trump administration put clean car standards in reverse
TheHill
The Trump administration, bent on rolling back safeguards that keep Americans safe and protect consumers, is accelerating its reckless deregulatory push to undo vehicle standards at the behest of the automakers.
Energy:
Avoid another California energy crisis: Plan for choice in electricity
The Sacramento Bee
The last time California deregulated electricity, it did so with a plan, however flawed. Now, electricity is being deregulated de facto, through dozens of decisions and legislative actions, without a clear or coordinated plan. If California policy makers are not careful, we could drift slowly back into another predicament like the energy crisis of 2001.
Solar is in, biomass energy is out—and farmers are struggling to dispose of woody waste
Los Angeles Times
A record-setting drought forced growers to bulldoze thousands of acres of trees, and hardly anyone in the Central Valley has permission to light bonfires anymore. But more than trees have withered in California’s sun. The state’s biomass energy plants are folding in rapid succession, unable to compete with heavily subsidized solar farms, many of which have sprouted up amid the fields and orchards of the San Joaquin Valley.
California’s Big Energy Utilities Face Local Rebellion
KQED Science
Disruption in the electricity market is afoot as more California neighborhoods move away from big companies to locally owned power providers. This model, known as Community Choice Aggregation, appeals to customers interested in cleaner, more affordable power, and the break up of utility monopolies.
HEALTH/HUMAN SERVICES
Health:
No nurses to care for patients: Coalinga hospital closes emergency department
Fresno Bee
The emergency department at Coalinga Regional Medical Center closed Thursday. A hospital official said a staffing shortage forced the closure of the emergency room at 7:45 a.m. The remainder of the hospital is open, including a 99-bed skilled nursing facility and rural health clinic, according to Terry Murphy, director of patient services.
Nurses Have a Prescription for the Democratic Party: Back Single Payer
The Nation
Despite the fact that Democrats who are thinking seriously about the future are moving on the issue, there are still too many top Democrats who pull their punches, refusing to embrace a reform that is at once needed and popular.
Making health insurance enrollment as automatic as possible
AEI
Policymakers should enact replacement policies for the Affordable Care Act’s individual mandate. One strategy involves the use of automatic, default enrollment in insurance.
Human Services:
IMMIGRATION
Is Deporting Immigrants the Same as Returning Fugitive Slaves?
National Review
Are California’s sanctuary proponents successors to the Underground Railway?
Fence-Climbing Illegal Aliens Cut in Line as Legal Immigrants Wait in Obscurity
National Review
Which group should take precedence? America’s most forgotten men and women may be the legal immigrants who acquire their visas, scale no barriers, and patiently await their green cards and citizenship ceremonies.
Immigrants and Educational Attainment
Public Policy Institute of California
In 2016, 51% of working-age immigrants (aged 25 to 64) who had lived in California for five years or less had bachelor’s or graduate degrees, while 10% had minimal formal education (middle school or less).
LAND USE/HOUSING
Land Use:
Housing:
High housing costs are driving out lower-income Californians, reports say
Los Angeles Times
California lost lower-income residents to other states over a recent 11-year period, while gaining wealthier households from elsewhere in the U.S. The disparity reflects the state’s sky-high rents and home prices, according to several reports released Thursday.
Why the Bay Area is the epicenter of California’s housing crisis
Mercury News
The same story is playing out, over and over: People are flocking to the Bay Area for high-skilled, highly paid jobs, while cashiers, teachers and construction workers are, increasingly, saying goodbye to a place they no longer can afford.
What you need to know about California’s housing crisis
CALmatters
While it’s always been more expensive to be a homeowner in California, the gap between us and the rest of the country has grown into a chasm. The median California home is now priced 2.5 times higher than the median national home. As of 2017, the typical California home costs $560,000, easily beating the likes of Massachusetts or New York (only Hawaii had more expensive houses).
Audio: AirTalk special: Leaving California in search of cheaper housing
89.3 KPCC
Nowadays, California is experiencing impressive growth. Unemployment is at a historic low. But the attractiveness of California creates a very basic economics problem: more demand than supply.
PUBLIC FINANCES
Expanding Access to Free Tax Preparation Services Is Essential to Making the CalEITC a Success
California Budget & Policy Center
California’s decision to create a state Earned Income Tax Credit — the CalEITC — was one of the most important advances our state has made in recent years to improve economic security among working families in poverty.
What was the point of corporate tax reform?
AEI
So Sen. Marco Rubio, the Florida Republican, ran into some controversy over comments he made to The Economist about the Trump-GOP tax cut.
TRANSPORTATION
High-Speed Rail Authority Daily Clips 050318
California High-Speed Rail Authority
Dreaming Of A Gold Rush, Cycling Industry Wagers New Battery Tech Will Electrify Sales
Forbes
Game-changing hits in the cycling industry almost never happen — there hasn’t really been one since Gary Fisher and a few other visionaries sparked the mountain-bike craze four decades ago. And big shifts in American travel habits? They’re even rarer. Maybe that’s what makes nonconformist entrepreneurs like Ross Evans and his 80-pound ebikes so intriguing.
The state of self-driving car laws across the US
Brookings
After a recent series of high-profile accidents, Jack Karsten and Darrell West examine the regulatory landscape surrounding self-driving vehicles and encourage states to learn from laws that promote innovation and safety at the same time.
WATER
ABC30
The California Water Commission has voted to fund approximately a quarter of the cost of the Temperance Flat Dam project. The proposed $2.7 billion dam would create a new reservoir that would hold more than one million acre-feet of water above Millerton Lake.
Temperance Flat reservoir | state water vote against
The Fresno Bee
Supporters of the proposed Temperance Flat Reservoir were not optimistic Thursday about securing much-needed approval from the California Water Commission. Members of the commission have spent the last three days in Sacramento reviewing the public benefit ratio of 11 projects vying for a slice of $2.7 billion in state Proposition 1 funds.
Novel Effort to Aid Groundwater on California’s Central Coast Could Help Other Depleted Basins
Western Water
Spurred by drought and a major policy shift, groundwater management has assumed an unprecedented mantle of importance in California as local agencies draw plans to halt overdraft and bring stressed aquifers to the road of recovery.
On the Road: This Iconic High Sierra Lake Was Once Named…Bigler?
Western Water
Lake Tahoe, the iconic high Sierra water body that straddles California and Nevada, has sat for more than 10,000 years at the heart of the Washoe tribe’s territory. In fact, the name Tahoe came from the tribal word dá’aw, meaning lake. The lake’s English name was the source of debate for about 100 years after it was first “discovered” in 1844 by people of European descent.
Replenishing Groundwater in the San Joaquin Valley
PPIC
California’s biggest farming region has the state’s biggest groundwater deficit. This report outlines actions that could make it easier to store water underground.
“Xtra”
Valley Cultural Calendar Thursday, May 3, 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!
Celebrate Cinco de Mayo with music, margaritas and more
Bakersfield Californian
Bakersfield loves a party, and there are a lot of them this weekend for Cinco de Mayo. The holiday has a reputation for being all about drinking, and there are several places to do that on Saturday, but there are a couple options for those who want a more family-friendly celebration instead.
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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.
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