POLICY & POLITICS
Fresno State
Costa will be the featured speaker for a first-ever virtual version of the President’s Lecture Series at Fresno State, less than a month before the 2020 presidential election. The President’s Lecture with Costa is scheduled from 6 to 7:15 p.m. TODAY. It’s free to participate, by visiting Zoom at the time of the event.
North SJ Valley:
Merced County moves into ‘red tier’ of Calif’s reopening system
abc30
A rise in Fresno County’s COVID-19 new case rate had health officials concerned about a possible return to the more restrictive ‘Purple’ tier. But Merced County has been able to bring its infection numbers down for two straight weeks and start to reopen some businesses.
Stanislaus meets COVID criteria to move tiers. Getting to red at least a week away
Modesto Bee
Stanislaus County has finally met both criteria for leaving the most restrictive tier of the Calif coronavirus reopening program.
See also:
● Stanislaus caseload grows faster. Fitness chains struggle Modesto Bee
EDITORIAL: Stanislaus and San Joaquin voters should send this man to Congress
Modesto Bee
Josh Harder’s first term in the U.S. House of Representatives has been marked with action and success, and he has earned another.
EDITORIAL: This candidate would help lead the Modesto Irrigation District to a bright new future
Modesto Bee
The change needed in leadership at the Modesto Irrigation District has been long coming. Voters east of Modesto in MID Division 1 can take a step in the right direction with candidate Suzy Powell Roos.
Central SJ Valley:
Fresno Co may need return to dining, health club closures as COVID-19 cases rebound
Fresno Bee
An increase in the average number of new coronavirus cases threatens to send Fresno County back into a more restrictive tier of economic reopening as businesses and residents adjust to resuming indoor operations under the state’s Blueprint for a Safer Economy.
See also:
● Uncertainty for businesses, churches as Fresno County verges on dropping back to purple tier abc30
● Why are so many Central Valley counties stuck in the ‘purple tier’? abc30
Devin Nunes lost in court against a magazine. Now he wants to change US libel law
Fresno Bee
President Donald Trump frequently argues that libel laws should be changed so media companies can more easily be sued over stories about public figures like politicians. Rep. Devin Nunes, a close Trump ally, is now making that case in court.
City Manager Briefs City Council on Latest COVID-19 Cases
Clovis RoundUp
City Manager Luke Serpa reported that positive cases in the city are on a down trend, but still well above the numbers before Memorial Day weekend. Serpa also mentioned that the county has moved to the red tier, but the data shows that there is an upward trend of cases within the last week.
South SJ Valley:
City Of Avenal Selects New City Manager
City of Avenal
The Avenal City Council is very pleased to announce the selection of Mr. Antony V. López as its next City Manager. Mr. López will be replacing Melissa G. Whitten who served in the role for 25 years after announcing her retirement in August.
Kern County Public Works to hold virtual cleanup in November
Bakersfield Calif.
The Kern County Public Works Department will be hosting a virtual cleanup on Saturday, Nov. 7. According to the department’s website, the cleanup can be done in a neighborhood, local park or right outside a participant’s front door. It will be held during daylight hours.
Special permits will allow churches, youth sports to take place in city parks
Bakersfield Calif.
Bakersfield will allow religious services, fitness classes and youth sports to temporarily take place in city parks under a new program similar to one that allows restaurants to expand dining onto sidewalks and parking lots due to COVID-19 restrictions on indoor seating.
State:
Staff member in Gov. Newsom’s office tests positive for COVID-19
Fresno Bee
A staff member in Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office tested positive for the coronavirus this week, and the state is conducting a deep-cleaning and contact tracing effort in response to the infection.
See also:
● Staff member for Gov. Gavin Newsom tests positive for COVID-19 abc30
● Staff Member In Gov. Newsom’s Office Tests Positive For COVID-19 Capital Public Radio
Payment for voter outreach in limbo as Controller says Secretary of State needs budget authority
Modesto Bee
Approval for spending on a $35 million statewide voter outreach and education campaign has stalled as state agencies grapple over whether or not the Calif Secretary of State’s office has the authority to spend certain state funds.
How a days-old company pressured Calif into $450 million deal on COVID-19 gear
Sac Bee
Executives at a newly formed company called Blue Flame began aggressively pressuring state officials to buy 100 million masks and wire nearly half a billion dollars in prepayment, text messages and emails obtained by The Sac Bee show.
Calif suffers harsh budget blow as Trump ends coronavirus stimulus talks
SF Chronicle
The big state budget bet that Calif officials made this summer appears to have gone bust after President Trump declared Tuesday he was ending talks with congressional Democrats on another coronavirus stimulus bill before the election.
Newsom’s pick for Calif high court talks about coming out: ‘My journey was different’
LA Times
Martin Jenkins, 66, who is slated to become the first openly gay justice on the Calif Supreme Court, served on the bench for decades without disclosing his sexual orientation to most friends and colleagues.
Calif NAACP President Aids Corporate Prop Campaigns — Collects $1.2 Million and Counting
KQED
As leader of the Calif NAACP, Huffman has weighed in with positions that critics say run counter to the historic civil rights organization’s mission to advance racial equality in education, housing and criminal justice.
See also:
● Opinion: Calif’s Illogical Reparations Bill National Review
Federal:
Appellate judges let 2020 census continue through October
Bakersfield Calif.
A panel of 3 appellate judges on Wed upheld a lower court order allowing the 2020 census to continue through October. But the panel struck down a provision that suspended a year-end deadline for turning in figures used to decide how many congressional seats each state gets.
See also:
● Trump Officials Ask Supreme Court To Block Order That Extends Census Counting NPR
● Trump admin asks Supreme Court to end census efforts early UPI
Now a COVID-19 hot spot, White House struggles to work
LA Times
In a tableau befitting a surreal election season, there may be more raccoons around the White House than actual staff now — and a contagious president sneaking into the West Wing.
See also:
● The White House is a coronavirus hot spot. But no one can make it do contact tracing LA Times
In about-face, Trump seeks to salvage parts of virus aid
LA Times
The White House on Wed tried to salvage its favorite items lost in the rubble of COVID-19 relief talks that President Trump blew up, with his administration pressing for $1,200 stimulus checks and a new wave of aid for airlines and other businesses hard hit by the pandemic.
See also:
● Stand-alone airline bill under discussion after broader coronavirus aid stalls Roll Call
● Trump says stimulus talks, $1,200 checks are back in play Wash Post
Trump Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett served as a ‘handmaid’ in religious group
LA Times
Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett served as a “handmaid,” the term then used for high-ranking female leaders in the People of Praise religious community, an old directory for the group’s members shows.
See also:
● Barrett, with Scalia as model, may be a moderate on regulation Roll Call
● Supreme Court confirmation hearing starts under 2020 cloud Roll Call
● Amy Coney Barrett, the Supreme Court and the Affordable Care Act: what the record says PolitiFact
ProPublica
In an internal announcement, the Justice Department created an exception to a decadeslong policy meant to prevent prosecutors from taking overt investigative steps that might affect the outcome of the vote.
See also:
Coronavirus Trackers:
Coronavirus (COVID-19) in Calif
COVID-19 is a new illness that can affect your lungs and airways. It’s caused by a virus called coronavirus.
See also:
● Calif Department of Public Health
● Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) Pandemic – WHO
● John Hopkins University & Medicine John Hopkins University
● Tracking coronavirus in Calif LA Times
● Coronavirus Tracker SF Chronicle
● Coronavirus in the U.S.: Latest Map and Case Count New York Times
● How many coronavirus cases have been reported in each U.S. state? Politico
● Coronavirus Daily NPR
● Coronavirus tracked: the latest figures as the pandemic spreads Fin Times
● Coronavirus in Calif by the numbers CalMatters
Elections 2020:
● Check voter registration status
● Online Voter Guide and Printable Voter Guide
● List of county elections offices
Mail-in or in-person? Here are tips for voting in Fresno County during COVID-19 pandemic
Fresno Bee
Make a plan and vote early. That’s the election advice from Fresno County Registrar of Voters Brandi Orth, who noted ballots began going out on Friday and should be in the hands of voters soon if not already delivered in the mail on Tuesday.
● Planning to vote in person for the 2020 election in Calif? Here’s what to expect Fresno Bee
● What vote by mail ballot rejection data tells us about voter fraud, dead people voting abc30
● Your Calif mail ballot is coming. 5 things to do to make sure it gets counted Sac Bee
● Picking Up Ballots Early? Why Growing Distrust Of Postal Service Has Voters Weighing Options Capital Public Radio
Democrats doubted Kamala Harris was liberal enough. Now Mike Pence calls her radical. What’s true?
Fresno Bee
Kamala Harris spent her presidential campaign trying to prove to her party she was a bona fide, enthusiastic liberal – not the “top cop” the former prosecutor called herself during her time as Calif’s attorney general.
See also:
● Vice presidential candidates Kamala Harris and Mike Pence debate with friendlier fire LA Times
● Review: Kamala Harris’ sterling debate was for every woman who’s been talked over by a man LA Times
● Four Takeaways from Kamala Harris’ Vice Presidential Debate Performance KQED
● Takeaways from the vice presidential debate between Harris and Pence LA Times
● VP debate is unlikely to shape the election. But it could set the stage for the next one LA Times
● Harris-Pence debate: A round-by-round scorecard of the vice presidential matchup LA Times
● Twitter buzzes over a fly in Pence’s hair, speculates about his left eye LA Times
● The Vice Presidential Debate: The Moments That Mattered WSJ
● Virus Takes Center Stage as Pence and Harris Skirmish in Debate NY Times
● Harris ducks questions about court packing Politico
● Harris and Pence return to the jab and move debate Politico
● Here’s how Pence and Harris (and the fly) scored in the debate Wash Post
Fact-checking the 2020 vice presidential debate
PolitiFact
Plexiglass partitions didn’t stop the vice presidential candidates from clashing over the coronavirus, taxes, China, health care, and climate change.
See also:
● Fact check: Would Kamala Harris push for a government takeover of health care? Sac Bee
● Fact-checking the Pence-Harris vice presidential debate LA Times
● Veep debate: Fact-check on Kamala Harris as Calif prosecutor CalMatters
● George Takei says White House removed pages about climate change, civil rights from website PolitiFact
● The VP debate offers the nation a glimpse of a post-Trump future Politico
● Opinion: Mike Pence’s Re-Election Case WSJ
Climate crisis or ‘hoax’: Where Biden and Trump stand on environmental policy
LA Times
This was supposed to be the climate change election — or so many Democrats thought. Then came the coronavirus. But while climate change has taken a back seat to the pandemic and the struggling economy, it remains a major issue in the presidential election.
See also:
● Fact check: Will Joe Biden raise your taxes on day one? Sac Bee
● Where Trump and Biden Stand on Mortgage Finance WSJ
● Joe Biden jobs ad uses pandemic to tar Donald Trump PolitiFact
Trump says he won’t participate in virtual debate with Biden
LA Times
President Trump rejected a plan Thursday to remotely debate former Vice President Joe Biden on Oct. 15, shortly after the Commission on Presidential Debates announced that the event would be held virtually because of the pandemic.
See also:
● Trump Says He Won’t Participate in Virtual Presidential Debate WSJ
● ‘I’m not going to waste my time’: Trump says he won’t do virtual debate against Biden Politico
● Opinion: Who’s Ready for Trump-Biden Round Two? WSJ
● No more presidential debates this year? Not a problem. We’ve seen enough. Wash Post
Foreign Interference in the 2020 Election: Tools for Detecting Online Election Interference
RAND
This report, the second in a series on information efforts by foreign actors, lays out the advocacy communities on Twitter that researchers identified as arguing about the election.
See also:
● Opinion: The Biggest Risk to This Election Is Not Russia. It’s Us. NY Times
New England Journal of Medicine publishes first election stance in anti-Trump editorial
Wash Post
In more than two centuries of publishing, the New England Journal of Medicine has never weighed in on a U.S. presidential election. That changed this week.
See also:
● ‘Dangerously incompetent.’ Prominent medical journal condemns Trump regarding COVID-19 Fresno Bee
● EDITORIAL: Dying in a Leadership Vacuum New England Journal of Medicine
Other:
Fresno chosen as part of Microsoft project to boost local journalism
Fresno Bee
The technology giant Microsoft has chosen Fresno as one of four cities to launch an initiative to support local newsrooms.
See also:
● Valley Public Radio To Participate In New Microsoft-Funded Journalism Collaborative VPR
Facebook bans political ads after end of voting on election day
LA Times
Facebook Inc. is tightening its rules on content concerning the U.S. presidential election next month, including instituting a temporary ban on political ads when voting ends, as it braces for a contentious night that may not end with a definitive winner.
See also:
● Facebook to temporarily halt political ads in U.S. after polls close Nov. 3, broadening earlier restrictions Wash Post
● Facebook bans marketing firm running ‘troll farm’ for pro-Trump youth group Wash Post
● Facebook to Suspend U.S. Political Ads on Election Day WSJ
● Facebook Widens Ban on Political Ads as Alarm Rises Over Election NY Times
MADDY INSTITUTE PUBLIC POLICY PROGRAMMING
Sunday, October 11, at 10 a.m. on ABC30 – Maddy Report: “Telemedicine: Path to Better and More Affordable Health Care?” – Guests: Dr. Casey Gray, Kaiser; Laurence Du Sault, Mercury News/CalMatters; Assemblymember Joaquin Arambula; Barb Yellowlees, CETF. Host: Maddy Institute Executive Director, Mark Keppler.
Sunday, October 11, at 10 a.m. on Newstalk 580AM/105.9FM (KMJ) – Maddy Report – Valley Views Edition: “Will Telemedicine Cure the Valley’s Doctor Shortage?” – Guests: Dr. John Kinnison, Medical Director of Telemedicine at Valley Children’s Medical Center; Dr. Syed Ali, Family Medicine Physician with Gould Medical Group; Dr. Judi Binderman, Vice President, Chief Medical Informatics Officer at Community Medical Centers. Host: Maddy Institute Executive Director, Mark Keppler.
AGRICULTURE/FOOD
Wildfire smoke generates anxiety for grape growers
Business Journal
While people in the Central Valley have found relief in cooler weather thanks to smoky skies, farmers hope for a break of their own — that the sun will come out to shine long enough to dry the grapes in hopes of calling them raisins.
Canada surprises Salinas Valley with tough rules on romaine to prevent new E. coli outbreak
Modesto Bee
Growers in Calif’s Salinas Valley have long called it “The Salad Bowl of the World” but one major customer is now pushing away from the table.
Six Chicken-Industry Officials Are Indicted in Price-Fixing Probe
WSJ
Six current and former chicken-industry executives were indicted on price-fixing charges, expanding the U.S. government’s antitrust prosecutions in the $65 billion poultry industry.
Calif school districts spurn ‘back-patting’ Trump food box letter
Politico
The superintendent of the nation’s second largest school district on Wednesday accused President Donald Trump’s administration of possibly violating the Hatch Act by inserting a letter in food boxes for distribution at schools and pantries just weeks before Election Day.
CRIMINAL JUSTICE/FIRE/PUBLIC SAFETY
Crime:
Prop 25 would end bail in Calif. Here’s how it works — and who’s fighting it
Fresno Bee
Should Califns abolish cash bail or should the existing system remain in place? When Califns vote this election, that is the question they will be asked when it comes time to consider Proposition 25.
See also:
● Calif voters to decide whether to end cash bail system with Proposition 25 LA Times
● Prop. 25, CA measure to end cash bail, splits reform advocates SF Chronicle
Fresno police to crack down on violence after drastic increase since April
Fresno Bee
Hall on Wednesday announced a citywide violent crime suppression task force in response to an alarming trend of homicides and shootings in Fresno.
Public Safety:
Will Fresno Unified Spend More on Mental Health, Less On Police?
Fresno Bee
Calif parents and activists want Fresno schools to cut funding for police on campus. They want the money to go toward mental health services for students.
See also:
● Fresno groups want schools to cut campus police funding. Will the district go for it? Fresno Bee
Clovis PD Receives Grants from Calif Office of Traffic Safety
Clovis RoundUp
The Community can always count on the Clovis Police Department for their safety. They recently received two grants for needed safety programs and updates on old systems.
SJ DA’s Office receives $5 million state restorative justice grant
Stockton Record
The San Joaquin County District Attorney’s Office received millions of dollars from the state this week to expand its youth incarceration alternative program.
Fire:
Creek Fire updates: Shaver repopulated; backfires near Edison Lake resort; air improvement
Fresno Bee
Firefighters continue to battle against the Creek Fire, more than a month after it began, even as affected communities return to their properties.
See also:
● Creek Fire updates: Fire moves into Mammoth Lakes area; containment remains near 50% Fresno Bee
● Creek Fire: 328,595 acres burned, 49% contained, latest evacuations orders abc30
● Cal Fire works to contain Creek Fire Madera Tribune
The fight continues: SQF Complex grows to 160,908 acres
Porterville Recorder
The SQF Complex, the wildfire the is burning 25 miles north of Kernville, began on August 19 due to lighting strikes in the area.
The frightening implications of Calif’s first million-acre fire
LA Times
It was mid-August and Calif was experiencing yet another bout of extreme weather. In Death Valley, the thermometer at the Furnace Creek Visitor Center displayed one of the hottest — if not the hottest — temperatures ever recorded on Earth: 130 degrees.
CalMatters
The systems that warn people about evacuations have dangerous drawbacks. Millions of Califns are relying on alerts that may never arrive. In some counties, only 1% of adults are signed up.
Fact Check: Trump repeats overly simplistic, False claim on Calif’s wildfires
PolitiFact
President Trump blamed a lack of “proper Forest Management” for Calif’s deadly wildfires in a tweet on Tuesday, repeating his overly simplistic claim about the cause of the infernos that have ravaged the state in recent years.
ECONOMY/JOBS
Economy:
Wells Fargo drops lawsuit against Chukchansi tribe over $250 million debt. Here’s why
Fresno Bee
Wells Fargo Bank has dropped its lawsuit in connection with a $250 million loan to the Chuckchansi Gold Casino and Resort.
Downtown restaurant The 18hundred changing hands
Bakersfield Calif.
The 18hundred, a stylish new restaurant inside a restored building in downtown Bakersfield that fast became a crown jewel of the downtown dining scene, is being sold to new owners a year and a half after it opened.
US trade deficit up to $67.1 billion in August, 14-year high
AP News
The U.S. trade deficit rose in August to the highest level in 14 years. The Commerce Department reported Tuesday that the gap between the goods and services the U.S. sells and what it buys abroad climbed 5.9% in August to $67.1 billion, highest since August 2006.
Bethany Clough: Fresno’s Tower District loses two restaurants — but a new one is already on the way
Fresno Bee
Fresno’s Tower District is saying goodbye to two more restaurants in prominent spots. Bocca Taqueria and Rocky Hill Brewing Grill & Tavern have already closed their doors.
Jobs:
Calif’s unemployment backlog won’t be clear until January, EDD says
Stockton Record
Calif’s embattled unemployment benefits agency said Wednesday it has cleared about 246,000 of its more than 1.6 million backlogged claims following a two-week “reset” where it stopped taking new applications so it could improve its technology.
See also:
● Changes at Calif’s unemployment agency don’t do enough to address problems, lawmakers say LA Times
● Freeze first, verify second: Unemployed Califns get a fright from EDD CalMatters
● Here’s how Calif’s new ID.me verification system for unemployment is working SF Chronicle
● U.S. Unemployment Claims Remain Elevated Above 800,000 WSJ
What To Know About Gig Worker Pay Before Voting On Prop. 22
Capital Public Radio
How much will your Uber driver get paid if gig companies convince Calif voters to approve ballot measure Proposition 22? It could be anywhere from $5.64 to $27.58 per hour, depending who you ask.
See also:
● Lawmakers want to amend this prop? It’ll take a “super, super, super-duper majority” CalMatters
● Commentary: Prop. 22 would leave gig workers without core protections CalMatters
● Commentary: Prop. 22 would protect my flexibility to work independently CalMatters
More Training Required for Human Resource Employees and Managers in Calif
aalrr
On September 29, 2020, Governor Newsom signed Assembly Bill 1963 expanding the list of mandated reporters in Calif.
Commentary: Designing a paid leave policy to support our most vulnerable workers
AEI
While the academic and political case for paid leave advanced considerably in recent years, questions remain regarding how a national paid leave program would affect low-wage workers.
EDUCATION
K-12:
Declaring Fresno schools anti-racist sparks backlash. Why one trustee says he voted ‘no’
Fresno Bee
Fresno Unified Trustee Terry Slatic cast the lone ”no” vote on a resolution declaring the school district an anti-racism institution, setting off a clash with most of the other trustees, who are women of color.
Calif sees no link between school reopenings and spread of COVID-19
abc30
Calif has not seen a link between the reopening of K-12 schools for in-person learning and increased coronavirus transmission, the state’s top public health official, Dr. Mark Ghaly, said Tuesday.
Kern High District aiming to bring sports back ‘in pieces’
Bakersfield Calif.
For months, local high school athletes and coaches have lobbied to get back on their respective fields and courts with hopes of establishing a return to normalcy. As of Monday night, they appear to have gotten halfway there.
List: Here’s where individual Stanislaus County school districts stand on reopening
Modesto Bee
More school districts in Stanislaus County are submitting waivers to reopen TK-6 in-person learning during the COVID-19 pandemic, among the latest being Turlock and Salida, whose boards approved plans Tuesday.
It’s complicated: School reopenings, hybrid learning look different across Calif
CalMatters
The night before the first day of in-person instruction for elementary students in San Diego County’s Poway Unified School District, principals sent families detailed instructions on how to drop off their children.
EDITORIAL: Two Fresno-area school bonds narrowly failed last spring. Are they worth supporting now?
Fresno Bee
School-bond proposals return to the November ballot in Clovis and Central unified school districts, and voters would be wise to support them.
Higher Ed:
Serious COVID-19 outbreaks hit Calif colleges despite intense preparation
LA Times
This fall, as colleges around the country wrestled with how to reopen amid the coronavirus crisis, officials in Calif required a cautious approach.
Video: Increasing Community College Transfers
PPIC
Most students who enroll in the Calif Community College (CCC) system hope to transfer and eventually earn a bachelor’s degree.
Commentary: Most young Americans are not interested in silencing debate
AEI
Though colleges and universities have been open for only a few weeks, reports are already circulating of speakers and professors being cancelled or even attacked because of their ideas or speech.
ENVIRONMENT/ENERGY
Environment:
Pandemic forces youth climate activists to save the planet on Zoom
LA Times
It was just a year ago when Kevin Patel stood before a cheering climate change rally in New York and proclaimed that his generation would be the one to change the fate of the planet.
2020 Had the Warmest September on Record, Data Shows
NY Times
Worldwide, last month was the warmest September on record, topping a record set just a year before, European scientists announced Wednesday.
EDITORIAL: Don’t despair. Calif’s fight against plastic trash is far from over
LA Times
The 11th-hour failure of a landmark plastic pollution law in the Calif Legislature in August was a crushing disappointment. The world is awash in plastic trash and — finally! — a concrete plan to cut off the flow of discarded water bottles and plastic bags was within reach.
Commentary: An “ecotopian” Future: Can Calif’s Green Extremism Go National?
Fox & Hounds
One is often at a loss to explain Calif to people from other planets—like, say, earth. This is a state that issues mandates for electrification of everything while reducing its generating capacity.
Energy:
Kern County’s renewable energy employment potential comes into view
Bakersfield Calif.
Kern’s prospects for expanding employment in renewable energy came into clearer focus Wednesday during an online discussion featuring a federal official’s perspective on emerging clean-power technologies alongside the somewhat diverging views of the county’s top planner.
Arvin wins ‘good government’ award for reducing energy 20%
Bakersfield Calif.
The City of Arvin has won an award from the Institute for Local Government for reducing its energy. On Wednesday, it will be honored during the League of Calif Cities Annual Conference, which has gone virtual this year.
Can Calif ban fracking? Newsom’s bold plan to fight climate change faces skepticism
LA Times
When Gov. Gavin Newsom promised last month to phase out gas-powered vehicles and called for an end to fracking in Calif, his announcement drew national attention and thrust him to the forefront of the fight against climate change.
HEALTH/HUMAN SERVICES
Health:
What should you do if your face mask gets wet? Here’s what health experts recommend
Fresno Bee
Face masks help to stop the spread of the coronavirus, but you may want to keep yours dry. That’s because health experts warn against wearing face coverings while they’re wet.
COVID-19 affected brains of most patients hospitalized with disease, Chicago study finds
Fresno Bee
Four out of five patients with COVID-19 experienced neurological symptoms such as dizziness, confusion and headaches within a hospital network in Chicago, according to the largest study on the topic since the pandemic began.
See also:
● Most COVID-19 patients who are hospitalized develop neurological symptoms, new study finds The Hill
65 new COVID-19 cases reported in Kern on Wednesday
Bakersfield Calif.
Kern County Public Health Services announced 65 new coronavirus cases Wednesday morning. Kern’s totals stand at 32,542 cases and 387 deaths since reporting on the virus began in mid-March.
See also:
● Total coronavirus cases in Fresno County have gone down. Here’s the latest data Fresno Bee
● Active cases decrease in county: New deaths bring county total to 267 Porterville Recorder
● True COVID-19 Death Toll May Surpass Official Counts, Especially In San Joaquin Valley VPR
● Coronavirus update: Stanislaus County records just 8 new cases Modesto Bee
● New U.S. Coronavirus Cases Top 50,000 for the First Time in Five Days WSJ
Allergies, Colds, Flu And COVID-19: How To Best Prep For Fall’s ‘Sick Season’
Capital Public Radio
You might have hoped the coronavirus pandemic would cancel what we doctors usually think of as “sick season,” but as cool weather signals the annual arrival of autumn allergies, colds and flu in the U.S., sick season is still right on schedule.
Human Services:
KHSD board approves creation of employee medical center with purchase of Stockdale office
Bakersfield Calif.
The Kern High School District board took a major step toward the creation of an employee medical center by approving the purchase of a medical facility on Stockdale Highway on Monday night.
Healing through scuba diving? Yes, say local volunteers who teach diving to disabled vets
Bakersfield Calif.
U.S. Army combat veteran Josh Conner has known fear. The Bakersfield resident saw it close-up and faced it head-on while serving with the 1st Infantry Division in Fallujah, Iraq in 2004 and 2005.
To Tackle Racial Disparities In COVID-19, Calif Enacts New Metric For Reopening
VPR
There are many things still unknown about the coronavirus. But one thing is certain: the disproportionate harm COVID-19 has caused in communities of color. To address the issue, Calif implemented a new health equity requirement on the state’s 35 largest counties.
Health care rates for 2021 stable, but 2022 may bring challenges
Roll Call
A drop in health care costs is projected to keep insurance rates low in 2021, but long-term worries about the COVID-19 pandemic are raising concerns about potential spikes in future years.
Regeneron asks for emergency FDA approval for COVID-19 treatment
UPI
Biotechnology company Regeneron has requested emergency use authorization from federal regulators for a COVID-19 antibody treatment.
See also:
● Trump’s antibody treatment was tested using cells originally derived from an abortion MIT Technology Review
Moderna Vows to Not Enforce Covid-19 Vaccine Patents During Pandemic
WSJ
Moderna Inc. said it wouldn’t enforce patents related to its experimental Covid-19 vaccine while the pandemic continues and is willing to license the patents to others after the pandemic.
See also:
● Eli Lilly Asks FDA to Authorize Covid-19 Antibody Drug WSJ
IMMIGRATION
ICE carries out week-long operation in Calif despite sanctuary law limiting arrests
Fresno Bee
More than 125 immigrants across Calif were arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement during a week-long operation targeting individuals who the agency says couldn’t be arrested before due to the state’s sanctuary law.
See also:
● ICE arrests 128 undocumented immigrants in Calif’s sanctuary cities, critics blast Trump for ‘political stunt’ Sf Chronicle
Activists Demand Mass Clemency At Mesa Verde Detention Center Following Covid-19 Outbreak
VPR
Activists across Calif rallied Tuesday to bring attention to the widespread COVID-19 outbreaks and related deaths at 30 different prisons, jails and detention centers including the Mesa Verde ICE Processing Facility in Bakersfield.
Valley Voices: Fresno can rise up to help its immigrants, even as the federal government falls short
Fresno Bee
In recent years, as I’ve watched Calif cities like LA and San Jose work to integrate immigrant residents into city planning, I’ve felt increasing urgency that Fresno do the same.
EDITORIAL: Reported surgeries on detained migrant women must be investigated
LA Times
A nurse at the Irwin County Detention Center in Georgia, which houses migrants detained by ICE, filed a whistlerblower complaint alleging that some female detainees were subject to hysterectomies, in some cases without them fully understanding what was going on.
LAND USE/HOUSING
Land Use:
Nearly a third of Calif land must be conserved under new order signed by Gavin Newsom
Fresno Bee
Citing a need to tackle the growing problem of climate change, Calif Gov. Gavin Newsom on Wednesday gave the order for state agencies to conserve 30% of state land and coastal water by no later than 2030.
See also:
● Calif will dedicate 30% of its land to conservation by 2030, Gov. Gavin Newsom announces abc30
● Calif governor calls for protecting 30% of state land LA Times
● Newsom calls for Calif to conserve land, coasts to capture carbon and fight climate change SF Chronicle
Fresno golf course undergoes $2 million modernization facelift
Business Journal
A plan 30 years in the making to revitalize a local golf course was made possible in the year of a pandemic and completed just as golfers have not only been itching to get out on the course, but are also allowed to do so.
Housing:
Construction begins for Sugar Pine Village
Madera Tribune
Dignitaries donned hard hats and got their hands on golden shovels to break ground on Sugar Pine Village, a $25 million development that will offer 52 apartment homes.
Revolt of the landlords: How big real estate crushed a rent control law
Visalia Times Delta
Calif’s housing crisis walloped 75-year-old Perry Angle and his wife in 2014, when the monthly rent for their one-bedroom apartment in a Santa Rosa senior citizen complex began to shoot up from $925 a month to $1,435 two years later.
Moving homeless into hotels helped limit COVID-19 spread, Wash study finds Fresno Bee
Early on in the coronavirus pandemic, some cities in King County decided to move people out of homeless shelters and into hotels. Researchers with the University of Washington conducted a study with the King County Department of Community and Human Services and determined the initiative helped limit the spread of COVID-19, according to a news release from the university.
This was supposed to be the year for Calif’s homeless. Instead it’s a slow ‘train wreck’
LA Times
The message wasn’t lost on Daniel Gonzalez. Early in the pandemic, one of the first things Imperial County did to ward off the virus was close the public bathrooms and, later, public cooling centers.
PUBLIC FINANCES
JPMorgan Unveils $30 Billion Push to Bridge Racial Wealth Gap
WSJ
JPMorgan Chase & Co. said it would extend billions of dollars in additional loans to Black and Latino home buyers and small-business owners as part of a push to narrow America’s racial
wealth gap.
America scrambles to take part in the Mark Zuckerberg $250 million gold rush
Vox
Mark Zuckerberg’s $250 million gift to bolster local governments has set off a gold rush across the country as frenzied election officials rush to apply, secure, and deploy the money.
Opinion: The Fiscal Federal Reserve
WSJ
Federal Reserve officials understandably, and righteously, invoked their need for independence last year when President Trump berated them on Twitter to keep interest rates low.
EDITORIAL: This is the wrong time to overhaul Calif’s property tax law. Vote no on Prop. 15
Fresno Bee
Calif’s method of property taxation is an unholy mess — so much so that at some point we need to throw it out and start over.
TRANSPORTATION
2020 Transportation Needs Survey
Fresno Council of Governments
Have a say in how future transportation dollars are spent. The Fresno Council of Governments (Fresno COG) is looking for transportation project suggestions that could become part of its 20-year Regional Transportation Plan or RTP.
MicroClimates: Road to all-electric cars is as steep as a SF hill — but the alternative is costly
SF Chronicle
A day after I discussed with reporter Dustin Gardiner what Gov. Gavin Newsom is and isn’t doing on climate, the governor made a splashy executive order: banning the sale of new gas-powered vehicles in the state by 2035.
See also:
● Can Calif force emission-free cars on everyone? Don’t bet on it, U.S. automakers say Sac Bee
● Newsom’s plan to clean the air by driving gas vehicles off the road could stall out SF Chronicle
Electric Trash Trucks Are Coming Quietly to Your Town
WSJ
Hoping to lower emissions and silence early pickups that rattle us awake, trash truck manufacturers are rolling out EV prototypes. Dan Neil tests Mack’s LR Electric.
WATER
Unsafe to drink: Wildfires threaten rural towns with tainted water
CalMatters
For more than a month after a wildfire raced through his lakeside community and destroyed his Napa County home, Kody Petrini couldn’t drink the water from the taps. He wasn’t even supposed to boil it.
Natural Resources Agency Directs Funding to 15 Projects to Improve Ecosystem Health
Calif Water News Daily
The Calif Natural Resources Agency announced today it is directing nearly $50 million in Proposition 68 funding to 15 projects that can immediately help improve ecosystem health for Central Valley salmon, steelhead and other native fish.
Recession Safety Net Needed for State’s Small Water Systems
PPIC
Calif has many water systems that serve mostly rural, economically disadvantaged communities. Of the state’s nearly 2,900 community drinking water systems, more than 2,400 are considered small, serving fewer than 3,300 homes and businesses.
There’s a big cool-down coming to Northern Calif. How much will it rain?
Fresno Bee
Forecasts earlier in the week promised rain for Northern Calif, showing a chance of desperately needed rainfall as thousands of firefighters continue to battle numerous major wildfires. But now there’s some bad news.
“Xtra”
‘We’re going to be stubborn about it.’ Gavin Newsom says theme parks won’t reopen anytime soon
Modesto Bee
Disneyland, and other large theme parks in Calif, won’t be reopening any time soon. That’s the message Calif Gov. Gavin Newsom sent when asked about it during a press conference on Wednesday.
See also:
● Calif theme parks must stay closed for now, Newsom says LA Times
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