March 4, 2021

04Mar

POLICY & POLITICS

 

Video: Central California underrepresented by Gov. Newsom's appointments

abc30

Corin Hoggard investigates into Gov Newsom's political appointments and how many power players from Central California get called-up to the state capitol, in an ABC30 Action News streaming original.

 

Pres. Biden Announces Key Nominee (with Valley focus) for the Small Business Administration

The White House

Today, President Joe Biden announced his intent to nominate Dilawar Syed to serve as Deputy Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA).

 

North SJ Valley:

 

COVID Update:

 

Ban on downtown Merced food trucks to end. Why leaders say it’s time, among other big plans

Merced Sun-Star

It may sound absurd to modern ears, but for 15 years the City of Merced has banned food trucks from its downtown due to fears that the now-prolific and hip mobile eateries would foster a nest of illegal activity.

 

What improvements are happening at Modesto City Schools sites? Here what’s coming next.

Modesto Bee

At a special meeting Monday night, the Modesto City Schools board heard a more-bang-for-taxpayer-buck update on facility improvement projects funded by Measures D and E, which were approved by voters in 2018.

 

A city (Stockton) gave people $500 a month, no strings attached, to fight poverty. It paid off, study says.

Washington Post

Residents of Stockton, Calif., who received $500 a month from a first-of-its-kind guaranteed-income program were more likely to find full-time jobs, be happy and stay healthy, according to a year-long study published Wednesday.

See also:

 

Central SJ Valley:

 

COVID Update:

 

Fresno Unified reaches deal to allow students back for in-person learning starting April 6

abc30

Fresno Unified plans to start bringing back more students for in-person learning by Monday, April 6, Superintendent Bob Nelson announced on Tuesday.

See also:

 

Fresno-area community colleges get new interim chancellor. Here’s what we know

Fresno Bee

Doug Houston, current chancellor of Yuba Community College District, will be the new interim chancellor for the State Center Community College District, the SCCCD board announced Tuesday evening.

 

Is Clovis sprawling? City Council approves study to add 1,000 acres to its influence

Fresno Bee

The Clovis City Council recently unanimously approved an environmental review of plans to potentially push the city’s sphere of influence further north through a study of 1,050 acres.

 

Less than 30% of Black Fresno County residents own homes. A nonprofit hopes to change that

Fresno Bee

White Fresno County residents own homes at about two-and-a-half times the rate of Black residents in the county — but a nonprofit is hoping to curb the disparity between the two by increasing financial literacy education and dispelling home-ownership myths in primarily-Black communities.

 

Fresno councilman: Postpone Selland Arena sale to soccer club due to pandemic budget crunch

Fresno Bee

A Fresno City Councilmember is calling to postpone sale negotiations of Selland Arena to the Fuego FC soccer club, saying city officials have too little information and the city’s financial situation is too precarious to rush the deal.

 

ACLU Lawsuit Alleges Tulare County Jail’s Social Distancing Policy Is Unconstitutional

VPR
The American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California has filed a new complaint against the Tulare County Jail for its living conditions during the pandemic, alleging that the jail is failing to adequately test for COVID-19 and that its social distancing policy violates inmates’ constitutional rights.

 

Trail hopes to restart Tulare County’s budding tourism industry

Sun Gazette

If you’re looking for a reason to get out of the house and soak up some scenery, Tulare County’s more than 431,000 acres of orchards offer splash of color this month as we head toward spring.

 

South SJ Valley:

 

COVID Update:

 

Kern County Black Chamber asks for leads in case of missing California City boys: 'Someone knows something'

Bakersfield Californian

The Kern County Black Chamber of Commerce hosted a livestream discussion on Wednesday morning regarding the effort to locate two California City brothers who allegedly went missing from their home in December under the care of their adoptive family.

 

Keep Kern Beautiful seeking members for new committee

Bakersfield Californian

Keep Kern Beautiful is looking to recruit 10 people to serve on its newly-established committee. According to a news release from the Kern County Public Works Department, the committee’s mission is to protect and beautify the natural environment by emphasizing community engagement, education and empowerment.

 

State:

 

COVID Update:

 

Who should pay for pension mistakes? California Legislature could make a change

Fresno Bee

A proposal aimed at ending surprise pension reductions for California retirees is back, accompanied by old questions over who should be responsible for mistakes that lead to benefit recalculations.

 

Guaranteed work: California commission calls for government jobs program after pandemic

Fresno Bee

California labor and economic leaders in a new report are calling for a “social compact” for workers, including ideas such as generating a million new jobs in clean energy and providing a federal and state jobs guarantee by 2030.

 

Where is Tony Thurmond? State schools chief stays behind the scenes in school reopening debate

CalMatters

Thurmond did not attend Monday’s event at a school in Elk Grove where Newsom announced the $6.6 billion deal. Nor did he accompany the governor the next day when he visited an elementary school in Palo Alto.

See also:

 

Black employee at California GOP faced racist comments from colleague, lawsuit claims

Sacramento Bee

An African American woman employed by the California Republican Party filed a lawsuit this week against the organization saying she encountered an “unending cycle of racially charged” harassment, discrimination and retaliation in 2019 by her supervisors.

 

Census Delays Complicate California’s Election Process

PPIC

The Census Bureau was supposed to produce state population totals by December 31 of last year, and data for the decennial redrawing of legislative districts by April 1. Now the state totals won’t be available until the second half of April, and the redistricting data is expected at the end of September.

 

California lawmakers eye aiding those with criminal records

Bakersfield Californian

California lawmakers are pushing several new efforts this year to largely seal or expunge criminal records for people who have completed their sentences, expanding on existing laws that proponents said aid people who are trying to re-enter society.

 

Federal:

 

COVID Update:

 

New stimulus plan would leave out 2.4 million Californians

abc30

Millions of higher-income Californians would get lower federal economic stimulus payments, or none at all, under a new Senate plan unveiled Wednesday, an economic research firm’s analysis found.

See also:

 

Senate Democrats ready to field House-passed bills but expect obstacles

Roll Call

House Democrats are planning by the end of the month to again pass at least 10 bills that languished in the Republican-controlled Senate last Congress, but the measures still face long odds to become law this session despite unified Democratic control.

See also:

 

House prepares to pass landmark voting rights, ethics bill

abc30

House Democrats are poised to pass a sweeping elections and ethics bill, offering it up as a powerful counterweight to voting rights restrictions advancing in Republican-controlled statehouses across the country.

See also:

 

House passes expansive policing overhaul bill named in honor of George Floyd

Washington Post

The House on Wednesday passed the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, an expansive policing overhaul measure named for the 46-year-old Black man who died last Memorial Day after a Minneapolis police officer pressed his knee against his neck for over nine minutes.

See also:

 

Xavier Becerra’s cabinet nomination clears first hurdle in a tied vote. What happens next?

Fresno Bee

California Attorney General Xavier Becerra barely cleared his first major hurdle to becoming the Health and Human Services Secretary on Wednesday, but not without a hitch. The Senate Finance Committee voted 14-14 along party lines to advance Becerra’s nomination in a hearing on Wednesday.

See also:

 

Elaine Chao Used DOT Resources For Personal Errands, Family Business, IG Report Says

NPR

In her time as former President Donald Trump's transportation secretary, Elaine Chao repeatedly used her position and agency staff to help family members who run a shipping business with ties to China, in potential violation of federal ethics laws, according to an Office of Inspector General report.

See also:

 

DOD Took Hours To Approve National Guard Request During Capitol Riot, Commander Says

VPR
It took more than three hours for former President Donald Trump's Defense Department to approve a request for the D.C. National Guard to intervene in the deadly Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection, the commanding general of the outfit told senators on Wednesday.

See also:

 

Doyle McManus: The Republican Party’s biggest problem is spelled T-R-U-M-P

Los Angeles Times

They can’t live with him, and they can’t live without him. That about sums up the Republican Party’s Donald Trump problem. After losing a presidential election, the usual next step for a political party is to pause, take stock of its problems and begin looking to a new generation of leaders without the same liabilities.

 

Other:

 

How is the population changing and growing?

USAFacts

Each decade, the federal government is constitutionally obligated to conduct a census and count every person in the US. The 2020 census data, not yet released, will affect the information below and statistics elsewhere in this report, be used to apportion congressional seats, and impact national issues like household income and employment.

 

MADDY INSTITUTE PUBLIC POLICY PROGRAMMING

 

Sunday, March 7, at 10 a.m. on ABC30 – Maddy Report: “Federal Response to Looming Crises” - Guests: Congressman David Valadao; Congressman Jim Costa. Host: Maddy Institute Executive Director, Mark Keppler.

 

Sunday, March 7, at 10 a.m. on Newstalk 580AM/105.9FM (KMJ) – Maddy Report - Valley Views Edition: “Congressional Agenda for 2021” - Guests: Professor Greg Soydemir - Stanislaus State; Professor Nate Monroe - UC Merced; Professor Lisa Bryant - Fresno State. Host: Maddy Institute Executive Director, Mark Keppler.

 

AGRICULTURE/FOOD

 

‘I feel relieved.’ Foster Farms vaccinates 1,000 workers at Livingston chicken plant

Fresno Bee

About 1,000 workers received COVID-19 vaccines Tuesday at the Foster Farms chicken plant in Livingston, the heart of the poultry giant’s business. “I feel relieved; I feel more comfortable,” said line supervisor Hilda Paz after getting her Pfizer shot around noon. “I hope this is a step going forward (and) everything goes back to normal.”

 

California’s Vaccine Rollout Has Yet to Reach Most Farmworkers

Civil Eats

While some large ag companies are working to bring on-site vaccination stations to their workers, complications abound in protecting these front-line workers from COVID-19.

See also:

 

CRIMINAL JUSTICE/FIRE/PUBLIC SAFETY

 

Crime:

 

Kern County Black Chamber asks for leads in case of missing California City boys: 'Someone knows something'

Bakersfield Californian

The Kern County Black Chamber of Commerce hosted a livestream discussion on Wednesday morning regarding the effort to locate two California City brothers who allegedly went missing from their home in December under the care of their adoptive family.

 

Public Safety:

 

California lawmakers eye aiding those with criminal records

Bakersfield Californian

California lawmakers are pushing several new efforts this year to largely seal or expunge criminal records for people who have completed their sentences, expanding on existing laws that proponents said aid people who are trying to re-enter society.

 

ACLU Lawsuit Alleges Tulare County Jail’s Social Distancing Policy Is Unconstitutional

VPR
The American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California has filed a new complaint against the Tulare County Jail for its living conditions during the pandemic, alleging that the jail is failing to adequately test for COVID-19 and that its social distancing policy violates inmates’ constitutional rights.

 

California AG office withholding data on gun sales, restraining orders from researchers

Sacramento Bee

Attorney General Xavier Becerra’s office is withholding gun violence data from a state-funded research institution tasked by lawmakers with evaluating California’s firearm regulations and also is directing universities to destroy records the agency previously released.

 

U.S. road deaths increased in 2020 despite major decline in traffic, report shows

UPI

Despite a dramatic decrease in the number of drivers on U.S. roads last year due to COVID-19, motor vehicle deaths nationwide in 2020 still increased by almost 10%, according to an analysis Thursday.

 

House passes expansive policing overhaul bill named in honor of George Floyd

Washington Post

The House on Wednesday passed the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, an expansive policing overhaul measure named for the 46-year-old Black man who died last Memorial Day after a Minneapolis police officer pressed his knee against his neck for over nine minutes.

See also:

 

Fire:

 

Warszawski: Creek Fire ignited in spot where Sierra tree-thinning effort was to begin. Coincidence?

Fresno Bee

The Creek Fire ignited in a rugged section of Big Creek Canyon choked with standing dead trees, fallen snags and brush. There are no trails or campgrounds. The only infrastructure was abandoned many decades ago.

 

Editorial: California must pass emergency wildfire prevention funding

Mercury News

It’s inconceivable that the California Legislature earlier this month failed to approve $323 million in emergency funding for wildfire prevention.

 

ECONOMY/JOBS

 

Economy:

 

Ban on downtown Merced food trucks to end. Why leaders say it’s time, among other big plans

Merced Sun-Star

It may sound absurd to modern ears, but for 15 years the City of Merced has banned food trucks from its downtown due to fears that the now-prolific and hip mobile eateries would foster a nest of illegal activity.

 

Trail hopes to restart Tulare County’s budding tourism industry

Sun Gazette

If you’re looking for a reason to get out of the house and soak up some scenery, Tulare County’s more than 431,000 acres of orchards offer splash of color this month as we head toward spring.

 

PPP Covid-19 Relief Initiative Is Adjusted to Attract the Smallest Businesses

Wall Street Journal

Small-business requests for money from the federal government’s signature Covid-19 relief initiative are running well below last year’s heady pace, prompting changes in the program’s final month to reach the hardest-hit businesses.

See also:

 

Jobs:

 

Guaranteed work: California commission calls for government jobs program after pandemic

Fresno Bee

California labor and economic leaders in a new report are calling for a “social compact” for workers, including ideas such as generating a million new jobs in clean energy and providing a federal and state jobs guarantee by 2030.

 

Study: Employment rose among those in free money experiment in Stockton

Bakersfield Californian

After getting $500 per month for two years without rules on how to spend it, 125 people in California paid off debt, got full-time jobs and had “statistically significant improvements" in emotional health, according to a study released Wednesday.

 

Another Remote-Work Year Looms as Office-Reopening Plans Are Delayed

Wall Street Journal

One of the hardest questions for American corporations to answer: When should offices reopen? From Silicon Valley to Tennessee to Pennsylvania, high hopes that a rapid vaccine rollout in early 2021 would send millions of workers back into offices by spring have been scuttled.

 

U.S. jobless claims tick up to 745,000 as layoffs remain high

PBS

The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits edged higher last week to 745,000, a sign that many employers continue to cut jobs despite a drop in confirmed viral infections and evidence that the overall economy is improving.

 

EDUCATION

 

K-12:

 

Fresno Unified reaches deal to allow students back for in-person learning starting April 6

abc30

Fresno Unified plans to start bringing back more students for in-person learning by Monday, April 6, Superintendent Bob Nelson announced on Tuesday.

See also:

 

What improvements are happening at Modesto City Schools sites? Here what’s coming next.

Modesto Bee

At a special meeting Monday night, the Modesto City Schools board heard a more-bang-for-taxpayer-buck update on facility improvement projects funded by Measures D and E, which were approved by voters in 2018.

 

Where is Tony Thurmond? State schools chief stays behind the scenes in school reopening debate

CalMatters

Thurmond did not attend Monday’s event at a school in Elk Grove where Newsom announced the $6.6 billion deal. Nor did he accompany the governor the next day when he visited an elementary school in Palo Alto.

See also:

 

Newsom's School Plan Unlikely to Stall Recall

RealClear Politics

Gov. Gavin Newsom’s long-awaited deal aimed at reopening schools is doing little to quell the wave of parent anger that helped propel the recall drive against him, an effort organizers believe will soon qualify for a special election.

 

‘It’s Patchwork’: Rural Teachers Struggle to Connect in Pandemic

Pew Trusts

An estimated 15 million elementary and secondary students across the country who lack adequate internet or do not have devices at home. The problem is especially acute in poor and rural communities.

 

Higher Ed:

 

Fresno-area community colleges get new interim chancellor. Here’s what we know

Fresno Bee

Doug Houston, current chancellor of Yuba Community College District, will be the new interim chancellor for the State Center Community College District, the SCCCD board announced Tuesday evening.

 

‘I’m still not OK.’ Many Fresno-area college educators out of work during pandemic

Fresno Bee

Due to a decline in enrollment at community colleges nationwide, hundreds of part-time instructors at the State Center Community College District are without a job this semester, according to the State Center Federation of Teachers.

 

California colleges slowly begin vaccinating faculty, students — but likely won’t require immunization

CalMatters

Chico State is one of at least three California State University campuses offering the coronavirus vaccine to faculty, staff or student employees. Other California colleges may soon follow as the state’s vaccine rollout continues and supply increases.

 

Opinion: We already have an alternative to massive student-loan cancellation

AEI

The notion of student-loan cancellations has been capturing the attention of politicians and those in the realm of higher-education policy for well over a year now. Despite the popularity of this hugely regressive idea, it’s a terrible one.

 

ENVIRONMENT/ENERGY

 

Environment:

 

COVID-19 helped slash 2020’s carbon dioxide emissions. How will we keep it going?

Los Angeles Times

The COVID-19 pandemic may have cut 2020’s global greenhouse gas emissions, but it won’t offer a lasting benefit unless similarly dramatic reductions in carbon dioxide continue for years to come, an international team of researchers says.

 

In contentious climate bill, some points of possible agreement

Roll Call

Republicans greeted climate legislation from their Democratic peers with a cold embrace, calling it a "one-size-fits-all” approach. Nevertheless, some elements of the bill have a shot at bipartisan support, including electricity standards, carbon-trapping technology, toxic chemicals, a diesel emissions program and controls on methane.

 

Editorial: To save the planet from climate change, gas guzzlers have to die

Los Angeles Times

Climate scientists tell us that we have less than a decade to make meaningful reductions in carbon emissions — including those from internal combustion engines — if we have any hope of staving off the worst effects of global warming.

 

Energy:

 

Opinion: Offshore wind can give California more renewable energy and well-paying jobs

San Francisco Chronicle

Californians have struggled through an unending series of crises over the past year. Our state has tragically lost more than 50,000 lives, along with massive COVID-induced economic setbacks and the disappearance of more than a million jobs.

 

Opinion: Big Oil ‘Friends’ the Carbon Tax

Wall Street Journal

These are useful and not revolutionary insights. A carbon tax was Congress’s primary focus for a decade until the green left shifted wholesale to the mandates-cum-subsidies approach that prevails today.

 

HEALTH/HUMAN SERVICES

 

Health:

 

Local health officials monitoring for COVID-19 variants

abc30

As Fresno County moves closer to re-opening more businesses, health officials are monitoring the risk that a variant of the COVID-19 virus could pose.

 

Study Finds Valley’s Mental Health Crisis More Dire Than Ever

Business Journal

As the Covid-19 curve is on the downturn, health officials can fix their eyes on what counties in the Central Valley are calling an epidemic: the mental health crisis.

 

How The West Is Battling COVID-19 and Valley Fever

VPR
Anna Antonowich is an avid rockhound: She knows where to find petrified wood, amethyst, opals, crystalline clusters of Desert Rose, and Nevada’s other gemstones. In July 2019, Antonowich and her sister were rockhounding in Washoe Lake, southeast of Reno, Nevada, when they encountered gusty winds, strong enough to pelt them with rocks and sand.

 

‘We’re born Indian and we die white’: California Indigenous fear COVID deaths undercounted

CalMatters

For years, Betty Sigala spoke to her family about her death: she didn’t want to be put on a machine and she didn’t want to die alone. When she was admitted in June to the COVID-19 care ward at her local hospital, her family refused a ventilator. One of her grandsons convinced the nurses to ignore the no visitors rule and let him in.

 

Most coronavirus deaths have occurred in countries where majority of adults are overweight

Washington Post

The vast majority of global coronavirus deaths occurred in nations with high levels of obesity, according to a report linking overweight populations with more severe coronavirus-related illness and mortality.

 

Widely used convalescent plasma treatment doesn't stop COVID-19 patients from getting sicker, study finds

USAToday

The federal government discontinued a research trial of convalescent plasma for COVID-19 saying the blood product from recovered patients doesn't prevent at-risk people visiting emergency rooms from getting sicker.

 

Human Services:

 

How do you get a COVID vaccination in Fresno? Some tips to understanding signup system

Fresno Bee

As community organizations, retail chain pharmacies, healthcare providers and others ramp up their capacity to provide coronavirus shots, the options available for Fresno County residents to get vaccinated against COVID-19 continue to increase.

See also:

 

200K sign-ups for Biden's new 'Obamacare' special enrollment period

abc30

More than 200,000 people signed up for coverage in the first two weeks after President Joe Biden re-opened HealthCare.gov as part of his coronavirus response, the government said Wednesday.

 

Blue Shield CEO explains plan to increase CA's vaccine doses to 4M per week

abc30

Blue Shield plans to increase the states capacity for delivery of COVID-19 vaccines from 1 million doses per week to 4 million doses per week. ABC7 speaks exclusively to Blue Shield's CEO Paul Markovich about their plans to expedite vaccine distribution in California.

 

When Will Nursing Homes Reopen To Visitors? State Officials Won’t Say

Capital Public Radio

Before the pandemic, Nancy Klein would spend up to seven hours a day at a nursing home in Riverside County, caring for her 53-year-old son, who was left unable to speak and move his limbs after a massive brain hemorrhage. She would suction his tracheotomy tube and massage his neck, arms and legs.

 

California will reserve 40% of COVID-19 vaccine for disadvantaged areas to speed reopenings

Los Angeles Times

In a major shift in policy, California officials said Wednesday night they will now devote 40% of available COVID-19 vaccines to residents in the most disadvantaged areas in a move designed to both slow the spread of coronavirus and speed up the reopening of the economy.

See also:

 

Opinion: Confronting Racism, Overcoming COVID-19, & Advancing Health Equity

California Budget & Policy Center

The COVID-19 pandemic has underscored the depths and reach of racism on the health of children, families, and individuals, with communities of color in California experiencing higher rates of illness, death, and overall hardship due to the virus.

 

Opinion: COVID-19 reveals need to increase diversity among California physicians

CalMatters

To build a truly diverse physician workforce, research shows the need for investment in programs that prepare students for medical school.

 

IMMIGRATION

 

California to pay for quarantine of refugees seeking asylum at Mexico border

Fresno Bee

California plans to spend $28 million to aid asylum seekers entering the country through the U.S.-Mexico border at the San Ysidro Port of Entry to await their court dates.

 

LAND USE/HOUSING

 

Land Use:

 

Is Clovis sprawling? City Council approves study to add 1,000 acres to its influence

Fresno Bee

The Clovis City Council recently unanimously approved an environmental review of plans to potentially push the city’s sphere of influence further north through a study of 1,050 acres.

 

Fresno councilman: Postpone Selland sale to soccer club due to pandemic budget crunch

Fresno Bee

A Fresno City Councilmember is calling to postpone sale negotiations of Selland Arena to the Fuego FC soccer club, saying city officials have too little information and the city’s financial situation is too precarious to rush the deal.

 

California's Pacific Coast Highway is falling into the ocean. Is this the end of the road for one of America's most scenic drives?

Visalia Times Delta

Frequent damage has long plagued the Pacific Coast Highway. Most recently, in January, yet another chunk fell into the ocean following intense rainstorms, which created a debris flow that overwhelmed water drains more than 100 miles south of San Francisco.

 

Housing:

 

Less than 30% of Black Fresno County residents own homes. A nonprofit hopes to change that

Fresno Bee

White Fresno County residents own homes at about two-and-a-half times the rate of Black residents in the county — but a nonprofit is hoping to curb the disparity between the two by increasing financial literacy education and dispelling home-ownership myths in primarily-Black communities.

 

Four or more people in your Fresno home? Then you're part of a nation-worst housing issue

Fresno Bee

Fresno has the most people per household and the highest percentage of families of large U.S. cities, according to a recent report that analyzed data from the U.S. Census Bureau.

 

Program in the South Valley helping low-income families become homeowners

abc30

Many people dream of having a home. A place to call their own and a space to create memories that will last a lifetime. For Nataly Herrera and her family, that dream will soon become reality.

 

Valley residents being impacted by rising rent prices

abc30

The cost of rising rent is impacting many Valley residents like Sandi Morales. "Unfortunately, the rent, it grew exponentially over two years that it made us basically downsize our apartment," she said. "So now, we're in a one-bedroom instead of a three-bedroom, making sacrifices just so we can save some money to eventually buy a house."

 

Business offering fast, relatively cheap housing for homeless stops in Modesto

Modesto Bee

A few dozen people got a look Tuesday in downtown Modesto at a solution that supporters say is an affordable and quick way to get homeless people off the streets.

 

Bidding wars and overblown fears: The curious case of the California exodus

CalMatters

New moving data and intensifying housing bidding wars undercut fears of a California mass exodus. But some cities have been hit harder, and many rushed moves are difficult to track, obscuring COVID-induced migration.

 

PUBLIC FINANCES

 

Stockton gave people $500 a month, no strings attached, to fight poverty. It paid off, study says.

Washington Post

Residents of Stockton, Calif., who received $500 a month from a first-of-its-kind guaranteed-income program were more likely to find full-time jobs, be happy and stay healthy, according to a year-long study published Wednesday.

See also:

 

New stimulus plan would leave out 2.4 million Californians

abc30

Millions of higher-income Californians would get lower federal economic stimulus payments, or none at all, under a new Senate plan unveiled Wednesday, an economic research firm’s analysis found.

See also:

 

Who should pay for pension mistakes? California Legislature could make a change

Fresno Bee

A proposal aimed at ending surprise pension reductions for California retirees is back, accompanied by old questions over who should be responsible for mistakes that lead to benefit recalculations.

 

Democrats Seek Temporary Expansion of Child Tax Credit, but Making It Permanent Is Real Goal

Wall Street Journal

Democrats are resorting to a well-worn tactic for their plan to expand the child tax credit: Push for a short-term policy, then highlight the consequences of letting it expire as scheduled.

 

TRANSPORTATION

 

This Week in Fresnoland: Measure C renewal kicks off to a rocky start

Fresno Bee

It’s official: Fresno County transportation officials have launched the process to start assembling the next version of Measure C, the county’s transportation sales tax. They’re hoping to place it on the ballot in November of 2022. (The current tax was passed by 78% voters in 2006 and sunsets in 2026.)

 

What challenges lie ahead for Biden’s aim to de-carbonise US transportation?

Open Access Government

As Joe Biden’s new Transportation Secretary, Pete Buttigieg can expect to have a long to-do list to tackle as he settles in behind his desk over the coming weeks. The former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, will be expected to play a significant role in the Biden administration’s environmental agenda.

See also:

 

WATER

 

California’s snowpack signals another dry year, prompting calls to save water

The Guardian

California will face another critically dry year, and residents will need to adapt quickly to cope with water shortages and a warmer, drier climate that has helped fuel destructive wildfires.

See also:

 

“Xtra”

 

It’s been a year since Fresno had an event like this. Fashawn headlines new monthly gig

Fresno Bee

Brandon Knight misses ArtHop. He thinks others might, too. The monthly downtown gathering was a staple of Fresno’s creative arts, music and culture community before it went on hiatus last March because of the coronavirus pandemic.

 

Head downtown for another round of Stories on the Sidewalk

Bakersfield Californian

If you've maxed out on streaming programming and aren't ready to pick up another book, take heart. Stories on the Sidewalk, a walking tour bringing Kern County's history to life, returns this month for two days of entertaining local tales in downtown Bakersfield.

 

Test yourself with our new free game: PolitiTruth

Think you can tell the difference between True and False?

Do you really know what is fake news?

 

Support the Maddy Daily

 

HERE

 

Thank you!

 

 

Maddy Institute Updated List of San Joaquin Valley Elected Officials HERE.

 

The Kenneth L. Maddy Institute was established to honor the legacy of one of California’s most principled and effective legislative leaders of the last half of the 20th Century by engaging, preparing and inspiring a new generation of governmental leaders for the 21st Century. Its mission is to inspire citizen participation, elevate government performance, provide non-partisan analysis and assist in providing solutions for public policy issues important to the region, state and nation.

                                                     

This document is to be used for informational purposes only. Unless specifically noted, The Maddy Institute does not officially endorse or support views that may be expressed in the document. If you want to print a story, please do so now before the link expires.

 

Subscribe to the Maddy Daily HERE

 

Or, to Subscribe or Unsubscribe: email amyboam@csufresno.edu