19Aug

Valley universities join forces to educate future leaders through the Maddy Institute

Fresno Bee

Leaders from Fresno State, CSU Bakersfield, Stanislaus State, and UC Merced sign an agreement to collaborate on educational resources and opportunities through the Maddy Institute for public policy and public affairs.

********Shape California’s Future – Deadline TODAY Aug. 19 BY 5:00PM ********

California State Auditor

This is your chance to become a part of creating fair and transparent district boundaries that serve the best interests of the people of California. If you believe politics are better when all sides work together and you have a passion for civic engagement, apply to become one of 14 new 2020 commissioners.

POLICY & POLITICS

North SJ Valley:

Modesto Centre Plaza is out for straight pride, but organizers say rally still on

Modesto Bee

The straight pride rally will not take place at Modesto Centre Plaza on Aug. 24, one of the organizers said Friday after the group had difficulties getting liability insurance.

EDITORIAL: Timing is right for Modesto to dramatically improve downtown

Modesto Bee

There may never be a better time for downtown to reassert itself as the business and cultural heartbeat of Modesto. Here’s why.

EDITORIAL: Bill by Merced lawmaker a good first step to deal with the epidemic of teen vaping

Fresno Bee

The use in recent years of electronic cigarettes by high school students jumped by 78 percent, reports the Food and Drug Administration in a study done in 2018. That same study found that use by middle schoolers of those products climbed 48 percent.

Central SJ Valley:

This developer was audited for poor recordkeeping. Fresno gave him more tax dollars

Fresno Bee

The city of Fresno will give nearly $700,000 to a downtown developer who has a history of practices that looked “not ethical.”

Warzzawski: Want to make a dent in Fresno’s unhealthy air? Stop driving your kids to school

Fresno Bee

More students should walk or bike to help the environment.

Where are the lowest rents in California? See how Fresno, Valley apartment costs rank

Fresno Bee

Fresno and the San Joaquin Valley continue to have some of the lowest apartment rent prices in California, with the average rental rate estimated at under $1,200 a month for most cities in the region.

EDITORIAL: Fresno police chief finalists should take questions from public — for transparency’s sake

Fresno Bee

Interviews were to start this week with the finalists for what is a critical job in Fresno city government, that of police chief.

Fresno Mayoral Candidates File Semi-Annual Campaign Disclosures

VPR

Late last month, those hoping for the City of Fresno’s top job filed their semi-annual campaign disclosures, showing the cash campaigns have on hand up until the end of June, and where it came from.

Fresno students asked Cong. Costa to donate pro-gun campaign money. Here’s what he did

Fresno Bee

Fresno Democratic Congressman Jim Costa will give $6,000 to the Gabby Giffords Courage to Fight Gun Violence political action committee after students with March for Our Lives Fresno called him out for receiving money from a pro-gun group with ties to the NRA.

Chowchilla to get new City Admin

Madera Tribune

Chowchilla Finance Director Rod Pruitt, one of 16 applicants for the vacant job of city administrator, was offered the job following Tuesday night’s special closed session meeting of the Chowchilla City Council.

South SJ Valley:

Kings County getting $10 million to settle 2014 lawsuit over high-speed rail route

Fresno Bee

The last lawsuit challenging the selection of a high-speed rail route between Fresno and Bakersfield has been settled between Kings County and the California High-Speed Rail Authority.

Between A Highway And An Oilfield, Lost Hills Residents Question Their Air Quality

VPR

Air quality is a perennial concern in Lost Hills, where local resident Saul Ruiz worries it’s worse than elsewhere in the Valley. Residents complain of smells like rotten eggs and chemicals.

Shafter economic development marches on

Bakersfield Californian

There has been a shake-up in city governance. It remains to be seen how the sudden retirement by City Manager Scott Hurlbert, who replaced longtime manager John Guinn in 2014, will affect the city’s direction

What’s Next For Embattled Kern County Supervisor Leticia Perez?

VPR

In a rare instance of a sitting politician facing criminal charges, Kern County Supervisor Leticia Perez is defending herself against two misdemeanor charges related to a conflict of interest between her position as an elected official and her ties to the marijuana industry.

Congressman Cox to host service academy night in Lemoore

Hanford Sentinel

High school students interested in the military are invited to a service academy night in Lemoore hosted by Congressman TJ Cox.

Everyone counts: 2020 US Census approaches

Hanford Sentinel

The 2020 U.S. Census is soon approaching, and efforts have begun to make sure everyone in Kings County is counted.

State:

Record-High Share of Californians Worried about Climate-Fueled Wildfires

Public Policy Institute of California

A record-high share of Californians (71%) report that they are concerned about wildfires becoming more severe as a result of global warming.

California sues over Trump move to block green cards for poor immigrants

Sacramento Bee

California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Attorney General Xavier Becerra on Friday sued to block the Trump administration’s “public charge” rule.

● California suing U.S. to block immigration rule Visalia Times Delta

● California Leads Latest Lawsuit Over Trump Immigration Rule Capital Public Radio

● California sues Trump over ‘public charge’ rule denying green cards to immigrants Los Angeles Times

● Trump Administration Creates Green Card Roadblocks For Low-Income Immigrants Capitol & Main

California to Trump: See you in court, with a barrage of lawsuits

San Francisco Chronicle

Xavier Becerra was appointed as California’s attorney general in the same month that Donald Trump was sworn in as president. While Trump has devoted considerable time since then to denouncing politicians and judges in California, Becerra has been taking him to court. Repeatedly.

California’s insurance chief took money from this businessman. Why the donation raises questions

Sacramento Bee

State Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara accepted a $10,000 donation to his inaugural committee from a Laguna Beach businessman.

California Supreme Court Provides Rare Update on Inverse Condemnation Doctrine

Nossaman LLP

In this unanimous opinion authored by Justice Cuéllar, the Supreme Court held that to succeed on an inverse condemnation claim, a property owner must show more than just a causal link between the existence of a public improvement and damage to private property: it must demonstrate that “the property damage was the probable result or necessary effect of an inherent risk associated with the design, construction, or maintenance of the relevant public improvement.”

EDITORIAL: In the final weeks of session, Sacramento can’t neglect these bills

San Francisco Chronicle

As we enter the final weeks of the 2018-19 legislative session, revolution has failed to materialize. While there have certainly been spasms of controversial legislative action, for the most part, the Legislature has failed to drastically overturn the status quo.

See also:

· Editorial: What Will California Ban Next? Wall Street Journal

Federal:

Trump likens buying Greenland to ‘a large real estate deal’

Fresno Bee

President Donald Trump said Sunday the idea of buying Greenland from Denmark has been discussed within his administration because of the strategic benefits for the U.S. and suggested that the semi-autonomous territory is a financial burden to Denmark.

● Greenland to Trump: Thanks, but we’re not for sale Los Angeles Times

● White House aide Kudlow confirms Trump’s interest in Greenland Los Angeles Times

Editorial: A Lesson in Judicial Humility

Wall Street Journal

The Ninth Circuit, of all places, overrules a national injunction.

Elections 2020:

Bernie Sanders to hold rally in downtown Sacramento this week

Sacramento Bee

Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders will be holding a rally in downtown Sacramento this Thursday, according to an event posting on his campaign website.

What California Knows About Kamala Harris

Capital Public Radio

What most Americans are still just beginning to learn about California’s junior senator, we’ve seen it here for decades. Here are eight ways that California shaped Kamala Harris and that Harris has shaped California.

Trump can be beaten, top fundraiser tells Dems, so ‘stop wringing your hands’

San Francisco Chronicle

The president of Emily’s List says Democrats are allowing President Trump to psyche them out and get into their heads before the 2020 presidential race. She is optimistic and says female voters could well drive the party to victory.

Marianne Williamson campaigns in California, where she feels ‘understood’

San Francisco Chronicle

After a grueling stretch on the presidential campaign trail, Marianne Williamson began her Oakland town hall rally by saying, “There’s no place I’d rather be than California. I feel understood here.”

An election reform: Let voters make clear which candidates they truly dislike

CALmatters

How many times have you heard someone say, “I don’t know who I like in this election, but I sure know who I don’t like”?

Don’t be fooled by deepfakes

Brookings

Deepfakes are videos that make a person appear to say or do something they did not say or do, and they are coming to an election near you.

Why paper is considered state-of-the-art voting technology

Brookings

Earlier this summer, the House passed a bill to require that all voting machines include a paper ballot. Though it’s unlikely to pass, Raj Karan Gambhir and Jack Karsten explain why having a paper trail is critical to ensuring the integrity of American elections.

It’s a campaign talking point, but reports of the filibuster’s demise might be premature

Washington Post

Opponents of the legislative filibuster have made big gains this summer in their effort to abolish the Senate’s requirement for supermajorities to approve major legislation.

Other:

America inches closer to adoption Equal Rights Amendment

Fresno Bee

Fresno’s City Manager Wilma Quan, Fire Chief Kerry Donis, former mayor and now foundation CEO Ashley Swearengin, and Fresno County Sheriff Margaret Mims are among many local women who have shattered the glass ceiling that has traditionally prevented them from occupying top spots in both government and corporate worlds. Their success is due to their excellence, persistence, and a societal shift in defining and accepting the many roles that women fill.

Skelton: For 80 years, Frank Fat’s has been ‘home away from home’ for politicians in Sacramento

Los Angeles Times

Fortunately for California, Frank Fat didn’t obey this country’s immigration laws. He sneaked in illegally and achieved the American dream. We’ve all been better off for it. Couldn’t speak English. No green card. No money. Just forged papers with a fake name. He arrived on a boat from China 100 years ago at age 16, seasick but determined to succeed. Did he ever.

Opinion: The very liberal in America are different

Washington Examiner

The data make it abundantly clear that a tiny, extremely liberal group makes a lot of noise both online and on the ground. It is insular and far more active in its political behaviors than even its “very conservative” counterparts. Meanwhile, most Americans are not nearly as habitually outraged.

Demographics of People Interested in Local News

Pew Research Center

These groups also prefer to get local news on TV.

MADDY INSTITUTE PUBLIC POLICY PROGRAMMING

Sunday, August 25, at 10 a.m. on ABC30 – Maddy Report: “Out of District Charter Schools: Does Out of Sight, Mean Out of Mind?” – Guest: California State Auditor, Elaine Howle. Host: Maddy Institute Executive Director, Mark Keppler.

Sunday, August 25, at 10 a.m. on Newstalk 580AM/105.9FM (KMJ) –Maddy Report – Valley Views Edition: “Are Education Reforms & Charter Schools the Answer?” – Guests: California State Auditor Elaine Howle, Laura Hill with the Public Policy Institute of California & Dan Walters with CALmatters. Host: Maddy Institute Executive Director, Mark Keppler.

Sunday, August 25, at 7:30 a.m. on UniMas 61 (KTTF) – El Informe Maddy: “State Auditor Report on Charter Schools” – Invitados: Margarita Fernandez, PIO State Auditor’s Office.. Presentado Por: Coordinadora del Programa del Maddy Institute, Maria Jeans.

AGRICULTURE/FOOD

The latest casualty of Trump’s trade war with China? California wine

Los Angeles Times

Since April 2018, in response to U.S. tariffs, China has slapped retaliatory taxes on $110 billion in U.S. imports — products as varied as electronics and soybeans. For wine, taxes and tariffs now amount to a 93% surcharge on every U.S. bottle.

The end of Cabernet in Napa Valley?

San Francisco Chronicle

Napa wineries are confronting climate change by planting new experimental vineyards — without the region’s lifeblood, Cabernet Sauvignon.

How California is leading the food security fight

KCRA

Human-caused climate change is dramatically degrading the Earth’s land and the way people use the land is making global warming worse, a new United Nations scientific report says. That creates a vicious cycle that is already making food more expensive, scarcer and less nutritious.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE / FIRE / PUBLIC SAFETY

Crime:

Ruling limits border agents’ ability to search cellphones

Los Angeles Times

Border officials may examine a person’s cellphone for contraband, such as pornography, but may not search it to determine whether someone has committed a crime, a federal appeals court decided Friday.

Locked in limbo

San Francisco Chronicle

Some prisoners are serving life sentences under California’s old indeterminate sentencing law, where judges imposed indefinite time.

Mass Incarceration in the U.S.

NPR

The United States imprisons more people than any other country in the world, and a disproportionate number of those prisoners are Black. What are the origins of the U.S. criminal justice system and how did racism shape it? From the creation of the first penitentiaries in the 1800s, to the “tough-on-crime” prosecutors of the 1990s, how America created a culture of mass incarceration.

Public Safety:

Fresno State Police Chief David Huerta dies, university confirms. Had double lung transplant

Fresno Bee

Fresno State Police Chief David Huerta died Friday after a long period in the hospital, university officials confirmed Saturday. Huerta, who served as chief of the university police department since 2004, underwent a double lung transplant in August 2018.

Far from a ‘vanity mobile,’ new SWAT vehicle is critically needed by Fresno police

Fresno Bee

Fresno Police Department also has access to an armored rescue vehicle that they share with Clovis PD and the Fresno Sheriff’s Department. It is used when officers are being fired upon, protects against armor-piercing bullets, and can be used for rescue operations.

EDITORIAL: Fresno police chief finalists should take questions from public — for transparency’s sake

Fresno Bee

Interviews were to start this week with the finalists for what is a critical job in Fresno city government, that of police chief.

Americans have become too numb to gun violence, and there’s a reason why

Sacramento Bee

The nation is getting numb to this violence because, in many ways, we have always been numb to it. Some people say we’re at a turning point, again. Maybe. But we have to remember this: We were raised on it.

Gun deaths in the U.S.: 10 key questions answered

Pew Research Center

The recent mass shootings in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio – along with a spate of shootings in Chicago – have brought renewed attention to deadly gun violence in the United States.

Half of Americans Disapprove of Trump’s Response to Mass Shootings

Wall Street Journal

Wall Street Journal/NBC poll shows 68% worry U.S. will see another attack by white nationalists.

Fire:

Firefighters prepare for peak wildfire season

abc30

There’s no such thing as fire season in California in the 21st century. “CAL FIRE’s fire season is really a year-round fire season,” said CAL FIRE public information officer, Seth Brown.

● Gaines Fire burns 1,300 acres, 40 percent contained abc30

Cal Fire said Tubbs Fire wasn’t caused by PG&E. Victims win the right to sue utility anyway

Sacramento Bee

Victims of the deadly Tubbs Fire in 2017 won the right to pursue lawsuits against PG&E Corp. on Friday in spite of state investigators’ declaration that the utility wasn’t to blame for the fire.

See also:

● PG&E’s role in the 2017 Tubbs Fire to go to jury trial San Francisco Chronicle

ECONOMY / JOBS

Economy:

2019 California Economic Summit Registration Opens

CAFWD

Registration has opened for the 2019 California Economic Summit, which will take place in Fresno on November 7-8. The Summit, produced by California Forward, marks the eighth annual gathering of private, public and civic leaders from across California’s diverse regions committed to creating a shared economic agenda to expand prosperity for all.

Trump dismisses worries of recession, says economy is strong

Fresno Bee

President Donald Trump dismissed concerns of recession on Sunday and offered an optimistic outlook for the economy after last week’s steep drop in the financial markets.

● Top Trump officials downplay recession risks Stockton Record

● Is economic recession on the horizon for California? Sacramento Bee

● Is recession on our horizon? CALmatters

Trump wields sanctions hammer; experts wonder to what end

Fresno Bee

Call it the diplomacy of coercion. The Trump administration is aggressively pursuing economic sanctions as a primary foreign policy tool to an extent unseen in decades, or perhaps ever. Many are questioning the results even as officials insist the penalties are achieving their aims.

For years, maximizing shareholder profits has been the primary goal of many corporations. That should change, a group of CEOs says.

Washington Post

In a big shift for corporate America, the Business Roundtable said it is updating its decades-old endorsement of the theory that shareholders’ interests should come above all else. Now, the Roundtable, which represents the CEOs of many of the largest companies in the United States, says corporations must balance profits with the needs of employees, customers and other stakeholders. It remains to be seen how much the companies change their practices in light of the new commitments.

Fed Chief Wedged Between a Slowing Economy and an Angry President

Wall Street Journal

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell faces scrutiny from markets and the White House in an economy unsettled by a trade dispute and fears of recession

The Inverted Yield Curve Deserves Better Scrutiny

Bloombeg

Rather than look at Treasuries, it’s better to examine corporate bonds for a true sense of the economic outlook.

Jobs:

California job growth is outpacing the nation’s

Los Angeles Times

California’s job market powered ahead in July amid the longest expansion since the 1960s, and unemployment remained at a record low.

● California Employment Report for July 2019 California Center for Jobs & the Economy

Gig-worker bill: Gavin Newsom keeps his distance from California’s big fight

San Francisco Chronicle

Time is running out for Gov. Gavin Newsom to take a stand on an issue that is splitting Sacramento and affects 1 in 10 California workers.

Guest worker visas are being denied at record rates

— Denial rates for high-skilled worker visas have quadrupled since 2015, a trend that makes it much harder for companies that rely on these workers to find and retain talent. According to data from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, denial rates for first-time H-1B visa applicants increased from 6 percent to 24 percent between fiscal years 2015 and 2018. And the trend is growing.

Victims of workplace misconduct need a system they can trust. But what does that look like?

Fresno Bee

California Influencers this week answered the following the question: What steps should we take to ensure victims of workplace misconduct are heard and that there is accountability for those who engage in such unacceptable behavior? Below are the Influencers’ answers in their entirety.

EDUCATION

K-12:

‘Visit with VUSD’ launches this week

Visalia Times Delta

In an effort to bring more transparency to Visalia Unified School District, administrators have launched “Visit with VUSD.” Visit with VUSD is a series of community gatherings designed to connect school administrators with parents, teachers, and concerned residents.

New pilot program among 9 school districts aims for student success from cradle to career

Bakersfield Californian

What if a student’s academic data could be tracked from their first day of school all the way until they graduate college in a way that was not available before? A Kern County pilot program is on its way to do just that.

Assemblyman Rudy Salas and Aera Energy donate school supplies to Lost Hills students

Bakersfield Californian

Assemblyman Rudy Salas and Aera Energy hosted a backpack giveaway for local students in Lost Hills on Friday.

Controversial ethnic studies plan ‘falls short,’ educators say

Stockton Record

The state’s top education officials are hitting the pause button on a plan for teaching ethnic studies to California high schoolers after the draft faced a flood of criticism.

Preventing School Violence Through Threat Assessment

EdNote

This is the third in a series of blog posts that explore state efforts to improve school safety through legislation, initiatives, task forces and more.

The Future of AI Depends on High-School Girls

The Atlantic

Women make up one-quarter of computer scientists. But in the field of artificial intelligence those numbers are likely much lower.

Taking the Measure of California’s School Funding Formula

Capital & Main

Six years after Jerry Brown reformed school funding, low-income districts are getting more resources but still struggling to draw experienced teachers.

Foster Youth Need More Than Education to Build a Stable Life

Zocalo Public Square

Schools don’t nurture long-term relationships—and may even discourage them.

Summer for teens means more schooling, less leisure time than in past

Pew Research Center

The way U.S. teens spend their summer hours is changing. Compared with 10 years ago, teens ages 15 to 17 are devoting more of their time in the summer to educational activities and less time to leisure, according to a new Pew Research Center analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

Higher Ed:

Who goes to Stanislaus State? Chats with freshmen on move-in day give a feel

Modesto Bee

California State University, Stanislaus, is welcoming its largest-ever freshman class — more than 1,600 students — and interviews with some of those young men and women on dorm move-in day on Sunday gave some indication why.

CSUB training clinic offers low-cost counseling to Bakersfield area

Bakersfield Californian

One of Cal State Bakersfield’s best kept secrets — the University Counselor Training Clinic — will soon reopen its doors to Bakersfield residents seeking individual, couple and family therapy.

Fresno City College gets boost to nursing, automotive programs

Business Journal

The future Fresno City College nursing and automotive career technical education programs got a big boost Friday morning with the presentation of a $1 million check from Sacramento.

Scholar, activist, intellectual. Cornel West will kick off speaker’s forum at Fresno City College

Fresno Bee

Dr. Cornel West will kick off this year’s Speaker’s Forum at Fresno City College. The prominent activist, intellectual and political provocateur will speak at noon Tuesday in the Old Administration Building auditorium. A meet-and-greet will follow.

Clovis Community College takes on food insecurities

Clovis RoundUp

At both the Herndon Campus and the main site, students of CCC are able to access the Crush Pantry.

COS is growing in enrollment and educational success

Porterville Recorder

More than 13,000 students will attend College of the Sequoias’ three campuses this week. While Monday starts the first day of the Fall 2019 semester, Friday, August 9, provided a time for reflection for faculty, staff and administrators at College of the Sequoias.

Trump appoints student loan industry executive to watchdog job

Los Angeles Times

The Trump administration has appointed a longtime student loan industry executive to be the federal government’s top watchdog for the $1.5-trillion student loan market.

● 5 facts about student loans Pew Research Center

ENVIRONMENT/ ENERGY

Environment:

Warzzawski: Want to make a dent in Fresno’s unhealthy air? Stop driving your kids to school

Fresno Bee

More students should walk or bike to help the environment.

Between A Highway And An Oilfield, Lost Hills Residents Question Their Air Quality

VPR

Air quality is a perennial concern in Lost Hills, where local resident Saul Ruiz worries it’s worse than elsewhere in the Valley. Residents complain of smells like rotten eggs and chemicals.

Here’s where mosquitoes with West Nile are being found in the Central Valley

abc30

The Consolidated Mosquito Abatement District is ramping up efforts as mosquitoes in the Central Valley continue to test positive for the West Nile Virus.

Is recycling collapsing in California? Advocates call on lawmakers to rescue it

Sacramento Bee

When rePlanet closed its doors at its remaining 284 California locations earlier this month, alarm bells went up among recycling advocates.

Record-High Share of Californians Worried about Climate-Fueled Wildfires

Public Policy Institute of California

A record-high share of Californians (71%) report that they are concerned about wildfires becoming more severe as a result of global warming.

● Don’t Burn Trees to Fight Climate Change—Let Them Grow The New Yorker

California’s Biggest Cities Confront a ‘Defecation Crisis’

Wall Street Journal

Lawmakers ban plastic straws as a far worse kind of waste covers the streets of San Francisco and L.A..

A terrifying preview of ‘The Big One’ — a giant quake that may hit Southern California

Washington Post

So what might that earthquake look like today? “The Big One,” a podcast from KPCC in Los Angeles, gives a terrifying preview of what it could be like if a magnitude-7.8 earthquake hits Southern California.

Opinion: Distrust of Science Is as American as Apple Pie

Zócalo Public Square

Our Belief in Equality and Passion for Politics Increase Our Suspicion of Expertise.

EDITORIAL: California must fight back as Trump guts Endangered Species Act

San Francisco Chronicle

As the president tries to dodge science and undercut wildlife preservation, the state should protect more plants and animals left vulnerable.

See also:

· EDITORIAL: Endangered Species Overreach Wall Street Journal

EDITORIAL:Trump’s plan to move BLM jobs west is a shallow pretext to gut the agency’s mission

Los Angeles Times

Part of the problem with the constant flow of news out of the White House — from offensive tweets to potentially disastrous policies — is that acts that would have seemed outrageous in previous administrations slip past, hidden by the smoke of the Trumpster fire. The administration’s plan to effectively gut the Washington-based Bureau of Land Management is a case in point.

Energy:

Intentional power shutoffs could put hundreds of thousands of Californians in peril

Los Angeles Times

Gov. Gavin Newsom vented his frustration with Pacific Gas & Electric’s handling of a shutoff in June, saying there “was no coordination and collaboration with the state.”

PG&E Stays in Charge of Mega-Billion-Dollar Bankruptcy Exit Plan

Wall Street Journal

Bondholders, insurers lose bid to open up PG&E’s bankruptcy to competition.

COMMUNITY VOICES: Keep natural gas and renewable natural gas in California

Bakersfield Californian

Earlier this month, Calgren Dairy Fuels in neighboring Tulare County celebrated the completion of its renewable natural gas facility in Pixley, an operation that’s gathering biogas from multiple dairy farms and turning it into pipeline quality renewable methane.

HEALTH/HUMAN SERVICES

Health:

SJ group urges Coca-Cola boycott over health concerns

Stockton Record

In San Joaquin County, 36 percent of young adults ages 18-39 have been diagnosed with pre-diabetes or diabetes. On Saturday, TOLA held a rally at the Van Buskirk Community Center calling for a boycott of the Coca-Cola Company.

EDITORIAL: Bill by Merced lawmaker a good first step to deal with the epidemic of teen vaping

Fresno Bee

Human Services:

CSUB training clinic offers low-cost counseling services to area

Bakersfield Californian

One of Cal State Bakersfield’s best kept secrets — the University Counselor Training Clinic — will soon reopen its doors to Bakersfield residents seeking individual, couple and family therapy. Under the supervision of clinic director Richard Zamora, second- and third-year graduate student clinicians provide low-cost services to community members of all ages in English and Spanish. Counseling costs $25 for the first session and $15 per session thereafter, but no client is ever turned away if they’re unable to pay.

New health and wellness center to open in Mendota

abc30

The Alliance for Medical Outreach and Relief – or AMOR – broke ground on their new health and wellness center in Mendota.

Rural Hospitals Say ‘Medicare For All’ Would End Up ‘Closing Our Doors’

Valley Public Radio

Adopting a single-payer government health care program that covers all Americans would force more rural hospitals to close, according to hospital administrators from Texas to Maine

Paging more doctors: California’s worsening physician shortage

CAlmatters

California is facing a growing shortage of primary care physicians, one that is already afflicting rural areas and low-income inner city areas, and is forecasted to impact millions of people within ten years. Not enough newly minted doctors are going into primary care, and a third of the doctors in the state are over 55 and looking to retire soon, according to astudy by the Healthforce Center at UC-San Francisco.

California Rules to Limit Surprise Medical Bills Are Working, but Influence Insurer-Provider Bargaining

RAND

A California law that limits the size of bills from out-of-network physicians for care delivered in hospitals appears to be protecting patients’ financial liability, but has shifted bargaining leverage in favor of insurance plans and had potential unintended consequences such as encouraging more consolidation among physician practice groups, according to a new RAND Corporation study.

Despite scary headlines, America’s elderly continue to prosper

Brookings

You should be afraid, very afraid. Or so I’m told when I imprudently open email solicitations and read the news articles linked in those solicitations.

Can Midwives Help Prevent Maternal Mortality?

PEW Trusts

Hospitals are shutting down across rural America, creating a shortage of care.

U.S. health panel recommends doctors screen all adults for illicit drug use

Washington Post

An influential group of health experts recommended Tuesday that doctors screen all adults for use of illegal drugs, another step toward curbing the epidemic that claims tens of thousands of lives each year.

EDITORIAL: The Right’s Left Turn on Drug Prices

Wall Street Journal

The rate of increase is falling even as the GOP embraces bad ideas.

IMMIGRATION

California sues over Trump move to block green cards for poor immigrants

Sacramento Bee

California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Attorney General Xavier Becerra on Friday sued to block the Trump administration’s “public charge” rule.

● California suing U.S. to block immigration rule Visalia Times Delta

● California Leads Latest Lawsuit Over Trump Immigration Rule Capital Public Radio

● California sues Trump over ‘public charge’ rule denying green cards to immigrants Los Angeles Times

● Trump Administration Creates Green Card Roadblocks For Low-Income Immigrants Capitol & Main

● How Stephen Miller authors Trump’s immigration policy Washington Post

Court allows Trump admin asylum restrictions to take place along most of border

abc30

The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals rolled back a prior injunction that blocked the Trump admin’s asylum restrictions, allowing them to take place outside the region.

● Public’s Priorities for U.S. Asylum Policy: More Judges for Cases, Safe Conditions for Migrants Pew Research Center

Doctors say new rule will mean sicker immigrants

Sacramento Bee

President Donald Trump’s administration trumpeted its aggressive approach this past week as a way to keep only self-sufficient immigrants in the country, but health experts argue it could force potentially millions of low-income migrants to choose between needed services and their bid to stay legally in the U.S.

Trump is stripping immigrant children of protections, critics say. Supporters say he’s closing loopholes

Los Angeles Times

The policy shift is the latest in a string of reversals by the administration in protections for immigrant children, who have been the most prominent collateral damage in its crackdown on migrants at the southern border.

US says controversial migrant deal will move forward despite new leader’s opposition

abc30

Despite repeated denials by Guatemala’s new president, the U.S. says the two countries are moving ahead with a deal for the U.S. to deport asylum seekers to Guatemala.

I am Mexican American with no hyphen and no apologies – and am haunted by a history of hate.

Sacramento Bee

I didn’t know how to write about the El Paso massacre because for two weeks I’ve been too angry at too many people.

LAND USE/HOUSING

Land Use:

Coarsegold Shopping Center Sold for $3.25M

Sierra News

Ownership of one of Coarsegold’s single-largest commercial properties has changed hands. The 5.78-acre mini-mall and strip development on the east side of Highway 41, home to a number of the town’s most active businesses, was sold to a Bay Area real estate investment trust.

Yosemite’s Glacier Point Road set to close in 2021

San Francisco Chronicle

Yosemite National Park is planning to close Glacier Point Road for the entire 2021 season to rebuild the road and add parking at a key trailhead, according to a new plan developed by the park.

Housing:

Where are the lowest rents in California? See how Fresno, Valley apartment costs rank

Fresno Bee

Regulatory “red lights” holding back CA’s ambitious housing goals

CA FWD

The high cost of infrastructure and lack of available land for housing are key barriers to building 3.5 million more homes. New CA Fwd report offers four ways to overcome constraints and increase housing land supply in existing urban areas.

PUBLIC FINANCES

This developer was audited for poor recordkeeping. Fresno gave him more tax dollars

Fresno Bee

The city of Fresno will give nearly $700,000 to a downtown developer who has a history of practices that looked “not ethical.”

States must be careful with marijuana revenue — or see money go up in smoke, report finds

Sacramento Bee

“Sin tax” revenue is notoriously unpredictable, and cannabis — now legal in California, Washington and eight other states — is no exception.

Column: With a ballot fight looming, Gov. Gavin Newsom suggests dealmaking to revamp California’s tax system

Los Angeles Times

Gov. Gavin Newsom has the next four years to make his mark as California’s most powerful politician but significantly less time — more like 15 months — to broker a deal that would stave off a galactic clash of political heavyweights while also making public policy history.

Budget Decider: Making choices that impact millions

CALmatters

California lawmakers have passed a $215 billion budget filled with progressive eye-catchers. But what if you had the awesome power to tax and spend, charting a new course for California?

Red meat could be taxed like tobacco by Governments around the world to help curb climate change

Business Insider

First, the taxman came for your cigar. Now he might be coming for your steak.

How the Democrats’ Social Security plan could finance a tax cut

National Review

However one thinks Social Security should be fixed, the expiration of massive income-tax transfers to Social Security come 2035 throws another option into the policy mix.

Alan Viard on America’s tax system after the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act

AEI

On this episode, AEI’s Alan Viard returns to discuss the effects of the 2017 tax cuts and the future of American tax policy.

TRANSPORTATION

Kings County getting $10 million to settle 2014 lawsuit over high-speed rail route

Fresno Bee

The last lawsuit challenging the selection of a high-speed rail route between Fresno and Bakersfield has been settled between Kings County and the California High-Speed Rail Authority.

New stop signs: drivers need to put the brakes on ‘autopilot’

Visalia Times Delta

It’s common for motorists not to notice the installation of a stop sign or traffic light, CHP officer Steve Beal said, especially if it’s a road the driver travels regularly.

Can California Put Cars In The Rear-View Mirror?

Capital Public Radio

With transportation — mostly passenger vehicles — responsible for about 40% of the state’s greenhouse-gas emissions, policymakers are ramping up efforts to uncouple Californians from their cars.

WATER

‘Snow droughts’ are coming for the American West

National Geographic

By the middle of the century, two or more bad snow years in a row in mountains from Colorado to California will likely be the norm.

“Xtra”

New Madera Fair attraction features a virtual 5k run

Madera Tribune

A new attraction will help kick off the Madera Fair, according to Barbara Leach, the fair’s events coordinator. It’s called the Ferris Wheel Virtual 5k, billed by the fair as a run like no other, Leach said.

Frank Bergon fills the Arts Council gallery

Madera Tribune

A standing room only crowd gathered Wednesday evening at the Madera County Arts Council and Circle Gallery to hear author Frank Bergon tell his story of “Two-Buck Chuck & The Marlboro Man,” and to have him sign copies of his book.