December 1, 2021

01Dec

POLICY & POLITICS

 

North SJ Valley:

 

COVID Update:​​ 

 

Experts propose a redraw of Stanislaus County district to avoid voting rights issue

Modesto Bee

Stanislaus County’s redistricting commission is working on the boundaries for creating a supervisorial district that has a strong majority of Latino voters. County supervisors received an update last week on a redistricting effort that was slowed down by federal delays in reporting 2020 Census data.

 

Central SJ Valley:

 

COVID Update:​​ 

 

Fresno mural honored violence victims. Here’s why the building owner ordered it removed

Fresno Bee

Pastor Willie Moore, who owns the downtown Fresno building that featured a mural depicting city residents lost to violence, said he ordered the artwork’s removal about two weeks ago because it didn’t reflect the church’s teachings.

 

South SJ Valley:

 

COVID Update:​​ 

 

Time-of-use electric rates coming soon to residents of eastern Kern

Bakersfield Californian

Thousands of eastern Kern County residents will soon be given a chance to make an important choice about how they pay for electricity.

 

What you should know about Bakersfield’s new water restrictions

KGET

Drought conditions are worsening and Bakersfield is once again requiring residents to cut back on water. The City of Bakersfield announced on Monday that it will move into Stage 2 of its drought mitigation plan on Dec. 14.

 

Study finds Bakersfield as the second most dangerous area for pedestrians

abc23

A continuing national study from Smart Growth America found for the last nine years Bakersfield ranked as the second most dangerous area for pedestrians.

 

State:

 

COVID Update:

 

California’s biggest labor group recommends Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez as its next leader

Fresno Bee

Lorena Gonzalez, a San Diego Democrat assemblywoman who authored prominent bills on gig workers and warehouse employees, could become the first woman and person of color to lead California’s biggest labor organization.

 

How much will California redistricting shift political power?

CalMatters

California’s citizens redistricting commission is designed to be nonpartisan, but its final congressional and legislative maps could change party politics. This week, the commission is reviewing lots of public comments and considering potential changes.

 

Can California legally require women on corporate boards?

Sacramento Bee

The conservative legal group Judicial Watch brought the lawsuit claiming it's illegal to use taxpayer funds to enforce a law that violates the equal protection clause of the California Constitution by mandating a gender-based quota.

See also:

 

California now limits medical parole to those on ventilators

AP News

A new California policy could send dozens of quadriplegic, paraplegic or otherwise permanently incapacitated inmates from nursing homes back to state prisons.

 

Opinion: Gov. Gavin Newsom should appoint a public defender to the California Supreme Court

Sacramento Bee

As Gov. Gavin Newsom debates his choice to replace departing Justice Mariano-Florentino Cuéllar on the California Supreme Court, he should take his commitment to draw “from a broad, experienced pool of candidates that reflects all aspects of the state’s diversity.”

 

Federal:

 

COVID Update:

Modesto Bee

 

The Supreme Court's abortion showdown arrives

Axios

The Supreme Court will debate today whether to overturn Roe v. Wade, and neither side is trying to lower the stakes — or to make today’s case anything less than a referendum on Roe’s very survival.

See also:

 

Jan. 6 panel hasn't subpoenaed lawmakers' communications yet — but still plans to

Politico

The Jan. 6 select committee has not subpoenaed the phone records of any members of Congress but is likely to do so.

See also:

 

House Democrats grow antsy to pass shutdown fix ahead of Friday cliff

Politico

House Democrats are agitating for a Wednesday vote to pass a temporary shutdown patch, even as the majority party struggles to reach a deal that Senate Republicans will support.

See also:

 

GOP beginning to jockey for post-election leadership slots

The Hill

House GOP leadership elections are still one year away, but early jockeying has already begun behind the scenes with Republicans extremely bullish about winning back the majority in next year’s midterms. ​​ 

 

Mailbag: PolitiFact, ‘this is incorrectly rated’ but ‘keep them honest’

PolitiFact

In November, President Joe Biden signed into law a major infrastructure bill, Democrats sought to deflect criticism over inflation, and the nation argued over rules related to COVID-19 vaccines and critical race theory.

 

House GOP leaders face calls to confront Islamophobia among their ranks​​ 

Washington Post

House Republican leaders are facing calls to condemn Islamophobic remarks by members of their conference, amid mounting concern that their silence is enabling extremist rhetoric that contributes to bigotry and potential threats of violence toward Muslims.

 

EDITORIAL: GOP is right, Build Back Better provides break for the rich

Mercury News

Oh, the irony. Republicans who pushed through the 2017 Trump-era tax cuts that overwhelmingly benefited the wealthy have launched an attack on President Biden’s Build Back Better plan by claiming it caters to the rich.

See also:

 

Other:

 

Twitter’s new CEO is bringing an engineering background to a politics fight​​ 

Washington Post

Parag Agrawal was a surprising pick for one of tech’s most fraught positions. Here’s why he got the job.

 

Democracy is declining in the U.S. but it's not all bad news, a report finds

KVPR

The United States has been labeled a "backsliding democracy" in a new report from the European think tank International IDEA.

 

Opinion: The centrality of the Constitution in the civic education of Americans

AEI

In honor of the anniversary of the signing of the US Constitution on September 17, 1787, AEI’s Social, Cultural, and Constitutional Studies division marked Constitution Day with a lecture by Wilfred M. McClay.

 

MADDY INSTITUTE PUBLIC POLICY PROGRAMMING

 

Sunday, December 5, at 10 a.m on ABC30 –​​ Maddy Report:​​ ​​ "California’s Changing Electorate"​​ - Guest: Mindy Romero, Director - Center for Inclusive Democracy, Price School of Public Policy at USC; Dean Bonner, Associate Survey Director and Research Fellow - PPIC. Host: Maddy Institute Executive Director, Mark Keppler.

 

Sunday, December 5, at 10 a.m. on Newstalk 580AM/105.9FM (KMJ) –​​ Maddy Report - Valley Views Edition:​​ ​​ "California Changing Electorate: ​​ Is the Valley’s Electorate More or Less So?"-​​ Guests: Thomas Holyoke, Professor of Political Science - Fresno State; Jessica Trounstine, Professor of Political Science - UC Merced; Ivy Cargile, Asst. Professor of Political Science - CSU Bakersfield. Host: Maddy Institute Executive Director, Mark Keppler.

 

AGRICULTURE/FOOD

 

Merced County agriculture sees increase in value

Turlock Journal

Merced County agriculture pulled in nearly $3.5 billion of gross production value last year according to a report released last month, up $240 million from 2019 thanks to a wide variety of successful commodities ranging from crops to livestock.​​ 

 

Valley agriculture producers facing problems exporting products

abc30​​ 

One-hundred percent of the cotton grown in California, mostly in the Valley, is exported overseas. Growers had a good crop but only 20% of it has been shipped out due to the backlog in the ports.

 

New program helps people eat local produce while supporting Fresno farmers. Here’s how

Fresno Bee

The pandemic has had disruptive effects on the Central Valley’s food system, exacerbating challenges for farmers struggling to grow and sell their crops. At the same time, the​​ pandemic increased food insecurity and many of the region’s residents continue to face barriers to accessing healthy food.

 

Thousands of California farmworkers will get pay raises next year thanks to a lawsuit

Fresno Bee

Tens of thousands of California’s guest farmworkers and U.S. farmworkers will see pay increases in 2022, which advocates say comes thanks to their lawsuit to stop a Trump-era wage freeze.

 

Ag lenders stick to the fundamentals in time of drought

Business Journal

The worsening drought is cause for concern for all. But for agricultural loan lenders, it’s all about risk management. Keith Hesterberg said that although the experience in dealing with drought hasn’t changed, the surrounding issues have grown more complicated.

 

CRIMINAL JUSTICE​/​FIRE​/​​PUBLIC SAFETY

 

Crime:

 

In Fresno's meth hell, there's no antidote

CNN
National data shows deaths from methamphetamine and other psychostimulants are up 48% in the year from May 2020 through April 2021, accounting for more than a quarter of all overdose deaths in that time. In Fresno, meth is the leading killer.

 

‘Devil on the loose’: What’s behind Kern County’s soaring homicide rate?

CalMatters

Kern County has had state’s highest homicide rate since 2016, with rival prison gangs warring on its rural northern border.

 

Walters: Crime could become hot issue in 2022

CalMatters

Political reaction to a spate of smash-and-grab retail thefts indicates that crime could be a hot button issue in next year’s California elections.

 

Public Safety:

 

California gun owners with large-capacity magazines can keep them despite ruling — for now

Sacramento Bee

The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals sustained California’s ban on high-capacity magazines, saying the state’s restrictions on magazines that can hold more than 10 rounds of ammunition is a reasonable effort to reduce gun violence.

See also:

 

Opinion: Meaningful police reform in California starts with training

CalMatters

New Little Hoover Commission report focuses on five ways to improve law enforcement training in California.

 

Fire:​​ 

 

After Wildfire, How Do We Rebuild for a “Resilient Recovery”?

Public Policy Institute of California

At least one in 12 California homes is at high risk of burning in a wildfire—yet state and local land use policies still incentivize rebuilding in the wildland-urban interface. It doesn’t have to be that way, says the author of a new report.

 

ECONOMY/JOBS

 

Economy:

 

Report: Economic recovery continues in Valley

Turlock Journal

Unlike the unpredictability of the coronavirus, economic recovery in the midst of the pandemic is steady and continues to improve throughout the Central Valley according to a report released recently by Stanislaus State.​​ 

 

Stocks dive over the potential economic fallout from the omicron variant

VPR
Stocks took a big tumble on Tuesday as investors weighed the potential economic fallout from the new omicron coronavirus variant. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down 652 points.

See also:

 

Californians See a Widening Economic Divide

Public Policy Institute of California

While state leaders are taking some steps to foster an equitable recovery, most Californians say the gap between the rich and the poor in their part of the state is getting larger.

 

White House Considering Richard Cordray as Top Fed Banking Regulator

Wall Street Journal

President Biden is considering Richard Cordray, the first director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, to serve as the Federal Reserve’s top banking regulator.

 

Jobs:

 

How California state government monitors employees since its shift to telework

Sacramento Bee

Telework is the biggest change to California’s state workforce in decades. The future of remote state work is taking shape as departments hammer out permanent policies and Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration negotiates agreements with unions.

 

Vaccine mandate for federal contractors blocked in 3 states

Fresno Bee

Kentucky's attorney general won a preliminary court order Tuesday to block President Joe Biden’s coronavirus vaccination mandate for federal government contractors and subcontractors.

See Also:

 

EDUCATION

 

K-12:

 

Masks required: Turlock Unified will uphold rules after trustee refuses to wear one

Modesto Bee

Turlock Unified trustees affirmed they will uphold public health guidelines on masks in a polarized meeting on Monday, though enforcement remains unclear. “We’ll cross that bridge if it should come,” Barney Gordon, Assistant Superintendent for Business Services, told trustees.

See also:​​ 

 

Selma teachers claim unfair labor practice after change to school’s foggy day schedule

Fresno Bee

The Selma Unified Teachers Association has filed a claim with the Public Employment Relations Board in response to a change in the district’s policy for foggy day schedules.

 

Should California schools require gender-neutral bathrooms? Some Fresno students say ‘yes’

Fresno Bee

California Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond announced the formation this month of a committee that will be charged with making recommendations to expand the availability of gender-neutral bathrooms on California school campuses.

 

BCSD superintendent named to California Collaborative for Educational Excellence

Bakersfield Californian

Mark Luque has been appointed to the California Collaborative for Educational Excellence.

He has served in several positions for BCSD since 2014, including deputy superintendent, assistant superintendent, educational services and director of curriculum and standards.

 

Higher Ed:

 

Fresno State’s Madden Library facing name change after ‘Nazi sympathies’ discovered

Fresno Bee

Fresno State President Saúl Jiménez-Sandoval announced in an email to students and faculty on Monday the creation of a renaming task force for the Henry Madden Library after research revealed Madden held “deeply antisemitic views and Nazi sympathies.”

See also:​​ 

 

EDITORIAL: Fresno bred: State Center trustees wisely pick a local educator for next chancellor

Fresno Bee

There were three good candidates competing to become the next chancellor of the State Center Community College District. Fortunately, the trustees made the right choice Monday in selecting Carole Goldsmith.

 

BC reports high rate of vaccinations for students on campus

Bakersfield Californian

With a month passed since its Nov. 1 deadline, Bakersfield College says it has processed either a proof of a COVID-19 vaccination or an exemption for more than 99 percent of students and employees on its campuses.

 

Keeping College Affordable for California Students

PPIC

California’s financial aid programs reduce tuition for most students. But the state and its higher education institutions can improve college access and success by providing additional aid to lower-income students, addressing growing costs, and eliminating barriers.

 

Some Professional Degrees Leave Students With High Debt but Without High Salaries

Wall Street Journal

Professional degrees like dentistry and veterinary medicine are leaving many students with immense college debt, threatening the outlook for fields that provide essential public services.

 

Gen Z students seem to dislike both political parties. What will make them change their minds?

AEI

Critics of higher education often rail against the left-leaning prejudices of students, but the fact of the matter is that the political hearts and minds of undergraduates are not overwhelmingly aligned with either major political party.

 

Even on U.S. Campuses, China Cracks Down on Students Who Speak Out

ProPublica

Students and scholars from China who criticize the regime in Beijing can face quick retaliation from fellow students and Chinese officials who harass their families back home. U.S. universities rarely intervene.

 

ENVIRONMENT/ENERGY

 

Environment:

 

Unusual temperatures this time of year impacting Valley air quality

abc30

November doesn't usually look like this -- sunny skies and day after day with temperatures reaching the 70s in the Valley.

See also:​​ 

 

Sierra Nevada snowpack could largely vanish by 2040s as climate warms, scientists say

Sacramento Bee

“In all regions, an abrupt transition occurs in the mid- to- late twenty-first century,” the study says. By the second half of the century, more than three-quarters of all winters in the West’s mountain ranges will be classified as having little to no snow.

See also:

 

More than 400 toxic sites in California are at risk of flooding from sea level rise

Los Angeles Times

Research is investigating how rising water will flood communities built near contaminated land. Efforts to study this issue in the SF Bay Area have become increasingly coordinated, and state toxic substances control officials have started their own mapping project.

 

Pismo Beach was once the Clam Capital of the world. Then the clams disappeared

Los Angeles Times

Though the clams survived elsewhere, in Pismo Beach they had all but disappeared. During “clam digs” staged for children at recent festivals, kids unearthed plastic shells buried by the organizers because the real ones were too precious to disturb.

 

The EPA Administrator Visited Cancer-Causing Air Pollution Hot Spots Highlighted by ProPublica and Promised Reforms

ProPublica

Two days after ProPublica published a first-of-its-kind analysis of industrial air pollution, the Environmental Protection Agency announced that its administrator, Michael S. Regan, would visit the communities featured in our reporting.

 

Energy:

 

Time-of-use electric rates coming soon to residents of eastern Kern

Bakersfield Californian

Time-of-use rates, as they're called, charge people more money per unit of electricity during certain peak hours when demand for power is greatest. In return, these TOU rate structures also bring lower costs during non-peak times of the day.

 

Oil pipeline planned even as California moves away from gas

Sacramento Bee

A proposal to replace an oil pipeline that was shut down in 2015 after causing California's worst coastal spill in 25 years is inching though a government review, even as the state moves toward banning gas-powered vehicles and oil drilling.

 

Opinion: Local clean energy can be the foundation for climate resilience

CalMatters

Clean energy and backup power at the household and community level can supply electricity when the grid goes down.

 

Joe Biden’s release of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve: What you need to know

PolitiFact

During the busy travel week of Thanksgiving, and amid an unusually big price spike for gasoline, President Joe Biden invoked one of the rarely used powers of his office: ordering the release of millions of barrels of crude oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.

 

HEALTH/HUMAN SERVICES

 

Health:

 

When are you fully protected by your COVID booster shot? What to know

Merced Sun Star

All adults in the U.S. are eligible for a COVID-19 booster shot of any of the three available coronavirus vaccines. But when can you officially benefit from the protection the extra dose offers?

See also:

 

Moderna COVID vaccine may be less effective against omicron, chief says. What to know

Merced Sun Star

There’s a chance the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine may lose some of its effectiveness when put up against the omicron coronavirus variant that has a weary world on high alert, according to the company‘s chief executive officer.

See also:​​ 

 

An FDA panel supports Merck COVID drug in mixed vote​​ 

VPR

A panel of experts advising the Food and Drug Administration voted narrowly in favor of emergency use authorization of an antiviral pill from Merck and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics to treat COVID-19.

See also:​​ 

 

Advocacy blitz targets Medicare coverage of obesity treatment

Roll Call

A coalition of patient advocates, medical groups and pharmaceutical companies is ramping up pressure on Congress to add coverage of obesity drugs and weight-related behavioral therapy under Medicare.

 

One Major Reason the U.S. Hasn’t Stopped Syphilis From Killing Babies

ProPublica

In reporting on the rising number of newborns needlessly dying of syphilis, ProPublica reporter Caroline Chen identified a contributing factor: the CDC’s funding structure, which is influenced by both politics and shifts in public attention.

 

Human Services:

 

California health care companies want bilingual workers. Here are some top jobs

Sacramento Bee

Sacramento is home to multiple health care conglomerates that are looking for Spanish-speaking applicants. Here are the latest job listings between UC Davis, Sutter Health and Dignity Health that desire workers with bilingual skills.

 

Parents could get a lot of help with Biden child care plan. How long will it last?

Sacramento Bee

There’s a lot for many California parents to gain in the Biden administration’s Build Back Better plan: big tax breaks for each child, free pre-kindergarten programs and a limit on how much families pay for child care.

 

Telehealth May Be Here to Stay

Pew Trusts

The use of remote health services soared during the pandemic.​​ 

 

Need help selecting a plan for 2022?​​ 

HealthCare.gov

If you need help selecting a plan for 2022, the Marketplace has several ways we can help you enroll in 2022 coverage

 

Opinion: What can economic research tell us about the effect of abortion access on women’s lives?

Brookings

While the debate over abortion often centers on largely intractable subjective questions of ethics and morality, in this instance the Court is being asked to consider an objective question about the causal effects of abortion access on the lives of women and their families.

 

IMMIGRATION

 

U.S. citizen spent 36 days in San Joaquin Valley immigration lockup. Now, ICE is being sued

Fresno Bee

California civil rights organizations are suing ICE over the “unlawful arrest and detention” of a U.S. citizen in 2020. The lawsuit comes months after a government report found the need for ICE to better train its officers to verify people’s citizenship.​​ 

 

LAND USE/HOUSING

 

Land Use:

 

Pandemic Delivery Boom Fuels Demand for ‘Last Mile’ Space

Wall Street Journal

Retailers are paying more to access logistics properties that serve as final stops for packages bound for doorsteps

 

Housing:

 

Construction to begin on hundreds of new homes in 2022. Is it Modesto’s last big project?

Modesto Bee

Construction is set to start in the new year for Tivoli, a new housing development in northeast Modesto.

 

142 senior living units to debut at Fresno’s Campus Pointe

Business Journal

The project is the fourth of five phases in the 45-acre Campus Pointe development that includes 983 student housing units, 144 workforce housing units, shopping center, dining, movie theater and more.

 

Rent relief available for landlords, tenants

Bakersfield Californian

Local nonprofit CityServe is hosting a series of seminars aimed at helping landlords and tenants receive funding for unpaid rent, according to a CityServe news release. Trained CityServe staff will assist landlords and tenants through the application process so they can obtain rent relief quickly.

 

Some California cities try to blunt new duplex law with restrictions on new developments

Los Angeles Times

With California on the verge of allowing multi-unit housing in neighborhoods previously reserved for single-family homes, some cities are rushing to pass restrictions on the new developments.

 

Limits on Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac loans raised to nearly $1 million in some markets

Los Angeles Times

The Federal Housing Finance Agency announced an increase in loan limits Tuesday that will allow mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to back loans of nearly $1 million in some of the most expensive U.S. housing markets.

See Also:

 

U.S. Home-Price Growth Decelerated in September

Wall Street Journal

Case-Shiller national home price index rose 19.5% in the year that ended in September.

 

Opinion: Despite the pandemic narrative, Americans are moving at historically low rates

Brookings

Census Bureau data released this month shows that despite the attention given to COVID-related migration out of pandemic-impacted areas, overall permanent migration levels in the U.S. plummeted to a historically low level during the first year of the pandemic.

 

PUBLIC FINANCES

 

Americans lost millions in scams last year. Here are tips on avoiding a holiday ripoff

Modesto Bee

More than 46,000 scams were reported on the Better Business Bureau Scam Tracker last year — a 24.9% increase over the year before.

 

Elon Musk’s California Exit Can Save Him $2 Billion in Taxes

Bloomberg

The sale of the California properties enable him to declare he’s no longer a resident of a state that’s home to the nation’s highest income taxes on the wealthy. At least five of the residences were sold to buyers who borrowed money from none other than Musk himself.

 

Credit-Card Applications Hit Pandemic High

Wall Street Journal

Almost 27% of U.S. consumers said in October that they had applied for a credit card in the past 12 months

 

TRANSPORTATION

 

Electric car prices could go up before they come down

Axios

The secret to affordable electric vehicles is cheaper batteries. But after years of falling prices, battery costs are now headed in the wrong direction.

 

Stricter coronavirus testing being weighed for all travelers to U.S.

Washington Post

The Biden administration is preparing stricter testing requirements for all travelers entering the United States, including returning Americans, to curb the spread of the potentially dangerous omicron variant, according to three federal health officials.

 

WATER

 

What you should know about Bakersfield’s new water restrictions

KGET

Drought conditions are worsening and Bakersfield is once again requiring residents to cut back on water. The City of Bakersfield announced on Monday that it will move into Stage 2 of its drought mitigation plan on Dec. 14.

 

State allocates $39.2 million for Friant Kern Canal repairs

Porterville Recorder

On Monday, the State Department of Water Resources allocated $39.2 million to the repairs of the Friant-Kern Canal. The $39.2 million is part of $100 million that was included in this year's state budget for the repairs of four of the state's major water resources.

See also:​​ 

 

State looks to consolidate small drinking water systems in Fresno

SJV Water

The City of Fresno has been amenable to consolidating smaller, disadvantaged drinking water systems and may take on another dozen with some state help.

 

“Xtra”

 

Mask making your glasses fog up in winter cold? These tips can help you see clearly

Fresno Bee

Glasses fog when you breathe as warm air escapes through the top of a mask, landing on the cooler lenses. The effect creates condensation and often occurs when wearing a face covering. Here’s what to do to prevent your glasses from fogging up this winter.

 

 

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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.

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