January 11, 2019

11Jan

POLICY & POLITICS

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We spend hours collecting articles from local, state and national sources to provide you with a thorough and balanced review of public policy issues that directly impact the Valley to produce the Maddy Daily.  

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North SJ Valley:

A week after being sworn in Rep. Harder uses shutdown to start fundraising

Merced Sun-Star

Newly elected Rep. Josh Harder started fundraising for his 2020 run exactly one week after he was sworn in, citing “extremists” eyeing his seat.

Central SJ Valley:

New Fresno City Council members take oaths at City Hall

Fresno Bee

Two new Fresno City Council members were sworn in Thursday during a ceremony at city hall that also honored two outgoing councilmen.

See Also:

Flores seeks re-election to Clovis City Council

Clovis RoundUp

Jose Flores is looking to retain his seat on the Clovis City Council. The longtime councilmember is is set to run for re-election in the March 5, 2019 election.

Devin Nunes 90210

CALmatters

Usually, congressional members try to help their states obtain federal money. But Congressman Devin Nunes, a Tulare Republican and Trump ally, was one of five California Republicans who signed a letter in June urging Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao to block the federal aid.

Deadline FAST APPROACHING:  Wonderful Public Service Graduate Fellowship

The Maddy Institute

Applications for two $56,000 Fellowships Due Friday, February 22nd, 2019. Apply HERE.

South SJ Valley:

McCarthy says he does not support withholding federal funds for fire relief victims following Trump tweet

Bakersfield Californian

Rep. Kevin McCarthy has said he does not support withholding federal funds from fire victims in California, adding he personally advised President Donald Trump to keep the money flowing to the state.

See Also:

State:

Gov. Newsom releases $209-billion budget proposal

abc30

California Gov. Gavin Newsom proposed a $144 billion general fund budget on Thursday that’s up 4 percent from the current year and predicts a $21.4 billion surplus from robust tax collections and slower growth of state health care costs.

See Also:

Trump, Newsom have something in common – a problem

Modesto Bee

Neither Gov. Gavin Newsom nor President Donald Trump will admit it, but they share a very similar political problem. Having made extravagant promises to their partisan bases, they now must deliver or somehow wriggle out of those promises.

See also:

Find Yourself In The California Legislature — Or Not

Capital Public Radio

This week, California seats a new class of lawmakers. But while California prides itself on diversity, in many ways state government looks more like the California of 30 years ago than the California of today.

Gavin Newsom issues a warning: He’s going to talk a lot more than Jerry Brown

Los Angeles Times

Gov. Gavin Newsom barely paused to catch his breath as he tossed out more than $300 million worth of morsels from his newly crafted budget in a span of less than three minutes.

The California GOP is dead. Could Latino Democrats pick up the pieces?

Sacramento Bee

California has officially become a one-party state. The once-mighty California Republican Party has marginalized itself into a shrinking regional club. Democrats firmly control all levers of power. They can now do whatever they want.

See also:

EDITORIAL: Newsom lays out bold plans. We hope he doesn’t forget about our struggle

Modesto Bee

Gavin Newsom’s tenure as governor got off to a bit of a gloomy start. The governor handled it with charm and wit, turning the unexpected visit to his advantage. California’s 40th governor will need to keep his wits about him in the months and years ahead.

Federal:

House drafts companion bill to Senate’s to fund Coast Guard during shutdown

Fresno Bee

Coast Guard throughout the partial government shutdown. It is a companion bill to bipartisan legislation introduced by GOP Sen. John Thune.

Trump visits border, says he ‘probably’ will declare emergency if no deal on wall

abc30

President Donald Trump arrived at the southern border Thursday as he continues to make his case for building a barrier along the southern border.

See Also:

The shutdown today: Shutdown ties for longest on record

Sacramento Bee

Here’s what’s up with the partial government shutdown on Day 21. The shutdown sets a new record, matching the longest stoppage yet: a 21-day closure that ended Jan. 6, 1996, during President Bill Clinton’s administration.

See also:

Republican defections on House spending bills to end shutdown tick up

Roll Call

The number of House Republicans supporting Democrats’ bills to reopen the government increased slightly on Thursday.

Who’s running for president in 2020? List of possible Democratic candidates

abc30

The next presidential election isn’t until Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2020, but there’s already mounting speculation about which candidates will run.

See Also:

Your Government at Work

WSJ

Overwhelming demand for H-2B visas crashed a federal web portal.

See also:

EDITORIAL: The Supreme Court has yet another chance to stop gerrymandering

Los Angeles Times

Last June, the Supreme Court fumbled an opportunity to deal a death blow to political gerrymandering. But two new cases to be heard later this year give the court an opportunity to atone for that abdication.

EDITORIAL: Yes, there was collusion

San Francisco Chronicle

That Donald Trump’s former campaign chairman provided polling data to a suspected Russian intelligence associate seemingly undermines another aggressively capitalized presidential mantra: that there was “NO COLLUSION.”

EDITORIAL: Trump’s Presidential Emergency

Wall Street Journal

He probably has the legal authority, but it’s still a bad precedent.

Other:

How Bernice Sandler, ‘Godmother Of Title IX,’ Achieved Landmark Discrimination Ban

Capital Public Radio

Bernice Sandler died Saturday at the age of 90. She once told NPR she beams with pride at seeing female athletes walk “with their heads up and feeling like, ‘Yeah, I can handle this world.’ “

Older People Shared Fake News on Facebook More Than Others in 2016 Race, Study Says

The New York Times

When it came to sharing fake news on Facebook during the 2016 election, no age group was quite as active as those aged 65 and older, according to a new study.

Tucker Carlson’s Fox News Speech — The Right Should Reject His Aggrieved Approach

National Review

Carlson accurately identifies certain maladies, but they are maladies that public policy can’t cure.

EDITORIAL: ‘Toxic charity’ left a mess near the Fresno Rescue Mission. Help is needed to clean up

Fresno Bee

For those who made a New Year’s resolution to do a good deed, the Fresno Rescue Mission has an immediate opportunity.

MADDY INSTITUTE PUBLIC POLICY PROGRAMMING

Sunday, January 13, at 10 a.m. on ABC 30 – Maddy Report: “Billions for Questionable Medi-Cal Payments:  What Went Wrong?” – Guest: California State Auditor, Elaine Howle. Host: Maddy Institute Executive Director, Mark Keppler.

Sunday, January 13, at 10 a.m. on Newstalk 580AM/105.9FM (KMJ) – Maddy Report – Valley Views Edition: Valley Views Edition: “The Senior Boom: Preparing for the Baby Boom Aftershock”  â€“ Guest: PPIC Analyst Laurel Beck. Host: Maddy Institute Executive Director, Mark Keppler.

Sunday, January 13, at 7:30 a.m. on UniMas 61 (KTTF) – El Informe Maddy: “San Joaquin Valley Water: a comprehensive review” – Guest: Alvar Escriva-Bou, expert Public Policy Institute of California. Host: Maddy Institute Program Coordinator, Maria Jeans.

AGRICULTURE/FOOD

Armenian complaints prompt Fresno to cancel event with Turkey trade delegation

Fresno Bee

A planned reception in Fresno for a food and agriculture delegation visiting from Turkey has been canceled after complaints from members of the area’s influential Armenian community.

California pot taxes lag as illegal market flourishes

Fresno Bee

Deep in Gov. Gavin Newsom’s new budget is a figure that says a lot about California’s shaky legal marijuana market: The state is expecting a lot less cash from cannabis taxes.

See also:

Government shutdown impacts agriculture in Valley

abc30

The government shutdown is impacting the valley’s top industry – agriculture – in several ways. Winter is a time when many local growers are making crop decisions for the new season. They’re also applying for federal loans and grant money but that process is on hold right now.

Government shutdown has local food banks worried

abc30

Thousands of working families in Merced County depend on the SNAP program, also known as the food stamp program, to feed themselves and their kids.

See Also:

Visalia firm that offers classes for pesticide licenses fined $50,000

abc30

A Visalia-based company that offered test-prep classes for pesticide licenses recently agreed to pay the state a $50,000 fine, after admitting it violated the law.

How the government shutdown is impacting food inspections

abc30

FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb tweeted the agency is “taking steps” to expand domestic food safety inspections during the shutdown.

New Bottled Brews Delayed By Government Shutdown

Capital Public Radio

Brewmasters at craft breweries across the nation are bemoaning the government shutdown — the federal agency that has to approve new labels for new brews is closed, delaying all new releases.

EPA backs down from plan that could have allowed youth farmworkers to handle pesticides

Los Angeles Times

The Environmental Protection Agency has abandoned plans to roll back a set of protections for farmworkers, including a proposal to ease Obama-era regulations requiring anyone working with dangerous pesticides to be at least 18 years old.

US government shutdown leaves traders without key agriculture data

Financial Times

Gain access to global coverage from local journalists on the ground in 50+ countries working around the clock to break news, analyze, spot risks and opportunities.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE / FIRE / PUBLIC SAFETY

Crime:

While homicides rose in Lodi, other types of crime decreased in Lodi in 2018

Stockton Record

In 2018, Lodi had one of its highest homicide rates in city history. During the previous year, the Lodi Police Department investigated just one murder, and last year that number jumped to nine.

Public Safety:

KLEA announces new executives, board directors

Bakersfield Californian

The Kern Law Enforcement Association swore in new executives and board directors Jan. 8.

Prison officers make a $2 million statement

CALmatters

The California prison officers’s union gave $2 million to a committee that would unravel key parts of initiatives promoted by Gov. Gavin Newsom and Jerry Brown to ease prison crowding and reduce sentences for certain low-level offenders.

Fire:

Names of those who have died in the Camp Fire: 64 of 86 now ID’d from deadliest fire

Fresno Bee

The Butte County Sheriff’s Office released the names of two people Thursday who died in November’s deadly Camp Fire, which killed 86 people and destroyed thousands of homes.

Trump threatens to cut fire aid

Sierra Star

President Donald Trump injected new uncertainty into California’s wildfire recovery efforts, tweeting early Wednesday that he has ordered the Federal Emergency Management Agency not to send more disaster funding to state officials “unless they get their act together, which is unlikely.”

See Also:

Judge could force PG&E to inspect all 106,000 miles of electric grid

Merced Sun-Star

A federal judge in California proposed requiring PG&E to re-inspect its entire electrical grid and engage in more aggressive tree removals to curb wildfire risk on Wednesday.

See Also:

Can California clean up from the Camp Fire? It’s not off to a good start         

Sacramento Bee

California’s cleanup of the Camp Fire, the largest post-disaster project of its kind in state history, is only weeks old. But already, questions and concerns are piling up.

See Also:

Another credit rating firm downgrades PG&E over fire fallout

San Francisco Chronicle

Moody’s Investors Service downgraded the credit ratings of Pacific Gas and Electric Co. and its parent company to junk from investment grade on Thursday, the second time in one week the utility has been hit with such an action because of the peril it faces from recent California wildfires.

See Also:

ECONOMY / JOBS

Economy:

Stocks claw back from early slide, extending win streak to five days

Los Angeles Times

U.S. stocks had a day of uneven trading Thursday but ended higher, notching their fifth straight win. Industrial companies such as Boeing and General Electric rose while retailers fell as Macy’s suffered its biggest loss of all time.

See Also:

As China’s economy gets the chills, some California firms catch a cold

Los Angeles Times

Apple Inc. isn’t the only California company with a China problem.

Krugman | The Economics of Soaking the Rich

New York Times

What does Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez know about tax policy? A lot.

America Needs Economic Rights. Now Is the Time to Push for Them.

The Nation

Seventy-five years ago, FDR made a radical call for justice. Democrats have a chance to deliver where he fell short.

U.S. Recession Risk Hits Six-Year High Amid Trade War, Shutdown

Bloomberg

Economists put the risk of a U.S. recession at the highest in more than six years amid mounting dangers from financial markets, a trade war with China and the federal-government shutdown.

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Jobs:

SEIU puts Fresno court on notice of planned strike

Fresno Bee

The Service Employees International Union Local 521 on Thursday put the Fresno County Superior Court on notice of its plan to strike beginning Tuesday over labor negotiations.

US Postal Service fined $150,000 after heat-related death of LA mail carrier

Sacramento Bee

The United States Postal Service is facing nearly $150,000 in fines after the heat-related death of a Los Angeles mail carrier last summer.

See Also:

Furloughed workers could get state unemployment benefits right away

San Francisco Chronicle

Federal workers in California who are furloughed because of the partial U.S. government shutdown can apply for state unemployment benefits immediately, although they will have to repay the benefits if they recover their lost pay, Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a press conference Thursday.

Newsom promises unemployment insurance to California’s federal workers

Politico

California Gov. Gavin Newsom vowed Thursday that thousands of federal workers in California who are furloughed in the partial government shutdown will be made “quickly eligible” for unemployment insurance, urging them to apply for the benefit immediately.

See also:

EDUCATION

K-12:

Power outage closes down Rivergold Elementary

Sierra Star

Rivergold Elementary School was forced to cancel classes Thursday due to a power outage, according to school officials. Executive Assistant to the Superintendent Raylene Trent said Thursday’s outage was caused by a downed power line in the area.

Barlow sworn in at office of education

Hanford Sentinel

Kings County Board of Education President Marlene “Mickey” Thayer administered the oath of office Wednesday afternoon to County Superintendent of Schools Todd Barlow, but before she did so, she spoke about how honored she was to be swearing him in.

Standoff between Sacramento City school district and teachers flares up

Sacramento Bee

A scheduled meeting between the Sacramento City Unified School District and the Sacramento City Teachers Association ended before it began after district officials walked out and the teachers’ union called it a “setup.”

State Superintendent Tony Thurmond’s Educational Priorities

Capital Public Radio

Newly-elected State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond joins us to preview the new state budget and identify his priorities for California’s schools in 2019. Here are some highlights from his conversation with Insight guest host Randol White.

My turn: Why we must expand California’s child care system

CALmatters

Like many mothers and grandmothers who watched Gov. Gavin Newsom take the oath of office this week and sweep up his 2-year-old son while delivering his inaugural speech, I was filled with renewed hope for California’s children.

Windfall for California K-12 schools, more spending from early to higher ed in Newsom’s first budget

EdSource

School districts laboring under higher mandated expenses would receive a surprise windfall — pension-cost relief — in Gov. Gavin Newsom’s first proposed state budget for 2019-20, which will also provide big spending increases for early and higher education.

Higher Ed:

Deadline FAST APPROACHING:  Wonderful Public Service Graduate Fellowship

The Maddy Institute

Applications for two $56,000 Fellowships Due Friday, February 22nd, 2019. Through the generosity of The Wonderful Company, San Joaquin Valley students will have the opportunity to become the next generation of Valley leaders through The Wonderful Public Service Graduate Fellowship. The Maddy Institute will award two $56,000 Fellowships to Valley students who are accepted into a nationally ranked, qualified graduate program in the fall of 2019.

Fresno City College working with Financial Aid students impacted by government shutdown   

abc30

While winter break is in the last few days at Fresno City College the campus is busy with students registering for the spring semester and applying for financial aid. Students requesting FAFSA had to deal with setback due to the government shutdown.

Free community college and a boost for Cal Grants: What Newsom wants to do for higher ed

Merced Sun-Star

Gov. Gavin Newsom’s 2019-20 budget calls for two years of free community college and more grant money for student parents at California’s universities, colleges and technical schools.

See Also:

Community provides wish list for planned high school

Bakersfield Californian

Increased security, improved student drop-off and a large outdoor space are just a few of the things community members said they would like to see at a new high school planned for southeast Bakersfield.

Free tuition isn’t the best way to improve access to college

Los Angeles Times

Many politicians today perceive the idea of free tuition as a winning strategy, and it’s easy to see why. Rather than support more adequate funding for these schools, politicians have turned to giving the money directly to the students.

Five-story student dorm proposed at Coffee and Stockdale

Bakersfield Californian

A five-story student dormitory building has been proposed for 7.5 acres of vacant land at the northeast corner of Coffee Road and Stockdale Highway.

CSU Stockton? Gavin Newsom’s Budget Proposes $2 Million To Study Possibility

Capital Public Radio

Stockton could be next in line for a California State University campus. Mayor Michael Tubbs made the announcement before a group of high school students on Thursday while noting that Gov. Gavin Newsom proposed setting aside $2 million to study its feasibility as part of his budget.

Cross section of CSU leaders praise Gov. Newsom’s budget proposal to add to university system’s budget

Long Beach Press Telegram

The budget proposal would also add a one-time $262 million bonus for child care and student needs.

Newsom’s higher education budget would boost aid, freeze tuition and repair campuses

EdSource

Newly inaugurated California Governor Gavin Newsom’s first budget proposal would boost funding for the state’s community colleges and two university systems, increase financial aid for students who are parents of dependent children and repair aging infrastructure on campuses.

Apprenticeships:

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ENVIRONMENT/ ENERGY

Environment:

Shutdown is exposing larger problems within Yosemite, say experts

abc30

Experts say the shutdown highlights larger issues the park has faced for years, mainly involving infrastructure and maintenance backlogs.

See Also:

The Green New Deal Is Good for the Planet—and the Democratic Party

The Nation

Democrats can no longer get away with offering milquetoast solutions.

Ocean Warming Is Accelerating Faster Than Thought, New Research Finds

New York Times

A new analysis, published Thursday in the journal Science, found that the oceans are heating up 40 percent faster on average than a United Nations panel estimated five years ago. The researchers also concluded that ocean temperatures have broken records for several straight years.

Energy:

California set a goal of 100% clean energy, and now other states may follow its lead

Los Angeles Times

It’s been less than four months since California committed to getting all of its electricity from climate-friendly sources by 2045. But the idea is already catching on in other states.

How artificial intelligence will affect the future of energy and climate

Brookings

David Victor outlines the major ways in which artificial intelligence will shape energy markets in the years to come and how those changes will, in turn, affect the rate of carbon emissions and the world’s ability to adapt to certain inevitable effects of climate change.

America’s Electric Grid Has a Vulnerable Back Door—and Russia Walked Through It

Wall Street Journal
A Wall Street Journal reconstruction of the worst known hack into the nation’s power system reveals attacks on hundreds of small contractors

HEALTH/HUMAN SERVICES

Health:

Healthy Lodi initiative aims to boost quality of life for residents

Stockton Record

Citing some very sobering statistics about the health of the nation, and San Joaquin County in particular, more than 150 community leaders and medical professionals came together Thursday morning at Hutchins Street Square to inaugurate the Healthy Lodi Initiative.

Severe Flu Raises Risk Of Birth Problems For Pregnant Women, Babies

Capital Public Radio

Pregnant women in intensive care with severe cases of the flu have a higher risk of giving birth to babies prematurely. The risk of breathing problems for the baby is also substantially higher.

Teen creates DNA test for food allergies: ‘Why is there not something better?’

San Francisco Chronicle

After three years of research and development, mostly at his parents’ home in Santa Clara, Ayush Alag, at age 14, created a type of DNA test that could someday be used to quickly identify whether someone has a deadly food allergy or an inconvenient but not life-threatening sensitivity.

Drug overdose deaths among American women have more than tripled since 1999

Los Angeles Times

For many decades, drugs of abuse were a menace that mostly threatened the lives of men. In 1999, fewer than 1 in 25,000 adult women in the United States died of a drug overdose, and childbirth was twice as deadly.

Human Services:

California heads to court to fight Trump birth control rules

Sacramento Bee

A U.S. judge in Oakland will hear arguments over California’s attempt to block new rules by the Trump administration on free birth control coverage for women.

Healthcare Wastes Tons Of Usable Supplies—And This Clovis Organization Takes Them

Valley Public Radio

Medical equipment in America is dumped at alarming rates because of upgrades, new hospital contracts and even doctors retiring. And in the case of Saint Agnes, Witters and his colleague Ken Allen are here to take the leftovers.

Delano Regional agrees to join Adventist Health

Bakersfield Californian

Delano Regional Medical Center has agreed to become part Adventist Health Central California, pending regulatory approval.

Newsom’s got an idea even Trump likes—will it lower California’s drug prices?

CALmatters

In one of his first official actions, Gov. Gavin Newsom has directed that state agencies, including the one that oversees Medi-Cal, negotiate as a block to demand prescription drug makers lower their prices.

Medicaid ‘Buy-In’ Could Be a New Health Care Option for the Uninsured

PEW Trusts

Even as calls for “Medicare for All” grow louder among Democrats in Washington, D.C., at least 10 states are exploring whether to allow residents to pay premiums to “buy in” to Medicaid, the federal-state health care program for the poor.

The demographic time bomb that could hit America

The Washington Post

In 2017, the United States saw the fewest babies born in 30 years, a stat that produced a lot of hand-wringing.

See also:

IMMIGRATION

Living In California Can Give Asylum Seekers An Advantage, If Housing Costs Don’t Push Them Out

Capital Public Radio

In recent weeks, thousands of migrants have gathered in Tijuana, hoping for asylum in the United States. Some will be deported before ever stepping foot in California. Others will be detained by U.S. immigration authorities as they wait for their hearings.

With Trump At The Border, A Look Back At U.S. Immigration Policy

Capital Public Radio

President Trump continues his quest to curb illegal immigration at the U.S.-Mexico border. One expert says there have always been ebbs and flows to how welcoming the U.S. is to immigrants.

LAND USE/HOUSING

Land Use:

Low-cost grocery store ALDI coming to Clovis, along with its award-winning rosé

Fresno Bee

ALDI, a low-cost German grocery store chain known for its award-winning $8 rosé, has signed a lease to open a store in Clovis. The company has leased a little over 20,000 square feet of space at the northwest corner of Fowler and Herndon avenues.

Clovis: Still the best place to live

Clovis Round Up

Clovis is still the SAFEST, most DIVERSE and BEST overall city to live in within Fresno County.

Confusion surrounds reopening of Sequoia, Kings Canyon national parks

Visalia Times Delta

Congressman says Sequoia, Kings Canyon could reopen in days — parks, activists weigh options.

Increase in rescues along Pacific Crest Trail worries local law enforcement

Bakersfield Californian

More people than ever before are walking the Pacific Crest Trail in the eastern part of Kern County, and more people than ever before are running into trouble.

Why America’s midsized metro areas deserve our attention

Brookings

America’s midsized metropolitan areas are home to 68 million people, found in 44 of the 50 states, and represent key battlegrounds in U.S. politics.

Housing:

County seeks aid for homeless crisis

Madera Tribune

Fresno and Madera counties have coordinated together to apply for Homeless Emergency Aid Program grant funding. Both counties declared a “homeless shelter crisis” on Dec. 5 and 18, respectively. The resolutions were necessary to apply for the financial aid.

‘This is a crisis.’ Help for housing costs, homeless in Gavin Newsom’s first budget Merced Sun-Star

Gov. Gavin Newsom unveiled his first California budget proposal on Thursday with a plan to pour hundreds of millions of dollars into housing and homelessness, a start on fulfilling one of his major campaign promises.

See Also:

California awards $7.2 million to help homeless in Stanislaus County

Modesto Bee

California announced Thursday that it has awarded $7.2 million for homeless services — including for youth, shelters and helping people get into housing — in Stanislaus County.

Wall Street Investors Intensify Affordable Housing Crisis

Capital & Main

New research shows that corporate investment in rental properties has contributed to a rise in housing prices. Co-published by Splinter.

PUBLIC FINANCES

As IRS workers suffer during shutdown, your tax returns could be delayed

Fresno Bee

Thousands of federal workers in the Fresno area could receive eviction notices and struggle to feed their families in the near-future as they miss their first paycheck this week due to the partial government shutdown, and their work stoppage could soon impact millions of non-government workers as tax season approaches.

See Also:

Gov. Newsom releases $209-billion budget proposal

abc30

California Gov. Gavin Newsom proposed a $144 billion general fund budget on Thursday that’s up 4 percent from the current year and predicts a $21.4 billion surplus from robust tax collections and slower growth of state health care costs.

See Also:

TRANSPORTATION

Fiat Chrysler reaches settlement in emissions cheating cases

Fresno Bee

Fiat Chrysler agreed on Thursday to pay hundreds of millions of dollars, including a $300 million fine to the U.S. government, to settle allegations that the Italian-American automaker cheated on emissions tests.

See Also:

‘You can’t make that up’: Newsom blasts DMV for not accepting credit cards at its offices

Merced Sun-Star

Gov. Gavin Newsom chastised California’s Department of Motor Vehicles at a budget unveiling on Thursday. He mocked them for not accepting customers’ credit cards at field offices and promised to make a change.

Downtown Visalia trolley a ‘downward spiral’ money pit for city

Visalia Times Delta

Visalia’s Town Trolley service first began transporting downtown visitors in November 1998

California gets last-minute REAL ID extension

San Diego County Register

California narrowly averted a major crisis for travelers taking to the sky this year after the Department of Homeland Security granted it a last-minute extension to meet REAL ID requirements, despite the government shutdown. If California hadn’t received the extension and homeland security hadn’t officially certified it met the REAL ID requirements, it would have forced the state’s residents to present a passport for all air travel beginning Jan. 22.

WATER

San Francisco, farmers team up to fight California’s ‘water grab’

Fresno Bee

The city of San Francisco, the Turlock Irrigation District and others sued the State Water Resources Control Board on Thursday, protesting a plan to shift more water to fish.

See Also:

Fresno’s meandering efforts toward San Joaquin River access take another twist

Fresno Bee

Residents of California’s fifth-largest city are no closer to walking, biking and picnicking along the state’s second-longest river than they were 12 months ago. Or 12 years ago, for that matter.

Gavin Newsom budget calls for drinking water tax to help poor communities

Merced Sun-Star

Tackling what promises to be a controversial issue, Gov. Gavin Newsom proposed a tax on drinking water Thursday to help disadvantaged communities clean up contaminated water systems.

California water projects could be tapped to pay for Trump’s border wall

Los Angeles Times

Officials have given President Trump a plan to divert funds designated for Army Corps of Engineers projects in California and Puerto Rico to help pay for a wall along the southern border, a leading member of Congress said Thursday.

Odds of a weak El Niño are still good, but forecasters say it’s not here yet

Los Angeles Times

For months, El Niño conditions have been brewing in the tropical Pacific. But the climate pattern still hasn’t clicked into place, forecasters said Thursday.

Reducing Drought Risks in Rural Communities

PPIC

California’s rural communities are disproportionately exposed to drinking water shortages during drought. Improved planning efforts can help.

“Xtra”

Make ceramics or laugh with Tim Allen this weekend

abc30

As we head into the second weekend of 2019, there is plenty for everyone to do. Here are a few ways you can spend your weekend.

Exciting season ahead for CenterStage Clovis

Clovis Round Up

Since 1991, CenterStage Clovis Community Theatre has thrilled audiences with top-notch entertainment. The 2019 season might just be the best season yet.

Praetorian Motion Pictures set to produce new feature horror film ‘AGARES’ in Raymond

Madera Tribune

Praetorian Motion Pictures LLC, based out of Los Angeles, are set to begin pre-production in Raymond and Madera County, on their feature length supernatural horror film “AGARES,” on Saturday, by casting local extras at the Frontier Inn Tavern, 32265 Front St, Raymond, at 7 p.m.

Here’s how to afford high-end restaurants – like Erna’s – in Madera County this month

Sierra Star

If you’ve ever wanted to eat at a high-end restaurant like Erna’s Elderberry House or The Vineyard Restaurant & Bar without a high-end bill, this is your chance. Restaurants in Madera County are participating in Madera Restaurant Month, offering special meals at reduced prices.

Now is the perfect time to plant fruit trees and roses, but you should take these tips

Modesto Bee

Bare-root is exactly what it sounds like: the roots are bare of soil. December through February is the time to plant bare-root in the greater Sacramento region. Many dormant plants come as bare-root, but this article will focus on roses and fruit trees.

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

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

This document is to be used for informational purposes only. Unless specifically noted, The Maddy Institute at California State University, Fresno 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.

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