Maddy Institute – June 25, 2021

25Jun

POLICY & POLITICS

North SJ Valley:

COVID Update:

● COVID restrictions are set expire in Stanislaus County. Here’s what you need to know Modesto Bee

How new fellowship program will empower youth, diversify boards of Stanislaus nonprofits

Modesto Bee

The Stanislaus Community Foundation and the community-based organization Youth Leadership Institute have partnered to help 17 young adults gain seats on the boards of local nonprofits in an effort to increase diversity and opportunities.

‘Music to my ears’: Ceres Unified starts construction on first performing arts center

Modesto Bee

After 32 years teaching music to Ceres students, Ric Campero was told when he retired in 2018 that the district planned to build its first performing arts center. “This was music to my ears,” he said at a groundbreaking ceremony Tuesday morning.

Central SJ Valley:

COVID Update:

● Tulare County confirms first case of COVID-19 Delta variant. It’s considered more contagious Fresno Bee

● What should I know about the delta variant? Fresno Bee

● Delta variant is spreading in California as COVID-19 battle enters an uncertain phase Los Angeles Times

Fresno city budget passes with big boosts to public safety and neighborhood improvements

Fresno Bee

The Fresno City Council voted to adopt a $1.4 billion 2021 budget that includes historic levels of funding for public safety and neighborhood infrastructure. The council voted 5-2 to adopt the budget, with Councilmembers Bredefeld and Karbassi voting against it.

Fresno council denies ‘pay-to-play’ plan for expedited developer permits. Dyer has new idea

Fresno Bee

The Fresno City Council shot down the proposed express development team that would have allowed businesses and developers to pay an extra fee for expedited services within the city’s Planning and Development Department.

Granite Park operator blasts Fresno DA investigation as baseless, politically motivated

Fresno Bee

Granite Park’s operator blasted Fresno County District Attorney Lisa Smittcamp Thursday morning, saying in a statement her investigation into the Fresno City Council is politically motivated and “without one shred of evidence.”

California hands over mobile home park responsibilities to Fresno code enforcement

Fresno Bee

The city of Fresno received state approval Wednesday to assume responsibility for enforcing health and safety codes at local mobile home parks, weeks after the city passed the Mobile Home Park Act.

● Clovis is looking to add a new affordable housing project. Here’s where it’s going Fresno Bee

Three fires in 12 months? This north Fresno recycling center has outstayed its welcome

Fresno Bee

A year from now, provided it actually rains over the winter, the bluffs along Friant Road in north Fresno will grow back and look normal again. Today, some 60 acres remain blackened by a recent fire that broke out of a nearby waste disposal site.

‘A very, very dangerous time.’ Fresno police battle illegal fireworks, announce arrests

Fresno Bee

The Fresno police and fire departments on Wednesday made their annual plea for a safe and responsible Fourth of July weekend. “This is a very, very dangerous time,” Police Chief Paco Balderrama said at a news conference outside Fire Station No. 3 in downtown Fresno.

Massive Lemoore blast: Why was there gas in water tank before deadly explosion?

Fresno Bee

Monday’s massive water tank explosion in Lemoore, which killed one person and injured another, came as officials were putting finishing touches on a water quality project intended to bring the city into state compliance, City Manager Nathan Olson said Thursday.

Central Valley town without water — again — and repairs are weeks away amid heatwave

Fresno Bee

The only functioning well in the rural community of Teviston broke in early June, leaving over 700 residents without running water. Meanwhile, temperatures in the central San Joaquin Valley have soared to triple-digit heat over the past week.

Around Kings County: Dry year on the Kings, reservoirs half full

Hanford Sentinel

Kings River Water Association director Steve Haugen says runoff this season is likely to be the third driest in 125 years of record keeping. "We won’t know how it ranks for sure until the end of July with the chance it might be the driest ever," he notes.

● As drought intensifies, state warns users to stop pumping water from major rivers CalMatters

Visalia Unified appoints Doug Cardoza as interim superintendent

abc30

Visalia Unified School District's new interim superintendent will take over September 1. The Board of Trustees voted unanimously on Tuesday to appoint Doug Cardoza to the position.

South SJ Valley:

COVID Update:

● Kern County Public Health reports 1 new COVID-19 death, 48 cases KGET

East Hills Mall sells to investors in Southern California

Bakersfield Californian

A Southern California-based real estate development partnership has paid about $7.2 million for the former East Hills Mall, reviving hopes that the dilapidated property in northeast Bakersfield can be put to good use after years of disuse.

'We've become a family': New BPD academy graduates latest to add to city's effort to increase force by 100

Bakersfield Californian

After going through what was described as six months of an “aggressive” training academy, the recruits celebrated Thursday morning with their family and colleagues at a graduation ceremony.

Kern County Fire Chief David Witt announces retirement

Bakersfield Californian

Kern County Fire Chief David Witt has announced he will retire July 31. Appointed to interim chief and then chief after the resignation of Brian Marshall in 2019, Witt has been in his position for about two years.

Off-roading club from Bakersfield to clean up, repair and maintain mountain trails

Bakersfield Californian

Only weeks after The Californian published photos showing how drivers of off-road vehicles had mowed down endangered cactus patches in the hills south of Hart Park, one adventure-seeking off-roading club from Bakersfield is doing just the opposite.

State:

COVID Update:

● 3 in 5 Californians now at least partially vaccinated against COVID-19 Los Angeles Times

● Delta variant is spreading in California as COVID-19 battle enters an uncertain phase Los Angeles Times

Newsom to face recall election later this year after only 43 petition signatures withdrawn

abc30

The effort to recall Governor Gavin Newsom is moving forward. California law allows a 30-day period for voters to request to remove their signatures.

● California Recall: What To Know About The Effort To Remove Gavin Newsom Capital Public Radio

Newsom, top Democrats bargaining over child care raises as California budget deadline nears

Sacramento Bee

The two sides are largely aligned on how to spend a multi-billion-dollar surplus, but need to reconcile details of an expansion of health care to more undocumented immigrants and a raise in rates for child care providers, among other issues.

Fact-Checking Claims About Gov. Gavin Newsom’s Plans On Homelessness And His Legal Authority

Capital Public Radio

A TV ad supporting Gov. Gavin Newsom in the recall election claims the governor is “getting 65,000 homeless Californians into housing.”

Video: California’s Safety Net in Recession and Recovery

Public Policy Institute of California

An expert panel discusses a new PPIC report on how policymakers might best leverage safety net resources to broaden economic security and opportunity.

California’s yoga, wellness and spirituality community has a QAnon problem

Los Angeles Times

A world that has long embraced love, light and acceptance is now making room for something else: QAnon. More commonly associated with right-wing groups, the conspiracy theory is spreading through yoga, meditation and other wellness circles.

California lawmakers seek to remove 'he' from state laws

Bakersfield Californian

When California Gov. Newsom was searching for a new attorney general earlier this year, state Assemblywoman Rebecca Bauer-Kahan looked up the job requirements and made a surprising discovery: In many instances, the law assumed the attorney general is a man.

Explaining the Reparation Effort

New York Times

This week, California set out on a fraught, complicated mission that no other state has attempted: come up with proposals to provide reparations to Black Californians for slavery and centuries of systemic discrimination and inequality.

Federal:

COVID Update:

● Nearly all COVID-19 deaths in US are now among people who weren't vaccinated abc30

‘We have a deal’: Biden, lawmakers reach tentative bipartisan infrastructure agreement

Los Angeles Times

President Biden and a bipartisan group of senators agreed on a nearly $1-trillion infrastructure plan Thursday, the culmination of months of negotiation over a proposal to fortify the nation’s roads, bridges and broadband internet access.

● Infrastructure deal reached, now comes the hard part Roll Call

● Biden hopes infrastructure deal reflects the Senate he remembers Roll Call

● Infrastructure's remaining potholes Axios

● ‘We have a deal’: Biden announces infrastructure agreement Business Journal

● Biden, Senators Agree to Roughly $1 Trillion Infrastructure Plan Wall Street Journal

● Infrastructure Deal Tests Whether Bipartisanship Can Survive Wall Street Journal

● Editorial: The infrastructure deal: Probably necessary, but not nearly sufficient Los Angeles Times

● Editorial: Instant Bipartisan Double Cross Wall Street Journal

Biden administration extends eviction moratorium for 30 days

abc30

The Biden administration has extended the nationwide ban on evictions for a month to help tenants who are unable to make rent payments during the coronavirus pandemic, but it said this is expected to be the last time it does so.

● CDC Extends Eviction Moratorium Through July VPR

● Federal Eviction Moratorium Extended, But The CDC Says It’s The Last Time Capital Public Radio

● Biden extends nationwide ban on evictions for 30 days Los Angeles Times

● CDC Extends Federal Eviction Moratorium Through July Wall Street Journal

● Opinion: Stop extending the eviction moratorium AEI

Harris to visit US-Mexico border area regarding migration

Business Journal

VP Kamala Harris will make her first visit on Friday to the U.S.-Mexico border since taking office, following criticism from members of both parties for failing to go earlier despite her role leading the Biden administration’s response to a steep increase in migration.

● Can Biden pass immigration reform? History says it will be tough Brookings

Pelosi creating House panel to investigate Capitol riot

Los Angeles Times

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is creating a House select committee to study the Jan. 6 insurrection attack on the Capitol after the Senate failed to create a bipartisan commission, she announced at a news conference Thursday.

● Is a select congressional committee the next best option for probing Jan. 6? Politifact

● McCarthy to meet with officer hurt in Capitol attack The Hill

Inside the ‘shadow reality world’ promoting the lie that the presidential election was stolen

Washington Post

The slickly produced movie trailer, set to ominous music, cuts from scenes of the 2020 election to clips of allies of former president Donald Trump describing a vast conspiracy to steal the White House.

● Pence, in Simi Valley, says he was ‘proud’ to follow the Constitution on Jan. 6 to certify Biden’s win Los Angeles Times

Congress Ends Trump-Era Rule Enabling Payday Lenders to Avoid Interest Rate Caps

Wall Street Journal

Congress voted Thursday to undo a Trump administration rule that enabled high-interest consumer lenders to attach themselves to banks and circumvent state-level interest rate caps.

Managing Joe Manchin: How Chuck Schumer Tries to Keep Democrats United

Wall Street Journal

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York liberal, and Sen. Joe Manchin, the pivotal West Virginia centrist, have long been a prominent odd couple on Capitol Hill.

GOP Sees Inflation as New Weapon to Bludgeon Biden, Democrats

U.S. News

The Republican Party may have found an issue with which to clobber Democrats as it gears up for what is likely to be a very close midterm election cycle: inflation.

Editorial: The Supreme Court gets it right on student free speech and the privacy of the home

Los Angeles Times

Sometimes the Supreme Court protects constitutional rights best when it doesn’t establish what lawyers call a bright-line rule applicable to every possible future situation.

Other:

What the critical race theory debate misses: We really don’t know what’s happening in our classrooms

AEI

Lawmakers, advocates, and activists — both those calling for Kendi in every classroom and those who think anything short of a wholesale critical race theory (CRT) ban is criminal negligence — have missed this point almost entirely.

America's continued move toward socialism

Axios

Just half of younger Americans now hold a positive view of capitalism — and socialism's appeal in the U.S. continues to grow, driven by Black Americans and women, according to a new Axios/Momentive poll.

Is the American Regime in Crisis?

National Review

Aspecter haunts Charles Kesler’s Crisis of the Two Constitutions: the specter of Trumpism. It is right there in the subtitle: “The Rise, Decline, and Recovery of American Greatness.”

AGRICULTURE/FOOD

Independence from Hunger: Kickoff for food drive held

Porterville Recorder

Every little bit helps — that was one of the main points Grocery Outlet Operations Manager Terry Dunn stressed Wednesday morning at the store's kickoff for the 11th annual “Independence from Hunger” food and cash drive.

Supreme Court Hands Farmworkers Union A Major Loss

VPR

The Supreme Court on Wednesday tightened the leash on union representatives and their ability to organize farmworkers in California and elsewhere.

Forget cicadas. Drought-stricken West is getting plagued by voracious grasshoppers

Los Angeles Times

A punishing drought in the U.S. West is drying up waterways, sparking wildfires and leaving farmers scrambling for water. Next up: a plague of voracious grasshoppers.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE/FIRE/PUBLIC SAFETY

Crime:

‘A very, very dangerous time.’ Fresno police battle illegal fireworks, announce arrests

Fresno Bee

States grapple with closing youth detention centers

Fresno Bee

As states from California to Maine consider drastic changes to youth detention centers, New Hampshire is grappling with its own facility that has been rocked by abuse allegations from years past.

Rising Crime Overtakes Police Reform as Election Issue in New York, Elsewhere

U.S. News

But as violent crime has spiked in New York City and other places, the conversation has flipped. In New York, one of the most liberal enclaves in the nation, Democratic primary voters list crime as their top issue as they vote Tuesday in the city's mayoral primary.

Public Safety:

Valley Voices: Best way to achieve public safety begins with good child care for all Valley families

Fresno Bee

As the police chief of Reedley, public safety is my top priority. And when it comes to effective programs that prevent crime and keep communities safe, the smartest investments start at the very beginning — with our youngest kids.

'We've become a family': New BPD academy graduates latest to add to city's effort to increase force by 100

Bakersfield Californian

After going through what was described as six months of an “aggressive” training academy, the recruits celebrated Thursday morning with their family and colleagues at a graduation ceremony.

Gun violence tests limits of urban crime prevention groups

Bakersfield Californian

During a particularly violent week in Connecticut’s capital city, Andrew Woods was among a small number of anti-violence workers who rushed in to help victims’ families, offering condolences and referrals to services while trying to discourage retaliation.

Fire:

Three fires in 12 months? This north Fresno recycling center has outstayed its welcome

Fresno Bee

Report: California governor overstated fire prevention work

Fresno Bee

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has vastly overstated wildfire prevention work completed by his administration, according to a Capital Public Radio investigation released Wednesday.

Good weather aids firefighters in California’s coastal range

Fresno Bee

An influx of moist and cool ocean air was helping Wednesday as more than 500 firefighters worked to suppress a forest fire burning in California coastal mountains near a remote Buddhist monastery south of Big Sur.

Kern County Fire Chief David Witt announces retirement

Bakersfield Californian

ECONOMY/JOBS

Economy:

California issued millions in COVID fines. Employers have paid almost none of them

Fresno Bee

Six months into the pandemic, California’s workplace safety agency tried to send an ominous message about COVID-19 safety to business owners: “We’re watching.”

‘Crisis presents opportunity.’ How Tara Lynn Gray plans to save California’s small businesses

Fresno Bee

Tara Lynn Gray was appointed in March by Gov. Gavin Newsom to be California’s new Director at the Office of Small Business Advocate.

Consumer Spending is Primed to Fuel Summer Growth

Wall Street Journal

Households increased spending in May on services that they shunned earlier in the pandemic, helping position the economic recovery for a strong summer as more businesses fully reopen and consumers unleash pent-up demand.

Jobs:

California Jobs and Labor Force Are Still Down but Recovering

PPIC

Employment is still well below pre-pandemic levels, though the number of jobs continues to increase. Despite the state’s rapid recovery so far, underemployed and discouraged workers remain a key concern.

Supreme Court limits California union recruiting in favor of property rights

CalMatters

Commercial growers celebrated the Supreme Court’s decision in Cedar Point Nursery v Hassid, but farmworker unions say this will make it harder for them to access workers and advocate for their rights.

Will California investment in new job training programs pay off?

CalMatters

A state effort to create green jobs after the Great Recession fell short. Will new California job training programs do any better coming out of the pandemic?

California child care providers push Governor for higher pay

Fresno Bee

Hundreds of child care providers in California marched and chanted Thursday outside the state Capitol demanding higher wages, a topic that appears to be the final sticking point in budget negotiations between lawmakers and Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom.

As The Pandemic Recedes, Millions Of Workers Are Saying 'I Quit'

VPR

As pandemic life recedes in the U.S., people are leaving their jobs in search of more money, more flexibility and more happiness. Many are rethinking what work means to them, how they are valued, and how they spend their time.

Teamsters union votes overwhelmingly to organize Amazon workers

Los Angeles Times

Delegates to the International Brotherhood of Teamsters convention voted overwhelmingly for a nationwide push to unionize hundreds of thousands of Amazon’s warehouse and delivery workers, a formidable task given the e-commerce behemoth’s fierce anti-union stance.

See also:

● Teamsters Union Votes to Help Organize Amazon Workers Wall Street Journal

Remote work won’t save the heartland

Brookings

While aspects of the corporate relocation story may be real, new evidence raises questions about the true potential of the remote-work-driven renewal storyline.

EDUCATION

K-12:

Visalia Unified appoints Doug Cardoza as interim superintendent

abc30

Visalia Unified School District's new interim superintendent will take over September 1. The Board of Trustees voted unanimously on Tuesday to appoint Doug Cardoza to the position.

‘Music to my ears’: Ceres Unified starts construction on first performing arts center

Modesto Bee

Summer school options: California hits record enrollment, but is it enough?

CalMatters

The state provided $4.6 billion in additional funding for summer school to combat learning loss. But summer school offerings vary across the state.

Higher Ed:

UC regents vote to restrict hospital partnerships with Catholic health care providers

Fresno Bee

The University of California this week rejected appeals to immediately break its health system’s contracts with religion-based hospitals that restrict access to abortion and gender-affirmation procedures, but it adopted a plan that could phase out those affiliations.

Graduate student researchers at University of California seek union representation

CalMatters

Across the UC, teaching assistants and tutors are unionized, but graduate student researchers are not. That could soon change, after organizers filed more than 10,000 signed union authorization cards with the California Public Employment Relations Board last month.

How some college counselors are fighting back against pandemic-induced enrollment decline

CalMatters

Thousands of California high school graduates didn’t go to college last year due to the pandemic. The drop, which mostly affected community colleges, might be temporary, but it showed the need to provide more support for students going from high school to college.

● California community college transfer students face roadblocks to bachelor’s degrees EdSource

Federal Stimulus Funds Bolstered California Colleges and Universities

Public Policy Institute of California

The state’s public higher education institutions and students are receiving more than $8 billion in funds across three federal relief packages.

ENVIRONMENT/ENERGY

Environment:

California deserts have lost nearly 40% of plants to hotter, drier weather, satellite data shows

Desert Sun

Desert plants — famous for tolerance of torrid landscapes — are dying at an alarming rate due to the twin threats of even hotter temperatures and less rain, according to new research published this week.

As Democrats spar over advancing Biden’s climate agenda, they move to cut methane

Washington Post

The House voted to restore a rule curbing leaks of methane from oil and gas operations, a step forward in the fight against climate change that comes amid growing tensions among Democrats over whether more dramatic action is being sacrificed.

Energy:

California approves clean energy proposal to help respond to extreme weather

Reuters

California regulators approved on Thursday a proposal that will require utilities to buy more clean power, a measure backed by environmental groups.

Editorial: If droughts continue, California can’t rely on hydroelectricity. But there’s another solution

Sacramento Bee

California’s energy stock is in a uniquely California conundrum. Intense drought conditions are exhausting the state’s supply of hydroelectricity, which begs the question of whether we can rely on water-generated power long-term in a hotter and drier California.

HEALTH/HUMAN SERVICES

Health:

What should I know about the delta variant?

Fresno Bee

It’s a version of the coronavirus that has been found in more than 80 countries since it was first detected in India. It got its name from the World Health Organization, which names notable variants after letters of the Greek alphabet.

Everything you want to know about COVID-19 booster shots

Los Angeles Times

The first thing you need to know about COVID-19 booster shots is that nothing about them has been set in stone. There is no guarantee we will need them one day. There is no guarantee we won’t

The Pandemic Led To The Biggest Drop In U.S. Life Expectancy Since WWII, Study Finds

VPR

A new study estimates that life expectancy in the U.S. decreased by nearly two years between 2018 and 2020, largely due to the COVID-19 pandemic. And the declines were most pronounced among minority groups, including Black and Hispanic people.

● In pandemic, drug overdose deaths soar among Black Americans Fresno Bee

Human Services:

Medi-Cal expansion: Legislature’s budget would remove some barriers for low-income residents

CalMatters

The California Legislature has approved several Medi-Cal budget items that would remove barriers to care, such as the asset rule. Now it’s negotiating with Newsom.

Jindal: Republicans Can Lead on Healthcare Reform

Wall Street Journal

With the Supreme Court having (unsurprisingly) upheld ObamaCare again, Republicans are playing defense on health policy in Washington.

Opinion: Dr. Fauci and the Mask Disaster

Wall Street Journal

Nobody needs to be shocked that political messaging was going on during the Covid crisis, as seen in the Anthony Fauci emails from early in the pandemic recently released under the Freedom of Information Act.

IMMIGRATION

Can Biden pass immigration reform? History says it will be tough

Brookings

On his very first day in office the new President Biden sent a comprehensive immigration bill to Congress to fulfill one of his major campaign promises. Will it work this time? A short look back at history shows just how difficult immigration reform can be.

● The U.S. Is Closing a Loophole That Lured Mexicans Over the Border to Donate Blood Plasma for Cash ProPublica

Harris to visit US-Mexico border area regarding migration

Business Journal

Border Patrol chief who supported Trump’s wall is forced out

Fresno Bee

The chief of the U.S. Border Patrol was forced out of his job Wednesday, after less than two years in a position that lies in the crosshairs of polarizing political debate.

LAND USE/HOUSING

Land Use:

Fresno council denies ‘pay-to-play’ plan for expedited developer permits. Dyer has new idea

Fresno Bee

New Bill Aims To Improve Access To The San Joaquin River Parkway, Includes Tribal Representation

VPR

At Spano Park in North Fresno, overlooking the San Joaquin River, Paying Her gazed at the open space below, as she recalled how difficult it’s been to access the river with her family.

Off-roading club from Bakersfield to clean up, repair and maintain mountain trails

Bakersfield Californian

More Than Half Of U.S. Buildings Are In Places Prone To Disaster, Study Finds

VPR

More than half of the buildings in the contiguous U.S. are in disaster hotspots, a new study finds. Tens of millions of homes, businesses and other buildings are concentrated in areas with the most risk from hurricanes, floods, wildfires, tornadoes and earthquakes.

Low-income neighborhoods have fewer trees. Here’s why that’s a problem

FastCompany

The list of benefits that trees bestow on urban neighborhoods is long: People who live near more trees feel younger, are happier, and are healthier.

Housing:

Clovis is looking to add a new affordable housing project. Here’s where it’s going

Fresno Bee

The Clovis City Council this week committed $1.2 million to a new affordable housing project in the city, which has a drastically low amount of housing for low-income families.

California tenants are facing delays in getting rent relief. Will Gavin Newsom step in?

Fresno Bee

Tens of thousands of California renters are still waiting to hear if they’ll get COVID-19 rent relief from a statewide program set up in January to prevent a crush of evictions during the coronavirus pandemic.

Is union labor requirement in the way of easing California’s affordable housing crisis?

CalMatters

What is a skilled and trained workforce, and what could the labor requirement do to California affordable housing bills in the Legislature?

PUBLIC FINANCES

Millions of Californians are set to get tax rebates in a new state budget. Do you qualify?

Fresno Bee

Californians earning under $75,000 per year are expected to receive tax rebates worth hundreds of dollars once a new state budget is approved.

Some disabled Californians feel abandoned by Newsom’s Golden State Stimulus

CalMatters

As the Legislature negotiates with Newsom over his proposal to expand the program, Californians who receive Social Security Disability Insurance say they’re fed up with being overlooked during the pandemic.

Stimulus, unemployment checks help child support debt collection hit new high

CalMatters

If Billy McCasland had gotten his $1,200 stimulus check, he would have moved his family out of the Modesto house the pediatrician says is responsible for his 7-year-old’s lead poisoning.

Opinion: Expand funding for the IRS, but not its duties

Roll Call

Among the White House infrastructure proposals is a plan to increase tax enforcement and collections, which would require increased funding in the budget for the Internal Revenue Service. Not surprisingly, battle lines are being drawn around the proposal based on conventional partisan rhetoric.

TRANSPORTATION

California Republicans propose a year off gas tax increases. It’s not going to happen

Fresno Bee

America is the land of the free and home of the brave, but California wins the title of the most outrageous gas tax. And, just in time for the Fourth of July holiday, the Golden State’s gas tax will rise again, to a total of 51.1 cents per gallon.

CHP enforcement campaign will watch the roads for speed violators this weekend

Modesto Bee

Drivers can expect a speed enforcement campaign on roads and highways in California this weekend. The California Highway Patrol said it’s part of a law enforcement effort in a dozen western states to slow traffic and prevent speed-related crashes and fatalities.

As crazy as homes? California used-car prices jump 19%

Mercury News

A year ago, as coronavirus lockdowns throttled the economy, a flood of sellers hit the auto market — from the suddenly jobless who needed cash to rental car chains unloading their suddenly unwanted fleets as travel came to a screeching halt.

Opinion: Electric cars are great — charging them when you’re away from home, not so much

Fresno Bee

I love my electric car and will never go back to a gas-guzzler, but I’ve got to speak a little truth to power here: Sometimes, public charging stinks. And that’s too bad, because it’s scaring away would-be buyers.

North American rail traffic pandemic recovery continues

Progressive Railroading

U.S. rail traffic for the week ending June 19 climbed 12.5% to 514,112 carloads and intermodal units compared with the same week last year, according to Association of American Railroads (AAR) data.

How Climate-Proofing Mass Transit Can Make Cities More Equitable

Bloomberg

With commuters slowly coming back and Congress considering a major infusion of cash for public transportation, mass-transit operators suddenly have a rare moment to invest for the future.

WATER

Central Valley town without water — again — and repairs are weeks away amid heatwave

Fresno Bee

Around Kings County: Dry year on the Kings, reservoirs half full

Hanford Sentinel

● As drought intensifies, state warns users to stop pumping water from major rivers CalMatters

Wildfires Threaten Urban Water Supplies, Long After the Flames Are Out

New York Times

About two-thirds of drinking water in the United States originates in forests. And when wildfires affect watersheds, cities can face a different kind of impact, long after the flames are out.

“Xtra”

Bethany Clough: This longtime Fresno burger restaurant with a retro vibe has opened its sixth location

Fresno Bee

A replica of a 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air, a Norman Rockwell painting, and a black-and-white checkered floor. The nostalgia is as thick as the milkshakes at the newly opened Triangle Drive In Burgers restaurant.

Bethany Clough: Which Fresno-area restaurant has the region’s worst drive-thru? Vote in our poll

Fresno Bee

Some fast-food restaurant drive-thrus in the Fresno area can get packed with dozens of cars in line. Recently, The Bee told you about the Westwoods BBQ & Spice Co. restaurateur complaining about the north Fresno Chick-fil-A line blocking customers at his business.

Bethany Clough: This new Clovis coffee roastery lets you watch behind the scenes and drink coffee

Fresno Bee

Ever heard just-roasted coffee beans crackling like popcorn? You can now that a new coffee shop and roastery has opened to the public in Clovis. Rare Earth Coffee is a Clovis-based coffee brand that you can find at Johnny Quik and Save Mart stores around town.

Ethiopian Fare Coming, Coffee Shop Returning To Downtown Fresno

Business Journal

An Ethiopian restaurant will soon add to the diversity of food in Downtown Fresno. Fasika plans to open a second location at 1105 N. Fulton St., on the ground floor of the 10-story Helm Building.