Maddy Institute – May 14, 2019

14May

POLICY & POLITICS

North SJ Valley:

Congressman McClintock’s ongoing defense of White House getting hard to believe

Sierra Star

Last week, as a member of the House Judiciary Committee voting against a resolution holding Attorney General William Barr in contempt of Congress, McClintock presented prepared remarks containing dozens of lies, faithfully parroting the party line like Pretty Polly on Prednisone.

Silva, Simas embezzlement case ‘moving in a positive direction’

Stockton Record

The cases against former Stockton Mayor Anthony Silva and Sharon Simas may ultimately be resolved in court, but not until after completion of a process that is scheduled to continue next week.

From the Editor: Here’s why you need us and why we need you

Modesto Bee

On the rare occasions we do tout our work, it’s often met with derision. As I predicted, we were slammed by Facebook commenters when we posted a story Monday morning about our success at the recent California Journalism Awards.

Central SJ Valley:

Joaquin Arambula’s wife: Officer ‘got in her face’ investigating child abuse allegation

Fresno Bee

Assemblyman Joaquin Arambula’s wife testified Monday that a police officer “got in her face” and yelled at her as he was investigating an allegation that her husband injured their daughter.

● Joaquin Arambula’s wife takes stand, says she’s afraid of daughterabc30

South SJ Valley:

State:

California on track to lose at least one congressional seat after 2020 Census

Fresno Bee

California’s population is growing more slowly than expected, making it increasingly likely it will lose at least one congressional seat in 2020 — and maybe more.

See also:

● 2020 census: Why it mattersabc30

California wins last round of $25 million, 26-year tax fight with wealthy inventor

Sacramento Bee

California won the last round of a 26-year fight to collect personal income tax from a wealthy inventor who moved to Nevada just before he cashed in on a lucrative patent.

Gavin Newsom plans to turn Schwarzenegger’s Capitol smoking tent into a kids’ playground

Sacramento Bee

As parents, Ann O’Leary and Gavin Newsom are making kids a priority in the California governor’s office, from funding for young families in the budget to converting the office courtyard into a playground.

California files 50th suit against Trump administration, this time disputing union dues policy

Los Angeles Times

California filed its 50^thlawsuit against the Trump administration on Monday, challenging a new federal rule that the state argues interferes with the ability to deduct union dues from the paychecks of workers in a government program that helps the elderly and disabled in their homes.

● State AG Becerra sues Trump administration for 50th timeSan Francisco Chronicle

Raid on San Francisco reporter’s home condemned as an attack on 1st Amendment

Los Angeles Times

The San Francisco Police Department appears to have violated state and federal laws when its officers searched the San Francisco home of a journalist in an apparent bid to identify a confidential source, 1st Amendment experts said Sunday.

See also:

● San Francisco police raid freelancer Bryan Carmody’s homeCommittee to Protect Journalists

Newsom faces criticism for not delivering on grand promises

Los Angeles Times

The governor has been left with a potential political and public relations headache — namely, that his policies might not always live up to the ideas he publicly presents.

LAO: Child care may be better use of diaper tax funds

Politico

California is projected to lose $104 million in revenue by exempting diapers from state and local sales taxes for the two-year period Gov. Gavin Newsom has proposed as part of his 2019-20 budget, with $48 million in tax losses for the state general fund alone.

California is bringing law and order to big data. It could change the internet in the U.S.

NBC

California is embarking on a new era of privacy on the internet, and Xavier Becerra can’t stop thinking about the failed debut of Obamacare.

Borenstein: State ignoring that Californians are voting twice

Mercury News

The problem, first brought to light by Contra Costa election officials, enables Californians who request mail-in ballots to also vote at the polls. In a July 2016 editorial we called on Padilla to solve the problem. It needs a simple fix. But he has done nothing.

Federal:

Constitutional crisis? Some House Democrats don’t think so

abc30

Moderate House Democrats, including members of the freshman class, aren’t ready to support impeachment.

Rod Rosenstein defends Russia investigation handling, hits back at James Comey

abc30

Former deputy attorney general Rod Rosenstein made a clear split with President Donald Trump in his first public remarks since leaving the administration.

Pelosi to Trump: Apologize for ‘despicable’ twisting of Rashida Tlaib comments

San Francisco Chronicle

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi demanded an apology from President Trump for taking Rep. Rashida Tlaib’s comments about the Holocaust and Palestine out of context.

High Court Overturns Precedent in Ruling on State Sovereignty

Wall Street Journal

The Supreme Court said that state governments cannot be sued against their wishes in another state’s courts, overruling precedent to end a Nevada multimillionaire’s 21-year-old lawsuit alleging abusive conduct by California tax authorities.

Crossing the Aisle to Streamline Regulation

Wall Street Journal

Bipartisanship isn’t dead, even when it comes to streamlining regulation. Sens. James Lankford (R., Okla.) and Kyrsten Sinema (D., Ariz.) have introduced two bills with surgical fixes to the regulatory process.

Elections 2020:

Montana Gov. Steve Bullock Enters 2020 Democratic Presidential Race

Wall Street Journal

Steve Bullock, the governor of Montana, entered the crowded Democratic presidential contest Tuesday morning with a strong emphasis on his record running a red state.

Kamala Harris wants to run the country. Can she run her campaign?

Fresno Bee

The little things matter in politics. Subtleties – like the seating arrangement at a dinner or the speaking order at an event – can spark big drama among elected officials. And if you really want to spite a politician’s ego, simply sing praise for their rivals.

Why Democrats – White and Black – Back Joe Biden

Calbuzz

The reason Biden is the top pick of more Democrats than any of the others is pretty simple: more than anything else, Democrats want to defeat President Donald Trump and they see Biden – with all his baggage, warts and limitations – as the candidate most likely to deliver.

Other:

San Francisco could ban facial recognition software — opinion is divided over whether that’s good

San Francisco Chronicle

The Board of Supervisors will vote Tuesday on a proposal by Supervisor Aaron Peskin that would bar city departments from using the technology, except at federally regulated facilities such as the airport and port.

How Voter Access Laws and Passion Brought People to the Polls

Pew Research

Around the country, state efforts to widen ballot access and Trump-era political passion spurred more voters to the polls in November than the last midterm elections in 2014.

These bogus quotes just won’t die on Facebook

Poynter

A falsely attributed quote that originated in chain emails is now reaching hundreds of thousands of people on Facebook.

MADDY INSTITUTE PUBLIC POLICY PROGRAMMING

Sunday, May 19, at 5 p.m. on ABC30 – Maddy Report:“Impact of the ACA on ER Visits: Can More Be Less?”– Guest: Shannon McConville – PPIC. Host: Maddy Institute Executive Director, Mark Keppler.

Sunday, May 19, at 10 a.m. on Newstalk 580AM/105.9FM (KMJ) –Maddy Report – Valley Views Edition: “The Senior Boom: Preparing for the Baby Boom Aftershock”– Guests: Laurel Beck and Shannon McConville with PPIC. Host: Maddy Institute Executive Director, Mark Keppler.

Sunday, May 19, at 7:30 a.m. on UniMas 61 (KTTF) – El Informe Maddy: “Public Employee Retiree Healthcare”– Guests: Joe Hayes, Investigator PPIC and Liam Dillon with Los Angeles Times. Host: Ana Melendez.

AGRICULTURE/FOOD

Environmentalists want 1 percent charge on restaurant bills. Restaurants have reservations

Fresno Bee

Launched earlier this month, Restore California Renewable Restaurants asks participating eateries to add a 1 percent increase at the end of customers’ bills.

Jury awards $2B to Livermore couple in Roundup lawsuit

abc30

Agricultural giant Monsanto has suffered a third defeat after jurors awarded a Livermore couple $2 billion in damages. The couple, in their 70s, argued that years of use of Monsanto’s Roundup herbicide caused them each to develop non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

See also:

● Monsanto to pay $2 billion in weed killer cancer caseBakersfield Californian

● California Jury Awards $2 Billion To Couple In Roundup Weed Killer Cancer TrialCapital Public Radio

● Jury awards $2 billion to couple claiming Monsanto’s Roundup gave them cancerLos Angeles Times

● Monsanto hit with staggering $2 billion verdict in Roundup cancer suitSan Francisco Chronicle

● California Jury Awards $2 Billion To Couple In Roundup Weed Killer Cancer TrialNPR

Agritourism — discover the history of agriculture in the San Joaquin Valley

Stockton Record

As cities expand, farming and food production is pushed further each year into the countryside; many residents seldom think where that food on the table comes from, much less how it is harvested and produced.

California is making a weak effort to turn agriculture into a climate change fix

Los Angeles Times

Agriculture — often seen as an enemy of the environment — is the only one of these sectors with the potential to also remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

Escalating U.S.-China trade war roils markets as Trump promises aid to farmers

Los Angeles Times

As China hit the U.S. with retaliatory tariffs and the stock market tumbled, President Trump moved Monday to shield American farmers, but also expressed hope that a possible meeting next month with Chinese President Xi Jinping could resolve their escalating trade war.

California might triple the number of marijuana shops across state

Los Angeles Times

Escalating a feud with cities over marijuana, state lawmakers are pushing to require municipalities to lift bans on cannabis stores if voters there supported Proposition 64, the 2016 initiative that legalized sale of the drug for recreational use in California.

Wanted: Digital Whizzes to Work in Agriculture

Pew Research

Robots with fingers designed to pick mature tomatoes, among the most delicate of crops. A Fitbit-like collar that monitors the wellbeing of a cow. Drones with sensors to identify dry areas of a field or discover crop production inefficiencies.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE / FIRE / PUBLIC SAFETY

Crime:

Conservative Supreme Court justices spar over executions of Muslim, Buddhist inmates

abc30

Supreme Court Justices Brett Kavanaugh and Samuel Alito issued highly unusual dueling statements over a death penalty case decided more than a month ago.

Weed smuggling arrests at LAX surge following legalization

abc30

Authorities at Los Angeles International Airport say they are seeing more airline passengers trying to carry marijuana on flights, both in personal items and checked bags.

What Turlock police say about gang-related graffiti on downtown businesses, vehicles

Modesto Bee

All the graffiti has been documented, Holeman said, and determined to be related to the international criminal gang MS-13. That is not to say it was painted by MS-13 gang members. “It could be people just putting it out there to get attention,” the sergeant said.

Public Safety:

Newsom Proposes Expansive New Strategy to Combat Drug Addiction Spike in State Prisons

KQED

Gov. Gavin Newsom is pushing for California to spend more than $233 million over the next two years to battle substance abuse in the state’s roughly three dozen prisons, an effort to stem the increasing frequency of inmate overdoses in recent years.

Why Pedestrian Deaths Are on the Rise (It’s More Than Just Smartphones)

Wall Street Journal

The number of pedestrian deaths in the U.S. reached a nearly 30-year high in 2018, according to a report by the Governors Highway Safety Association. WSJ explains what might be driving that trend.

Fire:

X Prize contest aims to spark innovation in fighting California wildfires

San Francisco Chronicle

California Gov. Gavin Newsom and the X Prize Foundation will create a contest to develop technology for detecting and fighting the state’s increasingly dangerous wildfires.

PG&E proposes court order for CEO, board to tourtown destroyed by wildfire

Reuters

PG&E Corp on Monday submitted a proposed order to a U.S. District Court judge that would require the power provider’s chief executive and board to visit the California town of Paradise to see the destruction caused by a wildfire in November.

● ‘I Wish It Would’ve Burned’: Navigating Insurance When Your Home Survives a WildfireKQED

House OKs disaster aid for California and other states

San Francisco Chronicle

The House passed a massive disaster relief package Friday that includes billions of dollars in relief for California wildfire disaster victims.

ECONOMY / JOBS

Economy:

Dow closes down over 600 as Trump, China argue over tariffs

abc30

The Dow was down 617 points at closing on Monday afternoon after China said it would raise tariffs on roughly $60 billion worth of U.S. imports as retaliation for additional tariffs on Chinese goods.

● As trade war escalates, Chinese remember ‘national humiliation’Los Angeles Times

● Stocks drop, but experts hope trade war won’t lastSan Francisco Chronicle

● What Trump’s trade war with China means for American consumersPBS

● U.S. prepares to slap tariffs on remaining Chinese imports, which could add levies on roughly $300 billion in additional goods Washington Post

● Sharpening the US-China trade debateAEI

● EDITORIAL: The Cost of China Tariffs Wall Street Journal

Supreme Court clears way for iPhone users to sue Apple over App Store prices

abc30

A divided Supreme Court cleared the way for iPhone owners to sue Apple for alleged “higher-than-competitive prices” for apps sold in App Store

Save Bucks, Win a Prize? Sounds Great but Consumers Aren’t Biting

Pew Research

More states are allowing banks and credit unions to entice customers to build up their savings by offering them lottery-like prizes. But even with a chance to win money, most customers still aren’t saving.

Jobs:

Amazon offering employees $10K to quit, start delivery businesses

abc30

Amazon is turning to its employees with a proposition: Quit your job and we’ll help you start a business delivering Amazon packages.

Worker Advocates Burned Up Over Lack of Federal Heat Protections

Fair Warning

To this day, OSHA has yet to establish a heat standard that would give employers specific requirements regarding water, rest breaks and shade.

Battles erupt over warehouse jobs as the Legislature moves to curb subsidies

Los Angeles Times

The legislation, AB 485, would mandate annual public hearings and reports on the incentive deals, projected tax revenue and progress in meeting job commitments. Local governments would have to publicize measures to claw back money from businesses if goals are not met.

EDUCATION

K-12:

Board members had been ‘working on’ ousting Oto, ask new leader to move VUSD forward

Visalia Times-Delta

A crowd of supporters — numbering in the dozens —couldn’t save the superintendent’s job. They chanted “you’re making a mistake” as the board announced their decision. Many wept. Administrators sobbed.

● VUSD will pay nearly $800,000 for two positions until 2020 after forcing Oto outVisalia Times-Delta

Stockton Scholars plants seeds of dreams with scholarship pathways

Stockton Record

This year, Stockton Scholars plans to give more than $500,000 in scholarships to college-bound students.

Los Banos school board member resigns citing housing, personal issues

Merced Sun-Star

The Los Banos Unified School District Board is looking for a new representative after boardmember Megan Goin resigned, saying personal issues and a struggle to find affordable housing in her district led her to move out of the county.

How Are States Paying for New School Safety Measures?

EdNote

School safety continues to be a priority for state education leaders across the nation. It was identified as one of six key education policy issues mentioned by governors in our 2019 recap of State of the State addresses.

Higher Ed:

UC Merced’s chancellor to step down this year, she says

Fresno Bee

UC Merced Chancellor Dorothy Leland announced Monday her intention to step down in August from the role she’s held for the past eight years. She is expected to name an interim later this week before the University of California conducts a nationwide search for her replacement.

● UC Merced chancellor, who brought big ambitions to the small campus, to step downLos Angeles Times

Young Huron mother set to graduate from Fresno State as a double major

abc30

For the past four years, Ana Dominguez has had a round trip commute of 100 miles a day from Huron to Fresno State. Dominguez will receive two bachelor degrees this week, one in criminology and another in Political Science.

Got student loan debt? Forgiveness programs could give relief

abc30

One woman who had $90,000 in student loan debt was able to get half that amount forgiven because she qualified for a program.

Let homeless students sleep in parking lots? California community colleges say it’ll be costly

Sacramento Bee

California community colleges are walking a narrow path in raising concerns about a proposed law that would require them to keep their parking lots open at night for homeless students.

You can now earn a University of California MBA from home: UC Davis launches online program

Sacramento Bee

UC Davis is expanding its nationally ranked business school to include an online-only MBA program, making it easier for working professionals or other nontraditional students to earn a degree.

ENVIRONMENT/ ENERGY

Environment:

New shark study helps predict where young great whites will be near shore, experts say

Fresno Bee

California shark researchers have published a new study on great white migrations, and they say it will help experts and beachgoers predict when young sharks will be near shorelines on the West Coast and beyond.

Local plastics recycler faces accusations it mishandled toxic materials

Bakersfield Californian

A local plastics recycling operation has been sued by the state over allegations the company processed toxic materials it was not authorized to handle.

Shareholders vote to sell 50-percent stake in gold, silver mine in eastern Kern

Bakersfield Californian

Shareholders of a Canadian company that operate a gold and silver mine in eastern Kern County have voted to sell its 50-percent ownership of the facility.

Unhealthy air and hazy skies: How pollution is affecting National Parks

Pacific Standard

The National Parks Conservation Association’s new report recommends mitigating pollution and transitioning to clean energy, with an emphasis on fair solutions.

EDITORIAL: Rat poison is killing California’s mountain lions. We need to act

Los Angeles Times

The war on rats has caused some alarming collateral damage: the poisoning of wildlife. Getting these poisons away from wildlife can’t wait some unspecified amount of time for an agency evaluation.

Energy:

New dam proposal in Sierra Nevada stirs debate over California energy policy

San Francisco Chronicle

A Southern California company has submitted an application to build a hydroelectric complex in the Owens Valley to help the state meet its clean power goals.

PG&E’s legal, regulatory problems keep growing

San Francisco Chronicle

PG&E is bankrupt; it has violated its probation from felony convictions arising from the 2010 San Bruno explosion; and it could face new criminal charges.

California May Go Dark This Summer, and Most Aren’t Ready

Bloomberg

A plan by California’s biggest utility to cut power on high-wind days during the onrushing wildfire season could plunge millions of residents into darkness. And most people aren’t ready.

HEALTH/HUMAN SERVICES

Health:

Hollywood deaths bring strokes into focus. What are the numbers in Fresno County?

Fresno Bee

The recent deaths of two well-known and relatively young Hollywood celebrities have placed stroke in the spotlight, and Fresno is at the center of the deadly disease.

Toxins can be hiding in your health and beauty products

abc30

Many of us try to lead healthy lives by choosing well-known brands when it comes to the food and hygiene products we use with our families. But when was the last time you really read the ingredient labels on supplements, vitamins and beauty products?

How Public Health Outreach Ended A 1990s Measles Outbreak And What’s Different Now

Capital Public Radio

This year’s measles outbreak is the largest in recent memory. But from 1989 to 1991, more than 55,000 people got measles. Federal funding and parents embracing vaccines halted the outbreak.

● Vaccine opponents tap social media to fight new California exemptions billMercury News

● Vaccines Made the Iron Lung ObsoleteWall Street Journal

● Amid Measles Outbreak, Little Effort to Kill Vaccine ExemptionsPew Research

Is Noise Pollution the Next Big Public-Health Crisis?

New Yorker

Research shows that loud sound can have a significant impact on human health, as well as doing devastating damage to ecosystems.

Changes eyed as stem cell agency seeks $5 billion

Capitol Weekly

The man regarded as the father of the $3 billion California stem cell agency is thinking about changes in the program to help win voter approval of another $5 billion for the research program.

Human Services:

Newsom’s Latest Health Care Proposal Includes More Help For Covered California Consumers, Less Money For The Undocumented

Capital Public Radio

California Gov. Gavin Newsom continued his rallying cry for universal health care Thursday with a revised budget that includes more subsidies for Covered California enrollees but doesn’t expand Medi-Cal to all undocumented adults, as some lawmakers are advocating.

States Sue Drugmakers Over Alleged Generic-Price-Fixing Scheme

Capital Public Radio

A new lawsuit brought by 44 states and Puerto Rico alleges an “industrywide” conspiracy by generic drug manufacturers to collude on prices and divide up the market.

● Trump touts Democratic playbook in crackdown on drug costs Politico

● This State Has a Bundle of Ideas to Lower Drug Prices Pew Research

IMMIGRATION

Two immigrants facing deportation among Gavin Newsom’s first pardons

Fresno Bee

Two Cambodian refugees facing deportation are among the first people Gov. Gavin Newsom is pardoning, his office announced Monday.

● In a rebuke to President Trump, Gov. Newsom pardons refugees facing deportationBakersfield Californian

● Governor Newsom Pardons 2 Ex-Refugees Facing DeportationCapital Public Radio

● Newsom pardons Cambodian men facing deportationSan Francisco Chronicle

● Is There a Connection Between Undocumented Immigrants and Crime?New York Times

Pilgrimage moves through Modesto to raise awareness about the plight of immigrants

Modesto Bee

A 226-mile pilgrimage to Sacramento that started in Fresno a week ago made its way into Modesto on Saturday with a message of solidarity with immigrants living in the Central Valley under the constant fear of deportation.

ICE arrests in Kern County jails fall in 2018 by nearly a quarter

Bakersfield Californian

The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency arrested fewer detainees from the Kern County detention system in 2018 than it did in 2017.

Trump officials discussed deporting families

Bakersfield Californian

Homeland Security officials considered arresting thousands of migrant families who had final deportation orders and removing them from the U.S. in a flashy show of force, but the idea was tabled as the Trump administration grappled with straining resources and a growing number of Central Americans crossing the border.

Trump push to deport Vietnam War refugees scalds California GOP

Politico

A Trump administration push to deport Vietnamese nationals is compounding the party’s problems, possibly cementing the loss of a coastal county that had long been the epicenter of Republican power in California.

Immigrant children in US custody soaring to record levels

San Francisco Chronicle

The number of undocumented immigrant children in U.S. custody has increased to more than 13,000 and is approaching the all-time high set last year.

LAND USE/HOUSING

Land Use:

Rally’s wants to open 10 new restaurants in the Fresno area. Here’s where they could open

Fresno Bee

Rally’s & Checkers plans to open new restaurant locations in Fresno, Clovis, Merced, etc. The drive-thru fast food places are open for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and its restaurants are built in a warehouse and shipped.

Newsom faces criticism for not delivering on grand promises

Brookings

Whether it’s roads and transit systems struggling to provide convenient, reliable access or water pipes and plants struggling to provide clean, affordable service, our infrastructure is often failing to deliver.

State parks standstill: Why California hasn’t opened a new state park in 10 years

Mercury News

A review of 50 years of state park land purchases has found that the state parks department’s once-energetic pace of acquiring new land for wildlife, public recreation and protection from development is at a historic low.

Regions Rise Together: building a plan for inclusive, sustainable growth across California

Press Enterprise

Nearly 70% of job growth from 2010 to 2018 came from the coastal areas around Los Angeles, San Diego, and the Bay Area.

GOP touts infrastructure plan without raising taxes — but will it work?

Sacramento Bee

House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy has been talking up a proposal to sell off troubled government loans as a quick fix to pay for infrastructure improvements without raising taxes.

Housing:

It was a burned-out, vacant store. Soon, Fresno families will live there

Fresno Bee

By next year, a corner in southwest Fresno where a vacant, burned-out convenience store once stood will be home to four families with young children who will help build their new homes themselves.

Are tiny homes the answer for affordable housing? Clovis is giving it a try

Fresno Bee

If you want help building a tiny home, or what’s called a cottage, the city of Clovis can offer help. The city is expanding its Old Town cottage home program to the rest of the city for properties that qualify.

Gavin Newsom wants to fix California’s housing crisis. So what are his options?

Fresno Bee

Gov. Gavin Newsom says California’s housing affordability crisis is so severe that he wants a bit of everything to solve it. That means seeding construction for millions of new residences, opening the door to a new rent control law and finding ways to protect low-income families from eviction.

Modesto homeless camp is filling up, but officials adapt to find room for more

Modesto Bee

The homeless camp Modesto and Stanislaus County opened nearly three months ago essentially is full, but the operations manager says officials are finding creative ways to take in more residents.

California could bring radical change to single-family-home neighborhoods

Los Angeles Times

A proposed state measure would require California cities and counties to permit duplexes, triplexes and fourplexes on much of the residential land now zoned for only single-family houses.

PUBLIC FINANCES

How Much Do You And Your Neighbors Pay In State Taxes?

CALmatters

Think you pay too much in state income taxes? Well, if you made $82,643 and paid $5,000 to Sacramento, then for better or worse, you are the average California taxpayer.

TRANSPORTATION

Landslide shuts down Huntington Lake Road in Fresno County

abc30

The Fresno County Public works staff is working alongside Cal Fire, Southern California Edison and the High Sierra Forest Service to develop and fund a plan to make necessary repairs to the slide area.

Northeast Fresno bike lanes painted bright green for safety

abc30

Some new bike lanes in Northeast Fresno may have drivers doing a double-take. That’s because the lanes are painted bright green.

WATER

Those May showers are on the way and they’re bringing a winter chill

Fresno Bee

It might feel like Fresno is transitioning to summer weather. Indeed, the National Weather Service expected temperatures in the region to be 10 to 15 degrees above average on Monday and Tuesday. But that’s also expected to change soon.

May is Water Awareness Month in Fresno County. Let’s make this count

Fresno Bee

May is Water Awareness Month, as recently declared by the Fresno County Board of Supervisors. Let’s make sure that we take this opportunity to protect our precious water resources before we see thousands of families’ wells go dry again.

The massive snowmelt is coming. Are we ready?

Bakersfield Californian

The Kern River basin, the rivers and streams that collect the water that flows into Isabella Lake and downstream toward Bakersfield, is estimated to be at 172 percent of normal.

What Does the Colorado River Drought Plan Mean for California?

Public Policy Institute of California

A much-anticipated plan to address chronic water shortages in the Colorado River Basin was recently signed into law by President Trump. This drought contingency plan (DCP) aims to slow the long-term decline in Lake Mead’s water levels.

EDITORIAL: A new water tax might be California’s best chance at clean water for all

San Francisco Chronicle

At least 1 million Californians don’t have stable access to clean drinking water. That’s a shameful and unacceptable fact in this wealthy state.

“Xtra”

Carrie Underwood brings powerful voice, stunning production to Fresno

Fresno Bee

Carrie Underwood’s Cry Pretty tour has so much going on, you can’t take your eyes off the stage. Except, the stage runs the full length of the arena floor, with the crowd literally on all sides.

2019 Comic Crawl is this weekend in the Tower District

abc30

Geeks assemble! Saturday is National Geek Pride Day, and the Fresno Zombie Society is giving you a chance to celebrate.

19th Central Valley Honor Flight takes off for Washington D.C.

abc30

A special Honor Flight took off from Fresno Monday morning. What makes it unique is the group is made up entirely of Vietnam Veterans.

Lightning in a Bottle makes friends, packs up, goes home

Bakersfield Californian

Some 20,000 people got together last Thursday for a “transformational” festival known as Lightning in a Bottle. Monday morning — four days later — they rolled out of their sleeping bags, rolled up their tents and rolled on down the road.

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The Kenneth L. Maddy Instituteat 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.

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