Maddy Institute – September 23, 2021

23Sep

POLICY & POLITICS

North SJ Valley:

COVID Update:

● Delta COVID surge shows signs of slowing in Stanislaus County, health officials say Modesto Bee

What does Modesto’s new police chief have to say about reform, systemic racism?

Modesto Bee

Gillespie is a strong supporter of Forward Together but deferred when asked whether he supports an independent auditor and civilian review board.

State orders fourth recall of raw milk sold from dairy farm west of Modesto

Modesto Bee

The state Wednesday ordered another recall of raw milk sold from a dairy farm west of Modesto. It was the fourth such order since 2019 for Valley Milk Simply Bottled from the California Department of Food and Agriculture.

Labor numbers improve in Stanislaus County

Turlock Journal

The unemployment rate fell for August in Stanislaus County as industries hit hard during the pandemic continue to add back employees, according to the latest numbers from the Employment Development Department.

As drought gets worse, some wells will trigger environmental review in Stanislaus County

Modesto Bee

The courts ruled that Stanislaus County can’t simply give administrative approval for well permits, and the county is now working on policies to decide which well permits will require an environmental review.

Not enough housing: What Stanislaus County, its cities are doing about it

Modesto Bee

In an effort to meet housing needs across Modesto and Stanislaus County, county leaders and stakeholders on Tuesday presented a new, large-scale plan to address the local inventory crisis.

● Housing, transportation, mental help are barriers for resettlement centers, refugees Modesto Bee

Plan laid to hire mental health care workers for Stanislaus schools, with focus on Latinos

Modesto Bee

Spanish speakers soon will be placed in Stanislaus County schools as mental health care outreach workers and clinicians to fill what local officials and numerous reports call an urgent service gap.

See also:

● Schools focus on student mental health Turlock Journal

Students protested Turlock Unified dress code, then helped draft new one. What’s it allow?

Modesto Bee

A few months after Turlock high school students protested their dress code for unfairly targeting females, school officials drafted a new policy — and for the first time, they invited students to help.

Editorial: Stanislaus County is not a political backwater. Don’t treat us like one

Modesto Bee

Who represents you matters. Lack of representation in colonial government led to the American Revolution and the birth of our country. Free people want and deserve to have their voices heard, and to elect people who will amplify those voices.

Central SJ Valley:

COVID Update:

● Fresno County’s ‘fully vaccinated’ residents now outnumber those without COVID shots Fresno Bee

● Deadlines near for Fresno, Valley health workers to meet COVID-19 vaccine mandate Fresno Bee

● Fresno County leaders consider incentives for employees to get COVID shots. Here’s how much Fresno Bee

● Fresno County considers offering $500 to employees fully vaccinated against COVID-19 abc30

● Despite CA's lower COVID-19 case rate, Central Valley counties have high virus transmission abc30

● County To Host Mass Flu Vaccination Drive In Fresno On Saturday Business Journal

● Kaiser Permanente urging community to receive flu vaccine abc30

Fresno County judge rules against air district over exemptions for Valley refineries

Fresno Bee

Environmentalists and the California Attorney General are praising a recent Fresno County Superior Court ruling that will force the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District to no longer exempt several oil refineries from air monitoring requirements.

Fresno County’s top administrator is retiring. His replacement has already been chosen

Fresno Bee

Fresno County’s top administrator will retire at the end of the year, and will be replaced by another top county employee, officials said this week. Chief Administrative Officer Jean Rousseau said he will retire in December, a plan he’s had for some time.

Teens need more sleep. Will this new law help Fresno students — or just frustrate parents?

Fresno Bee

Senate Bill 328, signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in 2019, requires California middle schools beginning in July 2022 to start no earlier than 8 a.m. and high schools to begin no earlier than 8:30 a.m.

Downtown Fresno developer sues councilman and city alleging fraud over stalled project

Fresno Bee

A downtown Fresno developer is suing Councilmember Miguel Arias and the city of Fresno, alleging breach of contract, fraud and more. Cliff Tutelian, the downtown developer who owns The Grand Tower and renovated Kepler Neighborhood School, filed the lawsuit Friday.

Downtown Fresno boosters weigh housing, safety ahead of key vote

Business Journal

A vote to renew the mandate for Downtown Fresno’s Property-Based Improvement District comes at a time both tenants and property owners are anxious to see the area take off. Those invested in the area are still waiting for one key element — housing.

Millions of dollars available for Fresno-area families in Child Tax Credit. How to sign up

Fresno Bee

New research by the California Policy Lab says that hundreds of thousands of California families are at risk of missing out on these cash benefits, including many children in the Central San Joaquin Valley. For qualifying families, there is still time to sign up online.

Air quality rises to unhealthy levels in Fresno, Clovis region from Sequoia wildfires

Fresno Bee

The KNP Complex and Windy fires that continue to rage out of control in Sequoia National Park and the Sequoia National Forest in Tulare County are pumping increasing volumes of smoke into the air in the central San Joaquin Valley, creating unhealthy conditions.

See also:

● District issues air quality alert Hanford Sentinel

● Update: National Weather Service predicts Visalia area will be inundated by heavy smoke Visalia Times Delta

● Wildfire smoke in valley prompts air quality warning Bakersfield Californian

● KNP Complex Fire: More evacuation warnings issued in Tulare County; smoke affecting Valley air abc30

● Wildfires approach more giant sequoias and worsen air quality across Central California Los Angeles Times

South SJ Valley:

COVID Update:

● Kern Public Health: 446 new cases of COVID, 6 new deaths Bakersfield Californian

● KHSD unveils new dashboard of COVID cases on campus Bakersfield Californian

Kern County under investigation after denying group COVID contract over support for defunding police

Bakersfield Californian

Kern County could end up paying dearly for an October decision by the Board of Supervisors to withhold a $1.2 million coronavirus contract from a nonprofit group that had voiced support for defunding police.

ACLU urges White House to reject attempt to keep San Diego private prison open using McFarland

Bakersfield Californian

The American Civil Liberties Union is asking the White House to block an effort by a private prison company from keeping a detention center in San Diego open through an agreement with the city of McFarland.

Lawmakers laud bill for repurposing farmland

Bakersfield Californian

A bill that would create a program to help farmers find new life for farmland idled by coming groundwater restrictions had its own phoenix moment earlier this month when it was killed and almost simultaneously reborn — this time with money.

State:

COVID Update:

● California now has nation’s lowest virus transmission rate Fresno Bee

● Big demand makes COVID-fighting antibodies hard to get in California Los Angeles Times

● How California turned the tide and achieved the lowest coronavirus transmission rate in the U.S. Los Angeles Times

● Are your face masks still effective as COVID lingers? It depends on what kind you own Sacramento Bee

● Who’s dying in California from COVID-19? CalMatters

Skelton: Don’t be fooled: California’s new housing laws make significant changes to zoning

Los Angeles Times

The word is out that major land zoning bills signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom don’t amount to much because they were so watered down by compromising legislators. Don’t believe it.

Editorial: Gov. Newsom’s drought response is falling short. Here’s how he should respond to the crisis

Sacramento Bee

The preliminary results of Newsom’s voluntary water conservation goal are in, and residents have largely volunteered to ignore him. It’s another sign that Newsom must do more than politely ask Californians to get serious about conserving an all-too-finite resource.

Newsom signs law requiring California warehouses to disclose quotas, provide bathroom breaks

Sacramento Bee

California will require employers like Amazon to tell their warehouse workers of their quotas and prevent companies from using algorithms that block those employees from taking meal or bathroom breaks, under a first-in-the-nation law signed Wednesday.

● A New Law In California Aims To Protect Workers At Retail Warehouses Like Amazon's VPR

‘These are dark days.’ Gavin Newsom signs laws protecting California abortion rights

Sacramento Bee

Gov. Gavin Newsom on Wednesday signed a pair of laws aimed at protecting reproductive health care in California, calling them urgent measures ahead of a new challenge to abortion rights that’s expected to appear before the U.S. Supreme Court.

California farm worker union marching to the French Laundry after Newsom vetoes labor bill

Fresno Bee

Gov. Gavin Newsom on Wednesday vetoed a bill that would have allowed farm workers to vote by mail in union elections, a change the United Farm Workers pressed for after the U.S. Supreme Court earlier this year dealt a setback to its organizing practices.

● What’s the role of unions in the 21st century? CalMatters

California halts insurance cancellations in major wildfire areas across 22 counties

Sacramento Bee

The one-year moratorium, announced by Insurance Comm Ricardo Lara, affects about 325,000 homeowners. It came a month after Lara imposed a similar moratorium affecting 25,000 homeowners who live in the vicinity of the Lava and Beckwourth Complex fires.

Three key takeaways about broadband and California’s digital divide

CalMatters

Stakeholders across California participated in a moderated discussion about the state’s digital divide and its effect on small business.

● Equity in Infrastructure Development: The Digital Divide Milken Institute

● How California Is Advancing Digital Equity Pew

● CETF in Partnership with Los Angeles Jewish Home Announces Major FCC COVID-19 Telehealth Award California Emerging Technologies Fund

Changes Are Coming to California’s Political Districts

Public Policy Institute of California

Political districts are redrawn every ten years after the census. Over time, as the population shifts, overpopulated districts dilute the power of their residents by forcing them to share their representative with a larger number of people.

Why has massive California never been split into two states? Or six?

Los Angeles Times

Like awaiting an earthquake, we are due — overdue, really — for another aggrieved someone to try once again to get voters or legislators or Congress — or all three — to agree to divvy up California into two or three or a half-dozen states.

Editorial: Californians want to keep voting by mail as an option, and they should Los Angeles Times

After two successful all-mail ballot elections there’s no reason to let this commonsense voting practice lapse and return to the clunky old system that focused resources on thousands of sparsely used day-of polling centers.

Scott Lay, chronicler of California politics with a must-read newsletter, dies at 48

Los Angeles Times

Scott Lay, an attorney by training, a fierce advocate for community colleges and the author of a must-read newsletter in the state Capitol, has died at 48.

Federal:

COVID Update:

● COVID has killed about as many Americans as the 1918-19 flu Fresno Bee

● ‘Soul-crushing’: US COVID-19 deaths are topping 1,900 a day Fresno Bee

● Is The Worst Over? Modelers Predict A Steady Decline In COVID Cases Through March VPR

● Some experts see signs of hope as COVID cases fall Axois

● Biden pledges more COVID-19 vaccine doses to boost global inoculation rates Los Angeles Times

● Biden Pledges 500 Million More Pfizer Vaccine Donations for Poor Nations at U.N. Covid-19 Summit Wall Street Journal

● The FDA Has Been Without A Permanent Leader For 8 Months, As COVID Cases Climb NPR

● Domestic flight vaccine mandate? Not ‘off the table’ Roll Call

● GOP senators say Biden COVID-19 strategy has 'exacerbated vaccine hesitancy' The Hill

● Becerra takes a back seat while others steer Covid response Politico

● Opinion: Far too many pregnant people remain at high risk of covid-19. It didn’t have to be this way. Washington Post

Standoff between liberal and moderate Democrats looms over Biden economic agenda ahead of key House vote

Washington Post

Congressional Democrats warred with each other on Tuesday over the price tag and policy scope of their roughly $4 trillion economic agenda, raising the potential for a stunning, self-inflicted defeat as the House prepares to vote on one of the measures next week.

● Biden Pushes Democrats to Find Consensus on Budget Package Wall Street Journal

● Biden meets with Democrats as $3.5T plan faces party split The Business Journal

● House races to vote on gov’t funding, debt as GOP digs in The Business Journal

● House passes stopgap funding, debt ceiling suspension bill Roll Call

● Constituent demands rise, but congressional budgets stay same Roll Call

● Biden set to play peacemaker for warring Democratic factions Politico

● Dems fear Biden's domestic agenda could implode Politico

● Former GOP treasury secretaries tried defusing debt ceiling bomb in private talks with McConnell, Yellen Washington Post

● U.S. default this fall would cost 6 million jobs, wipe out $15 trillion in wealth, study says Washington Post

● 11 senators urge House to pass $3.5T package before infrastructure bill The Hill

● Opinion: Mitch McConnell Doesn’t Get the Point of the Debt Limit Politico

Infrastructure Plan Faces Fresh Uncertainty as Democrats Remain Divided

Wall Street Journal

Persistent divisions among Democrats over the size of their climate and social-welfare plan are threatening to derail much of President Biden’s agenda, as progressives signal that they could block passage of a roughly $1 trillion infrastructure package next week.

● Biden to huddle with warring Democrats as economic agenda and $1 trillion infrastructure bill hang in the balance Washington Post

● Democrats still feuding as infrastructure deadline nears Roll Call

● Infrastructure vote suspense prompts worries about highway bill Roll Call

● Opinion: Why California’s congressional delegation must lead on infrastructure bill CalMatters

● Democratic leaders racing toward Monday infrastructure vote The Hill

Police Reform:

Bipartisan Police-Overhaul Talks End With No Deal

Wall Street Journal

A top Democratic negotiator called off talks aimed at overhauling police tactics and accountability, saying lawmakers were unable to reach a compromise in the wake of nationwide protests sparked by the killings of Black Americans by law-enforcement officers.

● U.S. lawmakers end bipartisan police overhaul talks with no deal Los Angeles Times

● No deal on bill to overhaul policing in aftermath of protests over killing of Black Americans Washington Post

● Bipartisan police reform talks crumble Politico

● Lawmakers say police reform talks are over The Hill

● Biden says he will review executive actions after police reform talks fail The Hill

Many Believe It's Time To Do Away With Lawmakers Making Stock Trades

VPR

The Stock Act requires lawmakers to disclose when they trade individual stocks. There's a bipartisan trend lately, though. Members of Congress are ignoring that law or reporting trades late, sometimes several months after they make big investments.

After Trump, Democrats move to restrict president’s power over pardons, spending

Sacramento Bee

The bill packages several proposals Democrats raised during Trump’s presidency, such as providing penalties for administration officials who ignore congressional subpoenas, reinforcing Congress’ power to set spending priorities and giving lawmakers more oversight over pardons.

Young voters turned out in force for Democrats in 2020. Will they stick around?

Los Angeles Times

A rising generation of young people helped elect Biden in 2020 even though many were lukewarm about his candidacy, and will be key to the Democratic Party’s ability to keep control of Congress in 2022.

● Biden confronts sinking poll numbers The Hill

● Biden approval rating drops to record low 43% in Gallup polling The Hill

● Biden's Approval Rating Hits New Low of 43%; Harris' Is 49% Gallup

● U.S. Chamber Targets 5 Democrats It Previously Endorsed in New Ad Campaign Wall Street Journal

Opinion: Dysfunction in America is no longer just knocking on the door

Roll Call

It’s human nature not to take crises too seriously until they come knocking at your front door. But we’ve passed that point on a host of issues, with too many citizens either in denial or using the dysfunction as a partisan tool rather than an all-hands-on-deck call to action.

Opinion: Why Sane Republicans Are Purging Themselves

Politico

Anthony Gonzalez leaves no doubt about what he thinks about Donald Trump and his impact on the GOP. The former president, he says, is like a “cancer,” and he has turned his party into a toxic and hostile environment.

Opinion: Amid polarization, bipartisan oversight still exists in Congress

Brookings

Since Democrats assumed unified control of government in Washington, many of Congress’s highest-profile investigations have been beset by partisan conflict. But House committees’ oversight of the executive branch extends far beyond these headline-grabbing issues.

Other:

No More Apologies: Inside Facebook’s Push to Defend Its Image

New York Times

Mark Zuckerberg, the chief executive, has signed off on an effort to show users pro-Facebook stories and to distance himself from scandals.

See also:

● The Facebook Files Wall Street Journal

● Opinion: Legislative efforts and policy frameworks within the Section 230 debate Brookings

Opinion: America is not facing a civil war — only loudmouthed extremists

Los Angeles Times

With an election just behind us and another beckoning a year from now, political pundits are dusting off their perennial observations about a “polarized” America. Actually, these observations don’t need to be dusted off because they’re never put on the shelf.

Six Rural News Outlets Trying to Bridge the Information Divide

Nieman Reports

It’s no secret that the past two decades have seen a major decline in the number of news outlets serving local audiences. The statistics are staggering: Between 2004 and 2019, about 2,100 daily and weekly newspapers folded.

MADDY INSTITUTE PUBLIC POLICY PROGRAMMING

Sunday, September 26, at 10 a.m on ABC30 – Maddy Report: "Air Quality: Have We Hit the Invisible Wall?" - Guest: Rachel Becker, Environmental Reporter - CalMatters. Host: Maddy Institute Executive Director, Mark Keppler.

Sunday, September 26, at 10 a.m. on Newstalk 580AM/105.9FM (KMJ) – Maddy Report - Valley Views Edition: "Valley Air: Are We Breathing Any Easier?"- Guests: Tom Jordan, Senior Policy Advisor - San Joaquin Valley Air District; Dr. Tania Pacheco-Werner, Co-Director - Fresno State’s Central Valley Health Policy Institute. Host: Maddy Institute Executive Director, Mark Keppler.

AGRICULTURE/FOOD

State orders fourth recall of raw milk sold from dairy farm west of Modesto

Modesto Bee

Lawmakers laud bill for repurposing farmland

Bakersfield Californian

CRIMINAL JUSTICE/FIRE/PUBLIC SAFETY

Crime:

’Vicious cycle:’ How CA leaders are trying to redefine domestic abuse in courtrooms

Sacramento Bee

Survivors of domestic violence are gaining the ability to have all they endure considered in court, their advocates say, as California’s leaders have updated state law to recognize the role of coercion in intimate partner abuse.

FBI report likely to show record increase in murders in 2020

Axios

The New York Times first reported Wednesday that the FBI's early data shows a 29% spike in murders last year. That would be the biggest single-year increase since national record-keeping began, in 1960.

Editorial: Trying to cross the street shouldn’t be a crime

Los Angeles Times

In California, it’s illegal to cross the street mid-block or to cross against a traffic signal. California’s jaywalking law ignores the reality on the ground, which is that the vast majority of streets were designed to move cars quickly, not to allow convenient, safe walking.

Public Safety:

ACLU urges White House to reject attempt to keep San Diego private prison open using McFarland

Bakersfield Californian

● Matthews: Out with Mass Incarceration and in with Mass Commerce Zocolo

What does Modesto’s new police chief have to say about reform, systemic racism?

Modesto Bee

Gillespie is a strong supporter of Forward Together but deferred when asked whether he supports an independent auditor and civilian review board.

Federal court vacates gun rights ruling on restricting buyers under 21

The Hill

A U.S. appeals court on Wednesday threw out a previous ruling it had made that found a ban on gun buyers under 21 to be unconstitutional.

Fire:

New evacuation warnings for communities near Sequoia wildfire, now at nearly 30,000 acres

Fresno Bee

The Tulare County Sheriff has issued a new evacuation warning for areas under threat from the KNP Complex Fire.

● Gov. Newsom to visit KNP Fire in Sequoia National Park to sign $15 billion climate legislation Fresno Bee

● KNP Complex forces additional forest closure near Hume Lake Ranger District Visalia Times Delta

● Four Guardsmen safe, but giant sequoia burns; cabins threatened Los Angeles Times

● Wildfires threaten the world’s oldest trees—but prescribed burns are protecting them National Geographic

Generous people are flooding KNP Complex firefighters with donations. That's causing problems

Visalia Times Delta

Well-intentioned donations are overwhelming local businesses and firefighters battling the KNP Complex and Windy fires in Tulare County.

Windy Fire update: 31,388 acres, 7 percent contained

Porterville Recorder

The Windy Fire burning in the Tule River Indian Reservation and the Giant Sequoia National Monument reached 31,388 acres and was 7 percent contained as of Wednesday morning.

California’s Wildfires Had an Invisible Impact: High Carbon Dioxide Emissions

New York Times

From June to August, the blazes emitted far more planet-warming carbon dioxide than in any other summer in nearly two decades, satellite data shows.

Opinion: Wildfires are changing California forever and making it harder to see a future here

Washington Post

I talk on the phone to a fire ecologist who models wildfire behavior. After evacuating their Northern California town twice in August, she and her husband are considering whether a long-term future in the place they thought was home is really viable.

ECONOMY/JOBS

Economy:

The Fed Says Inflation Is Hotter Than Expected — But It Should Cool Next Year

VPR

Federal Reserve policymakers now think inflation will run hotter than previously expected this year, but the central bank still believes price hikes will moderate in 2022 as pandemic pressures fade.

See also:

● Fed: On track to slow support for economy later this year San Francisco Chronicle

● Fed signals easing of market supports could start in November, despite ongoing threat of delta variant Wall Street Journal

● Fed Meeting Will Focus on Taper Timetable Wall Street Journal

Despite Delta variant slowing growth, Federal Reserve signals plans to start reversing some stimulus programs

Los Angeles Times

Despite a still-menacing pandemic and a cascade of other domestic and international threats to the U.S. economy, Federal Reserve policymakers on Wednesday expressed confidence in the recovery and said they could soon start withdrawing stimulus programs supporting financial markets and the economy.

Despite the pandemic, wage growth held firm for most U.S. workers, with little effect on inequality

Pew Research

Despite the severity of the shock to the U.S. labor market from the coronavirus pandemic, the earnings of employed workers overall were largely unaffected by the pandemic. Inequality in earnings did rise during last year’s recession.

Event: Register today for the 2021 California Economic Summit

CA FWD

Registration for the 2021 California Economic Summit — taking place on November 9-10 in Monterey — is now open! The annual two-day gathering is designed to shape our collective action in 2022 and to strengthen the Summit network.

Here's when the next batch of California stimulus checks will be released

SFGate

The third batch of California stimulus checks, also known as the Golden State Stimulus, will be sent out at the start of October, the California Franchise Tax Board said.

Opinion: Pension smoothing – the budget gimmick that will not die

AEI

The bipartisan infrastructure bill approved by the Senate on August 10 includes a number of budget gimmicks that help make it look fully “paid for.” One of the gimmicks is pension smoothing, which allows private companies to make smaller contributions to their defined-benefit pension plans, thereby endangering the plans’ financial viability over time.

Opinion: Will Tens of Millions of New Monthly Benefit Checks Be Joe Biden’s Legacy

AEI

Massive check-writing operation is one result of the American Rescue Plan, the Democrats’ $1.9 trillion pandemic-relief law that President Biden signed in March. That law included three major expansions of the long-standing child-tax-credit program, the costs of which added to the deficit.

Jobs:

Labor numbers improve in Stanislaus County

Turlock Journal

What can California workers expect from Biden’s COVID vaccine mandate? Here’s what we know

Sacramento Bee

More COVID vaccine mandates are on the way for California. President Joe Biden last week rolled out his plan to get more Americans vaccinated by requiring federal workers and their contractors to get the shots.

● What Employers Need to Know About COVID-19 Vaccine Requirements in the Workplace National Law Review

● Good Ventilation Prevents COVID-19 Spread — Here's What You Should Ask Your Workplace VPR

California’s extra sick leave for COVID-19 is ending, but is it too soon?

CalMatters

A state law gives California workers as much as two weeks additional paid sick leave during COVID-19, but it’s ending as a federal tax credit that offsets the cost for employers also expires.

Custodians at Calif’s wealthiest companies to earn $20 an hour in new contract

Sacramento Bee

More than 20,000 janitors across California ratified a new contract over the weekend that for many workers includes a $20 an hour minimum wage and an employers’ contribution to a union pension plan by 2023.

Ninth Circuit Revives AB 51’s Prohibition of Employers Mandating Arbitration

aalrr

California employers are to be forgiven if they are confused as to the state of the law regarding employer mandated agreements requiring employees to arbitrate employment-related claims.

U.S. Jobless Claims Hover Near Pandemic Low

Wall Street Journal

Initial unemployment claims, a proxy for layoffs, rose by 16,000 to a seasonally adjusted 351,000 last week from a revised 335,000 the prior week, the Labor Department said Thursday.

Mothers Are Postponing the Return to Work. Amazon and Other Companies Are Trying to Bring Them Back

Wall Street Journal

About 3.5 million mothers living with school-age youngsters lost their jobs, took leave or left the labor market when Covid-19 hit last year, Census Bureau data show. Now, increased Covid-19 cases are causing some schools in hundreds of districts to bring back virtual learning—and burden mothers again

Biden administration to write workplace safety rule tackling heat stress

Politico

The Biden administration announced Monday that it will begin crafting a standard to protect workers from heat as the federal government wrestles with a growing public health threat exacerbated by climate change.

● California's Firefighters Keep Getting Injured While Training. And Some Have Died CapRadio

EDUCATION

K-12:

Teens need more sleep. Will this new law help Fresno students — or just frustrate parents?

Fresno Bee

Senate Bill 328, signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in 2019, requires California middle schools beginning in July 2022 to start no earlier than 8 a.m. and high schools to begin no earlier than 8:30 a.m.

KHSD unveils new dashboard of COVID cases on campus

Bakersfield Californian

The Kern High School District has unveiled a dashboard on its website that notifies the public about positive COVID cases on its campuses and worksites, providing a snapshot of the largest district in the county.

Students protested Turlock Unified dress code, then helped draft new one. What’s it allow?

Modesto Bee

‘The kids are not all right’: What can lawmakers do for students’ mental health?

Sacramento Bee

Back-to-school this year comes amid a pandemic, wildfires and questions about how being in-person will work on top of other stressors normally faced by students.

● Schools focus on student mental health Turlock Journal

● Opinion: The consequence of public-health officials racing to shutter schools AEI

Students with disabilities across California stuck in limbo

CalMatters

Some parents are being forced to decide between risking sending their kids with disabilities to school and getting all their needs met or keeping them at home and forfeiting their special education services.

Event: Targeted K–12 Funding and Student Outcomes

Public Policy Institute of California

PPIC researcher Julien Lafortune will present findings from a new report that examines school and district spending against trends in student outcomes, offering insight into whether the LCFF is meeting its goal of improving equity in education.

Charter schools boomed during the pandemic

Axios

Charter schools picked off hundreds of thousands of public school students across the U.S. during the pandemic, according to a new analysis from the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools.

Higher Ed:

Why earning a pilot’s license at this Fresno-area college could soon be a little cheaper

Fresno Bee

Earning a pilot’s license at Reedley College could soon get a little cheaper after the school purchases new planes with $1 million in newly secured state funding.

California Community Colleges seek $100 million in tech upgrades, in part to tighten security after bot attacks

EdSource

California’s community college system is asking the state for $100 million to revamp its technology infrastructure to upgrade security and overhaul its application portal.

New generation of disabled UC students revives activism

CalMatters

A coalition is calling for the University of California to give disabled students more support and a say in pandemic-era learning plans.

State announces charges in alleged student loan debt relief scam with more than 19,000 victims

Los Angeles Times

California Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta on Tuesday announced charges in an alleged multimillion-dollar student loan debt relief scam that prosecutors say stole from more than 19,000 victims in less than three years.

Opinion: Why the Future at U.S. Colleges Is Female

Wall Street Journal

The insistence that “the future is female” and constant denunciation of “mansplaining” and all the rest have combined to encourage female participation and denigrate male participation, if not masculinity itself, throughout academia.

With students back on campus, many faculty members are worried about covid — and pushing back

Washington Post

Some professors are objecting to coronavirus protocols set before the delta variant’s surge, with protests, petitions and resignations.

ENVIRONMENT/ENERGY

Environment:

Fresno County judge rules against air district over exemptions for Valley refineries

Fresno Bee

Climate Change Is Killing Trees and Causing Power Outages

VPR

According to researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, opportunistic fungi are killing these trees. California's climate change-fueled drought, which has persisted for the better part of two decades, has stressed the trees and made them vulnerable to parasites.

● Opinion: Even With Climate Change, the World Isn’t Doomed Wall Street Journal

EPA to Adopt New Rules to Cut Emissions From Coolants

Wall Street Journal

The rules create a process for reducing the use of hydrofluorocarbons in cooling appliances, the first step toward meeting new mandates to cut their supply by 85% over 15 years, the EPA said.

SEC Asks Dozens of Companies for More Climate Disclosures

Wall Street Journal

The Securities and Exchange Commission has sent letters to dozens of public companies asking them to provide more information to investors about how climate change might affect their financial earnings or business operations.

Dems seek new green deal

Axios

House Democrats discussed with President Biden on Wednesday a plan to exempt billions of dollars of new climate spending from his requirement that his $3.5 trillion "soft" infrastructure plan be offset with additional revenue.

Flying Microchips The Size Of A Sand Grain Could Be Used For Population Surveillance

VPR

It's neither a bird nor a plane, but a winged microchip as small as a grain of sand that can be carried by the wind as it monitors such things as pollution levels or the spread of airborne diseases.

Energy:

Fresno County lands what reportedly will be West Coast’s largest green hydrogen plant

Fresno Bee

Officials with Plug Power, headquartered in Latham, New York, said in their Monday announcement that the plant — near Mendota — is expected to produce 30 metric tons of liquid green hydrogen daily within about four years.

Opinion: California can help vulnerable communities prepare for blackouts

CalMatters

AB 418 would provide local governments needed resources to ensure that critical services remain available during blackouts.

HEALTH/HUMAN SERVICES

Health:

Unvaccinated 8 times more likely to get COVID than vaccinated

Porterville Recorder

In the state of California, those who are unvaccinated are eight times more likely to get COVID-19 as opposed to those who are fully vaccinated. That's the data recently reported by the state.

FDA backs Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine boosters for people 65 and older, other at-risk groups

abc30

The U.S. moved a step closer Wednesday to offering booster doses of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine to senior citizens and others at high risk from the virus as the Food and Drug Administration signed off on the targeted use of the extra shots.

● The FDA OKs Pfizer-BioNTech Booster For People 65+ Or At High Risk For Severe COVID VPR

J&J Says Covid-19 Vaccine Booster Two Months After First Shot Increases Protection

Wall Street Journal

Johnson & Johnson said a booster dose of its Covid-19 vaccine administered two months after the first shot increased protection against symptomatic illness in trial participants, as federal regulators evaluate data for the country’s strategy for rolling out boosters.

● J&J: Booster Dose Of Its Covid Shot Prompts Strong Response Business Journal

● Two dose version of Johnson & Johnson vaccine 94% effective against Covid-19, study finds Mercury News

● Second dose of Johnson & Johnson vaccine increases protection against covid-19, vaccine maker says Washington Post

Pfizer Study of Covid-19 Vaccine in Pregnant Women Delayed by Slow Enrollment

Wall Street Journal

A study led by Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE evaluating their Covid-19 vaccine in expectant mothers has been complicated by slow enrollment, researchers say, delaying results that could help inform physicians about how the shots affect pregnant women and their babies.

COVID-19 vaccines for kids: What you need to know

Mercury News

A COVID-19 vaccine could soon be available to children between the ages 5 through 11, easing anxieties of parents and expanding the nation’s protection from the pandemic. Pfizer said it would file for emergency authorization of its vaccine for use in children.

● Covid Vaccine Prompts Strong Immune Response in Younger Children, Pfizer Says New York Times

Breakthrough COVID-19 cases expected to become more common in coming months

Roll Call

Mild cases of COVID-19 among vaccinated individuals are becoming increasingly common as the highly contagious delta variant barrels through communities, but physicians and public health experts say that shouldn’t be a cause for significant concern.

Opinion: How to improve California’s deadly record of outcomes for Black births

CalMatters

The governor needs to sign SB 65 to put California on a better path toward desirable outcomes for Black pregnant people.

5 West Nile Virus cases reported in Tulare County

Porterville Recorder

The Tulare County Health & Human Services Agency announced on Monday five people in the county have been diagnosed with West Nile Virus. Public health officials urge residents to take precautions against mosquito bites.

Human Services:

County To Host Mass Flu Vaccination Drive In Fresno On Saturday

Business Journal

This Saturday the Fresno County Department of Public Health is hosting a drive thru flu vaccination site at 445 S. Cedar Ave. The public can bring their household members and everyone who receives a vaccine will be entered into a raffle for prizes.

Hospitals overwhelmed by covid are turning to ‘crisis standards of care.’ What does that mean?

Washington Post

Long-feared rationing of medical care has become a reality in some parts of the United States as the delta variant drives a new wave of coronavirus cases, pushing hospitals to the brink.

Pfizer CEO rallies staff to fight Democrats’ drug price negotiation

Politico

Pfizer's CEO sent a video message to company employees urging them to fight proposed government drug price negotiations and expressing frustration with Congress, which is considering using the projected savings to help pay for a $3.5T social spending package.

Opinion: The Next Medicaid Blowout

Wall Street Journal

Among the many parts of the $3.5 trillion bill Democrats are moving through Congress is a federal Medicaid program to cover mainly childless adults.

Opinion: What Has Become of the Affordable Care Act?

National Affairs

The law as written left a host of crucial questions open, quite intentionally. And we have since seen three administrations, numerous courts, and several congresses attempt to address those questions in a variety of ways.

Opinion: It’s time to correct abuses by health care providers

CalMatters

Physicians and medical groups maximize their earnings by limiting time with patients and adopting abusive billing practices.

IMMIGRATION

Biden to double refugee cap despite slow resettlement pace

Roll Call

President Joe Biden would fulfill a longtime promise by raising the refugee admissions cap to 125,000 for fiscal 2022, but reaching that number could prove difficult after a year on track to have the lowest resettlement numbers in recent history.

U.S. Border Agents Chased Migrants On Horseback. A Photographer Explains What He Saw

VPR

Images of U.S. Border Patrol agents on horseback chasing Haitian migrants along the Rio Grande are "horrific," the White House says. The migrants were attempting to return to a camp near the international Bridge in Del Rio, Texas.

● Haitian migrants pour out of U.S. into Mexico to avoid being sent back home Los Angeles Times

● Giving Up on Del Rio, Texas, Haitian Migrants Return to Mexico to Avoid U.S. Deportation Wall Street Journal

● Biden’s Strategy on Haitian Migrants in Texas Sparks Bipartisan Blowback Wall Street Journal

● Latin American Migration, Once Limited to a Few Countries, Turns Into a Mass Exodus Wall Street Journal

● Black lawmakers sound alarm on Haitian migrant treatment Roll Call

● Many migrants from border camp staying in US AP News

● Biden slips into political quicksand amid Haitian migrant buildup Politico

● Amid furor over border images, Biden faces Democratic backlash on immigration Washington Post

● Why are there thousands of Haitian migrants at the Texas border? Washington Post

● Opinion: Abusing migrants while on horseback? That fits with the Border Patrol’s long history of brutality Los Angeles Times

LAND USE/HOUSING

Land Use:

Downtown Fresno developer sues councilman and city alleging fraud over stalled project

Fresno Bee

● Fresno-area development group getting its ducks in The Row The Business Journal

Housing:

Not enough housing: What Stanislaus County, its cities are doing about it

Modesto Bee

In an effort to meet housing needs across Modesto and Stanislaus County, county leaders and stakeholders on Tuesday presented a new, large-scale plan to address the local inventory crisis.

Downtown Fresno boosters weigh housing, safety ahead of key vote

Business Journal

What California’s hardest-hit communities need to prevent evictions when moratoriums end

Sacramento Bee

California has been slow to distribute the $5.2 billion available for rent relief. As of early August, the state had received more than 132,000 rental assistance applications from nearly 91,000 households — amounting to about $1 billion in requested rent relief.

Skelton: Don’t be fooled: California’s new housing laws make significant changes to zoning

Los Angeles Times

The word is out that major land zoning bills signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom don’t amount to much because they were so watered down by compromising legislators. Don’t believe it.

Black & Latino Homeowners Are About Twice As Likely As Whites To Get Low Appraisals

VPR

Home appraisers are more likely to undervalue homes in Black and Latino areas than those in white ones, a new report by Freddie Mac has found.

Hot U.S. Housing Market Cooled Some in August

Wall Street Journal

The turbocharged housing market slowed in August as near record asking prices are giving buyers pause, easing some of the frenzy that gripped the market only a few months ago.

Opinion: How Team Biden misunderstands the homeless crisis

AEI

Team Biden is asking mayors, governors and tribal leaders to pledge to reduce homelessness in exchange for new federal rental assistance and support for new housing construction. The initiative is House America, but it should be Misunderstand America.

PUBLIC FINANCES

Millions of dollars available for Fresno-area families in Child Tax Credit. How to sign up

Fresno Bee

Haven’t gotten your $600 stimulus check? Here’s when more may get them

Sacramento Bee

Through its Golden State Stimulus, the state has already sent more than $1.8 billion to eligible taxpayers in the last few weeks, according to the Franchise Tax Board. The last batch of payments to some 2 million Californians was sent last week on Sept. 17.

State and Local Government Job Growth Lags as Economy Recovers

Pew Trusts

More than a year after the sharpest monthly decline in state and local government employment on record, the return of jobs in much of the public workforce is lagging as the economy recovers from the pandemic-induced recession.

Editorial: The New Government Basic Income

Wall Street Journal

The history of government entitlements is that they inevitably expand, often into something far different than how they began. There’s no better example than the “child tax credit” that Democrats are now expanding.

See also:

● Opinion: The Destructive Legacy of the Great Society Wall Street Journal

● Editorial: The Government Family Plan Wall Street Journal

TRANSPORTATION

California High-Speed Rail Authority Releases 2021 Sustainability Report

High Speed Rail Authority

As California kicks off Climate Week 2021, the California High-Speed Rail Authority on Monday released its latest Sustainability Graphic of the front cover of the 2021 Sustainability Report.Report: Building an Equitable Future.

See also:

● CHSRA Issues Sustainability Report Railway Age

● Calif. high-speed rail project preserved, restored over 2,300 acres of habitat over last year RT&S

WATER

Groundwater and Urban Growth in the San Joaquin Valley

Public Policy Institute of California

The San Joaquin Valley is ground zero for the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA). It has the largest groundwater deficit in California and faces some of the worst impacts from overdraft, including land subsidence and drying wells.

See also:

● New Opportunities for Trading Surface Water in the Sacramento Valley under SGMA Public Policy Institute of California

● Event: Groundwater and Urban Growth in the San Joaquin Valley Public Policy Institute of California

As drought gets worse, some wells will trigger environmental review in Stanislaus County

Modesto Bee

Regional districts file suit over state water supply cuts

Turlock Journal

Irrigation districts in several Central Valley farm communities are going to court, challenging the authority of state officials to curtail their senior water rights.

California water agencies resolve Colorado River dispute

Business Journal

Two major California water agencies have settled a lawsuit that once threatened to derail a multi-state agreement to protect a river that serves millions of people in the U.S. West amid gripping drought.

California's water crisis is real. What are the solutions?

Visalia Times Delta

In California, there will always be droughts. And even in good years, there will never be quite enough water to satisfy the demands of the state’s urban population, its natural environment and an insatiable $50 billion agriculture industry.

● Editorial: Gov. Newsom’s drought response is falling short. Here’s how he should respond to the crisis Sacramento Bee

● California struggles to conserve water amid historic drought Sacramento Bee

● California drought: State residents failed to significantly cut back their water consumption in July abc30

● Californians falling far short on water conservation as drought worsens Mercury News

● California cities were told to cut their water use 15%. See what happened in your city. Mercury News

● Californians fail to meet Newsom's water-savings target amid growing drought San Francisco Chronicle

● Despite Newsom’s call to cut water use, L.A. and San Diego didn’t conserve in July Los Angeles Times

● As California’s drought deepens, water use drops only 1.8% CalMatters

● California is running out of water CalMatters

“Xtra”

One of Modesto region’s most popular festivals returns; classic rock at Gallo Center

Modesto Bee

Modesto region’s most popular festivals returns. There’s music, comedy and more planned the week of Sept. 25 to Oct. 1.

This Mexican restaurant owner in Fresno won a national award for independent businesses

Fresno Bee

A popular little Mexican restaurant in central Fresno has won second place in a national award contest celebrating independent restaurant owners.

Snow on Thanksgiving? Drought-busting technology makes it possible at China Peak

The Business Journal

Even with the annual uncertainty around Sierra snowfall, this upcoming ski season will be the first that China Peak’s operators can fully deploy a new capital investment.

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

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

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