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California Policy and Politics Saturday
California snowpack is below average, but winter storms could change that -- After an extremely dry January, California’s snowpack in the Sierra Nevada now measures just 65% of the average for this time of year, but state water officials said two winter storms are expected to bring more snow and rain that will add to the state’s water supplies. Ian James in the Los Angeles Times$ Paul Rogers in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 2/1/25
Acting on Trump’s order, federal officials opened up two California dams -- Vink agreed, saying that given how dry it has been in the region this winter, there was no need to make such a release. In fact, he said, farmers were counting on that water to be available for summer irrigation. “This is going to hurt farmers,” Vink said. “This takes water out of their summer irrigation portfolio.” Ian James and Jessica Garrison in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 2/1/25
Trump says he opened California’s water. Local officials say he nearly flooded them -- President Donald Trump declared victory on Friday in his long-running water war with California, boasting he sent billions of gallons south — but local officials say they narrowly prevented him from possibly flooding farms. Camille von Kaenel and Annie Snider Politico -- 2/1/25
Hundreds protest Trump’s mass deportation plans in San Diego County -- Several hundred protesters, many holding up signs and cheering, crowded along all four corners of one of Vista’s busiest intersections during the evening rush hour. “It’s not even politics — it’s human decency,” read one handmade sign. Many drivers at Vista Village Drive and South Santa Fe Avenue laid on their horns in support of the crowd. Teri Figueroa in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 2/1/25
Insurance
78,000 California condo owners to see major insurance rate hike -- Starting in April, Allstate will raise its average rates for condo insurance by 30%, according to a filing with the California Department of Insurance. Megan Fan Munce in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 2/1/25
Workplace
Costco workers at 27 Southern California stores ready to strike as deadline looms -- Thousands of Costco workers are preparing to strike with a midnight deadline drawing closer Friday while the workers’ union and the company continued to negotiate. The Teamsters union represents 18,000 Costco workers in six states: California, Washington, Maryland, Virginia, New Jersey and New York. The item is in the Orange County Register -- 2/1/25
Clean battery company, consumer electronics maker trim Bay Area jobs -- Two tech companies have chopped a combined 100-plus jobs in the Bay Area, a reminder that layoffs continue to jolt one of the primary engines of the region’s economy. George Avalos in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 2/1/25
Wildfire
PCH and Pacific Palisades are reopening to the public. Some say it’s too soon -- Pacific Palisades is reopening to the public this weekend, a move hailed by proponents as an important development in the recovery process, but condemned by some local residents and officials who fear it’s still too soon to allow wide access into the fire-ravaged area. Clara Harter, Julia Wick and Dakota Smith in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 2/1/25
Three atmospheric river storms are headed for California. Will one be enough to end SoCal’s devastating fire season? -- After an extraordinarily dry start to the year, three atmospheric river storms are expected to hit California over the next week — with one of them potentially bringing much-needed moisture to the still-withered Southland while packing a more powerful and prolonged punch up north. Rong-Gong Lin II and Grace Toohey in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 2/1/25
525-pound bear rescued from underneath evacuated Altadena home -- The homeowner had evacuated during the fire and once they returned, the electric company informed the resident that the home’s power could not be turned back on until the bear was removed from the crawl space, where its repair crew needed to work, according to the post. Summer Lin in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 2/1/25
Wildfires took everything but their food trucks. So they fed their community -- When Lauren and Nelson Saravia heard first responders and others were hungry, they knew what they had to do, even though they were hurting, too. Tim Carman in the Washington Post$ -- 2/1/25
CDC scrubs research databases referencing sexual orientation and gender identity -- Agencies were ordered to take down any “outward facing media” that could be interpreted as promoting a view of gender no longer in line with U.S. government policy. Researchers began sharing warnings on social media several days ago, urging members of the community to make copies of federal health data before the information was removed from the CDC website. Corinne Purtill and Karen Kaplan in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 2/1/25
Street
California saw the nation’s biggest drop in death row inmates — without any executions -- California’s death row population decreased by 63 in 2024 — without any executions, according to a new report. That means the state saw the largest death row population decline of any U.S. death penalty jurisdiction, even as some states continue executing inmates. Bob Egelko in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 2/1/25
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Trump Threatens Widening Trade War as First Tariffs Loom Saturday -- On eve of expected Mexico-Canada-China duties, president says he will impose sector-based levies on chips, pharmaceuticals and more. Gavin Bade, Natalie Andrews, Vipal Monga and Santiago Pérez in the Wall Street Journal$ Ana Swanson, Alan Rappeport and Colby Smith in the New York Times$ -- 2/1/25
How Could Trump’s Tariffs Affect the U.S., Canada and Mexico? -- While much about the threatened tariffs is still unclear, experts predict they would be bad news for all three economies, with few winners. Matina Stevis-Gridneff, Ana Swanson and Simon Romero in the New York Times$ -- 2/1/25
Justice Department orders FBI purge, review of staff who touched Trump cases -- A top Justice Department official on Friday ordered the firing of at least eight senior FBI executives and a sweeping examination of the work of thousands of other bureau employees, including all those who worked on investigations tied to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, according to a memo obtained by The Washington Post. Jeremy Roebuck, Perry Stein, Salvador Rizzo and Carol D. Leonnig in the Washington Post$ Adam Goldman, Devlin Barrett and Glenn Thrush in the New York Times$ -- 2/1/25
Universities Close Offices, Halt Research in Response to Trump’s Ban on DEI -- Universities are suspending research projects, canceling conferences and closing offices in response to a volley of orders from President Trump banning “diversity, equity and inclusion” across the U.S. government. The directives threaten vital federal funding and have thrown university leaders into disarray. Nidhi Subbaraman and Douglas Belkin in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 2/1/25
CDC removes gender, equity references in public health material -- Whole pages about HIV testing for transgender people, guidelines for use of HIV medication and information on supporting LGBTQ+ youth health were no longer available late Friday. The page that lists vaccines recommended by the CDC’s vaccine advisory committee was also no longer available. Lena H. Sun, Dan Keating and Fenit Nirappil in the Washington Post$ -- 2/1/25
California Policy and Politics Friday
Acting on Trump’s order, federal officials opened up two California dams -- The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has dramatically increased the amount of water flowing from two dams in Tulare County, sending massive flows down a river channel toward farmlands in the San Joaquin Valley. Ian James and Jessica Garrison in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/31/25
New Court Ruling Blocks Trump’s Spending Freeze, Despite Withdrawal of Policy Memo -- A federal judge on Friday blocked the Trump administration from temporarily freezing federal spending, saying the White House’s withdrawal of a policy memo on the issue wasn’t enough. Jan Wolfe in the Wall Street Journal$ Mattathias Schwartz in the New York Times$ Jeremy Roebuck, Carol D. Leonnig and Perry Stein in the Washington Post$ -- 1/31/25
FBI considering mass purge of agents involved in Trump investigations -- Leaders appointed by the Trump administration are identifying potentially hundreds of FBI agents for possible termination, said people familiar with the plan. Jeremy Roebuck, Carol D. Leonnig and Perry Stein in the Washington Post$ Adam Goldman, Devlin Barrett and Glenn Thrush in the New York Times$ -- 1/31/25
California Democrats delay vote to ‘Trump-proof’ the state and protect immigrants -- Democrats say they need to regroup, but Republicans say a divisive provision is to blame. Grant Stringer in the San Jose Mercury$ Stephen Hobbs and Nicole Nixon in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 1/31/25
California blesses political donors’ strategy to multiply their influence -- Political committees now have state regulators’ OK to create an unlimited number of affiliated committees with different leaders, and then closely coordinate fundraising and candidate donations among them. Alexei Koseff CalMatters -- 1/31/25
Garofoli: Donald Trump is already president. His latest moves show he wants to be king -- One way to understand Donald Trump’s chaotic first several days of office is to know that he isn’t satisfied with being president in his second term. He wants to be king, surrounded by loyal subjects and unencumbered by oversight restricting what he wants to do. Joe Garofoli in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/31/25
Walters: California’s carbon crusade faces resistance due to its real world impact -- For the past two decades three California governors have committed the state to reducing its greenhouse gas emissions to battle climate change. The official goal is to achieve carbon neutrality by 2045 via legislation, regulation, education, disruption and appropriation, so we’re roughly at the halfway mark. Dan Walters CalMatters -- 1/31/25
Wildfire
‘We don’t want it!’ San Gabriel Valley rages against shipment of Eaton fire hazardous waste -- Paint, bleach, asbestos, lithium-ion batteries and other potentially hazardous waste are being trucked 15 miles from the Altadena burn zone to Lario Park in Irwindale for sorting and storage. The agency was told, “by order of the White House,” to expedite the removal process to 30 days, said Celeste McCoy, an on-scene coordinator for the EPA. Laura J. Nelson in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/31/25
Schools opening near fire zones are safe, district officials say. Parents aren’t so sure -- School district officials say that campuses have been cleaned and are safe, and are welcoming kids back. Pasadena Unified has reopened all of its 24 schools except for two charter schools. Daniel Miller and Howard Blume in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/31/25
L.A. County had extra firefighters ready. How many were near Altadena? -- L.A. County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone woke up in his San Fernando Valley home Jan. 7 to a swimming pool filled with leaves and roof shingles. Marrone’s chief deputy, Jon O’Brien, told his boss that his Sierra Madre house felt like it was “going to get blown off the foundation.” Rebecca Ellis and Grace Toohey in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/31/25
As LA fires burn, SoCal Edison allowed to raise rates for 2017 blaze -- State utility regulators on Thursday approved a settlement that will require Southern California Edison customers to foot about $1.7 billion in claims from the 2017 Thomas Fire and the resulting 2018 Montecito Debris Flows. Malena Carollo CalMatters Melody Petersen in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/31/25
A world away from the Palisades and Altadena, landlords try to sell fire victims on living downtown -- With thousands of houses and apartments lost to wildfires in an already tight housing market, landlords in downtown Los Angeles are trying to woo displaced fire victims to a more urban setting far from the burn zones. Roger Vincent in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/31/25
Online tracker shows insurance payments to wildfire survivors -- A new online tool that tracks insurance payouts stemming from wildfires that devastated parts of Los Angeles County shows more than $4 billion has been paid so far, largely to replace lost personal items and cover living expenses. Suhauna Hussain in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/31/25
FireAid
Everything that happened at the FireAid benefit: From Stevie Nicks’ thank you to Lady Gaga’s hopeful closer -- Less than three weeks after a series of historic wildfires killed 29 people and destroyed more than 16,000 structures in the Los Angeles area, more than two dozen of music’s biggest names gathered for the FireAid benefit concert — “an evening of music and solidarity,” as organizers described it, meant to raise money for affected Angelenos and to “prevent future fire disasters throughout Southern California.” August Brown and Mikael Wood in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/31/25
Workplace
Google offers buyouts to employees not ‘deeply committed’ to its mission -- Google confirmed Thursday that it has rolled out a “voluntary exit” program for certain employees in its product teams who may not align with the division’s goals or are struggling with hybrid work requirements or their roles. Aidin Vaziri in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/31/25
Key airport along approach to SFO may lose all air traffic controllers this week -- (San Carlos) Airport manager Gretchen Kelly said in a news release Wednesday that the airport’s controllers resigned after the Federal Aviation Administration changed air traffic control contracts to a firm with lower pay that does not take into account the region’s high cost of living. Julie Johnson in the San Francisco Chronicle$ Nollyanne Delacruz in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 1/31/25
California poultry giant to shut down turkey plant, lay off over 500 workers -- Foster Farms, the California poultry giant, announced last week that it will close its turkey processing plant in Turlock (Stanislaus County) on May 9, resulting in the loss of 519 jobs. Aidin Vaziri in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/31/25
S.F. must rehire employees who refused to get vaccinated, court rules -- San Francisco must rehire two city employees who left their jobs after refusing to be vaccinated against the coronavirus for religious reasons, a federal appeals court ruled Thursday. Bob Egelko in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/31/25
Border
Tijuana braces for next iteration of ‘Remain in Mexico’ asylum policy -- The Mexican government has not formally agreed to it, and the U.S. has offered little clarity on details. Alexandra Mendoza in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 1/31/25
Trump’s Migrant Crackdown Strains Mexico’s Borders in North and South -- President Trump’s plan to carry out the biggest mass deportation in U.S. history is squeezing Mexico like no other country. Santiago Pérez in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 1/31/25
Environment
California’s monarch butterfly population plummets; fire wipes out Topanga habitat -- The Western population of the monarch butterfly has declined to a near-record low with fewer than 10,000 found living in California this winter, a foreboding sign for the future of the beloved black-and-orange insect. Clara Harter in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/31/25
Campus
Trump’s order on antisemitism and ‘Hamas sympathizers’ has California universities on alert -- President Trump has issued an executive order promoting a crackdown on campus antisemitism and said he supports canceling visas of pro-Palestinian international students. Jaweed Kaleem in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/31/25
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Trump Aides Hunt for 11th-Hour Deal to Dial Back Canada-Mexico Tariffs -- President Trump’s advisers are considering several offramps to avoid enacting the universal tariffs on Mexico and Canada that he had pledged, according to people familiar with the matter, even as he reiterated Thursday that the tariffs are coming. Gavin Bade, Vipal Monga and Santiago Pérez in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 1/31/25
Trump Tariffs Could Begin Saturday. The Stakes Are High for Companies -- Manufacturers have poured billions into North American supply chains that could be hit by new taxes on Mexico, Canada and China. Patricia Cohen, River Akira Davis and Eshe Nelson in the New York Times$ -- 1/31/25
Trump, Facing Two Crises in His Second Week, Spreads the Blame Around -- Second week shows how an administration moving at lightning speed deals with sudden challenges: by going on offense. Natalie Andrews and Meridith McGraw in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 1/31/25
Trump baselessly blames diversity program for fatal air collision -- Without evidence, the president told the nation that his predecessors, Democrats and diversity were to blame for the collision involving an Army helicopter and American Airlines passenger jet near Reagan National Airport. Isaac Arnsdorf in the Washington Post$ Elisabeth Bumiller in the New York Times$ -- 1/31/25
Trump launched air controller diversity program that he now decries -- At news conference, Trump read a list of disabilities he calls disqualifying, but his administration started such hiring in 2019. Glenn Kessler in the Washington Post$ Linda Qiu in the New York Times$ -- 1/31/25
White House eyes fight to expand Trump’s power to control spending -- Trump’s early, extraordinary steps pose a direct challenge to Congress’s constitutional power of the purse. Tony Romm and Jeff Stein in the Washington Post$ -- 1/31/25
Several senior FBI leaders told to leave agency or be fired, people familiar say -- The ultimatum was unusual for the FBI and suggested that President Donald Trump is purging leadership at an agency he has harshly criticized. Perry Stein and Jeremy Roebuck in the Washington Post$ Adam Goldman and Devlin Barrett in the New York Times$ -- 1/31/25
How the World Is Reeling From Trump’s Aid Freeze -- Some of the world’s most vulnerable populations are already feeling President Trump’s sudden cutoff of billions of dollars in American aid that helps fend off starvation, treats diseases and provides shelter for the displaced. Sui-Lee Wee, Declan Walsh and Farnaz Fassihi in the New York Times$ -- 1/31/25