• School Inoovation and Achievement
  • San Diego Water Authority

Updating . .   

Jerry Brown’s administration blocks public review of Oroville Dam records -- Gov. Jerry Brown’s administration is using federal security regulations written to thwart terrorism to deny public access to records that experts say could guide repairs to the Oroville Dam and provide insight into what led to the near catastrophic failure of its emergency spillway. Ryan Sabalow and Dale Kasler in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 4/11/17

Gas tax vote prompts recall campaign against Southern California Democrat -- Carl DeMaio, a talk radio host and former city councilman in San Diego, said Tuesday that plans are moving forward to launch a recall of Sen. Josh Newman, D-Fullerton, who voted for the $52 billion road repair package, paid for by fuel taxes and registration fees, just four months after he took office. Christopher Cadelago and Jim Miller in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 4/11/17

California bill creates ‘safe’ places to shoot heroin, take opioids -- Amid a surge of prescription opioid and heroin overdoses ravaging communities nationwide, one California lawmaker has an unconventional proposal: Create facilities for addicts to take drugs under the supervision of medical professionals. Alexei Koseff in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 4/11/17

Lawmakers’ side ‘arrangements’ didn’t start with California gas-tax bill -- Last week’s approval of major road-funding legislation wasn’t the first time that other “arrangements,” in the words of Gov. Jerry Brown, helped seal the deal. Side pacts between governors, legislative leaders and select lawmakers, sometimes unspoken, played key roles in annual budget negotiations before voters in 2010 eliminated the two-thirds requirement to pass budgets. Jim Miller in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 4/11/17

Appeals court vindicates San Diego's 2012 pension cutbacks -- A state appeals court on Tuesday vindicated San Diego’s five-year-old aggressive pension cutbacks, potentially saving the city millions it could have been forced to spend creating retroactive pensions for roughly 2,000 workers hired since 2012. David Garrick in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 4/11/17

Former Navy SEAL the latest Democrat to take on GOP Rep. Duncan Hunter -- Josh Butner, a member of the Jamul-Dulzura Union School District Board of Education, said he believes representing the 50th Congressional District would help fulfill a commitment to public service that started in his childhood, through his career in the Navy, and now with his position at the school district. Joshua Stewart in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 4/11/17

Lawmakers aim to move California's presidential primary right behind Iowa and New Hampshire -- California lawmakers and the state's chief elections officer announced a new effort on Tuesday to move the state's 2020 primary up by three months, even giving the governor power to accelerate the timeline in hopes of closely following elections in Iowa and New Hampshire. John Myers in the Los Angeles Times$ Carla Marinucci Politico -- 4/11/17

Fueled by Trump resistance, Sanders’ influence grows with Dems -- Sen. Bernie Sanders is defying predictions that he would recede into the progressive fringes after his high-profile presidential run. With President Trump in the White House and Republicans in total control of Congress, some thought Sanders was too liberal to be relevant. Too quirky. Too ... Vermont. Joe Garofoli in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 4/11/17

Video sparks probe of Sacramento officer’s takedown of man crossing street -- The Sacramento police officer involved in the incident, which was captured on video by a passerby and posted onto social media, has been placed on administrative leave in what the department said appears to be unacceptable conduct by the officer. Bill Lindelof and Nashelly Chavez in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 4/11/17

Eaze brings pot delivery to San Jose after city-wide ban lifted -- Add marijuana to the list of items San Jose residents can order and have delivered to their door without ever leaving their couch, starting this week. Marisa Kendall in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 4/11/17

Grief counselors to offer support to students, staff as San Bernardino school shooting probe continues -- Grief counselors will be on hand to support students, parents and staff from North Park Elementary, a day after the estranged husband of a special needs teacher shot her in her classroom, killing her and an 8-year-old student and wounding a third student. Paloma Esquivel, Maya Lau and Veronica Rocha in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/11/17

Trump wants immigrants to 'share our values.' They say assimilation is much more complex -- Growing up in La Puente in the 1980s, Alex Espinoza was a typical child of the Reagan era. He collected “Star Wars” action figures and played with Rubik’s Cube. Hailey Branson-Pott in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/11/17

River that supplies most of San Diego County' s water is most endangered in U.S., report says -- The Colorado River — which supplies about two-thirds of San Diego County’s drinkable water — on Tuesday was named the most endangered river in the U.S. by a leading conservation group. Joshua Emerson Smith in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 4/11/17

25 years after LA Riots, community march will mark the past and look to the future -- The Rev. K.W. Tulloss was a 9th grader at Locke High School in South Los Angeles in April 1992 when a jury, with no black members, acquitted four white police officers of beating Rodney King. Matthew Carey in the Los Angeles Daily News$ -- 4/11/17

Former Navy SEAL's jog near border fence ends in legal war with Border Patrol agent -- On an August afternoon in 2014, Alton Jones decided to leave behind his wife and 6-year-old son playing on the sand at Border Field State Park to go for a quick jog near the fence dividing the United States and Mexico. Kristina Davis in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/11/17

 

California Policy & Politics This Morning  

Inside Santa Clara Jails, Predatory Bail Schemes Flourished for Years -- On June 20, 2014, a bail bond agent named Dino Garcia received a phone call from an inmate in the Santa Clara County Main Jail. The inmate, known as Riley in court documents, wasn’t calling to bail himself out. Sukey Lewis KQED -- 4/11/17

Will Democrats Get Another Supermajority Vote That Could Raise Gas Prices? -- The power of the California Democratic Party’s supermajority was mightily tested last Thursday, with the nail-biting passage of a $52 billion transportation package that will add 12 cents to the price of gasoline. Julie Cart KQED -- 4/11/17

State lawmakers have spent a lot of time on professional sports stadiums — and they have little to show for it -- With the Raiders deciding to leave Oakland for a $1.9-billion football stadium in Las Vegas, the carousel of moves and threats to move by California’s professional sports teams appears to be slowing down. So too does all the action in the state Legislature designed to help build new stadiums. Liam Dillon in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/11/17

Campaign mailer with photoshopped images draws accusations in L.A. City Council race for Valley seat -- A political advocacy group called Latinas Lead California sent a “cease and desist” letter Monday to Council District 7 candidate Karo Torossian, demanding he stop using photoshopped images of rival candidate Monica Rodriguez in his mailers. The group is backing Rodriguez in the race for District 7, which includes Sylmar, Sunland and Pacoima. Dakota Smith in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/11/17

Political watchdog poised to levy major fine in San Diego -- The Fair Political Practices Commission is considering a $17,000 penalty against Republican Ralph Denney of San Diego for submitting five late campaign finance reports, and for only filing electronic version — not paper copies — of the documents required for the 2012 election. Joshua Stewart in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 4/11/17

Taxes, Fees, Rates, Tolls, Bonds    

California Tax Collections Proved Better Than Expected In March -- California tax collections proved better than expected in March, but the state Controller is counseling caution. You have to step back to look at the broader budget picture. Daniel Potter Capital Public Radio -- 4/11/17

Fox: Courts Jump on Revenue Raising Bandwagon -- Tax and revenue increases are piling up on Californians–passed by voters, approved by legislators, and now the courts are getting into the act. Joel Fox Fox & Hounds -- 4/11/17

Economy, Employers, Jobs, Unions, Pensions 

Aerojet to eliminate 1,100 local jobs, stop manufacturing in Rancho Cordova -- Rancho Cordova’s nearly 70-year run as a hub of the aerospace industry will soon end. On Monday, Aerojet Rocketdyne Inc. announced that it would relocate or eliminate about 1,100 of its 1,400 local jobs over the next 2 1/2 years and shut down manufacturing operations in the area. Mark Glover and Dale Kasler in the Sacramento Bee$ Samantha Masunaga in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/11/17

Facing labor shortage, Ventura County farmers warm to federal visa program -- For years, Leslie Leavens watched as the work crews in her Ventura County lemon orchard steadily shrank, leaving an untold number of fruit unharvested and rotting in the sun. Andrea Bernstein KPCC -- 4/11/17

Wells Fargo orders 2 former top executives to pay back $75 million after scathing report on accounts scandal -- In a long-anticipated report released Monday, Wells Fargo & Co. pinned the blame for its unauthorized-accounts scandal on weak corporate oversight, an overly trustful former CEO and the executive who led its community banking division. James Rufus Koren in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/11/17

Michigan lender settles allegations it overcharged California borrowers -- Mortgage lender and servicer United Shore Financial Services has agreed to pay at least $1.4 million to settle allegations it overcharged California borrowers for interest, a state regulator announced Monday. Andrew Khouri in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/11/17

Ex-Yosemite boss said to have called employees’ work stupid, bozo -- Former Yosemite Superintendent Don Neubacher was cleared Monday of bias and favoritism in his management of one of the country’s premier national parks, but federal officials said he may have fostered hostile working conditions at the California landmark. Kurtis Alexander in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 4/11/17

California Bill Would Bar State From Contracting Companies That Build Trump’s Wall -- Ricardo Lara, a Democrat from Los Angeles, said the border wall is wasteful and unnecessary. His bill is meant to discourage California companies from participating in the construction. Jean Guerrero KPBS -- 4/11/17

Firefighter DROP payments hit new record -- Pension payouts for retired San Diego city employees continue to reach record levels, as one firefighter was paid $885,000 out of the retirement fund in 2016. Lauryn Schroeder in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 4/11/17

California farmers in the crosshairs -- California’s farmers are getting nervous — understandably. The Trump administration wants to slash the budget of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, cutting one out of every five dollars of the department’s discretionary spending. Matthew Kramer Capitol Weekly -- 4/11/17

Southern California economy cooling, Fed indexes show -- The economies of Southern California’s metropolitan areas grew late last year at their slowest pace since 2010, a series of government indexes show. The Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis monitors the economic health of 50 major U.S. metropolitan areas with indexes that track 12 business yardsticks. The Economic Conditions Indexes date to 1990. Jon Lanser in the Orange County Register -- 4/11/17

Tesla passes General Motors to become most valued U.S. car manufacturer -- Just days after surpassing Ford to become the second-most valuable carmaker in America, Tesla on Monday rode a stock-price surge to grab first place. Patrick May in the Los Angeles Daily News$ -- 4/11/17

Experts surprised United Airlines opted to forcibly remove passenger -- But even though airlines can legally eject passengers who don’t volunteer to leave, customers and industry observers said they were astonished that the Chicago-based airline took such an extreme measure on Sunday night. Nanette Asimov in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 4/11/17

Laxarus: United dragging a passenger from overbooked flight was lesson in stupidity -- There’s nothing like the sight of a passenger being forcibly dragged from an overbooked flight to remind people that, when it comes to customer service, many companies are thoughtless, insensitive, inconsiderate, irresponsible and just plain stupid. David Lazarus in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/11/17

Education 

Teacher killed in classroom shooting was devoted to her students, mother says -- Karen Elaine Smith, the teacher killed in a shooting at a San Bernardino elementary school, was described as a caring teacher with a special affinity for working with students with learning disabilities. Maya Lau in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/11/17

San Bernardino shooting puts spotlight on school safety -- In the wake of Monday’s fatal shooting at a San Bernardino elementary school, schools and security experts across California revisited campus safety protocols intended to keep students safe from gun violence. Carolyn Jones and Theresa Harrington EdSource -- 4/11/17

Charter schools are expanding where they aren't needed — especially in Los Angeles, new report says -- Charter schools are proliferating where they aren’t needed while state funding continues to support even those charters that violate state law, according to a report released Monday by a research and advocacy group. Howard Blume in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/11/17

New York is offering free college. How close is California to doing the same? -- The two states on opposite coasts are known for pushing progressive policies into action so often that it seems like they are in competition to beat the other to be the “first” state to enact some major new policy first. That was true, for example, when California raised its minimum wage to $15 just hours before New York in 2016. But in terms of free college tuition, New York is far ahead of California. Abby Hamblin in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 4/11/17

Immigration / Border 

Trump border walls to be built in Otay Mesa -- President Donald Trump’s proposed wall with Mexico will kick off in the San Diego border community of Otay Mesa, U.S. Customs and Border Protection confirmed Monday. Phillip Molnar and Lyndsay Winkley in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 4/11/17

Imperial immigration facility gets more judges -- Two immigration judges are heading to the immigration detention facility in Imperial County. Edward Barcus and Paul Habich are part of a group of 14 new immigration judges announced Monday by the Executive Office for Immigration Review, a branch of the Department of Justice that employs immigration judges. Kate Morrissey in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 4/11/17

Environment 

Solar hits big, brief milestone in California -- For three hours on March 11, solar power met roughly half of all electricity demand across a big swath of California, according to a new estimate from the federal government. Even for a state used to setting renewable power records, it was a milestone. David R. Baker in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 4/11/17

California likely to shorten chinook salmon season -- For the second year in a row, California officials are likely to shorten the chinook salmon season, making the local specialty costly and hard to find throughout the summer and possibly beyond. Tara Duggan in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 4/11/17

Here’s What California’s Wildflower ‘Super Bloom’ Looks Like From Space -- It’s a fantastic year for wildflower lovers, who’ve been frolicking amid fields of poppies, lupine and golden brush. The orange, purple and yellow blooms are already populating the warmer climes of southern California and the Central Valley thanks to above average winter rainfall following five years of drought. Lindsey Hoshaw KQED -- 4/11/17

Stopping the Tar-Sands Invasion -- East Bay groups are attempting to prevent the region from playing a major role in a climate disaster. Will Parrish Oakland Magazine -- 4/11/17

Also . . . 

East Bay Times wins Pulitzer Prize for Ghost Ship fire coverage -- The East Bay Times has won the Pulitzer Prize for breaking news for its coverage of December’s Ghost Ship fire — the fifth time a Bay Area News Group paper has gained journalism’s highest award. The item is in the East Bay Times -- 4/11/17

Former Northern California tribal chair gets death penalty for shooting, stabbing spree -- The former head of a Northern California Indian tribe was sentenced to death Monday for a 2014 rampage inside the tribal hall that left four people dead. In sentencing Cherie Louise Rhoades, Judge Candace Beason called the killings at the Cedarville Rancheria Tribal Headquarters “intentional, premeditated and willful.” Jane Braxton Little in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 4/11/17

Traffic stop leads to seizure of 300 pounds of pot and $1M cash -- The drug bust began when a California Highway Patrol officer spotted a driver on Saturday operating a van while talking on a cell phone, officials say. Filipa Ioannou in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 4/11/17

Controversial Pepsi ad used San Francisco police logo without permission, city says -- In a “behind the scenes” video about the ad that was uploaded to Pepsi’s YouTube channel, the shot of Jenner handing the officer a Pepsi is shown from another angle. From there, you can see the emblem on his sleeve, which reads “San Francisco Police” and uses a facsimile of the department’s logo. Jessica Roy in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 4/11/17

POTUS 45  

The Latest Test for the White House? Pulling Off Its Easter Egg Roll -- With key staff positions unfilled and no on-site first lady, the White House is trying to organize the most elaborate and heavily scrutinized public event of the year. Julie Hirschfeld Davis in the New York Times$ -- 4/11/17

 

-- Monday Updates 

Anti-pot group faces campaign finance violations from its work opposing marijuana legalization in California -- A national anti-marijuana coalition is facing $6,000 in fines for campaign finance violations in its opposition to Proposition, 64, a November ballot measure that legalized recreational use of cannabis in California. Patrick McGreevy in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/10/17

California leaders to Sessions and Kelly: Legislature 'will use all available means' to defend state policies -- California state leaders are asking U.S. Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions and Homeland Security Secretary John F. Kelly to identify the state's statutes or ordinances that they perceive as designed to prohibit or obstruct the enforcement of federal immigration law. Jazmine Ulloa in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/10/17

Teacher, 8-year-old student dead after gunman opens fire at San Bernardino elementary school -- A teacher and an eight-year-old student were shot and killed Monday morning at an elementary school in San Bernardino after the teacher’s husband opened fire inside a special needs classroom before turning the gun on himself. Veronica Rocha , Richard Winton and Paloma Esquivel in the Los Angeles Times$ Christopher Weber Associated Press -- 4/10/17

Embattled tax board to take on leadership, legal issues -- Potential lawsuits and leadership changes are on the agenda for a special meeting that a California tax board called shortly after it faced tough questions from lawmakers over a recent audit of its spending. Adam Ashton in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 4/10/17

United Airlines suffers more bad publicity after passenger is dragged from overbooked plane -- Less than a month after sparking harsh criticism for denying boarding to two teenage girls over “inappropriate” clothing, United Airlines is again on the defensive over an incident involving a passenger dragged off an overbooked plane. Hugo Martin in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/10/17