• School Inoovation and Achievement
  • School Inoovation and Achievement

Updating . .   

'Political' arson suspected in Bay Area fires, federal authorities say -- Federal investigators sifting through the remains of a scorched residential development in Oakland announced over the weekend that three fires that took down similar projects in the Bay Area in the last year were arson. Joseph Serna in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/10/17

California Assembly deadlocks over bill to allow shorter sentences in some gun crimes -- With some Democrats joining a Republican bloc in opposition, the vote was 32-32, but Assemblywoman Shirley Weber (D-San Diego) received permission to take the measure up on another day if she can muster the votes. Patrick McGreevy in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/10/17

‘It looked like a volcano.’ Residents describe fleeing Wall fire near Oroville -- As firefighters continued Monday to corral the Wall fire burning southeast of Oroville, residents forced from their homes Saturday morning waited anxiously for word on the fate of their neighborhoods and recounted dramatic scenes of fleeing the flames. Molly Sullivan, Ed Fletcher and Sam Stanton in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 7/10/17

No link yet between big blazes at Oakland and Emeryville construction sites -- Investigators looking into a series of suspicious predawn fires at housing construction sites in Oakland and Emeryville, including a massive blaze last week north of downtown Oakland, have not yet found evidence linking any of the incidents to each other, officials said Monday. Kurtis Alexander in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 7/10/17

Rescuers robbed at gunpoint trying to aid distressed hiker -- Add armed robbery to the threats facing hikers this year on the Pacific Crest Trail. A section of the popular trail running from Mexico to Canada remained closed Monday as Kern County SWAT team members joined deputies to search for two armed men who robbed rescuers trying to aid a distressed hiker. Brian Melley Associated Press -- 7/10/17

Todd Spitzer will challenge Tony Rackauckas for Orange County district attorney post -- The announcement has been more than a decade in the making and sets up one of Orange County’s most anticipated political battles. Spitzer had mentioned running for the seat as early as 2006. Adam Elmahrek in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/10/17

East Bay water district stirs up a storm over planned rate hikes -- A plan to raise East Bay water rates by nearly 20 percent partly to make up for all the lost revenue from customers who were responsible during the drought was facing a deluge of outrage Monday. Steve Rubenstein in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 7/10/17

Stem cell agency hunts for new leader -- California’s $3 billion stem cell research program is looking for a new president to carry the state agency through what may be the last three years of its life. David Jensen Capitol Weekly -- 7/10/17

LA BioMed’s ‘breakthrough’ sickle-cell treatment wins FDA approval -- A new treatment for sickle-cell anemia, researched at LA BioMed and developed by the medical institute’s Torrance spinoff company, will hit the market in October. Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute celebrated Monday the launch of Endari, a glutamine-based oral powder that won Food and Drug Administration approval on Friday, after 25 years of research and tests. Sandy Mazza in the San Bernardino Sun$ -- 7/10/17

Wildfires across California destroy more than two dozen homes -- Two major wildfires burning on California’s Central Coast grew by thousands of acres overnight, while firefighters made progress on a third blaze that threatened thousands of structures near Lake Oroville on Monday. Veronica Rocha in the Los Angeles Times$ Patrick May in the San Jose Mercury$ Bill Lindelof and Sam Stanton in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 7/10/17

California Democrats plunge into 'civil war' -- Long-standing tensions between the Democratic Party’s moderate and liberal wings have ignited in California, where progressive activists are redirecting their anger over Donald Trump and congressional Republicans toward Democratic leaders at home. Stoked by a contested race for state Democratic Party chair and the failure of a single-payer health care bill, activists are staging protests at the capitol. David Siders Politico -- 7/10/17

California lawmakers want data on lobbyists’ race, sexual orientation -- The heads of six caucuses in the California Legislature are asking lobbying firms to provide them with demographic data – including race, ethnicity, gender and openly gay or lesbian orientation – on their employees. Taryn Luna in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 7/10/17

Nurses’ RoseAnn DeMoro zeroes in -- Amid an increasingly partisan and uncertain political climate, RoseAnn DeMoro, executive director of National Nurses United, isn’t afraid to call out politicians on both sides of the aisle. Matthew Kramer Capitol Weekly -- 7/10/17

Fox: Faulconer Out of Gov. Race; Would Issa Come In? -- Pure political “Chaos Theory” conjecture here, but could San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer’s decision not to pursue the governor’s job open the door for Congressman Darrell Issa to make a bid? Joel Fox Fox & Hounds -- 7/10/17

Trump administration officially delays ‘startup visa’ rule -- The Trump administration has officially delayed a rule that would allow some foreign entrepreneurs to stay in the U.S. to build companies. During this delay, the administration will propose a plan to rescind the rule altogether, officials said. Trisha Thadani in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 7/10/17

Will thousands of wild horses die? That depends on Ken Calvert, advocates say -- The fate of thousands of wild horses and burros could hinge on an Inland congressman and a few sentences in the upcoming federal budget. Jeff Horseman in the LA Daily News$ -- 7/10/17

Early returns suggest smoking drop in response to state tax -- Last fall, California voters approved the biggest increase in cigarette taxes since the state first began levying tobacco in the 1950s. Advocates for Proposition 56, which passed with a fairly overwhelming 64 percent of the vote, argued that a $2 per-pack tax hike would hurt pocketbooks enough to nudge millions of California smokers to quit, or at least to light up less frequently. Matt Levin Calmatters.org Jim Miller in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 7/10/17

Walters: California faces higher education crisis, but politicians dither -- Earlier this year, the Public Policy Institute of California issued a warning about a looming collision between California’s demographic and economic trends. Dan Walters Calmatters.org -- 7/10/17

Quinn: The Single Payer Health Care Fraud -- Thankfully, the Assembly Speaker has put the brakes on the version of single payer health care that passed the California Senate, but the controversy over single payer is far a from over. The fact is that “single payer health care” is a fraud; it does not exist in a single industrialized nation. Perhaps a few facts are in order. Tony Quinn Fox & Hounds -- 7/10/17

Getting the Lead Off -- A years-long project to remove highly toxic lead-based paint from 6,000 PG&E transmission towers gets started this summer in Alameda County. Scott Morris Oakland Magazine -- 7/10/17

Plastic to be phased out at major American aquariums -- Working to reduce the massive amount of plastic pollution in the world’s oceans, 19 of the nation’s top aquariums on Monday will announce that they are phasing out most plastic products — from plastic bags to straws to plastic beverage bottles. Paul Rogers in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 7/10/17

Tenants decry conditions, raised rent in Colony Starwood homes -- Tenants who rent homes from one of America’s largest corporate landlords are asking the company to stop increasing their rent and address what they say is endemic neglect of the properties. Aaron Glantz The Center for Investigative Reporting -- 7/10/17

Sacramento sees a startling surge in homeless people -- Homelessness rose by a startling 30 percent from 2,822 people the last time the transient population was counted in 2015, it said. It is the highest number of people living without permanent housing Sacramento has ever recorded. Anita Chabria, Cynthia Hubert, Ryan Lillis and Ellen Garrison in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 7/10/17

Where are they now? Roger Niello -- He was elected to his last term in the Assembly nearly a decade ago, but it’s hard to drive around Sacramento without seeing his name constantly. From Acura to Volvo, the Niello name can be found on license plate frames throughout the region. Alex Vassar Capitol Weekly -- 7/10/17

‘Opposition research’ and 6 other defenses of Donald Trump Jr. -- After claiming for months that no representative of President Trump's political campaign met with Russians who wanted to meddle in the 2016 election, the White House needs a new argument. Callum Borchers in the Washington Post -- 7/10/17

Amazon Alexa home assistant calls 911, saves pistol-whipped woman in domestic assault: police -- A man accused of hitting his domestic partner in the face with a handgun apparently called 911 on himself via Amazon’s Alexa virtual assistant when he demanded of the woman, “Did you call the sheriff?” Ethan Baron in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 7/10/17

 

California Policy & Politics This Morning  

Raging wildfires across California force nearly 8,000 to evacuate: 'It was terrifying' -- With a heat wave continuing to bake California and the rest fety Sunday as flames destroyed homes and threatened thousands of structures across the state. Javier Panzar and Matt Hamilton in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/10/17

State of emergency issued in Butte County as Wall fire forces thousands to evacuate -- Sitting in the shade outside an evacuation center on Sunday, Peggie Adamson recounted watching trees explode as the Wall fire crept toward her home at the Oaks Senior Community in Oroville. Ellen Garrison and Alexandra Yoon-Hemdricks in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 7/10/17

DWP still investigating cause of transformer explosion that left 140,000 Valley customers without power -- Residents of an apartment complex near the DWP plant on Parthenia Street in Northridge reported hearing an explosion at the plant just before 7 p.m. Saturday, and firefighters arrived to find a gigantic vat with as much as 60,000 gallons of mineral oil — used as a cooling agent for electrical equipment — on fire, said Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman Brian Humphrey. Ben Poston and Dakota Smith in the Los Angeles Times$ Matthew Carey in the Los Angeles Daily News$ -- 7/10/17

Trump administration may let California keep emissions standards -- The Trump administration may be quietly conceding defeat to California on car tailpipe emissions, the biggest battleground in the state’s showdown with President Trump over climate change. Carolyn Lochhead in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 7/10/17

Jerry Brown, a global climate leader, fights to reach deal at home -- As Gov. Jerry Brown pushes an international climate-change agenda, he faces a crucial test at home: ensuring that California’s signature program to tackle global warming survives into the next decade. Katy Murphy in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 7/10/17

Rent increases, evictions up in immigrant communities under Trump, housing lawyers say -- Even before Donald Trump’s presidency, landlords across California were capitalizing on the state’s tight housing market by jacking up rent, delaying costly health and safety repairs and evicting tenants to move in higher-income renters, housing attorneys say. But since Trump took office, they say, tenant harassment, intimidation and discrimination have gotten worse – especially in immigrant communities throughout California, from Los Angeles and the Central Valley to the Bay Area and Sacramento. Angela Hart in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 7/10/17

Skelton: AT&T and Verizon want free rein to put new wireless transmitters in your neighborhood. Here's why that's a bad idea -- There’s a classic brawl raging in the California Legislature between a bankrolling private interest and several toothless local governments over wireless expansion. It’s a fight being waged essentially under the radar. George Skelton in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/10/17

Judge orders California city to court over police probe -- A federal judge should consider holding Oakland, California, city and police officials in contempt of court for mishandling an internal affairs investigation of several officers alleged to have sexually exploited an underage prostitute, civil rights lawyers said. Paul Elias Associated Press -- 7/10/17

Hundreds pay tribute to slain UPS drivers at City Hall memorial -- The son of one of the UPS drivers who was killed in last month’s shooting at a San Francisco distribution center said he still feels like he’s in a dream sometimes and he’ll wake up and see his dad. Wayne Chan, 56, the father of 17-year-old Kyle Chan, was fixing a car for his son’s driving test, a repair he never finished. Wendy Lee in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 7/10/17

Economy, Employers, Jobs, Unions, Pensions

Sonoma County vineyard companies look to foreign visa workers to fill void in tight labor market -- In the small town of Redwood Valley north of Lake Mendocino, Martha Barra has tried almost everything to recruit vineyard workers to her Redwood Valley Vineyards. Bill Swindell in the Santa Rosa Press -- 7/10/17

Newspapers seek antitrust exemption to band together in fight against Google and Facebook -- For years, news organizations have had little recourse but to cede more distribution and advertising dollars to Facebook and Google, even agreeing to give away articles in the hopes the wider digital audience will pay off in the long run. David Pierson in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/10/17

Judge approves $142-million class-action settlement in Wells Fargo sham accounts scandal -- Wells Fargo & Co. has received preliminary approval for its proposed $142-million class-action settlement to compensate possibly millions of customers who had unauthorized accounts opened in their name. David Ng in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/10/17

Omni Louisville Hotel says it would have hosted conventions that pulled out of city -- The Omni Louisville Hotel would have hosted the two conventions that reportedly pulled out of negotiations as a result of California's state-funded travel ban, the company's general manager said Saturday. Darcy Costello The (Louisville,KY) Courier-Journal -- 7/10/17

Old cause of pension debt gets new attention -- CalPERS may soon report investment earnings for the fiscal year ending June 30 that are near or even above its long-term target of 7 percent, up from a return of 0.61 percent the previous year. But the nation’s largest public pension system will still be seriously underfunded. Ed Mendel Calpensions.com -- 7/10/17

Homeless  

Social Workers Go ‘Tent To Tent’ In Push To Help San Diego’s Homeless -- As San Diego leaders scramble in boardrooms and high-rise offices to combat one of the worst homeless problems in the nation, social workers are on the front lines of the crisis, already putting plans into action. Susan Murphy KPBS -- 7/10/17

Housing  

Black homeowners struggle as US housing market recovers -- Yul Dorn and his wife raised their son and daughter in a three-bedroom home crammed with family photos, one they bought in a historically African-American neighborhood in San Francisco more than two decades ago. Today, the couple is living in a motel after they were evicted last year, having lost a foreclosure battle. A second home they inherited is also in default. Janie Har Associated Press -- 7/10/17

Cannabis 

Hanford allows cannabis cultivation, but where can you buy recreational pot on Jan. 1? -- The Hanford City Council voted unanimously Wednesday to allow the commercial cultivation of marijuana, becoming the first major population hub in the central San Joaquin Valley to embrace cannabis after California voters approved its legalization in November. Rory Appleton in the Fresno Bee -- 7/10/17

Environment 

Advocates: Exide cleanup plan leaves many to 'fend for ourselves' -- Consumer advocates and community activists say the state Department of Toxic Substances Control's long-awaited plan to remove lead from more than 2,000 properties around the former Exide battery recycling plant doesn't do enough to protect residents from lead exposure. They're concerned that kids' health is being jeopardized because there is not enough state funding to clean up several thousand more contaminated properties near the Vernon facility. Rebecca Plevin KPCC -- 7/10/17

Also . . . 

Thousands paddle out in Santa Cruz for Jack O’Neill -- Thousands of people converged at Pleasure Point Sunday morning to witness what was expected to be the largest-ever paddle-out memorial, to honor Jack O’Neill, inventor of the modern-day wetsuit. Kara Guzman in the Santa Cruz Sentinel -- 7/10/17

POTUS 45  

Trump's plan to create a cybersecurity partnership with Putin draws ridicule from within his own party -- President Trump’s touting of a proposed partnership with Russia on cybersecurity drew withering reviews Sunday from lawmakers, including several from his own party, while the president’s aides were left struggling to answer questions about just how hard Trump pressed Russian President Vladimir Putin on Moscow’s meddling in last year’s U.S. presidential election. Laura King in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/10/17

Trump reverses course on working with Russia on cybersecurity -- About 12 hours after tweeting about possibly working with President Vladimir Putin and Russia on cybersecurity, President Donald Trump tweeted that he does not expect it to actually happen. Politico -- 7/10/17

Trump Jr. Met Russian for Dirt on Clinton -- Donald Trump Jr. said he met the lawyer in June 2016 at an acquaintance’s request. White House advisers said it was understood that she had compromising information about Hillary Clinton. Jo Becker, Matt Apuzzo and Adam Goldman in the New York Times$ Rosalind S. Helderman and Tom Hamburger in the Washington Post -- 7/10/17

Donald Trump Jr.’s Two Different Explanations for Russian Meeting -- In less than 24 hours, President Trump’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., has given two different explanations for a meeting he held during the 2016 campaign with a Kremlin-connected Russian lawyer who promised to provide damaging information about Hillary Clinton. Liam Stack in the New York Times$ -- 7/10/17

Trump Jr. met with Russian lawyer who promised damaging Clinton info -- Donald Trump Jr. confirmed Sunday that he met last year with a Russian lawyer who had ties to the Kremlin, saying she told him at the June 2016 meeting she had information that could damage Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. Nolan D. McCaskill Politico -- 7/10/17

Beltway 

Senate Republicans head back to work with no health-care deal -- Senate Republicans returned to Washington from a holiday recess with new and deepening disagreements about their health-care bill, with key Republicans differing Sunday not merely on how to amend the bill, but also on whether a bill could pass at all. David Weigel in the Washington Post -- 7/10/17

 

-- Sunday Updates 

California Republicans sweat Trump effect -- Republicans running for governor in the Democratic stronghold of California face a myriad of challenges. One of the them is how to handle the issue of Donald Trump. Travis Allen, an assemblyman who announced his bid last week to succeed Jerry Brown as the state’s next governor, argues that he’s already a standout — of the three leading Republicans in the race, he alone proudly admits voting for the president. Carla Marinucci Politico -- 7/9/17

ATF offers $110,000 reward as it investigates construction fires -- The federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives announced it will pay $110,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of a person or people responsible for starting three fires at construction sites in Oakland and Emeryville earlier this year and in 2016. The agency also released photos of a person they consider to be a person of interest. Rick Hurd in the East Bay Times -- 7/9/17

Wildfires around California continue to grow: 'We have very active burn conditions -- The Alamo fire, near Highway 166 in northern Santa Barbara County, has grown to more than 23,000 acres near the border of San Luis Obispo County, Cal Fire said Sunday. A fire near Lake Cachuma, about 35 miles south, scorched 7,800 acres, according to officials with the Los Padres National Forest. Javier Panzar, Andrea Castillo and Christopher Goffard in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/9/17

Oxnard residents are fighting slag heaps, power plants and oil fields that mar the town's beaches -- Ventura County’s largest city is a coastal town where miles of power plants, vast tracts of farmland and private oil and gas holdings limit access to the shore. At Ormond Beach, 750,000 cubic yards of contaminated slag from a former metal recycling plant occupy part of the wetlands. The federal Superfund site stands between the sand and families who live just a few blocks away. Dan Weikel in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/9/17

Worker housing funded by Napa vineyards can’t meet demand -- Wake-up time is 4:30 a.m. for Jesus Angel Sanchez Victoria and Cesar Alegria Ruiz. It’s early — but then again, everyone wakes up early at the River Ranch Farmworker Housing Center in St. Helena, where breakfast is served between 3 and 6 a.m. Esther Mobley in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 7/9/17

Silicon Valley now reeling in the wake of sexual harassment storm -- It started with a few women speaking up, reporting a suggestive text message, an invitation to a hotel room, an unwanted touch under a table. Marisa Kendall in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 7/9/17

How Nvidia’s ‘brains’ are dominating the self-driving race -- As Google, Uber and Tesla fight for control of the self-driving car market, another company better known for its gaming chips than its wheels is positioned to cash-in on the transportation revolution. Marisa Kendall in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 7/9/17

Despite scandals and doubts, Orange County district attorney wants another term, and a shot at vindication -- For nearly two decades, Tony Rackauckas has reigned over Orange County law enforcement as district attorney. Richard Winton, Adam Elmahrek and James Queally in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/9/17

L.A. requires air filters to protect residents near freeways. Are they doing the job? -- Despite growing warnings about the health problems tied to traffic pollution, Los Angeles officials continue to approve a surge in residential development along freeways. And the crux of their effort to protect people’s lungs is a requirement that developers install air filters. Tony Barboza in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/9/17

Whistle blowers could sway case focused on future of downtown San Diego -- The future shape of San Diego’s skyline and other downtown development is at stake in a lawsuit that could be bolstered next month by information from four whistleblowers. The lawsuit seeks to end what it calls years of shady, backroom deals that it blames on downtown San Diego being the only place in California where a private corporation controls land-use decisions. David Garrick in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 7/9/17

Smolens: Why Faulconer's decision not to run for governor may be bad news for Issa -- A lot of Republicans really wanted Kevin Faulconer to run for governor and not just because they thought he might be a good fit in the state Capitol’s “corner office.” Michael Smolens in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 7/9/17

Abcarian: When it comes to L.A. development projects, does anyone really care what the neighbors think? -- On Thursday evening, as the sun sank and the air cooled, neighbors on Butler Avenue in West Los Angeles were starting to come outside. Cameron Neff, who inherited a house last year from his grandparents, bumped into his neighbor Paul Fitzgerald, a retiree who moved onto the block in 1975. Robin Abcarian in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/9/17

Palomar Health sticks with medical group it created despite $82 million loss -- While it might seem intuitive for the North County hospital operator to pull the plug on a relationship that has run in the red for seven years now, experts said market forces that require doctors and hospitals to work together more closely are keeping partnerships like this one intact — even if they bleed cash. Paul Sisson in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 7/9/17

Resigned ethics director: Priebus ‘threat’ symbolic of White House relationship -- Reince Priebus’ Jan. 15 warning to Office of Government Ethics Director Walter Shaub that he was becoming too political was emblematic of his interactions with President Donald Trump’s White House, the outgoing OGE chief said Sunday. Nolan D. McCaskill Politico -- 7/9/17

Australian Journalist’s Trump Teardown Goes Viral Amid Interest in G-20 -- In an Australian news broadcast that seems to have resonated with Americans, a political journalist delivered a scathing evaluation of President Trump’s performance last week at the Group of 20 summit meeting in Hamburg, Germany. Maya Salam in the New York Times$ -- 7/9/17