Updating . .
More political groups pressure California Republicans on tax bill -- Red to Blue California, a PAC seeking to unseat seven vulnerable GOP lawmakers, began running digital ads Monday casting the tax bill as "billionaire tax cuts" and urging voters to on call their members of Congress to oppose the plan. Christine Mai-Duc in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/13/17
CalPERS wants broke cities to deliver bad news to out-of-luck pensioners -- The California Public Employees’ Retirement System would like someone else to deliver the bad news when local governments quit paying their bills and put a retiree’s pension in jeopardy. Adam Ashton in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 11/13/17
Emily's List makes its picks for three statewide races in California -- Emily’s List, an influential Democratic organization that promotes women running for office, on Monday endorsed three candidates running for statewide office in California. Phil Willon in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/13/17
‘I hate everything.’ Is Jerry Brown enjoying himself in Europe? -- Nine days into his European trip, Jerry Brown might have been enjoying himself. Christopher Cadelago in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 11/13/17
Two Orange County congressmen among most vulnerable in country, says prominent news site -- When the venerable Washington, D.C., political news site Roll Call released its list of the top 10 most vulnerable House members, it was yet another sign of the key role Orange County plays in Democratic efforts to take control of the lower chamber after next year’s elections. Martin Wisckol in the Orange County Register -- 11/13/17
Homeless UC Berkeley student lives in refurbished school bus -- Hash Khan lives in a school bus. Transforming it from an ordinary, yellow bus into a sky-blue, mobile house, Khan's home is charming, if not alluring, to those of us who have settled for cramped rooms at steep rental costs. Katrina Fadrilan in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/13/17
Enrollment of first-time foreign students dips in the U.S., but California is still No. 1 -- California remained the nation’s most popular destination for foreign students, with 157,000 coming to the state in 2016-17. They made up nearly 16% of more than 1 million international students in the United States that year, according to the survey of more than 2,000 institutions released Monday by the Institute of International Education. Teresa Watanabe in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/13/17
More homeless arrested following hepatitis A outbreak -- Arrests of homeless people in downtown San Diego have spiked in recent months as the city tries to fight a deadly hepatitis A outbreak, and there’s no sign things will change with the planned opening of large tents that will shelter hundreds. Gary Warth in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 11/13/17
San Diego leaders rejected calls for higher volume of restrooms downtown, but built one for $2 million -- The City of San Diego helped install an aesthetically pleasing structure on its signature waterfront in 2014, designed by an artist to invoke “Jonathan Livingston Seagull,” the popular 1970 novella about a seagull who wanted to be special. Its function? A restroom. Its cost? Two million dollars. Morgan Cook in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 11/13/17
550,000 homes in Southern California have the highest risk of fire damage, but they are not alone -- On a cataclysmic fall day in 2003, David Mead stood on the roof of his house using a garden hose to fight off an undulating river of embers that floated down his street. Doug Smith and Nina Agrawa in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/13/17
San Francisco may have deal on where recreational pot can be sold -- “We may have a pathway to an agreement,” said Supervisor Aaron Peskin, who has floated the idea of granting permission for the city’s existing 46 medical marijuana dispensaries and delivery services to also sell for adult recreational use. Matier & Ross in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/13/17
A call to action: thousands to brainstorm the Bay Area’s housing crisis -- The goal is to inspire a wave of advocacy and innovation around a seemingly intractable Bay Area problem. Organized by the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, the region-wide conversation begins Wednesday and has a name: “On the Table.” Richard Scheinin in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 11/13/17
Justices add anti-abortion counseling to free-speech lineup -- The Supreme Court will hear a free speech challenge to a California law that targets anti-abortion crisis pregnancy centers, adding to a term that is loaded with First Amendment disputes. Mark Sherman Associated Press -- 11/13/17
Colin Kaepernick is named Citizen of the Year by GQ magazine -- Colin Kaepernick has become a very polarizing figure in our society. The editors of GQ magazine are very clear about where they stand on the quarterback who hasn’t been able to find a job in the NFL a year after he started the movement of kneeling during the national anthem to protest social injustices. Chuck Schilken in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/13/17
CA120: Will the wave hit California’s shores? -- With Tuesday night’s Democratic wins in traditional bellwether gubernatorial elections in Virginia and New Jersey, a massive pickup-in the Virginia Legislature, wins in several mayoral races and other assorted gains, the pundits appear locked into the narrative that we are headed for a wave election. Paul Mitchell Capitol Weekly -- 11/13/17
Capitol Weekly podcast: Paul Mitchell -- Political Data whiz Paul Mitchell joins the Capitol Weekly podcast to talk about last week’s results and what they do — or don’t — portend for California in 2018. We also chat about the strengths and weaknesses of polling. John Howard Capitol Weekly listen here -- 11/13/17
• Video shows first hours of the Tubbs fire in Santa Rosa in nine minutes -- A heartbreaking nine-minute compilation video by Press Democrat photographer Kent Porter documents the first hours of the devastating Tubbs fire the early morning of Oct. 9. Watch here -- 11/13/17
Fox: Jerry Brown Meets Doc Brown: Has California Gone “Back to the Future” on Taxes and Crime? -- Despite changing demographics and a sharp veer to the ideological left, is it possible that California could take a political trip back to the future as two staples resurface that drove the state’s politics in the more conservative 1980s and 1990s? Look around and you’ll see indications that even in this liberal bastion on the left coast, the issues of taxes and crime are stirring again. Joel Fox Fox & Hounds -- 11/13/17
Security Firm Says Extremely Creepy Mask Cracks iPhone X’s Face ID -- Less than a week after the iPhone X release, a Vietnamese security firm says it done what others couldn’t — trick the phone’s facial recognition software. How’d they do it? One very creepy mask. Laurel Wamsley KQED -- 11/13/17
The Clampers: A historical drinking society or a drinking historical society? -- Everyone had forgotten about the Butt Lake Dinky by the time workers in 1996 dredged up the rusty H.K. Porter steam locomotive that had been submerged in a reservoir for eight decades. Hailey Branson-Potts in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/13/17
California Policy & Politics This Morning
California's Senate to hand over all sexual abuse complaints to outside investigators -- In the wake of new allegations against a California state senator and criticism of a "pervasive" culture of sexual harassment, the leader of California's Senate said Sunday that all abuse complaints will now be handled by independent investigators and more information will be released to the public. John Myers in the Los Angeles Times$ Katie Orr and Guy Marzorati KQED Taryn Luna in the Sacramento Bee$ Casey Tolan and Katy Murphy in the San Jose Mercury$ Kathleen Ronayne Associated Press -- 11/13/17
Hundreds join Hollywood #MeToo march against sexual abuse -- Hundreds of people marched in the heart of Hollywood on Sunday to support victims of sexual assault and harassment, inspired by a social media campaign that has portrayed such abuse as a pervasive feature of American life. Jane Ross, Laith Agha Reuters Brenda Gazzar in the Los Angeles Daily News$ -- 11/13/17
Will we be ‘wiped out?’ How climate change is affecting California -- California could one day be uninhabitable. Fire. Heat. Floods. Infestation. Disease. Suffering. Scientists have for years warned about the ravaging consequences of a warming planet. Christopher Cadelago in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 11/13/17
Schwarzenegger says climate activists should change their tactics -- Movie star and former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger wants environmental activists to give more attention to immediate health hazards like air and water pollution. Schwarzenegger spoke Sunday at a global climate meeting in Bonn, Germany, where diplomats from around the world are discussing implementing the Paris climate accord. Associated Press -- 11/13/17
Skelton: In high-tax California, a vote to scrap deductions could be the kiss of death for endangered House Republicans -- Some of America's most important political races will be run next year in seven California congressional districts. That seems strange. Normally, these contests would be obscure asterisks outside their local areas. The Republican incumbents would win, most of them comfortably. But these aren’t normal times. They’re Trump times. George Skelton in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/13/17
Walters: California’s school war flares up on three fronts -- Three recent and seemingly discrete events neatly frame California’s political and legal war over whether the state’s six million K-12 students are being adequately educated. Dan Walters Calmatters.org -- 11/13/17
Smolen: For Reps. Darrell Issa and Duncan Hunter, 'V' is for ... -- San Diego County’s two congressmen in trouble traveled very different paths this past week. Michael Smolens in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 11/13/17
Oakland voters still like mayor, yet feel city’s going in wrong direction -- Despite fallout from the deadly Ghost Ship fire and a growing homeless problem, Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf still has a 2-to-1 favorable rating among city voters, according to a new Oakland Chamber of Commerce poll. Matier & Ross in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/13/17
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo headed to California for fundraising. A sign of presidential ambitions? -- Fueling speculation about a possible presidential run, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo will travel to California for fundraisers Tuesday with lawyers, financiers and entertainment industry leaders, according to sources familiar with the events. Nina Agrawal in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/13/17
Why greenhouse gases are increasing — again -- After three years of barely budging, fossil fuel emissions are once again climbing, according to new Stanford-led analyses. Concentrations of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere from human activities were nearly flat between 2014 and 2106, despite growth in the global economy, reports the Global Carbon Project, an international team chaired by Stanford scientist Rob Jackson. But they are now inching up. Lisa M. Krieger in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 11/13/17
Police: ‘Every 16-year-old girl in Fresno’ has been targeted by sex trade recruiters -- Human trafficking is a widespread concern that advocates and law enforcement officials say is on the rise throughout Fresno. Three women tell their stories of horror, survival and healing. Rory Appleton in the Fresno Bee -- 11/13/17
Taxes, Fees, Rates, Tolls, Bonds
Utility Judge Proposed Cost Cut for Nuke Closure Could Mean Higher Rates for Customers -- A state judge Wednesday recommended that California’s largest utility be allowed to increase customer rates by nearly $200 million for costs tied to the planned closing of the state’s last operating nuclear plant. If approved, the plan for the Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant is expected to add a few pennies a month to bills for Pacific Gas & Electric Co. customers. Associated Press -- 11/13/17
More than 400 millionaires tell Congress: Don’t cut our taxes -- The letter calls on Congress not to pass any tax bill that “further exacerbates inequality” and adds to the debt. Instead of petitioning tax cuts for the wealthy, the letter tells Congress to raises taxes on rich people like them. Heather Long in the Washington Post$ -- 11/13/17
Republicans Search for Proof Their Tax Plans Will Pay for Themselves -- The disconnect is prompting House and Senate Republican leaders and the Trump administration to hunt down — and promote — more optimistic forecasts, even if they exclude large parts of the tax bills from their analyses or assume growth-boosting features that are not, in fact, in the bills. Jim Tanksersley in the New York Times$ -- 11/13/17
Economy, Employers, Jobs, Unions, Pensions
California women earn 88% of men’s pay, second-smallest gap nationwide -- Is the much-debated pay gap between women and men actually narrowing? A recent report shows California women earned 88 percent of what men were paid last year, the second-narrowest pay gap in the nation. Jonathan Lansner in the Orange County Register -- 11/13/17
As China cools on Hollywood, the movie business looks closer to home for money -- In January, Paramount Pictures looked like it had scored a coup. Bejing-based Huahua Media had agreed to invest $1 billion in the studio’s movies, another sign that China would be Hollywood’s main foreign benefactor for the foreseeable future. Ryan Faughnder and James Rufus Koren in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/13/17
Homeless
Santa Rosa Homeless Program Resumes After Wildfires -- The city had planned to begin moving people out of an encampment under Highway 101 in downtown Santa Rosa in mid-October, and officials say the encampment has grown from 50 people to more than 70 since the fires hit. Tiffany Camhi KQED -- 11/13/17
How a new Riverside office plans to solve homelessness in the city -- Riverside officials hope a restructuring at City Hall will help them toward an ambitious goal: ending homelessness. They don’t expect to achieve that immediately, but the eventual goal is reflected in the name of the new Office of Homeless Solutions. Ryan Hagen in the Riverside Press Enterprise$ -- 11/13/17
Wildfire
Emergency warning system that Sonoma County didn’t use in fires set for overhaul -- Federal authorities knew technology used to broadcast official emergency warnings from cell towers was outdated years before deadly fires ignited last month in Sonoma County and throughout Northern California, forcing tens of thousands of people to flee for their lives, many with no warning. Julie Johnson in the Santa Rosa Press Democrat -- 11/13/17
Mudslide fears haunt neighborhoods burned by huge La Tuna fire -- Los Angeles County and federal officials have been busy preparing Burbank residents who live near the Verdugo Mountains hillside for future heavy rainfall, especially in areas that were adjacent to the La Tuna fire, which scorched more than 7,000 acres over Labor Day weekend. Anthony Clark Carpio in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/13/17
Burned storm drains in Santa Rosa create slide, sinkhole risk -- Santa Rosa officials warned Sunday of a new threat posed by last month’s devastating wildfires — sinkholes and landslides. Extreme heat from the blazes that destroyed more than 5,000 homes and killed 23 people also melted plastic storm drains underground, creating the risk of collapse or slides with the upcoming rains. Paul Payne in the Santa Rosa Press Democrat -- 11/13/17
Education
California has millions of good-paying jobs for workers without a bachelor’s degree -- Workers who want to earn at least $35,000 a year increasingly need to have some training beyond high school but not necessarily a bachelor’s degree, according to a Georgetown University study on the nation’s workforce. Mikhail Zinshteyn EdSource -- 11/13/17
Cannabis
Colton group petitioning to put citizen-backed marijuana initiative on 2018 ballot -- A citizens committee in Colton has launched an initiative to regulate and tax local cannabis cultivation, manufacturing and distribution in order to generate millions of dollars in revenue for law enforcement, schools and public safety programs. Brian Whitehead in the San Bernardino Sun$ -- 11/13/17
POTUS 45
He has never tried a case, but Trump wants to make him judge for life -- Brett Talley, a 36-year-old lawyer whom President Trump nominated for a lifetime federal judgeship, has practiced law for only three years and has yet to try a case. Kristine Phillips in the Washington Post$ -- 11/13/17
Former U.S. intelligence officials: Trump being ‘played’ by Putin -- Two top former U.S. intelligence officials said Sunday that President Trump is being “played” by President Vladimir Putin on Russia’s interference in the 2016 election and accused him of being susceptible to foreign leaders who stroke his ego. John Wagner in the Washington Post$ -- 11/13/17
-- Sunday Updates
Majority of Californians disagree with President Trump's handling of NFL protests -- Californians remain deeply split over NFL players’ protests against racial inequality and police brutality during the national anthem at games, a new USC Dornsife/Los Angeles Times poll has found. Liam Dillon in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/12/17
As harassment allegations rock Sacramento, violence against women becomes a focus of state Senate campaign -- Baldwin Park Councilwoman Susan Rubio shook up the state Capitol last year when she went to court and obtained a domestic violence restraining order against her estranged husband, then-Democratic Assemblyman Roger Hernández. Patrick McGreevy in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/12/17
Sexual misconduct rampant in restaurant industry, workers say -- Northern California is regarded as a dining destination, home to some of the world’s top forward-thinking chefs. But as the deluge of stories about sexual harassment and abuse within the political, entertainment, tech and media industries continues, the Bay Area food world is grappling with its own history of misconduct. Justin Phillips in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/12/17
‘Homes for human beings’: Millennial-driven anti-NIMBY movement is winning with a simple message -- California’s unprecedented housing crisis has ushered a new power player onto the scene with a supply-and-demand message so succinct it could fit on a T-shirt: Build more homes. Katy Murphy in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 11/12/17
Virginia victories show Democrats learning to spend money more wisely -- While many Democrats have been heralding the election victories in Virginia last week as the start of the party’s revival, others are using them to consider how the national party and other political organizations can better spend their money. Joe Garofoli in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/12/17