California Policy and P  olitics Tuesday Morning  

L.A. County closer to new stay-home order as COVID cases hit new high -- The specter of another COVID-19 shutdown is looming over Los Angeles County, as another record-high number of daily coronavirus cases Monday pushed the region over its self-set threshold for issuing a new stay-at-home order. Luke Money, Rong-Gong Lin Ii, Alex Wigglesworth in the Los Angeles Times$ Brian Melley and Christopher Weber Associated Press -- 11/24/20

COVID deaths on the rise across California. Can Bay Area avoid a major uptick? -- Deaths from COVID-19 have started to increase statewide, a harbinger of what could be a deadly holiday season if cases spike as expected from Thanksgiving get-togethers, public health experts warned Monday. Erin Allday in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/24/20

Newsom: Up to 2.4 million California health care workers could get coronavirus vaccines as soon as December -- California could start administering coronavirus vaccines to as many as 2.4 million of the state’s highest-priority health care workers in early December, Gov. Gavin Newsom said Monday. Catherine Ho in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/24/20

Supervisor Barger, others want to keep outdoor dining open in LA County -- The Board of Supervisors will meet on Tuesday, in tandem with county health officials, to discuss the recent health order and where to go from here. Sunday’s stunning order inspired the challenge from Barger, who represents the county’s Fifth District, on Monday. Bradley Bermont in the Los Angeles Daily News$ -- 11/24/20

Pasadena will allow outdoor dining to continue despite L.A. County health order -- Pasadena has its own Department of Public Health that has the authority to issue health orders independent of Los Angeles County. Its orders have generally followed those of Los Angeles. As of Monday, Pasadena has reported 3,405 coronavirus cases and 132 deaths. Ruben Vives in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/24/20

After two COVID-19 exposures, Newsom and his family will quarantine until Dec. 5 -- Gov. Gavin Newsom and his family will spend Thanksgiving in quarantine after his children were exposed in two separate incidents to someone who tested positive for COVID-19, cases that the governor said Monday prompted an informal lockdown of his Fair Oaks estate over the weekend. Taryn Luna in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/24/20

Judge says no to letting San Diego County restaurants, gyms reopen indoors amid rise in coronavirus cases -- Local businesses had filed suit seeking a temporary restraining order that would have overturned county and state orders that restaurants and gyms be limited to outdoor-only operations. Lori Weisberg in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 11/24/20

As virus spreads among federal inmates in downtown L.A., court hearings and visitations are halted -- A coronavirus outbreak at a federal detention center in downtown Los Angeles has left more than 200 inmates infected and forced prison officials to cancel detainees’ court appearances as part of a lockdown of the facility. Richard Winton in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/24/20

Don’t Call It a Curfew: California's New, Less Restrictive Stay-at-Home Order Still Draws Backlash -- Gov. Gavin Newsom telling me to stay at home? Across California, some residents are bristling at the thought. Hundreds of people gathered Saturday night in Huntington Beach to protest the state's recent stay-at-home order, which prohibits nonessential trips between the hours of 10 p.m. and 5 a.m. A smaller protest in Fresno drew about 50 disgruntled residents. Joe Fitzgerald Rodriguez KQED -- 11/24/20

Open anyway 

Noted conservative activist speaks at packed California church, defying COVID-19 rules -- A large Pentecostal church in Northern California with a history of defying state and local coronavirus restrictions did so again this past weekend in a big way, holding a trio of packed indoor services Sunday with prominent conservative activist Charlie Kirk as a guest. Michael McGough in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 11/24/20

Policy & Politics 

Feinstein won’t seek to keep top Senate Judiciary Committee post -- California Sen. Dianne Feinstein will not seek the top Democratic position on the high-profile Judiciary Committee in the next Congress, a move that comes after some progressives said she had not been tough enough on GOP nominees. Dustin Gardiner in the San Francisco Chronicle$ Andrew Sheeler in the Sacramento Bee$ Felicia Sonmez and Seung Min Kim in the Washington Post$ -- 11/24/20

Pressure rising on Newsom about who will replace Kamala Harris in Senate -- As Gov. Gavin Newsom weighs who should replace Sen. Kamala Harris, private lobbying has burst forth into public campaigns by groups hoping to sway the governor’s decision. Alexei Koseff in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/23/ 20

Walters: Poll confirms Californians’ sour mood on higher taxes -- Proposition 15 would have been the largest tax increase in California history and its defeat this month was, by any definition, a huge setback for its sponsors, primarily public employee unions. Dan Walters CalMatters -- 11/24/20

Street  

After decades of quiet, Bay Area prosecutors seek to hold police accountable for on-the-job killings -- For decades, prosecutors in the Bay Area rarely charged police officers who killed civilians while on the job. Rachel Swan in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/24/20

Education 

Purple tier delays reopening timelines for some school districts -- Some districts, including Poway Unified and Santee Elementary, had already reopened to some degree for part-time, in-person instruction, but they are voluntarily delaying bringing back more of their students or starting full-time instruction due to the purple tier. Kristen Taketa in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 11/24/20

Fewer internships for Bay Area high school seniors to boost college apps -- With college application deadlines right around the corner, thousands of California students are still in virtual school, making it harder for them to network, complete extracurricular activities and get critical internships they hope will get them into the colleges of their choice. Laurence Du Sault CalMatters -- 11/24/20

With classrooms closed, scientists take over virtual STEM lessons in LA Unified -- Field trips and hands-on lessons are an integral part of K-12 science instruction — at least they should be in normal times. But they have virtually disappeared this school year as a result of students learning from home. Sydney Johnson EdSource -- 11/24/20

School   

Newport-Mesa teachers union urges district to return secondary schools to distance learning -- The teachers union in the Newport-Mesa Unified School District requested on Monday, Nov. 23, that its middle and high schools return to distance learning because of the recent rise in coronavirus cases in Orange County, the upcoming holidays and concerns with the hybrid model. Dan Albano in the Orange County Register -- 11/24/20

Covid 

Holiday Travel Creating Long Lines At San Diego COVID-19 Testing Centers -- Despite a travel advisory, people are still packing their bags and flying out of San Diego International Airport. “I am flying home to Denver for the holidays just to be with my family for Thanksgiving,” said Kayte Livran, an SDSU student. For her, booking a plane ticket also meant booking a COVID-19 test. Two, in fact. Tania Thorne KPBS -- 11/24/20

Housing  

Do California ag counties hold solutions to Monterey County farmworker housing crisis? -- In 2019, Monterey County sold more than five billion dollars worth of agricultural products, from cannabis to strawberries to leaf lettuce. It is, by far, the largest industry in the county. Kate Cimini CalMatters -- 11/24/20

Cannabis  

San Diego may create California’s first city-sanctioned cannabis trade association -- San Diego officials are proposing California’s first city-sanctioned trade association for cannabis dispensaries, to help the industry fight black market operators, coordinate lobbying and help low-income people enter the industry. David Garrick in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 11/24/20

Second marijuana dispensary sues Chula Vista over its license application process -- A second cannabis company is suing Chula Vista after the city rejected its busines license application. If successful, this lawsuit could prevent the city from awarding any licenses to storefront dispensaries and further stall a lengthy permitting process that began nearly two years ago. Gustavo Solis in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 11/24/20

California officials improperly allowed cannabis billboards along highways, court rules -- State officials improperly allowed hundreds of billboards advertising cannabis products along California highways even though the billboards were banned under the 2016 initiative that legalized the sale of pot for recreational use, a judge ruled last week. Patrick McGreevy in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/24/20

Also . . .   

Pliny the Younger nixes its hyped up Sonoma County brewpub release due to COVID -- For the first time in a decade, there will not be crowds of thousands lining up on Santa Rosa’s Fourth Street this February. They will not be shivering outside in the often cold, rainy weather as they await the chance to taste Pliny the Younger, the triple India Pale Ale from Russian River Brewing Co. that is one of the world's biggest cult favorites. Esther Mobley in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/24/20

Lime adding 1,000 S.F. scooters after city approval -- Earlier this year, Lime acquired scooter company Jump and its permit to operate 1,000 scooters. The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency approved the transfer of that permit to Lime last week. Chase DiFeliciantonio in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/24/20

14 charged in alleged ‘sham’ school scheme -- Fourteen Southern California residents have been charged with involvement in two “sham” schools allegedly funded with fraudulent workers compensation claims that cost insurance carriers more than $22 million, prosecutors said. Colleen Shalby in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/24/20

Muslims reel over a prayer app that sold user data: ‘A betrayal from within our own community’ -- Five times a day, tens of millions of phones buzz with notifications from an app called Muslim Pro, reminding users it’s time to pray. Johana Bhuiyan in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/24/20

Christmas cocktail pop-up Miracle is back in S.F. but outdoor seats are almost all booked already -- The pandemic can’t stop over-the-top joyous Christmas cocktail pop-up Miracle, which returns this week to San Francisco bar Pacific Cocktail Haven and Petaluma beer garden Brewsters. Janelle Bitker in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/24/20

POTUS 46  

Biden’s nominees have pushed policies that Trump used to fuel his rise -- Biden’s top picks, announced Monday, in the past helped push for trade deals, aimed to sign international treaties and advocated for foreign wars, positions that after Trump’s victory in 2016 triggered widespread soul-searching among Democrats over how they had misread the sentiments of voters on whose support they had long counted. Matt Viser, John Hudson, Karen DeYoung and Carol Morello in the Washington Post$ -- 11/24/20

POTUS 45  

Trump relents as administration begins Biden transition -- The General Services Administration on Monday finally acknowledged Biden as the apparent winner of the 2020 presidential election, allowing his team to get working on the logistics of the transition. Matthew Choi, Gabby Orr, Meridith McGraw and Nancy Cook Politico -- 11/24/20

Beltway   

The secretive consulting firm that’s become Biden’s Cabinet in waiting -- The website for WestExec Advisors includes a map depicting West Executive Avenue, the secure road on the White House grounds between the West Wing and the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, as a way to show what the consulting firm can do for its clients. Bryan Bender and Theodoric Meyer Politico -- 11/24/20