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Newsom orders 2035 phaseout of gas-powered vehicles, calls for fracking ban -- Emphasizing that California must stay at the forefront of the fight against climate change, Gov. Gavin Newsom on Wednesday issued an executive order to restrict new car sales in the state to only zero-emission vehicles by 2035 and threw his support behind a ban on the controversial use of hydraulic fracturing by oil companies. Phil Willon, Tony Barboza in the Los Angeles Times$ Lara Korte in the Sacramento Bee$ Paul Rogers in the San Jose Mercury$ Alexei Koseff and Dustin Gardiner in the San Francisco Chronicle$ Rachel Becker CalMatters Colby Bermel, Carla Marinucci and Alex Guillén Politico -- 9/23/20
Thought no one was answering calls at California’s EDD? You were nearly right, report says -- If you thought it was impossible to reach a human being about your California unemployment insurance claim in the last six months, you were nearly right, according to a recent report released by Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration. Wes Venteicher in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 9/23/20
California house cleaners, nannies, caregivers could get new workplace protections -- House cleaners, nannies, caregivers and others who work inside private homes are not covered by state requirements to provide safe working environments. They could get new workplace protections from the state with SB1257, the Health and Safety for All Workers Act, which the Legislature passed last month. Carolyn Said in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 9/23/20
Wildfire
Crews ‘turn a corner’ on Bobcat fire as containment doubles overnight -- After weeks of struggling to keep up with the fire’s erratic, multidirectional growth, crews had achieved 38% containment of the blaze as of Wednesday morning — more than doubling the fire’s containment from the previous day. Hayley Smith in the Los Angeles Times$ Alma Fausto, Ruby Gonzales in the Los Angeles Daily News$-- 9/23/20
Bobcat fire investigation includes Southern California Edison equipment -- Federal officials are focusing on utility equipment around Cogswell Dam as part of their investigation into what sparked the massive Bobcat fire, according to paperwork filed with state utility regulators. Joseph Serna in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 9/23/20
Fall in Southern California begins the race between rains and Santa Ana winds -- From now until the winter solstice in December, days will gradually get shorter and nights will get longer in the Northern Hemisphere. That’s good news and bad news for fire-scorched California. Paul Duginski in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 9/23/20
Elections
Nearly half of voters polled back Prop. 15, a property tax overhaul aimed at California businesses -- Nearly half of California voters in a new statewide poll support Proposition 15, a November ballot measure that would loosen tax limits on commercial and industrial properties and spend the resulting revenues on local governments and schools. John Myers in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 9/23/20
Californians not sold on treating Uber, Lyft drivers as independent contractors, new poll shows -- Despite amassing the largest campaign war chest in California history, Uber, Lyft and other app-based companies are in danger of coming up short with voters on a ballot measure that would allow them to again classify their workers as independent contractors, a new statewide poll shows. Taryn Luna in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 9/23/20
Breathe
‘These are hidden deaths.’ Over 1,000 likely died early due to California’s wildfire smoke -- Dense wildfire smoke that blanketed the state for weeks in August and early September — contributing to dangerous air quality from the San Francisco Bay area to Sacramento to Fresno and beyond — may have contributed to the deaths of hundreds of Californians and sent thousands more to the emergency room, Stanford University researchers say. Darrell Smith in the Sacramento Bee$ Paul Rogers in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 9/23/20
Los Angeles hid a methane leak for a year. Activists want the power plant shut down -- Andres Ramirez doesn’t know who scrawled the words “SHUT DOWN THE PLANT” across a cinder-block wall outside Valley Generating Station, where red and white smokestacks tower over the northeast corner of the San Fernando Valley. Sammy Roth in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 9/23/20
The luxury air business is booming — as many Californians struggle to breathe -- For buyers at the upper reaches of the real estate market, peace of mind can be purchased in the form of deluxe air filtration systems that keep the world at bay. Sam Dean in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 9/23/20
Education
Cal State gets its first chancellor of color: Fresno State president Joseph I. Castro -- Joseph I. Castro, the grandson of Mexican immigrants and a first-generation college student who rose during a career in higher education to lead Fresno State, has been named chancellor of the California State University system, trustees announced Wednesday. Nina Agrawal in the Los Angeles Times$ Ashleigh Panoo in the Sacramento Bee$ Nanette Asimov and Vanessa Arredondo in the San Francisco Chronicle$ Mikhail Zinshteyn and Felicia Mello CalMatters Ashley A. Smith EdSource-- 9/23/20
Elections
Falsehoods about sex-offender law hit the campaign trail -- For over a year a bill — signed into California law this month — that gives judges discretion over whether or not to require someone convicted of statutory rape to register as a sex offender, has been at the center of a storm of viral misinformation. Now it’s become an issue in a handful of congressional, legislative and municipal races across the state. Ben Christopher CalMatters -- 9/23/20
Virus
Bay Area must avoid ‘mistake’ of reopening too fast, health official warns -- A top Bay Area health official warned Tuesday against repeating the “mistake” of reopening too quickly, even as schools may welcome students back for in-person instruction and California’s positivity rate falls to its lowest point so far in the pandemic. Fiona Kelliher in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 9/23/20
Bay Area’s coronavirus numbers stabilize as U.S. death toll surpasses 200,000 -- The U.S. marked a bleak milestone Tuesday, surpassing 200,000 deaths attributed to the coronavirus. But as case counts rise in several states and fears mount over a coming surge, infection and mortality rates have leveled off in California and the Bay Area. Aidin Vaziri in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 9/23/20
Hit hard by COVID-19, a Sacramento ZIP code asks for help — and braces for a tough autumn -- Even as local health officials express cautious optimism about gradual declines in COVID-19 case numbers and hospitalizations, residents and advocates in some of Sacramento’s hardest hit neighborhoods are bracing for a potentially precarious fall and winter. Alexandra Yoon-Hendricks and Michael Finch II in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 9/23/20
Reopen
Sacramento County COVID-19 numbers are improving. Here’s when school campuses could reopen -- State health officials announced on Tuesday that Sacramento County has improved its COVID-19 infection status enough to possibly reopen school campuses for all grades by mid-October. Sawsan Morrar and Tony Bizjak in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 9/23/20
Schools in Santa Clara County can reopen for in-person classes today. So why aren’t they? -- But the vast majority of school districts across the county are not yet biting at the apple — opting instead to stay the course through the rest of the semester. “Our parents and students need some semblance of structure and consistency during these times,” Cupertino Union School District Superintendent Stacy McAfee-Yao said. Maggie Angst in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 9/23/20
Virus Workplace
Health officer who resigned in protest of Placer County COVID decision joins Yolo office -- Dr. Aimee Sisson, who resigned two weeks ago from her role as Placer County’s public health officer in protest of local leaders’ decision to no longer recognize COVID-19 as an emergency, has been named to the same position in nearby Yolo County. Michael McGough in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 9/23/20
Real Estate
There’s a pandemic, but Southern California home prices are at record levels -- The price leap may seem unlikely amid double-digit unemployment, but analysts say the trend reflects the uneven effect of the coronavirus and its economic fallout. Andrew Khouri in the Los Angeles Times$ Jeff Collins, Jonathan Lansner in the Los Angeles Daily News$ -- 9/23/20
Also . . .
Fox: California’s “Progressive Fiscal Values” -- In endorsing Proposition 15 that would raise property taxes on commercial property, Governor Gavin Newsom used an unusual turn of phrase when he said the measure was “consistent with California’s progressive fiscal values.” Joel Fox Fox & Hounds -- 9/23/20
Berkeley passes ordinance requiring healthy snacks at grocery checkout aisles -- Shoppers in Berkeley will soon see fewer junk food items on their way out of grocery stores now that the city council has passed an ordinance requiring grocers to offer healthy food and beverages in checkout aisles. Shwanika Narayan in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 9/23/20
California Policy & Politics Wednesday Morning
A Labor Day-fueled coronavirus surge? ‘Troubling trend,’ but no clear evidence -- When Los Angeles County officials explain the massive coronavirus outbreak that hit this summer, they often point to Memorial Day and the Fourth of July, two long weekends when gatherings with friends and family fueled the spread of the virus. Soumya Karlamangla in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 9/23/20
Los Angeles County closer to red tier as case rates decline -- Los Angeles County moved a step closer Tuesday, Sept. 22, to advancing to the next coronavirus tracking tier in the state’s reopening blueprint, which would mean more businesses could open indoors again and capacity could expand for some of those open already. David Rosenfeld in the Los Angeles Daily News$ -- 9/23/20
Coronavirus: California’s positivity rate hits all-time low as testing ramps up again -- With labs conducting an average of nearly 125,000 tests per day over the past week — including more over the past three days than any other three-day stretch — just 2.8% of those returned positive results, the lowest statewide positivity rate of the pandemic and the first time it has fallen below 3%. Evan Webeck in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 9/23/20
Bay Area’s coronavirus numbers stabilize as U.S. death toll surpasses 200,000 -- The U.S. marked a bleak milestone Tuesday, surpassing 200,000 deaths attributed to the coronavirus. But as case counts rise in several states and fears mount over a coming surge, infection and mortality rates have leveled off in California and the Bay Area. Aidin Vaziri in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 9/23/20
Babies born to mothers with COVID-19 ‘generally do well,’ UCSF study says -- The study found “few adverse outcomes” and no reports of pneumonia or lower respiratory tract infection through the first eight weeks of age for babies born to women with COVID-19, UCSF officials said in a statement on Tuesday. Lauren Hernández in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 9/23/20
Reopen
Disneyland presses for reopening, proposes COVID-19 safety measures -- Walt Disney Co. officials added their voices to a chorus of politicians, business owners and tourism industry leaders Tuesday to press California‘s governor to let Disneyland and Disney California Adventure reopen, vowing to adopt specific health precautions to help protect guests from the COVID-19 pandemic. Hugo Martín in the Los Angeles Times$ Brady MacDonald in the Orange County Register -- 9/23/20
Nail salons can reopen indoors, COVID tests now available to all -- A bit of good news for Californians who have been putting off their mani-pedis because of the pandemic: the state will relax restrictions on nail salons and allow them to resume indoor operations with some modifications, the state’s top health official said today. Ana B. Ibarra CalMatters -- 9/23/20
Orange County could be set for wider reopening amid improved COVID-19 numbers -- The county is in Tier 2 — the second-strictest in California’s four-tier system that assesses COVID-19 transmission. However, officials said this week they think Orange County could soon enter the less-restrictive Tier 3, based on how numbers are trending. Luke Money in the Los Angeles Times$ Erika I. Ritchie in the Orange County Register -- 9/23/20
San Diego County escapes being elevated to most restrictive tier -- San Diego County business owners surely breathed a collective sigh of relief Tuesday as the state’s latest COVID-19 reopening report showed the region in the red tier for another week. Paul Sisson, Gary Warth in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 9/23/20
San Mateo, Alameda counties move up in state’s COVID-19 reopening plan -- As coronavirus case rates continued falling in most of California, San Mateo and Alameda counties moved to the next level in the state’s phased coronavirus recovery plan Tuesday, clearing the way for restaurants, gyms and other businesses to bring their patrons back inside. Marisa Kendall, Fiona Kelliher in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 9/23/20
Coronavirus reopening in the Bay Area: Here’s what each county does and doesn't allow -- The Bay Area continues to emerge from pandemic health restrictions as coronavirus case rates and test rates improve. Most counties have advanced to the second-strictest red tier in the state’s color-coded reopening system, with only Contra Costa and Sonoma still in the most-restrictive purple tier. Kellie Hwang and Mike Massa in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 9/23/20
Riverside County won’t defy state coronavirus reopening rules – at least not yet -- A plan that would break California’s fourth-most populated county away from the state’s coronavirus reopening framework — potentially setting up a showdown with Sacramento — will come back for more consideration and a possible vote Tuesday, Oct. 6, after an emotional daylong hearing Tuesday, Sept. 22. Jeff Horseman in the Riverside Press Enterprise$ -- 9/23/20
State leader says Ventura County's COVID restrictions will not ease despite requests -- California's Health & Human Services leader said Tuesday Ventura County's COVID-19 metrics will not be adjusted to allow the region to meet benchmarks for a tier with less restrictions. Tom Kisken in the Ventura County Star -- 9/23/20
Virus Economics
Extra $300 unemployment money is gone. How will people survive without it? -- It means hardships for millions all over California, unemployed people who were receiving an additional $300 a week from the federal government for five weeks. But that benefit has ended, and back in Washington, Congress has gone home for a long weekend, stuck in a partisan deadlock over whether to revive it. Jeong Park and David Lightman in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 9/23/20
Virus on Campus
UC Irvine to test students living on campus weekly for COVID-19 -- A majority of classes at UC Irvine will be taught remotely when the fall term starts Oct. 1, but that doesn’t mean the campus is empty of students. Alicia Robinson in the Orange County Register -- 9/23/20
Policy & Politics
Lawrence Berkeley lab reverses decision to scrap diversity initiative -- One of the two federally funded Bay Area labs that scrapped their diversity program because of a new Trump administration directive said it will reinstate the initiative, according to a memo reviewed by The Chronicle. Michael Williams in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 9/23/20
Santa Clara County declares Juneteenth a holiday -- Following months of renewed scrutiny of systemic racism in the Bay Area and nationwide, the Board of Supervisors unanimously voted Tuesday to deem June 19th as “Juneteenth Day” to commemorate the end of slavery in the United States and honor African American history, allowing workers to take the day off. Fiona Kelliher in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 9/23/20
S.F. Supervisors pass budget that closes $1.5 billion deficit — for now -- The nearly $14 billion budget is very delicately balanced on some risky assumptions: that voters will pass a massive tax overhaul in November, the federal government will continue reimbursing some COVID-19 expenses and the local economy will start to recover soon. Trisha Thadani in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 9/23/20
Walters: Gig worker bill: A lousy way to make law -- California’s early 19th century reformers sought to thwart an obviously corrupt political system that benefited entrenched interests and ignored the larger public. Their reforms included ways for voters to bypass the system through direct ballot box action — the initiative, the recall and the referendum. Dan Walters CalMatters -- 9/23/20
Republicans’ flip-flop on Supreme Court — will voters buy it? -- Robert Van Houweling can’t remember seeing political flip-flopping like this before. And the UC Berkeley political science professor has studied doublespeak for a decade. Joe Garofoli in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 9/23/20
S.F. mandates daily hotel cleaning, even after coronavirus pandemic -- A 60-day emergency ordinance passed in July established the measures before hotels reopened and was strongly supported by Unite Here Local 2, the union that represents hotel workers. Hotel owners sued to invalidate the requirements in July. Roland Li in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 9/23/20
Elections
California bail industry makes itself invisible opposing Prop. 25, ending cash bail -- Proposition 25, one of the most hotly contested issues on the Nov. 3 ballot, would abolish cash bail statewide, allow tens of thousands of low-level defendants to remain free while awaiting trial, and require judges, with computer assistance, to decide whether others charged with crimes can be released safely. Bob Egelko in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 9/23/20
More voters picked Jacobs than Gómez in 53rd Congressional District, poll shows -- If “undecided” were a candidate, it would be tied for first place with Sara Jacobs, who holds a double-digit lead over opponent and City Council President Georgette Gómez, a new poll of the 53rd Congressional District shows. Andrew Dyer in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 9/23/20
Street
Attorneys say independent autopsy shows Dijon Kizzee was shot 15 times -- Attorneys representing the family of Dijon Kizzee said the 29-year-old man sustained 15 gunshot wounds and disputed the Sheriff’s Department’s assertion that he pointed a gun at deputies before he was shot in South L.A. last month. Alene Tchekmedyian in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 9/23/20
Police Commission to review LAPD’s facial recognition use after Times report -- The Los Angeles Police Commission on Tuesday said it would review the city Police Department’s use of facial recognition software and how it compared with programs in other major cities. Kevin Rector in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 9/23/20
Phillips: My dad was a cop. He says more Black people need to join the police -- Back in my teens, when a pair of white police officers ordered my brother and me, at gunpoint, to get on the ground because we “matched the description” of some carjacking suspects, I had a quick thought: I wish my dad was here. Justin Phillips in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 9/23/20
Homeless
Program to house homeless people in hotels is ending after falling short of goal -- One hotel emptied its rooms in late August. Another did so last week. A third is winding down this week. It’s the beginning of the end for L.A. County’s Project Roomkey, the $100 million-plus program to repurpose hotels and motels emptied by the coronavirus as safe havens for homeless people. Doug Smith, Benjamin Oreskes in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 9/23/20
Education
State audit: UC Berkeley admitted at least 55 underqualified students based on connections and donations -- A year after a college scandal rattled the nation’s confidence in the fairness of admissions, California’s independent auditor has found that UC Berkeley — which largely escaped damage in the federal probe — improperly admitted dozens of underqualified, often wealthy students based on insider connections over six years. Nanette Asimov in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 9/23/20
California sees steep drop in reports of child abuse since school campuses closed -- No group in California reports more suspected cases of child abuse than teachers. And with teachers no longer seeing students in-person every day in most parts of the state, advocates say thousands of cases of child abuse may be going unreported. Carolyn Jones EdSource -- 9/23/20
School
San Diego Unified Grappling With Significant Drop In Kindergarten Enrollment -- San Diego Unified reported 2,474 fewer students than it expected this year. About two-thirds of that deficit came from kindergarten. While the pandemic is the obvious main culprit, district leaders are trying to get a handle on the specific reasons. Joe Hong KPBS -- 9/23/20
New tracker lets you see which S.F. schools are ready to reopen for in-person learning -- The first San Francisco students will head back to class for in-person learning Wednesday after health officials granted permission for two private schools to reopen with pandemic protocols in place. Jill Tucker in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 9/23/20
Closing California's Digital Divide: One Rural Teacher’s Fight to Get Her Students Connected -- Third grade teacher Alena Anberg cruised down Highway 99 in her Ford F-150, past acres of almond orchards that split the terrain just outside her hometown of Arbuckle in Colusa County. Julia McEvoy KQED -- 9/23/20
Wildfire
Bobcat fire surpasses 110,000 acres, as firefighters continue to protect neighborhoods -- The Bobcat fire grew to 112,053 acres Tuesday morning, Sept. 22, with containment creeping back up to 17%, authorities said. On Monday, firefighters worked to keep the blaze away from neighborhoods on the fire’s northern side. New evacuation orders were issued near Colby Ranch and Hidden Springs. Alma Fausto in the Los Angeles Daily News$ -- 9/23/20
California’s Coastal Range Fires Are Getting Significantly Worse Every Decade, Experts Say -- Large-scale wildfires in the Northern part of the coastal range like the LNU Lightning Complex have been increasing at about 10% per decade since 1984 due to climate trends that make it easy for wildfires to spark. That’s according to a new UC Davis study analyzing the coastal range through satellite imagery from 1984 to 2017. Ezra David Romero Capital Public Radio -- 9/23/20
Immigration / Border
Activists supporting the Kumeyaay used ceremonial prayer to halt construction near Campo -- Federal agents forced Kumeyaay Nation activists to leave their protest occupation camp near border wall construction on Monday, arresting two people and threatening to arrest dozens of others after issuing an emergency closure order. Kristina Davis in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 9/23/20
Also . . .
2 Marines at Camp Pendleton charged in federal drug bust tied to OD of fellow Marine -- Two U.S. Marines at Camp Pendleton were arrested Tuesday by federal agents after being indicted in a drug-dealing conspiracy that included the sale of oxycodone pills laced with fentanyl that led to the fatal overdose of another Marine. Richard Winton in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 9/23/20
Alexa's the Clerk at LA's New Amazon Supermarket Where Shopping is Automated -- The Woodland Hills location at 6245 Topanga Canyon Blvd is likely a window into the future of Amazon grocery shopping. It allows customers to shop in-store, pick up Amazon Fresh online orders within the hour and even includes a return drop off center. It comes in the middle of a pandemic in which the online retailer has seen their grocery sales triple year-over-year. Leslie Ignacio dot.LA -- 9/23/20
POTUS 45
The Russian Trolls Have a Simpler Job Today. Quote Trump -- As part of their attempt to interfere with the 2020 election, Russians are grabbing screenshots of President Trump’s tweets, or quoting his own misleading statements, analysts and officials say. David E. Sanger and Zolan Kanno-Youngs in the New York Times$ -- 9/23/20
Beltway
Cindy McCain endorses Biden -- Cindy McCain endorsed Democratic nominee Joe Biden for president on Tuesday. “My husband John lived by a code: country first,” McCain tweeted. “We are Republicans, yes, but Americans foremost. There’s only one candidate in this race who stands up for our values as a nation, and that is @JoeBiden.” Matthew Choi Politico -- 9/23/20
Tom Steyer meets with Biden officials, interested in a role in administration -- Tom Steyer, the billionaire environmentalist and former Democratic presidential candidate, is interested in serving in Joe Biden's administration and has discussed the possibility with Biden's advisers. David Siders Politico -- 9/23/20
-- Tuesday Updates
Bobcat fire destroys at least 29 structures, continues to threaten Mt. Wilson -- At least 29 structures have been destroyed by the Bobcat fire burning in northeastern Los Angeles County, and the number could rise as high as 85, officials said. The U.S. Forest Service, one of the agencies managing the blaze, said Tuesday the voracious fire has expanded to more than 109,000 acres and is 17% contained. Hayley Smith in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 9/22/20
5 of the 6 largest California wildfires in history started in the past 6 weeks -- The staggering statistics keep piling up for California’s wildfire season: August and September account for five of the six biggest fires in nearly 90 years of recorded history for the state. Michael McGough in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 9/22/20
Procession to honor firefighter killed in El Dorado fire -- A formal vehicle procession is scheduled Tuesday morning to transport the body of a fallen firefighter who died battling the El Dorado fire to an Orange County mortuary. Alex Wigglesworth, Matthew Ormseth, Luke Money in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 9/22/20
People in this California town didn’t have much. Then fire took it away -- Berry Creek has been many things in its long history — a stagecoach stop, a lumber town, a vacation spot, a gold mining camp. It is home to retirees from crowded, expensive cities, marijuana growers and loners — lots of loners. Maria L. La Ganga in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 9/22/20
Deputies begin escorts into North Complex evacuation zones. Fire now at 300,000 acres -- Fire crews continue to make progress containing the North Complex burning in Northern California, and a mandatory evacuation order has been reduced to a warning for one Butte County community heavily impacted by the wildfire earlier this month. Michael McGough in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 9/22/20
Street
Vanessa Bryant sues L.A. County sheriff, alleging ‘cover-up’ of Kobe Bryant crash photos -- Vanessa Bryant has sued the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department over deputies sharing “unauthorized” photos of the scene of the helicopter crash that killed her husband, Kobe Bryant, their daughter and seven others. Richard Winton in the Los Angeles Times$ Stefanie Dazio Associated Press -- 9/22/20
A family called 911 for son’s mental health crisis. They say deputies beat and Tased him to death -- Blanca Briceno said she wakes up many nights with the images in her head: Several Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies pinning down and striking her son Eric in his bedroom, his face full of blood. Alene Tchekmedyian in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 9/22/20
Troubling trend in S.F.: 32% jump in gunfire recorded by ShotSpotter sensors -- After years of falling gun violence and despite pandemic shelter-in-place orders, shootings appear to be on the rise in some San Francisco neighborhoods in 2020, a trend that became more stark as the weather began to warm. Megan Cassidy in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 9/22/20
Virus
California surpasses 15,000 coronavirus deaths as positivity rate drops below 3% -- The number of fatalities from the coronavirus in California surpassed 15,000 people on Sunday despite the state's gains in controlling infection spread. Amy Graff in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 9/22/20
Why SF has the lowest COVID-19 death rate of any other major city -- While many other cities such as New York experienced terrifying periods with skyrocketing cases that filled hospital beds beyond capacity, San Francisco has kept its number of cases relatively low, with some ups and downs, yet not a major surge that overwhelmed the city's healthcare system and impacted its ability to provide optimal care. Amy Graff in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 9/22/20
This is what 70% of Sacramento residents say is the worst part of the COVID-19 crisis -- A poll of Sacramento city residents has found that 93% support the government requiring people to wear masks in public to reduce the spread of coronavirus, an increase from a similar poll two months earlier. Tony Bizjak in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 9/22/20
Coronavirus cuts: VTA could slash bus service to 1980 levels -- The COVID-19 pandemic is threatening to cast a long shadow over public transit and traffic in the South Bay, as Valley Transportation Authority leaders consider deep cuts to bus and light rail service that could outlast the virus’ grip on our daily lives. Nico Savidge in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 9/22/20
How is Little Saigon curbing coronavirus? By respecting elders, authorities and masks -- Dr. Quynh Kieu has a three-part theory to explain why Little Saigon has been relatively successful in stemming the COVID-19 pandemic. Anh Do in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 9/22/20
These gloves help fight COVID-19. But they’re made in sweatshop conditions -- They work 12-hour shifts, six days a week, on factory floors where temperatures can surpass 100 degrees. Lunch breaks are brief, sick days highly discouraged. Take too long coming back from the bathroom and it’ll be docked from the next paycheck. Shashank Bengali in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 9/22/20
Open anyway
Riverside County proposal would dump state’s plan and reopen sooner -- One Riverside County supervisor is pushing his colleagues to shirk the state’s newly established tier system in favor of local control over the county’s reopening process. Faith E. Pinho in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 9/22/20
Virus Workplace
‘No safety, no learning’: Many Orange County teachers protest reopening schools -- Teachers in two Orange County school districts have banded together with bold public protests and petitions, saying they are unwilling to go back to campus in the days and weeks ahead and signaling an undercurrent of broad concern among educators over the safety of returning to in-person instruction. Howard Blume, Andrew J. Campa, Stephanie Lai in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 9/22/20
The Bay Area’s small business closure crisis is already here -- When the Triptych Strength Training gym opened in San Francisco, it was a chance for Tarquin Thornton-Close to finally build the kind of workout space he had long envisioned — lots of room, limited numbers of people at a time, and plenty of strength-training gear. Leonardo Castañeda in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 9/22/20
Policy & Politics
California Republican lawmaker said his party asked for state pay cuts. It didn’t -- A Central Valley Republican lawmaker hasn’t asked for the same pay cut California state workers are taking despite saying on social media that a request had been made on his behalf. Wes Venteicher in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 9/22/20
Education Connections
UC donors’ children were inappropriately admitted to Cal and UCLA, audit finds -- Four University of California campuses unfairly admitted 64 students between 2013 and 2018 because of their connections to donors and university staff, according to a report releasedby California State Auditor on Tuesday, Sept. 22. Jeong Park in the Sacramento Bee$ Teresa Watanabe in the Los Angeles Times$ Nanette Asimov in the San Francisco Chronicle$ Emily DeRuy in the San Jose Mercury$ Jocelyn Gecker and Juliet Williams Associated Press Mikhail Zinshteyn CalMatters -- 9/22/20
Cannabis
California marijuana taxes won’t go up for a year under new bill signed by Gavin Newsom -- The California cannabis industry is getting a bit of a tax break, courtesy of the California Legislature. Andrew Sheeler in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 9/22/20
Homeless
Where in the Bay Area are Newsom’s ‘Project Homekey’ funds going? -- New funding for long-term homeless housing continues to roll into the Bay Area, as Gov. Gavin Newsom doles out grants to help cities and counties create shelter that will outlast the coronavirus pandemic. But who are the lucky winners so far? Marisa Kendall in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 9/22/20
Smith: She tried to rent motel rooms for homeless people. A NIMBY hospital stopped her -- There is no shortage of excuses in California about why we continue to let tens of thousands of people live — and often die — in filthy encampments on street corners, in alleys and under freeways year after year. Erika D. Smith in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 9/22/20
Also . . .
Census takers head to homeless shelters, outdoor camps -- Starting this week, census takers are grabbing reflective vests, face masks, bug spray and flashlights and heading out at night in groups of four to track down one of the hardest populations to count in the 2020 census — the homeless. Mike Schneider and Christopher Weber Associated Press -- 9/22/20
City Hall corruption: S.F. HR manager resigns after allegedly forging fake payout deal -- A manager in San Francisco’s human resources department resigned this month after admitting to forging a fake settlement agreement for a city employee who had complained of discrimination, city officials said. Michael Williams in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 9/22/20
Lazarus: Scam utility calls are the latest pandemic ploy to target your cash -- It would be nice, considering everything else going on, if I didn’t have to issue periodic reminders to watch out for scammers. David Lazarus in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 9/22/20
Tesla referral code for you to use -- john93948 to get 1000 free Supercharger miles.