A damaged highway in a rural area of California. (Photo: Tupungato, via Shutterstock)What might President Biden’s colossal proposal to address the nation’s crumbling infrastructure mean to California? Admittedly, the $2 trillion fix is a long way from becoming reality. It’s still in the House, and Senate passage as the bill is written is a big “if.”
Demonstrators in Huntington Beach protesting Gov. Newsom's closure orders in 2020. (Photo: mikeledray, via Shutterstock)An effort to recall Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom has not even reached the ballot, but foes and backers of the governor already have raised or spent more than $7.5 million, with the likelihood of much, much more to come. The fundraising is a work in progress but all but certain to expand exponentially if, as expected, the effort makes the ballot and an election is held later this year.
An artist's rendering of California's bullet train. (Image: High-Speed Rail Authority)State rail officials are taking the glass-half-full view. Rather than lamenting the fact High Speed Rail is absent from the president’s infrastructure plan, they’re pointing to supportive statements from Biden and his team, and insisting there’s time before Congress irons out a final deal to claim a share for California’s fast train.
Former state Sen. Holly J. Mitchell was elected last year to a seat on the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, representing District 2 – the same district in which she was born and raised. Term limits have turned the traditional local government-to-Legislature pipeline on its head, as has the stratospheric growth of LA: As a supervisor in a county of 10 million people, Mitchell represents twice as many constituents as she once did in the state Senate.
Sacramento County Supervisor Sue Cross at a meeting of the board. (Photo: Screen capture, CBS13, Sacramento)Sue Frost, chair of the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors, did not originally support a 2002 state law that provides family members with one of the few legal avenues to get severely mentally ill relatives into intensive treatment. Like other public officials, she was concerned about patient rights and cost.
Amanda and Nick Wilcox were honored in the state Assembly for their efforts to establish "Laura's Law," named after their 19-year-old daughter who was slain by a mentally ill gunman two decades ago. (Photo: Elias Funez, The Union, Nevada County.)When Kaino Hopper’s 31-year-old daughter adamantly refused – as she often has — the mental health treatment she so desperately needs, it was a rainy, blustery January day in Sacramento, and she was homeless, sleeping in fields and suburban parks. Her mother had few choices, and contacted her daughter’s caseworker for help.
Regional Recycled Water Advanced Purification Center Grand Opening 10, Oct 2019In this episode John Howard and Tim Foster welcomed the longtime but soon-to-be-retired Metropolitan Water District of Southern California head honcho Jeff Kightlinger for a wide-ranging discussion that covered the status of the Delta Tunnel Project, climate change and the snow survey, the drought, working from home, jukeboxes and his punk rock roots.
A dry field and barn off of Highway 152 in California's Pacheco Pass. (Photo: Hank Shiffman, via Shutterstock)As if the COVID-19 epidemic, economic malaise, disrupted schooling and wildfires weren’t enough, California now finds itself heading for a drought. A big drought. In fact, the U.S. Drought Monitor says that 91 percent of the state is in a drought right now.
Industrial propane tanks. (Photo: RazorbackAlum, via Shutterstock)ANALYSIS: Among the numerous advocates for a wider range of lower-carbon options in the U.S. is one group who’ve not received much attention: the propane industry. Given the trends on propane usage and production, that may very well change in 2021. Propane advocates think that their fuel is not getting the kind of attention that it deserves from policy-makers, regulators, and environmental lobbyists.
Artichoke Joe's Casino in San Bruno, south of San Francisco. (Photo: Wikipedia)State law enforcement authorities say a settlement has been reached with Artichoke Joe’s Casino, a major California card club, for violation of money laundering laws and for misleading investigators. The casino agreed to pay a $5.3 million penalty.