Drought related concerns are a top priority for Californians, according to a new PPIC polll.
Craig Miller reports for KQED: "All this fretting about the drought may be driving support for a big water bond that may appear on November’s ballot."
"More than half of self-described likely voters (51 percent) said they would vote today for $11.1 billion of borrowing to fund projects to make the state more drought-resilient, such as new reservoirs. The poll found even stronger support “if it was a lower amount.” Indications are that if the water bond makes it to the the statewide ballot, it will likely be valued at something less than $10 billion. Governor Jerry Brown has said he’d like to keep it down to something in the $6 billion range."
But the rippling effect of the drought shouldn't just be a California concern.
Katharine Mieszkowski reports for The Center for Investigative Reporting: "California produces nearly half of the fruits, vegetables and nuts grown in the United States."
"That means the drought already is starting to hit our pocketbooks as farmers idle land, driving up prices. The U.S. Department of Agriculture predicts fruit prices may rise as much as 6 percent this year, while vegetables may go up as much as 3 percent nationwide."
Gov. Jerry Brown will cross the border this week for a relationship-building trip to Mexico.
Chris Megerian reports in the Los Angeles Times: "The Mexican foreign affairs secretary, José Antonio Meade Kuribreña, said partnerships with California will benefit both places."
""We should be recognizing that our border is a source of competitiveness, our border is part of a way of life for the region," he said."
"The governor is planning to attend a series of meetings with Mexican government officials during his trip, including signing agreements involving climate change and higher e
education."
Class-action status has been awarded to inmates who allege race-based punishments in California prisons.
Paige St. John reports in The Los Angeles Times: "There was no immediate comment by the corrections department, but in past statements, agency officials have called management of gang-related violence "complex and challenging." Because the litigation is now a class action, losing the case would force California to change its prison gang control strategies statewide."
""If wardens did not have the discretion to lock down racial groups after such a race-based incident, they would either have to lock down all inmates in the affected area, or risk further violence by inmates associated with the involved inmates," associate prisons director Kelly Harrington testified last year."
Hilary Clinton was in Oakland, taking a break from her Bay Area fundraising, to talk early childhood education.
John Wildermuth reports for The San Francisco Chronicle: "For the past couple of days, Clinton has been in the Bay Area, making stops at such tech companies as Google, Facebook and Twitter, pushing her new book on her time as President Obama's secretary of state, and fending off questions about whether she will run for the White House in 2016."
"Wednesday's event was all about the squirming kids and harried parents with whom she met before coming out to say just why the new program, co-sponsored by the Bill, Hillary and Chelsea Clinton Foundation and the nonprofit Next Generation organization of San Francisco, was so important."
Brace yourselves, and your waistline: deep-fried Doritos debut at fairs in Southern California.
Samantha Bonar reports for LA Weekly: "Boghosian explained his process: “I dipped the chips in a very watered down fish-and-chip batter, and after they were finished frying, I topped them with a season mixture of mine similar to Cajun seasonings.”
He quickly added the new deep-fried discovery to his fair-food menu. Now a week and a half into the Orange County Fair, “It has become a fan favorite,” he says. “We are selling a lot. We have gone through over 100 big boxes already.”