Strapped stem cell agency eyes tough options
Capitol Weekly's DAVID JENSEN: "Facing the likelihood of a slow and withering death, the California stem cell agency is edging gingerly forward on a path of “cuts” and risky fund-raising in hopes that its research results will soon generate voter support for more billions of dollars."
"Two governing board committees of the $3 billion agency, formally known as the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM), on Monday, Nov. 27, recommended that the full board “entertain” the proposals at its Dec. 14 meeting."
"The agency is down to its last $269 million and expects to halt new awards in 2019 unless additional funds are raised between now and the beginning of 2020. It has been running at a $300-million-a-year pace recently and has pumped out about $25,000 an hour, 24 hours a day, seven days a week since it started making awards in 2005, according to calculations by the California Stem Cell Report."
READ MORE from Capitol Weekly: Sacramento eyes new bike, pedestrian paths -- Capitol Weekly's RIN CARBIN
NBC fires 'Today' host Matt Lauer for 'inappropriate sexual behavior'
AP: "NBC News said today that longtime "Today" show host Matt Lauer has been fired for "inappropriate sexual behavior."
"Lauer's co-anchor Savannah Guthrie made the announcement at the top of Wednesday's "Today" show."
"Guthrie read a statement from NBC News Chairman Andy Lack, stating that the company has received a detailed complaint from a colleague Monday night "about inappropriate sexual behavior in the workplace" by Lauer.
READ MORE related to harassment: 'We have rapists in this building': Women say sexual abuse isn't reported at California Capitol -- Sacramento Bee's ALEXEI KOSEFF/AMY CHANCE; Victims denounce a failing system for reporting sexual harassment at the California Capitol -- LA Times' JAZMINE ULLOA; Assembly policy protects 'rapists' in the Capitol, women tell committee -- The Chronicle's MELODY GUTIERREZ
Cracks found in new Oroville Dam spillway, but officials say don't worry
Sacramento Bee's DALE KASLER/RYAN SABALOW: "Hairline cracks have been detected in sections of the newly reconstructed flood-control spillway at Oroville Dam."
"State and federal officials said they’re confident the cracks don’t pose a safety problem and don’t need to be repaired. However, the state Department of Water Resources, which operates the dam, said it will monitor the concrete surface of the spillway during the rainy season and beyond."
"The integrity of the newly reconstructed Oroville spillway is not in question,” said Erin Mellon, a DWR spokeswoman. She said the concrete will have no problem handling powerful flows should the spillway gates need to be opened this rainy season at the state’s second largest reservoir."
READ MORE related to Environment: Adios, sharks! Younger great whites leaving Southern California for first time in years -- OC Register's LAYLAN CONNELLY
AP: "A gunman with a hostage opened fire from the eighth floor of a luxury high-rise condominium in Reno onto the streets below, authorities said. No injuries were reported."
"The man died Tuesday night after a SWAT team descended on him while he was barricaded at the Montage condo complex, Reno Police Deputy Chief Tom Robinson told reporters. It wasn't immediately clear whether he was killed by police gunfire or his own. No one else, including the hostage, was hurt."
"The gunman's name has not been released. Robinson described him only as a young adult."
READ MORE related to Gun Violence: Vegas gunman owned unit at Reno shooting site -- AP; Nevada high-rise suspected gunman dead, hostage safe -- AP
SF supervisors pass recreational marijuana rules after months of talking
The Chronicle's RACHEL SWAN: "Cannabis dispensaries in San Francisco will be allowed to operate closer to schools under rules the Board of Supervisors approved Tuesday."
"The new regulations, passed on a 10-1 vote with Ahsha Safai in dissent, will reduce the school buffer zone from 1,000 to 600 feet, the amount recommended by the state. That revision signaled a remarkable shift in city lawmakers’ thinking on cannabis from the beginning of the month, when several supervisors were trying to push the industry out of their districts."
"Supervisor Katy Tang, whose district has no dispensaries, wanted to keep the 1,000-foot school buffer and also apply it to day care facilities. She proposed several restrictions that all went down to defeat."
READ MORE related to Cannabis: All-female edible cannabis manufacturer obtains Berkeley permit -- Daily Cal's ALICIA KIM
Canadian hacker working for Russian government pleads guilty
LA Times' ALENE TCHEKMEDYIAN: "The scheme targeted the email accounts of journalists and U.S. government officials, as well as employees of a French transportation company, a Swiss bitcoin wallet and an American airline. In some cases, accounts of their spouses and children."
"Federal prosecutors in San Francisco say that starting in 2014, a team of hackers working for the Russian Federal Security Service, an intelligence and law enforcement agency, illegally accessed more than 30 million Yahoo accounts and several Gmail accounts, and stole data on more than 500 million Yahoo users."
"The youngest of the group, a 22-year-old Canadian named Karim Baratov who sold his hacking services to Russian agents, pleaded guilty Tuesday to one count of conspiring to violate the computer fraud and abuse act, and eight counts of aggravated identity theft, according to the U.S. attorney’s office."
New California law expands low-income parents' access to subsidized child care
EdSource's ASHLEY HOPKINSON: "In an effort to remove obstacles for Californians trying to succeed in the labor market, a new law could make access to child care easier for low-income parents taking classes to learn English or complete high school."
"The law will expand the eligibility requirements for subsidized child care. It will make low-income parents who are are enrolled in English as a second language classes (ESL) or a program to earn a high school diploma or general education development certificate (GED) eligible to place their children in subsidized care."
"Although in the past some parents taking ESL classes were considered eligible for subsidized care, it was not specifically listed as a factor for eligibility."
READ MORE related to Education: UC Berkeley graduate students win $100K in international data science competition -- Daily Californian's MARY KELLY FORD
Judge denies restraining order to halt Mulvaney's appointment as acting CFPB director
LA Times' JIM PUZZANGHERA: "The first round in the legal battle over interim leadership of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau went to President Trump on Tuesday when a federal judge denied a request for a temporary restraining order to keep his choice for the job, Mick Mulvaney, from serving as acting director."
"But the attorney for the agency’s deputy director, Leandra English, who is supported by consumer advocates, maintained she is the lawful acting director, indicating the fight was not over in a case that raises constitutional questions and may be headed to the Supreme Court."
"I think everyone understands this court is not the final stop, this judge does not have the final word on what happens in this controversy,” said her attorney, Deepak Gupta."
New report suggests Trump might not be a liar at all, but truly delusional
New York Magazine's JONATHAN CHAIT: "The prevailing interpretation of Donald Trump, shared by all his enemies and many of his allies, is that he is a con man. It is a theory that explains both his career in business and politics, and has carried through his many reversals of position and acts of fraud against customers and contractors. It remains quite plausible. But new reporting has opened up a second possibility: The president has lost all touch with reality."
"The Washington Post and New York Times have accounts from insiders suggesting Trump habitually insists upon the impossible in private. He does not merely tell lies in order to gull the public or to manipulate allies. He tells lies in private that he has no reason to tell. He still questions the authenticity of Barack Obama’s birthplace, despite the birth certificate. He insists voter fraud may have denied him a popular-vote triumph. He tells people Robert Mueller will wrap up his investigation, with a total vindication of the president, by the end of the year."
"He questions whether the Access Hollywood tape, on which he was recorded boasting of sexual assault, is even him. (Both the Post and the Times report Trump repeatedly has denied the validity of the tape in private, “stunning his advisers,” as the Times puts it.)"
READ MORE related to POTUS45: Pelosi slams Trump for 'verbal abuse' on Twitter -- AP; When the US president disappeared for 2 weeks on a secret trip -- The Chronicle's BILL VAN NIEKERKEN; Pelosi, Schumer pull out of White House meeting after Trump tweet -- The Chronicle's CAROLYN LOCHHEAD
The Chronicle's BILL VAN NIEKERKEN: "What would happen today if the public and Congress didn’t know the whereabouts of the president of the United States for two weeks? It seems inconceivable now, but it happened 75 years ago."
"President Franklin D. Roosevelt took a two-week trip across the country and to the Bay Area starting Sept. 17, 1942, to get a firsthand account of military production and citizen morale while the U.S. was in throes of war in Europe and the Pacific. The White House kept the trek secret, and newspapers including The Chronicle agreed not to report on the story out of concern for national security."
"It had been almost a year since the U.S. entered the war, and the president traveled more than 8,500 miles by train and motorcade through 24 states under the cover of government secrecy. Before the trip began, White House Director of Censorship Byron Price — yes, that was his title — insisted all newspapers and radio stations refrain from reporting on the president’s activities until he was back safely in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 1. The media agreed."
US Attorney says Oakland raid was for criminal investigation only
East Bay Times' HARRY HARRIS: "The U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of California says an Aug. 16 raid in West Oakland by agents with the Department of Homeland Security was part of “a criminal investigation into potential federal criminal violations."
"The statement was part of a Nov. 27 letter written to Oakland Chief of Police Anne E. Kirkpatrick by U.S. Attorney Brian J. Stretch that was obtained by this newspaper Tuesday."
"It was the first time Stretch has said anything officially about the raid."
SF supes reverse sale, return private Presidio Terrace street to homeowners
The Chronicle's RACHEL SWAN: "A private street in tony Presidio Heights that was sold to a San Jose couple for $90,000 in a little-noticed tax auction over two years ago will be returned to the residents who live there."
"The San Francisco Board of Supervisors on Tuesday voted 7-4 to overturn the sale of Presidio Terrace, a looping, exclusive street that went on the auction block after its residents failed to pay $994 in back taxes."
"It turned out the Presidio Terrace Homeowner Association’s $14-a-year tax bill was being mailed to an accountant who hadn’t worked for the association in years. The bill applied to the common areas and green spaces on the circular street, which were lumped together and taxed as a “vacant” parcel, separate from residents’ homes."
LA Times' SARAH D. WIRE: "Unless Congress comes to an agreement fast, federal funding for a program that provides health insurance to 2 million California children and pregnant women will run out around the end of the year."
"After that, California could be on the hook for hundreds of millions of dollars because the state is required to offer the insurance even if the federal funds don’t show up."
"Despite decades of bipartisan support, Congress didn’t renew its authorization to spend money on the Children’s Healthcare Insurance Program, which provides coverage for about 9 million poor children and pregnant women nationwide, before it expired at the end of September. Since then, states have relied on their reserves, or unspent money from previous years, as short-term fixes."
Why Sacramento could be considered 'Sin City' of California
Sacramento Bee's NOEL HARRIS: "Las Vegas may be known as Sin City, but people behave badly all over the United States."
"To show that the popular Nevada destination isn’t alone in sin, a personal finance website studied 182 cities across the country to show how they rank against each other in this area."
"WalletHub came up with its “Most Sinful Cities in America” by using seven dimensions to determine a score."
Big contracts, no storm tarps for Puerto Rico
AP's TAMI ABDOLLAH/MICHAEL BIESECKER: "After Hurricane Maria damaged tens of thousands of homes in Puerto Rico, a newly created Florida company with an unproven record won more than $30 million in contracts from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to provide emergency tarps and plastic sheeting for repairs."
"Bronze Star LLC never delivered those urgently needed supplies, which even months later remain in demand by hurricane victims on the island."
"FEMA eventually terminated the contracts, without paying any money, and re-started the process this month to supply more tarps for the island. The earlier effort took nearly four weeks from the day FEMA awarded the contracts to Bronze Star and the day it canceled them."
After winter shelter closes in North Sacramento, where will 200 homeless people go?
Sacramento Bee's CYNTHIA HUBERT: "Around 200 homeless men and women will spend this winter in a converted warehouse in North Sacramento where they will have heat, beds, toilets, showers and three meals a day."
"The question of where they will go when the shelter shuts down at the end of March is one of the issues worrying residents of the surrounding neighborhood, which has already been affected by a concentration of homeless campers in and around the American River Parkway."
"I really hope they don’t all end up living on the river because they are ruining it,” neighborhood resident Cathe Torgerson told city leaders at a community meeting about the controversial shelter on Monday night."
READ MORE related to Housing & Homelessness: Dozens of Dana Point residents plead with city to get control of growing homeless population -- OC Register's ERIKA I. RITCHIE
Air Canada to offer nonstop flights between Sacramento and Vancouver
Sacramento Bee's CATHY LOCKE: "Air Canada will provide daily service between Sacramento International Airport and Vancouver, British Columbia, beginning next spring, marking the airline’s return to Sacramento after nearly a decade."
"The nonstop service between the two cities is set to begin May 17 and will operate on a daily, year-round basis, the Sacramento County Department of Airports announced. Tickets are now on sale at www.aircanada.com."
"Air Canada will operate out of Terminal A. Flights, on a CRJ-700, will offer business and economy class service."
Sacramento Zoo names new director as it continues $75 million transformation
Sacramento Bee's ED FLETCHER: "The Sacramento Zoo has tapped the head of an Arizona zoo to take over the Land Park operation as it continues its $75 million transformation."
"Jason Jacobs, current director of the Reid Park Zoo in Tucson, Ariz., replaces Kyle Burks."
"Jacobs, 40, will assume the role in early January, zoo officials said."
Will Sacramento bars stay open until 4 am? They have that option if bill passes
Sacramento Bee's NOEL HARRIS: "Citing nightlife as important for the economy and culture in California, a state senator is again proposing a bill to extend business hours at bars and nightclubs."
"State Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, on Tuesday introduced a bill for next year that would allow, but not require, six cities to keep establishments open and serve alcohol until 4 a.m., two hours later than currently allowed statewide."
"Should the bill pass, it would give cities the option to extend hours but would have to establish a planning process that involves law enforcement, transportation and public safety plans."
Berkeley Federation of Teachers endorses Judy Appel for district assembly seat
Daily Californian's JACK AUSTIN: "The Berkeley Federation of Teachers, or BFT, endorsed Judy Appel’s campaign for the state assembly CA-15 district seat last week."
"BFT represents a group of about 800 teachers and staff members from Berkeley public schools. Appel is currently serving a second term for the Berkeley Unified School District school board. Because she considers education a social justice issue, Appel said if elected to represent District 15, she will continue to work on improving access to education for students and creating employee housing for school teachers."
"One of our strong beliefs is that electing people to the assembly who have experience in school boards is good for public education,” BFT president Cathy Campbell said. “Judy is the ideal candidate for the time we are living in. … We need to promote champions who understand groups under attack. Judy has a history of doing that."
Retired NYPD detective continues testimony in Robert Durst murder case
LA Times' MARISA GERBER: "The retired New York police detective who investigated the case of Robert Durst’s missing wife three decades ago testified Tuesday that several people told him the couple had a history of domestic violence."
"Michael Struk took the stand in a Los Angeles courtroom and was often on the defensive over his investigation into the 1982 disappearance of Durst’s wife, Kathleen. Prosecutors believe that disappearance is key to the murder in Los Angeles of Durst’s friend, crime writer Susan Berman."
"Durst, 74, is accused of shooting Berman inside her Benedict Canyon home in 2000. It was a hush-up killing, prosecutors assert, prompted by Durst’s fear that Berman would tell others what she knew about Kathleen’s disappearance."
READ MORE related to Public Safety: Former San Leandro police officer accused of sex with 17-year-old Explorer -- East Bay Times' HARRY HARRIS; Antioch OK's signing bonuses for cops -- EBT's ROWENA COETSEE
Sacramento Bee's SAM STANTON: "Placer County officials have agreed to settle a jail abuse lawsuit by paying $100,000 to a former inmate, while yet another lawsuit has been filed alleging that deputies beat a prisoner in the Auburn jail last year."
"The developments come as Placer County continues to grapple with the fallout from a scandal revealed last May by Sheriff Devon Bell, who announced the arrests of three Auburn jail employees on charges of excessive force against inmates and falsifying evidence."
"Charges against the three are pending, and they remain suspended from the department."
The NFL tried to embarrass Michael Crabtree -- it embarrassed itself instead
East Bay Times' DIETER KURTENBACH: "The NFL’s initial punishment of Raiders wide receiver Michael Crabtree was excessive — two games, on top of an ejection that excluded Crabtree for nearly a full game for fighting?"
"Yes, Crabtree was the focal point of an ugly on-field fracas, but there was no precedent to suspend him two games for what happened at the Coliseum on Sunday."
"It’s obvious that the NFL, which is stuck in a terrible public relations tailspin, was trying to make an example out of Crabtree and Denver’s Aqib Talib by hitting them with two-game bans on Monday."
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The Roundup is compiled by Associate Editor Geoff Howard. Questions? Comments? Feedback? Email him at geoff@capitolweekly.net