Newsom opposes UC tuition increase as 'unwarranted; bad for students.'
LA Times's TERESA WATANABE/TARYN LUNA: "Gov. Gavin Newsom opposes any tuition increase for University of California students this fall, weighing in Tuesday on a controversial proposal that the Board of Regents is set to discuss this week."
"Given the major increase in higher education funding provided in last year’s budget and the similar increase proposed by Governor Newsom for next year’s budget, he believes that the proposed tuition increase is unwarranted, bad for students and inconsistent with our college affordability goals,” his spokesman Jesse Melgar said in a statement."
"Newsom consistently opposed tuition hikes when he served on the UC Board of Regents under his previous role as California’s lieutenant governor, a record he campaigned on in the run-up to his 2018 election."
READ MORE related to tuition: Gov. Newsom, students protest University of California tuition hikes — vote delayed -- LARRY GORDON, EdSource; UC regents won’t vote on undergraduate tuition hikes Wednesday as planned -- NANETTE ASIMOV, Chronicle.
A crucial look at voters' second choices.
From Capitol Weekly's PAUL MITCHELL: "For the past year, Capitol Weekly has conducted over 10,000 surveys of likely Democratic primary election voters. These surveys were emailed to Democratic and nonpartisan voters each month, asking them to complete a survey. We tracked their responses back to their voter registration to allow us to analyze candidate support by ethnicity, age, partisanship, and other factors."
"Through this period we have seen some lanes develop. We saw voters who are more likely to be selecting between Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders, or Joe Biden and Pete Buttigieg. We have seen a strain of anti-establishment support for Andrew Yang, Tulsi Gabbard, and Marianne Williamson."
We have also seen some candidates drop out – most notably the exit of California Sen. Kamala Harris, even though she earned a significant share of the polling results, particularly in the spring and summer of 2019.
California is one of the worst states for driving, report says.
Sac Bee's SUMMER LIN: "California traffic may be notorious but as it turns out, the state is not the worst in the country for driving, according to a new report."
"WalletHub released a report on the best and worst states to drive in and assessed all 50 states based on factors including rush-hour traffic congestion, average gas prices and road quality."
"Washington and California came in at Nos. 47 and 48 respectively, and Hawaii is the worst state for drivers. Hawaii has some of the fewest car washes per capita, most days with precipitation, highest car maintenance costs and highest gas prices."
Rep. Lofgren blasts Trump for 'stonewalling' subpoenas
The Chronicle's DUSTIN GARDINER: "San Jose Rep. Zoe Lofgren made her debut in President Trump’s impeachment trial Tuesday, arguing that his refusal to release subpoenaed documents related to his conduct in the Ukraine affair is unprecedented."
"Lofgren was the second House Democratic impeachment manager, after Burbank Rep. Adam Schiff, to present arguments on the Senate floor as Trump’s trial began in earnest."
"She used her 33-minute presentation to urge senators to support Democratic amendments to allow the Senate to subpoena documents at the trial’s outset. Republicans who control the chamber beat back one after another on party-line votes. Democrats will be able to seek the documents again after the Senate hears both sides’ trial arguments and questions the House and Trump teams."
READ MORE related to Impeachment: In first big votes of Trump impeachment trial, Republicans kill Democratic efforts to subpoena records and officials -- LA Times's JENNIFER HABERKORN
California considers declarying Tylenol's key ingredient a carcinogen
AP: "A fight is coming to California over whether to list one of the world’s most common over-the-counter drugs as a carcinogen, echoing recent high-profile battles over such substances as alcohol and coffee."
"The drug is acetaminophen, known outside the United States as paracetamol and used to treat pain and fevers. It is the basis for more than 600 prescription and over-the-counter medications for adults and children, found in brands including Tylenol, Excedrin, Sudafed, Robitussin and Theraflu."
"Acetaminophen has been available in the U.S. without a prescription since 1955. Concern about its potential link to cancer comes from its relationship to another drug: phenacetin. That drug, once a common treatment for headaches and other ailments, was banned by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 1983 because it caused cancer."
Can California sustain Newsom's budgetary expansionism?
Sac Bee's WES VENTEICHER: "Eight years ago, former Gov. Jerry Brown trimmed and reorganized California’s bureaucracy in an effort to help haul the state out of the Great Recession."
"The Little Hoover Commission praised the plan for pushing the state toward a more “effective, efficient and transparent” government that would be more responsive to unfavorable employment and revenue trends."
"Today, with a state budget surplus, Gov. Gavin Newsom is proposing to add new departments, offices, divisions and programs to the state’s government to bolster ambitious plans to improve everything from early childhood development to dysfunctional state technology."
Fire experts reveal 'major shift in US wildfire norms' -- and people are to blame
Sac Bee's JARED GILMOUR: "New research reveals “a major shift in U.S. wildfire norms,” according to experts — a shift that can be blamed on people."
"University of Colorado Boulder scientists have found that human-sparked fires have steadily ticked up in recent years, researchers said in a news release on the study. The findings were published Monday in the journal Global Ecology and Biogeography."
"The leading cause of wildfire ignitions in the United States is shifting away from lightning and towards human activity,” lead author Megan Cattau, a former CIRES and CU Boulder Earth Lab scientist, said in a statement. “And it’s looking like this is going to be our new normal."
Here's what a President Sanders would mean for California
The Chronicle's JOHN WILDERMUTH: "California is already one of the nation’s most liberal states, but a Bernie Sanders presidency would kick the state’s progressive tilt into overdrive."
"Still, in many policy areas, Californians would feel far less of an impact than residents of more conservative states."
"The Vermont senator’s call for a $15-an-hour minimum wage? California’s already moving there, with every worker slated to hit that mark by 2023. Legal status for Dreamers, undocumented young people brought into the U.S. as children? The state has moved to block all proposed deportation efforts. Banning for-profit prisons and ending cash bail? California already is working to do just that."
2020 candidates chime in on Sanders after Clinton dig
Sac Bee's MAYA EARLS: "Democratic presidential candidates are showing support for Sen. Bernie Sanders after Hillary Clinton said “nobody likes him."
"Rep. Tulsi Gabbard said on Facebook Tuesday that she likes Sanders along with the trending social media hashtag #ILikeBernie. Billionaire philanthropist Tom Steyer also said on Twitter he liked Sanders."
"Entrepreneur Andrew Yang tweeted, “it’s 2020 not 2016,” an apparent reference to the tensions between Sanders and Clinton during the 2016 presidential election."
Oakland becomes first in state to ban criminal background checks for rental housing
The Chronicle's SARAH RAVANI: "Oakland became the first city in California to ban criminal background checks in most housing applications for private and other rental units under a measure adopted by the City Council on Tuesday."
"The council unanimously passed a “fair chance housing” ordinance that bars landlords from conducting criminal background checks on prospective tenants. The Berkeley City Council is expected to vote on a similar measure in February."
"This ordinance is about making sure returning community members have equal opportunities they deserve to successfully reintegrate into our community, and this begins with a roof over your head,” said Councilwoman Nikki Fortunato Bas, a co-sponsor of the measure."
1st US case of new coronavirus confirmed: Here are the risks, and how to protect yourself
Sac Bee's CHRISANNA MINK: "A virus that has raised concerns worldwide since it broke out in China last month has now been confirmed in the United States."
"The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced the first case of new coronavirus in the United States in a previously healthy adult male from Washington."
"He was healthy when he flew home from China on Jan. 15, and the CDC is now investigating his flight."
READ MORE related to Coronavirus: Scientists race to learn if coronavirus from China is new SARS, as first case arrives in US -- The Chronicle's ERIN ALLDAY
Uber tests letting California drivers set own rates
The Chronicle's CAROLYN SAID: "Uber is experimenting with letting California drivers set their own rates, starting with pilot programs at airports in Santa Barbara, Sacramento and Palm Springs. It’s part of the ride-hailing company’s attempts to ward off AB5, the state’s new gig-work law that could turn drivers into employees, a change Uber fiercely rejects."
"Starting Tuesday morning, drivers at the three test airports can either accept Uber’s original price for outgoing rides, or ask for up to five times more, in increments of 10%. After next week they will have the option to ask for less than Uber’s original price."
"Essentially those drivers now are bidding against one another for riders. Uber passengers will see only the lowest proposed fare range. If that driver rejects their ride request, they could see a new, higher fare range, as Uber would then show the request to the next-cheapest driver."
More human bones found in rugged Joshua Tree National Park, California officials say
Sac Bee's SUMMER LIN: "Human bones have been found in Joshua Tree National Park for the second time in a month, police said."
"The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department said it received a report of bones in the park on Jan. 16, according to a release obtained by New Channel 3. The Coroner’s Bureau confirmed that the remains were human."
"On Jan. 17, detectives and coroner and crime scene investigators found “partial skeletal remains,” and officials are still looking into the identity of the person and the cause of death, according to the release."
Opiate overdoses in SF more than doubled in 2019
The Chronicle's EVAN SERNOFFSKY/JOHN KING: "The number of fatal heroin and fentanyl overdoses in San Francisco more than doubled in 2019, according to preliminary statistics from the city’s medical examiner’s office that were obtained by The Chronicle."
"There were 234 deaths that are estimated to have involved fentanyl, compared with 90 in 2018. The number of deaths where heroin appears to have played a role reached 100 last year, officials with the city’s chief medical examiner’s office estimate."
"In all, officials estimate that 290 deaths were attributable to fentanyl, heroin or a combination of the two. That’s up from 134 in 2018."
Woman suing Riot Games may deserve $400M, not $10M, state regulator says
LA Times's SAM DEAN: "Two state agencies are taking the unusual step of trying to stop Riot Games from paying out $10 million to female employees as part of a settlement over a gender discrimination class action suit."
"The state thinks the women could be entitled to as much as $400 million instead."
"The suit began in November 2018, when two women who had worked at the Los Angeles game studio, which makes the popular “League of Legends” title, sued over violations of the California Equal Pay Act, alleging they were routinely subjected to sexual harassment and gender discrimination."