California unemployment chief vows changes after missteps
AP's ADAM BEAM: "Irate California lawmakers on Wednesday shared heartbreaking stories of constituents living out of of their cars while trying in vain to get their unemployment benefits approved by the state, questioning top officials from Gov. Gavin Newsom's administration about why they blocked legitimate claims while approving billions of dollars in payments to fraudsters.
Employment Development Director Rita Saenz, who took over last month after the previous director retired, repeatedly said she could not answer questions about what happened before she was hired. But she vowed to lawmakers: “This will never happen again.”
Lawmakers held a marathon public hearing on Wednesday to review two scathing audits of California's unemployment agency that highlighted the state's slow response to the mountain of claims that came in during the pandemic and the multiple mistakes it made in a ill-planned effort to catch up. Those mistakes, California State Auditor Elaine Howle said, made it much easier for criminals to get paid from fake claims."
California lawmakers angrily demand fixes at unemployment agency after scathing audits
PATRICK McGREEVY, LA Times: "California lawmakers on Wednesday demanded quick fixes to the state unemployment benefits system a week after two scathing state audits found poor planning and ineffective management caused significant delays in payments to people left jobless during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The calls for swift action during a state Capitol oversight hearing came as many officials are also sounding the alarm that Californians whose identities were stolen as part of unemployment fraud schemes will need immediate help from the state Employment Development Department to avoid tax liability on the benefits wrongly paid to others in their names.
More than a dozen lawmakers from both houses participated in Wednesday’s four-hour hearing by the Joint Legislative Audit and Assembly Insurance committees, at which State Auditor Elaine Howle outlined problems identified by her audits of the EDD."
More Bay Area Kaiser Permanente medical centers hit with more fines for COVID-19 violations
BANG's EMILY DERUY: "California cited two Kaiser Permanente medical centers in the Bay Area last month for coronavirus-related violations over the last half year or so.
The health care giant’s Walnut Creek facility was cited by Cal/OSHA on Jan. 22 and faces a $45,000 fine, in part for allegedly failing to investigate and notify employees who had been exposed to the deadly disease. And its San Leandro medical center was cited on Jan. 4 in part for allegedly requiring employees to use respirators with defective face shields and cracked helmets. The total proposed fine for that center is $87,500.
In a statement, Kaiser said, “It’s misleading to interpret these citations to signal any ongoing serious infractions of current public health guidelines at Kaiser Permanente. In fact, these citations stem mainly from allegations much earlier in the pandemic, as health care systems including ours grappled with national shortages and evolving public health guidance.”"
READ MORE related to Pandemic: Whistleblower says he was fired after complaining about COVID-19 protocols at Santa Fe Springs company -- OC Register's SCOTT SHWEBKE; OC has cut its coronavirus case rate in half since mid-January -- OC Register's IAN WHEELER
His polls are sinking. Democrats are mobilizing. The Newsom recall just got real.
JEREMY WHITE, Politico: "California Gov. Gavin Newsom doesn’t want to talk about the recall. But his allies can’t ignore it.
The campaign to oust Newsom went from unlikely to unavoidable this week as pervasive frustration with Newsom’s pandemic management cut sharply into his approval numbers. The longer businesses have been closed, hospitals full and school campuses shut, the more the movement has gained traction beyond conservative social media circles.
The nation's biggest Democratic vulnerability after a score of blue victories has become an irresistible nightly feature on Fox News. Should the effort qualify, look for money to pour into the state and celebrities to add their names to the ballot, if only for the promotional benefits."
Dispute widens between Gov. Newsom, school employee unions over reopening campuses
EdSource's JOHN FENSTERWALD: "Already-big differences on when to reopen schools became starker Wednesday when Gov. Gavin Newsom reiterated that campuses can open safely before vaccinating all teachers, while five unions representing California school employees set a new set of conditions that could make reopening less likely before the end of the school year.
The unions laid out their positions in a 7-page paper timed to influence districts contemplating a return to school as well as the Legislature. Legislative leaders are currently negotiating with Newsom over the terms for distributing $6.6 billion that the governor has proposed to encourage districts to reopen campuses this spring and to use this summer and next fall to compensate for learning lost during the pandemic.
The unions are California Teachers Association; California Federation of Teachers; California School Employees Association; Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and Council 57 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME)."
READ MORE related to Education: California private colleges could get reprieve tied to transfer students -- EdSource's LARRY GORDON
Q&A: Kevin Faulconer on Running for Governor, Tackling the Pandemic and Voting for Trump
SCOTT SHAFER, KQED: "On Monday, former San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer announced his run for governor, challenging Gov. Gavin Newsom either in 2022 or sooner if a recall effort qualifies for the ballot.
KQED caught up with Faulconer a day after his big announcement, to ask the moderate Republican about his record as mayor of California's second-largest city, a position he held from 2014 to 2020, and why he’s throwing his hat in the ring to be the state's chief executive. What follows are portions of that conversation, edited for clarity and brevity.
Let's start with your campaign slogan: “Get ready for a California comeback.” And yet, over the past few years, California has been responsible for more than our share of jobs created. We sent more tax revenue to the federal government than we got back. So what are we coming back from?
Former GOP congressman Doug Ose considers run for California governor
AP's MICHAEL R. BLOOD: "Former Republican congressman Doug Ose said Wednesday he is considering entering a possible recall election aimed at Gov. Gavin Newsom, raising the possibility of another Republican joining a contest that could oust the Democratic governor from office.
In an interview, Ose said voters are clamoring for new leadership after Newsom's wobbly COVID-19 vaccine rollout and long-running coronavirus rules that have shuttered businesses and public schools.
“I know I can do a better job than Newsom is doing,” Ose said. “Anybody running needs to talk about issues that matter around the kitchen table.”"
Pasadena has state and federal lobbyists. Here's what they're working toward in 2021.
Pasadena Star-News's BRADLEY BERMONT: "While the powers of the Pasadena City Council don’t extend further than city boundaries, local officials hire lobbyists to push state and federal lawmakers to draft legislation that’s in the city’s best interests.
They fight to influence state and federal policies alongside countless other cities, corporations, nonprofits and other special interest groups. And every year, the Pasadena City Council tells its lobbyists what exactly they’re fighting for.
On both the state and federal level, the overarching themes are clear: Pasadena wants to maintain local control and it wants to receive more funding to provide existing and additional city services, according to the city’s 2021 platforms."
How Butte County's coronavirus vaccine progress compares to other counties
Chico Enterprise-Record's WILL DENNER: "With a current total of 25,149 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine administered to Butte County residents, the county ranks 25th out of 58 counties statewide in vaccinations numbers.
That figure is the highest among counties located north of the Sacramento metropolitan area by a significant margin. Shasta County is the next highest with 12,956 doses administered. Neighboring Glenn and Tehama counties have administered 2,230 and 2,034 doses, respectively.
As of its last update on Friday, Butte County Public Health reported on its COVID-19 dashboard that 48,325 doses of the vaccine have been allocated to the county and 18,013 administered. The latter number varies from what the state reports because it only includes vaccines coordinated through the county health department, but does not include other vaccine distribution efforts, such as CVS and Walgreens, Adventist Health, long-term care facilities, Veterans Affairs and tribal health organizations."
READ MORE related to Vaccine: CVS to start COVID-19 vaccinations around SoCal -- OC Register's IAN WHEELER; LA County vows to shift COVID vaccine focus to hard-hit communities -- SCNG's HUNTER LEE & SCNG's CITY NEWS SERVICE
OC man files lawsuit against Gov. Newsom over death penalty moratorium
OC Register's SEAN EMERY: "A Dana Point lawyer has filed a civil lawsuit against Gov. Gavin Newsom accusing him of overstepping his authority with a 2019 executive order that created a moratorium on the state’s death penalty.
Jim Lacy, a longtime Republican activist, argues that Newsom did not have the power to halt the executions of the 700-plus inmates on California’s death row, or to withdraw the state’s lethal-injection protocol and dismantle the execution chamber at San Quentin State Prison.
“The case is largely about violation of process, about violation of the constitutional separation of powers,” Lacy said. “(The governor) does not have the power to erase the death penalty, he does not have the power to dismantle the death chamber.
Hey Californians! Do any of these unclaimed billions belong to you?
OC Register's TERI SFORZA: "Attention, Gavin Newsom: Your name is on $90 in unclaimed cashier’s checks held by the state controller.
Joseph R. Biden, there’s $250 from Times Mirror -— the company that once published the Los Angeles Times and was consumed by Tribune Co. in 2000 — in your name.
And Donald Trump, there’s still $3,000 from Bank of America in your name that might come in handy right about now."
North state snowpack shows improvement, drought recovery not over
Chico Enterprise-Record's NATALIE HANSON: "North state snowpack has somewhat increased in the latest snow survey of the season, but scientists say recent storms are not nearly enough to repair the damage from a second year of drought.
California’s Department of Water Resources conducted the second Phillips Station snow survey of the season Wednesday to measure water content in the snowpack, a key indicator for water supply.
The Phillips Station, approximately 90 miles east of Sacramento off Highway 50 in El Dorado County, is one of more than 260 snow courses across the Sierra Nevada that DWR manually or electronically measures each winter and early spring. Data collected from the monthly snow surveys help determine the amount of water melting and running off into state reservoirs during warmer months."
READ MORE related to Air/Climate/Environment: Oroville council delays decision on fire protection after hearing from growth plan -- Chico Enterprise-Record's JUSTIN COUCHOT/KYRA GOTTESMAN
LAUSD takes heat for allowing film crew on campus during pandemic-driven school shutdowns
Daily News's LINH TAT: "The Los Angeles Unified School District is facing criticism from parents outraged after learning that a group of child actors were allowed to film at an elementary school this week while district officials maintain that the coronavirus pandemic continues to pose too much of a threat for high-needs students to return for in-person instruction.
A photo tweeted out by the parent advocacy group Speak UP on Wednesday, Feb. 3, shows a group of children — with some not wearing masks — standing around a school site.
According to Speak UP, the photo was taken in the morning at Kester Avenue Elementary School in Sherman Oaks by a group member who was told by a security guard that filming was taking place for an Apple TV production. The parent who took the photo observed about 30 to 50 kids on campus, according to Speak UP."
Sonoma County sheriff's deputy investigated for discrepancies in report on church
Press Democrat's KEVIN FIXLER: "The Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a deputy whose account of a Santa Rosa-area church service that violated public health guidelines conflicted with reports by county code enforcement officials and The Press Democrat.
The county’s Independent Office of Law Enforcement Review & Outreach, also known as IOLERO, forwarded two citizen complaints to the Sheriff’s Office on Monday, said Karlene Navarro, the department’s director. Those formal complaints, which referenced the newspaper’s article about Spring Hills Church, cited inconsistencies in Sheriff’s Deputy Aziz Atallah’s report, and allege potential dishonesty, conflict of interest by sheriff’s staff and selective enforcement of the county’s health order tied to the coronavirus pandemic.
Atallah, a five-year member of the Sheriff’s Office and a current patrol deputy, was dispatched to the church in Fulton on Jan. 24, according to documents obtained by The Press Democrat through a public records request. A weekend patrol sergeant dispatched the deputy to the church in response to a Press Democrat reporter calling to inquire about a tip from the public that the church had been holding indoor services in defiance of the county’s health order, with many attendees not wearing masks."