Will off-roading end at Oceano Dunes? Coastal Commission to consider fate of controvertsial park
LA Times's LOUIS SAHAGUN: "There is little common ground in a decades-long battle over off-road recreation, economic freedom and the fate of California’s dwindling coastal resources.
While the matter is likely to end up in court, the California Coastal Commission is scheduled Thursday to finally decide whether off-road riding will continue to be permitted at Oceano Dunes State Vehicular Recreation Area — the only state park where vehicles can be driven along the beach.
Commission staffers have concluded that off-road vehicle use along the eight miles of shoreline near San Luis Obispo is inconsistent with the Coastal Act and have recommended that it end within five years."
State workers are still taking pay cuts as California rakes in tax revenue, stimulus
Sac Bee's WES VENTEICHER: "The $26 billion that California’s state government will receive from the lastest round of federal coronavirus assistance doesn’t change the timeline for discussions about restoring state workers’ pay, according to the state Finance Department.
Gov. Gavin Newsom raised the prospect in January that the pay cuts state workers took last summer could be restored as early as July, a year ahead of schedule.
Finance Department Director Keely Bosler said at that time that the administration would begin discussions in earnest with state unions around May, when the administration will provide a budget update."
35 million Californians now have a reopened economy amid 'more energy, more optimism'
LA Times's LUKE MONEY/HAYELY SMITH: "California’s rapid recovery from the winter coronavirus surge went into overdrive Tuesday, as much of the Southland was allowed to reopen swaths of its long-shuttered economies — meaning more than 35 million residents no longer live under the state’s most severe restrictions.
San Diego, Riverside, Ventura and Santa Barbara counties were among those freed from the most stringent tier in California’s color-coded reopening plan, just days after Los Angeles, Orange and San Bernardino also got the green light to reopen restaurant dining rooms and resume limited indoor operations at movie theaters, gyms and other businesses.
The rapid move toward significant reopenings reflects two trends: continued declines in coronavirus case rates and a steady increase in vaccinations. Over the past week, California has reported an average of 3,141 new coronavirus cases per day, a decrease of nearly 40% from two weeks ago, according to data compiled by The Times."
Newsom's potential GOP opponents help fund recall
The Chronicle's DUSTIN GARDINER: " Some potential Republican candidates hoping to oust Gov. Gavin Newsom aren’t just rooting for a recall to qualify for the ballot — they’re opening their wallets to fund the effort.
A few of the largest contributors writing five-figure checks could wind up being replacement candidates in a recall vote. Tops among them is John Cox, the Republican millionaire defeated by Newsom in the 2018 election, who has contributed $60,000 to the recall. He gave $50,000 in October, when the effort lacked its current momentum, and an additional $10,000 this month.
“I did it the earliest of anybody,” Cox said of his fellow Republican contenders for governor. “I’m doing this for the people of California, including my own children. I’m going to do whatever it takes to turn around this state.”"
The Chronicle's KELLIE HWANG/MIKE MASSA: "As California moves forward with reopening after a months-long lockdown, several recent media reports have pointed out that despite its strict pandemic response, California’s public health outcome has been very similar to that of Florida, which has been open for months.
CDC data shows that the coronavirus case rate for the course of the pandemic is only slightly higher in Florida than California. And California’s death rate, dramatically lower during much of the pandemic, rose to near Florida’s after the winter surge.
Gov. Gavin Newsom, who is facing a recall effort, defended California’s pandemic measures Tuesday on CNN by claiming, “We have lower death rates than the vast majority of states in this country, certainly much lower than places like Florida and Texas.” But Florida actually ranks in the middle, with the 27th highest death rate, followed by California at No. 28, according to the New York Times coronavirus tracker."
Xavier Becerra will face influx of immigrant children on top of pandemic in Biden Cabinet job
The Chronicle's TAL KOPAN: "When Xavier Becerra takes over as President Biden’s health and human services secretary, he won’t just be confronting a pandemic. He’ll also be responsible for the care of thousands of immigrant children.
Health and Human Services manages shelters for undocumented immigrant children who arrive in the U.S. by themselves. The California attorney general will take his post in the Cabinet amid a near-record surge of immigrant children coming to the southern border at a time when the shelter network is already near capacity and is constrained by the coronavirus pandemic.
Overseeing the response will be a massive logistical and political challenge for Becerra once the Senate confirms him, which is expected to happen this week. Republicans are already criticizing Biden for not denying entry to the children as former President Donald Trump did, and progressives are rebelling against any measures they see as reminiscent of Trump’s anti-migrant policies."
Will Darrell Steinberg be California's next AG? Newsom pick could come soon
Sac Bee's LARA KORTE: "With California Attorney General Xavier Becerra on track to be confirmed to the Biden administration sometime this week, Gov. Gavin Newsom is preparing to fill another high-ranking state position.
Rumored to be among the top candidates is Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg, a former state Senate leader who has worked with Newsom on addressing homelessness.
Other potential candidates reported to be on Newsom’s short list include Assemblyman Rob Bonta, D-Alameda, and Congressman Adam Schiff.
The Chronicle's SHWANIKA NARAYAN/TATIANA SANCHEZ: "Luis Shomar Picazo said he didn’t even know he had been sued by Oportun Inc.
Picazo said the loan company began calling him last year, at the start of the coronavirus pandemic, to demand repayment of a $5,000 loan the San Francisco resident took out in 2018 to help cover moving costs. Last July, in the midst of a health and economic crisis, Oportun took the matter to small claims court in San Francisco.
“Because of the pandemic, I didn’t have money to pay,” Picazo told the Chronicle."
Golden Gate Park SkyStar wheel will spin for 4 more years, SF supes decide
The Chronicle's SAM WHITING: "The SkyStar Observation Wheel in Golden Gate Park will spin for four more years, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted by a thin margin on Tuesday.
An effort by Supervisors Connie Chan and Aaron Peskin to limit the 150-foot tall attraction in the Music Concourse to a one-year extension was defeated by a vote of six against and five in favor. But it was not that close because the resolution put forth by Chan and Peskin required two-thirds approval, or eight votes, to pass.
Supervisors Shamann Walton, Chan, Gordon Mar, Peskin and Dean Preston voted in favor of the resolution to limit the wheel extension while supervisors Catherine Stefani, Matt Haney, Rafael Mandelman, Myrna Melgar, Hillary Ronen and Ahsha Safai voted against it."
UCLA can shield identities of Palestinian rights advocates to prevent harassment, judge rules
LA Times's TERESA WATANABE: "UCLA can continue to shield the identities of Palestinian rights activists to protect them from harassment and guard their constitutional rights to freedom of association, privacy and speech, a Los Angeles judge has ruled in a case that drew national attention to the volatile battles at college campuses over the Mideast conflict.
Superior Court Judge James C. Chalfant denied a request by a New York attorney to order the disclosure of the names of 64 presenters at a 2018 conference sponsored by Students for Justice in Palestine at UCLA. The attorney, David Abrams of the Zionist Advocacy Center, said in court filings that he wanted the information for research into “anti-Israel terrorists” and was entitled to it under the California Public Records Act.
But the University of California, in its legal filings, said an internal investigation by UCLA police had concluded none of the speakers were terrorists and argued that disclosing their identities would subject them to harassment and undermine the university’s mission to promote free speech and academic inquiry."
A lost year for high school students: loneliness and despair, resilience and hope
LA Time's MELISSA GOMEZ: "When school shut down in March 2020, some students at Alhambra High School welcomed the break. Just a few weeks, they were told, and the coronavirus quarantine will be over.
One year later, members of the Class of 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024 have redefined the parameters of being a high school student.
They’ve struggled with the isolation of online learning. Unequivocally, they miss their friends and the loud, happy moments in and between classes. They miss kicking it after school and hanging out before practice for band, baseball, basketball. They’ve picked up hobbies, clung to their passions. They’ve fought to stay motivated. Grades have both slipped and risen. They have experienced loneliness."
California police degraded women in texts, called COVID patient 'outbreak monkey'
Sac Bee's JASON POHL: "The vulgar, explicit text messages between a squad at the Eureka Police Department took a violent turn on April 20, 2020, after a suspect posted bail and walked out of jail.
The man had been arrested with an arsenal of loaded guns, a silencer and other equipment, including body armor that had belonged to the group’s supervisor, Sgt. Rodrigo Reyna-Sanchez. The sergeant exploded in the group chat.
“He also had one of my tac vests that I had loaned to code enforcement!! Face shoot the f-----!!!” the sergeant wrote. “He was one of my first arrests!!! Sent him to prison for a minute!!”"