California is facing a huge budget deficit. Here’s how it got so bad
The Chronicle, SOPHIA BOLLAG: "Though the U.S. economy is, by many measures, doing well and has not dipped into a feared recession, Gov. Gavin Newsom and California lawmakers face a daunting budget deficit.
The nonpartisan Legislative Analyst’s Office, which makes budget predictions for state lawmakers, estimates that they will have to reduce planned spending by $68 billion. For context, the 2023-24 budget represents $310.8 billion in spending."
California Gov. Gavin Newsom has a $68 billion problem on his hands. What will he do?
Sacramento Bee, ANDREW SHEELER: ""IT’S BUDGET DAY. YOU KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS
The Super Bowl is still more than a month away, but the Super Bowl of California politics is happening today!"
What to look for when Newsom unveils budget
CALMatters, LYNN LA: "Just ahead of his constitutional deadline, this morning Gov. Gavin Newsom will present his initial spending plan for 2024-25, kicking off six months of negotiating, demanding and perhaps a little whining for good measure.
That’s particularly the case when the governor and state legislators must figure out how to cover a huge budget deficit. Some key questions to keep in mind:"
Katie Porter’s first TV ad is Bay Area-only. Here’s what it says about the Senate race
The Chronicle, JOE GAROFOLI: " Orange County Rep. Katie Porter is dropping the first TV ad of her Senate campaign in the Bay Area on Wednesday, a campaign spokesperson told the Chronicle, a move that shows that Porter’s campaign thinks Oakland Rep. Barbara Lee’s support in the region is weak.
Porter, Lee and Rep. Adam Schiff, of Burbank are the leading Democrats battling to replace Sen. Laphonza Butler, who Gov. Gavin Newsom appointed in October to replace Sen. Dianne Feinstein. Butler is not running for a full term. Lee is the only one of those candidates from Northern California, which typically has a higher voter turnout than other parts of the state. Lee’s campaign told the Chronicle last week that part of its strategy — along with targeting millennial Black and Latino voters — is to turn out the vote in the Bay Area."
Northern California legislator steps away from work after suffering stroke
The Chronicle, MEGAN FAN MUNCE: "California Assembly Member Megan Dahle suffered a stroke over the holidays, forcing her to temporarily step away from work.
Dahle, a Republican representing Redding, released a statement Tuesday night announcing that she was hospitalized before Christmas for heart complications. While in the hospital, Dahle developed a blood clot which caused a stroke, she wrote."
Gov. Newsom calls for new laws targeting retail thieves amid rash of robberies
BANG*Mercury News, JOHN WOOLFOLK: "Gov. Gavin Newsom called for new laws targeting retail thieves Tuesday amid a rash of brazen robberies often captured on video and spread on social media and TV newscasts that have tarnished the Golden State’s image — and drawn scrutiny to criminal justice reforms he backed.
Newsom’s legislative framework adds teeth to prosecution of people he says are “professional thieves.” He called for increasing felony penalties and prison time for those who resell stolen goods. He also called for new penalties for auto burglary and for possession of items stolen from a vehicle, locked or not, with intent to resell."
Aaron Rodgers and Donald Trump both represent a dangerous war on accountability"
LA Times, LORRAINE ALI: "The battle for accountability in a culture of impunity — one in which reality increasingly plays second fiddle to conspiracy theories and disinformation — heated up Tuesday when a football star doubled down on his baseless claims about a late-night host and a federal appeals court judge scrutinized a former president’s claim of immunity from prosecution for his role in a violent insurrection.
It’s not a stretch to mention in the same breath New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who has asserted without evidence that Jimmy Kimmel was associated with the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, and Donald Trump, who pushed the unfounded narrative that he is immune from criminal charges related to efforts to overturn the 2020 election, a campaign that was itself based on lies. After all, neither of these men have facts on their side. They simply have public platforms, colorful stories and a victim complex — all key ingredients in the art of ignoring the facts to amass a following.
Massive California snowstorm could make travel ‘impossible’ in these areas
The Chronicle, JESSICA FLORES: "A winter storm warning was issued for a large swath of the Sierra mountains, where major snowfall was expected to create “impossible driving conditions” starting Tuesday night and through Wednesday, according to weather officials.
The warning was in effect from 10 p.m. Tuesday through 10 p.m. Wednesday for Western Plumas County, the Lassen Volcanic National Park area and the west slope of the northern Sierra Nevada, including Interstate 80 over Donner Pass, Highway 50 over Echo Summit, and Highway 88 over Carson Pass, according to the National Weather Service."
READS MORE -- California’s biggest winter storm so far is on its way. Will it put a dent in the ‘snow drought’? -- LA Times, SUMMER LIN
What we know about home COVID tests may have changed with newer variants like JN.1
The Chronicle, AIDIN VAZIRI: "The widespread availability of rapid antigen tests has made at-home COVID-19 screening quick and convenient. But federal health officials caution that these tests, while invaluable in detecting infections and curbing spread of the coronavirus, may have become less reliable due to the emergence of newer omicron variants such as JN.1.
What is the best way now to navigate testing as the Bay Area faces another winter COVID-19 surge? While familiar advice still applies, experts offer additional insights in light of the evolving nature of the virus, which can make people sick faster than it used to."
Cal State faculty plan 5-day strike after administrators impose 5% pay hike
The Chronicle, NANETTE ASIMOV: "Hours after California State University officials announced on Tuesday plans to award a 5% pay hike to tens of thousands of professors, lecturers, counselors, librarians and coaches, the union representing those employees said they will launch a five-day statewide strike over salaries and working conditions beginning Jan. 22.
The strike will take place at all 23 CSU campuses, including the five in the Bay Area: San Francisco State, California State University East Bay, San Jose State, Sonoma State and California Maritime Academy in Vallejo."
READ MORE -- Cal State faculty union vows to strike over the university’s final pay offer -- CALMatters, MIKHAIL ZINSHTEYN
Hanford program supports teen parents while they finish high school
EdSource, LASHERICA THORNTON: "Pregnant in high school, 14-year-old first-year high school student Giselle Meza said she feared she’d be judged by her peers. She was one of only two pregnant teens at her school and felt isolated. She missed a lot of classes, falling behind.
Statistically, Meza has about a 50% chance of dropping out of school altogether. She hasn’t; instead, she withdrew from Hanford High to participate in Helping Our Parenting Students Excel at Kings Valley Academy, a Learn4Life campus — a network of dozens of public charter high schools across the state and nation."
Hundreds of acres in Wine Country transferred to California State Parks as open space
The Chronicle, DANIELLE ECHEVERRIA: "Around 650 acres of open space on the much-debated Sonoma Developmental Center property in Wine Country has been transferred to California State Parks, the agency said this week, cementing its status as protected land.
Part of the 945-acre property near Glen Ellen, which is owned by the state of California, once housed the Sonoma Developmental Center, one of several state-run institutions for severely disabled people. The campus, closed in 2018, is slated to be redeveloped into a mixed-use development with hundreds of units of housing — a plan that was a point of contention between Sonoma County residents, the Board of Supervisors and the state."
Why there’s a new fee on wine and liquor in California this year
The Chronicle, ESTHER MOBLEY: "Starting this month, Californians will pay a little bit more for wine and spirits. The new fee is refundable — but only if they bring their empty bottles to a recycling center, which can be difficult to access.
Just like soda bottles and beer cans, wine and liquor containers are now subject to California Refund Value, thanks to a state law that took effect Jan. 1. That means that when you purchase a bottle of wine, you’ll pay a deposit on it, which you can recover if you return it empty. The deposit is 10 cents for a standard 750-milliliter bottle of wine or liquor, 5 cents for a glass bottle of 24 ounces or less and 25 cents for a non-glass container such as bag-in-box or Tetra Pak."
Captions took over TV. Why can’t they win the silver screen?
LA Times, SONJA SHARP: "Nine-year-old actor Oceana Matsumoto signed emphatically to her father, posing for a snapshot in the lobby of Westwood’s Regency Village Theater, where hundreds of fans had come to catch a special screening of “Barbie” in ASL — American Sign Language.
The Dec. 14 event, which debuted Deaf performer Leila Hanaumi’s interpretation of the bubblegum blockbuster, showcased the cutting edge of accessibility for the Deaf, with the dialogue relayed to viewers through both on-screen captions and sign language."
Sacramento County approves solar project. Here’s how many homes it could power
Sacramento Bee, ARIANE LANGE: "The Sacramento County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday unanimously approved a permit for a 372-acre solar development project on agricultural land near Wilton, the same day that the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service officially announced that 2023 was the hottest year on record. The project would power thousands of homes.
The new 50-megawatt solar project, Sloughhouse Solar, is being developed with the Sacramento Municipal Utility District and D.E. Shaw Renewable Investments by the intersection of Meiss and Dillard roads. SMUD has a goal to reach zero carbon emissions by 2030. Climate change is primarily driven by carbon dioxide emissions."
Supreme Court case about impact fees could have huge consequences for housing in California
CALMatters, BEN CHRISTOPHER: "A dispute between a 72-year-old retiree in Placerville and El Dorado County over a $23,420 building fee got its day before the country’s highest court this morning in a case with potentially seismic consequences for local government budgets and housing markets across California and the country.
At issue is just how far cities and counties have to go to justify “impact fees”: fees slapped on new construction projects in order to offset the toll new developments take on local infrastructure."
This affluent Bay Area county may put hard limit on vacation rentals for first time ever
The Chronicle, GREGORY THOMAS: "For the first time in Marin County, government leaders are poised to reduce and limit the number of short-term rentals that operate there, a move they hope will create more workforce housing for locals and revitalize coastal communities where some residents say there’s been a proliferation of homes operating as full-time Airbnbs.
At a Thursday hearing, county supervisors will consider overhauling how short-term rentals (STRs) — dwellings rented for fewer than 30 days at a time — are regulated in the county’s vast unincorporated lands, including the coastal hamlets around Stinson Beach, Point Reyes and Tomales Bay. A proposed ordinance would create a new licensing program with rules governing, for example, how many rentals an owner can operate and what types of dwellings qualify as STRs."
S.F. investigates homeless shelter operator — the latest nonprofit under scrutiny
The Chronicle, MAGGIE ANGST: "San Francisco is investigating the operator of a nonprofit homeless shelter for alleged wage theft and other labor law violations, the latest social services provider to wind up under scrutiny as city officials call for more accountability.
Pat Mulligan, director of the city’s Office of Labor Standards Enforcement, said his agency launched the investigation into the Providence Foundation of San Francisco in December after receiving complaints from employees."
How will the Boeing 737 Max 9 problem affect air travel"
LA Times, JON HEALY: "As g as the in-flight blowout on Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 was last week, federal officials initially estimated that the problem that caused a gaping hole to open in the plane’s fuselage would be relatively easy to diagnose and fix.
On Tuesday, though, the Federal Aviation Administration said the process will take a bit longer than anticipated. For the time being, all planes configured the same way as Flight 1282 — a recently introduced update to the extremely popular Boeing 737 — would remain grounded.c
From ‘train to nowhere’ to Fresno’s dream: What high-speed rail means for the Central Valley"
CALMatters, YOUSEF BAIG: "Morgan Doizaki reflects often on the stories his mother used to share about how Japan built the world’s first bullet train, the Shinkansen, in the early 1960s.
The country between Tokyo and Osaka was “probably one of the worst pieces of land you could choose,” Doizaki remembers her telling him. There was little reason to stop – until the train arrived. The economic payoff was significant, and these areas became some of the most desirable communities in Japan. "
How one Brentwood guard dog became the poster pup for better treatment of outdoor animals
BANG*Mercury news, JUDITH PRIEVE: "For three years, Rula didn’t have a place to warm herself in the cold, or cool down in the extreme heat.
Used as a guard dog and mostly tethered to a 10-foot-long pulley, the energetic 4-year-old German shepherd/husky mix spent most of her life pacing from end to end in a double-fenced maintenance yard, excitedly wagging her tail on the rare occasions she saw a human."