California must quickly ban plants within 5 feet of homes in fire-prone areas, Newsom says
The Chronicle, JULIE JOHNSON: "Gov. Gavin Newsom is ordering the state to speed up its rulemaking for wildfire safety around homes in fire-prone areas that would ban most plants and combustible materials like mulch and wood fencing.
The rules would require people to clear an area within 5 feet of homes — dubbed zone zero, or an ember resistant zone — of any flammable materials, with the exception of mature trees. The rules would apply only in areas where the risk of fire is rated “very high,” in accordance with the state’s fire-risk designations."
A month after L.A. firestorms, essential questions still haunt Southern California
LAT, RICHARD WINTON/HANNAH FRY/SALVADOR HERNANDEZ: "The first column of black smoke rose from the hills above Pacific Palisades just after 10 a.m. on Jan. 7. A fire in that location so close to homes would bring alarm on any day. But on this one, the Santa Ana winds were reaching hurricane force.
It was the beginning of one of the most momentous, destructive and tragic days in Los Angeles County history."
How Trump tamed the ‘9th Circus’: Legal challenges to White House are moving east
LAT, SONJA SHARP: "More than 18,000 Californians have been born since President Trump signed his executive order to end birthright citizenship last month — among them, about 9,000 children of immigrants.
Yet, when the American Civil Liberties Union sued to stop the Jan. 20 order, it didn’t file in San Francisco, where its lawyers are based and where half of all children have an immigrant parent."
Elon Musk brought down USAID. Can the courts save it?
The Chronicle, RAHEEM HOSSEINI: "Marcia Davidson was commiserating with colleagues on Signal’s encrypted messaging platform when she learned the world’s richest civilian blocked congressional Democrats from entering her employer’s Washington D.C. office on Monday.
Davidson, a senior education adviser at the Agency for International Development — better known as USAID — knew then that Elon Musk’s capture of her micro agency with the humanitarian remit was complete."
Resolutions used in the California Legislature
Capitol Weekly, CHRIS MICHELI: "What is a “resolution” in the California Legislature? Although resolutions and concurrent resolutions are mentioned several times in Article IV of the California Constitution, neither term is defined in that document. There also is not a definition for either term in the Government Code. A traditional definition of a resolution is a written motion that is considered for adoption by a legislative body.
Fundamentally, a resolution is a written measure that expresses the will or the opinion of the Legislature. As opposed to a bill, once adopted, a resolution does not have the force or effect of law. Also, as opposed to bills, resolutions are not presented to the Governor for final consideration."
Migrants welcomed under Biden fearful as Trump targets legal immigration programs
LAT, ANDREA CASTILLO: "Maria Eugenia Torres Ramirez never sought to reside in the United States illegally. A political activist from Venezuela who fiercely opposes President Nicolas Maduro, she approached border agents in Del Rio, Texas, in 2021 and asked for asylum, saying she feared for her life.
Torres Ramirez, 37, fled Venezuela with her two young children after federal police fired shots outside her restaurant and began demanding that employees tell them where they could find her."
Here are the wealthy donors who gave to Daniel Lurie’s inauguration as S.F. mayor
The Chronicle, ALDO TOLEDO/JD MORRIS: "Mayor Daniel Lurie’s inauguration fund brought in nearly $3 million from deep-pocketed donors to pay for the festivities, with donors hailing from major league sports, Silicon Valley, real estate, hospitality and other sectors.
Lurie’s transition team gave the Chronicle access to a 37-page report and list of donors showing donors and how much was spent on the transition and inauguration festivities. The list shows about 150 donors gave a total of $2.7 million to the fund."
Attempt to take over Cal-Am is a gross overreach (OP-ED)
Capitol Weekly, JENNIFER CAPITOLO: "The Monterey Peninsula’s water system is extensive — made up of 680 miles of pipeline and 100 water storage tanks — and provides reliable service to 100,000 residents and businesses throughout Monterey, Carmel, Seaside, Pacific Grove, Pebble Beach, Del Rey Oaks, Sand City, Carmel Valley, Salinas and Chualar. Operated by California American Water (Cal-Am), the region’s vast water system is among the most complex and highly engineered in the state. The scientists, engineers and water managers who quietly work behind the scenes to keep the region’s water running — and demand met — have been embedded members of the community, successfully managing scarce water supplies through climate extremes.
Understanding the need for future sustainable economic and community growth, Cal-Am has been advancing a three-pronged climate adaptation strategy, known as the Monterey Peninsula Water Supply Project. It includes the development of three new water sources for the water-strapped Monterey Peninsula: expanded aquifer storage and recovery, additional groundwater recycling and a new desalination plant to meet current and future water needs."
Donald Trump, San Jose State’s trans volleyball player and the 80 mph spike that wasn’t
The Chronicle, MARISA INGEMI: "The news release from the Department of Education on Thursday announcing an investigation into San Jose State for allowing a transgender player on its women’s volleyball team promoted a false narrative about the velocity of that player’s spikes and the injury risk her participation meant for other players.
The San Jose State volleyball player’s college career is over, and the Spartans’ season ended in November, but the DOE’s decision to relitigate her presence on the team has resurrected demonstrably false claims of documented events."
Hundreds of Sacramento high school students walk out in protest of Trump executive orders
JENNAH PENDLETON, SacBee: "More than 200 C.K. McClatchy High School students walked out of class Thursday morning to protest President Donald Trump’s executive orders affecting immigrants, the LGBTQ+ community and people of color.
“This is a message to all of Sacramento, all of America, that the youth will not just stand by while our future is being stripped away from us,” walkout organizer Chaston “Chaz” Guathier-Jones said over the bullhorn. His message was met with enthusiastic cheers from the crowd that followed him."
West Contra Costa school board slashes staffing to avoid deficit
EdSource, MONICA VELEZ: "West Contra Costa Unified School District’s school board approved a plan Wednesday night that will cut educator and administrative positions, and reduce funds for programs and supplies in order to stay fiscally solvent and avoid a state takeover.
District officials have been grappling with how to cut $32.7 million in costs between 2024 and 2027; cuts for the current school year total $19.7 million."
Residents sue energy companies after massive toxic battery fire at Moss Landing
LAT, CLARA HARTER: "After a massive lithium-ion battery storage site exploded into flames in Monterey County — spewing toxic gases into the air and scattering heavy metals over the ground — residents have filed a lawsuit accusing multiple energy companies of failing to maintain adequate fire safety at the facility.
The blaze began Jan. 16 after a fire suppression system failed inside a battery storage area at the Moss Landing Power Plant, according to local officials. It smoldered for four days at the facility, which is 18 miles up the coast from the city of Monterey, prompting the temporary evacuation of more than 1,200 residents."
Storms continue to push through Northern California but room remains in area reservoirs
DARRELL SMITH, SacBee: "The latest in a series of winter storms moving through the Sacramento area Friday is filling Northern California rivers and reservoirs, but storage remains in the region’s dams including at Folsom and at Oroville, where state water officials began releasing water earlier this week.
Folsom Dam on the American River was at 48% of capacity, or 469,201 acre-feet, monitors at the California Department of Water Resources reported about 9 a.m. Thursday. At an elevation of about 413 feet, the reservoir is at 103% of its historical average, water managers said."
Mysterious land purchases within Joshua Tree National Park worry locals, environmentalists
LAT, ALEX WIGGLESWORTH/LILA SEIDMAN: "The vistas are sprawling and unspoiled. Mountains rim blue-sky horizons, and scrub brush scattered across the rocky desert hills sustain mule deer, bighorn sheep and other wildlife.
Known as Whispering Pines, this roughly 2-square-mile wildland within the boundaries of Joshua Tree National Park was once dotted with rustic vacation cabins. Most are gone now, wiped away by wildfire, floodwaters or simply the passage of time, making it a quiet refuge within the park."
Sacramento County adopts stricter regulations on converted housing for tenant safety
EMMA HALL, SacBee: "Converted housing is when real estate developers repurpose commercial buildings, like hotels, into housing, said Konstantin Safris, a Sacramento real estate agent. Converted housing is used as a way to combat homelessness and supply affordable housing through re-purposing other buildings like motels, he explained.
Affordability was identified as the biggest obstacle in Sacramento County, according to the Sacramento Homelessness Point-in-Time Count. Fifty eight percent of survey recipients said affordable housing needs to be increased throughout the county. In 2024, 6,615 county residents experienced homelessness, the survey stated."
Apartments for formerly homeless people to open in Sacramento suburb.
THERESA CLIFT, SacBee: "An apartment building for formerly homeless people will open in Roseville this spring with a government loan, the Roseville City Council decided Wednesday.
The project, called Sunrose Apartments, will be located in a former Hampton Inn & Suites near the corner of North Sunrise Avenue and Douglas Boulevard near Interstate 80. In 2020, the city placed homeless people in the hotel to protect them from the COVID pandemic through a state program called Project Roomkey. It then secured $23.5 million in state funding to acquire and redevelop the hotel into permanent housing for the homeless through Project Homekey."