Sacramento teachers plan to strike Wednesday if no deal. Last walkout was in 1989.
Sacramento Bee's DIANA LAMBERT: "Sacramento City Unified teachers said they will strike next Wednesday if the school district doesn’t agree to bigger pay increases, reduced class sizes and improved working conditions."
"The announcement came Thursday afternoon at a Sacramento City Teachers Association rally before the district’s regular school board meeting. The prospect of the city district’s first strike since 1989 left teachers, administrators and parents on edge as they waited to see if a deal could avoid impacting 47,000 students."
"About 1,000 people gathered outside district offices Thursday afternoon, many holding signs stating “Let’s make Sac City the destination district” and “Great teachers together.” They cheered and, when appropriate, booed in response to statements from union president David Fisher, who stood atop a utility box."
Speaking of schools, districts around the state are making use of a loophole to reap millions by okaying far-flung charters
From JESSICA CALEFATI at CALmatters: "Several small, cash-strapped California school districts are using a loophole in state law to boost their revenue by overseeing a raft of far-flung charter schools, according to a recent report published by the state auditor."
"The result, the report says: dismal academic results for thousands of students and a lot of extra money for the districts, one of which increased its revenue more than 10-fold."
"Charter schools usually can’t open in California until they find districts willing to track their performance. The agreements are supposed to be limited by geography, but a handful of districts have authorized charters located many miles outside their geographic boundaries—some as far as 50 miles away."
Five potential pitfalls for Republican tax overhaul effort
McClatchy DC's EMMA DUMAIN: "Even the most cynical and contrarian of House Republicans gave the GOP’s new tax overhaul plans rave reviews, but that party unity isn’t going to last."
"In fact, it began to dissolve mere hours after they learned details of the 429-page bill."
"Also lurking are the lobbyists and special interests. While Republican leaders dismissed complaints from outside advocates and industry groups, powerful factions will inevitably become too loud to ignore."
More on the GOP tax plan: Its provisions include a hit for California homeowners.
From the LA Times' LISA MASCARO/JIM PUZZANGHERA: "House Republicans released a sweeping tax overhaul Thursday that would limit or end many of the most popular tools used to minimize how much Americans owe— particularly in high-cost areas like California -- including lowering the cap on mortgage interest deductions and eliminating write-offs of state income taxes."
"The much-anticipated rollout launches a grueling legislative process that will test GOP unity in the coming weeks as the party struggles to deliver one of President’s Trump’s top priorities."
"The plan would immediately slash the corporate tax rate to 20% from 35% and streamline individual rates from seven brackets into four."
READ MORE related to Tax Changes: Mortgage deduction cap would hit some California home buyers -- McClatchy DC's EMILY CADEI
New liberal challenger to Sen. Dianne Feinstein launches bid on TYT
LA Times' SARAH D. WIRE: A new Democratic candidate used a popular liberal news show Thursday to launch a bid to oust Dianne Feinstein, saying it’s time for California’s longtime senator to go."
"Dianne Feinstein isn’t doing it at all,” said 37-year-old Alison Hartson, the leader of a group aimed at getting money out of politics, in an interview with the Los Angeles Times."
"We as a progressive movement, we have got to take this fight to the doorstep of Congress,” she said."
Scam emerges targeting CalPERS retirees
Sacramento Bee's ADAM ASHTON: "Watch out, CalPERS retirees. A phone call that appears to come from the state’s largest public pension fund might in fact be from a scam artist."
"The California Public Employees’ Retirement System is warning its members to look out for a scam that tells them they owe money to the pension fund."
"A caller reportedly is telling retirees that they have to send money through prepaid credit cards in order to receive their pensions."
Why President Donald Trump's Twitter page was briefly deactivated
Sacramento Bee's NOEL HARRIS: "From government updates to “covfefe” and more, President Donald Trump is very active and very popular on Twitter."
"However, for about 11 minutes, Trump’s social media forum, which has more than 41.7 million followers, was inadvertently silenced. During that short window, anyone who searched for Trump’s account instead saw “Sorry, that page doesn’t exist!”
"According to a post by Twitter Government, an employee with the site accidentally shut down the president’s account."
READ MORE related to POTUS45: On last day of work, Twitter employee deactivates President Trump's account -- LA Times' JESSICA ROY
391 malfunctions, 16 injuries, 1 death get 44 years of fire extinguishers recalled
Miami Herald's DAVID J. NEAL/JULIE K. BROWN: "Fire extinguisher maker Kidde recalled 40.5 million fire extinguishers Wednesday, a recall that covers 134 models manufactured over 44 years including models involved in two previous recalls."
"This comes three years after a car fire that turned fatal after a Kidde fire extinguisher failed to work."
"The problem with the fire extinguishers, as stated in the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission recall notice, is “The fire extinguishers can become clogged or require excessive force to discharge and can fail to activate during a fire emergency. In addition, the nozzle can detach with enough force to pose an impact hazard.”
Sacramento council members question expansion of pot sales after audit cites non-compliance issues
Sacramento Bee's BRAD BRANAN: "Some Sacramento City Council members say they will not allow medical marijuana dispensaries to sell recreational pot until they take care of problems identified in a recent audit."
"The City Council is expected to discuss how to regulate sales of marijuana for recreational use on Nov. 28, about a month before such commerce becomes legal in California. State voters in November 2016 legalized recreational marijuana for adults, but local governments can decide if and how the drug can be sold in their jurisdictions."
"Council members on Tuesday night discussed a critical reportfrom the Office of the City Auditor. The audit examined the city’s 30 medical marijuana dispensaries and found instances of under-reporting of tax revenue and failures to comply with city operational regulations. Violations included smoking marijuana on site and selling more plants than allowed. Auditors also had trouble obtaining financial information from dispensaries that the businesses are required to supply."
LA family disappears after pirate raid in Amazon forest, then re-emerges on a surfboard
LA Times' MATT PEARCE/JILL LANGLOIS: "ach day, tens of thousands of people around the world scroll through their Instagram feeds for news of Adam and Emily Harteau and their travels through South America with their kids in an old Volkswagen van."
"One day, the Harteaus and their daughters, ages 3 and 7, are lounging on an isolated beach, far from the worries the couple left behind in Los Angeles in 2012."
AP: "Cuba's foreign minister on Thursday accused the United States of lying about mysterious sonic attacks that U.S. diplomats in Havana say left them with ailments including headaches, hearing problems and concussions."
"Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez said the U.S. was "deliberately lying" about the attacks, which Cuba's government has denied any knowledge of."
"Speaking at a news conference, Rodriguez alleged the issue has been used "as a political pretext for damaging bilateral relations and eliminating the progress made" under U.S. President Barrack Obama."
