College professor held in wildland arson spree near California’s massive Dixie Fire
SAM STANTON, SacBee: "A college professor suspected in a series of arson fires in remote forested areas of Northern California near the massive Dixie Fire has been charged in connection with one of the blazes in Lassen County and was ordered held Tuesday in the Sacramento County Main Jail.
Gary Stephen Maynard, 47, is believed to have worked at a number of colleges in California, including Santa Clara University and Sonoma State University, where a Dr. Gary Maynard is listed as a lecturer in criminal justice studies specializing in criminal justice, cults and deviant behavior.
Sonoma State spokeswoman Julia Gonzalez said Maynard is no longer with the university."
Dixie Fire now among state's most destructive wildfires: More than 500 homes destroyed
LAUREN HERNANDEZ and OMAR SHAIKH RASHAD, Chronicle: "The Dixie Fire has destroyed more than 500 homes, making it among the most destructive fires in California’s history.
Firefighters provided the information on property destruction on Tuesday night, saying the fire had destroyed 1,027 structures, including 547 single residences, eight multiple-residences, 131 non-residential commercial, eight mixed-use commercial and residential structures, and 333 “minor structures.”
That ranks the Dixie Fire as the 15th most destructive fire in state history. It already was ranked as the second largest wildfire in state history, having burned 490,205 acres by Tuesday night.
Gov. Newsom expected to order school employees to get vaccinated or be tested regularly
JOHN MYERS and HOWARD BLUME, LA Times: "California school employees must either be vaccinated against COVID or submit to a regular test proving they are not infected with the coronavirus under a pending order from Gov. Gavin Newsom, sources told the Times Tuesday night.
Representatives of the Newsom administration briefly discussed the basic outlines of the plan with educators, according to two sources who said Tuesday that they were not authorized to speak publicly in advance of Newsom’s formal announcement.
Newsom had already announced a similar policy for employees of state agencies and an absolute mandate, with limited religious and medical exceptions, for state healthcare workers.
The governor is scheduled to visit an Alameda County elementary school on Wednesday, where details of the proposal are expected to be unveiled. A spokesperson for Newsom declined to comment Tuesday night on the event or the announcement. The proposal was first reported Tuesday night by Politico."
READ MORE ON VACCINATIONS: Newsom to announce nation's first vax-or-test rules for teachers -- MACKENZIE MAYS, Politico; SFUSD to Require COVID Vaccinations for Staff — or Weekly Testing -- KQED; L.A. COVID-19 surge slowing, but cases likely to keep rising as school begins -- LUKE MONEY and RONG-GONG LIN II, LA Times
California just recorded its hottest July ever. Charts show it's part of a trend
KELLIE HWANG, Chronicle: "California just closed the books on its hottest July on record, a whopping 5.3 degrees above normal.
It was the latest in a rash of record-setting months over the past year, as the state saw its hottest July, June, October, September and August in history, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
NOAA data shows that the average monthly temperature in July was 80 degrees, 5.3 degrees above normal, or the average temperature from 1901 to 2000. June’s average temperature was 75 degrees, 6.8 degrees above normal."
Census delay squeezes California’s redistricting
DAN WALTERS, CalMatters: "The Census Bureau will release results of the 2020 census this week, setting the stage for the decennial process of redrawing California’s legislative, congressional and Board of Equalization districts to equalize their populations for the 2022 elections and beyond.
Thousands of cities, counties, school districts and other units of local government also will use the data to reconfigure their own districts.
However, the “legacy format” release is four-plus months later than the original date, the Census Bureau says, because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the delay squeezes California’s independent redistricting commission to finalize maps in time for the 2022 election cycle."
Washington state resident gives $1 million to fight recall
BRADY THOMSON, Capitol Weekly: "A million-dollar donation to fight the recall effort against Gov. Gavin Newsom came from Washington state, not California, and from a name familiar in the world of finance and high tech.
Connie Ballmer, who is married to former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, contributed $1 million to Newsom’s campaign, the second-largest donation thus far to the anti-recall effort. The largest came from Netflix CEO Reed Hastings, at $3 million.
Connie Ballmer, who lives in Bellevue, Wash., donated the $1 million on July 29, according to the secretary of state."
How Daisy Gonzales went from foster care to the top of the nation's largest system of higher education
ASHLEY A. SMITH, EdSource: "Just who is Daisy Gonzales, California’s new acting community colleges chancellor? Her journey, which she describes as an “incredible story,” may resonate with many of the system’s 2 million students.
“I became aware that I was in foster care at the age of 4” she said. As a child, Gonzales grew up in a variety of places including group homes, child care facilities, and even with relatives.
As she made her way, earning a Ph.D. and serving the last four years as deputy chancellor of the system, Gonzales has proudly worn her foster care identity as a “badge of honor.”
Out of prison, then out of country. Poll asks Californians’ view on deporting undocumented
ANDREA BRISEÑO, SacBee: "Most Californians want to end the so-called double punishment of undocumented people, who often are deported once completing a prison or jail sentence, a poll shows.
Currently, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is notified of the release dates of suspected foriegn-born inmates by the state’s Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR). Although the CDCR isn’t legally obligated to work with ICE, the agencies coordinate to transfer undocumented inmates to detention facilities, where they ultimately are criminalized and deported, according to the immigrant rights group ICE Out of California.
The poll, conducted by the U.S. Immigration Policy Center at the University of California, San Diego, and commissioned by Asian Americans Advancing Justice — Asian Law Caucus (ALC), shows about 67% of Californians support or strongly support the Voiding Inequality and Seeking Inclusion for Our Immigrant Neighbors (VISION) Act, a bill authored by Assemblywoman Wendy Carrillo."
Capitol Weekly Podcast: Two new case books from Chris Micheli
Capitol Weekly Staff: "Longtime lobbyist Chris Micheli stops by the Capitol Weekly Podcast to talk with John Howard and Tim Foster about his TWO new case books: Introduction to California State Government and Cases and Materials on Direct Democracy in California.
Micheli, a lawyer and an adjunct professor at the University of the Pacific’s McGeorge School of Law has published numerous books on the subject of lobbying, and explains the value of his these latest resources.
Plus, as always, we tell you who had the Worst Week in California Politics."
Fake signatures and stolen signs: One Boudin recall effort sputters on eve of key deadline
MEGAN CASSIDY, Chronicle: "One of two dueling efforts to oust San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin was sputtering on the eve of a signature gathering deadline, while a second, more well-heeled recall campaign still looms large over the progressive prosecutor.
Richie Greenberg, a former Republican mayoral candidate in San Francisco who launched the first initiative in March, said Tuesday that his group’s efforts in recent weeks were hindered by batches of fake signatures and confusion over the two separate campaigns.
“Our confidence level has dropped a bit,” Greenberg said Tuesday while out gathering signatures near Geary and Webster streets in Japantown."
