California drought resurrects decades-old plan for controversial Sites Reservoir
LAT, LOUIS SAHAGUN: “A long-dead proposal to flood a bucolic valley north of Sacramento and create a massive reservoir for thirsty Southern California is finding new life — and opposition — amid the effects of climate change and worsening drought.
First conceived in the 1950s, the Sites Reservoir project was abandoned in the 1980s — the twilight years of America’s big Western dam-building projects. Now, decades later, a Southwestern megadrought and historic water restrictions in Los Angeles, Ventura and San Bernardino counties are fueling renewed interest in the plan, much to the dismay of environmentalists.
Recently, the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California appropriated $20 million for project planning, saying the reservoir would make the region’s water supply more resilient in times of drought.”
COVID-19 spikes in California state offices, forcing departments to revisit reopening plans
WES VENTEICHER, SacBee: "The latest COVID-19 surge has hit California state offices, forcing department leaders to decide whether to stick to in-person work or allow employees to go back to working from home.
Many of the largest departments called employees back to offices over the last three months as cases dwindled, typically requiring them to work in the buildings one to three days a week.
But the variants that have quintupled the statewide infection rate over the last two months are also infecting state employees. And while some departments are beginning to soften in-office requirements, others are holding to reopening plans that had already been repeatedly delayed."
Lawmaker moves to oust Assembly Speaker Rendon
JOHN HOWARD, Capitol Weekly: "Assemblymember Robert Rivas, a Salinas Democrat who grew up in a farm worker family, moved Friday to capture the Assembly speakership. A formal transfer of authority may come as early as next week.
Rivas, 42, said he met Friday morning with the current Speaker Anthony Rendon, D-Lakewood, and told him of his plans. He told Rendon in a letter that “I have the votes,” adding that he hoped for an “orderly transition,” according to several sources.
He had rounded up 34 votes, sources said, and at least seven more — the minimum needed — appeared all but certain."
Governor’s budget good for higher education — mostly
SETH SANDRONSKY, Capitol Weekly: "Times are flush in the Golden State, fiscally speaking. With a total budget surplus of $97.5 billion, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s May budget revision prioritizes the funding of higher education. Just ask Chancellor Eloy Ortiz Oakley, who helms the California Community Colleges.
In a prepared statement, he praised the governor’s proposed spending recommendation for 2022-2023.
“The Governor’s revised budget proposal provides unprecedented levels of support for California community colleges, strengthening our ability to advance educational equity and economic mobility for students and their families,” he said. “This includes the largest increase in per-student funding, and investments in faculty support, reducing our deferred maintenance backlog, modernization of technology infrastructure to better serve students and across-the-board funding increases to continue to improve student achievement.”
Counselors not part of one California district's plan to tackle student mental health
EdSource, CAROLYN JONES: “Faced with escalating student mental health needs, one California school district is trying an unusual new approach – one that does not include counselors.
Saugus Union School District in northern Los Angeles County, which in recent years has endured a nearby school shooting, wildfires and increasing political polarization, is eliminating all four of its counselor positions and replacing them with social workers. In the fall, the district will have nine social workers and no counselors.
The idea is that social workers are better trained to address some root causes of student anxiety and depression, such as poverty and other hardships that lie beyond the classroom, said Superintendent Colleen Hawkins. They’re also more experienced in working directly with families and connecting them to community services, she said.”
Does California have enough water for lots of new homes? Yes, experts say
LAT, LIAM DILLON: “To some, it defies common sense. California is once again in the middle of a punishing drought with state leaders telling people to take shorter showers and do fewer loads of laundry to conserve water. Yet at the same time, many of the same elected officials, pledging to solve the housing crisis, are pushing for the construction of millions of new homes.
“It’s the first question I’d always get,” said Jeffrey Kightlinger, who until last year ran the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, the agency that delivers the water ultimately used by half the state’s population. “How in the world are you approving new housing when we’re running out of water?”
The answer, according to Kightlinger and other experts, is that there’s plenty of water available for new Californians if the 60-year trend of residents using less continues and accelerates into the future.”
Mass shootings and higher prices. What Californians are worried about
ANDREW SHEELER, SacBee: "Californians are understandably worried about mass shootings, both in the wake of the most recent shooting in Uvalde, Texas, and in the aftermath of countless such shootings that have taken place in the Golden State.
According to a May 2021 survey from the Public Policy Institute of California, about half of California adults consistently express concern about a mass shooting happening in the area where they live.
Though that number is actually down from September 2019, when 66% said they were concerned, and January 2016, when 57% said they were."
California had almost 20,000 extra pandemic deaths through last year. Here’s why they’re missing from official COVID stats
The Chronicle, SUSIE NEILSON: “COVID-19 has officially killed more than 90,000 Californians, roughly equivalent to the populations of Santa Barbara and San Leandro. But research suggests the true toll of the pandemic could be much higher, with more than 20,000 “hidden” excess deaths concentrated in the southernmost counties, plus a handful of rural counties to the north.
These deaths, according to researchers, are a combination of uncounted COVID-19 fatalities — some deliberately overlooked for political reasons — and deaths from other pandemic-related causes, like gun violence, traffic accidents, overdoses and strained hospital systems.
California recorded about 75,000 COVID-19 deaths through 2021, according to data collected by researchers from the National Center for Health Statistics. But over that same time frame, the state recorded 95,000 more deaths than it probably would have in a pre-pandemic period, leaving about 19,000 deaths unaccounted for by the official COVID tallies. These non-COVID excess deaths, known as residual excess deaths, increase the pandemic’s death toll by 25% through the end of 2021.”
LA County posts 12,694 confirmed cases of COVID-19 over Memorial Day weekend
SoCal News, CITY NEWS SERVICE: “Los Angeles County public health officials reported 12,694 confirmed cases of COVID-19 over the Memorial Day holiday weekend, with 13 COVID-related deaths.
The county reported 2,901 new cases Monday, 4,108 cases Sunday and 5,685 on Saturday, raising the cumulative total from throughout the pandemic to 2,974,197.
The daily rate of people testing positive for the virus was 3.7% as of Monday.”
Bill would allow lawsuits for marketing guns to kids
CALMatters, NIGEL DUARA: “The man at the gun show lifted a 2.2 pound rifle and pulled back the stock with an audible “chock,” presenting it to the YouTube segment’s host.
“When we set out to produce a small firearm for children in an AR-looking package, we were pretty sure we needed to have a ‘wow factor’ in the safety area,” Eric Schmid, owner of Wee 1 Tactical, said in a video uploaded in January.
What Utah-based Wee 1 Tactical produced was a smaller model of the AR-15, called the JR-15. Schmid was in Las Vegas in January to promote the smaller weapon, which the company pledges will look and feel “just like Mom and Dad’s gun.””
From beaches to Boyle Heights, Memorial Day events in LA County honored fallen military members
Daily News, STAFF AND NEWS SERVICE REPORTS: “Residents in and around Los Angeles County gathered anew on Memorial Day, Monday, May 30, after two years of ceremonies scaled back or cancelled by the coronavirus pandemic, to honor fallen members of the armed services.
From the beaches to Boyle Heights to Burbank, color guards marched, choirs harmonized, speakers delivered passionate patriotic passages and families and friends recalled their loved one who died in service to the nation.
Many tapped the holiday break to dance, feast and soak in the sun, heading out to…”
Rising rents and police abolition roil an Eastside race for L.A. City Council
LAT, DAVID ZAHNISER: “Five years ago, Los Angeles City Councilman Gil Cedillo faced a serious election scare. Despite having numerous advantages — money, endorsements, the power of incumbency — he was pushed into a runoff election by the owner of a bicycle shop.
Cedillo easily prevailed in Round 2, after his opponent’s campaign imploded over incendiary social media posts. But now, as he runs for a third and final term, the veteran lawmaker is facing an even more spirited challenge — and this time, things are a bit more evenly matched.
Community activist Eunisses Hernandez has the backing of several progressive grass-roots groups, including the local chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America. She’s raised at least $242,000 in private donations and an additional $161,000 in public matching funds, according to the most recent city records.”
L.A. school board races like no other in recent memory: less spending, little mudslinging
LAT, HOWARD BLUME: “There hasn’t been a school board election quite like this in Los Angeles Unified in more than a decade — no record spending, much less mudslinging — and no deluge of campaign mailers with candidates backed by the teachers union facing off against those backed by charter school advocates or a city mayor.
Still, there’s a lot at stake leading up to the June 7 primary for three board seats: Topmost is overseeing the academic and emotional recovery of students from the COVID-19 pandemic. And that will mean getting the most out of record-high, short-term funding. The seven-member governing board also must navigate rapidly dropping enrollment, which could lead to school closures and worsen potentially serious long-term financial stress.
The two incumbents, Kelly Gonez and Nick Melvoin, face no well-funded challenge, even though the teachers union spent millions to oppose their first bids for office in 2017. This time the teachers union is endorsing Gonez and silently conceding to Melvoin.”
Asian Americans are typecast as successful students, but new report finds troubling gaps
LAT, TERESA WATANABE: “Asian Americans are often seen as successful students, but the stereotype masks “incredibly disconcerting” gaps in college outcomes among the multiple ethnic groups who make up the larger community in California, according to a new report released Tuesday.
Among the first-year, full-time students who entered the University of California in 2013, six-year graduation rates vary from about 90% for those of Chinese, Vietnamese and Indian descent to about 70% for Samoans and Hmong undergraduates, according to the report by the Campaign for College Opportunity. At California State University, about 85% of transfer students of Japanese and Filipino ancestry graduate in four years compared with less than 70% for Native Hawaiian, Bangladeshi and Tongan students.
The 95-page report details other stark differences in academic achievement among California’s Asian American and Pacific Islander subgroups, including qualification for UC and Cal State admission, completion of community college degree or certificate programs and attainment of bachelor’s degrees. Data on 30 subgroups were examined.”
Environment takes center stage on final day of LA Fleet Week
SCNG*Daily News, KRISTY HUTCHINGS: “LA Fleet Week may be coming to a close this Memorial Day, with the holiday drawing large crowds, but some organizations are hoping their outreach over the course of the long weekend will last.
The event — the first in-person Fleet Week since 2019 — featured four days of Armed Forces celebrations centered on sea services including the U.S. Navy, Coast Guard and Marine Corps. Today’s events closed with a Memorial Day Service in honor of veterans across the country.
While Fleet Week offers attendees a glimpse behind the closed doors of the military’s technical operations and equipment, it’s also a forum for community outreach. This year, environmental education took center stage at Fleet Week — with attendees varying from the Navy’s Stewards of the Sea to San Pedro’s Cabrillo Marine Aquarium.”
NOT A HAIR OUT OF PLACE: We built an algorithm that analyzes hair representation in the media. Here’s why it matters
The Chronicle, KATLYN SOFAEA ALO ALAPATI: “California state Sen. Holly Mitchell’s golden dreadlocks spiraled onto her shoulders in loose helixes as she stood in the Senate chamber and asked her colleagues to educate themselves about Black people’s hair.
It was April 22, 2019, and the Los Angeles Democrat was introducing legislation to extend legal protection to hair as essential to a person’s racial identity.
“We’re talking about hairstyles like mine, quite frankly, which would, without question, fit in an image of professionalism if bias and stereotypes were not involved,” said Mitchell, now a Los Angeles County supervisor.”
Berkeley has a downtown housing boom right now. It’s going to transform the city’s character
The Chronicle, JOHN KING: “Visit central Berkeley and there are sights you expect to see: the Campanile rising serenely from the heart of campus. Students on the sidewalks, even after commencement. Aging men and women dressed as if it’s still 1974.
And then there’s the unexpected — like a downtown housing boom that shows no sign of dying down.
At least 10 apartment buildings ranging in height from five to 14 stories are under construction in downtown Berkeley, most of them within a block of the district’s spine, Shattuck Avenue. An equal number are approved or under review, including a proposed 25-story housing tower that would be only 60 feet shorter than the Campanile — the city’s tallest building.”
Catholic woman suing LA County coroner over slain son’s cremation poised for $445,000 settlement
SCNG*OC Register, SCOTT SCHWEBKE: “A Tijuana woman who sued the Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office over the cremation of her slain son’s remains, in violation of her religious faith, is poised to receive a $445,000 settlement.
A recommendation from the Office of County Counsel, aimed at resolving a federal lawsuit filed by Maria Elvira Quintanilla Cebreros, was presented earlier this month to the Los Angeles County Claims Board.
“Due to the risks and uncertainties of litigation, the County Counsel proposes a full and final settlement of this case,” attorney Brian T. Chu said in the recommendation.”
Biden sees chance of ‘rational’ Republican approach on guns
AP: “President Joe Biden said Monday that the “Second Amendment was never absolute” and that, after the Texas elementary school shooting, there may be some bipartisan support to tighten restrictions on the kind of high-powered weapons used by the gunman.
“I think things have gotten so bad that everybody’s getting more rational, at least that’s my hope,” Biden told reporters before honoring the nation’s fallen in Memorial Day remarks at Arlington National Cemetery.
His comments came a day after he traveled to the shattered Texas community of Uvalde, mourning privately for three-plus hours with anguished families grieving for the 19 children and two teachers who died in the shooting. Faced with chants of “do something” as he departed a church service, Biden pledged: “We will.””
Russian forces close in on takeover of eastern Ukrainian province
LA Times, PATRICK J. MCDONNELL, NABIH BULOS: “Ukrainian forces desperately tried to block a complete Russian takeover of one of the country’s two eastern provinces Tuesday, with Russian troops clawing out incremental gains even as European leaders agreed to a partial oil embargo aimed at starving Moscow’s mammoth war machine.
A combined force of Russian troops, Chechen fighters and pro-Moscow separatists slugged their way deeper into Severodonetsk, the Ukrainian government’s seat of power in the province of Luhansk, seizing a sizable portion of a city that has been almost completely destroyed in the fighting.
“We can say that a third of Severodonetsk is already under our control,” said Leonid Pasechnik, the Moscow-backed leader of the self-proclaimed breakaway Luhansk People’s Republic, in an interview with Russian state news operator Tass. He added that his forces controlled 95% of Luhansk’s territory.”
