California is missing out on billions of gallons of stormwater each year, report finds
LAT's HAYLEY SMITH: "For too long, California and other states have viewed stormwater as either a threat or an inconvenience — something to be whisked away from cities and communities as quickly as possible.
But as traditional sources of water face worsening strain from climate change, population growth, agriculture and other factors, those unused gallons of rainwater pouring across asphalt or down rain gutters are starting to be viewed as an untapped resource that can help close the widening gap between supply and demand."
Roll reversal: Gavin Newsom defends minimum wage law, says Panera is not exempt
The Chronicle's SOPHIA BOLLAG: "A day after Bloomberg reported that Gov. Gavin Newsom pushed for an exemption from a fast-food minimum wage law that benefits Panera Bread, Newsom’s office said it had reviewed the law and determined Panera is not exempt after all.
The law requires fast-food chains to increase their workers’ minimum wages to $20 an hour on April 1. It contains an exemption for fast-food restaurants that bake and sell their own bread, which Bloomberg reported effectively carves out Panera from the minimum wage requirements."
Garvey and Schiff lead in Senate race, well positioned for runoff, poll shows
LAT's BENJAMIN ORESKES: "Rep. Adam B. Schiff’s campaign strategy of spending millions to highlight Republican Senate candidate Steve Garvey’s conservative record appears to have paid off, making Garvey a strong favorite to emerge from Tuesday’s primary as Schiff’s general election opponent.
That’s the finding of the latest UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies poll co-sponsored by The Times. The survey finds Schiff, the veteran Democratic congressman from Burbank, and Garvey, the former Dodgers star first baseman, in effect tied for the lead in the primary just days before the election."
Nithya Raman, Kevin De León got more homeless people off the street. Will that sway voters?
LAT's DAKOTA SMITH: "Nithya Raman won a spot on the Los Angeles City Council four years ago by promising to ease the city’s homelessness crisis.
Now, the council member points to her work reducing the number of people living on the street in her Silver Lake-to-Reseda district as she runs for reelection."
Sources: Progressive S.F. Supervisor Aaron Peskin plans to run for mayor against London Breed
The Chronicle's J.D. MORRIS: "San Francisco Board of Supervisors President Aaron Peskin has privately informed associates that he intends to run for mayor in November in a bid to unseat London Breed, according to two people who said the progressive lawmaker informed them directly of his plans.
Peskin said in an interview Thursday that while he has “certainly warmed up to the idea” of running for mayor, he has recently been solely focused on passing an affordable housing bond in Tuesday’s election."
Republicans struggle to win elections in L.A. County. Can Barger pull off a three-peat?
LAT's JACLYN COSGROVE: "As she seeks a third and final term as a Los Angeles County supervisor, Kathryn Barger and her supporters are touting her endorsements from unions, the Sierra Club and the local lobbying arm of Planned Parenthood, her concerns about climate change and her willingness to stand up to the NRA and former President Trump.
It would be standard campaign fare for a Democrat, but Barger is a lifelong Republican — albeit one who laments her party’s takeover by “a radical side.”"
He claims to have saved California homeowners billions. The insurance industry hates him
LAT's SAM DEAN: "Insurance industry groups have called it a “bomb-throwing bogus advocacy” group, a “publicity-seeking, dark money front,” and an organization out to protect its own “financial $elf-interest$.”
These are the kinds of attacks that Harvey Rosenfield and Consumer Watchdog, the advocacy group he founded nearly 40 years ago, have come to expect."
California effort to confront implicit bias among doctors faces 1st Amendment challenge
LAT's RONNIE COHEN: "Los Angeles anesthesiologist Dr. Marilyn Singleton was outraged about a California requirement that every continuing medical education course include training in implicit bias — the ways in which physicians’ unconscious attitudes might contribute to racial and ethnic disparities in healthcare.
Singleton, who is Black and has practiced for 50 years, sees calling doctors out for implicit bias as divisive, and argues that the state cannot legally require her to teach the idea in her continuing education classes. She has sued the Medical Board of California, asserting a constitutional right not to teach something she doesn’t believe."
Ferocious blizzard with “life-threatening conditions” hits Sierra Nevada as Tahoe residents hunker down for up to 12 feet of snow
BANG*Mercury News's PAUL ROGERS and ETHAN BARON: "Communities around Lake Tahoe hunkered down Thursday as the biggest blizzard of the winter began to roar across California’s Sierra Nevada — a storm that forecasters said could bring up to 12 feet of snow by Sunday in some areas, with power outages, closed highways and winds over 100 mph on ridge tops.
“There’s a high likelihood that people will be stranded if they try to drive up here from the Bay Area,” said Craig Shoemaker, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Sacramento, on Thursday afternoon. “It’s too late to even try. It’s a very dangerous, life-threatening situation that will be developing.”"
Wild weather is forecast for Bay Area, with rapid shifts from sun to rain to hail
The Chronicle's JACK LEE: "Unusual precipitation could be on the way to the Bay Area from a cold storm expected to also bring historic snowfall to the Sierra Nevada. Frigid conditions could produce pea-sized hailstones that linger on roadways, causing dangerous travel conditions, meteorologists say.
Compared with past storms this winter, the upcoming system is primed for unsettled weather conditions."
Yosemite tells visitors to leave, will close as extreme weather approaches
The Chronicle's CLARE FONSTEIN: "Yosemite National Park is closing as a major winter storm approaches the area, with officials expecting several feet of snow and high winds.
The closure begins at 12:01 a.m. Friday and will last until at least noon Sunday, according to the National Park Service."
LAUSD’s 100 priority schools target district’s highest-need students
EdSource's MALLIKA SESHADRI: "Shortly after Alberto Carvalho became superintendent of LAUSD two years ago, he created a 100-day plan and named the district’s top 100 priority schools.
At the time, neither Carvalho nor district staff publicly identified the schools. However, LAUSD has continuously maintained that the schools are some of the district’s lowest-performing campuses in all measures, and that they would serve as the focal point of various district initiatives, such as decisions on adding additional instructional days to help students recover from pandemic learning loss and the new policy precluding charter schools from sharing their campuses."
READ MORE -- Interactive Map: LAUSD's 100 Priority Schools -- EdSource's YUXUAN XIE; Turning around a high-needs Los Angeles school with the arts -- EdSource's KAREN D'SOUZA
New San Francisco data reveals more on ‘drug tourism’ in city
The Chronicle's RACHEL SWAN and MAGGIE ANGST: "Nearly 40% of the people cited for drug use over the past year in San Francisco said they lived outside the city, according to new data released by the mayor’s office on Thursday. The office said just over 6% of those outside residents are receiving cash assistance from the city, a violation of state law.
The figures covered a period in which Mayor London Breed cracked down on drug markets and directed police to arrest users, amid widespread complaints that San Francisco has become a destination for the narcotics trade. Last year, the city witnessed a record 813 accidental overdose deaths, bringing the depth of the tragedy into focus."
Candidates for Oakland police chief job share their visions for safer city
The Chronicle's DAVID HERNANDEZ: "Four candidates vying for the job of police chief in Oakland discussed their experience and vision for the police force during a public forum Thursday.
The candidates, who attended virtually and took questions from members of the Police Commission at City Hall, stressed the importance of community engagement, accountability and oversight in policing. They acknowledged they would need to take steps to lead the Police Department out of federal oversight and address concerns about rampant crime."
New high-speed train from Vegas to SoCal will be a model for the nation — if it succeeds
LAT's NOAH BIERMAN: "When Simon Akinwolere, a 27-year-old cruise director, needed to commute from Orlando to Miami, he sorted through his travel options.
He could drive the 235 miles, spending four hours dealing with traffic, stress, lost work time and gas stops. Flying would be faster, but he’d endure security lines and baggage hassles at two busy airports."
S.F. spent nearly $2 billion on the Central Subway. Did it really help Chinatown?
The Chronicle's KO LYN CHEANG: "Shaobing Yi, 82, and her husband, Youwai Chen, 84, take the T-Third line into Chinatown after one transfer from their Ingleside home five days a week to buy affordable Chinese groceries and socialize. While she shops for freshly made wontons, her husband plays ping pong in Chinatown with his friends.
“It is very important for the elderly to have the subway,” Chen said in Mandarin."
