Expansion of San Luis Reservoir set to boost California’s water-storing capacity
LAT's IAN JAMES: "The Biden administration and eight California water agencies have reached an agreement to share in the costs of raising a dam to expand San Luis Reservoir, a nearly $1-billion project intended to increase the state’s water-storage capacity and benefit a group of urban communities and agricultural areas.
The plan to raise B.F. Sisk Dam and enlarge the reservoir near Los Banos will enable it to hold more water during wet years, boosting the reserves of water suppliers in parts of the Bay Area and the San Joaquin Valley."
Trump’s Cabinet picks will test Senate independence
LAT's NOAH BIERMAN, KEVIN RECTOR: "Since he began taking over the Republican Party nearly a decade ago, President-elect Donald Trump has demanded increasing levels of loyalty from lawmakers who serve in Congress.
With few exceptions, they have gone along, refusing to convict him in two impeachment trials and, even after he was convicted of 34 felonies, helping him win a second term in the White House as he plowed through a Republican primary and general election after falsely denying his 2020 loss."
Trump’s defense secretary pick, Pete Hegseth, was named in Monterey sex assault probe
The Chronicle's MATTHIAS GAFNI: "Seven years ago, Monterey police officers investigated an alleged sexual assault involving Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for secretary of defense, at a hotel in the seaside city, but the inquiry did not lead to any criminal charges.
In a brief statement late Thursday, the city manager’s office in Monterey confirmed the sexual assault investigation, but provided few details."
Who do Harris voters blame for Trump’s victory? Here’s what a new poll found
Sacramento Bee's BRENDAN RASCIUS: "Who do Vice President Kamala Harris’ voters blame for President-elect Donald Trump’s victory? More pointed fingers at President Joe Biden than Harris herself, according to new polling.
Nearly one-quarter of Harris voters, 24%, said Biden is more to blame for the election outcome, according to an Economist/YouGov poll. A far smaller share, 6%, pin more of the blame on Harris."
‘A pivotal moment?’ Why many Latino voters in California chose Trump
CALMatters's YUE STELLA YU: "At first, Marlyn Huesgew Mendoza registered as a Democrat. In 2020, she re-registered as a Republican and voted for Donald Trump for president, as she did this election.
The reason is simple: It was in 2018 — when he was in office — that her family was finally able to buy a house in Merced. The same year, the Trump administration approved her Guatemalan mother’s citizenship application — one that had been rejected under President Barack Obama, she said. The approval letter had Trump’s signature on it."
This sleepy neighborhood had the highest share of Trump voters in S.F. Here’s why
The Chronicle's ALDO TOLEDO: "Tucked into the southeast corner of San Francisco, Visitacion Valley is an oft-forgotten, sleepy neighborhood that seems a world away from the hustle and bustle in many other parts of the city.
But the neighborhood made its mark during last week’s presidential election. More voters in Visitacion Valley — a mostly Asian working-class neighborhood — chose Donald Trump than in any other neighborhood in San Francisco."
California GOP lawmaker rebukes Gavin Newsom, calls on Donald Trump to work with state
Sacramento Bee's ANDREW SHEELER: "California Assembly Republican Leader James Gallagher, R-Yuba City, on Thursday sent an open letter to President-elect Donald Trump, urging him to work with state GOP lawmakers to address issues ranging from wildfires to crime — a direct rebuke of Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom’s to counter Trump policies.
Newsom has called for a special session of the California Legislature to convene next month in order to “Trump-proof” the Golden State. Newsom also slammed Trump when he visited Washington, D.C. this week, criticizing the former and future president for threatening to withhold federal aid for California’s wildfire response."
Forget Joe Rogan. The bro-iest podcast belongs to Gavin Newsom
The Chronicle's JOE GAROFOLI: "Anybody who’s listened to at least 30 seconds of Gov. Gavin Newsom’s podcast, “Politickin’,” with NFL great and Oakland native Marshawn Lynch and their mutual friend, Lynch’s agent Doug Hendrickson, must be asking: “Why the hell is Newsom doing this?”
I still don’t know after listening to several episodes."
Higher monthly payments loom for many student loan borrowers
LAT's JON HEALEY: "President-elect Donald Trump’s victory last week should bring some clarity to Americans with student loans, but probably not in the way they’d hoped.
A flurry of Biden administration initiatives and court rulings against them have left millions of borrowers uncertain about their future payments. Many federal student loans, in fact, are stuck in a period of limbo with no monthly payments because the company servicing them can’t determine what the payments should be."
Trump tried to end DACA, program helping undocumented immigrants, before. Will he try again?
Sacramento Bee's MATHEW MIRANDA: "President-elect Donald Trump’s promise to overhaul the nation’s immigration policy has heightened concerns about an already in limbo program benefiting more than 150,000 undocumented Californians.
The program — Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals or DACA — grants residence and work permits to undocumented immigrants brought to the United States as children. DACA has faced challenges since 2017, when Trump’s first administration unsuccessfully sought to end it."
Fewer kids are going to California public schools. Is there a right way to close campuses?
CALMatters's CAROLYN JONES: "When the superintendent in San Francisco Unified proposed closing schools recently, parents launched a prolonged — and successful — protest. The uproar may have died down for now, but the issue is likely to erupt at school boards across the state — and some say that’s a good thing.
Declining enrollment, the end of pandemic relief grants and state budget uncertainty have combined to put hundreds of California school districts in precarious financial straits. Closing schools is never a popular option, but for some districts it may be the only way to avoid the state seizing control of operations. When the state takes over a district, the school board loses power and a state-appointed administrator makes cuts until the budget is balanced. A takeover could last a decade."
What to know about changes in STEM math placement at California community colleges
EdSource's AMY DIPIERRO, MICHAEL BURKE: "If you’re a student at one of California’s community colleges and you plan to study a STEM field, you’ll typically have to pass calculus first before diving into many of the other required classes in physics, engineering, computer science, biology or chemistry.
A decade ago, you might have started college by taking algebra, trigonometry or precalculus class — or even a remedial class like prealgebra — before getting to calculus. But a body of research has suggested that having to complete a string of prerequisites before enrolling in calculus wasn’t working for many students and that too many never made it to calculus. That finding was bolstered by evidence showing that Black, Latino and Pell Grant students were overrepresented in community colleges’ remedial courses."
California will see coldest fall weekend so far, with a chance of rain
The Chronicle's GREG PORTER: "Out with the old and in with the cold! A slow-moving upper-level storm system has been working its way eastward across California this week. By late Friday, it will finally give way to a cold air mass that will bring a chilly start to the weekend, including freeze warnings for the North Bay.
With the storm still lingering on Friday, expect scattered pop-up showers, primarily in the South and East Bay, tapering off by afternoon. By evening, the moisture will clear out, leaving cloudless skies and the potential for some of the coldest temperatures of the autumn season."
California regulators approve huge Ocean Beach seawall to avert prospect of ‘major emergency’ for S.F.
The Chronicle's TARA DUGGAN: "On Thursday, California’s main coastal protection agency approved a $175 million climate-related project that will transform the southern portion of San Francisco’s Ocean Beach despite fierce opposition from some members of the public. A sticking point is a massive seawall that some surfers fear could make the beach disappear.
The California Coastal Commission unanimously approved the city’s Ocean Beach Climate Change Adaptation Project, which will be funded by the city. Created by the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission and other agencies, the plan includes a 3,200-foot-long buried seawall designed to protect a sewage tunnel located along the coast south of Sloat Boulevard. A wastewater treatment plant is right nearby."
This Central Valley program helps Californians get six-figure jobs
CALMatters's FIONA KELLIHER: "In 2019, Alexis Rowberry was living in a Fresno County homeless shelter with her two kids, recently out of what she described as an abusive relationship. “We had nothing,” she said.
She found herself at the Fresno County Department of Social Services, staring at a flier."
Palm Springs to pay $5.9 million to Black and Latino families over razed homes
LAT's REBECCA PLEVIN: "The Palm Springs City Council has unanimously approved a $5.9-million settlement with the Black and Latino families whose homes were razed and burned in a brutal urban renewal project in the 1950s and 1960s.
A standing-room crowd in the City Hall chambers Thursday night exploded into clapping and cheering, leaped to their feet and embraced."
