Authorities are blocking public requests to review documents on the Oroville Dam's potential repair plans and safety issues.
Sacramento Bee's RYAN SABALOW/DALE KASLER: "Citing potential security risks, state and federal officials are blocking the public’s ability to review documents that could shed light on repair plans and safety issues at crippled Oroville Dam."
"One of the secret reports is a memo from an independent panel of experts brought in to guide state officials’ repair plans. Another confidential document is labeled a “Project Safety Compliance Report.”
"The secrecy on the part of state dam operators prompted state Sen. Jim Nielsen to call for an immediate oversight hearing."
READ MORE related to Environment: Trump approves funds for California relief, including $274 million for Oroville Dam -- Sacramento Bee's CHRISTOPHER CADELAGO; Surge of hydropower could force cutbacks of solar, wind --The Chronicle's DOMINIC FRACASSA
How big of an impact will the new smoker's tax have on cessation rates?
Sacramento Bee's CLAUDIA BUCK: "Plunk down a pack of cigarettes at the cash register and be prepared to pay up, way up. As of April 1, Californians are forking over an extra $2 per pack."
"Some smokers this past week said they were stocking up on cartons, ahead of Saturday’s price hike. Others said it’s jolting them into finally snuffing out cigarettes for good."
"Absolutely, I’m quitting. I refuse to pay it,” said Citrus Heights resident Heather Jarrett, a smoker for 21 years, who said the new tax will mean an extra $120 a month to cover her and her husband’s nicotine habit. “It’s not a small amount.”
READ MORE related to Local: Week to show transgender and gender non-conforming community 'they're not alone' -- Chico ER's RISA JOHNSON; Common gives surprise performance in Santa Ana, advocates for criminal justice reform -- OC Register's CHRIS HAIRE
Trump isn't done with his Obamacare repeal-and-replace plan just yet.
AP: "President Trump assured the public that the Republicans' effort to overhaul the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, remains underway. His comment came a little over a week after the GOP's health bill, which Trump backed, collapsed in the U.S. House."
"Hours after Trump tweeted, he brought Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) to the Trump National Golf Club in Virginia to talk health policy with the outspoken critic of the failed health plan."
"The president golfed and discussed policy with Paul and budget director Mick Mulvaney, said White House spokeswoman Stephanie Grisham."
LA's discussion on potential future borrowing practices has some worried.
LA Times' DAKOTA SMITH: "On the advice of budget officials, the Los Angeles City Council agreed earlier this year to consider borrowing tens of millions of dollars to pay for high-profile legal settlements and court judgments."
"The money would help offset several multimillion-dollar settlements approved by the city in recent years, including a $200-million agreement to end a lawsuit brought by disability-rights groups over the lack of accessible housing."
"But the proposal to borrow up to $60 million using a judgment obligation bond is now coming under fire."
READ MORE related to Economy: Retail turmoil means stores must innovate faster -- The Chronicle's THOMAS LEE; Women's History Month: Inspiring Bay Area women -- Mercury News; Retirement savings for all? California vows to proceed despite new DC obstacle -- CalMatters' BEN CHRISTOPHER; Are your housing costs sky high? A new fight over California rent control is coming -- Sacramento Bee's ANGELA HART
Speaking of LA, you better start paying more attention to where you park when you're in town.
LA Times' LAURA J. NELSON: "The afternoon rush hour had just begun, and drivers already were circling like sharks on Westlake’s quiet side streets, hunting for parking."
"One man in a red sedan pulled into a driveway on Miramar Street and made a hard left, bumping over the driveway apron and stopping on a bedraggled patch of grass between the curb and the sidewalk."
"As a gardening crew stared from across the street, the driver stepped out of his car, locked the doors and walked away."
READ MORE related to Transportation: How BART strike ban could be key to big transportation package -- The Chronicle's MATIER & ROSS
SCOTUS nominee Gorsuch still has an arduous battle ahead for his confirmation.
LA Times' DAVID G. SAVAGE: "The Senate’s Republican and Democratic leaders have set the stage for Judge Neil M. Gorsuch to be confirmed to the Supreme Court this week, but only after a partisan battle that likely will lead to changing the Senate’s rules."
"On Monday, the Senate Judiciary Committee is expected to vote to send the Gorsuch nomination to the full Senate. Debate in the Senate is expected to start on Tuesday, with a final decision by week’s end."
"Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) said Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” that it is “highly, highly unlikely” that President Trump’s nominee will get the 60 votes needed to cut off debate on the Senate floor under current rules."
Some immigrants are having a hard time finding sanctuary in San Francisco's legal system.
The Chronicle's HEATHER KNIGHT: "San Francisco’s public officials constantly say the city must remain a sanctuary for immigrants living in the country without documentation so they’ll come forward if they’re a victim of or witness to a crime."
"But some who have come forward have found the city’s courtrooms anything but a safe harbor."
"Maria, a housekeeper from Honduras living in San Francisco without documentation, called police in May 2015 to report that she had been sexually assaulted. During the investigation and trial of the suspect, she said, Public Defender Jeff Adachi’s office used tactics so aggressive toward her they made her trauma even worse."
READ MORE related to Immigration: Santa Rosa farmworkers march against Trump immigration policies -- The Chronicle's JOHN WILDERMUTH; How one town hall meeting in Sacramento explains America's immigration chaos -- Sacramento Bee's MARCOS BRETON
California lawmakers are looking for a way to attract and secure teachers into the state's school districts.
Inland Valley Daily Bulletin's BEAU YARBROUGH: "A bipartisan group of Sacramento legislators are polishing up a bushel of apples, with bills intended to increase the number of teachers in California’s schools — and keep them from fleeing the state, or the profession entirely, a few years in."
"If there’s not a whole lot of support and they’re working long hours for low money, they leave the field,” said Wendy Murawski, the executive director and Eisner Endowed Chair of Cal State Northridge’s Center for Teaching and Learning. “Everybody comes in and wants to give 110 percent, but you can’t do that long term."
"The bills introduced this year include ones that give teachers tax credits, exempt them from state income taxes, prevent districts from charging new teachers fees, give financial incentives for teaching in under-served communities and provide grants for them to teach certain hard-to-fill subjects."
