Two years in, California’s legal marijuana industry is stuck. Should voters step in?
From the LAT's PATRICK MCGREEVY: "Two years after California began licensing pot shops, the industry remains so outmatched by the black market that a state panel recently joined some legalization supporters in calling for significant changes — perhaps turning again to voters to address the problems."
"In its annual draft report, the Cannabis Advisory Committee warned Gov. Gavin Newsom and California legislators that high taxes, overly burdensome regulations and local control issues posed debilitating obstacles to the legal marijuana market."
"With tax revenue about a third of what was expected and with only about 800 of an anticipated 6,000 licensees open for business, the panel said, officials may need to consider “revisiting the ballot initiative process.”
2016 vaccine law helped 'high-risk' counties the most, new study shows
Sac Bee's MICHAEL FINCH II: "In the wake of a devastating measles outbreak, California passed a law to crack down on exemptions and improve vaccination rates. Building on the work of previous research, a study released this week shows that the 2016 legislation had the greatest effect on high-risk areas where the vaccination rates were the lowest."
"The law contributed to an estimated 3.3 percent increase in coverage for measles, mumps and rubella vaccine, also known as MMR, and a 2.4 percent decrease in non-medical exemptions across the state, according to the study published Monday in the journal PLOS Medicine."
"The government intervention came after more than 100 measles cases were linked to a Disneyland outbreak in which the majority of patients were unvaccinated or had no vaccine records. As a result, lawmakers passed SB 277, which eliminated the personal belief exemption to help improve vaccine compliance."
ICE signs contracts for detention centers days before California law will ban such agreements
The Chronicle's TATIANA SANCHEZ: "U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has signed four multimillion-dollar contracts with several private prison companies to operate detention centers across California over the next five years, just days before a California law takes effect to ban new private-prison contracts."
"The agency secured the contracts on Dec. 20 to continue to detain thousands of immigrants in existing facilities near Los Angeles and San Diego and to add about 2,000 beds in three additional facilities, according to a government website. The contracts with GEO Group, CoreCivic, and Management and Training Corp. will last five years, with the possibility of two five-year renewals."
"AB32, by Assemblyman Rob Bonta, D-Alameda, prohibits the state or any other entity from entering into or renewing of contracts with private prison companies after Jan. 1, unless it’s necessary to comply with a court-ordered population cap. Under the bill, private prisons would be phased out completely by 2028."
New gun law restricts rifle purchases to once a month
Sac Bee's WILL COBURN/MILAN CABEBE: "One of the broadest gun control measures signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom this year will prevent Californians from buying more than one semi-automatic rifle per month, and raise the minimum age to purchase a high-powered rifle to 21."
"The law, Senate Bill 61, builds on a previous restriction that prohibits Californians from buying more than one handgun within 30 days."
"The limitation on buying semi-automatic rifles to once per month takes effect on July 1, 2021. The part of the law that raises the minimum age to 21 for semi-automatic rifle purchases takes effect Jan. 1."
Hedge funds courting Newsom say they are the best offer for PG&E acquisition
Sac Bee's DALE KASLER: "The hedge funds attempting a hostile takeover of PG&E Corp. are trying to get their plan back on track. And they realize their best chance of doing that is to make California Gov. Gavin Newsom happy."
"The utility’s bondholders told Newsom late Friday they’ll meet his demands for overhauling the troubled utility — demands that PG&E itself, struggling to exit bankruptcy, haven’t met so far. In a 17-page letter to Newsom, the bondholders promised to create a “resilient, reliable and reimagined PG&E."
"They vowed to consult with Newsom on appointing a new board of directors for the utility and said they’d give the state the right to buy the company if PG&E engages in “willful misconduct” that triggers another big wildfire — two promises that align with Newsom’s demands for greater control over PG&E’s operations. They added that their plan will put PG&E in better financial shape than the company’s own plan, which is backed by a different pack of hedge funds."
Californians might soon be able to legally eat roadkill, asphalt-to-fork.
Sac Bee's TONY BIZJAK: "The holidays don’t always go as planned. They may start off with visions of figgy pudding or chestnuts roasting on an open fire, but can quickly devolve into a disastrous attempt at deep frying a turkey or leaving the latkes on the skillet too long. Whether you’re single and trying to fend off spending the festive season in front of a frozen dinner, or a host attempting to spare your sanity by keeping out of the kitchen altogether, these local restaurants will be serving up a bevy of fare that’ll fill you up Christmas day."
"Call ahead as reservations may be necessary.If you see a dead animal in the road, don’t pick it up. You can’t eat it — at least not yet."
"State wildlife officials issued a public warning Monday that it remains illegal in California to pluck dead animals off the road, even if they are fresh roadkill and look tasty."
Sac residents received hundreds of million robocalls in 2019 alone and now Congress is cracking down
Sac Bee's DAVID LIGHTMAN: "So far this year, a total of 403.8 million robocalls have been placed to Sacramento-area residents, including 38.7 million last month alone, according to YouMail, which tracks such calls."
"That’s an estimated 144.5 calls this year to each person affected in the area."
"Now help for dealing with the annoying, persistent and downright weird interruptions is coming. Slowly"
Bloomberg's new California director is working to build biggest state operation 'in history'
Sacramento Bee's BRYAN ANDERSON: "Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is going all in on California in a late effort to create a pathway to the Democratic presidential nomination."
"Leading his California operation will be Chris Myers, executive director of the state’s Democratic Party."
"He’s not only talked about bringing people together. He’s actually done it, and I think that’s what people want to see,” Myers said. “We’re going to be bringing the largest statewide operation in history to California."
Sonoma County officials approve emergency homeless plan
The Chronicle's DOMINIC FRACASSA: "Sonoma County officials approved an $11.63 million proposal Monday aimed at providing housing, shelter and services to the hundreds of homeless people camped on county parkland in southwest Santa Rosa."
"The Sonoma County Board of Supervisors unanimously green-lit the plan and the funding for it less than a week after declaring a public health emergency on the Joe Rodota Trail, where a mile-long stretch of tents and makeshift shelters has been deemed the largest homeless camp in the county’s history."
"Nearby residents and businesses have complained of squalid, unsanitary conditions — including rats and other pests and a rash of used needles. That’s raised the urgency, county officials said Monday, to find ways to bring people indoors and protect those still living in the encampment."
Is Nappa running family winegrowers out of business?
The Chronicle's ESTHER MOBLEY: "In Napa Valley, a group of small-scale family winegrowers says the county’s current laws have made it impossible for their businesses to survive."
"Napa County has a strict permitting process for opening tasting rooms, designed to curb some of the valley's tourism congestion. But some small wine producers argue that those permitting rules shouldn’t apply fully to them. That’s why they’ve formed Save the Family Farms, an organization that hopes to create a legal pathway for small winegrowers to host visitors at their vineyards even if they haven’t built an expensive winery."
Need a Christmas day fallback for your feast and/or festivities? These places are open.
Sac Bee's MITCHEL BOBO: "The holidays don’t always go as planned. They may start off with visions of figgy pudding or chestnuts roasting on an open fire, but can quickly devolve into a disastrous attempt at deep frying a turkey or leaving the latkes on the skillet too long. Whether you’re single and trying to fend off spending the festive season in front of a frozen dinner, or a host attempting to spare your sanity by keeping out of the kitchen altogether, these local restaurants will be serving up a bevy of fare that’ll fill you up Christmas day."
"Call ahead as reservations may be necessary."
Former Uber CEO Kalanick to resign from company's board
AP: "Former Uber CEO Travis Kalanick will resign from the board next week, effectively severing ties with the ride-hailing company he co-founded a decade ago."
"Uber turbocharged the gig economy and since 2010 has logged 15 billion trips. Kalanick was ousted as CEO in the summer of 2017 with the company mired in numerous lawsuits."
"The departure did not come as a surprise. Kalanick recently sold more than $2.5 billion worth of shares in the company, more than 90% of his holdings."
California suspension ban could have large impact on Sacramento students
MARGHERITA BEALE/ADRIA WATSON in a Special to the Bee: "A new California law that bans schools from suspending disruptive students could have a particularly large impact in Sacramento County, where educators are disciplining kids for “defiance” more often than in other communities."
"Schools in Sacramento County in the 2017-18 academic year handed down the most suspensions for defiance, outpacing even much larger counties like Los Angeles, according to state education data."
"In the school year that ended June 30, Sacramento’s suspensions for defiance declined somewhat, but the county was second only to Los Angeles."
