California takes lead on gig economy and privacy laws
AP's DON THOMPSON: "California’s long tradition of advancing nation-leading legislation continues into the new year, with laws reining in the gig economy, boosting online privacy and discouraging shootings by police, among other potential trend-setters."
"The laws have sent businesses including Uber, Lyft and Google scrambling, not to mention President Donald Trump."
"The state dominated by Democrats has delighted in tweaking the Republican president on immigration and other issues, though legislation requiring Trump to reveal his tax returns backfired when the California Supreme Court unanimously ruled it unconstitutional."
Mark Twain once wrote for state's oldest newspaper. Now it nears its final days
LA Times's BRITTNY MEJIA: "Mark Twain was once published in this Northern California newspaper."
"More than a century later, the Mountain Messenger appears to be nearing its final days."
"Editor-publisher Don Russell had spent the past year trying to sell the state’s oldest weekly newspaper with no luck. He is planning to retire by the middle of January, at which point publication will end."
How California counties spend cash meant to fix jails
Sacramento Bee's JASON POHL/RYAN GABRIELSON: "Two summers ago, the board of supervisors in Contra Costa County faced a packed meeting room. On the agenda was a proposal to divert $1.5 million in state taxpayer money intended to ease jail overcrowding to other priorities of the local sheriff’s office."
"Without the funds, Assistant Sheriff Matthew Schuler said, street patrols across the county would be sacrificed. “That loss would be drastic,” he told the board."
"But about two dozen civic, religious and community leaders pushed back, saying the money was desperately needed for where it had been earmarked: jails, paying for probation and expanding social services."
READ MORE related to Prisons & Public Safety: LAPD increases patrols near synagogues after NY Hanukkah stabbings -- LA Times's BRITTNY MEJIA; (OP-ED) Memo to Sheriff Jones: Abusive deputies should be fired and charged, not protected -- Sac Bee's EDITORIAL BOARD
For California's rural, crumbling classrooms, a possible solution: new school bond rules
The Chronicle's RICARDO CANO: "The foul odor had invaded almost every classroom. It was late March 2017, and Burnt Ranch Elementary was in disrepair. The heating and ventilation systems were so unreliable that educators and staff members in the small Trinity County school had been warming up frigid classrooms with portable heaters. Water leaked through the light fixtures, spilling onto the floor."
"Kathleen Graham, the superintendent and principal, knew something had to be done, but raising the money through local bonds — California’s main source of school facilities funding — was next to impossible for the single-campus, 100-student district. The alternative wasn’t much better: Competing with larger, better-financed and more amply staffed districts for a piece of a state bond passed in 2016, a process that involved navigating California’s byzantine School Facilities Program."
"But as winter became spring in rural Northern California, Graham recalled, the need became only more pressing. “Our buildings,” she said, “just went off the charts with mold."
After Sunday showers, dry weather expected across Bay Area for new year
The Chronicle's TATIANA SANCHEZ: "There should be no rain in sight for New Year’s as the Bay Area kicks off a dry period expected to last at least a week, forecasters said Sunday."
"It’ll be a dry start to the new year,” said Roger Gass, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service’s Bay Area office."
"Weather patterns are expected to remain dry for the entire week, Gass said. Temperatures will stay in the upper 50s, particularly along the coast, and in the lower 60s."
Before Conception boat fire, some captains say Coast Guard safety rule was ignored
LA Times's MARK PUENTE/RICHARD WINTON/LEILA MILLER: "U.S. Coast Guard safety rules for small boats are clear and unambiguous: Operators must have at least one crew member roving the vessel whenever passengers are in the bunk area, regardless of whether the vessel is docked or at sea."
"When 34 people were killed in a fire early Labor Day morning aboard the diving boat Conception, investigators quickly concluded that all six crew members were asleep and that there was no roving watch during those critical hours when passengers were asleep below deck."
"But now, there are growing questions about whether the operator of the Conception regularly had roving watches on its boats."
Keeping kids out of cells
The Chronicle's JILL TUCKER/JOAQUIN PALOMINO: "The two-story brick building on a quiet street in Queens doesn’t stand out from the million-dollar homes scattered throughout the neighborhood."
"There are no signs on the former Catholic convent, nothing to indicate that inside are five New York City teens who committed felony assault, grand larceny, gun possession or another serious crime. Placed here by a judge’s order, each is spending an average of seven months to learn new life skills and become a productive member of society."
"In a classroom on the second floor, the teens hurry to copy details about the battle of Lexington and the British loss in the American Revolution from a whiteboard. They will need to know the facts if they hope to win a high school history version of “Jeopardy” the next day."
BART sees fare sweeps as working, and they won't end anytime soon
The Chronicle's PHIL MATIER: "BART’s early morning train sweeps in search of fare evaders at San Francisco’s Embarcadero Station appear to be showing results. And given the lack of objections, the transit agency is expanding the program."
"The feedback has been positive, and the results have been good,” BART board President Bevan Dufty said. “People appear to be appreciative of the effort."
"BART records show a 5% drop in calls reporting quality-of-life incidents like panhandling, disorderly conduct and indecent exposure in November, compared with the same month last year. Quality-of-life calls were down 7.5% in October compared with 2018."
