The Roundup

California postpones decision on relaxing mask and distancing rules for workers

RONG-GONG LIN II and LUKE MONEY, LA Times: "A California workplace safety board postponed a vote Thursday on a proposal that would have allowed workers to return to their jobs without social distancing or face masks so long as everyone in a room is vaccinated.

As a result, workers must continue to wear masks and practice physical distancing for now, unless they’re alone — either in a room or outside. Workers can remove masks when eating or drinking but must be physically distant from others.

The delay came after the deputy chief of the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health, known as Cal/OSHA, wrote a memo asking the seven-member Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board to “not vote to approve the current proposal."

Pension plans would get 'unprecedented' boost in Newsom's budget

Sac Bee, WES VENTEICHER: "Gov. Gavin Newsom said last week that his budget would put $11 billion toward California’s retirement debts, a sum he called “unprecedented.”

That’s true. But California voters deserve much of the credit for this portion of fiscal prudence in the governor’s budget.

Newsom referenced $11.3 billion that would be allocated to the state’s long-term debts under Proposition 2, a 2014 ballot measure backed former Gov. Jerry Brown, according to information Finance Department spokesman H.D. Palmer provided in emails."

Poll: Death Penalty repeal gaining, but many undecided

Capitol Weekly, MARK DICAMILLO: "Next year California voters may be asked to again weigh in on whether the state should repeal its long-standing death penalty law.  Californians narrowly defeated a similar constitutional amendment, Proposition 62, by a 53% to 47% margin just four and one-half years ago in the November 2016 election

According to press reports, the state Legislature is considering placing another constitutional amendment about the death penalty before voters in the 2022 statewide elections.  

In its latest statewide survey, the Berkeley IGS Poll asked registered voters how they would vote on such an amendment if the election were held today.  The results indicate that 44% of voters say they would vote Yes to repeal the state’s death penalty law, 35% would vote No to keep the law in force, while a relatively large proportion, 21%, are undecided."

For transgender leaders, Caitllyn Jenner has become 'the figurehead we don't want'

More than 90% of CA Capitol interns are unpaid by Legislature. Who's left behind?

Sac Bee, KIM BOJORQUEZ: "After leaving a job in college sports fundraising to pursue a path in politics, then 23-year-old Spencer Bowen took an unpaid internship for Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon.

Bowen, who found out about the part-time internship through a family connection, didn’t mind that it was unpaid. His second internship that summer four years ago with the city of Woodland could cover his living costs, and he wouldn’t have to pay rent living at his parents’ Davis home.

Soon after his internship began, Rendon’s office began to pay him. He was grateful."

Newsom calls for more state spending at Mexico border, aiming to help migrants

Sac Bee, KIM BOJORQUEZ: "Gov. Gavin Newsom wants to spend a portion of the state’s budget surplus on supporting migrant families at the U.S.-Mexico border, aiming to provide basic necessities to thousands of people.

He’s asking the Legislature to set aside $105 million for the border. An additional $100 million would aid immigrants integrating into the country, aligning with much of the Biden administration’s proposed immigration policies.

The new proposal comes as the U.S.-Mexico border experiences an influx of migrants and unaccompanied children arriving at the border to seek asylum in the United States."

CA climate change mandate: Your rideshare driver must go electric

Sac Bee, DALE KASLER: "California’s Uber and Lyft drivers must start switching to electric vehicles.

The California Air Resources Board voted Thursday to require ride-hailing companies to phase electric vehicles into their fleets starting in 2023. By 2030, at least 90% of the miles driven by ride-hail companies in California must be in electric vehicles.

The board’s vote represents another step in California’s crusade to electrify its cars and trucks to reduce carbon emissions and battle climate change. Amid the worst wildfire season on record last fall, Gov. Gavin Newsom issued an executive order eliminating the sale of new gas and diesel cars by 2035."

LA bought $19M worth of N95 masks early in the pandemic. Resales are lagging'

LA Times, DAKOTA SMITH: "As the COVID-19 pandemic gripped Los Angeles in April 2020, Mayor Eric Garcetti announced that the city had agreed to buy 24 million N95 masks made by Honeywell and resell them to hospitals and nursing homes.

The news provided a glimmer of hope amid widespread alarm about the nationwide shortage of personal protective gear for first responders. Price-gouging and counterfeits were also common as buyers sought the masks.

A little more than a year later, with mask demand slowing and supplies more plentiful, the city has resold only about one-third of the Honeywell N95 masks that it has received under the deal, according to records reviewed by The Times."

What to consider before you travel outside the Bay Area's vaccinated bubble

The Chronicle, KELLIE HWANG: "As the Bay Area continues to emerge from the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic, many might see an opportunity to take a long-awaited trip for Memorial Day weekend.

But even with growing percentages of vaccinated residents, traveling still carries risks, especially in out-of-state areas with high coronavirus transmission rates. Last week the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced that fully vaccinated people can shed their masks in most public settings, and while California is waiting until June 15 to follow suit, many other states have aligned with those guidelines.