As counties mask up, possibility of a statewide order presents political challenge for Newsom
LA Times, PHIL WILLON/TARYN LUNA: "With the spread of COVID-19 on the rise, Gov. Gavin Newsom faces a delicate decision over whether to again impose statewide mask requirements in all indoor public places and risk upsetting Californians just weeks before they decide if he should be recalled from office.
In Los Angeles County, home to one out of every four Californians, residents are required to wear masks in those settings whether they are vaccinated or not. Seven San Francisco Bay Area counties last week recommended the use of masks, as did Sacramento and Yolo counties, to help stem the spread of the highly transmissible Delta variant.
Though the Newsom administration has thus far deferred to counties, that could change if California continues to see an increase in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations."
Will California start requiring masks indoors again? Newsom sidesteps the question
Sac Bee, SOPHIA BOLLAG: "As COVID-19 cases in California rise, Gov. Gavin Newsom avoided answering a question Monday about whether he might impose a new statewide mask mandate, instead stressing the importance of vaccinations.
The rate of Californians testing positive for COVID-19 in the last week, known as the positivity rate, has ticked up steadily for days and is now at 4.1%, the highest it’s been since February.
California is seeing about 6 new cases per day for every 100,000 residents, according to the seven-day average compiled by the state’s Department of Public Health, nearly three times as many as the state was seeing in early June."
Under-the-radar legal battle boosts lawyers, erodes agents
CHUCK McFADDEN, Capitol Weekly: "Attorneys could potentially play an even larger role in business negotiations because of a recent series of legal skirmishes rooted in Hollywood deal making. The agents are not happy.
Here’s the background:
In a one-sentence edict, the California Supreme Court on June 30 refused to review an appellate court ruling that a non-lawyer agent dealing with attorneys on proposed contracts and redlining agreements was practicing law without a license."
One of America's hottest cities is down to one water well. What happens if the taps go dry?
LA Times, RALPH VARTABEDIAN/BRIAN VAN DER BRUG: "Rick Daniels lies awake at night worrying about a rusty contraption in a forlorn field, littered with discarded pipes and fire hydrants.
It is the only water pump in Needles that meets state water quality standards, running 23 hours a day to keep up with demand, according to Daniels, the city manager. That’s a thin margin in one of America’s hottest cities, an urban speck in the desert near California’s border with Arizona.
If this lone pump fails, 5,000 residents face the ultimate risk of taps running dry, as temperatures soar past 120 degrees and people need to gulp as much as two gallons daily. In June, a transient person died while sitting on a curb midday, one of about 10 people a year who succumb to heat, city officials say."
Anti-plastic waste ballot initiative approved for 2022 ballot
The Chronicle, DUSTIN GARDINER: "California environmentalists frustrated that the state Legislature hasn’t done more to stop plastic waste from polluting the ocean and piling up in landfills will take the fight to voters with an initiative that has qualified for the November 2022 ballot.
The initiative would require plastic manufacturers to ensure their products are recyclable or reusable, and to dramatically reduce the amount of plastic people use once and then toss in the trash.
Supporters proposed the initiative after their efforts to phase out the use of non-recyclable plastics repeatedly died at the state Capitol in recent years, after heavy opposition from the plastics and oil industries."
Former employee sues Treasurer Fiona Ma alleging sexual harassment, wrongful termination'
Sac Bee, SOPHIA BOLLAG: "A former state employee is suing California Treasurer Fiona Ma alleging sexual harassment, wrongful termination and racial discrimination, according to a complaint filed last week in Sacramento Superior Court.
The lawsuit alleges Ma exposed her backside to Judith Blackwell, then the executive director of the California Tax Credit Allocation Committee, while the two shared a hotel room. The action made Blackwell “uncomfortable,” according to the lawsuit, which says Blackwell was “fearful to comment on Ms. Ma’s lewd behavior.”
The complaint also says Ma gave Blackwell jewelry, paintings and edible marijuana as gifts, and that the women would go out to dinner together frequently, along with Ma’s chief of staff."
If you're fully vaccinated, what's your risk of 'long COVID' as delta variant spreads?
The Chronicle, KELLIE HWANG: "The Bay Area is rapidly backpedaling on indoor masking, with most of the region’s counties now recommending that even vaccinated people don face coverings indoors because of concerns about the highly contagious delta coronavirus variant.
Most COVID-19 vaccines are proving very effective at protecting against severe illness and hospitalization from the delta variant, but breakthrough cases do occur — and some experts have said that the potential for lingering health problems known as “long COVID” gives them pause.
Bob Wachter, chair of the Department of Medicine at UCSF, said that while he is fully vaccinated, the possible risk of long COVID has led him to take stricter precautions again."
How much do candidates in the Newsom recall make? You can see their tax returns
Sac Bee, LARA KORTE/DALE KASLER: "The 41 candidates in California’s gubernatorial recall campaign make money from book deals, real estate, cattle farms, and event planning companies.
Their incomes span a wide range, from those whose income strayed into negative territory to those who earned several million dollars, according to tax documents posted Sunday on the California Secretary of State’s Office website.
Under a new law signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in 2019, gubernatorial candidates are required to provide five years of tax returns to the state in order to run. Earlier this year, the governor released his own returns, showing he and his wife, First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom, earned about $1.7 million in 2019."
Newsom bans sending foster youth to faraway treatment programs after Chronicle abuse investigation
The Chronicle, JOAQUIN PALOMINO/SARA TIANO: "California has banned the practice of sending foster youth and teens charged with crimes to faraway residential treatment programs, following a Chronicle investigation into reports of violent abuse at some of these out-of-state campuses.
The policy change, signed into law last week by Gov. Gavin Newsom, commits $100 million over five years to create new programs closer to home for these vulnerable children and teenagers.
It “ensures that every youth in our care has the in-state services they need to thrive in the communities they call home,” said Assembly Member Mark Stone, D-Santa Cruz, who authored the legislation that was later adopted as part of a larger budget bill. “I am proud that Governor Newsom has signed this.”"
Smoke visible for miles as fire burns in Sacramento near American River Parkway
Sac Bee, MICHAEL MCGOUGH/ZAEEM SHAIKH: "A grass fire burned through more than two dozen acres by late Monday afternoon along the American River Parkway in Sacramento.
The Sacramento Fire Department said in a social media post a little before 3 p.m. that the blaze was near mile marker 4 on the lower part of the parkway. Traffic on the Capital City Freeway is heavily impacted, officials said.
Several alarms worth of personnel has responded, Fire Department spokesman Capt. Keith Wade said in a Facebook post. Some “erratic wind activity,” he sSamaid, pushed the flames in different directions."
READ MORE WILDFIRE NEWS --- Firefighters achieve mixed success in containing Northern California fires -- LA Times, FAITH E PINHO; Here's how bad Tahoe air quality got because of Tamarack Fire smoke -- The Chronicle, JESSICA FLORES
How far-right rage over transgender rights at an LA spa led to chaos in the streets
LA Times, LEILA MILLER/ANITA CHABRIA/LAURA J NELSON: "The activists arrived outside the Wi Spa in Westlake Saturday morning, some prepared for the worst.
Several wore bike helmets and vests with extra padding. N.W.A.’s “F— Tha Police” and Kendrick Lamar’s “Alright” filled the air.
They were met by far-right extremists who over the last few weeks had turned a debate over transgender access at a Korean spa into a rallying cry."
Same hospitals, surgeries, but worse outcomes for Black patients than White ones
LA Times, EMILY ALPERT REYES: "Black patients are significantly more likely to suffer dangerous bleeding, infections and other serious problems related to surgical procedures than are white patients treated in the same hospital, according to a new analysis from the nonprofit Urban Institute.
The analysis, funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, builds on earlier research showing that Black patients are more likely than white ones to endure injuries and acquire illnesses in the hospital.
A previous analysis from the Urban Institute found that part of the reason for that gap is that Black patients are less likely to be admitted to “high-quality” hospitals than white patients, based on key measures meant to gauge patient care."
Another month, another record: SoCal home prices hit all-time high
LA Times, JACK FLEMMING: "Southern California’s real estate market hit another historic peak in June, with home prices soaring to yet another all-time high, though analysts see the extreme bidding wars of the last year beginning to ease.
June’s median home price of $680,000 tops the previous record of $667,000, set in May, according to data released Tuesday by data firm DQNews. It represents a 22.5% increase from June 2020, when the market in the six-county region slowed significantly as sellers pulled homes off the market because of COVID-19 stay-at-home orders.
Since then, a dramatic rebound has seen 11 straight months of double-digit median home price rises."
SF deploys more foot police in tourist areas even as it battles perception city is overrun with crime
The Chronicle, TRISHA THADANI: "As Mayor London Breed battles the perception that San Francisco is beset with increased crime and lawlessness, she announced Monday that additional police patrols would flood the city’s tourist hubs to target thieves and vandals.
Nearly 30 uniformed police officers, on bicycle and foot, have been deployed to popular tourist destinations — like Union Square, Chinatown and North Beach. The idea is that the increased patrols will deter crimes such as car break-ins and assaults from happening in the first place, and can also catch the perpetrators faster when they do.
But Breed’s announcement comes as the city’s own statistics show that crime in San Francisco is not rising across the board when compared to pre-pandemic levels. While
instances of gun violence and burglaries have increased this year, other crimes like car break-ins, assaults, larceny and theft are no higher than they were before the pandemic."
Oakland and A's return to bargaining table over stadium, but no progress before key vote
The Chronicle, SARAH RAVANI: "Oakland and the A’s returned to negotiations Monday as a City Council vote on a proposed new stadium approached, but there was no sign the sides moved closer on reaching a deal that would keep the baseball team in the city.
Mayor Libby Schaaf joined city staff Monday in talks with the A’s in advance of Tuesday’s City Council vote on a term sheet for the A’s proposed $12 billion waterfront ballpark project and accompanying development at Howard Terminal.
The non-binding term sheet with the A’s lays out the framework of a potential development agreement with the two entities. The vote isn’t a final agreement between the city and the A’s. Negotiations can continue even after the vote."
South Korea aims to have a bigger footprint in Hollywood. This deal could be a major step
LA Times, WENDY LEE: "The TV drama “Itaewon Class,” about a young entrepreneur who seeks to avenge his father’s death by taking down his rival at a powerful corporation, has built a loyal global following on Netflix.
But media executive Jeongin Hong believes there is even more runway for the 2020 Korean language series.
Hong, whose company JTBC Studios produce"s the show, wants to develop an English version of the series with the potential help of wiip — a Hollywood company behind HBO’s “Mare of Easttown” and other acclaimed shows.
Jeff Bezos returns to Earth after trip to suborbital space on Blue Origin's New Shepard
LA Times, SAMANTHA MASUNAGA/ANDREW MENDEZ: "Billionaire Jeff Bezos has long talked about his dream of millions of people living and working in space.
On Tuesday, Bezos himself joined the ranks of those who have gone to space — for a few minutes, at least.
The billionaire Amazon founder embarked on a journey to suborbital space along with three others aboard his company Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket and capsule system. The launch took place shortly after 6 a.m. Pacific time from the company’s launch pad located about 30 minutes north of Van Horn, Texas."
