PG&E is raising electric rates on March 1. Here’s how much more it will cost
The Chronicle, RACHEL SWAN: "PG&E is raising its monthly electricity rates by more than 9% for the average residential customer, a move to generate revenue as the utility grapples with ballooning global natural gas prices.
The new rate plan, unanimously approved Thursday by the California Public Utilities Commission and set to take effect March 1, would also include a 10% bump for small business and larger increases for industrial facilities, for an average increase of 12.69% across PG&E’s entire customer base.
PG&E and California’s two other investor-owned utilities — Southern California Edison and San Diego Gas & Electric — present an annual forecast to the commission each year, estimating the cost of energy supply. Once the commission approves that estimate, the utility passes those costs along to ratepayers with no mark-up."
Newsom wants to end school masks, but teachers say not yet
SUSANNAH LUTHI and VICTORIA COLLIVER, Politico: “Blue states are ditching their school mask mandates, but California is stuck as powerful teachers unions push back.
The classroom was always going to be the last stand for the mask wars in California. Schools stayed closed longer here than anywhere else in the country as teachers unions made access to vaccines a condition of their return. More recently, teachers have demanded better masks and more testing to guard against the Omicron variant.
Gov. Gavin Newsom seems ready to eliminate mask requirements in schools, as his counterparts in New Jersey, Oregon and Connecticut did this week. But Newsom cannot go where teachers unions aren’t ready, as was the case with school reopening a year ago.”
Column: Oakland hunger strike is a harbinger of looming California school funding crisis
ANITA CHABRIA, LA Times: "In the birthplace of the Black Panthers, it’s best not to mess with Black and brown kids.
So when an Oakland Unified School Board of Education member leaked a list of proposed campus closures to the community in January — a list that included a beloved elementary campus that is the oldest school in Oakland and an anchor of the Black community — things went haywire fast.
While every school on the list had its supporters, the inclusion of Prescott Elementary, established in 1869, felt like a body blow to many. Just three years ago, the district celebrated the school’s sesquicentennial anniversary, honoring its location in a neighborhood with the second-largest Black population in the state, and one that had long been a destination for immigrants from China, Mexico and other countries."
Oakland homicides hit a similar inflection point a decade ago — then violence plummeted. Can it happen again?
The Chronicle, RAHEEM HOSSEINI: "It was the final City Council meeting of a violent and difficult year, and the people and politicians of Oakland were worked up — about where to build a dog park.
On Dec. 18, 2012, more than five dozen residents signed up to speak about a convoluted journey to bring a play area for furry companions to Lakeview Park, an issue that didn’t get resolved that night, even after a 90-minute discussion that featured three deadlocked votes and council members raising their voices about civic duty.
Despite Oakland reaching 126 criminal homicides that year (two more than police recorded in 2021), no one in attendance remarked on the toll until Hour Eight, when a few patient
religious leaders took turns at the podium to urge investment in a promising anti-violence program."
Alberto Carvalho begins new role as Los Angeles Unified's superintendent
KATE SEQUEIRA, EdSource: "Los Angeles Unified School District’s new superintendent, Alberto Carvalho, begins his new position Monday, following a 13-year tenure at Miami-Dade County Public Schools.
He takes the helm of the largest public school system in California following a unanimous vote of the school board in December. The board, along with parent groups and teachers, are optimistic as they look to Carvalho’s track record of improving student achievement as he begins his four-year contract with the school district, which will pay him $440,000 a year.
LAUSD is home to nearly 450,000 students and is the second-largest public school system in the nation, with Miami-Dade as fourth. Carvalho comes to L.A. at a time when the district is navigating an enrollment decline and widening gaps in academic achievement between low-income students and their higher-income peers, all exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic."
Capitol Weekly Podcast: DearCAStaffers has the Capitol Captivated
Capitol Weekly Staff: "California legislative staff – and many of their bosses – are enthralled by a new Instagram account devoted to sharing anonymous stories detailing alleged misbehavior by legislators, senior staff and others in authority in the Capitol and district offices. Taking inspiration from DC’s @Dear_White_Staffers Instagram account,
@DearCAStaffers launched last week and quickly took Sacramento by storm; the account had garnered over 3000 followers by Friday.
The anonymous host of the account claims to be a former legislative staffer, with the stated goal “to shed light on what it’s like working in the CA State Legislature and to bring change.”
Rick Caruso has entered the mayor’s race. Will L.A. elect a billionaire?
JULIA WICK and BENJAMIN ORESKES, LA Times: "Rick Caruso, the billionaire developer of the Grove and other luxury properties, has officially jumped into the contest to become Los Angeles’ next mayor, shaking up a race that to this point has been led by Democratic elected officials.
Caruso, 63, filed papers with the city clerk Friday, ahead of the Saturday deadline, declaring his intention to run in the June 7 primary. “I’m excited to be here. It’s a very meaningful day for me and my family,” Caruso said afterward. “I love Los Angeles.”
Caruso’s short statement to the media was interrupted by a single protester who screamed, “L.A. doesn’t want a billionaire as mayor.”
lacer County divided on plan to move homeless encampment. ‘I’m not going anywhere’.
MOLLY SULLIVAN, SacBee: “Placer County has a growing homeless population on its government campus and the community is conflicted about how to deal with it.
The county for the past month has been embroiled in a controversy over a proposed ordinance that would make it illegal for homeless individuals to set up camps on county property or in fire-prone areas while it has available beds in its shelters.
Supervisors twice delayed votes on the proposal, which is backed by government employees but opposed by religious leaders who want to find another option.”
Cooler conditions will return to the S.F. Bay Area this week. Here’s what to expect
The Chronicle, JESSICA FLORES: "After Super Bowl Sunday brought the Bay Area sunny, warm skies for those who chose the outdoors over the game on TV, meteorologists advised residents to break out their sweaters this week, because those temperatures won’t last.
Cooler conditions were forecast to return Monday, with even a chance of a light drizzle, after a week of unusually warm February weather that culminated with temperatures in the 70s Sunday.
“It’s going to feel quite different” on Monday, said Sean Miller, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. “Temperatures are going to drop quite a bit where we’re looking at highs right around 60 or so.”"
In San Francisco, affluence equals influence when it comes to shaping public safety
The Chronicle, JUSTIN PHILLIPS: "San Francisco Mayor London Breed and Police Chief Bill Scott didn’t hold a joint news conference on Nov. 17, one day after a 19-year-old man was fatally shot in the Bayview and an 18-year-old man was shot and wounded in nearby Hunters Point, two of the city’s lower-income neighborhoods.
But they did on Nov. 20, less than 24 hours after roughly $1 million in high-end merchandise was stolen from Louis Vuitton, Yves Saint Laurent and Burberry stores in Union Square.
This wasn’t an oversight by the city’s top brass, but an acknowledgment of San Francisco’s social order, where affluence equals influence when it comes to shaping the city’s public safety priorities."
California domestic violence advocates ask Gov. Newsom to spend more on prevention programs
CATHIE ANDERSON, SacBee: “A coalition of 100-plus crisis intervention agencies is once again appealing to the California Legislature and Gov. Gavin Newsom to set aside funding in next year’s budget to pay for programming found to prevent sexual and domestic violence prevention.
Although California has a budget surplus, Newsom did not set aside money for this work in his January budget proposal, something that did not sit well with coalition leaders.
“Despite significant investments in policing and criminalization as a response to rising concerns about public safety, the governor’s budget ignores promising strategies that address the root causes of violence, and fails to place any focus on preventing domestic and sexual violence before they occur entirely,” they wrote in a statement criticizing the omission.”
Marriages soar in one Northern California county, with more now than pre-pandemic
The Chronicle, AMY COVAL: "Love is in the air in Humboldt County.
Marriage licenses from the California Department of Public Health show Humboldt County marriage licenses are up 56% in 2021 compared with 2019, from 735 licenses to 1150. Merced, Santa Cruz and San Mateo counties are also up over 35% in the same time period. In contrast, Los Angeles, Santa Clara and San Diego counties, which hold California’s three largest cities, are all down by more than 20%.
Humboldt County wedding officiant Paul Marsh says it is not traditional weddings that account for the rise but rather civil ceremonies. Marsh says civil weddings became hugely popular throughout the pandemic. He also notes the time frame for a civil marriage is much shorter than the planning time for a traditional wedding, with only two to six weeks’ notice needed. He says that during the pandemic, restrictions on large events pushed many to look for alternative solutions."
U.S. suspends Mexican avocado imports on eve of Super Bowl
AP, MARK STEVENSON: "Mexico has acknowledged that the U.S. government has suspended all imports of Mexican avocados after a U.S. plant safety inspector in Mexico received a threat.
The surprise suspension was confirmed late Saturday on the eve of the Super Bowl, the biggest sales opportunity of the year for Mexican avocado growers — though it would not affect game-day consumption since those avocados had already been shipped.
Avocado exports are the latest victim of the drug cartel turf battles and extortion of avocado growers in the western state of Michoacan, the only state in Mexico fully authorized to export to the U.S. market."
Et tu, Larry? Why so many celebrities are shilling for crypto
LA Times, RYAN FAUGHNDER: "The crypto economy got the red carpet treatment at Super Bowl LVI.
The biggest cryptocurrency exchanges, looking to demystify their businesses for tens of millions of Americans, secured commercials during the big game, which cost up to $7 million per 30-second spot. Some enlisted famous faces.
Larry David appeared as a clueless time traveler who turns up his nose at great innovations (The wheel? Eh. The lightbulb? “Can I be honest? ... it stinks.”) before pooh-poohing a pitch for crypto company FTX. The tagline: “Don’t be like Larry. Don’t miss out on the next big thing.” Later, LeBron James schooled his younger self about taking chances in an ad for Crypto.com."
Rams come up big when it counts, come back to beat Bengals in Super Bowl LVI
LA Times, GARY KLEIN: "The Rams finished their all-in, boom-or-bust season with a perfect ending in Super Bowl LVI.
Boom!
Quarterback Matthew Stafford passed for three touchdowns and led another game-winning drive."
Russia’s top diplomat urges more talks as German leader flies to Kyiv and Moscow
AP, VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV/YURAS KARMANAU: "Russia’s top diplomat advised President Vladimir Putin on Monday to continue talks with the West on Russian security demands amid tensions over Ukraine.
The statement by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov appeared to signal the Kremlin’s intention to stay on a diplomatic path even though the U.S. has warned that Moscow could invade Ukraine at any moment.
Speaking at the start of a meeting with Putin, Lavrov suggested that Moscow should maintain a dialogue with the U.S. and its allies even though they have rejected Russia’s main security demands."
