With California expected to lose 10% of its water within 20 years, Newsom calls for urgent action
LAT, IAN JAMES: “With California enduring historic drought amplified by global warming, Gov. Gavin Newsom on Thursday released a new plan to adapt to the state’s hotter, drier future by capturing and storing more water, recycling more wastewater and desalinating seawater and salty groundwater.
The governor’s new water-supply strategy, detailed in a 16-page document, lays out a series of actions aimed at preparing the state for an estimated 10% decrease in California’s water supply by 2040 because of higher temperatures and decreased runoff. The plan focuses on accelerating infrastructure projects, boosting conservation and upgrading the state’s water system to keep up with the increasing pace of climate change.
“The hots are getting a lot hotter. The dries are getting a lot drier,” Newsom said. “We have to adapt to that new reality, and we have to change our approach.””
State investigating campaign finance complaint against Chesa Boudin recall campaign
The Chronicle, MALLORY MOENCH/MEGAN CASSIDY: “A state agency is investigating allegations made last year by supporters of former San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin that a group funding the recall campaign against him violated campaign finance laws.
The California Fair Political Practices Commission opened an investigation into allegations against San Franciscans for Public Safety Supporting the Recall of Chesa Boudin and three other organizations on Sept. 21 after receiving a complaint from an attorney representing San Franciscans Against the Recall of Chesa Boudin.
The state agency opens an investigation when it determines a complaint has indications of potential violations. Some cases result in financial penalties, and the agency assessed about $472,000 in fines in 2021.”
Los Angeles Unified to enter school year with fewer classroom vacancies, district says
EdSource, KATE SEQUEIRA: “ust over 200 classroom teaching positions remain open across LAUSD’s nearly 1,000 schools following a summer of ramped-up recruitment. That leaves the district at a 99% fill rate as it welcomes students back to the classroom Monday to start the new year amid a nationwide staffing shortage that’s ongoing since before the pandemic.
“We are doing very, very well, even when comparing ourselves to small districts,” Los Angeles Unified Superintendent Alberto Carvalho said when discussing staffing Monday at a news conference.
The district began the summer with 2,100 vacancies. Those hired include fully credentialed teachers as well as those on provisional and intern permits. About 700 of those positions were officially filled in the last week following the return of principals and assistant principals to their schools on July 20 and 29, according to the district.”
Decision day: Which bills did California lawmakers kill?
CALMatters, BEN CHRISTOPHER: “On most days, California lawmakers deliberate, debate and decide bills out in public for every Californian to see.
Today is not one of those days.
In simultaneous marathon hearings, the appropriations committees in the Assembly and Senate rattled through hundreds of bills in a single discharge of rapid-fire legislating. Many proposals lived to see another day. Among them: Gov. Gavin Newsom’s proposal for new courts to compel more homeless individuals to seek mental health and substance abuse treatment, and bills to strictly limit the use of solitary confinement in California jails and prisons, allow for the composting of human remains and increase family leave payments for lower-wage workers, though it wouldn’t take effect until 2024. “
L.A. water board approves controversial agreement with Boeing over toxic site
LAT, TONY BRISCOE: “Despite the heated objections of neighbors and environmentalists, the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board voted unanimously Thursday to approve an agreement with Boeing Co. that seeks to ensure polluted stormwater isn’t still flowing into local creeks and the Los Angeles River after the company cleans up the notoriously toxic Santa Susana Field Laboratory.
The agreement requires Boeing to monitor stormwater draining into the Calleguas Creek watershed for 195 pollutants after the company completes its cleanup of the 2,850-acre site atop a plateau in southeastern Ventura County. Boeing would have to test for the contaminants in waterway outfalls for at least 12 storm events to ensure levels of pollutants would not violate federal water quality standards or background levels. Afterward, the water board could decide to release Boeing from these regulations if it deems the area is no longer a risk to public health or environment.
The field lab grounds are laced with heavy metals and radioactive contaminants after industrial activities from Boeing, rocket manufacturer Rocketdyne, NASA and the U.S. Department of Energy, which used the site as a proving ground for rocket engines for space exploration and nuclear reactors for power after World War II. These contaminants — including brain-damaging lead and potent carcinogens — have migrated off site and have been observed in the local creeks that feed into the Los Angeles River.”
Kamala Harris’ VP portfolio is full of unwinnable issues. Abortion isn’t one of them
The Chronicle, JOE GAROFOLI: “Nearly two years and several ill-fitting assignments into her vice presidency, Kamala Harris may have found her voice as the nation’s leading advocate for abortion rights.
She tried out that voice Thursday in the safest of environments — her former home city of San Francisco, where abortion opponents are rarer than sunny July days. Her tone was measured as she led a roundtable discussion of two dozen state legislators and local officials, many of whom have held key roles in trying to make California a national haven for abortion-seekers.
A package of 13 abortion-related bills crafted by the state’s Future of Abortion Council that was created last fall in anticipation of the fall of Roe v. Wade is moving swiftly through the Legislature, and voters are expected to support a constitutional amendment enshrining abortion rights on the November ballot.”
Opinion: Primary care provider key to achieving health equity
Capitol Weekly, PALAV BABARIA/KIRAN SAVAGE-SANGWAN: “California is gearing up to make history. The state will achieve near universal health coverage in 2024 by expanding Medi-Cal, the state’s Medicaid program, to all income-eligible Californians. Immigration status will no longer be an obstacle.
This milestone follows Medi-Cal access expansions to all income-eligible children in 2016, young adults in 2020, and older Californians this year. But expansion of coverage alone is not the end game.
As COVID-19 has shown, Californians are in critical need of access to medical professionals who understand their language and community, build long-term patient relationships, and can help navigate the complexities of health care. A primary care provider should fill this need.”
Supervised drug injection sites could soon pop up in California. How will they work?
CALMatters, ANA B. IBARRA: “For years, the idea of establishing supervised drug injection sites has been a long-standing goal for some progressive California leaders looking to address the burgeoning overdose crisis. Efforts to launch such programs have come close, but never to the finish line.
Now, as the latest legislation seeking to sanction these sites heads to the governor’s desk, proponents are gearing up to make these injection sites a reality — and they hope a success — in the Golden State.
Senate Bill 57 would authorize these overdose prevention pilot programs in Oakland, San Francisco and Los Angeles, which would operate through Jan. 1, 2028.”
New York is roaring back from the worst of the pandemic. Why isn’t San Francisco?
The Chronicle, ROLAND LI: “On a scorching summer evening, humidity choking the city, thousands of sweaty visitors lined up to ascend almost 1,400 feet.
Children squealed in delight as they disembarked on the 57th floor Summit observatory at the One Vanderbilt tower, all of Manhattan unfolding in front of them through glass windows, from the delicate, silvery tip of the Chrysler Building to One World Trade Center catching the setting sun, a symbol of the city’s rebirth from the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
San Francisco also knows how to attract people during these bizarre times — take Outside Lands, for instance — but there’s a difference between an annual extravaganza and, in Summit’s case, a typical Monday. Lethargic downtown San Francisco lacks the energy and sheer mass of daily locals and tourists who have reinvigorated Midtown Manhattan and beyond to provide a sense of how life in this metropolis used to be.”
Gabriela López was recalled from the San Francisco school board. Now she plans to run again
The Chronicle, JILL TUCKER: “A San Francisco school board member recalled from office in a landslide vote in February intends to run again for the position, one of nine candidates who have notified election officials of their intent to run for one of three seats in the November election.
Gabriela López submitted her candidacy papers Thursday, according to the San Francisco Department of Elections, a day before the filing deadline.
López was one of three school board members removed from the board in the recall. She was serving as board president at the time.”
A young crypto billionaire’s political agenda goes well beyond pandemic preparedness
LAT, FREDDY BREWSTER: “In May, an eccentric 30-year-old cryptocurrency billionaire named Sam Bankman-Fried made a startling proclamation. In a podcast interview, Bankman-Fried said he would spend as much as $1 billion of his estimated $12.8-billion fortune on American politics by the 2024 election, joining the ranks of megadonors such as George Soros and the Koch brothers.
At the time, Bankman-Fried, raised in the Bay Area by two Stanford law professors, was far from a household name. FTX, the crypto exchange he founded and runs, makes most of its money overseas, and was perhaps best known in America for buying the naming rights for the Miami Heat’s arena.
In Washington, though, Bankman-Fried — known as SBF online — has become a familiar sight on Capitol Hill, meeting with lawmakers, chatting with aides and testifying before congressional committees.”
Abortion rights protester sues San Francisco, saying paramedic sedated her without consent
AP, OLGA R. RODRIGUEZ: “A protester has filed a federal lawsuit against the city of San Francisco, alleging that a paramedic, under police direction, injected her with a sedative while she was handcuffed after being removed from a Golden State Warriors game for demonstrating in favor of abortion rights.
Kareim McKnight and a friend, Amanda Piasecki, were at Game 5 of the Warriors’ championship series against the Boston Celtics at Chase Center on June 13 when they walked onto the main floor and displayed a banner that read: “Overturn Roe? Hell No!” A draft of the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe vs. Wade had been leaked in May.
Video shared by McKnight’s attorney, John Burris, who filed the lawsuit this week, showed security guards dragging McKnight and Piasecki by their feet out of the venue.”
Airline seats have been getting smaller for years. Is the shrinking coming to an end?
LAT, HUGO MARTIN: “Over the last 15 years or so, airlines have found a new way to drive up revenue: squeezing more seats into each plane.
The result has been frustration and pushback from passengers who now endure narrower airline seats with less legroom.
But relief may be in sight: After years of delays, federal regulators have begun taking public comments on a proposal to impose minimum standards on airline seat width and legroom to put a halt to the many years of seat shrinkage.”
Anne Heche not expected to survive after fiery Mar Vista crash that left her in coma
LAT, RICHARD WINTON/ALEXANDRA DEL ROSARIO/SUMMER LIN/GREGORY YEE: “Actor Anne Heche is not expected to survive after a fiery car crash in Mar Vista last week left her in a coma, according to a statement on behalf of her family and friends Thursday night.
She is being kept on life support at the Grossman Burn Center at West Hills Hospital while medical staffers determine whether any of her organs are viable for donation, as had long been her wish, the statement said.
The crash left Heche, 53, with “a severe anoxic brain injury,” and she remained in critical condition in the coma, according to the statement.”
Trump calls for 'immediate' release of Mar-a-Lago warrant
AP, ERIC TUCKER/MICHAEL BALSAMO: “Former President Donald Trump called late Thursday for the “immediate” release of the federal warrant the FBI used to search his Florida estate, hours after the Justice Department had asked a court to unseal the warrant, with Attorney General Merrick Garland citing the “substantial public interest in this matter.”
In messages posted on his Truth Social platform, Trump wrote, “Not only will I not oppose the release of documents ... I am going a step further by ENCOURAGING the immediate release of those documents.” He continued to assail the FBI search of Mar-a-Lago as “unAmerican, unwarranted and unnecessary.”
“Release the documents now!” he wrote.”
Death toll from Israel-Gaza fighting rises to 48, including 17 children
AP, FARES AKRAM: “The Palestinian death toll from last weekend’s fighting between Israel and Gaza militants rose to 48 on Thursday after an 11-year-old girl and a man died from wounds suffered during the worst cross-border violence in more than a year.
Meanwhile, two wounded Gaza children, ages 8 and 14, were fighting for their lives in a Jerusalem hospital. In all, more than 300 Palestinians were wounded over the weekend when Israel struck Islamic Jihad targets across Gaza and the militant group fired hundreds of rockets at Israel.
The death of 11-year-old Layan Shaer at Mukassed Hospital in an Arab neighborhood of Jerusalem brought to 17 the number of children killed in the fighting. Hani Shaer, a relative, said the girl was wounded in a drone attack during a surprise opening salvo launched by Israel, hours before any rockets were fired.”
