California and the Nation
State Complains to City of Benicia that Its Oil-by-Rail Safety Plan Isn't Safe
The letter to Benicia complained that the city’s draft environmental impact report considered only a small section of rail the trains will be traversing and underestimated the danger of an accident. Oil-laden trains will pass through downtown Roseville, Sacramento, West Sacramento, Davis and other cities on their way to the Benicia refinery. read more
“Six Californias” Fails to Get Enough Signatures to Be on the Ballot
The California Secretary of State announced last Friday that Silicon Valley millionaire Tim Draper’s initiative fell short of the number of signatures necessary to qualify for the ballot in November 2016. Although he turned in 1.14 million signatures (pdf), far more than the required 807,615, a random sample of 54,000 of them indicated that a third were invalid. read more
State Law Protects Reviewers’ Right to be Critical on Yelp
Governor Jerry Brown signed a law this week that makes it illegal for companies to prohibit negative reviews being posted on popular ratings sites like Yelp. Assembly Bill 2365 bars companies from slipping into contracts language that forbids customers from commenting publicly in a negative fashion about their experiences. read more
Police Muscle Up at “Urban Shield” Convention in Oakland
The five-day event includes a two-day trade show with the latest weaponry, surveillance equipment and gear on display. “Urban Shield” is ostensibly aimed at disaster-preparedness with a heavy dose of counterterrorism activities. But a 2012 promotional video bears a striking resemblance to police encounters with Occupy Oakland protesters, sprinkled with “No War for Oil” and “Peace, Not Drone War” signs. read more
Drought Zaps One-Fourth of California’s $5 Billion Rice Crop
The crop contributes $1.8 billion a year to the state’s economy and helps generate 25,000 jobs. California is the country’s number one agricultural state and rice is one of its top 10 crops. “Virtually every piece of sushi made in America is made with California rice,” according to the USA Rice Federation. read more
10 California Police Agencies Suspended from Pentagon Program for Losing Weapons and Gear
NBC Bay Area reported last week that the Napa County Sheriff’s Office lost an M-16 assault rifle and was suspended on May 6. The San Mateo County Sheriff's Department didn’t know where two M16A1 rifles were and was suspended in October 2013. Suspended agencies don’t have to return all their military equipment, but can’t order any new stuff. If an agency screws up bad enough, its status is downgraded to “terminated,” but that has only happened to seven of them. read more
80% Chance of 10-Year Drought in Southwest; 50% for a Megadrought
“This will be worse than anything seen during the last 2,000 years and would pose unprecedented challenges to water resources in the region,” lead researcher Toby Ault told the Cornell Chronicle.
Ault wasn’t just talking about the 10-year drought. The study also projected a 20%-50% chance of a 35-year-plus megadrought in the next 100 years. read more
Deadline Looms for 100,000 in Covered California to Prove Residency
The Los Angeles Times reported last week that the state was still missing proper documentation for 100,000 people but they had until late September or October to make their case. And according to Covered California (CC) Executive Director Peter Lee, they might have a case to make. “We are quite confident where people have not provided information it's not because they are not citizens,” Lee reportedly told a CC board meeting. “Rather, it's a challenge of getting the information to us.” read more
Data Breach Alert at 180 Albertsons Stores in Southern California
The company said it contained the breach and patched it, and didn’t believe any data had been stolen. But it doesn’t really know. It assured customers they could continue to use their cards, but an investigation is just getting underway. The breach, which was not explained in any detail, allegedly occurred as early as June 22 and continued until July 17 at the latest. read more
Porn Permits in L.A. Plunge, but Has Production Just Gone Underground?
John Rogers at the Associated Press found a few folks who think they might not have gone far. “A lot are simply shooting in out-of-the-way places where they won't be caught,” Adult Video News senior editor Mark Kernes said. “Normally it's in people's homes who are willing to rent them out for a day. Sometimes it's out in the woods". read more
California Cities Stumble in Recovery
The economic recoveries of Stockton and San Bernardino ranked 149 and 150, respectively, among the nation’s 150 largest cities, using criteria based on 18 “essential metrics.” Bankruptcy was a heavily-weighted factor, which both cities have suffered through. No California city made the Top 10. The median ranking of California’s 29 cities was 114, below the midpoint of 100. The average was 102. read more
Nine Dead Horses in Nine Days at Del Mar Racetrack
Race horses die at the track all too frequently―between 200 and 400 a year in California. It is estimated that 24 horses die every week on U.S. racetracks. But a cluster of deaths like this is unusual. So far, Del Mar authorities have focused on the track itself. They waxed the synthetic Polytrack and watered and aerated the turf track to slow things down. They also moved a rail to give the horses more room on turf. read more
California Is One of the Places to Be if You Want to Be Wiretapped
The annual Wiretap Report from the Administrative Office of U.S. Courts listed California third, based on the number of wiretaps judges approved per 500,000 residents, clocking in at 11.7. Nevada (mostly Las Vegas) dominated at 38.2, followed by the District of Columbia (17), Colorado (12.4), California and New York (10.7). Of the 3,576 wiretaps approved, 2,331 were installed. Only one request was not authorized. read more
California Businessman Sentenced for Economic Espionage to Help China
Liew and his wife set up a California company in the 1990s and hired former DuPont engineers to obtain documents that detailed the process of making titanium dioxide (TiO2), a closely guarded DuPont secret that nets it $14 billion a year. The whitening agent is an ingredient in Oreo cookies, toothpaste, sunscreen and cosmetics. Liew received more than $20 million from the Chinese for the secrets. read more
Lawsuit Blames State Pesticide Agency Stalling in Honeybee Disaster
The link of neonicotinoid pesticides to the decline of honeybees is not new, and because it is not new, a coalition of advocacy groups sued California’s Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) this week to do something about it. Five years of “foot-dragging,” while expanding the pesticide’s acceptable use, is a violation of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and other laws, the suit contends. read more
L.A. Belatedly Joins Movement to Put Deportation Holds for the Feds on ICE
L.A. follows about 100 municipalities across the country, including the counties of Los Angeles, San Bernardino, San Diego and Riverside, that have cited a ruling by U.S. District Judge Janice M. Stewart in an Oregon case three months ago that essentially said the detainees could not be held in jail solely for the purpose of deportation. read more