KQED's The California Report

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With Worsening Drought, Long-Delayed Reservoir Project Gets New Life Jun 02, 2022

Show notes

As California's drought conditions worsen, the state is looking for more answers beyond just asking residents to conserve. There's now renewed debate about whether or not to build the Sites Reservoir, a massive reservoir project in the western Sacramento River Valley.

Guest: Ann Willis, Senior Staff Researcher, Center for Watershed Sciences at UC Davis

California’s Reparations Task Force released its first report on Wednesday. The report has preliminary recommendations including the establishment of an Office of African American/Freedmen Affairs to address past and potential future harms, and to assist people in filing eligibility claims.

Reporter: Lakshmi Sarah, KQED

State officials are warning people seeking abortion services about potential misleading information offered by so-called crisis pregnancy centers. California Attorney General Rob Bonta has issued a consumer alert about these facilities.

Reporter: Keith Mizuguchi, The California Report

UCLA researchers have analyzed the autopsies of people who died in L.A. County jails over ten years. They found that more than half of deaths classified as natural had evidence of physical harm on the bodies.

Reporter: Emily Elena Dugdale, KPCC

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Los Angeles Clears The Way To Ban Homeless Encampments Near Schools Jun 02, 2022

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The Los Angeles City Council has voted in favor of drafting new municipal ordinances that will ban homeless encampments within 500 feet of all schools and daycare centers in the city.

A new state audit has found major problems with the state's Child Abuse Central Index. The audit only reviewed six of California’s 58 counties, but found information gaps in tens of thousands of cases.

Reporter: Sara Hossaini, KQED

Our sister station KVPR in Fresno has launched a new podcast series called “The Other California.” It profiles small towns around the San Joaquin Valley. One recent episode focuses on the expansion of the cannabis industry in the community of Woodlake in Tulare County.

Reporter: Kerry Klein, KVPR

After a very long meeting Tuesday, Democrats in the State Assembly have settled on a new Speaker to succeed Anthony Rendon. But it's still unclear when Robert Rivas will actually become the next Assembly Speaker.

Reporter: Scott Shafer, KQED

This week the Biden Administration has launched a new system for hearing migrants’ asylum claims at the U.S.-Mexico border. Rather than sending asylum seekers into the overburdened immigration courts, cases will be decided by asylum officer in six cities, including San Francisco and Los Angeles.

Reporter: Tyche Hendricks, KQED

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More Than A Dozen Oil Wells Found To Be Leaking Methane In Bakersfield May 31, 2022

Show notes

There’s growing concern about the potential health and safety risks from more than a dozen leaking oil wells in Bakersfield. At least five of the wells were found to be emitting methane at high enough levels that could either be explosive or cause serious health risks.

Reporter: Keith Mizuguchi, The California Report

With the primary election coming up next month in California, many voters will be casting their ballot for the candidates they feel best represent their interests and needs. But is there equal representation in the state?

Guest: Joe Mathews, Policital Columnist and President of the Global Forum on Modern Direct Democracy

During the worst months of the pandemic, many childcare providers had to temporarily close their doors. That pushed some providers over the edge, especially in low income communities.

Reporter: Claire Trageser, KPBS

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Hollywood Bowl Celebrates 100 Years May 30, 2022

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The Hollywood Bowl has been hosting musicians from far and wide for years. This year is something special as the Los Angeles venue celebrates 100 years with another summer of concerts and performances.

Guest: Chad Smith, Chief Executive Officer, Los Angeles Philharmonic

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Legislative Staff Would Be Allowed To Unionize Under New Bill May 27, 2022

Show notes

Workers in the California Legislature are not allowed to unionize, and often work long and grueling hours, without overtime. But a new bill would change that.

Reporter: Nicole Nixon, CapRadio

Immigrant advocates and the U.S. government have reached an agreement on standards for the treatment of children in Border Patrol facilities. It comes two years after advocates raised alarms over shocking conditions at the Texas border during the Trump administration.

Reporter: Tyche Hendricks, KQED

Hundreds of unionized workers, who've been on strike against Chevron's Bay Area refinery, are set to start voting on a deal that could end what's been a bitter two month long walk-out.

Reporter: Ted Goldberg, KQED

A strike by thousands of nurses has been averted at four Los Angeles County-run hospitals and multiple clinics. It happened after an all-night bargaining session led to a tentative agreement.

Reporter: Jackie Fortier, KPCC

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Governor Newsom Calls For Immediate Action On Gun Legislation May 26, 2022

Show notes

In the wake of Tuesday’s mass murder at a Texas elementary school, Governor Gavin Newsom and state legislative leaders are calling for fast action aimed at reducing gun violence.

Reporter: Scott Shafer, KQED

Governor Newsom’s ambitious plan to overhaul California’s mental healthcare system cleared a major hurdle on Wednesday. The state Senate voted to approve CARE Court. The program would allow judges to order people with schizophrenia or other psychotic disorders into treatment, with a particular focus on people who are also experiencing homelessness.

Reporter: Erin Baldassari, KQED

California’s commision on POST, which stands for peace officer standards and training, has reached a key milestone in its implementation of the new police decertification law, Senate Bill 2. The commission has approved a definition of what constitutes misconduct serious enough to revoke an officer’s badge.

Reporter: Sukey Lewis, KQED

The Anaheim City Council has voted to cancel the troubled Angels Stadium sale deal. The deal has been mired in controversy as an FBI affidavit has shown the city's former mayor was under investigation for public corruption and other offenses.

Reporter: Jackie Fortier, KPCC

A KPCC investigation has found the state corrections department moved people known as medical parolees to a nursing home in Los Angeles that was recently stripped of its federal certification. The move and decision behind it has been shrouded in secrecy.

Reporter: Elly Yu, KPCC

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How To Help Young People Cope With Tragic School Shooting In Texas May 25, 2022

Show notes

Details are still unfolding around the tragic school shooting in Uvalde, Texas. 21 people are dead -- 19 students and two teachers. For young people, the tragedy will likely resonate for years. But there are support mechanisms to help them cope with the shooting.

Reporter: Mary Franklin Harvin, The California Report

Preschool students are expelled and suspended at rates three times higher than kids in K-12 schools. It’s a problem California lawmakers are trying to address with a new bill – a bill that would ban the practice, which disproportionately impacts Black children.

Reporter: Deepa Fernandes, Early Childhood Reporting Fellow, Pacific Oaks College which is funded in part by First 5 LA

An investigation by KPCC in Los Angeles has found that the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation has moved people known as medical parolees to an institution that the federal government has stripped of its certification. That’s after the facility consistently violated standards of patient care.

Reporter: Aaron Mendelson, KPCC

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Governor Newsom Warns Of Possible Statewide Water Restrictions May 24, 2022

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Governor Gavin Newsom is warning there could be statewide mandatory water restrictions if Californians don’t start conserving more water, as the drought worsens.

Reporter: Nicole Nixon, CapRadio

Starting in June, 6 million Southern Californians will face new water restrictions. For many people, that’ll mean watering their yards twice or even just once a week, per regulations. Some residents are ready. Others, not so much.

Reporter: Caleigh Wells, KCRW

There's a widening federal corruption investigation in the city of Anaheim, centered on its $320 milllion deal to sell the Angels baseball stadium to the owner of the team. Anaheim Mayor Harry Sidhu resigned Monday amid allegations that the city is tightly controlled by a “cabal” of business and political power brokers.

Guest: Gabriel San Roman, Reporter, LA Times

A survivor of the 2017 North Bay wildfires is asking a federal bankruptcy judge to order managers of a fund for wildfire victims to account for millions of dollars that have been spent over the last two years.

Reporter: Dan Brekke, KQED

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San Francisco Archbishop Denies Communion For Pelosi Over Abortion Views May 23, 2022

Show notes

The Catholic archbishop of San Francisco, Salvator Cordileone, has directed priests under his jurisdiction not to give House Speaker Nancy Pelosi communion. Cordileone says it's because of Pelosi's support for abortion rights.

State officials have confirmed that two idle oil wells in Bakersfield were leaking methane gas near a residential community, but say they were sealed late last week. Environmental groups have called out regulators for not acting with more urgency once the leaks were first reported, but the state says it wasn’t an emergency.

Reporter: Juan Carlos Lara, KQED

Five months ago, California unveiled a program to help low income Californians eliminate asthma triggers in their homes. But some families are still struggling to get these services.

Reporter: Madi Bolaños, Valley Public Radio

The Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority or LAHSA has unveiled plans to reduce the number of unsheltered homeless in L.A. County over the next three years.

Reporter: Ethan Ward, KPCC

There are two leading candidates in the race for Mayor of Los Angeles, according to the polls. One is Democratic Congresswoman and former speaker of the California State Assembly, Karen Bass. Her chief opponent is Rick Caruso, a billionaire property developer and Republican turned Democrat.

Guest: Fernando Guerra, Director of Loyola Marymount University’s Center for the Study of Los Angeles

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Legislators In Stalemate Over Gas Rebate Plans May 20, 2022

Show notes

At more than $6 a gallon, California has the highest gasoline prices in the country. So what’s Sacramento doing? State lawmakers want to use part of a $97 billion budget surplus to send out rebate checks. But legislators are in a stalemate over the details.

Reporter: Nicole Nixon, CapRadio

When it comes to COVID-19 infection rates, the Bay Area continues to lead the state, but the numbers are rising across California, driven largely by subvariants of the coronavirus. With cases also rising in Southern California, the CDC has now moved L.A. County’s COVID risk level from low to medium.

Reporter: Jackie Fortier, KPCC

State Senators Melissa Hurtado and Dave Cortese have sent a letter to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, requesting that the Department of Justice investigate possible drought profiteering and water rights abuses in California, and other western states. Hurtado says she’s concerned about the increasing amount of water rights being purchased by hedge funds.

Reporter: Keith Mizuguchi, The California Report

A species of California salmon is at risk of extinction due to climate change. As a short term remedy wildlife officials are trucking the salmon to cooler waters.

Reporter: Megan Jamerson, KCRW

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