KQED's The California Report

Latest Episodes:

California Health Officials Recommend Masks Indoors for Everyone Jul 29, 2021

Show notes

Following in the footsteps of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, California public health officials are recommending that everyone wear masks indoors, regardless of their vaccination status.

Google will require employees who return to the company’s offices be vaccinated. The Mountain View-based tech giant is among the companies that is shifting gears when it comes to employees returning to the office.

Reporter: Rachael Myrow, KQED

Health officials and politicians have blamed people who are unvaccinated for the recent surge in coronavirus cases, saying we are now in a "pandemic of the unvaccinated." But one Bay Area pediatrician called this rhetoric damaging, because it lumps everyone who hasn't gotten a shot into one group.

Guest: Dr. Rhea Boyd, Bay Area Pediatrician and Public Health Advocate

The Los Angeles City Council has passed a sweeping ordinance that would restrict homeless encampments in many areas of the city, including near parks, schools, day care facilities, libraries and freeway bridges and offramps.

Keeping someone housed may be among the best ways to prevent a serious COVID-19 infection, or even death. That’s according to a new UCLA study that looked at eviction moratoriums during the pandemic.

Reporter: Benjamin Gottlieb, KCRW

In San Diego County, tenants' rights advocates say they will continue to fight against a plan to sell nearly 6,000 housing units to the private equity firm, Blackstone. Some who live in the housing now are worried they’ll lose their homes.

Reporter: Cristina Kim, KPBS

This week marks two years since the tragic Gilroy Garlic Festival shooting, and survivors are adding another defendant in a lawsuit they've filed against the festival. The lawsuit now names Century Arms LLC, which marketed and sold a military-style assault rifle used in the shooting.

Reporter: Laura Klivans, KQED

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Los Angeles to Require City Employees to Get COVID Vaccine or Weekly Tests Jul 28, 2021

Show notes

Los Angeles is the latest California city that will require municipal employees to get vaccinated against COVID-19. If they don’t, those employees will have to provide regular test results to show that they haven't contracted the virus.

Squaw Valley, the famous ski resort near Lake Tahoe that once hosted the Winter Olympics, is preparing for a name change this fall in response to community concerns about the derogatory connotations of its name towards Native American women. Now, another Squaw Valley in Fresno County is at the center of a debate over the possibility of its own name change.

Reporter: Sorreath Hok, Valley Public Radio

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is recommending that people wear masks indoors in areas where the coronavirus is surging. That includes those who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

Reporter: Laura Klivans, KQED

Baby salmon are dying in California rivers by the thousands because of abnormally warm temperatures following a series of heat waves.

Reporter: Ezra David Romero, KQED

Santa Barbara has joined the list of California cities, including San Francisco, Santa Cruz and San Luis Obispo, moving away from natural gas in new buildings. It’s seen as one way to fight the climate crisis.

Reporter: Rachel Showalter, KCBX

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California to Require State Employees, Health Care Workers to Show Proof of Vaccination Jul 27, 2021

Show notes

In an order from Governor Gavin Newsom, state and health care workers will no longer be able to self attest that they've been vaccinated. Those who do not show proof of vaccination will be tested regularly for COVID-19 and have to wear a mask in the workplace.

Reporter: Laura Klivans, KQED

Five people are dead following a long standoff at a home in Wasco. Three people inside the home, believed to be the gunman's sons and their mom were killed along with a Kern County Sheriff's Deputy.

Reporter: Soreath Hok, Valley Public Radio

As wildfires rage across much of Northern California, it's a stark reminder that once they are contained, many families will have lost their homes. And the challenge to rebuild can take years, if thoe families stick it out.

Reporter: Caleigh Wells, KCRW

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Evacuations Expand as Crews Continue to Battle Dixie Fire Jul 26, 2021

Show notes

The Dixie Fire burning in Plumas and Butte counties has burned nearly 193,000 and forced even more evacuations in Plumas County. Several homes and structures have been destroyed although the full extent of the damage hasn't been determined.

Los Angeles County has seen five straight days of daily COVID-19 cases topping 2,000, mainly due to the highly contagious delta variant. That's led officials to urge all residents who are eligible to get vaccinated as soon as possible.

California industries have sent manufacturing jobs overseas for years to find lower wages and fewer regulations. But as the drought tightens its grip on the state, some businesses might have an additional reason to leave -- the search for cheap water.

Reporter: Benjamin Gottlieb, KCRW

Even when the state isn’t in a drought, some of California’s Native American communities face challenges getting safe drinking water. There are growing concerns about what this year's dry weather will mean for those communities.

Guests: Jonathan Rash, Deputy Director of the Division of Sanitation Facilities Construction at the California Area Indian Health Service and Bo Mazzetti, Chairman of the Rincon Band of Luiseño Indians

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University of California Decides to Raise Tuition, Despite Student Protests Jul 23, 2021

Show notes

The tuition increases approved by the U.C. Regents will be capped at 5%. Starting in 2022, it’s estimated new in-state undergrads will pay roughly $530 more in tuition and fees.

Reporter: Vanessa Rancaño, KQED

The major surge of new coronavirus cases is growing in Los Angeles County. And more fully-vaccinated people are testing positive with the virus.

Reporter: Jackie Fortier, KPCC

Several new sports are making their debut at the Olympics in Tokyo -- among them are surfing and skateboarding. Both sports have a long and storied history in California.

Guest: Selema Masekela, Action Sports Commentator and Host

The state Employment Development Department has announced that it will begin paying unemployment insurance claims for applicants who have certified for benefits already and received at least one week of benefits, but who have been pending for at least two weeks. The agency has been riddled with problems since the start of the pandemic.

Guest: Mary Franklin Harvin, The California Report

First-Time Olympian Explains How She Got Into Shooting

Sagen Maddalena is competing in the Olympics for the first time as a member of the U.S. Olympic Shooting Team. Maddalena grew up in Groveland, not too far from Yosemite National Park.

Guest: Sagen Maddalena, Member of the U.S. Olympic Shooting Team

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PG&E to Bury 10,000 Miles of Electric Lines Underground Jul 22, 2021

Show notes

Pacific Gas & Electric plans to bury 10,000 miles of its power lines in an effort to prevent its electrical grid from sparking wildfires in California. The announcement comes days after the utility said its equipment may have ignited the Dixie Fire burning in Plumas and Butte counties.

Guest: Will Abrams, 2017 Tubbs Fire Survivor

While huge fires are burning across the state, in rural areas, even a small brush fire can be devastating. An unincorporated community in Tulare County is struggling to recover after a fire burned down a lifeline for the community earlier this month.

Reporter: Madi Bolaños, Valley Public Radio

A popular conservative talk show host will appear as a candidate in California’s upcoming recall election. This was one of the legal rulings issued Wednesday regarding the race.

Reporter: Katie Orr, KQED

Videos of groups openly stealing from department stores and running out to waiting cars have gone viral online, and put pressure on law enforcement, despite overall decreasing crime rates. A new law signed by Governor Newsom hopes to help local police investigate these crimes.

Reporter: Kate Wolffe, KQED

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Pasadena to Require Vaccination of City Employees Jul 21, 2021

Show notes

As coronavirus cases continue to soar across Los Angeles County, and the rest of the state, more employers are poised to require workers to be vaccinated against COVID-19. Pasadena is about to become the first city in Southern California to demand that all of its municipal employees do so.

Guest: Steven Mermell, Pasadena City Manager

Last month, California unveiled an online portal that would allow residents to gain access to a digital vaccine verification record. But millions who have been vaccinated for COVID-19 have had issues getting all their information included in their digital record.

Guest: Darion Afshar-Gomez, business intelligence analyst with the San Jose Sharks

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Crews Face Challenging Conditions in Fighting Northern California Fires Jul 20, 2021

Show notes

Crews continue to face challenging conditions in battling large wildfires across Northern California. Thunderstorms and wind are being replaced by dry, hot weather this week as crews continue to battle the Dixie and Tamarack fires.

Critics of Governor Gavin Newsom say his COVID-19 restrictions were unfair and damaging to small businesses -- thousands of which permanently closed during the pandemic. Now they're using that argument to drum up support for the recall of Newsom.

Reporter: Guy Marzorati, KQED

Los Angeles Police Department Chief Michel Moore says he will review body cam footage after an officer shot a protester at close range with a non-lethal round Saturday. This occurred at a protest over transgender rights outside a spa in Koreatown.

Reporter: Robert Garrova, KPCC

California has approved a $500 million first of its kind fund to prevent real estate profiteering and to help families, land trusts and nonprofits purchase foreclosed properties. This comes following a KQED investigation into real estate firm Wedgewood, which purchased hundreds of properties during the pandemic.

Guest: Erin Baldassari, KQED

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Mask Mandate Put Back in Place in Los Angeles County Jul 19, 2021

Show notes

A significant rise in coronavirus cases over the past few weeks has led to health officials in Los Angeles County to reinstate a mask mandate in indoor settings. The requirement went into effect over the weekend.

Guest: Dr. Bob Wachter, Chair of U.C. San Francisco’s Department of Medicine

As the Tokyo Olympics get underway this week, at least three athletes have already tested positive for the coronavirus at the Olympic Village. Athletes are facing strict health guidelines as they prepare for the Summmer Games.

Guest: Brian Burrows, Member of the U.S. Olympic Shooting Team

PG&E says its infrastructure may have contributed to the start of the Dixie Fire, which has burned more than 30,000 acres near the site of the deadly 2018 Camp Fire.

Guest: Dan Brekke, KQED

California’s top election official has released the list of candidates who filed to run for governor in the September recall election. They're looking to replace Governor Gavin Newsom, should voters decide to recall him.

Guest: Scott Shafer, KQED

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Olympian Describes His Path to Summer Games Jul 16, 2021

Show notes

David Smith grew up in Southern California and will be competing in his third Olympics for the U.S. Men's Indoor Volleyball team. He won a bronze medal with the team in 2016.

Guest: David Smith, Member of the U.S. Men's Indoor Volleyball Team

When it comes to average temperature increases due to climate change, the Bay Area and Los Angeles will not experience warming equal to the amount of greenhouse gases they produce. That’s according to a new study out of the Monterey Bay Aquarium.

Reporter: Laura Klivans, KQED

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