The latest North State and California news on our airwaves for Monday, March 28.
Report finds Califonia isn’t doing enough to hold utilities accountable for preventing wildfires
A report by the state auditor released Thursday found that officials are failing to hold California’s electric utilities accountable for preventing wildfires sparked by their equipment.
According to the non-profit news outlet CalMatters, thereport found that the newOffice of Energy Infrastructure Safety approved utility companies’ wildfire prevention plans even when they were deficient.
The report stated that neither that office nor the Public Utilities Commission have taken sufficient steps to ensure that utilities prioritize upgrades in high fire risk areas.
Public Utility Commission spokesperson Terrie Prosper told CalMatters that the commission will “establish a plan and timelines toward implementing the recommendations identified in the California State Auditor’s report.” Read the full story.
— Adia White, NSPR and Julie Cart, CalMatters
Gov. Newsom to send millions of COVID tests to California schools
Governor Gavin Newsom’s administration is shipping more than 14 million COVID tests for counties to distribute to schools. That’s enough for every public and private school student and employee to have two kits. It’s part of the state’s testing strategy to detect spikes in the virus.
The at-home kits come from a stockpile the state is maintaining under its pandemic strategy known as the SMARTER plan.
The Newsom administration tried a similar testing strategy around the winter holidays as the omicron variant surged. But many students didn’t get their tests for days into the new semester.
According to the governor’s office, counties have received more than 11 million tests from this new round, and more are on the way.
— CapRadio Staff
Lawmakers propose extending protections for California tenants
State lawmakers have introduced a bill to extend protections for tenants waiting on rent relief from the state.
Currently, renters who have applied for rent relief and are waiting for a payout are not supposed to be evicted. A new bill would extend that rule from the end of March to the end of June. But it won't extend the deadline to apply for rent relief. That's frustrating tenant advocates like Brian Augusta with the California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation.
“The reality is, there are still a tremendous number of households who are saying that come April 1, they are not going to be able to pay the rent,” Augusta said.
The state's rent relief program has been slow to get the money out. According to their own dashboard, only 43% of applicants have been paid. The plan also preempts stronger local protection from going into effect like those passed in San Francisco and Los Angeles County.
— Molly Solomon (KQED), The California Report
New federal rule would overhaul asylum claims, speed up process
A new rule just published by the Biden administration will overhaul the way asylum claims made at the border are decided. That rule could speed up the process for asylum seekers.
With a backlog of 1.7 million cases in U.S. immigration courts, getting an asylum ruling can take years. Now specially trained asylum officers will decide most cases, instead of the courts. Pratheepan (Deep) Gulasekaram, a professor of law at Santa Clara University, called it a major innovation.
“The process is not adversarial. It's an interview. And so all of those things are more likely to lead to maybe better outcomes for the non-citizens of the asylum applicant, but certainly we might think of as a more friendly process,” Gulasekaram said.
He added if there's funding for more asylum officers, the new system could lead to faster outcomes.
— Tyche Hendrciks (KQED), The California Report
Stories from NPR partner stations are edited by NSPR Staff for digital presentation and credited as requested.
In other news
- Mark Orme resigns as Chico city manager: “In the latest shockwave to hit the Chico political scene, Mark Orme resigned as Chico’s city manager late Friday afternoon during a special closed session of the Chico city council.” — Chico Enterprise-Record
- Whitlow Fire in remote Siskiyou County 100% contained: “The Whitlow Fire, which began on Friday night in a remote area of Siskiyou County, is 10 acres in size and 100% contained, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said on Sunday afternoon.” — Redding Record Searchlight
- State paid far more for Camp Fire cleanup than private businesses: “Camp Fire survivors who signed up for the government debris removal program were shocked to find the bill exponentially larger than they anticipated.” — Chico Enterprise-Record
- Chester utility district to meet regarding fire department Tuesday: “The Chester Public Utility District will hold a special board meeting Tuesday, March 29, at 3 p.m. to discuss the temporary shutdown of the Chester Fire Department as a result of liability insurance issues.” — Plumas News
- Wayside Shell Gas Station robbery suspect sought: “Lassen County Sheriff’s deputies responded to an armed robbery report at the Wayside Shell Station in Standish about 10:05 p.m. Thursday, March 24. Employees at the station told deputies a man held them at gunpoint, demanded they open the cash register, took several hundred dollars and fled.” — Lassen County Times
- Parent’s Choice Conference teaches public how to navigate parenthood: “Northern California Child Development hosted a Parent’s Choice Conference to help parents navigate through the trials and tribulations of parenthood and learn healthy techniques to better their child’s development, on Friday at the Community Center.” — Red Bluff Daily News
- California primed to extend eviction ban — again: “Californians facing eviction as soon as next week would get a temporary reprieve under a bill endorsed by the state’s Democratic leaders.” — CallMatters
In case you missed it
- Interview: ‘Families Read Together’ helps those incarcerated in Plumas County stay connected to their kids — NSPR (Headlines, March 25)
- Some Cal Fire units begin transition to peak staffing levels — NSPR (Headlines, March 25)
- Fire training at Shasta College may bring smoke — NSPR (Headlines, March 25)
- Sex on duty, felony behavior alleged in Northern California police lawsuit — The Sacramento Bee
- Audit: California utilities aren’t doing enough to reduce wildfire threats — CalMatters
- Man convicted after attempting to bribe Siskiyou County sheriff $1M over illegal marijuana — Redding Record Searchlight
- Chico nonprofit sends medical supplies to aid Ukrainian refugees — Chico Enterprise-Record
- Surrounding partners to respond to Chester Fire fire calls temporarily — Plumas News
- Group speaks out against cannabis referendum in Red Bluff — Red Bluff Daily News
- Sites Reservoir project awarded more funding — The Appeal Democrat
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