San Benito County Government Digest

A group of protesters sat down with interlocked arms on the 110 Freeway near downtown LA on Dec. 13, halting southbound traffic for more than an hour. Multiple people were arrested according to the CHP.

Harjinder Shergill-Chima has been appointed by Gov. Gavin Newsom as the new director of the California State Lottery. Shergill-Chima, the first Indian American to serve in the role, takes over for Alva Johnson.

Officials in Kern County are proposing to build a carbon management facility that would be twice the size of Manhattan. By doing this, they would leverage federal tax credits to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Brian Foucht, San Juan Bautista’s assistant city manager, was placed on paid administrative leave, City Manager Don Reynolds confirmed on Dec. 6. Reynolds said the leave was performance-related and that his office was “gathering some information and doing an investigation.”

By declining to hear a conservative group’s challenge, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a California ban on conversion therapy for LGBTQ youth. California is one of 22 states to ban this practice.

Californians have said they experienced added difficulty over the past year in getting car insurance. Insurer rates have gone up more than usual.

A large gathering of protesters sympathetic to the plight of the Palestinian people is expected outside a fundraiser Dec. 8 in Westwood for President Biden. Police have warned that any violence won’t be tolerated.

The California Department of Water Resources released an environmental impact report for a tunnel that the state would like to build through the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta. The report identifies potential impacts to farmland, tribal remains and endangered species of fish.

Although the federal government is providing four free COVID tests per month, that’s not the only way to get them. Aetna and Blue Shield of California members can be reimbursed for up to eight at-home tests per month, while Kaiser Permanente is offering discounts on tests.

Even though California is facing a crippling housing shortage, one potential source remains untapped. The state allows thousands of apartments used for part of the year by farmworkers to otherwise sit vacant for three to six months.

Hunter Biden, a Malibu resident, is facing nine tax-related charges between the years of 2016 and 2019. It is the second criminal indictment for the son of President Biden, aside from a pending firearms case.

Staff at the state’s air regulatory agency have been restricted from communicating with Jim Duffy, a scientist who retired from the agency in 2022. Duffy had criticized gas lobbyists and an agency director.

California’s “failure to protect” law allows child welfare agencies to take kids from households scarred by domestic violence. Advocates say the separation can worsen a family’s trauma.

An Alameda County judge ruled on Nov. 22 that the city of Oakland thwarted a proposed coal export terminal. The judge will rule if the developer who sued is entitled to $159 million in damages or moving forward with the project.

The California Faculty Association is seeking a 12 percent pay increase, while university officials counter with 5 percent in each of the next three years.

With nine months’ experience in the Assembly, Liz Ortega will lead the Labor committee after a strike-filled summer and several wins for low-wage workers.

The California Department of Motor Vehicles changed its voter registration process in 2019 to put a party selection dropdown on the same page. Since then, the number of people registering as Republicans or Democrats has jumped close to 20 points.

In 2020, the state agreed to a settlement in a lawsuit that claimed too many students were not learning to read. As part of that agreement, the state spent over $50 million on 75 schools with the lowest reading scores.

San Diego-area nonprofits and faith organizations struggle to provide for tens of thousands of migrants border agents have released on San Diego streets.

Days after barring a Berkeley-based crime reporter from a news conference, the Alameda County District Attorney’s office announced that it was shifting course. The move to bar the reporter had been roundly condemned by First Amendment and press freedom groups.

Students and teachers alike are decrying the actions of the Temecula Valley Unified School District board, which became conservative in majority following the recent elections of three members. The board’s actions include banning critical race theory and mandating parental notification if their child is transgender.

One sign that a meeting between Joe Biden and Xi Jinping might have gone well: Each left handwritten messages in the guestbook where the meeting was held near San Francisco. Jinping reportedly leaves these kinds of messages only on rare occasions.

Forty-eight of California’s 52 members of the House of Representatives voted in favor of expelling George Santos. Of the other four members, all Republicans, Kevin McCarthy didn’t vote while three opposed Santos’ expulsion.

The Nov. 30 debate between governors Gavin Newsom and Ron DeSantis could be a win-win for both. DeSantis’s flagging presidential campaign could get a boost, while Newsom could increase his standing in Democratic circles.

Water managers in Pajaro Valley are paying farmers for water they get back into the ground. The move comes as California has grappled with water shortages in recent years.

Most undocumented college students in California are not eligible for DACA anymore, creating new dilemmas for students and colleges around employment, financial aid and the threat of deportation.

Political wonks in California, Florida and maybe a few states in between, will be glued to their screens Thursday night to watch Gov. Gavin Newsom and Gov. Ron Desantis square off in a highly-anticipated Blue vs. Red State debate that’s been brewing since the summer.

Parents say flavored medication can help ensure their kids finish a prescription. Far fewer California pharmacies are offering that service as they await new rules from a state regulator.

Seven times as many patients have been admitted to the trauma unit at UC San Diego Health since the Trump administration raised the height of the border wall to 30 feet in California. The hospital also notes that 23 people have died in falls from the wall since 2019.

A 2021 state law has radically changed the housing equation in San Diego. Advocates, developers, and policymakers are split on whether it should be exported to other jurisdictions.

California and Florida took starkly different approaches to dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. Data shows that more Floridians died per capita of COVID than did Californians.

The Southern California city of Cudahy passed a resolution on Nov. 7 demanding a cease-fire in Gaza and declaring that the Israeli government was taking retributive action for a Hamas attack. With its action, Cudahy became the first city in Southern California to support Palestinians in Gaza.