Politics

The Calif. Dutch Bros franchisee who ousted MAGA in Shasta County

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By Anabel Sosa : sfgate – excerpt (audio)

Two highly controversial public officials, once liked for being “outsiders,” were ousted from office in Shasta County last month after residents seemingly had a change of heart.

Erin Resner, the owner of eight Redding-based Dutch Bros franchises and a current Redding City Council member, will replace Shasta County Supervisor Kevin Crye, a MAGA-friendly candidate who has held office since 2023. Crye’s tenure was divisive within the community over some of his ideas, like peddling election denial, attempting to end the use of voting machines based on debunked conspiracy theories, and the denial of funding for a mental health project…

Now, Resner’s win is a sign that the conservative county may be shifting more toward the middle.

“It feels like a signal from the community that they’re done with the chaos,” Resner told SFGATE in a phone call. Resner launched her bid for Crye’s seat in January after another candidate dropped out, saying she felt obligated to put her name in the hat so Crye would have an opponent…. (more)

RELATED:

Erin Resner wins race for Shasta District 1 supervisor, shifting board majority

 

CA, Jobs, Politics

California becomes the first state to launch a tool to monitor and track artificial intelligence’s impacts on the workforce

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Governor Newsom  News

California AI-Unemployment Tracker (CAIT)

“I thank our partners at the California Policy Lab for helping us lead the way.”…

What you need to know: As part of Governor Newsom’s executive order on artificial intelligence (AI) and the workforce, California today introduced a first-in-the-nation online tracking tool to monitor and detect AI-related job loss.

SACRAMENTO – Governor Gavin Newsom today announced the launch of California’s first-in-the-nation tool to proactively track AI-related job loss trends – an early warning system to help the state monitor, track, and anticipate job loss. The dashboard was developed in partnership with the University of California, California Policy Lab and released as part of the Governor’s recent executive order issued to prepare workers, small businesses, and communities for the economic disruption that artificial intelligence will bring.

“California has always been a place that embraces innovation while taking seriously the responsibility that comes with it. We’re shaping the future — and charting the course for the nation. As AI advances, we aren’t just watching from the sidelines; we’re reimagining how we prepare California through strong governance and innovative policy.”… (more)

 

Economy, Politics

A California city is torn apart by a recalled city council that refuses to leave

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By Anabel Sosa : sfgate – excerpt

Avenal on the map

A small farm community an hour from Fresno is tangled up in an ongoing legal battle that has erupted into disarray after its mayor and city council, except for one member, were recalled in a special election that they claim was illegal. The councilmembers and mayor are now refusing to leave office.

A special election was held in April after a citizen-led campaign pushed to oust four of the five members of the Avenal City Council after disagreements over a new fire protocol policy boiled over, according to local reporting from the Fresno Bee.

During the April 28 special election, residents voted in favor of the recall. Kings County officially certified the results in May after more than 75% of voters agreed to recall Mayor Alvaro Preciado and councilmembers Leticia Gamez, David Reynosa and Pablo Hernandez.

The effort first came into swing last year after the council voted to create its own fire department and hire a fire chief, which would more than double the annual fire fees.

But those members refuse to leave office. They maintain that only the city, not the county, has the jurisdiction to call a special election. The last remaining councilmember called the election legitimate and asked for his colleagues to step down, according to local Fox news affiliate KMPH-TV.

After the members rejected the recall, they still met last Thursday for their normal meeting, resulting in an uproar. Residents were reportedly furious during that June 11 meeting. Some shouted at the councilmembers, according to KMPH-TV, which reported one person saying they were corrupt and “worse than Trump.”…

The only way for those members to permanently be removed is through a legal process called quo warranto, which is already underway, according to an update from the city on Monday, and approval from the attorney general. SFGATE reached Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office to ask if it was looking into the matter but did not hear back in time for publication… (more)

RELATED:

‘Netflix’ worthy dispute; What’s going on in Avenal?

What may this mean for other recall efforts in California if this case is not settled in favor of the citizens? And where will California Attorney General Bonta stand on this issue?

Economy, Energy, Politics, water

Monterey Park blares a warning to the AI industry

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by Shum Preston : thevoiceofsanfrancisco – excerpt

Some cities are just saying no to computer overload and a lot of others are considering limiting the tech overlords.

The tiny Los Angeles suburb of Monterey Park found the AI industry’s pain point in this month’s elections. Voters there took a dramatic step by enacting a permanent moratorium on data centers.

AI executives should look south from their San Francisco offices and pay close attention to this warning. They are about to launch some of the biggest IPOs in history, with record valuations. But these IPOs are coming just as public opposition is growing to the data centers they rely upon.

This could be one of the most important results from this primary election season, even if the Monterey Park moratorium itself won’t have a direct impact. Only one facility was proposed in the town, and it was already canceled by public opposition. But the vote showed that the political weakness of the AI and data center industries can translate into real-world losses.

Even worse, this is likely to be just the first vote of many across the country. AI executives need to toss out their broken political playbook around data centers and improve their pitch to the American public. They need to deal with the perception that they are spiking electricity bills for regular people by outcompeting households for energy…(more)

CEQA, deregulated housing bills, Energy, Housing

One Bay Area housing trend is becoming impossible to miss

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By Kasia Pawlowska : sfgate – excerpt

The AI gold rush is rewriting Bay Area housing

A recently listed house in San Francisco’s Duboce Triangle promises “the perfect backdrop for your new life” — one that “will redefine how you live.” The property in question is 160 Noe St.: a fully renovated 1907 Edwardian on a tree-lined slow street featuring three bedrooms, two bathrooms and 2,495 square feet full of Calacatta marble, designer lighting and custom woodwork. Listed for $2,995,000, the home has another standout characteristic..

The seller will consider Anthropic or OpenAI stock as payment.

That single line in an otherwise typical luxury listing may be the most succinct summary of what’s been going on in San Francisco for the past two years. It’s hard to believe that just a few years ago, the city’s obituary was being written in real time. Office vacancies soared. Retailers fled downtown. Then, of course, there was the doom loop… (more)

San Francisco may be proud of its role in making California the most expensive state in the union. Perfect for millionaires and whoever they need to augment their life of leisure that is not yet handled by AI and personal robots.

CA, CEQA, Energy, Farms, food, Politics, water

Calif. farmers bulldoze acres of apple trees after Martinelli’s ends contracts

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By Susana Guerrero : sfgate – excerpt

FILE: California apple farmers in Watsonville are bulldozing their orchards after Martinelli’s abruptly canceled their contracts. The company will continue to grow and source applies in the Pajaro Valley.

Karell Reader’s heart sank when she saw acres of apple trees piled up on her neighbor’s Watsonville farm last month. Her neighbor used to sell apples to California cider empire S. Martinelli & Company, but he was forced to bulldoze dozens of apple trees after the company canceled his contracts…

Lookout reported that the shift in vendors could be a strategic financial move by Martinelli’s as the company looks to find cheaper apples from out of state. According to the most recent Crop Report for Santa Cruz County, apples cost about $400 per ton in 2024. Comparatively, apples from Washington cost $135 a ton that same year. Farmers also relied on Martinelli’s for labor, equipment and chemicals for pest control, according to the Lookout… (more)

Another loss for California farmers who are operating the most expensive state in the unions. How much more of our state’s agricultural business will be replaced by water and power hungry AI computer centers in the name of progress?

Politics

How L.A.’s mayoral race could change the future of California OPINION:

By Justin Ray : sfchronicle – excerpt
Los Angeles photo by Zrants 2025

Only one of the top candidates for mayor in Los Angeles supports Senate Bill 79, a state law that allows residential structures up to nine stories near transit stops

With the June 2 primary election only a few days away, most Californians are rightfully focused on figuring out who should be their next governor.

But another race could have a similar impact on the future of the state. And it’s one worth paying attention to even if you don’t live there.

I’m referring to the contest for Los Angeles mayor.

Three top candidates are fighting to advance to the general election in November. One of them has the potential to dramatically reshape the future of housing in California. Los Angeles City Council Member Nithya Raman has aggressively campaigned on major reforms to reduce the governmental housing bureaucracy and increase the city’s annual construction threefold. She has proposed issuing an executive directive guaranteeing approval for new housing construction in 60 days or less for developments that already comply with zoning. She wants a citywide self-certification model to speed up permits for “straightforward” projects.

But most importantly, Raman is a supporter of Senate Bill 79 — a new statewide law that goes into effect on July 1, which allows developers to construct residential structures up to nine stories near transit stops…

That’s a transformative number in a state with an unrelenting housing crisis. Yet the hopes that Los Angeles will get its act together and build at the scale needed to make a dent in the affordability crisis appear to be iffy at best. A UC Berkeley-Los Angeles Times poll released Thursday shows the mayoral race in a dead heat: incumbent Karen Bass with 26% support, Raman at 25% and Trump-backed reality television villain Spencer Pratt at 22%. 

Bass and Pratt have shown little interest in implementing sweeping changes to the city’s housing needs…(more)

Planning, Politics

USDA Payments for Organic Farmers Delayed

By Lisa Held : organicconsumers – excerpt

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April 1, 2026 – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has yet to initiate the 2025 application and payment process for funds authorized by Congress to help farmers afford organic certification.

Three months into 2026, the agency has not indicated when those funds might be made available. Due to rising costs of both certification and other farm necessities, it will likely result in fewer farmers pursuing certification, said Kate Mendenhall, executive director of the Organic Farmers Association.

“It’s the small farms where it really makes a financial impact,” said Mendenhall, who is an Iowa livestock farmer. “I would anticipate that farms might hold off on certifying for a few years, and we’ll probably lose some smaller farms.”

Data from the Organic Trade Association (OTA) shows an increase in organic food sales, up to more than $70 billion in 2025. But that increase is primarily from imported food. Other data points to a decrease between 2021 and 2023 in the number of U.S. acres certified organic, with many existing organic farms going out of business or dropping certification…(more)

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CA, CEQA, deregulated housing bills, Housing, Planning, Politics

SF affordable-housing fee cuts weren’t enough to spur residential construction

By Patrick Hope : sfexaminer – excerpt

District 1 Supervisor Connie Chan, and running against Scott Wiener, author of the sone of the most aggressive upzoning bills, said: “I am interested in doing everything we can to unlock the housing that’s already in the pipeline.”

Amid rising construction and financing costs, the tax and fee incentives adopted in 2023 by San Francisco in an effort to spur housing construction weren’t enough to reverse the decline in The City’s residential building activity, according to a new report — but without those measures, it said, the slowdown likely would have been worse.

The analysis, conducted by the Board of Supervisors Budget and Legislative Analyst at the request of Supervisor Connie Chan, examined the effects of temporary reductions in inclusionary housing requirements approved in September 2023, along with incentives that included cuts in development-impact fees assessed on residential projects.

It concluded that while fee reductions and other policy actions might have provided financial relief for some projects in the pipeline, the changes were insufficient to offset or counteract broader macroeconomic conditions largely outside city control, including high building costs, interest rates, and the slow recovery of rents and condominium prices.

“We all want to build more housing, particularly housing that people can afford,” Chan said in discussing the report. “And so how do we do that in a way that is thoughtful?”… (more)

RELATED:
Supervisor wants city voters to grow Housing Trust Fund

We are seeing a slowdown in the building and sales of homes due to a lot of economic conditions that have nothing to do with housing density or upping or carrots or sticks. It is refreshing to hear a few of the candidates running for governor mention some of the obvious moves that may be easily made to preserve the affordable housing we have rather than tear it down during this slow down when many buildings are being put up for auctions as the overly optimistic owners are losing them to the lenders.. Some of comments on that subject may be heard on this recording of a Ezra Klein interview posted on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6HETwu7Kfu8

What happened to the 2024 Prop A voter-approved $300 million affordable-housing bond money? What did the voters get out of it? Does passing another bond measure make sense?

 

 

Energy, Politics

SENATE ENERGY COMMITTEE BLOCKS PG&E BREAKUP BILL

By Megan Stephens : davisvanguard – excerpt

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. — Sen. Scott Wiener’s effort to give cities like San Francisco a clearer path to cut ties with PG&E stalled this week after the Senate Energy, Utilities and Communications Committee failed to advance SB 875, legislation aimed at reforming the state process for creating local public utilities.

SB 875 would have sought to unrig what supporters described as a broken California Public Utilities Commission process that prevents cities like San Francisco from leaving PG&E and forming their own public utilities. The bill was the first of its kind to pass even one committee. It aimed to reform procedures at the California Public Utilities Commission to allow cities that wish to exit PG&E to establish their own public utilities while providing more affordable and reliable energy to residents…

In 2019, San Francisco began trying to exit PG&E, but in the years since, it has faced repeated delays at the CPUC due to what supporters called a broken process rigged by private utilities, especially PG&E. The current valuation proceeding was filed with the CPUC in July 2021. Even with a strict 180-day timeline required by law, PG&E has successfully drawn the CPUC process out to more than four and a half years… (more)