Category: State/Government News

California Labor Agency, DIR address COVID-19 pandemic health and safety concerns Oakland, CA— In response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the heightened demand for products and services during the winter holiday season, the California Labor & Workforce Development Agency (LWDA) and its Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) encourage employees and employers to learn more about…

The first shipments of a much-anticipated vaccine for COVID-19 could arrive in Riverside County on Friday (Dec. 18), and local health officials are working with area hospitals to vaccinate thousands of first-line health care workers. The recently approved vaccine is expected to arrive at several pre-selected hospitals and at Riverside University Health System (RUHS) –…

Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) members of Arts Administrators of Color network receive free Mixtiles photo tiles for original works around theme of “Life in the Time of COVID” New York, December 15, 2020 — A recently completed contest organized by the nonprofit arts service network Arts Administrators of Color (AAC) and leading printed…

SACRAMENTO -– Today, Senator Bradford (D-Gardena) and Senate President pro Tempore Atkins (D-San Diego) introduced Senate Bill 2 to increase accountability for law enforcement officers that commit serious misconduct and illegally violate a person’s civil rights. “The time is now to pass meaningful and common-sense police reform,” said Senator Steven Bradford. “California is able to…

The governor announced regional stay-at-home restrictions for all Southern California, including Riverside County, for a minimum of three weeks. The stay-at-home order will go into effect on Sunday evening at 11:59 p.m. The regional restrictions are in response to weeks-long surge in cases, hospitalizations, positivity rates and coronavirus-related deaths throughout the state. “We have seen…

SACRAMENTO, CA – Amidst the global pandemic, the California Democratic Party (CADEM) will implement changes to the 2021 Assembly District Elections Meeting (ADEM) process. Prioritizing the health and safety of all Californians, the ADEM Elections is traditionally a meeting that is held in each of the 80 Assembly Districts in January of each odd-number year…

Report Provides Key Recommendations for CCAs and Energy Utility Companies to Prioritize Energy Equity and Democracy in Communities of Color, Households with Low Income SACRAMENTO, CA—The California Environmental Justice Alliance (“CEJA”) released a new report today that calls for energy justice to be a central part of energy democracy—through the expansion of community owned energy…

San Bernardino, CA — San Bernardino County Auditor-Controller/Treasurer/Tax Collector (ATC) Ensen Mason encourages property owners to pay the first installment of their property taxes by Thursday, December 10, to avoid a 10% penalty. The Tax Collector’s Office offers many convenient ways to pay, including online, by phone, by mail, and in person. “Property taxes fund…

SACRAMENTO -– Last Friday, the Bureau of Cannabis Control announced that it has awarded over $29 million in public university research grant funding to universities across California. $1,866,311 has been awarded to CSU Dominguez Hills to conduct research on the cannabis industry in the South Bay Los Angeles area. “I am delighted that CSU Dominguez…

Voters  are   seeing an  additional   $153,466,506 being spent  on  ads  for ballot measures in 2020  as compared to  the  last  Presidential cycle, so far with over two weeks to go. SACRAMENTO – The California Target Book has compiled charts to easily track how much money is being spent in 2020 compared with past election…

As a result of the coronavirus pandemic, voting will be different this year to accommodate for social distancing. All registered voters in California were mailed vote by mail ballots. In Riverside County, ballots started going out by mail on Oct. 5, with the final mailings on Oct. 9. There are three ways to cast, or…

More  than  18,500  Victims   of   ICE  Holds  Were  Unlawfully Detained LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors today approved settlement of a class action lawsuit brought by immigrants who were unlawfully detained by the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department — sometimes for months — because of “ICE hold” requests from the…

San Bernardino –The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) has initiated a $3.5 million Director’s Order to begin an emergency project to repair damages to State Route 38 (SR 38) as the result of the El Dorado wildfire. The project limits are from Thurman Flats to Glass Road. The project has been awarded to Riverside Construction…

Grand Terrace, CA – Rep. Pete Aguilar announced that AmPac Business Capital of Grand Terrace has received $375,000 from the US Department of Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) Fund for the AmPac Business Loan program. The program provides loans of up to $100,000 for Inland Empire small businesses to be used for hiring employees,…

LOS ANGELES, September 20, 2020 — The American Red Cross Los Angeles Region’s evacuation point at Palmdale High School (2137 E. Ave. R, Palmdale, 93550) is ready to assist those seeking refuge from the Bobcat Fire and the new evacuation orders released by Unified Incident Command Teams. Residents impacted by the Bobcat Fire in need…

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Covered California issued a new report on Tuesday that detailed how it set a record for enrollment by meeting the needs of Californians and promoting enrollment in the face of pandemic and recession. The report, “Coverage When You Need It: Lessons From Insurance Coverage Transitions in California’s Individual Marketplace Pre- and Post-…

Upland, CA – Today, Rep. Pete Aguilar announced that Reach Out, an Upland-based nonprofit organization, received $200,000 in federal funding from the Health Resources Services Administration (HRSA) for their Morongo Basin Opioid Project. The project supports community engagement, treatment and recovery assistance to help combat the opioid crisis in eastern San Bernardino County. “Even in…

Black Voters: We Are Top Targets of Voter Suppression ‘Information Warfare’ By Ben Jealous, President, People For the American Way Black voters have a powerful role to play in this year’s elections. That’s why we are being targeted by disinformation campaigns that are meant to discourage and suppress our turnout. We can’t let them succeed. …

Mechanics claim they endured racial discrimination and harassment from white supervisors who boast about firing “undesirables.” OAKLAND, Calif., Sept. 8, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — Four elevator mechanics filed a lawsuit against Mitsubishi Electric US, Inc. and Mitsubishi Electric US Holdings, Inc. In their Complaint, they describe supervisors at Mitsubishi referring to Black workers as “undesirables,” “lazy,”…

With a 69-4 vote, the Senate passed Assembly Bill (AB) 323 Tuesday. It proposes granting ethnic media outlets, mid-size publications, and daily newspapers an additional year to pursue alternative and sustainable distribution models that don’t involve contract drivers. That would allow them to come into compliance with the state’s controversial AB 5 labor law.  …

The letters were sent to Counties with especially large limited-English-proficient minority language populations and ask that the jurisdictions provide election materials in the relevant languages.  The UCLA Voting Rights Project (VRP) released a dozen letters today addressed to leadership in counties in several states, urging them to provide election materials to accommodate large minority Asian…

SACRAMENTO – The State of California’s Employment Training Panel (ETP) announced that it approved 24 contracts worth over $6 million in job training funds for 6,000 workers. Panel members awarded two contracts to Edwards Lifesciences, and the Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles under its COVID Rapid Reemployment & Retraining Pilot program. Together,…

Action Stems from ACLU Lawsuit Challenging the Witness Requirement During the COVID-19 Pandemic LYNCHBURG, Va. — A federal court today approved an agreement allowing mail ballots without a witness signature for the Nov. 3  general election for all Virginia voters who feel they cannot safely comply due to the pandemic.  The action follows a lawsuit…

OAKLAND, Calif., Aug. 24, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — Youth Leaders from the Martin Luther King Jr. Freedom Center will join Congresswoman Barbara Lee and the Hon. Elihu Harris and civil rights icons for a moving online tribute to the life and legacy of Congressman John Lewis Friday, August 28, at 7 pm PDT. The streamed event…

SACRAMENTO, CA – Secretary of State Alex Padilla is launching the 2020 Census Challenge. To date, California ranks 22nd in the nation with a 65.1% response rate. The California Census Challenge aims to target and fill the gaps in Census outreach, especially in hard-to-count communities, by having cities and counties with similar population sizes compete…