For the latest COVID-19 updates, please visit our dedicated page.
Building a facility in the Inland Empire to house unaccompanied minors who crossed the U.S.-Mexican border is “a violation of human rights,” state lawmakers representing the region said Monday, AUg. 26, in a joint statement.
“As representatives of the Inland Empire, we condemn the use of space in any location, but especially in our community, to detain unaccompanied children,” the statement reads.
The author of legislation that would require students to take an ethnic studies course as a requirement for high school graduation has put off a vote on the bill this year amid widespread criticism of a proposed curriculum that would serve as a guide for school districts statewide.
A proposed law that would require all California high school students take an ethnic studies course is on hold for this year after the draft curriculum prompted weeks of escalating controversy from diverse groups whose members said they were misrepresented or excluded.
A California bill that would make it possible for a college athlete to profit from the use of his or her name, images and likeness passed another subcommittee hurdle in the legislative process Tuesday afternoon.
The state assembly's Committee on Higher Education voted 9-0 to move the bill forward, and chairman Jose Medina called the NCAA's threats and requests to slow down the legislative process during the past couple months "akin to bullying."
A California assembly bill, if passed, would expand the Cal Grant system to cover nontuition expenses, increase access and create a Summer Cal Grant program.
Assembly Bill 1314 would phase in reforms to the Cal Grant programs to further expand and simplify them. AB 1314 was passed by the California state assembly on May 24 and is currently going through the legislative process in the California Senate.
The logistics industry has anchored the Inland Empire economy in recent years, economists say, accounting for nearly one-fourth of all jobs created since the recession.
But there is sharp debate over whether those warehouse jobs are best for Riverside and San Bernardino counties — and whether city officials should press instead for other businesses that pay higher wages, provide better benefits and pollute less.
A spectacular boom in warehouses and distribution centers moving in over the last decade helped lift the vast Inland Empire region out of the Great Recession, bringing an estimated 84,000 jobs, nearly a quarter of the region’s added employment. Amazon built 14 giant fulfillment centers in Riverside and San Bernardino counties, becoming the area’s largest employer.
While student advocates praised that extra proposed funding, they also expressed disappointment that the governor did not try to use some of the state’s historic revenue surplus to dramatically expand state-financed Cal Grants beyond tuition expenses and provide housing and food grants for all eligible students. Those additional costs could be as much as $3 billion a year, according to some analysts.
“Commissions really smell bad to us,” Greg LeRoy, executive director of nonprofit think tank Good Jobs First, said in an interview. “If a consultant can get a bigger commission in one place or another, that’s their incentive. It may not be best for the client.”
The group, which tracks tax subsidies around the country, is critical of site location consultants and views their activities more as lobbying than consulting, he said.
Two state lawmakers have proposed to restrict or ban the agreements.
California Assemblyman Jose Medina’s bill, A.B. 485, would require local governments to conduct public hearings before approving the agreements. Cities and retailers would have to provide more detailed information about expected tax revenue, jobs, and other state and federal subsidies the companies are getting.
