A new Berkeley ordinance could make discriminatory and racially biased 911 calls illegal. The ordinance would also allow people to pursue civil action.
Government
Posted inPolitics & Policy
New SEIU deal to cost Santa Cruz $3.4 million, but budget cuts not anticipated
The City of Santa Cruz narrowly avoided a strike by SEIU-represented city workers after reaching a tentative agreement Sunday. Though the deal is expected to cost the city’s general fund $3.4 million over three years, city officials do not anticipate any cuts to other programs receiving general-fund allocations in the 2022-23 fiscal year. One goal of the new deal: making it easier to hire and retain city workers.
Posted inEducation
At UCSC symposium on the Latin American far right, Bolsonaro looms
6,385 miles from their home university in Campinas, Brazil, six social scientists came to UC Santa Cruz this week for an all-day symposium on the Latin American far right.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Newsom signs UFW bill aimed at helping California farmworkers organize
After previously indicating he might veto the measure, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a new law Wednesday that will make it easier for agricultural laborers to join unions, a hard-fought win for the United Farm Workers. The official signature came after union members and their supporters made a 335-mile pilgrimage from Delano to Sacramento and then […]
Posted inLatest News
Newsom signs abortion protections into law
As other states restrict or ban abortions, the new California laws aim to improve access and protect patients and clinicians. They will also expand services to accommodate an expected influx from other states.
Posted inLatest News
Is COVID ‘under control’ in the U.S.? Experts say yes
PolitiFact has been tracking this campaign promise since 2020. Experts are now saying it’s fair to describe the COVID pandemic as “under control.”
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Federal court says California ban on private ICE detention facilities is unconstitutional
A California law banning private prisons and immigrant detention facilities in the state violates the U.S. constitution, a federal court ruled Monday.
Posted inCoast Life
Only one billionaire’s legacy? Santa Cruz’s Patagonia ambassador reflects on Chouinard’s gift to Earth
Many Santa Cruzans might think of the small Patagonia outlet store on River Street as the only local vestige of the iconic outdoor lifestyle brand forged on environmental consciousness that made big headlines recently. But the company’s ethos, made loud and clear by founder and indignant billionaire Yvon Chouinard, is also carried on by people like Kyle Thiermann, a Santa Cruz kid who grew up with a different idea about what a pro surfer could be.
Posted inEnvironment
California’s newest climate upheaval: A bid to ban sale of diesel big rigs
The California Air Resources Board proposal would require all new medium- and heavy-duty trucks sold in the state to be zero-emission by 2040.
Posted inEvents, Latest News
Phase 2 of Benchlands clearing done, but only one in three people leaving is moving into armory
Phase 2 of the City of Santa Cruz’s efforts to clear the Benchlands homeless encampment began and ended Monday, with about 50 individuals being forced out of the area east of the San Lorenzo River. Shelter space is limited as is, and there are at least seven more zones to be cleared. If shelter options run out, the city will have to pause the clearing process.