East County News Service

February 3, 2016 (Sacramento) – At a time when many local cities in San Diego County are banning the cultivation of marijuana even for medical purposes, our state’s capitol city has approved a measure to license and tax commercial marijuana cultivation. 

By Miriam Raftery

Photo: U.S. Forest Service

November 10, 2015 (Sacramento) - Governor Jerry Brown has declared an emergency in California due to a voracious pest – bark beetles that have killed 22 million trees statewide, including vast tracts of forests in San Diego’s East County.  Tens of millions more are at risk of dying if nothing is done – also raising the risk of wildfires.

The governor is seeking federal help and meanwhile has directed state officials, utilities and local governments to take 19 steps to fight the bark beetle infestation. Brown suspended several state laws to allow his orders to be carried out immediately.

By Liz Alper

Photo: Creative Commons by GamblinMan22

October 13, 2015 (Sacramento) - We see it every time we watch baseball: bored players in their team sweatshirts chewing tobacco during an at-bat or sitting in the dugout.  Even managers are caught on camera spitting out tobacco juice, providing far-from-exemplary role models to youthful fans.

East County News Service

October 13, 2015 (Sacramento) – Governor Jerry Brown has signed the  nation’s strictest standard for use of antibiotics in livestock. 

The new law addresses concerns raised by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which estimates 2 million people in the U.S. are infected with drug resistant bacteria,  and 23,000 die each year of these superbugs. Public health officials believe the overuse of antibiotics in cattle, pigs and other livestock in meat and dairy production endangers the public health.

East County News Service

September 30, 2015 (Sacramento)—Governor Jerry Brown has signed Assembly Bill 8 into law. The measure will create “yellow alerts” to display descriptions of vehicles involved in hit-and-run collisions on digital freeway signs.  The alerts, set to start January 1^st, will be similar to Amber Alerts used for kidnapped children.

September 11, 2015 (Sacramento)--Assembly Bill 1461, also known as the California New Motor Voter Act, was approved today by the California Assembly on a 44-21 concurrence vote. The bill will now be sent to the Governor for his consideration.

By Miriam Raftery

September 2, 2015 (Sacramento) - An estimated 700,000 drones are expected to be sold in the U.S. this year to hobbyists –a 63% increase over last year, the Consumer Electronics Association reports.   Now the California Legislature is scrambling to enact laws to restrict some uses of those drones after numerous complaints of safety and privacy concerns.

By Suzanne Potter, Public News Service

Photo credit: MConnors/morguefile.

July 30, 2015 (Sacramento) -- Climate change is turning ocean water more acidic and creating low-oxygen "dead zones" – issues that have serious implications for the entire oceanic ecosystem.

By Miriam Raftery

July 16, 2015 (Sacramento) – A package of bills have been introduced in Sacramento to curb the over-use of psychiatric drugs on foster care youths, the San Jose Mercury News reports.  But the bill fails to create new rules for doctors who prescribe such medications.

East County News Service

July 7, 2015 (Sacramento)--As the legislative session draws near its close, a flurry of bills are making their way through the state Capitol this week. Here is an update on several key measures: motorcycle lane-splitting, discrimination against transplant patients using medical marijuana, a patient right-to-die bill, and sick-time pay for California workers.

By Miriam Raftery

June 15,2015 (Sacramento)—California’s Legislature has approved a $117.5 billion budget -- $2 billion more than Governor Jerry Brown had requested, including $749 in new spending with the rest to pay down debts or be deposited in the state’s  rainy day fund.  New expenditures include higher payments for doctors serving poor patients, extra money for state universities and community colleges, and expanded child care.

By Miriam Raftery

Photo: U.S. Department of Agriculture

June 12, 2015 (Sacramento) – Ever since California established its water rights system back in 1914, senior water rights holders with claims before 1914 have been able to freely use as much water as they could pump.  But for the first time ever, the State Water Resources Control Board has ordered curtailment of water use by 114 of the state’s oldest water rights holders, including farmers, rural and urban water districts in the Sacramento delta as well as the Sacramento and San Joaquin river watersheds.

East County News Service

June 9, 2015 (Sacramento) – The California Assembly has passed Assembly Bil 96, a measure to protect elephants and rhinos by strengthening rules on the ivory and rhino horn trade. AB96 by Assembly Speaker Toni Atkins would end the state’s exemption for selling ivory imported before 1977 The bill would also impose stiff civil and criminal penalties for ivory sales.  Atkins, a San Diego Democrat, says California is a top market for ivory and that this could significantly reduce demand.

By Roy L Hales

June 6, 2015 (Sacramento) - California’s State Assembly unanimously approved AB 825, which is meant to bring increased transparency and independent oversight to the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC).