EAST COUNTY ROUNDUP: LOCAL AND STATEWIDE NEWS

August 5, 2024 (San Diego’s East County) -- East County Roundup highlights top stories of interest to East County and San Diego's inland regions, published in other media.  This week's round-up stories include:

LOCAL

• Cajon Valley board member questions superintendent's $19,000-a-month credit card bill CBS 8)
• The Learning Curve: Cajon Valley’s Had a Tough Month (Voice of  San Diego)
• 'Zombie snails' have been spotted at a lake in San Diego. Here's what you need to know (CBS 8)
• San Diego American Indian Health Center Will Now Help Newly Arriving Refugees (Times of San Diego)
• MTS Board approves Copper Line trolley segment between Santee and El Cajon (10 News)
• Water Rates Will Rise, But Hurt Less than Expected (Voice of San Diego)
• Border arrests plunge 29% in June to the lowest of Biden's presidency as asylum halt takes hold  (KPBS) 
• Escondido Leaders Say a Proposed State Housing Bill Misses the Mark  (Voice of San Diego)

 STATE

• Newsom’s Encampment Order Is on Everyone’s Mind (Voice of San Diego)
• COVID Levels 'Very High' In California As New Variant Spreads: CDC
• As massive Park fire marches into history books, firefighters face hurdles to slowing it down  (Los Angeles Times)
• California attorney files class action suit against homeowner-insurance provider  (NBC San  Diego)
• California Department of Education plans to develop housing on school district-owned lands (East Bay Times)
• U.S.
• As cartels take a stake in ‘green gold,’ US and Mexico rethink how avocados reach American kitchens (Apple News)

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.

LOCAL

Cajon Valley board member questions superintendent's $19,000-a-month credit card bill CBS 8)

In 22 months, Cajon Valley Superintendent David Miyashiro spent $400,000 on his district credit card charges... Superintendent Miyashiro's spending for the Cajon Valley Union School District includes thousands of dollars for professional conferences and memberships in education associations, as well as tens of thousands on private tours, airfare, hotels, fine dining and catering. 

The Learning Curve: Cajon Valley’s Had a Tough Month (Voice of  San Diego)

State investigators ruled that Cajon Valley Union School District illegally removed mention of LGBTQ+ people from its curriculum. Then, questions arose about its superintendent’s lavish spending on a district-issued credit…

'Zombie snails' have been spotted at a lake in San Diego. Here's what you need to know (CBS 8)

... A parasite commonly called "the zombie snail" has been found at Lake Murray... The parasite sets up shop in a snail, takes over the snail's body, and says 'it's now my body to make parasite babies.' They eventually leave that snail, find a fish, dig underneath the fish's skin and make a cyst," said Hechinger. This is when the parasite becomes dangerous to humans. If someone were to eat an infected fish, they would get sick. 

San Diego American Indian Health Center Will Now Help Newly Arriving Refugees (Times of San Diego)

The San Diego American Indian Health Center, through a partnership with the County of San Diego and funding from the State of California, will now be a medical service site for newly arriving refugees.

MTS Board approves Copper Line trolley segment between Santee and El Cajon (10 News)

This line will serve four stations between El Cajon Transit Center and Santee Trolley Station, running every 15 minutes every day for most of the day, replacing the existing Green and Orange Line Trolley service north of El Cajon Transit Center, according to MTS.

Water Rates Will Rise, But Hurt Less than Expected (Voice of San Diego)

San Diego’s main water seller OK’d a less-doomy price increase than the region was expecting, setting it at 14 percent on Thursday.  / To make that work, the San Diego County Water Authority will have to find $2 million it can cut from its budget and delay some anti-earthquake-related upgrades to its biggest aqueducts.

Border arrests plunge 29% in June to the lowest of Biden's presidency as asylum halt takes hold  (KPBS) 

Arrests for illegally crossing the border from Mexico plunged 29% in June to the lowest month of Joe Biden’s presidency.

Escondido Leaders Say a Proposed State Housing Bill Misses the Mark  (Voice of San Diego)

A proposed state housing bill that would require cities to consider the needs of homeless populations as part of their housing planning efforts may soon face formal opposition from the city of Escondido.  The bill aims to force cities to better plan for housing that can specifically help the homeless, but in a letter drafted to the state legislature, Escondido leaders say it’s confusing and doesn’t address the underlying problem cities are facing when trying to house homeless people: lack of funding. 

 STATE

Newsom’s Encampment Order Is on Everyone’s Mind (Voice of San Diego)

As state Sen. Catherine Blakespear prepared to host a summit on homelessness Thursday, Gov. Gavin Newsom dropped a bombshell: an executive order directing cities to clear homeless encampments. Following a recent Supreme Court decision empowering cities to take action against encampments, Newsom’s order requires California state agencies to clear camps on state property, and encourages local governments to do the same on city and county land.

COVID Levels 'Very High' In California As New Variant Spreads: CDC

COVID activity has reached very high levels according to recent wastewater tests performed at dozens of sites in California (Patch)

As massive Park fire marches into history books, firefighters face hurdles to slowing it down  (Los Angeles Times)

 Burning across mostly rural areas of Butte and Tehama counties, the Park fire surpassed 370,000 acres Monday, with a shift in weather forcing firefighters to react to new hot spots and unpredictable flare-ups.

California attorney files class action suit against homeowner-insurance provider  (NBC San  Diego)

The Department of Insurance reported the California Fair Plan isn’t giving people the mandatory minimum for fire coverage and denying claims that it shouldn’t

California Department of Education plans to develop housing on school district-owned lands (East Bay Times)

The state Department of Education is poised to get into the housing business, to pitch in to ease the chronic shortage of housing, which has become California’s top economic, social and political issue.