Morning news briefing 5.15.08

Thumbs up for UC Merced medical school – The University of California at Merced received a unanimous thumbs up Wednesday from the University of California's Board of Regents to continue ongoing plans to establish a medical school. The Board of Regents voted on the issue during a meeting at UCLA, after a presentation by UC Merced officials and supporters of the school about the need for a medical school and more physicians in the San Joaquin Valley. Merced Sun-Star article; Fresno Bee editorial

Valley reaps benefits of farm bill – Central Valley farmers harvest serious coin in the new farm bill approved Wednesday by the House. While President Bush calls the bill a big mistake, many Valley farmers disagree. Whether the $289 billion package is a long-term good idea, it undeniably steers money toward the nation's most abundant agricultural region. "Past farm bills didn't work for California, oftentimes," said Rep. Dennis Cardoza, D-Merced. This new bill, he added, included "significant benefits" for the state. Fresno Bee article; Stockton Record article

CSU raises fees 10 percent; UC plans 7.4 percent hike – The cost of a university degree for the more than 500,000 undergraduate students at the state's public universities went up Wednesday. Fees will increase 10 percent this fall for students in the California State University system, rising to nearly $3,800 a year for undergraduate students. On University of California campuses, fees will climb 7.4 percent, bringing resident undergraduate fees to more than $8,000 a year, not including housing and books. Sacramento Bee article

LA prepares massive water-conservation plan – With vital and often-distant water sources shrinking, Los Angeles officials today will revive a controversial proposal to recycle wastewater as part of a plan to curb usage and move the city toward greater water independence. The aggressive, multiyear proposal could do much to catch the city up to other Southern California communities that have launched advanced recycling programs. LA Times article

Jeff Jardine: No government jobs to turn to in economic downturn – Companies are using hiring freezes and voluntary or forced layoffs to reduce their work forces. Other jobs were outsourced before or about the time this economic downturn began. So job seekers are again turning to the public sector. But it's different this time around. Local governments aren't hiring, either -- certainly not as much as they did in the 1990s. In fact, they, too, are freezing jobs or sending out layoff notices. Jardine column

State issues heat warning – With temperatures forecast to hit 100 degrees or higher in much of the Central Valley on Thursday, California's Division of Occupational Safety and Health is reminding employers to take special precautions for their workers who must work in the heat. Employers of outdoor workers must comply with the new permanent heat illness prevention standard. This requires employers to take simple steps that include shade and water. Central Valley Business Times article

Fresno Unified approves fee boost for developers – Developers will pay higher fees to the Fresno Unified School District for all new homes and commercial projects built within the district's boundaries, trustees said Wednesday. With a unanimous vote, the school board approved a new fee schedule that charges developers $2.97 per square foot for new homes and 47 cents per square foot on commercial projects. Fresno Bee article

Stockton Unified superintendent in charge of $3.4 million grant – Superintendent Jack McLaughlin - on a trip to Washington, D.C., last week - secured approval from the U.S. Department of Education for a single change to a $3.4 million "small learning communities" grant that has been at the heart of a dispute in the Stockton Unified School District. The federal agency agreed that McLaughlin, who leaves the district in six weeks, would supervise the grant instead of Knute Momberg, Stockton Unified's director of vocational education. Stockton Record article

Flights added from Bakersfield to LA, Salt Lake City – Two new flights are being added out of Meadows Field, one between Los Angeles and Bakersfield, the other to and from Salt Lake City. United Airlines is scheduling a third daily flight between Bakersfield and Los Angeles starting June 5, an airport official said Wednesday. Also, Delta Airlines plans to reinstitute a morning flight to the Utah city in July. Bakersfield Californian article

Airline to pull out of Visalia, Merced – Air Midwest is ending passenger air service from Visalia and Merced to Las Vegas on May 31, folding its wings more than a year after the company said it wanted out of its federal contract to serve the Valley markets. The move could leave a gap in airline service for Visalia and Merced because a takeover by Air Midwest's successor has been slowed by glitches. Fresno Bee article

Merced megadevelopment hits snag on way to approval – Nearly 20 years after they were proposed, plans for the largest housing development in Merced County's history hit another delay Wednesday. Dubbed the Villages of Laguna San Luis, the 16,000-home development could eventually bring 45,000 people -- or more than half the population of the city of Merced -- to the county's Westside. The Planning Commission delayed its vote to allow the county more time to consider new input from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Merced Sun-Star article

Bakersfield Californian: Jail funding coming just in time – Kern County is in line for a $100 million expansion of its Lerdo Jail, and the check won't come a moment too soon. Overcrowding and disrepair have forced the Sheriff's Department to release nonviolent offenders who, in most cases, have served only 30 percent of their sentences -- a non-solution solution the 2005 Kern County grand jury criticized as a blow to judges' intentions when they issue sentences. Bakersfield Californian editorial

Tulare students choose to Step Up against gangs – Orosi High School students say they've had enough of gang violence, a message delivered loud and clear at a Wednesday afternoon Step Up pep rally at the school. The rally was the school's version of the county's Step Up gang summit held in Orosi in March. Students packed the school's multipurpose room, listening to motivational speakers and music. Visalia Times-Delta article

Tulare city address to include tax, sports complex – Tulare Mayor Craig Vejvoda says his state of the city address Friday will include details on increased sales tax revenue and the value of the commercial building permits issued in 2007, the highest total in Tulare's history. The proposed Tulare Motor Sports Complex and new Tulare City Library are sure to be topics as well, Vejvoda said. Visalia Times-Delta article

Kern stiffens penalties for selling tobacco to minors – Kern County supervisors Tuesday cleaned up some language in a county ordinance that makes it illegal for tobacco retailers to sell to minors. Four of the five supervisors voted to increase penalties to $250 for a first violation, $500 for a second violation and $1,000 for a third violation within a five-year period. Bakersfield Californian article

San Joaquin County board approves entertainment permit – San Joaquin County policymakers on Tuesday created a new entertainment use permit, a permanent step replacing a temporary permit approved by the board in April. The Board of Supervisors enacted the temporary permit in response to a case in federal court accusing the county of having unconstitutional permitting rules. Stockton Record article