OCEA HOT DOG WAGON
OCEA.org: Hot Dog Wagon Schedule
Upcoming stops, all 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.: OC Water District in Fountain Valley on Sept. 24; OCERS in Santa Ana on Sept. 30; SSA/Probation at 23330 Moulton Parkway in Laguna Hills on Oct. 1; and OCCR/HCA/ROV at 1300 S. Grand Ave. in Santa Ana on Oct. 6. Schedule is subject to change, so check our website before heading out!
LABOR
AFLCIO.org: Court Blocks Job Application Loyalty Question After Unions File Suit
A federal judge blocked the administration’s “merit hiring plan” requirement that federal job applicants write an essay about their favorite Trump administration initiative. AFGE, AFSCME and NAGE brought the challenge, and the court found the question violated the First Amendment, the Administrative Procedure Act and the Privacy Act.
Documents disclosed in Canada show Amazon scripting manager conversations with workers and running an internal machine-learning system, “Atlas,” to score facilities for organizing risk.
LOCAL
VoiceofOC.org: Santana: Is the County of Orange Ready to Investigate Itself?
Supervisors are weighing whether to give the Board subpoena power to dig into the Andrew Do bribery scandal and related spending. Supervisors Janet Nguyen and Vicente Sarmiento want accountability to reach beyond Do, pointing to audits that flagged questionable spending by former county executives, including former Health Care Agency Director Clayton Chau.
OCgov.com: Orange County Proclaims State of Local Emergency Related to Hurricane Marie
Board Chair Doug Chaffee signed a local emergency proclamation on Sept. 17 in response to coastal damage from Hurricane Marie, clearing the way for the County to support Dana Point, Laguna Beach and San Clemente. The Sheriff’s Department Emergency Management Division activated the Operational Area Emergency Operations Center to coordinate the response.
VoiceofOC.org: Residents Across OC Increasingly Push Back on Flock Cameras
Residents and activists across the county are challenging the spread of Flock automated license plate readers over privacy concerns and fears that the data reaches federal immigration agencies. Officials in Santa Ana and Fullerton are facing calls for audits after learning federal agencies accessed local data without community consent.
VoiceofOC.org: Garden Grove Replaces Be Well OC’s Mental Health Services
Garden Grove voted to replace Be Well OC with Healthcare In Action under a $1.5 million first-year contract after Mind OC struggled to meet its financial obligations amid a legal dispute with the County over two mental health campuses. The new pilot runs eight hours a day, down from Be Well’s 18.
VoiceofOC.org: Anaheim Officials to Deliberate New City Manager Appointment Behind Closed Doors
The Anaheim council is holding closed sessions to pick a new city manager seven months after Jim Vanderpool resigned amid the FBI corruption probe. The next manager will oversee a nearly $2.6 billion budget during the expected sale of the Angels.
VoiceofOC.org: How Will Newport Beach Leaders Pull Together an Election in 50 Days?
A Superior Court judge ordered Newport Beach to run its own standalone election for the first time in nearly 50 years on three ballot measures covering transparency, term limits and district elections. Registrar of Voters Bob Page declined to assist, saying a separate city election would interfere with the County’s General Election, leaving city staff with a 50-day clock and no certified ballot-counting system.
STATE
Gov.ca.gov: Governor Newsom Proclaims State of Emergency to Bolster Statewide El Niño Preparedness
The proclamation directs state agencies to stage flood-fighting supplies such as sandbags and pumps and streamlines procurement ahead of a forecast historic El Niño season. It names Glenn, Humboldt, Kern, Lake, Mendocino and Santa Barbara counties; Orange County is not included.
LAist.com: Newsom Clamps Down on California Data Centers as Voters Turn Against the Industry
Governor Newsom signed seven bills requiring data center operators to cover their own electric infrastructure costs and disclose water use, a reversal from earlier vetoes driven by public opposition to new data centers. The goal is to keep utilities from passing data center costs on to residential ratepayers.
AI
Governor Newsom directed state agencies to deliver AI safety recommendations by Nov. 16, covering outside safety evaluators, kill switches and expanded incident reporting, and left open the possibility of a special legislative session. The directive revives ideas from SB 1047, the AI safety bill he vetoed in 2024.
