January 31, 2018

Orange County

OC Register: Working in California gets safer even as job count grows

The latest workplace safety statistics from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics show that as bosses statewide pushed employment above pre-recession highs in 2016, workplace deaths fell. Meanwhile, deaths on the job nationally rose to an eight-year high. Worker injuries fell both in the state and nationally that year.

 

OC Register: Ride-sharing program and street car are among O.C. transportation agency’s top priorities in coming months

The Uber-like venture, called OC Flex, is accessible through a mobile app. It will include four wheelchair-accessible vans that will operate in Huntington Beach, Aliso Viejo, Laguna Niguel and Mission Viejo.

 

OC Register: Homeless, elderly and disabled people in Orange County can use food stamp debit cards to buy hot meals

The long-anticipated Restaurant Meals Program kicks off Thursday, Feb. 1, allowing homeless, elderly and disabled people in Orange County with CalFresh food stamp benefits to buy hot, prepared foods at participating establishments.

 

OC Register: Republic agrees to sell ‘National Treasure’ Wintersburg to self-storage company

The announcement came as a stunning reversal to advocates for the historic site, who believed they were on the path to an agreement to buy the property and save it for preservation.

 

LA Times: UC Irvine chancellor: Students are not 'snowflakes,' but they need to understand free speech

You can’t punish or censor someone merely for expressing an idea. But you can censor or punish if speech becomes harassment, a true threat or incitement. You must allow students to have a right to express their views, including through protests.

 

OCGOV.com: County, city and federal agencies approve Metroplex flight paths from John Wayne Airport

The City of Newport Beach sued the FAA in October 2016 regarding the FAA’s environmental document associated with the FAA’s Southern California Metroplex implementation. The recent legal settlement also involves the County of Orange, which joined the action after the City filed its lawsuit.

 

Region

LA Times: He worked at a water district for just seven days. But it ended up costing $1.5 million

The agency has been caught up in so many legal claims that they were a factor in the agency losing its insurance coverage. In one case, the district's insurance paid $670,000 to a woman who alleged that a board director sexually assaulted her.

 

California

Sacramento Bee: ‘Extreme’ rent control could be coming to California soon

A costly and potentially bruising campaign is taking shape over rent control in California, with deep-pocketed Los Angeles activist Michael Weinstein bankrolling a proposed November ballot initiative to repeal a state law that sets tight limits on the type of housing covered under local rent control laws.

 

Publication Date: January 31, 2018