Doctors brace for pain as 10% cut to Medi-Cal rates looms
by Anna Gorman and Anthony York, Los Angeles Times
The cuts, affecting physicians, dentists and pharmacists, were enacted in 2011 to counter a budget deficit. Now medical providers want to restore funds for poor Californians. Read More ›
Closure of Southern California nuke plant shouldn’t lead to blackouts in Northern California this summer, state says
by Paul Rogers, San Jose Mercury News
A statewide summer electricity forecast found that even if San Onofre was not operating, the state should have enough electricity to get through the summer without the kinds of blackouts in 2000 and 2001. Read More ›
Apple to add kill switches to iPhones
by Jaxon Van Derbeken, San Francisco Chronicle
Apple said it will equip its new iPhones with a kill switch, rendering the devices useless if stolen. Read More ›
California utility will close troubled nuclear plant
by Michael Blood, ABC News
The troubled San Onofre nuclear power plant is closing after a 16-month battle over whether the reactors could be safely restarted with millions of people living nearby. Read More ›
Californians uneasy about fracking’s safety, lack of oversight
by Evan Halper, Los Angeles Times
More than 70 percent of voters favor banning or heavily regulating chemical injections into the ground to tap oil and natural gas, a poll finds. Read More ›
Minimum wage boost on track so far
by Samantha Gallegos, Capitol Weekly
Californian minimum-wage earners are one step closer to seeing their pay tied to the cost of living, a goal that advocates for low-income workers have sought for years. Read More ›
California to receive largest share of proposed Universal Preschool funds
by Deepa Fernandes , KPCC
California will receive $334 million for the first year to pay for the universal preschool program. The money will cover 90 percent of the state’s first year costs. California would have to chip in 10 percent in the first year, about $34 million. Read More ›
PG&E shorted gas-system safety, audit finds
by Jaxon Van Derbeken, San Francisco Chronicle
PG & E failed to spend more than $50 million intended to improve the natural gas lines that run through residential neighborhoods in the decade leading up to the San Bruno explosion, and the company has not done enough since the 2010 disaster to make up for shortchanging safety efforts, a state-ordered audit says. Read More ›
iPhones, iPads face U.S. ban as Apple loses ITC case to Samsung
by Diane Bartz, Reuters
Samsung Electronics scored a point on Tuesday over global rival Apple in their long-running battle over mobile device patents. Read More ›
Privatizing UC instruction
by Whitney Phaneuf, East Bay Express
A controversial bill proposes that California public universities partner with private technology companies to provide general education classes online. Read More ›
All drone legislation must meet these three requirements
by Dave Maass, Electronic Frontier Foundation
All but seven states have proposed or adopted legislation relating to the domestic use of drones, or unmanned aerial systems, in domestic airspace, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Now, at the invitation of the Aerospace States Association, EFF has rung in with the three crucial elements that all drone legislation must contain to balance privacy rights with free-speech concerns. Read More ›
California DNA law is broader than program upheld by Supreme Court
by Maura Dolan, Los Angeles Times
The decision upholding the right of authorities to take DNA from people when they are arrested only partially assures that the California DNA collection program will survive court challenges. Read More ›
Supreme Court opens ‘gaping new exception’ to privacy rights
by Ned Resnikoff, MSNBC
Law enforcement officials can take routine DNA samples from those they arrest, the Supreme Court ruled on Monday. A 5-4 majority held that doing so is little different from taking fingerprints, and therefore does not intrude on a suspect’s Fourth Amendment rights. Read More ›