Updating . .  

L.A.'s remarkable achievement: Rapid economic reopening as COVID-19 fades fast -- Los Angeles County is poised to potentially reopen its economy to an extent that would have been unthinkable in the not-too-distant past. Luke Money, Rong-Gong Lin II in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/28/21

The Sacramento region’s COVID rate is not improving. What that means for restrictions -- The Sacramento region has seen coronavirus activity stagnate above statewide levels, even as hundreds of thousands of local residents have been vaccinated in recent months. Sacramento County’s top health official says there appear to be “multiple factors” contributing to the plateau of virus activity. Michael McGough and Tony Bizjak in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 4/28/21

When do I still need to wear a mask and when can I go without? A guide to staying safe -- Despite some early mixed messages, health officials have repeatedly told Americans that wearing a face mask — both indoors and outdoors — is essential to curbing the spread of the coronavirus. But as COVID-19 slows dramatically, that advice is changing. Rong-Gong Lin II, Luke Money in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/28/21

How COVID changed Disneyland’s Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance -- The Disneyland ride Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance is an 18-minute space adventure in which riders join the resistance movement, get captured by the evil First Order and finally escape with the help of members of the rebellion. Hugo Martín in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/28/21

New CDC mask guidance draws clear line between vaccinated and unvaccinated Americans -- In the eyes of U.S. health officials, there are two groups of people: those who are vaccinated against COVID-19 and those who are not. And they’re stepping up their efforts to get unvaccinated Americans to switch sides. Amina Khan, Karen Kaplan in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/28/21

Are Californians really skipping their second doses? It’s hard to know -- Millions of Americans have apparently skipped their second COVID-19 vaccine doses, but exactly how many in California did so remains unclear, partly because the state’s disjointed vaccination system makes it difficult to track people who go to different clinics for their two individual doses. Maggie Angst in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 4/28/21

Policy & Politics 

A Black LAPD officer wants LeBron James to listen to his view of policing and race -- But when the Los Angeles Police Department officer who patrols skid row saw a Twitter post from James commenting on the fatal police shooting of a 16-year-old girl in Columbus, Ohio, last week, he felt compelled to write his own response. Richard Winton in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/28/21

California Is Awash in Cash, Thanks to a Booming Market -- Gavin Newsom, the Democratic governor of California, warned of dark days ahead. “We are confronted with a steep and unprecedented economic crisis,” he wrote in his budget. Then Wall Street came to the Golden State’s rescue. Matt Phillips in the New York Times$ -- 4/28/21

McManus: Joe Biden has become the anti-Reagan, and his speech to Congress will make that clear -- Forty years ago, a newly elected President Ronald Reagan spoke to a joint session of Congress, calling for deep cuts in federal spending. “In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem,” Reagan had said at his inauguration. “Government is the problem.” Doyle McManus in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/28/21

Water   

3 more Bay Area water districts take drastic steps with drought looming -- Three more big Bay Area water agencies are calling on residents to conserve water as drought looms in California following two consecutive extraordinarily dry winters. Board members with both the East Bay Municipal Utility District and Sonoma Water approved proclamations Tuesday to declare drought emergencies. Amy Graff in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 4/28/21

Hiltzik: Water created California and the West. Will drought finish them off? -- In what may become an iconic image for drought-stricken California, Gov. Gavin Newsom stood on the parched bed of Lake Mendocino on April 21 to announce an emergency declaration for Sonoma and Mendocino counties. Michael Hiltzik in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/28/21

Street  

Major California cities see sharp increase in homicides, car thefts during COVID pandemic -- Los Angeles, Oakland, San Diego and San Francisco have seen a significant rise in homicides and car thefts in 2020, according to California Department of Justice data reviewed by the Public Policy Institute of California. Andrew Sheeler in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 4/28/21

California justice department to release gun violence data it withheld from UC researchers -- The California Department of Justice announced this week that it will expand access to and begin releasing certain gun violence prevention data that it had withheld from a state-funded University of California research center. Hannah Wiley in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 4/28/21

Education  

Orange County debates ethnic studies: Vital learnings or ‘anti-white’ divisiveness? -- California’s new ethnic studies curriculum is being put to an early test in Orange County, where organizers are riling up parents in the Los Alamitos Unified School District to oppose elective coursework and materials they say promote divisive, anti-white rhetoric. Hayley Smith in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/28/21

School Superintendents Are Superstressed -- Austin Beutner, the superintendent of the Los Angeles Unified School District, the nation’s second largest, announced last week that he would leave his post at the end of June, becoming one of the most prominent superintendents to retire or resign this year. Kate Taylor and Amelia Nierenberg in the New York Times$ -- 4/28/21

Housing  

Why were the Bay Area’s biggest cities denied key housing funds? -- The mayors of the Bay Area’s three largest cities are pushing back after they were denied key affordable housing funds — a shutout they say could cost the region 3,000 desperately needed homes this year and jeopardize future efforts to fight the housing crisis. Marisa Kendall in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 4/28/21

Border  

‘A gold rush for human smugglers’: Biden’s Title 42 policy fuels migrant family kidnappings at border, extortion in U.S. -- The unprecedented policy, which relies an obscure 1944 public health statute to indefinitely close the border to “nonessential” travel, has made migrant children and parents easy prey for the criminal groups waiting just on the other side. Molly O’Toole in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/28/21

Supervisor proposes legal help for people in immigration custody in San Diego County -- San Diego County may join a growing list of local governments providing attorneys to people held in federal immigration custody. Kate Morrissey in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 4/28/21

Landlords and Tenants  

Richmond seeks better protection for tenants harassed, threatened by landlords -- In response to troubling reports of landlords harassing or threateniing their tenants, the Richmond City Council voted Tuesday to kickstart a process to create an anti-harassment law to protect renters. Annie Sciacca in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 4/28/21

Also . . .   

Sacramento region planning a bike ‘freeway’ system linking cities and neighborhoods -- Fifty years ago, the state transformed Sacramento by creating an interconnected highway system through the capital region. Now it’s time to do the same for bicycles and pedestrians, a group of regional planners says. Tony Bizjak in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 4/28/21

Pandemic fueled a hot hustle: buying stuff cheap, reselling at a profit -- It’s a hustle as old as humankind: Get something on the cheap; persuade someone to take it off your hands for more. After the pandemic shut people in and wiped out jobs, the gig got supercharged. Ronald D. White in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/28/21

They fell in love after WWII and Japanese incarceration. At 98, he’s published tribute to his beloved -- Louis Moore couldn’t stop staring at the dancer, third from the right in the chorus line, at the China Doll nightclub in New York City. Hailey Branson-Potts in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/28/21

California Policy and P  olitics Wednesday Morning  

California follows CDC in relaxing outdoors mask guidance for vaccinated people -- Federal health officials relaxed mask guidance for fully vaccinated people on Tuesday, saying they no longer have to wear face coverings outside unless they are around large crowds — and California quickly adopted the new standards. Aidin Vaziri in the San Francisco Chronicle$ Andrew Sheeler in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 4/28/21

L.A. County to follow new federal mask guidance -- Los Angeles County health officials said Tuesday that the county would be aligning itself with new federal guidance that relaxes advice on wearing masks outdoors. Leila Miller in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/28/21

Vaccine  

No appointments necessary as San Diego County vaccination sites invite walk-ups -- Effective immediately, anyone can walk into 16 sites countywide and receive their first dose until supplies run out. Paul Sisson in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 4/28/21

Workplace  

Capitol employees asked to submit vaccine status as California Legislature moves to reopen -- Employees for the California state Assembly and Senate are being asked to submit their COVID-19 vaccination status as a way to assess whether the building is ready to safely reopen to more people. Hannah Wiley in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 4/28/21

Open  

L.A. reopening fast: What yellow tier means for restaurants, bars, amusement parks, gyms and more -- Los Angeles County and San Francisco have reached a threshold to enter California’s most lenient yellow COVID-19 tier as soon as next week, if trends hold steady. So what could that mean? Rong-Gong Lin II, Luke Money in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/28/21

Policy & Politics 

Will the California recall of 2021 be wild or mild? Here’s your guide -- It’s going to be a political spectacle. But it’s still not clear that it will match the wild ride of the 2003 recall that ushered Arnold Schwarzenegger into office. Phil Willon, Taryn Luna, Seema Mehta, John Myers in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/28/21

California braces for another 'clown car' of recall candidates -- Running in the California recall may be the best bargain on the planet for fame and fortune seekers. Carla Marinucci Politico -- 4/28/21

Where’s Caitlyn? So far, Jenner’s campaign is virtual -- In her five days as a Republican candidate for California governor, Caitlyn Jenner had a Twitter spat with a Democratic congressman, unveiled a website to sell T-shirts and other campaign swag and posted a photograph of herself with a startup business owner. Michael R. Blood Associated Press -- 4/28/21

The Wild West of political data sales can score candidates big money but raise privacy concerns. Here's how one politician is benefiting -- Campaigns are all about the money, and, in the 21st century, all about the data. For some candidates, those two things go hand in hand. Kayla Epstein and Dave Levinthal Business Insider -- 4/28/21

How Gavin Newsom Landed in a California Jam -- For all the controversies and Covid-19 crises that now have Gov. Gavin Newsom of California facing a historic recall election, it was a pair of prosaic events on Nov. 6 — a court hearing and a dinner — that led to the current political instability that will grip the state for months to come. Shawn Hubler and Jennifer Medina in the New York Times$ -- 4/28/21

Walters: Biden’s tax plan could hit California hard -- A cosmic convergence of events in Washington and Sacramento last week demonstrated how strongly federal and state tax systems are interconnected. Dan Walters CalMatters -- 4/28/21

San Diego raising fees paid by candidates for city elected office to recover costs -- The City Council on Tuesday sharply increased the fee for City Council candidates from $200 to $574. The council also increased the fee for mayor and city attorney candidates from $500 to $574. David Garrick in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 4/28/21

District attorney moves to lift all gang injunctions in San Diego County -- Critics for years said injunctions, which stay in effect for a lifetime, impede the ability of people who put their gang days behind them to get jobs and housing. Some said the orders target communities of color. David Hernandez in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 4/28/21

Business Muscle  

Nearly a quarter of Time’s 100 most influential companies are in the Bay Area -- Reports of the Bay Area’s business exodus have been greatly exaggerated — at least if Time magazine’s new list of the 100 most influential companies in the world is any indication of Silicon Valley’s global standing. The list, released Tuesday and compiled for the first time this year, is dominated by the Bay Area and California. Leonardo Castañeda in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 4/28/21

Street  

Alameda releases video showing police pin Mario Gonzalez to the ground before his death -- Facing growing outcry from family and residents, the city of Alameda on Tuesday released body camera footage showing police pinning Mario Gonzalez to the ground for at least five minutes before the 26-year-old man died in custody, in a video that recalled the death of George Floyd as a flashpoint on police violence in America. David DeBolt, George Kelly in the San Jose Mercury$ Michael Cabanatuan in the San Francisco Chronicle$ Will Wright in the New York Times$ Juliet Williams Associated Press -- 4/28/21

O.C. supervisors OK $1.5 million settlement with woman whose baby died at childbirth in jail -- Stoetling alleges in her federal lawsuit that she told jail officials she was pregnant and was having contractions on May 11, 2018. When she pressed an emergency button for help she said she received no response. The item is in the Orange County Register -- 4/28/21

San Diego on front lines of DEA’s next fentanyl operation -- “Project Wave Breaker” is national effort to disrupt deadly flow of fentanyl into United States. Kristina Davis in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 4/28/21

LAPD says it needs $67 million, dozens more officers to complete protest response reforms -- They also say they need dozens more police officers to lead new training regimens for every sworn LAPD employee. Thousands of rank-and-file officers would be trained every two years and the department’s command staff would get yearly trainings in crowd control and emergency response. Josh Cain in the Los Angeles Daily News$ -- 4/28/21

Water  

Marin explores revival of Richmond Bridge water pipeline -- The potential for water shortages in Marin has become so acute that the Marin Municipal Water District is in early talks with East Bay officials to build a pipeline across the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge to pump water into the county. Will Houston in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 4/28/21

Big Bay Area water agencies ask – but don’t yet require – public to conserve more water -- After back-to-back dry winters, two of the Bay Area’s biggest water agencies on Tuesday moved forward with plans to urge the public to reduce water use to avoid shortages this year. But for now, they are using a carrot rather than a stick, saying they have enough water to get by without resorting to fines, water cops and strict rules. Paul Rogers in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 4/28/21

This beloved Marin winery is shutting down, citing California's drought and climate change -- Wineries rarely close down entirely; more often, when an owner wants out, they sell. But Jonathan Pey, who founded Pey-Marin Vineyards with his late wife, Susan, in 1999, said that the extreme conditions of west Marin farming have simply gotten too punishing, in part due to climate change. Esther Mobley in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 4/28/21

Housing  

San Diego home prices increase fastest in nearly 16 years and are second fastest in the nation -- Home prices are up 17 percent in a year for the San Diego metropolitan area. Phillip Molnar in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 4/28/21

Rent  

S.F. and Bay Area rents rose for the third straight month. Here's what you need to know -- Rents in San Francisco and throughout the Bay Area continue creeping back up, although they have a long way to go before they catch up to their pre-pandemic highs, new data show. Steve Rubenstein in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 4/28/21

Education  

Berkeley slams UC Berkeley's long-term plans in fight over housing -- The city of Berkeley and UC Berkeley are at odds once again over the university’s long-term development plans. Emma Talley in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 4/28/21

California teachers, school staff receive bumps in pay as campuses reopen -- Some California teachers and school staff are receiving bonuses, salary increases and stipends as part of union agreements with school district officials eager to reopen classrooms. Diana Lambert EdSource -- 4/28/21

Environment  

Scientist: Extent of DDT dumping in Pacific is ‘staggering’ -- Marine scientists say they have found what they believe to be more than 25,000 barrels that possibly contain DDT dumped off the Southern California coast near Catalina Island, where a massive underwater toxic waste site dating back to World War II has long been suspected. Julie Watson Associated Press -- 4/28/21

Guns  

San Diego Police Department Sees Rise In ‘Ghost Guns’ -- Ghost guns are easy to get and they’re practically untraceable. Legal loopholes in some states, including Nevada, allow gun makers to sell them without serial numbers. San Diego Police Chief David Nisleit said San Diego County had seen a 169% rise in ghost guns. Alexandra Rangel KPBS -- 4/28/21

REAL ID  

REAL ID deadline extended because of COVID, giving Californians more time to get new license -- The U.S. Department of Homeland Security is extending the deadline to get a REAL ID, giving drivers and travelers until May 2023 to obtain the new identification card. Andrew Sheeler in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 4/28/21

Also . . .   

Burning Man 2021 is officially canceled. But 2022 reservations are on sale for $2,500 -- Burning Man 2021 has officially been canceled, organizers announced Tuesday, saying uncertainties surrounding the coronavirus pandemic “are impossible to resolve in the time we have.” Michael Williams in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 4/28/21

L.A. councilman urges sale of San Pedro butane tanks for ‘alternative use’ -- Los Angeles City Councilman Joe Buscaino is urging the owners of a San Pedro site that handles millions of gallons of liquid butane to sell it for another use, saying it “would bring a huge sense of relief to an entire community.” Emily Alpert Reyes in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/28/21

Amazon may be sued for injuries caused by defective products sold on its website, court rules -- Amazon.com may be sued for injuries caused by defects in products sold on its website, a state appeals court says, since the tech giant controls much of the sales process and can pressure manufacturers to make their products safer. Bob Egelko in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 4/28/21

Lazarus: How to stop Facebook identity thieves in their tracks -- Cynthia Lim is very excited about grants available from Lions Club International during these difficult times, so she’s telling all her friends via Facebook Messenger to check out this cool source of funds. Except she’s not. And there are no such grants. David Lazarus in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/28/21

POTUS 46  

Biden’s small moments tell big stories -- During his first 100 days in office, the president has cast his ambitions high, but he has kept his gaze at a human level. Robin Givhan in the Washington Post$ -- 4/28/21