Updating . . .

Kamala Harris, the first Black woman in her role, just broke a record held by an outspoken slaveholder -- Vice President Kamala Harris sets a new tiebreaking record previously held by John C. Calhoun, among the fiercest defenders of slavery of his era. Noah Bierman in the Los Angeles Times$ Shira Stein in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 12/5/23

Migrants to California released on San Diego streets -- The San Diego County Board of Supervisors is expected to vote today on a request for another $3 million in funding for a welcome center that has helped as many as 800 migrants a day reach their final desired destinations. Lynn La CalMatters -- 12/5/23

California threw a $50 million lifeline to a bankrupt hospital. It’s scrambling to reopen -- Earlier this year, the state created a loan program meant to help struggling hospitals stay afloat and to help reopen Madera County’s only hospital. Almost a year after its closure, Madera continues its search for a buyer or partner. Ana B. Ibarra CalMatters -- 12/5/23

Q&A: Assembly’s Labor committee chair prioritizes women, senior workers -- With nine months’ experience in the Assembly, Liz Ortega will lead the Labor committee after a strike-filled summer and several wins for low-wage workers. Alejandra Reyes-Velarde CalMatters -- 12/5/23

McCarthy and Johnson are both conservative Christians. Only one is on the ‘front lines of the culture war’ -- The transition of House speakership from McCarthy, a proud but subdued Christian, to Johnson, a fervently devout evangelical, highlights the religious right’s dominance of the evangelical GOP coalition. Faith E. Pinho in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/5/23

Moms for Liberty suing Yolo County library, claiming free speech violations at forums -- Yolo County’s Moms for Liberty chapter and conservative groups are suing the county and its library system, alleging their First Amendment rights were abridged by protests against them during events at the Davis library branch. Sam Stanton, Ishani Desai in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 12/5/23

Silicon Valley’s AI boom collides with a skeptical Sacramento -- Silicon Valley’s freewheeling artificial intelligence industry is about to face its first major policy roadblocks — not in Washington, but in its own backyard. Jeremy B. White Politico -- 12/5/23

Assembly Member Evan Low joins crowded Bay Area House race -- Low, hopes to become the first LGBTQ House member elected from the Bay Area. Ten openly LGBTQ members serve in the House, after former New York Rep. George Santos was expelled last week. Joe Garofoli in the San Francisco Chronicle$ Christopher Cadelago, Melanie Mason Politico Grace Hase in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 12/5/23

Liz Cheney, outspoken Trump critic, weighs third-party presidential run -- The former congresswoman says she is determined to stop Trump. Other Trump critics think a third-party candidacy could help him. Maeve Reston in the Washington Post$ -- 12/5/23

Workplace

‘We are not trying to be greedy.’ CSU faculty walk out for higher pay in tough times -- Hundreds of Cal Poly Pomona faculty members crowded on sidewalks near campus entrances, carrying signs that read ‘On strike!’ as they called for higher wages. Debbie Truong in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/5/23

A.I.

Inside the A.I. Arms Race That Changed Silicon Valley Forever -- ChatGPT’s release a year ago triggered a desperate scramble among tech companies and alarm from some of the people who helped invent it. Karen Weise, Cade Metz, Nico Grant, Mike Isaac in the New York Times$ -- 12/5/23

Housing

What makes a Bay Area property ‘historic’? The answer is anything but straightforward -- Historic status has sometimes been used as the method of last resort to prevent redevelopment. Kate Talerico in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 12/5/23

Education

KIPP to close three L.A.-area charter schools amid low enrollment, opposition -- The move is a stunning setback for a largely successful competitor to traditional public schools, which also will have to respond to enrollment declines. Howard Blume in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/5/23

Street

Los Angeles-to-Baltimore drug pipeline behind triple homicide in Porter Ranch, prosecutors say -- After authorities seized $377,000, Travis Reid felt cheated by his cocaine supplier, prosecutors told the jury in closing arguments. Reid’s answer, they say, was to lure his supplier into a drug deal, execute him and steal 10 kilograms of cocaine. Matthew Ormseth in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/5/23

Prosecutors drop charges in ‘ghost gun’ case linked to LAPD gang unit scandal -- Los Angeles County prosecutors have dismissed a gun possession charge against a man who was stopped by officers from a gang unit within the LAPD’s Mission Division, one of the first instances of a case being compromised by the department’s latest corruption scandal. Libor Jany in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/5/23

Climate

Why some people think California’s cow manure methane plan stinks -- But while boosters say the technology has already helped the industry achieve 22% of its needed emission reductions, the facilities are coming under increasing fire from critics, who say they spew lung-damaging pollution in local communities and seriously undermine the state’s net-zero carbon goals. Tony Briscoe in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/5/23

Also

Half a billion: That’s the latest price for a gondola to Dodger Stadium -- In 2018, when the Dodger Stadium gondola was first proposed, the cost was estimated at $125 million. On Monday, an environmental impact report projected the cost at up to $500 million. Bill Shaikin, Rachel Uranga in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/5/23

What could Alaska-Hawaiian airlines merger mean for Bay Area travelers? -- The proposed merger of Alaska and Hawaiian airlines could benefit Bay Area travelers in a number of ways, according to an industry expert. Michael Cabanatuan in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 12/5/23

California Policy and Politics Tuesday

FBI arrests L.A. actor and Republican Party official over alleged involvement in Jan. 6 riot -- Siaka Massaquoi, first vice-chair of the L.A. County Republican Party, was arrested on suspicion of entering the U.S. Capitol during the riot, reports and social media posts say. Alexandra E. Petri in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/5/23

It’s now up to a judge whether Trump attorney John Eastman can keep his California law license -- The judge is due to issue a final ruling within 90 days, which could be appealed to the state Supreme Court. Bob Egelko in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 12/5/23

Cruise withheld damning details from state about October S.F. robotaxi crash, CPUC alleges -- The state also alleges that Cruise misled the public in the company’s responses around the Oct. 2 incident in which a robotaxi dragged a woman. Ricardo Cano in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 12/5/23

S.F. Mayor Breed OKs midyear cuts and warns of much more budget pain to come -- Breed had to trim costs because San Francisco is staring down a budget deficit that could grow to $1 billion by the 2027-2028 fiscal year if officials do not reduce spending. J.D. Morris in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 12/5/23

California Senate lands on short succession timeline for McGuire -- The chamber’s next leader will start as lawmakers contend with a large budget shortfall. Dustin Gardiner Politico -- 12/5/23

Assembly Member Evan Low joins crowded Bay Area House race -- Assembly Member Evan Low, D-Sunnyvale, officially filed paperwork Monday to replace retiring Rep. Anna Eshoo, joining a crowded field jostling to win a rare open Bay Area congressional seat. Joe Garofoli in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 12/5/23

Walters: Economic reality bites as Newsom faces a big California budget problem -- California Gov. Gavin Newsom declared that the state’s economy is “booming” in a recent debate. A new report shows that it is actually slowing, and that the governor faces a huge budget problem as income tax revenues lag behind. Dan Walters CalMatters -- 12/5/23

Workplace

House Democrats urge probe of L.A. hotels for ‘potentially predatory behavior’ toward migrant workers -- A group of federal lawmakers is urging the U.S. Department of Labor and the Federal Emergency Management Agency to investigate some prominent Los Angeles hotels and their contracted staffing agencies for possible labor violations in their treatment of migrant workers. Suhauna Hussain in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/5/23

Cal State union stages first of one-day strikes over faculty salaries -- The California Faculty Association is seeking a 12% pay increase, while university officials counter with 5% in each of the next three years. Mikhail Zinshteyn CalMatters Debbie Truong in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/5/23

This L.A. firm hired kids to debone poultry with sharp knives, drive fork lifts, Labor Department says -- Grocery supplier Exclusive Poultry must pay nearly $3.8 million after an investigation found it employed children as young as 14 in dangerous jobs, the agency said. Samantha Masunaga in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/5/23

California EDD lets go of Bank of America for unemployment payments, will soon start direct deposits -- Bank of America was the vendor when California’s EDD drew criticism during the pandemic for billions of dollars scammed by fraudsters, as well as sometimes blocking payments to legitimate recipients. Carolyn Said in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 12/5/23

Develop

San Francisco Is Building to Bring Residents Back -- Real-estate developers are launching a series of residential projects in San Francisco, responding to new efforts by the state and city to create more housing in one of the country’s most expensive places to live. Peter Grant in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 12/5/23

Cannabis

Should Sacramento’s cannabis tax be cut? Dispensary owners and youth advocates at odds -- Cannabis operators in Sacramento want the city to reduce a 4% tax on their gross receipts, but the cut would slash money allocated for youth organizations. Randy Diamond in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 12/5/23

Education

Oakland Unified pushes back against unsanctioned “teach-in” on Palestine -- District officials say teachers should be teaching students to think critically, not tell them what to think. Elissa Miolene in the East Bay Times$ -- 12/5/23

Early literacy funding raises reading scores of California’s lowest performing schools -- Seventy-five elementary schools benefited from a $50 million settlement of a lawsuit against the state; they were encouraged to adopt “science of reading” improvement strategies. Cara Nixon, John Fensterwald EdSource -- 12/5/23

Guns

Redondo 10th-grader brings loaded gun, high-capacity magazine to school -- A sophomore at Redondo Union High School started the week by carrying a loaded firearm and a high-capacity magazine onto campus, police say. Jeremy Childs in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/5/23

Gun advocates file second lawsuit challenging California’s concealed carry restrictions -- Gun advocates filed another suit Monday against California’s upcoming rules for concealed carry of firearms, challenging their authority to allow local governments to require a psychological exam for applicants and the state’s refusal to recognize gun-carry permits from other states. Bob Egelko in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 12/5/23

Street

Suspect in ‘bone-chilling’ homeless killings charged with 4 counts of murder -- Jerrid Joseph Powell, 33, was charged with four counts of murder. Prosecutors say he gunned down three homeless men and a robbery victim in a four-day span last week. James Queally, Noah Goldberg, Richard Winton, Ruben Vives in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/5/23

Murder-suicide suspected in Sylmar house fire that ignited thousands of rounds of ammo -- The deaths of a man and woman whose bodies were found at a burning home in Sylmar, where a large cache of ammunition was set off by the blaze, are being investigated as a possible murder-suicide, police said Monday. Salvador Hernandez in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/5/23

Accused ‘prolific’ Northern California graffiti tagger ordered to pay $50,000 in damages -- Scott Smith pleaded no contest to two felony vandalism charges, Sacramento County prosecutors said Monday. Damage to one building he was accused of tagging resulted in more than $36,000 in damages, officials said. Dominic Fracassa in the San Francisco Chronicle$ Molly Jarone in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 12/5/23

After explosions, S.F. supe seeks new rules for charging e-scooters, bikes -- The proposal comes three years after an exploding battery started a fire in the 460-unit Gateway apartment complex in the Financial District, displacing 15 people and sending three to the hospital. Nora Mishanec in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 12/5/23

Autism

What we know about autism — and how to treat it — could change after new UCSF study -- Researchers have mapped the microscopic world of autism spectrum disorder in unprecedented detail. “This opens up kind of a Goldilocks of potential treatment targets,” said one of the study’s leaders. Jason Fagone in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 12/5/23

Also

Olympian snowboarder sentenced in YouTube airplane crash stunt -- Trevor Jacob said he planned to fly solo from Lompoc City Airport to Mammoth Lakes. But investigators said he instead planned to eject himself during the flight and video record himself parachuting to the ground as his plane crashed. Anthony De Leon in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/5/23

Blue Shield has been hacked. What to do if your information was part of the breach -- An unknown number of Blue Shield members were recently notified that their information could have been compromised by a cybersecurity hack. Now is a good time to secure your personal information. Here are some tips on what to do. Karen Garcia in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/5/23