Firings and a ‘no confidence’ vote rock Imperial County government

Good Morning, I’m Debbie Cruz….it’s Monday, April 28th.>>>>

Firings and a vote of no confidence are rocking Imperial County government.More on that next. But first... the headlines….#######

A toxic algae bloom in coastal waters from San Luis Obispo to San Diego has killed dozens of marine mammals, including whales.

Health and environmental groups have labeled it an extreme danger zone.

It’s the fourth straight year this type of algae bloom has been detected. Experts are calling it the worst one yet.

They suspect wildfire debris and fertilizer runoff are fueling the spread of the toxic algae.

At least 16 dead and dying dolphins have been found in San Diego.

#######

The federal government is restoring the legal status of international students whose status was revoked in recent weeks.

San Diego State University says three of its four students impacted by visa and student record terminations have had their status restored.

UC San Diego says 18 students’ records have been reactivated. Those of 17 others remain terminated.

Tammy Lin is an immigration attorney.

"It's, to me, a little bit of a bright spot that the administration backed down, because all along the claim has always been that, even if their statuses were revoked, that they do have due process and the threat of immediate, you know, expulsion, seemed to be very fear oriented to try to chill the population. "

The Associated Press reports that U-S immigration and customs enforcement is developing a framework for international student record terminations.

In the meantime…ICE will not modify student records solely based on criminal record checks.

########

Eight critically endangered Fijian iguanas rescued from illegal trafficking in Spain are now at the San Diego Zoo.

It’s an international rescue mission eight years in the making.

The iguanas were among more than 600 reptiles seized by Spanish authorities in 2017.

Zoo staff say they’re in high demand on the black market.

The zoo says its geneticists will work to help conserve the species, and determine whether they can return to their native islands.

#########

From KPBS, you’re listening to San Diego News Now.Stay with me for more of the local news you need.

##########

THE IMPERIAL COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS HELD A VOTE OF “NO CONFIDENCE” IN THEIR AUDITOR-CONTROLLER LAST WEEK.

IMPERIAL VALLEY REPORTER KORI SUZUKI SAYS THE DECISION COMES JUST TWO WEEKS AFTER THEY FIRED A TOP ADMINISTRATOR.

The auditor-controller is Imperial County’s chief accountant. They oversee all financial transactions. And conduct independent reviews of the county’s operations. For three years, Karina Alvarez has served in that role. But the county Board of Supervisors isn’t happy with her work. During their meeting on Tuesday, County Chairman John Hawk said they were seeing major delays on key payments and financial reports. “This department is putting the county at risk. It’s putting the county at risk in our credit rating.” Alvarez pushed back against the criticism. She said she inherited a troubled department. Which was left reeling after the previous auditor-controller was convicted on corruption charges in 2022. Still, the Board chose to publicly reprimand Alvarez with a vote of “no confidence.” Kori Suzuki, KPBS News.

##########

DOZENS OF PEOPLE PROTESTED BEFORE THE GROSSMONT UNION HIGH SCHOOL DISTRICT BOARD MEETING LAST WEEK.

EDUCATION REPORTER KATIE ANASTAS SAYS THE BOARD HAD A CHANCE TO VOTE TO RESCIND LAYOFFS OF DOZENS OF STAFF…BUT DIDN’T.

In late February, the board voted to cut dozens of positions, including all of the district’s librarians. Board member Chris Fite cast the only no vote. On Thursday, he made a motion for the board to consider rescinding the layoffs… “I make the motion that we rescind all the layoff notices.” “Is there a second? Seeing no second, we will then move on. [boos]” That was board president Gary Woods. At the end of the meeting, student board member Maggie Kelly asked why the layoffs were necessary. “I feel like no reason has been communicated and it just feels like there's, there's not any listening happening.” Board member Robert Shield says students’ needs are changing, and he wants to know how else they might spend that money. “The staff, led by the superintendent, is going to be making recommendations to where to reallocate our resources in the best interest of students. I would like to hear that before I make a final decision.” The board has one more meeting before the layoff notice deadline of May 15. That meeting is scheduled for May 8. Katie Anastas, KPBS News.

##########

THE CITY OF SAN DIEGO OBSERVED ARBOR DAY FRIDAY BY PLANTING TREES IN PARKS AND ALONG STREETS.

THE CITY ALSO HAS TAKEN STEPS IN ANOTHER BEAUTIFICATION PROJECT, PUTTING POWER LINES UNDERGROUND.

SCI-TECH REPORTER THOMAS FUDGE CHECKED IN ON THEIR PROGRESS.

The city began a program to put power lines underground in 1970. They just completed undergrounding in Bay Park and last month the Rolando neighborhood was finished. The undergrounding program in San Diego is funded by a surcharge on local customers’ SDGE power bills. Chelsea Klaseus manages rights of way for the city’s transportation department. She says burying power lines and getting rid of the poles isn’t just beautification. It’s protecting people from fire and power outages. “At the core of this program is safety and reliability. So we prioritize communities of concern and high fire risk. So it reduces the impacts to the energy grid.” She says San Diego is about one third of the way through the task of undergrounding power lines. So getting it done will take 50 years plus. 

##########

MEDI-CAL—CALIFORNIA’S MEDICAID PROGRAM—COVERS NEARLY HALF OF ALL LATINOS IN THE STATE.

IN SAN DIEGO COUNTY, 44-PERCENT OF LATINOS RELY ON IT FOR DOCTORS VISITS, PRESCRIPTIONS, AND EMERGENCY CARE.

HEALTH REPORTER HEIDI DE MARCO SAYS PROPOSED FEDERAL CHANGES COULD PUT THAT COVERAGE AT RISK.

Republican lawmakers are proposing work requirements for Medicaid eligibility. Adults aged 18 to 65 would need to work or volunteer 20 hours a week in order to qualify. This and other changes could lead to nearly 2.3 million Californians losing Medi-Cal coverage. More than half are Latino. That’s according to a new study from UCLA’s Latino Policy and Politics Institute. Arturo Vargas Bustamante is one of the authors. “They don't necessarily come with employee provided health insurance because these individuals work as independent contractors.” He says not having fixed hours can make it harder to consistently meet the job requirement. “So Medi-Cal is actually the one that comes as the insurance of like last resort to cover these demographics.”The proposed Medi-Cal work requirements are part of a broader push to cut federal Medicaid spending. It’s backed by eight California Republicans, including San Diego’s Darrell Issa. Heidi de Marco, KPBS News.  

##########

ARE YOU READY FOR THE NEXT ELECTION?

LOCAL POLITICIANS SEEM TO BE.

IN OUR NEXT WHY IT MATTERS SEGMENT, VOICE OF SAN DIEGO’S SCOTT LEWIS EXPLAINS PROPOSALS FOR NEW POTENTIAL TAXES.

The county of San Diegos’ two Republican supervisors say they were not invited to the state of the county speech. Their colleague, Supervisor Terra Lawson-Remer, gave the speech last week at the Museum of Natural History.  If they had gone, they probably would not have liked her suggestion that it’s time to raise taxes. Lawson-Remer has an idea that’s commonly referred to as a mansion tax – she would put a tax on the sale of the top 1 percent of homes in San Diego. “Those with homes in the top 1% can pay for just a small share of that fortunate windfall.” She isn’t the only one thinking of taxes. A coalition of groups focused on the high cost and lack of access to affordable child care recently sent out a poll. It asks county residents if they would support a tax to fund child care.  Crucially, they would run it as a citizens initiative. Why does that matter? For Lawson Remer’s proposed mansion tax, two-thirds of county voters would have to approve it.  But if the coalition of child care advocates put up a citizens initiative, they could pass it with just a simple majority. I’m Scott Lewis for Voice of San Diego and that’s why it matters.

##########

PROJECT 20-25 CALLS THE NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION A KEY DRIVER OF THE QUOTE “CLIMATE CHANGE ALARM INDUSTRY.”

THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION HASN’T QUITE MADE GOOD ON THE PLAN’S PUSH TO BREAK UP THE AGENCY KNOWN AS NOAA.

BUT AMITA SHARMA REPORTS IT MAY DRAMATICALLY DOWNSIZE IT.

The Trump Administration has fired 1,000 NOAA workers and floated the idea of shuttering its Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research. Paul Heppner, formerly with Friends of NOAA, says that would be a colossal blow to climate change study. Seventy percent of the earth’s surface is water. Researchers monitor fisheries, map and track coastal flooding and sea level rise. Hepner says crucial weather prediction tools would be lost too.  You have to understand the ocean. Think about what we call those atmospheric rivers. The Pineapple Express. You get these subtropical jets that come out of Hawaii. I mean, that is your Sierra Nevada snowpack. That is your drinking water for the next summer, not only for California, But also for adjacent states.” Climate scientist Ralph Keeling says the shutdown of NOAA’s research division would be devastating to San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography. The two entities partner in ocean observations important to “all aspects of society.” “They're tracking currents offshore using a high tech radar system. And those measurements are relevant for studying the dispersal of pollution, for search and rescue, for tracking ocean heat waves that affect fisheries. I mean, these are $100 million industries, tourism that depends on this.” Keeling says this study is relevant to understanding how bad climate change will get and whether to retreat or fortify. He adds without it, the U.S. is turning off the headlights and flying blind. Amita Sharma, KPBS News.

##########

That’s it for the podcast today. As always you can find more San Diego news online at KPBS dot org. Looking for your next podcast? Check out KPBS Midday Edition. I’m Debbie Cruz. Thanks for listening and have a great Monday.