California

August 16, 2022 – A 28-count indictment was unsealed today in the Eastern District of California charging a former member of Congress with multiple fraud schemes and campaign contribution fraud. Terrance John “TJ” Cox, 59, of Fresno, is charged with 15 counts of wire fraud, 11 counts of money laundering, one count of financial institution […]

LAKE TAHOE, NV/CA – Efforts to reduce pollution and restore Lake Tahoe’s world-famous water clarity remain on track, despite impacts from climate change and other factors, according to a bi-state report released today by the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection (NDEP) and the Lahontan Regional Water Quality Control Board, part of the California Environmental Protection […]

California lives with a sleeping giant — an occasional flood so large that it inundates major valleys with water flows hundreds of miles long and tens of miles across. Motivated by one such flood that occurred in 1862, scientists investigated the phenomenon in 2010. They called it the “ArkStorm scenario,” reflecting the potential for an […]

UC Davis issued the following statement today (Aug. 11): We are devastated to report that a catastrophic failure has resulted in the loss of about 21,000 fish at the UC Davis Center for Aquatic Biology and Aquaculture, or CABA. The loss appears to be due to chlorine exposure, to which fish are especially sensitive.  We […]

SACRAMENTO – Governor Gavin Newsom today announced his nomination of Supreme Court Associate Justice Patricia Guerrero to serve as California’s next Chief Justice after Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye concludes her current term of office on January 2, 2023. A first-generation Californian, Justice Guerrero was the first Latina to serve on the California Supreme Court and, if confirmed, will […]

August 10, 2022 – In early August 2022, flash floods soaked Furnace Creek in Death Valley, the driest place in North America. In just three hours on August 5, a thousand-year rainfall event dropped 75 percent of the local average annual rainfall, which is just under 2 inches (5 centimeters). Flood water washed debris over roads, swept […]

WASHINGTON, August 8, 2022 – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced an incremental award of $961,059 to support continued disaster-relief employment and employment and training services in northern California after devastating wildfires in August 2020. The department’s Employment and Training Administration administers National Dislocated Worker Grants and, in September 2020, awarded an emergency award of up to $6,877,500 with […]

Yreka, Calif., August 8, 2022— It is with great sadness that we must announce that the Klamath National Forest has lost one of its own. Beloved long-time Klamath National Forest Lookout Kathy Shoopman has passed away. Kathy died in her home in the community of Klamath River as a result of the McKinney Fire. Kathy […]

SACRAMENTO, August 4, 2022 –  – California Secretary of State Shirley N. Weber, Ph.D. and Business Programs Division Chief (BPD) Betsy Bogart were joined by the California Chamber of Commerce, the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development, the Franchise Tax Board, and members of the business community for the unveiling of the new easy-to-use […]

A new study uses data from the ECOSTRESS instrument aboard the space station to better understand why some parts of a wildfire burn more intensely than others. Even in drought-stricken California, not all areas face the same degree of wildfire risk. A recent study featuring data from NASA’s ECOSTRESS mission found relationships between the intensity […]

SACRAMENTO – Moving to bolster the state’s resilience and reduce the long-term risks of natural disasters, the California Governor’s Office of Emergency of Services (Cal OES) today announced it has secured over $180 million in federal funding to support local communities most at-risk for hazards that include flood, earthquake, wildfire, drought, and sea level rise. […]

Mechanical thinning of overstocked forests, prescribed burning and managed wildfire now being carried out to enhance fire protection of California’s forests provide many benefits, or ecosystem services, that people depend on. In a paper published in Restoration Ecology, researchers at UC Merced, UC ANR and UC Irvine reported that stakeholders perceived fire protection as central to forest […]

In recent years, the plumes of smoke crawling upward from Western wildfires have trended taller, with more smoke and aerosols lofted up where they can spread farther and impact air quality over a wider area. The likely cause is climate change, with decreased precipitation and increased aridity in the Western U.S. that intensifies wildfire activity. […]

August 2, 2022 – With fires raging from California to Alaska, the 2022 wildfire season is off to a violent start. It’s an ominous sign of what promises to be another record-breaking fire season in the U.S. Roughly 2 million acres burned last month. And major fires are currently scorching Idaho, Utah and California, threatening […]

SACRAMENTO – As part of the state’s ongoing response to the monkeypox outbreak, Governor Gavin Newsom yesterday declared a State of Emergency to bolster the state’s vaccination efforts. The proclamation supports the work underway by the California Department of Public Health and others in the administration to coordinate a whole-of-government response to monkeypox, seek additional vaccines and […]

OAKLAND, August 1, 2022 – California Attorney General Bonta, Governor Gavin Newsom, the California Air Resources Board (CARB), the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW), and the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) today announced a settlement with the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (Bureau) prohibiting new oil and gas leasing in Central California […]

California Attorney General Rob Bonta today issued a consumer alert following the Governor’s declaration of a state of emergency in Siskiyou County due to McKinney and other fires. The fires have destroyed homes, threatened critical infrastructure, and forced the evacuation of thousands of residents since they began burning. In today’s alert, Attorney General Bonta reminds all Californians […]

SACRAMENTO – Governor Gavin Newsom today proclaimed a state of emergency for Siskiyou County due to the effects of the McKinney Fire, which has destroyed homes, threatened critical infrastructure and forced the evacuation of almost 2,000 residents. Intensified and spread by dry fuels, extreme drought conditions, high temperatures, winds and lightning storms, the McKinney Fire […]

Washington—Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) yesterday introduced legislation to help victims of wildfires who have received compensation for damages. The bill is cosponsored by Senators Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) and John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.) and companion legislation was introduced by Congressman Mike Thompson (D-Calif.) in the House in March.             After being found legally liable for wildfires in […]

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Covered California has announced a special-enrollment period for people living in counties where a state of emergency has been declared due to raging wildfires. “Once again, wildfires are disrupting the lives of thousands of Californians, and if you are among those affected, Covered California is here to make sure you have access […]