ARTICLE
Before the print media started to fade as a major daily news source — I still read the newspapers but the online versions — my news cycle was generated via slow-moving stories through newsprint usually on a daily basis. Then television gave us the evening news with luminary newscasters like Chet Huntley and David Brinkley, best known for co-anchoring NBC’s evening news program. Their familiar end-of-day news was a touchpoint for America: Good Night, Chet, Good Night David and Goodnight for NBC News. Sitting in front of the black and white TV listening to Chet and David was a routine end of the day for my family. Over the years, we have watched anchors like Edward Murrow, John Chancellor, Tom Brokaw, Roger Mudd, Dan Rather, Brian Williams, David Muir who have made their mark on delivering the evening news. I have vivid memories of listening to Walter Cronkite, America’s broadcast journalist who served as anchorman for the CBS Evening News for 19 years (1962–1981). During the 1960s and 1970s, he was often cited as "the most trusted man in America" after being named in an opinion poll. If you followed the news back then, who could not forget his departing phrase: "And that's the way it is" followed by the date of the broadcast. Today, my evening news reports on the central coast come from KSBW’s Erin Clark and Dan Green and their counter station KION 5/46 with Aaron Groff and Veronica Macias. Occasionally, I add in Fox KTVU’s two nightly anchors Julie Haener and Dave Clark. The two central coast stations provide the “local news'' that keeps us informed of trending issues of the day, a snapshot of local sports and of course the weather report. Both the station's reporters reach out to the Chamber for our input on issues of interest to the business community. So why am I reciting my news interests in this eNews story? Daily, I believe one of my keen responsibilities as your Chamber CEO is to be on top of the news trends that impact the life of Santa Cruzans. During a regular day, I read hundreds of storylines from print media (online versions) of the LA Times, LA Daily News, New York Times, the SF Chronicle, SJ Mercury News, the Sacramento Bee, San Diego Union-Tribune, Orange County Register, Associated Press, Washington Post as well as a variety of specialized media outlets like Capital Public Radio, KQED, EdSource, CalMatters, Politico and others. On the Santa Cruz County news front, I get my daily fill from the Santa Cruz Sentinel, Lookout Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz Local, Santa Cruz Patch, and the weeklies in Aptos, Capitola, and the Scotts Valley Banner, the new San Lorenzo Valley paper. At the end of the day, I try my best to decipher the news and bring our eNews readers some value-added information. Today’s news cycle (compiled over the past week) and inserted stories into the eNews every Wednesday for your reading pleasure every Thursday morning. Look at the headlines of the day: California likely to end mask mandates after June 15 reopening says Governor Newsom (LA Times) —Nearly 40% of Sacramento residents say they won’t get a COVID vaccine (Sacramento Bee) — Placer County is a COVID vaccine success story, but why is the county still on the State’s red tier? (Sacramento Bee) — 24 fires a day; surge in flames at LA homeless encampments a growing crisis (LA Daily News) — Big Basin Redwoods State Park to partially reopen Memorial Day Weekend (SJ Mercury News.) The most compelling new stories in my viewpoint concern the state’s financial position. Thanks to a very lopsided COVID-19 recession and a tidal wave of relief money from the federal government, California is now sitting on $75.7 billion more than the state’s fiscal analysts had initially predicted. That historic cash glut triggered an obscure provision in the constitution, known as the Gann limit, which prohibits the state from exceeding its 1978 per-person spending level, adjusted for inflation. Any leftover tax money above that cap has to be returned — with half going to public schools and the other half going to taxpayers. The administration currently estimates that the state will be $16 billion over the limit by the end of the fiscal year, meaning that roughly $8 billion will have to make its way back to taxpayers. Newsom’s latest proposal: Sending another round of “Golden State Stimulus” checks of between $500 and $600 to Californians making less than $75,000 a year, families with children and undocumented immigrants. California Gov. Gavin Newsom wants to send schools and community colleges $93.7 billion in state funding over the next several years to set up college savings accounts for low-income kids, hire more teachers and counselors and phase in universal transitional kindergarten, according to administration officials. Newsom directs some Californians’ frustrations about freeway trash, as he pitches a $1.5 billion cleanup on a familiar stretch near the 110 Freeway, not far from the University of Southern California. It was a photo op site of a brief clean-up in which the state’s top elected official used a trash picker to clear away bottles, blankets, sleeping bags, tents and debris. The most compelling storyline this week is California’s booming budget showing an amazing $75 billion reserve as noted above. The Governor plans to spend the surplus in many ways. First, Gov. Gavin Newsom is seeking to spend nearly $12 billion on his signature program to house the homeless as advocates push him to dedicate twice as much to one of California’s most persistent problems. The question from Santa Cruz public officials: how much of those state dollars will we see and what plans do the local government entities have to spend those funds? These state funds fit squarely into the report from Santa Cruz Local and Lookout Santa Cruz about the Santa Cruz City Council’s attempt to produce a workable ordinance to address homeless problems. The Council on Tuesday night voted 5-2 to advance a plan where and when the homeless can camp (sleep) in the city. You can read the Santa Cruz Local’s storyline here: https://santacruzlocal.org/2021/05/12/homeless-restrictions-move-forward-in-santa-cruz/ or Lookout Santa Cruz reporting here: https://lookout.co/santacruz/civic-life/government/story/2021-05-11/santa-cruz-city-council-new-homeless-camping-ban The ordinance will face another round of public scrutiny before a final vote is taken and it will be implemented once the different barriers are met: providing 150 sleeping spaces if no facility is available and setting a contract with an organization to operate a daytime storage program. Of course, this new camping law could face another legal challenge as the city tries to create an ordinance that works around the restriction in the federal court case, Martin v. Boise Court decision. Most of the Governor’s spending ideas will need to be vetted by the state legislature who will also have their pet projects to fund. I will keep an eagle eye out on how the state budget moves forward in the next month which constitutionally mandates the Governor and Legislature deliver a budget by the June 15 deadline. Oh, the luxury of having money to spend as we recover from the pandemic and a 180-degree change from May 2020. Borrowing Walter Cronkite’s line: And that’s the way it is on May 13, 2021.
Before the print media started to fade as a major daily news source — I still read the newspapers but the online versions — my news cycle was generated via slow-moving stories through newsprint usually on a daily basis. Then television gave us the evening news with luminary newscasters like Chet Huntley and David Brinkley, best known for co-anchoring NBC’s evening news program. Their familiar end-of-day news was a touchpoint for America: Good Night, Chet, Good Night David and Goodnight for NBC News.
Sitting in front of the black and white TV listening to Chet and David was a routine end of the day for my family. Over the years, we have watched anchors like Edward Murrow, John Chancellor, Tom Brokaw, Roger Mudd, Dan Rather, Brian Williams, David Muir who have made their mark on delivering the evening news.
I have vivid memories of listening to Walter Cronkite, America’s broadcast journalist who served as anchorman for the CBS Evening News for 19 years (1962–1981). During the 1960s and 1970s, he was often cited as "the most trusted man in America" after being named in an opinion poll. If you followed the news back then, who could not forget his departing phrase: "And that's the way it is" followed by the date of the broadcast.
Today, my evening news reports on the central coast come from KSBW’s Erin Clark and Dan Green and their counter station KION 5/46 with Aaron Groff and Veronica Macias. Occasionally, I add in Fox KTVU’s two nightly anchors Julie Haener and Dave Clark. The two central coast stations provide the “local news'' that keeps us informed of trending issues of the day, a snapshot of local sports and of course the weather report. Both the station's reporters reach out to the Chamber for our input on issues of interest to the business community. So why am I reciting my news interests in this eNews story?
Daily, I believe one of my keen responsibilities as your Chamber CEO is to be on top of the news trends that impact the life of Santa Cruzans. During a regular day, I read hundreds of storylines from print media (online versions) of the LA Times, LA Daily News, New York Times, the SF Chronicle, SJ Mercury News, the Sacramento Bee, San Diego Union-Tribune, Orange County Register, Associated Press, Washington Post as well as a variety of specialized media outlets like Capital Public Radio, KQED, EdSource, CalMatters, Politico and others.
On the Santa Cruz County news front, I get my daily fill from the Santa Cruz Sentinel, Lookout Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz Local, Santa Cruz Patch, and the weeklies in Aptos, Capitola, and the Scotts Valley Banner, the new San Lorenzo Valley paper. At the end of the day, I try my best to decipher the news and bring our eNews readers some value-added information.
Today’s news cycle (compiled over the past week) and inserted stories into the eNews every Wednesday for your reading pleasure every Thursday morning. Look at the headlines of the day:
California likely to end mask mandates after June 15 reopening says Governor Newsom (LA Times) —Nearly 40% of Sacramento residents say they won’t get a COVID vaccine (Sacramento Bee) — Placer County is a COVID vaccine success story, but why is the county still on the State’s red tier? (Sacramento Bee) — 24 fires a day; surge in flames at LA homeless encampments a growing crisis (LA Daily News) — Big Basin Redwoods State Park to partially reopen Memorial Day Weekend (SJ Mercury News.)
The most compelling new stories in my viewpoint concern the state’s financial position. Thanks to a very lopsided COVID-19 recession and a tidal wave of relief money from the federal government, California is now sitting on $75.7 billion more than the state’s fiscal analysts had initially predicted. That historic cash glut triggered an obscure provision in the constitution, known as the Gann limit, which prohibits the state from exceeding its 1978 per-person spending level, adjusted for inflation. Any leftover tax money above that cap has to be returned — with half going to public schools and the other half going to taxpayers. The administration currently estimates that the state will be $16 billion over the limit by the end of the fiscal year, meaning that roughly $8 billion will have to make its way back to taxpayers. Newsom’s latest proposal: Sending another round of “Golden State Stimulus” checks of between $500 and $600 to Californians making less than $75,000 a year, families with children and undocumented immigrants.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom wants to send schools and community colleges $93.7 billion in state funding over the next several years to set up college savings accounts for low-income kids, hire more teachers and counselors and phase in universal transitional kindergarten, according to administration officials.
Newsom directs some Californians’ frustrations about freeway trash, as he pitches a $1.5 billion cleanup on a familiar stretch near the 110 Freeway, not far from the University of Southern California. It was a photo op site of a brief clean-up in which the state’s top elected official used a trash picker to clear away bottles, blankets, sleeping bags, tents and debris.
The most compelling storyline this week is California’s booming budget showing an amazing $75 billion reserve as noted above. The Governor plans to spend the surplus in many ways. First, Gov. Gavin Newsom is seeking to spend nearly $12 billion on his signature program to house the homeless as advocates push him to dedicate twice as much to one of California’s most persistent problems. The question from Santa Cruz public officials: how much of those state dollars will we see and what plans do the local government entities have to spend those funds?
These state funds fit squarely into the report from Santa Cruz Local and Lookout Santa Cruz about the Santa Cruz City Council’s attempt to produce a workable ordinance to address homeless problems. The Council on Tuesday night voted 5-2 to advance a plan where and when the homeless can camp (sleep) in the city. You can read the Santa Cruz Local’s storyline here: https://santacruzlocal.org/2021/05/12/homeless-restrictions-move-forward-in-santa-cruz/ or Lookout Santa Cruz reporting here: https://lookout.co/santacruz/civic-life/government/story/2021-05-11/santa-cruz-city-council-new-homeless-camping-ban
The ordinance will face another round of public scrutiny before a final vote is taken and it will be implemented once the different barriers are met: providing 150 sleeping spaces if no facility is available and setting a contract with an organization to operate a daytime storage program. Of course, this new camping law could face another legal challenge as the city tries to create an ordinance that works around the restriction in the federal court case, Martin v. Boise Court decision.
Most of the Governor’s spending ideas will need to be vetted by the state legislature who will also have their pet projects to fund. I will keep an eagle eye out on how the state budget moves forward in the next month which constitutionally mandates the Governor and Legislature deliver a budget by the June 15 deadline. Oh, the luxury of having money to spend as we recover from the pandemic and a 180-degree change from May 2020. Borrowing Walter Cronkite’s line: And that’s the way it is on May 13, 2021.