Valley Headlines

Gray responds to UC slam

Turlock Journal. What Sacramento still doesn’t get about UC Merced.
Synopsis: Rep.-elect Adam Gray responds to some of the claptrap written by Dan Walters in his hit-piece on UC Merced. Walters looked at a report from the Legislative Analyst Office, then continued to insist the school should have been in Fresno – which he’s been saying for the past 25 years. Wrote Gray: Instead of being the “awkward stepchild” of the UC system, UC Merced actually offers an example of resilience, strategic innovation and transformative potential. And it does so for about the cost of a single highway interchange in LA County.

GV Wire. What Sacramento still doesn’t get about UC Merced.
Synopsis: Rep.-elect Adam Gray writes about UC Merced as the finest opportunity for social mobility in America, an audacious experiment that is transforming the Valley.

PG&E: Sixth rate hike of ’24

SF Standard. PG&E raked in billions this year; our bills were raised 6 times.
Synopsis: Reporter Kevin Truong looks at the six – yes, SIX – rate increases approved this year by the CPUC for the world’s most profitable and costliest private utility company. That’s a record number for a single year, though several won’t kick in until late 2025 and one in 2026. PG&E already had the highest prices for power in the nation, now they’re even higher. The rate bumps will run from $3.40 a month to around $40 a year for most customers, insists the utility. The company was highly profitable this year, paying roughly $5 billion in dividends on its 2.19 billion shares of stock.
MAD Take: PG&E’s “most customers” calculations are an outrage to every person in the Valley. Our Valley winters are colder, and our summers are much, much hotter than the “average” PG&E customer who lives on the coast. That means we require far more gas and electricity just to survive. There’s a reason Stanislaus County led the nation in deaths during the tragic 2006 heat wave with 26. There were none in San Francisco. And it’s not like we have a choice.

TID: First rate hike in 10 years

Turlock Journal. TID customers to see increase in rates for new year.
Synopsis: Starting Jan. 1, Turlock Irrigation District’s rates are going up by 5.6% to 16 cents per kilowatt hour. By 2027, that will mean an increase of about $25 per month to the average customer, meaning it will cost them $170 per month for electricity. It’s the first rate increase for TID since 2015. The cheapest power from PG&E costs 43 cents per kWh and 22.2 cents for Modesto customers.
MAD Take: So TID has one rate increase every 10 years, but PG&E has a rate increase roughly every 60 days. Something is terribly, terribly wrong at PG&E and at the CPUC whose job it is to protect consumers from rapacious monopolies. TID’s increase is earmarked to expand the life of Don Pedro Dam, create new substations, phase in a zero-emission truck fleet and increase discounts to low-income customers.

It’s official: Walnuts are healthy

Ag Net West. Walnuts declared ‘Healthy’ under new FDA definition.
Synopsis: The Food & Drug Administration has determined that walnuts are aligned with a healthy lifestyle, confirming the “longstanding belief” at the CA Walnut Commission that consuming a few walnuts each day will make you healthier. Instead of eating chips, eat walnuts and you’ll get skinnier and have more omega-3 alpha-linolenic acid in your cells – which is good. The research that helped the FDA see the light was largely funded by the commission.

Rocket makes a re-entry

Merced Focus. Collector with a conscience returns stolen rocket to Merced amusement park.
Synopsis: The rocket-shaped car stolen from the Kiddieland merry-go-round just before Christmas was returned a few days later. Jerome Ward, a retired handyman, brought it back saying a confused homeless man had it in an alley near Canal Street. He traded the man a radio to get it back. Kiwanis President Karen Adams said she was very happy to get the antique rocket back. The old rocket had been built for Kiddieland when it opened in 1957 using old parts from WWII aircraft.

Bird flu blues are spreading

Successful Farming. Experts worried bird flu spread is reaching the boiling point. 
Synopsis: Reporter Ryan Hanrahan of the magazine Farmdoc says the disease is reaching “the boiling point” as 16 states have reported infections, including 65 people. Most of those have been in California. “The traffic light is changing from green to amber,” says Dr. Peter Chin-Hong of UCSF’s med school. “So many signs are going in the wrong direction.” It’s been found in birds, cows, cats, racoons and wastewater systems. Others say we must learn from the failures of the COVID era, when steps that should have been taken early in the pandemic were ignored.

Western Farm Press. UC: Protect livestock, poultry from bird flu.
Synopsis: The Waterfowl Alert Network writes about the millions of birds who fly to or through CA each winter, and notes that many are carrying H5N1. UC Davis vet Maurice Pitesky says, “This is the largest animal disease outbreak we’ve ever had whether you look at geography – we’ve had six or seven continents affected – or whether you’re looking at species. From a public health perspective, it’s important for us to sound the alarm.” That alarm means moving cattle away from areas where wild birds roost – such as the large wildlife preserves in Stanislaus and Merced counties.

Modesto Bee. Stanislaus County dairy, poultry farms struggle with bird flu; production continues.
Synopsis: Ken Carlson talks to Ag Commissioner Linda Pinfold about the “hundreds” of cases in CA. She notes that H5N1 is a “death sentence” for commercial birds, but 98% of sickened cows are brought back to full health and returned to their barns. Carlson notes that milk and poultry are among the top 3 products produced in Stanislaus and Merced counties, worth $2 billion. Already, some 721,000 birds have been euthanized in Stanislaus and 2.8 million in Merced. San Joaquin has lost 628,000 birds.

Valley Fever spreading fast

LA Times. Valley fever cases surge in CA, already way up from recent years.
Synopsis: The number of fungal-based infections is “skyrocketing” say researchers, having jumped 47% in a year to 11,076. Kern County is the epicenter, with 3,768 cases this year. That’s a third of all new cases. Cases have increased by 100% or more in Merced, Stanislaus, Fresno, San Joaquin, Kings, San Francisco, San Luis and Santa Barbara counties. The largest jump was in Monterey County, where there were 100 cases in 2022 and 299 in 2024. The fungus is spreading. Symptoms are very much like COVID-19 or flu.
MAD Take: Not mentioned in the story is the amazing research being done at UC Merced about Valley Fever. Ten years ago, some scientists were skeptical that it even existed. Now we know it spreads when the nests of ground-dwelling rodents are disturbed.

Yes, beavers live in Modesto

Modesto Bee. Beavers in Modesto? Sightings aren’t unusual, but you have to know where to look. 
Synopsis: You can find gnawed trees in Dry Creek and in Tuolumne River Regional Park, says FishBio biologist Jim Inman. That means beavers are living around there somewhere. Inman says we’ve long known about beavers in the Shiloh and Grayson areas and upstream all the way to La Grange. To find them, look at night. And don’t confuse them with nutria or muskrats. The story points out the many benefits to wetlands and wildlife that beavers provide; they are considered a “keystone species.”
MAD Take: While the story was well done, it did not note the natural antipathy of tree farmers to beavers. It makes sense. While beavers undoubtedly provide natural benefits to wetlands, they are destructive of almond and young walnut trees. In areas where beavers are being encouraged, the state should have a robust compensation program – just as it has for areas where there are wolves.

Hate crimes rising in Stan

Modesto Bee. State: Hate crimes in Stanislaus highest since 2001: ‘Will probably get worse.’ 
Synopsis: The State DOJ reported 19 incidents in 2023, with 8 bad enough to be referred for prosecution. Only two have resulted in convictions so far. The DA puts the number at 11, saying the DOJ’s higher numbers arise from multiple reports. Still, that’s enough to assign a prosecutor full time. According to state data, both race and gender-based crimes have risen by roughly the same percentage. Roman Scanlon of CalPride says the county is undercounting. But he adds that the Modesto PD has been “pretty responsive and supportive” of the LGBTQ community. September and October are the worst months for hate.

Moving (literally) to Lathrop

Modesto Bee. Modesto restaurant to be cut into pieces and rebuilt in Lathrop.
Synopsis: The Redwood Café is being dismantled and moved to make room for the huge LDS temple being built nearby. Bob Campana’s new restaurant, with Delta views in Lathrop, will be 3x larger. Farmer and River Islands developer Susan Dell’Osso helped bring the upscale eatery to Lathrop. Campana is also opening “The Old Waterhouse” in Patterson this year. To carry the café the 22 miles from Modesto to Lathrop will require shutting down part of Hwy 99 for a period.

Merced Posse going to parade

Fox26. Merced Sheriff’s Posse invited to 2025 presidential inauguration, fundraiser under way.
Synopsis: The Sheriff’s Posse has been selected to appear in the Trump inaugural parade. Posse Capt. Laurette Locke is scrambling to get 12 horses, their tack and 12 riders to Washington in time. The posse will be the only group from CA appearing in the parade. Riders will carry the flags of several law enforcement agencies. On Jan. 5 you can attend a fundraiser for $20, but Locke isn’t sure where. To donate or buy tickets, call 209.678.1166 or email [email protected].