Valley Headlines

Choice clear: Gray for Congress

Modesto / Fresno Bee. Fresno, Modesto voters face a replay election; Bee editorial boards offer their choice.
Synopsis: Mainly, the McClatchy editorial writers take issue with incumbent John Duarte: “As much as Duarte presents himself as a moderate, his voting record shows support for hard-right views and leaders. … Duarte also has the distinction of being part of the majority party in the House that has accomplished little. Some critics call it the ‘new do-nothing Congress.’” And finally: “Gray is a thoughtful politician well suited for a district that votes neither red nor blue but purple. The Editorial Boards of the Fresno and Modesto Bees recommend Gray for congressional District 13.”
MAD Take: Amen.

Fighting over milk prices

Ag Alert. Proposal to tweak milk quota seeks producer blessing.
Synopsis: During a virtual meeting last week, the CDF&A once again tried to get farmers and processors on the same page concerning the state’s unique quota plan. One plan put forth by a San Diego farmer would reduce what farmers are paid for each hundred pounds of milk but eliminate quota adjustments based on location of the dairy. A group pushing to stop all quotas, calling them an “illegal tax,” will consider adjustments only because “anything is better than nothing.” Some people complain that some farmers make more selling quota allotments than selling milk.
MAD Note: Milk is among the top 5 commodities in every county in the SJ Valley. It’s important.  

Ag Daily. US dairy fights back against Colombian milk powder tariffs.
Synopsis: The US Dairy Export Council and National Milk Producers Federation are telling US trade officials to get busy responding to Colombia’s proposal for an additional 4.8% tariff on milk powder. Colombia says US milk-powder producers are subsidized by our government. This has milk-powder producers up in arms.
MAD Take: Hmm. Tariffs are bad when imposed on US products, but fine when imposed on China?

Stan COG’s newest new digs

Modesto Bee. Stanislaus agency drew protest over moving into would-be steakhouse.
Synopsis: Stan COG wanted to move into the old World Bank building on Tenth Street, just west of the Gallo Center. The location was perfect, but critics balked at the $6.6 million price tag and the, uhh, fancy setting. Now, Stan COG wants to locate in the old Mechanics Bank at 1407 I Street. It was built in 1974 by Safeco Title.

Assemi family facing foreclosure

Valley Sun. Lender eyes takeover of Fresno farming empire in default on $700 million in loans.
Synopsis: The Assemi family, which spent the spring and early summer suing itself and trying to sell off various pieces, now is facing a request from creditor Prudential Insurance to have the federal court appoint a receiver. Prudential says the family is allowing 50,000 acres of “distressed farmland” to go un-watered and unharvested. Documents say the Assemis have been in default since June. There are other creditors waiting in the wings.

When elephants roamed Merced

Merced Sun Star. Ice Age fossils unearthed during highway project; they’re on display at Library.
Synopsis: The Columbian mammoth that left behind his bones stood 13 feet tall and weighed 12,000 pounds. He died 12,000 years ago along the path of Hwy 99 between Atwater and Merced. Caltrans expected to find bones of some sort. Back in 2012, workers recovered nearly 2,000 Ice Age fossils in the same area. Said librarian Amy Taylor: “This is our history, and I think that’s what really makes it fascinating.”

Humans need water, too

Ag Alert. Commentary: A call for balanced water management in CA.
Synopsis: Mike Wade of the CA Farm Water Coalition writes that the draft EIR statement released in late July is ringing alarm bells in the ag community. “The US Bureau of Reclamation, Fish & Wildlife Service and National Marine Fisheries Service seem to be pushing a regulatory agenda that prioritizes environmental objectives to the detriment of agriculture, municipal and industrial water needs,” writes Mike. Instead of prioritizing “co-equal goals” outlined in 2009, the new plan prioritizes fish over people. It’s bad enough that the state is making this move, Mike continues, but the feds are following suit even though their regulations do not require it. He takes aim at the Fall X2 releases used to push back salt incursion from the Delta. Last year, that resulted in 734,000-acre feet but had no observable benefit to fish.
MAD Note: In the CA Fisheries Blog of Sept. 17, environmentalist Tom Cannon posted charts showing where smelt have been found in recent trawler surveys. Cannon was trying to highlight the plight of smelt in the eastern Delta – where there apparently aren’t any. He considers that a tragedy. BUT, the same population graphs showed a lot of smelt concentrated in the western, saltier part of the Delta. That calls into question the smelt’s need for freshwater surge flows in the fall.

Another basin on probation

SJV Water. State puts second SJ Valley groundwater basin on probation, with two exceptions.
Synopsis: Jesse Vad reports that the state water board – including Valley champion Dorene D’Adamo – voted 5-0 to put several water agencies on probation. They were especially alarmed about a subsidence “crisis” in Tulare County. Subsidence is causing damage to the recently repaired Friant-Kern Canal. Delano-Earlimart and Kern-Tulare districts will be exempted from the action because they have submitted acceptable groundwater pumping plans. Residents testified that their water has turned brown and is gritty. But farmers said this could be a death knell: “I don’t see any future for the family farm anymore.” Said Sean Geivet, manager of three districts, “Probation is the nuclear option.” But as D’Adamo put it, “We really are in a crisis situation.”

Getting a grip on homelessness

Cal Matters. Disorganization, city-county feuds impede CA’s efforts to reduce homelessness.
Synopsis: Dan Walters writes that the state has spent $24 billion in the past 5 years to fight homelessness, and despite that “immense financial commitment” the number of homeless continues to grow. This year’s count showed 186,000 unhoused Californians, up from 150,000 in 2019. Yet, writes Dan, “we have no hard data telling us how the money was spent, much less which programs, if any, have been successful.” He notes a “sharply worded critique” from state auditor Grant Parks. Sacramento County offers a perfect example of dysfunction as city and county officials bitterly bicker over every detail of every effort.
MAD Take: It’s wrong to ask “if any” programs have been successful. There have been some measured successes. Merced County took part in the 100-Day Challenge in 2021, focusing on the homeless population in Los Banos. Those involved set a goal of finding housing for a quarter of the 152 homeless people in the city. It took right up to the last day, but Merced County achieved its goal. Success was due to two things: Commitment from all involved and a decision to create relationships with those in need. The county’s HSA and other agencies, Los Banos Memorial, LB police, community volunteers and Adam Gray’s staff contacted and interviewed every unhoused individual in the city. All but 2 agreed to be interviewed. Those interviews created relationships, which paid off in trust and the greatest success of any county involved in the 100-Day Challenge. Interestingly, Sacramento was among the four entities involved at the same time. The city’s representative was literally in tears explaining why its program failed, mainly citing lack of cooperation from the county.  

Finding more docs for Valley

Merced Focus. Newsom signs law to help doctors from Mexico practice in CA.
Synopsis: The new law, written by Assemblymember Eduardo Garcia of Coachella, is supposed to help reduce the critical shortage of medical care in the Central Valley. A pilot program with 30 doctors and 30 dentists was used in LA, Salinas Valley and the SJ Valley. It requires English as a second language. Among the biggest backers of this law was Golden Valley Health Centers of Merced, which operates 45 clinics in three counties. Story notes that 51% of Merced’s population gets care through Medi-Cal.
MAD Take: Doctors trained in Guadalajara and the Nacional Autonoma are clearly qualified and welcome. But it is very disquieting that the US must reach out to a neighbor to provide healthcare for its residents. The UC Merced medical school can’t be completed fast enough.