Valley Solutions

World’s top farm county: Fresno

Fresno Bee. Fresno County regains title of No. 1 agricultural region in CA. 
Synopsis: Reporter Robert Rodriguez looks at the annual County Crop Report, finding produces 350 different commercial crops grown on 3.8 million acres generating $9,029,122,000. That’s 5.7% more than in 2023, putting Fresno ahead of Tulare ($8.3 billion) and Kern ($7.9 billion) for 2024. The three counties rank 1, 2 and 3 among the top ag counties in the nation. This year’s report also recognized the importance of farmworkers: “Without them, we would not be able to achieve the level of agriculture production that we have here in Fresno County that feeds the world,” wrote ag commissioner Melissa Cregan. Food packaging and prep contributed $21.6 billion to the region’s economy, providing 108,034 jobs. Fresno farmers export to 91 nations; the top five destinations are Mexico, South Korea, Canada, Taiwan and Japan.

Pundits review Prop 50 win

LA Times. 4 takeaways after Prop 50’s big win in CA. 
Synopsis: Four reporters combined to analyze Prop 50’s huge victory (64% to 36%). 1) Trump is toxic in CA as more than half of those polled cited Trump as motivation for voting. 2) The era of better government through citizen commissions is dead. The rest of the nation refused to follow CA’s lead in setting boundaries via citizen mapping. 3) Gavin Newsom looks like a winner. 4) More polarization: Democrats believe this has leveled the playing field, but Republican believe they are being silenced.

SF Chronicle. Trump aggressively targeted CA for months. His reward: Prop 50 passes easily. 
Synopsis: Columnist Joe Garofoli writes about how Prop 50 went from being a close call to being a slam dunk. Thanks to Donald Trump’s continued attacks on California, it sailed into law. It could have been worse; in February, 69% of Californians disapproved of the president. Today, that number is 73%. Why? “Trump stuck it to himself” writes Garofoli by ordering heartless immigration raids, sending the military into LA, defending a Border Patrol that shot a praying pastor in the head, and trying to extort $1 billion from UCLA for imagined irregularities. 

Sacramento Bee. Why Prop 50 is the hollowest of victories for CA Democrats. 
Synopsis: Columnist Tom Philp dashes tepid water on celebrating Democrats, saying they are now no better than Republicans who began all this cheating by redrawing political boundaries in Texas. “President Trump took democracy into the gutter by compelling red states to cheat by redrawing political boundaries,” he writes, “now Democrats in CA will copy the tactic.” This cheating won’t help Democrats define how they’re a better alternative than those already in power.
MAD Take: The tears of a purist.

More Prop 50 aftermath

McClatchy DC. CA officials push back after Trump claims Prop 50 election is ‘rigged.’
Synopsis: After attacks by President Trump on the integrity of elections in California, Sec. of State Shirley Weber says that CA’s elections have been validated by the courts and are overseen by local officials, many of them Republicans. “California voters will not be deceived by someone who consistently makes desperate, unsubstantiated attempts to dissuade Americans from participating in our democracy.” She asked Trump to provide the proof of any rigging. Meanwhile, Fresno Registrar of Voters James Kus said that only two federal observers were spotted at Fresno polling places, and both were vastly outnumbered by local and state observers.

GV Wire. Clovis lawmaker sues over CA’s new congressional maps after Prop 50 passes. 
Synopsis: David Taub reports on Assemblymember David Tangpia’s lawsuit, filed Wednesday morning, over Prop 50. Tangpia says the new lines are based on race, violating the 14^th amendment to benefit one group at the expense of others. The National Republican Congressional Committee is funding the lawsuit. The Dhillon Law Group – owned by Harmeet Dhillon, who now leads the civil rights division of the Trump Justice Dept. – is counsel for the plaintiffs. The Newsom administration anticipated the filing and moved quickly to respond. Gov. Gavin Newsom was named as a defendant. His response: “Good luck, losers.”

Shutdown costing $15B a week

LA Times. Longest government shutdown in history costs US economy $15 billion each week. 
Synopsis: Trump now has overseen the two longest government shutdowns in US history, and with each passing day it becomes more costly. Analysts say it has cost from $10 billion to $30 billion and will cost another $15 billion next week. The shutdown is stunting economic growth and damaging the economy, increasing inflation and lowering job prospects. In the past, shutdowns didn’t presage calamity, but “this time could be different,” said a Barclays economist. The Congressional Budget Office says if the stalemate lasts until Thanksgiving, the cost to growth will be at least $14 billion. Employees are getting restless: “Bills don’t care about furloughs.”

City finally closing trailer park

Ceres Courier. Residents told to leave Lazy Wheels Mobile Home Park or face eviction.
Synopsis: Those living in the dilapidated trailers in the Lazy Wheels Park at Hwy 99 and Whitmore were told by the city that they have to move. The Park is no longer allowed to host mobile homes. The owner of the park, Anthony Nowaid of Calabasas, sent residents the letter. City manager Doug Dunford lost his patience for the park long ago. “The park is a mess; it needs to be cleaned up. You can’t go in and put in a few boards and nails. … It needs to be completely leveled. We want to tear it down but it’s not the city’s property.” The city got serious in April when a fire destroyed a car being used as a “home” by a squatter, who died in the fire. The city has been trying to remove the park for at least a decade, but its hands were tied because the state holds all jurisdiction over mobile-home parks.

Morgan Freeman a no-show for now

Modesto Bee. Show featuring ‘A-list Hollywood legend’ postponed in Modesto.
Synopsis: Morgan Freeman was supposed to appear at the Gallo Center on Nov. 21, but the sold-out show has been postponed due to a “scheduling conflict.” His “Symphonic Blues Experience” describes a “transformative journey through the music, culture and legacy of the Mississippi Delta.” The show starring the 88-year-old actor will be rescheduled, but no word on when.

StanCOG gets new boss

Modesto Bee. StanCOG names interim director after grand jury report led to predecessor’s firing.
Synopsis: Kate Miller, former executive director of the Napa Valley Transportation Authority, will fill the vacancy left by the firing of Rosa de Leon Park in August. Miller said she will focus on advancing the county’s transportation initiatives and addressing the grand jury’s recommendations for transparency and accountability at the organization. She promised: “Together, we will focus on restoring confidence in StanCOG’s work…”

Merced has a ‘food desert’

Merced Sun Star. Merced is a top agricultural county. Why aren’t fresh groceries accessible?
Synopsis: Merced has more than a dozen supermarkets, “but only two are south of Highway 99, leaving many residents of South Merced far away from either one.” This creates a food desert, in the words of a county official. These same neighborhoods (ZIP codes 95431 and 95347) are lower income, have too many fast-food restaurants, fewer parks and multiple barriers to “living healthier lives.” UC Merced economist Catherine Keske says zoning rules and lack of public transportation lead to such deserts. She suggests buying a few extra nonperishable groceries and donating them to food banks.

A ‘stellar’ walnut crop

Ag Alert. Walnut growers optimistic about markets. 
Synopsis: Westley grower Daniel Bays speaks for walnut farmers across the state when he told Ag Alert, “I think we’re in a good position.” His numbers hit the sweet spot – low enough to keep prices high and high enough to provide a good return. “I’m glad it wasn’t an 800,000-ton limb-breaker, and I’m glad it wasn’t a 600,000-ton disaster.” Ken Vogel, who farms in Linden, said he got his nuts picked up just before the rain arrived. The Walnut Commission’s Bob Verloop called it a “stellar crop.”

The problems with cotton

Ag Alert. Farmers plant less cotton in face of stagnant market.
Synopsis: Dos Palos is the focus of this story where Jeff Mancebo is dealing with higher input costs and lower demand for his Pima and Hazera cotton. He planted fewer acres this year. Fortunately, his pistachios are keeping him afloat, and almonds are doing OK, too. Mancebo is not alone. Roger Isom of the CA Cotton Ginners & Growers Assn said growers are facing one of the worst markets in years. CA produces 90% of the Pima cotton, which has the best fiber. Prices today are the same as they were 30 years ago. Mancebo recognizes the value of good water rights, saying if he wasn’t part of CCID he probably couldn’t afford to grow cotton.

Why are electricity rates rising?

Inside Climate News. Why are rates rising faster at investor-owned utilities than public utilities?
Synopsis: Electricity across the nation is costing more, but nowhere have rates risen faster and more frequently than in California. Electricity in most of the state costs 67% more than it did four years. Californians who get power from IOUs now pay twice as much as ratepayers anywhere else in the contiguous US. Meanwhile, publicly owned providers such as MID and TID are holding rates in check, costing less than a third as much as power provided to their neighbors on PG&E. Politicians in some places are promising to build their own power supplies to compete with those owned by investors. Elected officials in Ventura and San Francisco have called for public buyouts. Others are furious with the CPUC for allowing such egregious rate hikes.

Tequila 101 at Madera College

ABC30. Madera Community College preparing to launch agave distillery program.
Synopsis: Madera CC President Angel Reyna says the agave that’s been planted in front of the admin building serves two purposes: It’s nice looking and it can be turned into tequila. In May, the school signed a 5-year lease with a former winery to create a distillery where it will conduct classes in making the inebriant. The college has installed $300,000 worth of equipment and is now setting up classes. First-come, first served. At least one teacher hopes a bar, hotel and restaurant – all teaching opportunities – will follow within 20 years.

Correction

Valley Solutions: Wrong filmmaker.
In an item about the documentary film “Homeless in Modesto, II” a cameraman was misidentified beneath a photo. The videographer was Richard Anderson. The film will debut at the State Theatre on Nov. 13 with proceeds from ticket sales benefiting Family Promise.