Valley Solutions

Gray delivers millions for district

Modesto Bee. Central Valley projects get $16M; Modesto police, fire included. 
Synopsis: Rep. Adam Gray announced Thursday he has secured more than $16 million in federal funding for 15 infrastructure, public safety and community projects across CA’s 13^th Congressional District. The projects range from upgrades to Modesto police and fire facilities to sidewalks, water treatment and community centers. The projects are sprinkled across the district that stretches 160 miles from southwestern Fresno County to Lathrop. Among the largest allocations, the city of Modesto will get $1.8 million for combined police communications and renovation of a downtown fire station. “Providing better sidewalks in Huron or making sure they bay doors open when they’re supposed to in a Modesto fire station might not seem like a big deal to people in LA or Miami, but in my district, these projects have real impact on people’s lives,” said Gray.

Merced Sun Star. Merced receives $4 million in federal funding for infrastructure improvements. 
Synopsis: Merced Congressmember Adam Gray secured over $16 million for projects “deemed essential” in the San Joaquin Valley. Among 15 projects spread across the Valley, $4 million has been allocated to two projects in the city of Merced. One will provide flood protection and habitat restoration on Bear Creek; the other will reconstruct 2,000 feet of roadway, sidewalks and bike paths along Childs and Canal.

Hot over ICE, students are marching

Modesto Bee. By the hundreds, Modesto high school students stage districtwide anti-ICE walkout. 
Synopsis: Some 1,200 students from Modesto’s seven high schools walked out of classes Thursday to protest cruelty and violence by federal ICE agents. Students from Downey, Beyer, Davis and Johansen walked to Briggsmore and Coffee for a protest where they were joined by State Senate candidate Michael Masuda. Students from Modesto High walked to the Gallo Center; Gregori students went to Pelendale while Enochs students went to Oakdale Road and Sylvan. Many carried signs, posters and flags. “I love my community so much,” said one Downey student. “I’m trying to protect my community.” Another said she has been inspired to enter immigration law. Another likened ICE agents to the Gestapo. Another said she had seen families “torn apart … I want to speak for the people who can’t.” A mother of one student joined in: “It’s no longer left or right, it’s right or wrong. I’m proud of the kids.” Said Masuda, “This is massive. This is free speech happening right now.” Naturally, a few Boomers joined their grandkids along the march.

Modesto Focus. Some 1,200 Modesto high school students join walkout protest against ICE violence.
Synopsis: Some 1,200 students from all seven Modesto City Schools high schools marched to various locations around the city Thursday, joining a protest organized over social media. No arrests or injuries were reported by Modesto police, who accompanied protesters at a distance as they walked.

Fresno Bee. Bullard High students march to Fresno Fashion Fair mall in latest anti-ICE walkout.
Synopsis: About 250 Bullard High students walked along Palm and Barstow avenues during their third period Wednesday. Separately, hundreds more from Edison High marched to city hall. Superintendent Misty Her dispatched buses to both locations so students could get back to class more quickly. In all, about 1,000 students have participated in walkouts from Fresno classes this week. Fresno police made sure intersections were secure for crossing. A Fashion Fair Mall security guard threatened students with arrest if they came inside the mall. Undaunted, some students proceeded and were applauded by shoppers. No arrests were reported.

Byrd vote draws second look

Modesto Focus. Update: State ethics enforcers to look into MID’s Byrd for voting on own investigation. 
Synopsis: Two months ago, Modesto Irrigation District director Larry Byrd cast the deciding vote to end an investigation into his use of irrigation water on property outside the district. Now, the Fair Political Practices Commission has confirmed it is looking into the legality of that vote. The commission is acting on a complaint filed by Sen. Marie Alvarado-Gil. Political ethics experts said casting a vote on an issue directly impacting a director is unethical.

State must stand up to PG&E

SF Chronicle. PG&E wants to raise your rates again; here’s why CA shouldn’t let that happen.
Synopsis: Former Senator Quentin Kopp writes that PG&E is becoming less reliable as a power provider, suffering eight outages this month in San Francisco. Despite allowing PG&E rates to rise by 117% over the past decade, the CA Public Utilities Commission is now considering 13 separate requests for additional price increases. “People are rightly angry, and lawmakers and those running for public office are taking note,” wrote Kopp. The company says its requests will add “only” $42 to the “average” bill – even as the company made $2.47 billion in profits in 2024. Kopp exhorts the governor to rein in both PG&E and the PUC. “The time to act is now – before PG&E gets another rate increase it hasn’t earned.”
MAD Take: Everything Kopp says is true, but the impacts are far, far worse in our Valley. Our winters are colder and summers hotter than coastal areas where “average” PG&E bills are calculated. Valley PG&E customers will see “average” bills rise by $80 or even $100 a month if PG&E is granted the rate increases.

Swalwell introduced in Capitol

Politico. CA Playbook: Eric Swalwell’s Sacramento sprint. 
Synopsis Rep. Eric Swalwell is blitzing Sacramento, putting on a full-court press to meet powerbrokers, policy experts and potential donors who could help him become governor. Among those accompanying the candidate are Jimmy Panetta and Rep. Adam Gray – both of whom know the city well. “Swalwell is leaning on Gray, who represents the Central Valley, to make connections in Sacramento with interests in the Northern and central part of the state,” writes Playbook. Gray says he’s looking past the campaign and trying to make sure Swalwell has the relationships and resources “to be successful” as governor.

Valley politics get rough

Stockton View. CA Assembly Minority Leader loses endorsement of Republican Party.
Synopsis Members of the San Joaquin Republican Central Committee gathered Monday and candidate Jim Shoemaker beat out Assembly Minority Leader Heath Flora 19-1 for its endorsement. One comment on the post noted that Stockton View – the only media to cover this vote -- has endorsed Shoemaker.
MAD Note: Shoemaker has run for the Assembly, state Senate and Congress. This is his fourth try to get elected. When campaigning he insists he is “a man of the people” and “not a career politician.” You have to win to be a politician. Sounds like he’s more of a career candidate.

Valley Sun. Kiley says he’s weighing challenge to McClintock; he’s already launched an opening salvo.
Synopsis Kevin Kiley, one of the targets of Prop 50, says he might run to replace 70-year-old Tom McClintock in CA’s 5^th Congressional District. The problem is McClintock doesn’t want to be replaced. The new CA5 is considered one of the safest Republican seats in the state; it includes all or parts of 10 counties, including San Joaquin, Stanislaus, Tuolumne, Madera and Fresno. Kiley has purchased TV spots in some of the district’s Fresno and Sacramento markets.

Farming keeps getting tougher

Successful Farming. US farm income set to fall in 2026 despite surge in government payments. 
Synopsis The USDA is forecasting that net farm income will fall 0.7% this year despite near-record government payments. Those payments – estimated at $44 billion – will account for 29% of net farming income. Overall, farming is expected to produce $153.4 billion, a decrease of $4.1 billion from 2025. Without government payments, farm income would fall by 12% to $109.1 billion. The record for net farm income came in 2022, the second year of the Biden administration, when it hit $181.9 billion. Farmers are growing “increasingly dependent on federal support to pay their bills while also taking on record levels of debt,” said the story. More than two dozen former USDA officials and industry leaders told the US Senate Ag Committee that the entire sector faces “widespread collapse.”

Walnut boss is optimistic

Ag Net West. CA Walnuts gain momentum as Robert Verloop sees a turning point for growers. 
Synopsis CA Walnut Commission CEO Robert Verloop will address walnut growers next week in Turlock. He spoke to Ag Net in advance, pointing out the CA produces 99% of all walnuts consumed in the US and still manages to export 65% of the crop. He is dismayed by the 100% tariff on CA walnuts in India but hopes a trade agreement will lower tariffs to 30%. If that happens, India will immediately become CA’s largest market for the 380,000 acres of walnuts grown in the state. He says the image of walnuts must be modernized as a nutritional powerhouse filled with omega-3s, fiber and healthy fats.

Tesla’s fall, why it matters

LA Times. Tesla no longer No. 1: This is how a Chinese competitor surged past the EV pioneer. 
Synopsis Chinese electric vehicle maker BYD overwhelmed Tesla as the world’s No. 1 EV seller in 2025. BYD sales crushed those of Tesla in China, Mexico, Germany, Thailand and Australia as Elon Musk became a pariah across the world. Trump’s decision to end federal support for EVs meant Tesla sales also plummeted in the US. “Tesla didn’t just lose its sales crown, it squandered its position as a leader,” said automotive analyst Paul Blokland. “As the US industry retreats behind a wall of tariffs and abandoned EV plans, Asia has taken the torch.” The Chinese cars are simply better, more popular and less expensive. BYD’s lowest-priced EV sells for $14,000 in China. An Australian consumer said, “I just don’t think that (Teslas) are competitive in any way.”
MAD Note: Why is this important in our Valley? Drive through Lathrop and you’ll see at least half a dozen massive, unmarked big-box facilities. They’re not empty. Inside, workers are making Tesla parts for just-in-time delivery to the factory in Milpitas. Tesla is Lathrop’s second-largest private employer.

Daughter: ‘Send her to prison for life’

Turlock Journal. Turlock mom receives maximum sentence for toddler daughter’s death.
Synopsis Kelle Anne Brassart got the maximum sentence, 15 years-to-life, for the drowning death of her 2-year-old daughter, Danielle Pires, at their Turlock home last year. Danielle was left unsupervised in the backyard and somehow got into the pool. Brassart had been drinking, saw her daughter floating and did not rescue her. Her BAC was twice the legal limit three hours after the death. Jordan Brassart, Kelle’s oldest surviving child, urged the court to deliver the longest and harshest sentence possible, citing a long history of horrifying parenting. Other family members also asked for the maximum sentence and that Kelle never be paroled.

Break-in almost worked

ABC30. Crook tries to chisel way into a Merced Costco, say police.
Synopsis Merced police were called out to the Costco on R Street around 3 am Thursday and found a hole in the concrete exterior wall of the store. Just barely inside was the person who had been working on the hole with a chisel and hammer for the past few hours. Seeing police arrive, the person came out and ran away. “If anybody saw it, they would have thought they were doing construction,” said one customer.