Valley Solutions

Report: Byrd used district water

Modesto Focus. Longtime MID director Larry Byrd must have misused district water, probe says. 
Synopsis: A long-awaited report found that Modesto Irrigation District director Larry Byrd used water from MID to irrigate roughly 96 acres of almonds growing outside the district boundaries. The 4Creeks report did not name Byrd or draw any conclusions about his water use or the validity of his claims to the contrary. The highly technical report is difficult to read, even for some farmers and members of the board. Board member Janice Keating criticized it for being too “confusing for anyone to understand.” Putting district water on orchards outside the district would be a clear violation of the rules for the man who has served 14 years on the board and worked for decades prior to joining the board. The land is considered on the “fringe” of the MID district, which led at least one person to blame the district’s policies. Former Rep. John Duarte called for a better “fringe policy” for putting district water on land outside the district’s boundaries. Others pointed out that Byrd’s long-time insistence that the district should sell water to those outside its boundaries now makes sense – he stood to gain directly from such a policy. New board member Chris Ott said he is “ready to move on.”

Modesto Bee. Investigation into Modesto water official contradicts his past statements. 
Synopsis: The report from 4Creeks Design confirmed that MID Director Larry Byrd used MID water on some of his out-of-district almonds but drew no conclusions about how he got the water. Byrd said the investigation was based on the testimony of a disgruntled ex-employee and was a political smear campaign. But the highly technical 60-page report from the Visalia firm says it would not have been possible for him to have watered the 96 acres he farms outside the district without using MID water.
MAD Note: While this is a well-researched story, it appears the reporter’s calculation of water-volume might be low. The story suggests Byrd might have used as little as 2-acre-feet to water 96 acres. To grow nuts takes at least 3 feet per acre, so that is implausible. Water-use experts who have reviewed the report say the actual numbers are substantially higher. For instance, in coverage provided by Eric Caine on Dec. 7 it was estimated Byrd’s use was closer to 700 acre feet for a single dry year. What neither Caine nor the Bee reporter mentioned is the value of that water. For context, the NASDAQ CA Veles index current price is $345 per acre foot. Using the more likely figures, that comes out to $241,500 … for a single year.

Insurance costs to skyrocket

SF Chronicle. CA braces for disaster as Congress fails to reach deal on health-care plans. 
Synopsis: Health insurance premiums for around 2 million Californians who buy plans through Covered California will spike in just three weeks as Congressional Republicans refuse to fund the federal subsidies that keep the plans affordable. The loss of subsidies will cause shockwaves throughout the system, forcing patients to drop coverage and pushing sick people into ERs. Experts say the losses will strain local hospital resources and leave county governments (i.e., taxpayers) holding the bag. Enrollment in Covered CA programs is already down 30% for 2026 as the price of policies have risen 200 to 400 percent. Many of those going without insurance are small business owners and the self-employed. The GOP shut down Congress for more than a month over this issue when Democrats insisted that any spending plan include subsidies. GOP senators Thursday rejected a Republican plan to deal with increases. Covered CA estimates 400,000 enrollees will be priced out of the plans next year. As they fall out, insurance companies will eliminate entire plans while cutting benefits in others. Republicans insist the Affordable Care Act is broken but have offered no realistic replacement options.

Rollins: No farms for CA’s poor

SF Chronicle. Trump administration demands CA not ‘redistribute’ farmland to minorities.
Synopsis: Reacting to a draft version of a report to be delivered early next year, the Trump administration said California must not facilitate the transfer of farmland to minorities or impoverished people. In 2022, the state appointed 13 people to the CA Agricultural Land Equity Taks Force to look at what some lawmakers termed “the agricultural land equity crisis.” Ag Sec Brooke Rollins characterized that as “redistribution,” though the report says it is an attempt to stop corporate consolidation of farm ownership. The draft recommends creation of an Ancestral Land Return Fund to help needy farmers buy farms. Those eligible would be from groups who have suffered “enslavement, land takings, exploitative labor conditions and other racially motivated injustices.” Rollins called such considerations “discrimination.”

Prof Bales decries EPA cuts

Merced Sun Star. Letters: Protect endangerment finding.
Synopsis: Roger Bales, a renowned engineering professor emeritus at UC Merced and UC Berkeley, writes a letter to decry the dismantling of the EPA and loss of its mission to protect humans and the environment from climate catastrophe.
MAD Note: Unfortunately, Bales’ expertise and connection to the UCs were not mentioned in this letter, so readers were not informed of his bona fides.

CA families will go hungry

Cal Matters. New federal law harms families who rely on CalFresh to put food on the table. 
Synopsis: Berkeley Masters candidate Hannah Mudgett writes about her research and the impact new Trump SNAP dictums impacting 5 million CA families. The new rules, taking effect in just three weeks, will place “work requirements” and a lot more paperwork on those receiving aid through SNAP and its CA program, CalFresh. Worse, it will severely limit help for families who can’t pay utility bills. While the GOP says this will reduce fraud, the real impact will be to cut benefits to working families. At the least, it will add paperwork aggravation as those working but still in need of help must fill out even more forms.

Stanislaus 9-1-1 center extended

Modesto Bee. Modesto, Stanislaus County extend 911 partnership after turmoil, grand jury review.
Synopsis: Ken Carlson reports that the joint powers agreement to operate the Stanislaus Emergency Dispatch Center has been extended for another year despite friction between Sheriff Jeff Dirkse and county leaders. Supervisor Buck Condit said the county is proceeding with an upgrade of the CentralSquare computer system. While the Modesto PD, Fire and medical teams prefer CentralSquare, Sheriff Jeff Dirkse wants to use a system developed by Oracle Corp. While Dirkse will proceed with Oracle, he expects a patch will allow the two systems to communicate within seven months. Last June, a civil grand jury looked into the disagreement over systems and was critical of Dirkse’s process.

State title for St. Mary’s

Sacramento Bee. St. Mary’s wins 1^st-ever CIF state title, for school pride and city of Stockton.
Synopsis: Coach Tony Franks led his team to a 27-23 victory over Bakersfield Christian in the CIF Division 2-AA title game the dedicated the victory to his grieving city. It was the first state title in St. Mary’s 150-year history. The 1977 St. Mary’s grad has 248 victories, making him one of the winningest coaches in state history. “I’m so happy for our community,” said Franks. “Every city has issues and every community has violence and crime … but communities also have a bunch of good kids who play high school football, and that’s pretty cool.” St. Mary’s finished 13-1, BC finished 14-1.

Honoring 5 Warrior greats

Turlock Journal. Five honorees selected to 02026 Stanislaus State Hall of Fame. 
Synopsis: Former athletic director Milt Richards leads a new class into the Stanislaus State Athletic Hall of Fame on Jan. 24 at the Events Center. In his 12 years as AD, Richards transformed athletics at the university and helped raise private funding to build a Student Recreation Center. Others being honored include Blue Chip Broadcasting (Eric Davis and Bryan Nelson), the voice of Warrior athletics; Katie Busi, a stellar basketball player (1,361 points, 200 blocks, 965 rebounds) and a CCAA champion hammer thrower (171 feet); Joe Ryan, a pitcher who went from the Warriors to the Minnesota Twins; and the 2014 women’s soccer team, which made it to the NCAA national quarterfinals, going 16-4-2.

CA needs a ‘King salmon’

Sacramento Bee. CA salmon must return to the mountains; it’s time to take a chance. 
Synopsis: Columnist Tom Philp writes about the “dangerously downward population trajectory” of salmon over “the many years.” Casting the issue in environmental and spiritual terms, he suggests two solutions. First, bring salmon back from New Zealand to California. Yes, New Zealand. Those fish are descendants of salmon transported from CA’s original McCloud River Hatchery to the Southern Hemisphere over 100 years ago. UC Davis researcher Carson Jeffres bringing them back would diversify the gene pool. But you’d need to reconnect the McCloud and Sacramento rivers. Second, we need someone whose job it is to be in charge of all the programs involving salmon. A salmon czar.

Great place to retire: Merced

Merced Sun Star. Merced named a ‘gateway city’ for affordable retirement.
Synopsis: Merced offers one of the most affordable options for retirement living in California. That’s the conclusion of travel website Islands.com. “If you’ve been dreaming of spending your golden years a stone’s throw from Yosemite, Merced might be the right place for you.” It has some of the lowest property (median $347,700) and food costs and the best proximity to mountains and coast. 

Josh Allen gets a ‘bonus’

ABC10. Josh Allen, Hailee Steinfeld make big announcement.
Synopsis: Firebaugh’s most famous son, Josh Allen, and his wife Hailee Steinfeld released a holiday video in which they announced she’s pregnant. The 28-second video appeared on a platform called “Beau Society.” Allen is quarterback for the Buffalo Bills, who are 10-4. He also stars in what seems like innumerable other short films, often called commercials.

A ‘Tacomatic’ transition

Modesto Bee. Modesto taco truck owner chooses new name under threat of trademark lawsuit.
Synopsis: Tacomatic is in, Flaco’s Tacos is out. After the original Flaco’s Tacos in Chicago sent Rafael Calvillo a letter telling him to rebrand his taco truck, the Modesto man turned the demand into an opportunity with a contest to choose a new name. He got 280 suggestions through The Bee and hundreds more on social media. He chose Tacomatic because he believes it will resonate with hungry folks.