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In California | A SPOTLIGHT ON ALL THINGS GOLDEN STATE | Thursday, May 20 | | |
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| But first, a rare albino dolphin was sighted off of Dana Point in Southern California . The animal apparently is a Risso's dolphin. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Risso's dolphins are typically found in groups of between 10 and 30 animals, though occasionally the species associate with other dolphins and whales. There are around 11,000 to 16,000 Risso's dolphins that live near California and the Pacific Northwest coast. |
| Know someone who cares about the Golden State? Let them know they can sign up for the In California newsletter via this link. I'm Julie Makinen, California editor for the USA Today Network, bringing you today's key headlines. |
Coronavirus spot check |
 | | An emergency room doctor paints a mural outside of Zuni Cafe to honor medical workers during coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic on June 22, 2020 in San Francisco, California. Doctors and medical workers helped paint a mural honoring healthcare workers on boarded up windows in a project spearheaded by San Francisco General Hospital Foundation and Paint the Void. | | Justin Sullivan, Getty Images | |
| Patient zero. For the first time since March 2020, San Francisco General Hospital — one of the biggest in the Bay Area — has reported zero COVID-19 patients, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. |
| Keep those masks on at work — for now. A California workplace safety board delayed voting Thursday on a proposal that would have let workers return to their jobs without social distancing or face masks — so long as everyone is vaccinated, the L.A. Times reports. |
| Pro tennis is back on in Southern California. After 31 months and two cancelations, the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament has been rescheduled for October at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden, the tournament announced Thursday. The March 2020 and March 2021 events were both scrapped due to COVID. No word yet on whether the Coachella Music and Arts Festival, or its country cousin, Stagecoach — which are held nearby and which also were canceled in both spring 2020 and spring 2021 — might also get rescheduled for fall. |
| Don't complain to us. El Dorado County officials are asking residents to stop directing "verbal and physical hostility" toward county employees over COVID-19 restrictions, particularly the mask mandate, which are state decisions the local health office cannot overrule. In a press release Thursday, the county's Board of Supervisors said it was urging the public "to redirect COVID-19 complaints to state leaders," the Sacramento Bee reported. |
Should governor allocate more for public health? |
 | | California Gov. Gavin Newsom holds a face mask during a news conference in Rancho Cordova, Calif. | | Rich Pedroncelli/AP | |
| As you've probably heard, California is flush with money. Depending on whom you ask, it's got somewhere between $38 billion and $100 billion more than expected to spend this year. Gov. Gavin Newsom, facing a recall election this fall, has been busy doling out cash to many different (special) interests. |
| But some healthcare advocates are complaining that the Democratic governor's revised spending plan underfunds local public health agencies — despite glaring funding inadequacies exposed during the COVID-19 pandemic, the L.A. Times reports. |
| Health leaders asked for $200 million in ongoing funding to be included in the budget being negotiated for the fiscal year that starts July 1. Newsom's plan calls instead for a $3 million study to determine how much public health programs need so that the money can be included next year. |
| On Friday, Newsom dismissed assessments that his budget did not provide new funding to public health. He pointed to $300 million for public hospitals and investments in the Medi-Cal system for poor Californians. The federal government has also announced $7.4 billion in federal funding to help states and counties recruit and hire public health workers. |
| But public health advocates contend that the investments are earmarked for COVID-19 response and say that they are seeking ongoing funding to respond to all public health issues. |
| "No one realizes that we're necessary or we exist until something like COVID happens, and then we've been so significantly reduced," Dr. Flojaune Cofer, senior director of policy for Public Health Advocates, told The Times. "We need to make a consistent investment in our infrastructure and in prevention, because that's how prevention works. You can't wait until you're in the midst of a crisis to prevent, you have to have the dollars in advance." |
Suspected smuggling boat capsizes off La Jolla; one person dies |
 | | La Jolla | | Sara Moniuszko, USA TODAY | |
| At least one person died and 10 others were rescued from a suspected migrant smuggling boat that capsized off La Jolla early Thursday, the San Diego Union-Tribune reported. |
| The incident is one of at least four at-sea human smuggling attempts in San Diego in the past week, and comes nearly three weeks after three undocumented immigrants drowned when their boat crashed near Cabrillo National Monument. |
| Lifeguards used boats and at least one rescue board to pluck people from the water before dawn. The panga then continued north and eventually came into shore about a mile away, where it capsized. A submerged victim was found nearby and did not survive. |
| In all, 15 people were taken into custody from the small panga-style vessel, said Border Patrol Supervisory Agent Jeffrey Stephenson. |
California approves electric car mandate for Uber and Lyft |
 | | Man charging an electric car | | Uber Technologies | |
| Ninety percent of miles logged by Uber and Lyft drivers in California must be in electric vehicles by 2030 under a state mandate approved Thursday, Cal Matters reported. |
| The so-called Clean Miles Standard, unanimously adopted by the California Air Resources Board, aims to curb the climate impacts of emissions from ride-hailing trips. It's an ambitious target: In 2018, electric vehicles accounted for less than 1% of miles traveled by Uber and Lyft drivers in California. |
| The big question for the gig-economy fleets is: Who will pay for the cleaner cars? |
| An air board analysis of driver ZIP codes estimates that about 56% of ride-hailing drivers could be from low-income or disadvantaged communities who may not be able to afford the switch to an electric vehicle. |
| Yearly costs for ride-hailing companies and drivers, including electricity and home chargers, could reach roughly $400 million in 2030, according to an air board staff report. But staff predicts that savings, including on gasoline and maintenance, will far outstrip them — leading to net benefits of $215 million in 2030. |
| Representatives of Uber and Lyft told CalMatters before Thursday's vote that they support the 90% mandate, but are pushing for state funding and flexibility if they encounter delays meeting the targets. |
| Lyft wrote in a letter to the board: "While we are pleased to see aggressive environmental targets, we are disappointed that the efforts of the past years have culminated in metaphorical sticks with no carrots." |
| Environmental groups, labor advocates and drivers called for California regulators to ensure that the companies, not the drivers, cover the costs of electrifying their fleets. |
| In California is a roundup of news from across USA Today network newsrooms. Also contributing: Los Angeles Times, Cal Matters, San Diego Union-Tribune, Sacramento Bee and San Francisco Chronicle. Julie Makinen is California editor for the USA Today Network. Follow her on Twitter at @Julie_Makinen. |
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