The board of trustees representing the Fresno area's community colleges rendered a split decision on the future of labor contracts for construction projects. At Tuesday's meeting, the State Center Community College District board agreed to study a pilot Project Labor Agreement but refused to change the makeup of a committee...
California’s Schools Chief Has a $200,000 Salary and a Side Gig
This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters. State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond has regularly taken side jobs running Bay Area nonprofits during his tenure as California’s elected schools chief, earning tens of thousands of dollars to supplement his income, financial disclosures show. Thurmond...
Why Project Labor Agreements Are Good for Our Schools and Students: Opinion
In early March, trustees of the State Center Community College District passed a resolution to adopt a district-wide Project Labor Agreement for all of its major construction projects. In predicable fashion, the Associated Builders and Contractors, a lobbyist group for low-wage construction contractors, claimed that PLAs will increase costs, exclude...
Trump Proposes Tax Deduction for Auto Loan Interest on US-Made Cars
President Donald Trump says he wants to make interest payments on car loans tax deductible, but only for vehicles manufactured in the United States, USA Today reported. Trump had previously floated the idea at a November rally in North Carolina, according to Reuters. The proposal is part of a broader...
Western US Sees Sharp Increase in Extreme Weather Impact
A new Gallup poll reveals that 37% of U.S. adults have been personally impacted by extreme weather in the past two years, a notable increase from 33% in 2022 and 2023. Western residents have seen the sharpest rise, with 43% reporting they’ve experienced extreme weather, up from 30% last year....
Amazon Said to Make a Bid to Buy TikTok in the US
Amazon has put in a last-minute bid to acquire all of TikTok, the popular video app, as it approaches an April deadline to be separated from its Chinese owner or face a ban in the United States, according to three people familiar with the bid. Various parties who have been...
Fresno Man Found Dead, Coroner’s Office Seeks Help Finding Family
The Fresno County Sheriff’s Coroner’s Office is seeking assistance from the public to locate the family of 60-year-old who passed away from natural causes on March 17. Staff have been unable to locate any relatives of Jonathan Scott, who was described as 5 feet 10 inches tall and 175 pounds....
The ‘Six’ Wives of King Henry VIII Sing Their Hearts Out in Fresno
What happens when the wives of King Henry VIII get together to form a rock band? You get "Six," the Tony Award-winning pop-rock musical playing at Saroyan Theatre in downtown Fresno through Sunday. The premise of the one-act, one-scene production is the former wives — divorced, beheaded, died, divorced, beheaded,...
7-Year-Old Girl Was Killed by a Falling Boulder at a Lake Tahoe Ski Resort
INCLINE VILLAGE, Nev.— A 7-year-old girl was killed by a falling boulder at a popular Lake Tahoe ski mountain over the weekend, authorities and the Nevada resort said. Emergency crews responded Saturday afternoon to a “non-skiing accident involving a child” at Diamond Peak in Incline Village, the resort said in...
Musk Could Be Headed for a Washington Exit After Turbulent Times at Trump’s DOGE
WASHINGTON — DOGE’s days appear to be numbered. Elon Musk recently suggested that he will be done with his work in the near future. President Donald Trump told reporters this week that “at some point, he’s going to be going back” to running his companies. As far as the Department...