Gavin Newsom has said more than once that he wants California's high-speed rail project completed between the San Joaquin and Silicon valleys. "It's not a train to nowhere," Newsom told George Skelton of the Los Angeles Times in October. "It's insulting to suggest the Central Valley is nowhere. This is...
Valley Packs a Punch on Powerful Congressional Ag Committee
The San Joaquin Valley will wield considerable clout on the influential House Committee on Agriculture in the 116th Congress. Rep. Jim Costa of Fresno is joined by two other Valley Democrats on the committee, newly elected TJ Cox of Fresno and Josh Harder of Turlock. Costa is the third-ranking Democrat on...
Southbound Lanes on Grapevine Are Open Again
UPDATE, 6:53 P.M. Caltrans says the southbound lanes of Interstate 5 through the Grapevine are open again after they were closed earlier Monday because of high winds and snow. GRAPEVINE: Southbound I-5 is now OPEN! CHP is providing pacing, please exercise caution as you make your way onto and over...
San Joaquin Valley to See Hard Freeze Conditions
LOS ANGELES — California is ending the year with blustery, chilly weather and it's going to get colder in some areas. The National Weather Service says a hard freeze warning will go into effect in the San Joaquin Valley for overnight hours starting late Friday through Sunday morning. Central Coast...
We're Working Hard to Improve Valley Air Quality: Air District Director
Growing up in this great Valley and working for nearly 20 years with the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution District to improve our air quality, I have gained a deep appreciation for the ingenuity, effort, and investment that we as a region have made to improve the quality of life...
More Water Will Flow to the Valley Upon Trump's Signature
WASHINGTON — Congress has approved a sprawling bill that provides for increased water storage in the San Joaquin Valley. If signed by President Donald Trump, America's Water Infrastructure Act of 2018 would authorize more than $6 billion in spending over 10 years for projects nationwide. Folded into the bill is Rep....
Gov. Brown Signs Bill Supporting a Valley Medical School
Gov. Jerry Brown signed legislation Thursday establishing the San Joaquin Valley Regional Medical Education Endowment Fund. The bill's author, Assemblyman Adam Gray (D-Merced), said in a Facebook post that the fund will provide "a dedicated opportunity for the collection of public and private donations to support the construction and operation of...
Life's Many Challenges Only Make These 'Modesto Girls' Stronger
California changes so fast you can’t count on anything here anymore. But you can count on the Modesto Girls. These five sisters — my first cousins, once removed—never had glamorous jobs. They didn’t get fancy educations. Little came easy to them. But they are always there when you need them....
Welcome to the Bay Area, Fresno and Merced!
Welcome to the Bay Area, Merced! Welcome as well to Modesto, Sacramento, and Yuba City. Looking south, you’re invited, too, Santa Cruz, Monterey, and Salinas. And while you’re almost in another state, don’t worry, Tahoe City! Bay waters are warm. This expanded notion of the Bay Area’s reach isn’t a...
Feel the Burn? STDs at All-Time High in California.
LOS ANGELES — The number of cases of sexually transmitted diseases in California reached a record high last year and officials are particularly concerned by a spike in stillbirths due to congenital syphilis, state health authorities said Monday. More than 300,000 cases of chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis were reported in...