SACRAMENTO - Senate Republican Leader Shannon Grove (R-Bakersfield) issued the following statement upon the announcement that the U.S. Senate ratified the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA):

"The Golden State is the top agriculture state in the nation and our farmers are the sole producers of many foods, including almonds, artichokes, grapes, and walnuts. This trade deal is a 21st century agreement that will strengthen our economy and help these California farmers in their admirable goal to feed the world.
"I want to thank the President for his hard-work to help the United States and our workers with the USMCA," said Senate Republican Leader Shannon Grove. 

In December 2019, Senator Grove was one of 26 state leaders from across the United States who signed on to a letter urging Congressional leaders to pass the USMCA. 
In 2019, Senator Grove introduced Senate Joint Resolution 12 which requested the California State Legislature to support and urge Congress to approve the USMCA. SJR 12 passed out of the California State Senate with bipartisan support.
In an op-Ed published in The Fresno Bee, Senator Grove outlined the importance of the USMCA. Click here to read the op-Ed.
 
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Senator Shannon Grove represents California's 16th Senate District which encompasses large portions of Kern, Tulare and San Bernardino counties and including the cities of Bakersfield, Barstow, California City, Exeter, Frazier Mountain, Joshua Tree, Mojave, Needles, Ridgecrest, Rosamond, Taft, Tehachapi, Twentynine Palms, Tulare, Visalia, Yucca Valley and portions of the Kern River Valley. She is the Senate Republican Leader. Follow her on Facebook and Twitter.


For press inquiries for questions, please contact Jacqui Nguyen, press secretary for the Senate Republican Caucus, at (858) 999-7706.

 
By Dr. Glenn Mollette
 
We usually don't want to just give up, or conclude we don't have what it takes to go on. I've thought about that some lately in trying to learn a difficult fiddle tune. 
 
What have you thought about quitting? Smoking? Alcohol? Drugs? A toxic relationship? There are so many good things in life that require so much work to make them happen.  Yet, when we stay with it there is eventual satisfaction. And, even if we don't finish, we aren't doing a bad thing for trying to do the good things.  
 
There is a process of finishing a course and then retiring from the course. We all retire, quit or are terminated. Kenny Rogers sang, "You have to know when to hold them and know when to fold them." We all do. My dad worked over 30 years in underground coal mining and at the age of 55 he retired. He also quit. He never had any interest in going back to work in the coal mine. 
 
Quitting gives you an opportunity to do something else. If you hang on, then how do you ever have the opportunity to experience the next phase of life? Maybe you don't want to. You like the road you are traveling and you're going to ride it till it ends. There's nothing wrong with that because familiarity and what we know can be very comfortable. It will end though. Life changes. 
 
A man in the Bible said one time, "I've fought a good fight, I've finished the course and I've kept the faith." There are internal and other rewards for hanging in there and not quitting. An old friend used to say often, "The person who loves God most is at his post when all the others have walked away." Have you ever walked away? Maybe you have or that's what you are contemplating today. It doesn't mean life is over, but it will change.  Whatever happens next will require a lot of the same stuff - tenacity, working hard, and staying at your post. You can walk away from a lot of things in life, but you can't always walk away or quit everything because then you'll never accomplish anything. 
 
Can you imagine how all our soldiers have felt on the battle fields? They miss their families and home. They go through the agony of war and they can't escape but fight and hang on until their tour of duty is over.  Because of their tour of service and not quitting we still have our freedom in America. 
 
You may be on your tour of duty right now and it may not be the military. Anything ever accomplished takes a lot of time, concentration and downright survival of the fittest. It's up to you. You have to ask yourself, "Is it worth it to hang on and not quit?" Only you can answer that question. 

Potential Outages Are Possible Due to Approaching Weather
 
SAN FRANCISCO, Calif.—With unsettled weather expected to return to its service area this week, PG&E is asking customers to have a plan for inclement weather and be prepared for unexpected power outages.
 
PG&E meteorologists are forecasting a change in the weather pattern over Northern and Central California later this week. The most impactful storm of this pattern will start on Wednesday afternoon with wind, rain and mountain snow and last into Thursday. Unsettled weather may continue over the weekend and into the following week.
 
“An impactful winter storm is on the way and we’re asking customers to have a plan to keep themselves and their families safe. Our team of meteorologists is closely tracking the weather system and working with our employees in the field to stage resources and ensure we’re prepared to restore power safely and quickly,” said PG&E senior meteorologist Evan Duffey.
 
PG&E is closely tracking the weather system and will be mobilizing crews and materials into areas expected to feel the brunt of the storm, so they can get to work and restore service to impacted customers more quickly.
PG&E’s meteorology team has developed a Storm Outage Prediction Model that incorporates real-time weather forecasts, historical data and system knowledge to accurately show where and when storm impacts will be most severe. This model enables the company to pre-stage crews and equipment as storms approach to enable rapid response to outages.
Storm Safety Tips:

• Never touch downed wires: If you see a downed power line, assume it is energized and extremely dangerous. Do not touch or try to move it—and keep children and animals away. Report downed power lines immediately by calling 911 and by calling PG&E at 1-800-743-5002.
• Use flashlights, not candles: During a power outage, use battery-operated flashlights, and not candles, due to the risk of fire. If you must use candles, please keep them away from drapes, lampshades, pets and small children. Do not leave candles unattended.
• Have a backup phone: If you have a telephone system that requires electricity to work, such as a cordless phone or answering machine, plan to have a standard telephone or cellular phone ready as a backup.
• Have fresh drinking water, ice: Freeze plastic containers filled with water to make blocks of ice that can be placed in your refrigerator/freezer during an outage to prevent foods from spoiling. Blue Ice from your picnic cooler also works well in the freezer.
• Secure outdoor furniture: Deck furniture, lightweight yard structures and decorative lawn items should be secured as they can be blown by high winds and damage overhead power lines or property.
• Use generators safely: Customers with standby electric generators should make sure they are properly installed by a licensed electrician in a well-ventilated area. Improperly installed generators pose a significant danger to customers, as well as crews working on power lines. If using portable generators, be sure they are in a well-ventilated area.
• Turn off appliances: If you experience an outage, unplug or turn off all electrical appliances to avoid overloading circuits and to prevent fire hazards when power is restored. Simply leave a single lamp on to alert you when power returns. Turn your appliances back on one at a time when conditions return to normal.
• Safely clean up: After the storm has passed, be sure to safely clean up. Never touch downed wires and always call 811 or visit 811express.com at least two full business days before digging to have all underground utilities safely marked.

 
Other tips and more information can be found at www.pge.com/weather.
 
About PG&E
Pacific Gas and Electric Company, a subsidiary of PG&E Corporation (NYSE:PCG), is one of the largest combined natural gas and electric energy companies in the United States. Based in San Francisco, with more than 24,000 employees, the company delivers some of the nation’s cleanest energy to nearly 16 million people in Northern and Central California. For more information, visit pge.com and pge.com/news.
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SACRAMENTO – Today, Assemblymember Tyler Diep (R-Huntington Beach), Assemblywoman Rebecca Bauer-Kahan (D-Orinda) and Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) announced they have introduced legislation to address the rising number of car break-ins throughout California. Assembly Bill 1921 will make it easier to prosecute auto-burglary by eliminating the need to prove that a vehicle’s doors were locked when the theft occurred.
 
“Car break-ins have become so common and lucrative that thieves are traveling from the Bay Area to Los Angeles to commit these crimes. AB 1921 is a common sense bill to reduce one of the most common types of property crimes in the state,” said Assemblyman Diep. “It is unacceptable that current law puts the burden of proof on the victim and allows burglars to escape the consequences of their actions. It is time to pass this bill and stop the break-ins.”
 
“Auto break-ins are at epidemic levels. These crimes harm neighborhoods and badly hurt people who can’t afford to keep fixing their car windows and who rely on their cars to survive. People who break into cars must be held accountable. We need to close this ridiculous loophole that allows people who break into cars to avoid consequences,” said Senator Scott Wiener, a co-author of AB 1921, who authored SB 23 and SB 916, which were previous versions of the bill introduced in the past two years.
 
Since 2013, there has been a steady increase of auto burglaries in California. There have been numerous reports, from all over the state, showcasing the problem of auto break-ins. A neighborhood in Fairfield was hit with 28 car break-ins in one night. In the Los Angeles area, perpetrators are targeting unsuspecting tourists in broad daylight. In San Francisco, people are putting signs in their cars claiming there isn’t anything of value inside.
 
AB 1921 will specify that “auto-burglary” is the forcible entry of a vehicle with intent to commit theft. Forcible entry of a vehicle will be defined as damaging the exterior of a vehicle or the use of a tool or device to manipulate the locks. The bill is co-authored by a bipartisan coalition of Senators and Assemblymembers from around the California.
 
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Assemblyman Tyler Diep represents the 72nd Assembly District, which includes Fountain Valley, Garden Grove, Huntington Beach, Los Alamitos, Midway City, Rossmoor, Santa Ana, Seal Beach, Sunset Beach, and Westminster.
Copyright © 2020, Assembly Republican Caucus, All rights reserved.

 
SAN FRANCISCO, Calif.—Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) announced that scholarship applications are now being accepted for college-bound high schoolers as well as current college and continuing education students living in Northern and Central California.
 
More than 150 awards totaling nearly $500,000 are being made available through PG&E scholarships, which includes the employee resource group (ERG), engineering network group (ENG) and Better Together STEM scholarship programs.
 
PG&E scholarships information, including criteria and applications, is available on PG&E’s website. To be considered for a scholarship, all applications must be submitted by Feb. 7, 2020.
 
“Helping students in our communities attend college and achieve their goals is a big step toward improving lives. These individuals, many of whom are the first in their families to attend college, will be the leaders and innovators of tomorrow. We’re proud to invest in these promising young people,” said Mary King, PG&E vice president of human resources and chief diversity officer.
 
PG&E scholarships are awarded annually to help offset the cost of higher education. ERG scholarship winners will receive awards ranging from $1,000 to $7,000 for exemplary scholastic achievement and community leadership. Better Together STEM Scholarship recipients will receive a one-time scholarship of $1,000 to $10,000 to assist in their pursuit of higher education in engineering, computer science, cybersecurity or environmental sciences.
 
Since 1989, PG&E’s ERGs and ENGs have awarded more than $4.5 million in scholarships to thousands of recipients. The funds are raised totally through employee donations, employee fundraising events and Campaign for the Community, the company’s employee giving program.
 
Since 2012, PG&E’s Better Together STEM scholarship program has given nearly $3.6 million to accomplished students based on a combined demonstration of community leadership, personal triumph, financial need and academic achievement.
 
Funds for Better Together STEM scholarships come from the PG&E Foundation, which is dedicated to supporting charities that address critical social, educational and environmental challenges in the company’s service area. These scholarships are supported by PG&E shareholders.
 
More than 5,000 PG&E employees belong to the ERGs and ENGs. Each group helps further the company’s commitment to serving its communities and growing employee engagement.
 
PG&E’s ERG and ENG scholarships are available through these 12 groups:
 

• Access Network (individuals with disabilities)
• Asian
• Black
• Latino
• Legacy (tenured employees)
• National Society of Black Engineers (STEM career employees)
• NuEnergy (new employees)
• PrideNetwork (LGBT employees)
• Samahan (Filipino)
• Society for Hispanic Professional Engineers (STEM career employees)
• Veterans
• Women’s Network

 
In addition to the PG&E scholarships, the Pacific Service Employees Association (PSEA), a non-profit mutual benefit organization serving PG&E employees and retirees, also provides scholarships for dependents of company employees.
 
About PG&E
Pacific Gas and Electric Company, a subsidiary of PG&E Corporation (NYSE:PCG), is one of the largest combined natural gas and electric energy companies in the United States. Based in San Francisco, with more than 20,000 employees, the company delivers some of the nation’s cleanest energy to 16 million people in Northern and Central California. For more information, visit www.pge.com/ andhttp://www.pge.com/news.
 
 
  
 

 
(Washington, DC) – Today, Congressman Doug LaMalfa (R-Richvale) issued the following statement regarding the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) seeking reimbursement from Pacific, Gas, and Electric’s (PG&E) $13.5 billion fund that was originally set aside for wildfire victims.
 
LaMalfa said: “State and Federal governments should not have the ability to take settlement funds from wildfire victims. It is the government’s job to set aside funds for disasters, and victims should be able to receive the restitution they need. While it may never be able to make them whole, wildfire victims deserve every penny of the $13.5 billion fund to help them rebuild their lives – many from the ground up.
 
I recently sent a bipartisan letter asking FEMA to stand down on seeking a reimbursement from PG&E’s settlement fund for the wildfire victims. While FEMA is in the wrong, this letter did not mention that the State of California is seeking reimbursement from the PG&E compensation fund at the price tag of $3.3 billion. When preparing to respond to the needs of the victims, the state received $2.5 billion of the $3.3 billion from the federal government. The State of California is purposefully slighting its citizens by trying to earmark money from the victims’ compensation fund for themselves.”
 
Congressman Doug LaMalfa is a lifelong farmer representing California’s First Congressional District, including Butte, Glenn, Lassen, Modoc, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou and Tehama Counties.
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REDDING – The National Weather Service is forecasting a series of winter storms to move through Northern California, continuing Friday and extending through next week. Snow levels are forecast to drop to 3,000 feet through the weekend and into the beginning of next week, with the possibility of lower snow levels mid-late next week. Motorists should check weather and road conditions prior to higher elevation travel during this time period.

Motorists that must travel into higher elevations are advised to carry chains, be prepared for winter driving conditions, expect delays and possible closures, and follow instructions of Caltrans personnel and law enforcement. Truck and/or vehicle screening may go into effect for northbound Interstate 5 travelers at Fawndale Road, approximately ten miles north of Redding, prior to or during storm systems. Caltrans District 2 Maintenance crews are fully staffed and prepared for winter weather travel. Motorists are urged to drive slowly and carefully around our crews as they work the highways.

For more information, please contact the District 2 Public Information Office during business hours at (530) 225-3426. The District 2 Road Conditions Hotline is available 24/7 at (530) 225-3452 and is updated with significant traffic impacts. Motorists can also follow Caltrans District 2 on our Twitter and Facebook pages.  ​

SACRAMENTO—State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond today praised Governor Gavin Newsom’s proposed budget for fiscal year 2020–21.
“Over the last year, my team and I have been collaborating with educational partners, including teachers and administrators all over the state, through my 13 workgroups, to establish and validate the areas of focus and priority initiatives for the California Department of Education,” said Thurmond. “Today, we were pleased to hear that many of the budget announcements were aligned with the work we have been doing. Governor Newsom and his team have produced a budget that is comprehensive, aligns with our goals to ensure equitable education for all students, and allows us to focus on helping our most vulnerable students in underserved communities.”
The budget includes the largest K–12 education per pupil expenditure in history. It proposes increasing K–12 education by $3 billion, with an investment of approximately $900 million for teacher preparation and retention.
“The Governor mentioned that students should have teachers that look more like them, and we couldn’t agree more,” said Thurmond. “We look forward to having the opportunity to invest in our teacher workforce and the pipeline of future teachers coming into the profession, specifically teachers of color and in the fields of science, math, and special education.”
The budget includes funding to allow schools to add key staffing to provide coordination and delivery of services that will help students have a healthy start and remove barriers that get in the way of academic and social success with a $300 million community schools grant and an additional $300 million in opportunity grants for wrap-around technical assistance. This will provide resources to train administrators, teachers, and students with curriculum and strategies that will solidify California’s investment in the social and emotional well-being of students.
The budget also proposes significant increases to funding for special education, both in terms of increased funding to address the growing need for existing services as well as funding for districts to provide increased or improved services.
“Our districts are faced with financial challenges to keep up with the needs of our most vulnerable student populations, and we are thankful for the financial support from the proposed budget to help our schools provide equitable educational opportunities for all of our students,” said Thurmond.
For the first time in over 10 years, the budget includes a 40 percent increase in state funding for school nutrition programs to boost the quality of meals provided and to expand access. It also includes $10 million for grants to foster innovative farm-to-school linkages that support sustainable agriculture and make more healthy foods available to our students.
Generators to help schools prepare for disasters and stay open during unforeseen power outages will be provided through a larger emergency fund through the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES). This gesture alone shows that the Governor and his team are listening to the needs of school districts, even when they are unprecedented and ever-changing with these new challenges brought on by public safety power shutoffs.
 “I appreciate that even with declining resources, Governor Newsom has found a way to keep education as a key priority in the budget. We look forward to continuing a close partnership with him, the Legislature, and stakeholders in the next few years to increase our state’s education resources so that we can close opportunity gaps, and make sure all of California’s students have equitable opportunities to excel,” Thurmond said.
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The California Department of Education is a state agency led by State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond. For more information, please visit the California Department of Education’s website. You may also follow Superintendent Thurmond on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube.

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