Blog Archives - Sierra Booster

Colon Cancer Awareness Month in March

2/28/2017

Cancer survivors, advocates, healthcare professionals and others address disease’s impact, stigma, trends, and the latest science during Colon Cancer Awareness Month

Belleville, Illinois--Feb. 28, 2017—Despite effective screening methods and treatment options, colorectal cancer remains a significant cause of disability, according to Allsup, a national provider of Social Security Disability Insurance representation, veterans disability appeal and return-to-work services. Allsup is hosting a Blog-a-Thon for Colon Cancer throughout Colon Cancer Awareness Month in March, to raise awareness of the disease and its effect on specific populations, provide a forum for diverse perspectives, and encourage screening.

Described as the second leading cause of cancer deaths by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), colon cancer is treatable when detected early. However, fewer than half of men and women over age 50 are screened as recommended. The American Cancer Society reports that inadequate communication from healthcare providers and fear and embarrassment about screening procedures contribute to the low rates.

Sharing personal stories and the real-life impacts of colon cancer, as well as the science and clinical procedures involved with the disease, the Blog-a-Thon for Colon Cancer will provide opportunities to engage in a topic not often discussed. The blogs will be a platform to continue conversations via social media.

Colon cancer survivors, health professionals and organizations including the American Cancer Society, the Colon Cancer Alliance and the Raymond Foundation will address issues related to prevention, employment, young onset, gratitude, health disparities and more.

Allsup is accepting articles for consideration to include in the All Things Disability Blog-a-Thon for Colon Cancer. If you have a personal story or professional perspective on colon cancer, and would like to submit a guest blog, contact Tai Prohaska at t.prohaska@allsupinc.com by March 15, 2017.

If you have a question about applying for SSDI visit Expert.Allsup.com.

Sanctuary State Bad Idea for California

2/28/2017

In its continued quest to lead the nation in irresponsible governance, the California State Senate is moving forward with Senate Bill (SB) 54. The bill completely dismisses the millions of citizens who follow the law and want safe communities for their families and businesses. It’s also the latest embarrassing example of the legislature’s cult-like devotion to ignoring the fundamental responsibilities of government while obsessing over issues allowing for maximum moral grandstanding.

SB 54 effectively would turn California into a “sanctuary state,” making it harder for state and local officials to turn over violent, illegal alien criminals to federal officials for deportation. California would be the safest haven for these felons and predators and would instantly become a magnet for every illegal alien criminal in the country.

We don’t need more. Even ardent supporters of the bill acknowledge that if SB 54 is passed and signed into law up to 20,000 violent criminals will be shielded in Los Angeles and Orange counties alone.

Recently ICE conducted a standard immigration sweep in Southern California that resulted in more than 160 people being taken into custody. About 120 of those detainees had been previously convicted of serious, violent crimes such as robbery, assault and sex offenses. California shouldn’t allow illegal alien rapists, murderers and gang-bangers to be sent back to your neighborhood, mine or anyone’s neighborhood to commit more crimes, but they are all but guaranteeing a new set of victims by making us a sanctuary state.

SB 54’s author said during a hearing on the bill, “Any individual, irrespective of who they are and where they come from, who commits a heinous crime, we don’t want them in our neighborhoods, don’t want them in our communities, don’t want them in our state, we don’t want them in our nation. Period.” Then, with no sense of irony, he presented a bill to protect them from deportation.

Meanwhile, the 200,000 people fleeing a potential mega-flood in Oroville are probably scratching their heads wondering why the state government is working on harboring illegal alien criminals, mandating background checks for ammunition purchases, pumping out laws and rules about a microscopic universe of transgendered, or wearing out their throats screaming about President Trump, when the state is falling apart?

Oroville threatens unimaginable damage. We haven’t built major state water storage since the late 1970s even though our population has roughly doubled since that time. That’s malfeasance.

Our roads are a crumbling mess. We pay some of the highest gas taxes for potholed streets that feel like they’re paved with cobblestones and cramped highways that stretch commutes and keep us from moving goods around the state.

Our schools continue to be some of the nation’s worst even though K-12 education spending is checking in at more than $70 billion this year, up around $25 billion since just 2011. Is this what taxpayers should expect for that massive investment?

With our dams threatening disaster, roads falling apart and schools failing our children, would your first thought as a politician be: “Quick, let’s ban plastic grocery bags!”?

Californians are getting the worst possible civic deal. They’ve got a government that is diving down the Progressive rabbit hole, reaching into every aspect of their lives and charging them an arm and a leg to do it. At the same time, government is neglecting the very basic infrastructure that every citizen depends on. With public safety, they are fighting to actually make it worse.

The once-golden state is falling apart because government is ignoring the issues of the many for the issues of the few. To help all its citizens, California must repair and expand the state’s physical capital. It’s time to get building.

Senator Ted Gaines represents the 1st Senate District, which includes all or parts of Alpine, El Dorado, Lassen, Modoc, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Sacramento, Shasta, Sierra and Siskiyou counties.

CalVet Honors Women Veterans

2/27/2017

6th Annual Reception Celebrates Women’s Military History Week

Sacramento – On March 8, 2017, the California Department of Veterans Affairs (CalVet) recognizes two outstanding women veterans with the annual CalVet Trailblazer Award. The Award recognizes the valuable contributions by women veterans to the United States Armed Forces and veteran communities.

“Our California women veterans are part of a long and proud legacy of military service,” said Lindsey Sin, CalVet Deputy Secretary, Women Veterans Affairs. “We are proud to celebrate and honor two incredible women who exemplify outstanding military core values and dedication to our veteran communities."

The two honorees are U.S. Army veteran Deborah Johnson of Bakersfield and U.S. Marine Corps veteran Dulce Romero of Yuba City. They will be honored by CalVet at an annual reception celebrating Women’s Military History Week, recognized by Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. as the third week of March. Army veteran Assemblymember Susan Eggman will serve as guest speaker for the event.

The reception will be held at Cafeteria 15L in Sacramento on March 8th from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. The reception, including appetizers and refreshments, is free and is open to the public thanks to the generosity of the VetFund Foundation and their corporate partners Deloitte, DLA Piper, Juniper, PG&E, USAA, and Wells Fargo.

To learn more about the honorees, please visit calvet.ca.gov/womenvets. Pre-registration for the reception is required. Register at calvet.ca.gov/womenvets or call 916-653-1402.

GOOD MORNING TRUCKEE....FEBRUARY 23RD- Photos by Tracy Smith

2/23/2017

FARMERS MONITOR STORMS’ IMPACT ON CROPS, WATER SUPPLIES

2/21/2017

Strong storms during the Presidents’ Day holiday weekend flooded farm fields, caused several dairy farms to relocate their animals and brought other impacts on California farms and ranches. The storms also added more water to an already overtaxed system, and led to renewed calls to modernize the system.

“In the long term, the surge of storms should bring an improved water outlook,” California Farm Bureau Federation President Paul Wenger said, “but it has definitely brought worries to farmers and ranchers whose land is inundated or whose crops may be at risk. We remain hopeful that weather in coming days will minimize any problems.”

Wenger noted that many reservoirs have filled and have had to release water, which underlines the need to enhance California’s water storage capacity.

“Believe it or not, there are people who think we don't need more water storage, and that we should even tear down many of the facilities we now have,” he said. “These activists don't care how many people suffer from devastating floods in winters like this. They don't care how many people suffer from water shortages during droughts.”

Wenger said California must move as quickly as possible to allocate money from the 2014 water bond, Proposition 1, to create more storage both aboveground and underground.

“Environmentalists say we can solve water problems by conserving more water and storing more underground. But we’re not able to conserve most of the water flowing through the system now—we have had to let it go. And moving water into the ground takes time. You can’t replenish groundwater if you don’t have aboveground reservoirs and canals to hold and move water to where it can effectively filter underground,” Wenger said.

Farm Bureau said farmers of a number of crops and commodities will be assessing the impact from the weekend storms, including:

• Almonds—The storms hit just as almond trees were blooming. Bees that pollinate almond blossoms don’t fly in the rain and prefer temperatures higher than 55 degrees. In addition, a number of almond trees were blown down by strong winds during the weekend. But farmers said the tree losses weren’t as bad as feared, and expressed hope pollination would still be successful.

• Berries—The rains delayed strawberry harvest along the Central and Southern California coast. Production may be temporarily reduced as farmers wait for waterlogged fields to dry and discard rain-damaged berries.

• Dairy farms—Several dairy farms located near the Tuolumne and San Joaquin rivers needed to move their animals to higher ground as river levels rose. Other farmers are watching river levels carefully and preparing to move their animals if needed.

• Field crops—Fall-planted grain crops that have germinated could take on too much water, which could ultimately reduce yields. Hay fields have also flooded. Soggy or flooded fields will delay planting for a number of crops.

• Grapes—Vineyards in various grape-growing regions have been flooded. Farmers say that could leave vines vulnerable to root-rot damage if they remain flooded for too long.

• Vegetables—Rains and muddy fields slowed vegetable harvest in Southern California and delayed planting in the Salinas Valley. Rain generally benefited vegetable crops in the Imperial Valley.

• Walnuts—Flooded orchards that remain waterlogged for too long could be vulnerable to root diseases that can kill trees.

• Miscellaneous—Heavy rains in foothill regions have washed out privately maintained roads, making it hard for cattle ranchers to reach their animals, and muddy pastures limit ranchers’ ability to reach herds on horseback. Pear orchards in Lake County have been flooded. Citrus fruit harvest was temporarily delayed. The storms brought large amounts of rain to Santa Barbara County farmers who have remained in severe drought. One farmer there reported losing about half an acre of avocado trees to a mudslide.

The California Farm Bureau Federation works to protect family farms and ranches on behalf of more than 48,000 members statewide and as part of a nationwide network of more than 6.2 million Farm Bureau members.

# # #

Be Prepared: More Storms on the Way

2/21/2017

With more wet weather on its way, PG&E reminds all customers in Sierra County to have a plan if an emergency strikes. This includes an emergency kit, a way to communicate with family members and other proactive steps to be prepared. Just as PG&E has a plan for potential disasters, the energy company urges its customers to do the same. In case of an evacuation, consider the following tips to stay safe:

Create an emergency preparedness kit that includes food and water, health and personal supplies, medication and equipment such as a portable radio and flashlights.
Keep at least a half tank of gas in your car at all times in case you need to evacuate unexpectedly. Gas stations might be closed during emergencies or even run out of fuel if there’s a rush of customers. Keep electric vehicles charged as well.
Familiarize yourself with alternate routes out of your area. If possible, identify multiple locations in different directions so you have options during an evacuation. That being said, if authorities identify a specific evacuation route, follow it. Do not take shortcuts as they may be blocked.
Be alert for road hazards such as washed-out roads or bridges and downed power lines. Do not drive into flooded areas.
If possible, leave early enough to avoid being trapped by severe weather.
Keep your pets in mind when planning for emergencies. Include your pets in your practice drills. The practice can help them get used to a leash or carrier during stressful situations. Find out which kennels, shelters or veterinarians can care for your animals during an emergency. Public shelters may not accept pets because of health and safety concerns.
Establish a location where your family can reunite after evacuating. Decide on a second meeting place, in case the primary location is unusable.

PLUMAS COUNTY OUTAGE

2/21/2017

PLUMAS COUNTY OUTAGE
On Tuesday, February 21st Plumas County anticipated the possibility of a county-wide telecommunication outage to affect both wireless and landline phones. Sheriff Greg Hagwood sent out an all-county e.mail, stating, “The county is working to repair these issues as fast as possible.”
Sierra County Sheriff Tim Standley was contacted that Plumas County power was out and its three generators were not performing properly. The Sheriff asked for additional staff and was available to take all 9-1-1 calls for Plumas County if needed, stating, “We’ll do whatever we can to help our neighboring counties.”

ONE LANE ON HIGHWAY 49 SOUTH OF THE OVERLOOK

2/19/2017

Looking down into what has been called Sierra County's "Grand Canyon."

AND RETURNING TO SIERRA VALLEY.............

Harper and Chen Bill Will Give Homeowners and Renters a Tax Break

2/17/2017

New bill will help more Californians achieve the American Dream of homeownership.

SACRAMENTO – Today, Assemblyman Matthew Harper (R-Huntington Beach) and Assemblyman Phillip Chen (R- Diamond Bar) announced the introduction of the “American Dream Act,” which will provide a tax break to both renters and homeowners in California. Assembly Bill 1100 increases the homeowners’ property tax exemption from $7,000 to $25,000 and also increases the renters’ tax credit by a corresponding amount to provide relief to those aspiring to own a home.

“Homeowners and renters in California are paying some of the highest overall taxes in the nation,” said Assemblyman Harper. “It’s about time that the size of the homeowner’s property tax exemption kept up with the increases in cost of living. Also, I want to thank Orange County Assessor Claude Parrish for working with me to bring Assembly Bill 1100 forward.”
“High property taxes are making it impossible for too many Californians, who spent their lifetime living and working here, to stay,” said Assemblyman Chen. “This bill would provide immediate relief for millions of homeowners with an emphasis on helping those whose taxes far exceed their ability to pay.”
“The homeowner’s exemption hasn’t been increased in 40 years. Meanwhile, the cost of a median priced house has increased from $21,000 to over $450,000, and represents a home that only 30 percent of Californians can afford to purchase. California has a housing crisis and providing tax relief for homeowners and renters will unquestionably lead to enhanced economic stability,” said David Wolfe, legislative director for the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association.
Assemblyman Matthew Harper represents the 74th Assembly District; he is the former Mayor of the City of Huntington Beach. The 74th Assembly District includes the cities of Huntington Beach, Costa Mesa, Newport Beach, Irvine, Laguna Woods & Laguna Beach.

SENATOR GAINES INTRODUCES BILL TO PROTECT TAXPAYERS

2/16/2017

SACRAMENTO – Senator Ted Gaines (R-El Dorado) today announced Senate Bill 11, a measure that would immediately and proactively waive penalties and interest for taxpayers when a California State Board of Equalization (BOE) system failure prevents them from making tax payments on time.

Under existing law, tax payments made after the filing deadline are subject to interest and penalty. The BOE is currently authorized to waive any penalties or interest if the late payment is due to a disaster or BOE error, however, it is the responsibility of the taxpayer to file paperwork and petition for a refund.

“This bill would grant the BOE authority to relieve California taxpayers and businesses from having to jump through hoops to settle up with the government for money they never should have owed. No paperwork, no waiting period, no lost capital,” said Senator Gaines. “Why should the government make mistakes and taxpayers have to pay the price?”

Senate Bill 11 comes on the heels of four separate BOE computer system failures over the past year, two of which occurred during peak filing deadlines leaving taxpayers unable to pay their tax bills on time.

During one of the outages, taxpayers attempted to access the BOE’s website 24,000 times. More than 600 taxpayers subsequently filed requests seeking relief of more than $600,000 in penalties imposed because of the technical glitch.

“It’s not easy for businesses to survive in this state. Besides business competitors, our employers have to navigate the strictest meal and rest period law, expansive and expensive leave rules, punishingly high workers compensation rates, exorbitant energy costs, and unemployment insurance payments that have been climbing every year because the state is in debt to the federal government,” said Senator Gaines. “The last thing any business needs is to compete against the government for tax money owed only because of a glitch in California’s IT. Computers fail, but government doesn’t have to.”

Senator Ted Gaines represents the 1st Senate District, which includes all or parts of Alpine, El Dorado, Lassen, Modoc, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Sacramento, Shasta, Sierra and Siskiyou counties.

# # #