[Source: Los Angeles Times] In another sign of the state’s power glut, three Southern California gas-fired power plants owned by a subsidiary of energy firm NRG Energy Inc. will close over the next few months. The NRG Etiwanda Generating Station in Rancho Cucamonga, which began operations in 1962, will be retired as of June 1. Read More…
Category: California News
California Attorney General establishes Bureau of Environmental Justice, and industry should get prepared
[Source: Stoel Rives LLP] On February 22, 2018, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra announced that the Department of Justice is opening an environmental justice office within the environment Section: the Bureau of Environmental Justice (“Bureau”). “The Bureau’s mission will be to protect people and communities that endure a disproportionate share of environmental pollution and public Read More…
If California’s the future, why are so many leaving?
[Source: Curbed / American real estate blog] California, many say, is the future. A center for creative industries and new technology—look at its impressive rollout of electric vehicles and autonomous cars—it’s also a diverse state, pushing progressive policies that could be models for the rest of the country. And people are leaving in droves for Read More…
California losing residents via domestic migration
[Source: Brian Uhler/Justin Garosi, Legislative Analyst’s Office] For many years, more people have been leaving California for other states than have been moving here. According to data from the American Community Survey, from 2007 to 2016, about 5 million people moved to California from other states, while about 6 million left California. On net, the Read More…
Californians voted to spend billions on more water storage, but state government keeps sitting on the cash
[Source: Los Angeles Times] We could be headed into another drought. There’s little Sierra snow and valleys are dry. Is California ready this time? Not really. Good signs: There’s still a lot of water stashed in reservoirs from last year’s abnormally wet winter. And we’ve become better at using less water in our homes and Read More…
Kimberly-Clark to close its paper-products plant in Fullerton, which employs 330 people
[Source: Orange County Register] Kimberly-Clark intends to shutter its plant here as part of a restructuring it announced last month, the paper products giant has confirmed. The plant, which opened in 1956, employs 330 people. “Kimberly-Clark has informed employees at the Fullerton manufacturing facility of its proposed plan to close this facility,” company spokesperson Terry Read More…
Brown calls for 5 million electric vehicles by 2030, $2.5 billion for charging stations
[Source: The Mercury News] Gov. Jerry Brown on Friday announced a sweeping new environmental initiative to cap his final year in office, signing an executive order that commits the state to a goal of 5 million zero-emission vehicles on the road by 2030. The ambitious target dwarfs his previous goal of 1.5 million EVs by 2025, and Read More…
New law restricts immigration enforcement at worksites
[Source: CalChamber] As of January 1, California employers must comply with strict rules passed under the new Immigrant Worker Protection Act (AB 450), which protects workers in the state from immigration enforcement while they’re on the job. Under AB 450, all employers, regardless of size, must limit U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents’ access Read More…
What are your rights and responsibilities if your L.A. business gets raided by ICE?
[Source: San Francisco Business Times] Efforts by Gov. Jerry Brown and state lawmakers to turn California into a “sanctuary state” may run headlong into a widespread immigration crackdown by federal officials, leaving some businesses and employers in the crossfire. A report from the San Francisco Chronicle said that U.S. immigration officials are preparing for a “major Read More…