Elk Grove, California
The majority of California’s 6.1 million public school students could be back in the classroom by April due to new legislation announced Monday by Gov. Gavin Newsom and legislative leaders. Critics panned the plan as inadequate, the Associated Press reported.
If approved by the legislature, the plan announced Monday would not order districts to return students to the classroom and no parents would be compelled to send their kids back to school in-person. Instead, the state would set aside $2 billion to pay district which get select groups of students into classrooms by the end of the month, according to AP.
Crucially, the legislation does not require districts to have an agreement with teachers’ unions on a plan for in-person instruction. That’s a barrier many district, including the nation’s second-largest district in Los Angeles, have not been able to overcome. It also does not require all teachers be vaccinated as teachers unions had urged. The legislation would make it state law 10 percent of the state’s vaccine supply be set aside specifically for teachers and school staff, AP reported.
The state’s two largest teachers’ unions mostly praised the agreement, with California Federation of Teachers President Jeff Freitas calling the prioritization of vaccines for teachers “a huge victory.” Kevin Gordon, a lobbyist representing many of the state’s school districts, called the plan “a grand slam home run,” claiming it “dismantled every impediment to reopening we’ve had so far,” according to AP.
Los Angeles
A can which went astray about 15 years ago has been reunited, older and maybe wiser, with its owner, the Associated Press reported.
Brandy, a brown tabby, was reunited last week with Charles, who adopted her as a 2-monthold kitten in 2005. “It’s amazing. I think it’s unbelievable,” Charles said. “I saw her, picked her up and she started to purr. It was very emotional. It was nice to have her in my arms again.”
Brandy was found in Palmdale, California, about 40 miles from where Charles lives in the San Fernando Valley area of Los Angeles. He said Brandy strayed only a few months after he adopted her. Charles drove around looking for her, checked animal shelters and put up signs without any luck, according to AP.
Charles went on with his life. He moved to another place in the valley and adopted two younger cats. Then, he received a call from the Los Angeles County animal shelter in Palmdale and another from the company which made the microchip implanted in Brandy when she was adopted. Charles decided he couldn’t keep Brandy in his one-bedroom apartment with two younger cats, but Brandy is staying with his sister nearby, and he intends to visit often, AP reported.
Austin, Texas
Texas’ attorney general said Monday he’s suing electricity provider Griddy for passing along massive bills to its customers during last month’s winter storm, the Associated Press reported.
The lawsuit comes days after Texas’ power grid manager effectively shut down Griddy by revoking its access to the state’s electricity market. Griddy charges $10 a month to give people a way to pay wholesale prices for electricity instead of a fixes rate. But when temperatures plummeted well below freezing last month, wholesale prices spikes and Griddy customers were left with sky-high electricity bills, according to AP.
The lawsuit accused Griddy of violating the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act and seeks refunds for customers.
The unusually heavy winter storm blanketed much of Texas with snow, knocking out electricity to 4 million customers and leaving many struggling to find clean water, AP reported.
Meanwhile, the Electricity Reliability Council of Texas, or ERCOT, shifted about 10,000 Griddy customers to other utilities Friday. Griddy said in a statement, “ERCOT took our members and have effectively shut down Griddy. We always have been transparent and customer-centric at every step. We wanted to continue the fight for our members to get relief and that hasn’t changed.”
Orlando, Florida
A Central Florida sheriff’s deputy was suspended for nearly a month after a civil right group asked for an investigation into his Facebook posts about Muslims, the Associated Press reported.
The Orange County Sheriff’s Office suspended Deputy Michael Johnson for 150 hours without pay after an investigation found he showed “unbecoming conduct” and “bias and disrespect” toward Muslims. In a February 2020 post on his personal Facebook page, Johnson wrote “Muslims are taking over America,” calling them the “most intolerant people when it comes to other religions,” according to AP.
“Wake up America, the Democrats only care about a vote, but with this radicalized people taking over the United State you will know why because we stool there and did nothing to stop this. Donald J. Trump for president for another 4 years,” the post continued.
When interviewed by investigators, Johnson acknowledged the post was “offensive towards all Muslims.” He said he was “trying to describe a small percentage of radicalized Muslims which only represented a very small percentage of the followers.” The investigation found Johnson’s Facebook page can be “associated” with his employment as a sheriff’s deputy. He has numerous postings with photos in his uniform, AP reported.