Issue link: http://www.epageflip.net/i/817548
ByJonathanJ.Cooper TheAssociatedPress SACRAMENTO California drivers will see their gas prices rise in November and will pay more to reg- ister their vehicles come January. But they'll have to wait months longer be- fore crews begin repaving neglected roads with the fruits of their higher taxes. Gov. Jerry Brown signed into law a tax hike of $5 billion per year on Friday, promising to fix crumbling highways. But state trans- portation officials have not begun the engineering work, environmental as- sessments and other prep work that must happen be- fore construction workers begin tearing up pavement. "Safe and smooth roads make California a better place to live and strengthen our economy," Brown said in a statement. "This legis- lation will put thousands of people to work." Brown and his legisla- tive allies said the money was badly needed to fill pothole and repair rutted roads that lengthen com- mutes and damage vehicles. In the bill, SB1, the money is split roughly evenly be- tween state highways and local roads. Specific projects haven't been determined, said Mark Dinger, a spokesman for Caltrans. The Califor- nia Transportation Com- mission, appointed mostly by Brown, will prioritize projects for the funding, he said, and the first construc- tion work will likely begin work in the summer of 2018. A few projects are known, however, including an ex- tension of a commuter rail line between the Central Valley and Silicon Valley, a parkway linking the Uni- versity of California, Mer- ced to a major state high- way and highway expan- sion in Riverside County. Those projects were prom- ised to undecided lawmak- ers to win their support for the legislation. On Friday, Brown also signed the legislation au- thorizing those projects, SB132, and a bill by state Sen. Anthony Cannella to shield architects, engineers and land surveyors from li- ability in certain circum- stances, SB 496. Cannella was the only Republican in the Legisla- ture who voted for the gas tax increase. He won fund- ing for transportation proj- ects in his Central Valley district as part of the deal. Most of the money from SB1 will go into Caltrans' budget for major mainte- nance projects. More than filling potholes and making spot repairs, the crews will completely rebuild roads in particularly damaged ar- eas, Dinger said. Potential projects include major com- muting corridors near Sac- ramento, Highway 101 in Sonoma County, Interstate 580 in the East Bay and a variety of bridge and pave- ment projects in the Los Angeles area. The plan aims to ad- dress a $59 billion backlog in deferred maintenance on state highways and $78 billion on local streets and roads. It raises gas taxes by 12 cents per gallon in No- vember, rising to a 19.5-cent increase by 2020. Diesel taxes will rise by 20 cents per gallon and diesel sales taxes by 4 percent. ROAD REPAIRS Gas prices to rise under bill signed by the governor By Michael R. Blood The Associated Press LOS ANGELES California is trying to get control of its unruly medical marijuana industry. State regulators released draft regulations Friday in- tended to impose order on the loosely organized mar- ketplace created over two decades ago. The proposal would es- tablish the first compre- hensive rules for growing, testing, transporting and selling medical pot in the state that is home to 1 in 8 Americans. Voters last year agreed to legalize recreational mari- juana use for adults in 2018. The state is faced with the challenging task of trying to govern a vast, emerging cannabis industry with a projected value of $7 bil- lion. Similar rules are be- ing created for the recre- ational industry. There are differences, and a bill in the Legislature backed by Democratic Gov. Jerry Brown seeks to square the recreational pot law with the rules for medical mar- ijuana. Hezekiah Allen, pres- ident of the California Growers Association, an industry group, called the draft rules "a major step to- ward a well-regulated can- nabis industry." However, he added in a statement that "there is still a lot of uncertainty" as the Legislature works to balance the various pro- posals. Ariel Clark, an attorney who chairs the Los Ange- les Cannabis Task Force, said in an email that much works remains to be done. But "for the first time we have a clear idea how the world's largest cannabis market will be regulated and licensed," Clark said. For medical marijuana users in California, the proposed rules will have no immediate impact. The draft regulations are ex- pected to take months to review and refine. They do not go into ef- fect until Jan. 1, when rec- reational marijuana use also becomes legal. The 58 pages of draft rules provide insight into the massive job ahead, as the state creates what will be a multibillion-dollar marijuana economy. There have been ques- tions about how the state could quickly review and issue licenses for tens of thousands of growers, sell- ers, manufacturers and dis- tributors after the regula- tions for medical and rec- reational marijuana kick in next January. The answer: The state will need some time. Ap- plicants can stay in busi- ness indefinitely while the review is underway, pro- viding they were operat- ing prior to Jan. 2, 2018, and submit a completed li- cense application no later than July 2, 2018. The proposed rules vary widely, from the obvious to arcane. A commercial ve- hicle containing medical pot cannot be left in a resi- dential neighborhood over- night, and dispensaries must shut down by 9 p.m. Packaging must be difficult for toddlers to open. Meanwhile, the bank- ing dilemma remains un- resolved. Because mari- juana remains illegal on the federal level, many dis- pensaries and growers are in effect locked out of the banking industry, so much of the business is conducted in cash. A state study is un- derway. A system that would track the sticky, fragrant buds from seed to sale is also under development. The Bureau of Marijuana Control said in a statement that it's attempting to es- tablish a "coherent regula- tory framework for an es- tablished industry that has not been comprehensively regulated by the state." MARIJUANA State seeking control of unruly medical pot industry By Sophia Tareen and Amy Taxin The Associated Press CHICAGO Immigrant groups and their allies have joined forces to carry out marches, rallies and pro- tests in cities nationwide next week to mark May Day, saying there's renewed momentum to fight back against Trump administra- tion policies. Activists in major cities including New York, Chi- cago and Los Angeles expect tens of thousands of people to participate in Monday demonstrations, starting with morning neighborhood protests and culminating in rush hour events down- town. Activists also plan an overnight vigil in Phoe- nix, a farm workers dem- onstration outside Miami and a White House rally. In Seattle, pro-immigrant events are expected to give way to rowdier, anti-capital- ist marches led by protest- ers who said they plan to shut down a major freeway through the city. "We're seeing an unprec- edented amount of enthusi- asm and activity," said New York Immigration Coalition executive director Steven Choi. "It's driven by the fact that Trump administration has made immigration the tip of the spear." Around the world, union members have tradition- ally marched on May 1 for workers' rights. In the United States, the event be- came a rallying point for immigrants in 2006 when more than 1 million peo- ple marched against a pro- posed immigration enforce- ment bill. While the current climate surrounding immigration may be similar to 2006 amid President Donald Trump's hard-line approach to the issue, the immigrant rights movement has changed dra- matically since then. Advocacy groups that in 2006 were united in their determination to flood the streets to make a statement have fractured since then and pursued other efforts, such as voter registration, lobbying and fighting de- portations. However, activists expect a surge in participation this year, in part because immigrant rights groups have worked with Women's March participants, Black Lives Matter and Muslim civil rights groups who are united by their opposition to Donald Trump. Also, busi- nesses with immigrant ties are closing or allowing em- ployees to take the day off without penalty. Immigrant groups ac- knowledged there is some fear among people in the country illegally who are skittish about drawing at- tention to themselves in vis- ible marches. But organizers are reminding them that it's an important cause and there's safety in numbers. "If you are an immigrant in Los Angeles, the safest place you can be on Mon- day is in the action in down- town Los Angeles," said Da- vid Huerta, president of SEIU United Service Work- ers West. As Trump approaches his first 100 days, he has aggressively pursued im- migration enforcement, in- cluding executive orders for a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border and a ban on travel- ers from six predominantly- Muslim countries. The gov- ernment has arrested thou- sands of immigrants in the country illegally and threat- ened to withhold funding from sanctuary jurisdic- tions, which limit coopera- tion between local and fed- eral immigration authori- ties. In response, leaders in sanctuary cities have vowed to fight back and civic par- ticipation has seen a boost, including February's "Day Without Immigrants." The travel ban and sanctuary or- der were temporarily halted by legal challenges. "We will not be divided," Pastor Don Taylor of an in- terfaith organizing group told Chicago supporters pre- paring this week for May 1. "It is a moral issue." Still, while there is oppo- sition to Trump, activists aren't focused on a single course of action. In Illinois, they're push- ing legislative plans to es- sentially extend sanctuary protections statewide. Out- side Miami, advocates are calling for an extension of temporary protected status for Haitians displaced by a deadly 2010 earthquake. In Detroit, the push is for im- migrants' constitutional rights, including due pro- cess. In Los Angeles, orga- nizers expect as many as 100,000. New York could see up to 50,000 participants. Chicago organizers estimate at least 20,000. In Pennsyl- vania, student groups are calling for strikes to de- mand a safe place for immi- grants on campus, while in Las Vegas culinary workers will take to the casino-lined strip to show support. In the Chicago area, doz- ens of restaurants and gro- cery stores planned to either close or allow workers to at- tend the demonstrations. In Portland, Oregon, unions, immigrants and others are urging people to skip work, school and shopping to highlight the importance of workers and the communi- ty's strength. Elsewhere, union leaders have asked employers to let workers participate. Google, for one, asked managers to be flexible in accommodat- ing requests for time-off so employees can join marches. Adonis Flores, an orga- nizer with Michigan United, plans to participate for the first time on what's long been known as Interna- tional Workers Day. The 28-year-old was brought to the country as a young child from Mexico and doesn't have legal per- mission to stay. For four years, he's received a work permit through an Obama administration program for young people, and doubts Trump's assurances that his administration won't target people like him for depor- tation. "I don't believe any- thing he says and don't be- lieve anybody should," he said. "It's getting to a point where the community is be- ing tired and ready to take action." PROTESTS Immigrants plan May Day rallies buoyed by Trump THEASSOCIATEDPRESS Artemio Arreola, an organizer with the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, speaks in Chicago. The advocates plan to march in a May 1rally in Chicago. Blaine: Daniel Eugene Blaine, 59, of Gerber died Thursday, April 27, 2017 at his residence. Ar- rangements are under the direction of Red Bluff Simple Cremations and Burial Service. Published Saturday, April 29, 2017in the Daily News, Red Bluff, California. Philbrick: Russell Earl Philbrick, 83, died Wednes- day, April 26, 2017in Twin Falls, Idaho. Arrangements are under the direction of Reynolds Funeral Chapel. Published Saturday, April 29, 2017in the Daily News, Red Bluff, California. Death notices must be provided by mortuaries to the news department, are published at no charge, and feature only specific basic information about the deceased. Paid obituaries are placed through the Classified advertising department. Paid obituaries may be placed by mortuaries or by families of the deceased and include online publication linked to the newspaper's website. Paid obituaries may be of any length, may run multiple days and offer wide latitude of content, including photos. Death Notices said. The branch falling may have been caused by the high winds in the area Friday with the National Weather Service report- ing 20 mph winds with 32 mph gusts, however this was not confirmed. Damage FROM PAGE 1 For burn day informa- tion, call Tehama County Air Pollution Control District at 527-3717 prior to burning in Tehama County. For residents in Glenn County call Glenn County Air Pollution District at 934-6500 or (800) 446- 2876 prior to burning. Tehama County burn hours for residential burning are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and must be com- pletely out by 5 p.m. In Glenn County, the burn hours are 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. for residential burning. For agricultural burning in Glenn County, pruning's and vegetative waste, the burn hours are 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. For field crops the burn hours are 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sept. 15 through Nov. 30, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. the remainder of the year. Burn permits are for veg- etation burning only. For the use of burn bar- rels in both Tehama and Glenn Counties check with your local Air Pollu- tion Control District for areas that burn barrels are allowed. All burn permits are issued annually and may be obtained from your lo- cal Cal Fire or Tehama County Fire Station. Per- mits are issued free of charge. Always have a mini- mum 10-foot clearance down to bare mineral soil around all burn piles, have a shovel and a wa- ter source available and an adult present during burning. Failure to fol- low these simple precau- tions may result in a cita- tion and fines. For further informa- tion, go to www.ready- forwildfire.org. Permits FROM PAGE 1 The city acknowledged that what it means "to age" has changed, and it has changed for the bet- ter, said Dawn Grine, Pub- lic Works Director, as she read the proclamation. The Elder Services Pro- gram of Northern Valley Catholic Social Service, as sponsored by the Corn- ing Healthcare District, is committed to supporting older adults as they take charge of their health, ex- plore new opportunities and activities and focus on independence, Grine said. Elaine Benwell of the Elder Services was pres- ent to accept the procla- mation Tuesday and said she is so privileged to do what she does and is grateful the city recog- nized older Americans. Benwell said the Elder Service program holds various workshops and educational programs throughout the year, fo- cusing on the care of the elderly. "We appreci- ate the value of inclusion and support in helping older adults successfully contribute to and benefit from their communities," Hatley said. According to the proc- lamation the city, as a community, hopes to pro- vide opportunities to en- rich the lives of individu- als of all ages by involv- ing older adults in the redefinition of aging in the community, promot- ing home and community based services that sup- port independent living, encouraging older adults to speak up for them- selves and others and by providing opportunities for older adults to share their experiences. "I urge every resident to take time during this month to acknowledge and celebrate older adults and those that serve and support them as influen- tial and vital parts of our community," Hatley said. For more information on the Aging Matters ed- ucational event contact Benwell at 824-7670 or at elderserviceteh@nvcss. org. Corning FROM PAGE 1 HEATHER HOELSCHER — DAILY NEWS Corning Mayor Douglas Hatley Jr. poses with Elaine Benwell from Elder Services, Northern Valley Catholic social Service a er proclaiming May as Older Americans Month in the city. R ed Bluff Simple Cremations and Burial Service FD1931 527-1732 Now open longer hours 722 Oak Street, Red Bluff SATURDAY, APRIL 29, 2017 REDBLUFFDAILYNEWS.COM |NEWS | 11 A ★