Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/260878
money that local school offi- cials have control over, known as the Local Control Funding Formula. Local control over money sounds good, and the program has been lauded, but the fear is that what was once near-guaranteed dol- lars will turn into a political infighting for limited resources at the district level across the state. "You hear a lot of your elder ag teachers talking about what times were like before these funds were available," said Jenny Svej- da, Red Bluff High's agri- culture department chair, as she was walking toward the school's 7-acre farm on Fri- day. "And if you visit many agricultural programs around the state, you've seen what they've been able to develop because of the money. So by taking that all away again, where would that leave the students in 10 years?" Svejda pointed to the farm's shop and storage facilities, its livestock barn and its olive orchard. "All of this out here," she said, "would not be here without our ag incentive grant." State Sen. Jim Nielsen, R-Gerber, was an original author of the Agricultural Education Incentive Grant program that has been around since the '80s. And representatives from his dis- trict office in Chico on Fri- day discussed the proposed shuffling of money with about 19 agriculture stu- dents at Red Bluff High. "The governor in his Jan- uary budget proposal has essentially terminated the $4.1 million dedicated in the previous fiscal year for the ag incentive grants," said Curtis Grima, a district rep- resentative for the senator. Grima told the students, many clad in their dark blue corduroy Red Bluff FFA jackets, that over the years it's been questioned whether the grant should be included in the state budget. He added that Nielsen has been, and will be a vocal propo- nent for keeping the grant alive. "We would argue that agriculture is such an impor- tant part of California's economy," Grima said. "And if we can't educate the next generation of people who are going to run the farms, and run the ranches, and do what it takes to pro- duce the food that feeds Cal- ifornia, and feeds the coun- try and feeds the world, we're going to have some serious problems." The students (there are about 290 agriculture stu- dents at the high school) had their own questions, which illuminated the uncertainties that surround an initial bud- get proposal. Question: What does Gov. Brown hope to accom- plish by getting rid of the grants? Grima: We have a differ- ence of opinion with the governor, but I can't speak to his thinking. Q: If the grant is elimi- nated, could it come back? Grima: It could. Q: If the grant is cut, will schools receive less money? Grima: That's a tough question to answer. Q: Does Gov. Brown understand the magnitude of what he's proposing? Grima: That's something that could be expressed when students go down to the state capitol building for Ag Day on March 19. Brown will submit a revised budget in May, and an enacted budget could fol- low in the summer months. Until then, Grima said he will notify people of upcoming budget hearings, where grant proponents could testify. Back at the barn, where market steers were feeding and the hogs were lounging, students were giving Nielsen's representatives a tour. Without the grant, the barn may stay, but the upkeep would suffer, said Lauren Stroud, an agricul- ture teacher at the high school. She also pointed to the word "incentive" in the grant's name. "It's that incentive to always get better," she said. "It allows you to try new things." Red Bluff High Principal Ron Fisher said it's about more than agriculture. Stu- dents learn to become lead- ers. Agriculture programs are where he learned to weld and operate machin- ery, too. "For me, personally," Fisher said, "ag and FFA is what got me through high school." 9A Saturday, February 15, 2014 – Daily News Obituaries Death Notices 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 news- paper's website. Paid obituaries may be of any length, may run multiple days and offer wide latitude of content, including photos. Setting it straight –––––––– It is the policy of the Daily News to correct as quickly as possible all errors in fact that have been published in the newspaper. If you feel a factual error has been made in a news story, call the news department at 527-2153. Priscilla H. Duberowski Priscilla H. Duberowski, of Corning, died Thursday, Feb. 13, at Enloe Medical Center in Chico. She was 74. Arrangements are under the direction of Hoyt-Cole Chapel of the Flowers. Published Saturday, Feb. 15, 2014 in the Daily News, Red Bluff, Calif. Jon Douglas Garcia Jon Douglas Garcia, of Corning, died Sunday, Feb. 9, at Enloe Medical Center in Chico. He was 42. Arrangements are under the direction of Hoyt-Cole Chapel of the Flowers. Published Saturday, Feb. 15, 2014 in the Daily News, Red Bluff, Calif. Steven Parker Steven Parker died Sunday, Feb. 9, at his Cotton- wood home. He was 54. Arrangements are under the direction of Blair's Cre- mation & Burial. Published Saturday, Feb. 15, 2014 in the Daily News, Red Bluff, Calif. That's the same date President Harry Truman wrote in his diary that he had decided to order the atomic bomb to be used. The hottest day record- ed on the back of the ther- mometer was July 24, 1975 — 122 degrees. On Aug. 8, 1978 writ- ten next to the temperature of 119.4 degrees is the phrase "hottest in US." Of all the weather mark- ings, one caught Ralph's eye. It's the only one that doesn't deal with how hot the temperature was. Instead it reads: "Feb. 10, 1981 — some very welcome rain." Thirty-three years ago Red Bluff was in such need of rain during the first part of February, someone had taken the time to mark it down. Retirement After around 50 years of being in the antique and photography businesses Ralph and his wife have decided to retire. Ralph said among his favorite items to collect were Native American antiques. Coincidentally, those items become easier to find in the area when the Sacramento River's water level drops, revealing new treasures in areas such as Oroville and Shasta Lake. Ralph said, while it was time to move away from the business, he still has plenty of ideas for the future. One is a lot of wishful thinking, but something Ralph said he'd love to see come to fruition. He'd like to see Red Bluff get a museum dedi- cated to antique cars, the former Ford dealership on Adobe would his ideal location, he said. Rich Greene can be reached at 527-2151, ext. 109 or rgreene@redbluffdailyne ws.com. Continued from page 1A TIME cent monthly rate increase, which would have amounted to 21 cents for a 96-gallon residential cart, and property owners were given the opportunity to file protests. At Tuesday's City Council meeting, Mayor Gary Strack said the city didn't receive any protests. But City Manager John Brewer relayed that the rate increase requested by the garbage col- lection agency was miscalculated. Matt Fryer, a district manager for Waste Management, told the council the requested increase will actually be about 3.3 percent because he was pre- viously unaware of a tipping fee increase of about $6 per ton at the county landfill starting March 1. "My apologies," Fryer said. "Almost $6 a ton is something that's not covered in the CPI, and unfortu- nately we can't absorb that cost every year when the tipping fees go that high," he added. The residential rate of $21.17 for a 96-gallon cart is now proposed to increase to $21.88 per month. And the rate for a 32-gallon senior citizen cart would rise from $10.59 to about $10.94. New postcards will go out, and Fryer said Corning Disposal will reim- burse the city for that cost. "I was expecting to come in here and ask for 99 tenths of a point, um, unfortunately..." Fryer said, adding, "I told John (Brewer) this morning that I don't want to come back a second time to ask for more. I know that's difficult. It's difficult enough to come ask every year." Tuesday's public hearing on the rate increase was tentatively continued to March 11. According to the previously adver- tised rate increase notice, protests must be made in writing and sent to the City Clerk at 794 Third St., or personally delivered at the hearing. Customers' names, addresses and the assessor's parcel number for properties need to be included. "If a majority so protests," the notice said, "the rate increase will not be enacted." Strack told Fryer he initially was going to congratulate him on keeping the increase so low. "But it's still low," Strack said, with a laugh. Continued from page 1A CORNING ment is important, but endangered fish too often get priority over farming, Woolf said. In wet years, too much water is sent down rivers and out to the Pacific Ocean, supposedly benefit- ing the fish, that could be stored up for dry years like this, she said. The Central Valley pro- duces nearly one-third of the nation's fruits and vegeta- bles, and Fresno County leads the nation in agricul- ture. Ryan Jacobsen, execu- tive director of the Fresno County Farm Bureau, esti- mates that 25 percent of the county's irrigated land will go unplanted because of the drought. The drought has caused Democrats and Republicans in Congress to propose duel- ing emergency bills. Led by Republican Rep. Devin Nunes, the House passed one that would free up water for farmers by rolling back environmental protections and stop the restoration of a dried-up stretch of the San Joaquin River that once had salmon runs. Democratic Sens. Dianne Feinstein and Bar- bara Boxer proposed their own version that pours $300 million into drought-relief projects without changing environmental laws. The bill would allow more flexi- bility to move water from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta to farms in the south and speed up envi- ronmental reviews of water projects. In his visit, Obama is scheduled to meet with a round table of farmers in Firebaugh and Los Banos and see the drought's impact firsthand. Mark Borba, of Borba Farms, said he hasn't been invited to meet the president and share his story. Borba's farm typically grows 11,000 acres of almonds, tomatoes, garlic, lettuce, onions and much more. Because of the drought, Borba said one-third of his crops won't be planted. Rather than bringing money, Borba said the pres- ident could ease this year's drought hardship on farmers by relaxing federal environ- mental regulations within the boundaries of the law intended to protect endan- gered fish. ''We don't want money,'' Borba said. ''We don't want a handout.'' Not everybody dismissed Obama's announcement. Rick Palermo of the Community Food Bank in Fresno said he expects that the drought will lengthen lines in three Central Valley counties he serves. The Fresno food bank expects to receive some of the presi- dent's money, but his worry is that the donations they get from farmers may be lack- ing. Continued from page 1A OBAMA office expanded the evacuation area to a radius of 2,000 feet from the house. ''I'm not happy about this, but if (the house) blows up, I'd rather not be in it,'' resident Liam O'Connell told the newspaper as he evacuated. O'Connell and his wife planned to stay with their daughter but first need- ed to make arrangements for their pet goat. The Red Cross has set up an evacu- ation center, though Kent said most of the displaced residents were with friends or family. Deputies planned to consult with water and air quality officials before proceeding with the incineration. Smoke plume models will be used to determine where the chemicals could disperse, Kent said. ''We're looking for clear skies and no wind,'' he said. Continued from page 1A SHASTA Continued from page 1A AG