Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/375559
ByJustinPritchard The Associated Press RENO, NEV. Tesla Motors has chosen Nevada as the site for a massive, $5 billion factory that will pump out batteries for a new genera- tion of less expensive elec- tric cars, a person familiar with the company's plans said Wednesday. The person, who spoke on condition of anonymity be- cause no official announce- ment was made, said work soon will resume at an in- dustrial park outside Reno. Nevada still must approve a package of incentives Tesla negotiated. Four other states — Cal- ifornia, Texas, Arizona and New Mexico — were vying for the project and the es- timated 6,500 jobs it will bring. Tesla needs what it calls the "gigafactory" to make cheaper batteries for its Model 3, a mass-market electric car the company hopes to sell by 2017 for around $35,000. Currently, Tesla offers only the Model S sedan, which starts at $70,000. Nevada Gov. Brian San- doval's office said only that he would make a "major economic development an- nouncement" Thursday af- ternoon. A spokesman for Tesla, based in Palo Alto, said company representatives would be at the Capitol in Carson City for the an- nouncement but offered no other details. Tesla has done site-prep- aration work at the Reno Tahoe Industrial Center but had not publicly com- mitted to building in Ne- vada, instead waiting as other states put together their best packages of eco- nomic incentives. This spring, Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced that the company would take the extremely unusual step of spending millions to pre- pare sites in two states — or perhaps even three — be- fore choosing a winner. The person familiar with Tesla's plans told The Asso- ciated Press a second site still will be prepared, in case Nevada is unable to deliver the incentives it has promised — or possibly to build a second factory. Sandoval has declined to discuss any incentives he has offered during negoti- ations with Tesla. Based on Musk's public statements of what he expects a winning bid would be worth, the in- centive package likely will total at least $500 mil- lion. Sandoval would have to call a special session of the state Legislature to ap- prove tax breaks, grants or other incentives of that magnitude. Nevada's other advan- tages include low tax rates, plenty of sun and wind to generate "green" power, and relative proximity to Tes- la's manufacturing plant in the San Francisco Bay Area. The industrial park 15 miles east of Reno also is near a deposit of lithium, an essen- tial element to produce the battery cells. Tesla will pay about half of the factory's cost. The other major investor is Pan- asonic, which will manufac- ture the lithium-ion battery cells and invest in equip- ment. Lance Gilman, principal and director of the Reno Tahoe Industrial Center, said he had not been told of a final decision. "It would be the most ex- citing news of the century to me," he said. At 167 square miles of high desert, the industrial park is the nation's largest — befitting of such a large factory. Tesla has said it would need about 10 million square feet. Competition has been intense among the states, which have bid up their in- centive packages in private negotiations with Tesla. $5 BILLION FACTORY So ur ce : Te sl a se le ct s Nevada for battery plant By Sudhin Thanawala The Associated Press SAN FRANCISCO Pacific Gas & Electric Co. plans to appeal a $1.4 billion pen- alty recommended by Cal- ifornia regulatory judges for a gas pipeline explosion in a San Francisco suburb that killed eight people, the utility said in a filing Wednesday with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The utility said it plans to appeal to the California Public Utilities Commis- sion within 30 days. The filing did not list a reason for the appeal, but PG&E spokesman Greg Snapper said the util- ity wants the commis- sion to take into consid- eration the $2.7 billion PG&E has or will spend on gas pipeline safety im- provements. "We're planning to ask the commission to review yesterday's recommenda- tion to make sure that a final penalty counts all of the company's safety in- vestments and actions to make the gas system the best in the country," Snap- per said. He said any penalty should also directly go to- ward public safety. By far the largest share of the $1.4 billion penalty rec- ommended by two admin- istrative law judges Tues- day would go directly to the state with no strings attached. The $950 million por- tion marked for the state's general fund also drew ob- jections from a private ad- vocacy group for ratepay- ers and the city of San Bruno, the San Francisco suburb where the fiery 2010 explosion destroyed more than three dozen homes and became the state's deadliest utility di- saster in decades. Those funds can be spent any way the gover- nor and Legislature see fit, said H.D. Palmer, a spokes- man for the state Depart- ment of Finance. The penalty — the larg- est safety-related levy ever against a public util- ity in the state — also in- cludes $400 million for pipeline improvements and about $50 million to enhance pipeline safety. PG&E cannot recover any of the money from cus- tomers. Any appeal would first go to the administrative law judges who recom- mended the penalty be- fore going to the state util- ities commission for con- sideration. The blast occurred when a 30-inch natu- ral-gas transmission line installed in 1956 ruptured. A 2011 investigation by the National Transpor- tation Safety Board con- cluded the break occurred in a weak weld in a pipe- line that PG&E records had shown as being smooth and unwelded. Among other safety failings, PG&E let an hour and 35 minutes go by before shutting off the natural gas fueling the fire, the federal investiga- tors said. The utilities commis- sion previously ordered PG&E to pay $635 million for pipeline modernization — money that also cannot come from PG&E custom- ers. This year, federal prose- cutors separately indicted PG&E on 27 counts alleg- ing the utility violated pipeline safety require- ments. PG&E faces additional fines of more than $1 bil- lion if convicted of the fed- eral charges, which are separate from the state fi- nancial penalties. PG&E has pleaded not guilty to the counts. EIGHT KILLED PG&E plans to appeal penalty in blast JEFFCHIU‑THEASSOCIATEDPRESS A massive fire following a pipeline explosion roars through a mostly residential neighborhood in San Bruno on Sept. 10, 2010. By Kevin Freking Associated Press WASHINGTON The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has taken the rare step of en- dorsing the Democratic in- cumbent in one of Califor- nia's most hotly contested congressional races. The trade group over- whelmingly endorses Re- publican candidates. But this time it sided with Rep. Scott Peters, a fresh- man representing a San Di- ego-based district. Of the more than 260 candidates the chamber has endorsed this election cycle, Peters is only the fourth Democrat. On Wednesday, Peters' campaign released an en- dorsement letter from Thomas Donahue, the group's president and chief executive. "We believe that your re- election to the U.S. House of Representatives will help produce sustained economic growth, help cre- ate jobs, and get our coun- try back on track," Dona- hue wrote. The endorsement is a coup for Peters, who faces a strong challenge from Re- publican Carl DeMaio, a former member of the San Diego City Council who also started and sold two businesses. The district is almost evenly divided among Re- publicans, Democrats and independent voters, which gives candidates an incen- tive to work across party lines. That's something Peters sought to highlight in his response to the en- dorsement. When it comes to im- proving the economy, he said Congress needs bi- partisan cooperation, "not gridlock and flame-throw- ing." DeMaio, in a campaign event Tuesday, also sought to strike a bipartisan tone, calling on his party to be "more inclusive and pos- itive." His campaign re- sponded to the chamber's endorsement by saying it was to be expected. "We're not surprised that a special interest group in DC is trying to protect Members of Con- gress. They like the sys- tem the way it is. They know Carl DeMaio is com- ing to end the perks for this crowd," Dave McCulloch, a DeMaio campaign spokes- man, said in an emailed statement. Rob Engstrom, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce national political direc- tor, said via Twitter that the DeMaio campaign ac- tively sought the group's endorsement and called the response sour grapes. POLITICS Business group backs Democrat in state race By Sue Manning Associated Press LOS ANGELES Imagine walking to your car after running errands and spot- ting a dog, panting and helpless, shut inside a hot car. Smashing the win- dow might be your first im- pulse, but calling police or animal control will protect you from injury and possi- ble lawsuits, experts say. Hundreds of pets die each year when they are left in closed cars that rapidly become deadly on hot days, estimated Dr. Jules Benson, chief veterinary officer for Petplan pet insurance. He cited insurance claims, vet- erinarian records and other data. "This just doesn't need to happen," Benson said. "No- body means for it to hap- pen. It is preventable." Every minute counts when an animal is in- side a hot car, but author- ities encourage people to call 911 instead of break- ing in. Those who do cause damage rescuing animals wouldn't be charged unless there is evidence of crimi- nal intent, but dog owners could choose to sue, prose- cutors said. "California state law al- lows police and humane and animal-control offi- cers to do what is reason- ably necessary to remove an animal from a vehicle if it is in immediate danger," Los Angeles County Deputy District Attorney Deborah Knaan said. "The law does not men- tion civilians." Attempting a rescue yourself can also lead to in- jury, said Bill Johnson, ex- ecutive director of the Na- tional Association of Police Organizations. "You may be trying to help the dog, but the dog doesn't know who you are. And you don't want to get yourself hurt," he said. States' anti-cruelty laws are used to prosecute peo- ple who endanger their ani- mals. The Animal Legal De- fense Fund said 15 states have laws that go further by prohibiting leaving pets in hot cars and giving first responders an extra layer of protection against possible lawsuits. It takes just 10 minutes for the inside of a car to reach 102 degrees when it's 85 degrees out, even with the windows cracked, the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to An- imals said. In half an hour, the tem- perature will soar to 120 de- grees, which can be lethal in minutes. Because dogs can't sweat, they can't con- trol their body temperature in intense heat, leading to extensive organ damage, heatstroke or suffocation. To stem the deaths, the Philadelphia Police Depart- ment created a campaign about the dangers of for- getting pets and kids in hot cars, an effort other munic- ipalities have undertaken. The agency put a draw- ing of a broken window on its Facebook page, with the message: "You're never too busy to remember — and if you forget — the PPD will gladly open the window for you!" Philadelphia police urge people to call 911 so offi- cers can rescue pets, "but we also realize that every second counts and people have to do what is right," said Sgt. Eric Gripp, who made the online post. Nancy Hassel has been trying to deter hot-car deaths for years. As pres- ident of the networking group Long Island Pet Pro- fessionals, she tells stu- dents taking her classes on responsible dog owner- ship: "If you see something, do something." Animal welfare agencies largely work to inform the public because there's a lack of awareness about the dan- ger of a hot car. "People often don't re- alize how hot the inside of their cars can get and how fast that happens," said Stacy Wolf, the ASPCA's se- nior vice president of anti- cruelty. ANIMALS Spotting a pet in a hot car creates tough choices ASSOCIATED PRESS This undated photo of a poster provided by LA County District Attorney's Office shows a poster reminding pet owners that it's against the law to leave their animals in their vehicles during the dog days of summer. Select"Subscribe"tabinlowerrightcorner Complete information for automatic weekly delivery to your email inbox That's it! This FREE service made possible by the advertisers in TV Select Magazine Kindly patronize and thank them. Click on their ads online to access their websites! N EWS D AILY RED BLUFF TEHAMA COUNTY FREE online subscription to TV Select Magazine Digital edition emailed to you, every Saturday! Just go online to www.ifoldsflip.com/t/5281 (You'll only need to go there one time) • Fully searchable online, zoom in, print out pages and more! • No newspaper online subscription or website access required. • Best of all ... it's ABSOLUTELY FREE! THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2014 REDBLUFFDAILYNEWS.COM | NEWS | 3 B