Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/5653
to our statewide water sup- plies,'' Sims said in a state- ment in which she also urged conservation. Measuring water content in the Sierra snowpack is important because it helps hydrologists determine how much water farmers and cities can expect in the com- ing year. Most of California's December-through-March wet season lies ahead, pro- viding hope that the state can avoid another year of drought. Forecasters also are pre- dicting a moderate to strong El Nino effect this winter. The periodic warming along the equatorial Pacific gener- ally produces heavier-than- normal precipitation in Cali- fornia. Kathy Hoxsie, a meteo- rologist at the National Weather Service in Sacra- mento, said Northern Cali- fornia has ''an excellent shot of getting above-average precipitation'' through early March. ''If we have an above- normal year this year, it will really ease the drought con- ditions,'' she said. Three years of below- average rain and snowfall have drained California's reservoirs. Lake Oroville, the key reservoir in the State Water Project, is slightly less than half as full as it should be at this time of year. Earlier this month, state officials announced they expected to release a record- low amount of water to 25 million California residents next year if the drought con- tinues — just 5 percent of what contractors have requested. Farmers who depend on state and federal water deliv- eries say they are hoping for a cold, wet winter. ''We're so dependent on Mother Nature,'' said Paul Wenger, a Modesto almond and walnut grower and pres- ident of the California Farm Bureau Federation. ''We just cross our fingers and hope and pray that we get some wet weather.'' At Phillips Station near South Lake Tahoe, state water officials measured the snow depth at 38.5 inches and the water content at 9 inches, which is 75 percent of the average for this time of year. The area is at an ele- vation of 6,800 feet. Electronic readings show the average water content level for the northern Sierra, which stretches from the Trinity River to the Feather and Truckee rivers, was 77 percent of normal. Water content was 85 percent of normal in the central Sierra snowpack and 99 percent of normal in the southern region, which stretches from the San Joaquin River and Mono Lake basin to the Kern River. While the snow levels were below normal, the recent storms have drawn skiers to the slopes in the Sierra over the holiday sea- son. At Alpine Meadows, more than 100 inches of snow had fallen by mid- December, said spokes- woman Rachael Woods. Thursday, December 31, 2009 – Daily News – 7A Largest Selection In Tri-County • Herbal Medicines • Edibles (Foods) • Clones 1317 Solano St. (530) 824-4811 www.tehamaherbalcollective.vpweb.com Corning Calif. DONALD R. JOHNSON September 25, 1935 to December 22,2009 Don was born in Fergus Falls, Minnesota to Melvin G. and Mabel C. Johnson. Don moved from southern California to Corning in 1979. Don owned and oper- ated All Valley Septic. Don leaves behind his wife Carol of 52 years, son Paul John- son of Corning, daughters Vickie Johnson of Santa Clarita, and Lorri Chambers of Chico, six grandchildren, three great-grandchildren, sister Marian Iglestad, and niece Mary Jo Iglestad, both of Fergus Falls. Don was preceded in death by his pa- rents. He will be greatly missed. NANCY WHITTEN WILSON Nancy Whitten Wilson passed away in Red Bluff, December 30, 2009 at the age of 89. She was born in her Aunt Nan- cy's home on the corner of Mon- roe and Pine Streets on July 30, 1920 to Louvill and Beatrix Page Whitten---their 5th girl. She attended Reeds Creek School and Red Bluff High School graduating in 1938. She moved to Chico in 1939 and was employed by the phone company as an operator and secretary to the engineers. Dur- ing WWII she moved to Fontana to be with her sister with the in- tention of joining the Women's Army Service Pilots (WASP). After receiving 35 hours of pilot training at Olancha and passing the Air Force exam, the WASPS disbanded at the war was al- most over. While awaiting fight training in Texas, she worked as a control tower operator at the War Eagle Field in Lancaster and secretary to the Group Commanders at the basic train- ing field in Ontario. After the war she moved to San Francisco and again worked for the phone company at the St. Francis Hotel attendant station. She later transferred to Red Bluff and was promoted to the Traffic Manager's office in Chico. She worked for Modern Building Construction Company for twelve years where she met and married Woody Wilson. They moved to the Bay Area and pur- chased a home in Livermore. She was employed as a secre- tary with Zellerbach Paper Co. and Eaton Corporation. In 1977 they retired and moved back to Red Bluff and built a home on the Whitten ranch west of town. She enjoyed her home and traveling in the United States as well as camping and fishing at Eagle and Shasta Lakes. She was preceded in death by her parents, husband Woody, sisters Berness Medford, Susan Adele York, Annabelle Wright, Helen Tainer and brother Hom- er Whitten. She is survived by sister-in-law, Joye Whitten, numerous neph- ews and nieces, great and great-great nephews and nie- ces. There will be a private burial on January 9th at Oak Hill Ceme- tery. Donations can be made to St. Elizabeth's Hospice at 1425 Vista Way, Red Bluff, CA 9680. Obituaries Death Notices Nancy H. Wilson Nancy H. Wilson, a 59- year resident of Tehama County, died Wednesday, Dec. 30, 2009, in Red Bluff. She was 89. Private family services will be held. Hoyt-Cole Chapel of the Flowers is handling the arrangements. Published Thursday, December 31, 2009, in the Daily News, Red Bluff, Calif. I. Griggs, 55, on the floor of the couple's Chicago Avenue home. Griggs had suffered a severe beating and lacera- tions to the back of her head before her death, according to Tehama County Superior Court documents. Piazza was later found at a Dairyville residence, where he was arrested without incident. Calls to Piazza's lawyer, Diane Martin, were not returned Tues- day afternoon. Piazza is being held in the Tehama County Jail without bail. —Geoff Johnson Continued from page 1A MURDER number for Red Bluff Patient Collective has been disconnected. The Jenkinses, who owned the collective as a 501(c)3 non-profit, have told the Daily News they began operations before the ban went into place. The collective was noteworthy for its location next to the Tehama Coun- ty Sheriff's Department. Sheriff Clay Parker deliv- ered citations to the col- lective daily. A trial is set for March 31. ——— Geoff Johnson can be reached at 527-2153, extension 114 or gjohnson@redbluffdailyn ews.com. Continued from page 1A POT Have a news tip? Call 527-2151, Ext. 112 Continued from page 1A SIERRA lems in their community. Both Bowles and Ortiz said they are looking for- ward to attempting a sec- ond win of the award, especially after several units answered their chal- lenge to compete this year. "We want to double the activities (from what was done last year)," Bowles said. "It would be very exciting to be the first in the whole history (of the award) to win and achieve this award two times in a row." In order to win the award the group must do at least one activity a month for the whole year. The group has been busy with a variety of events from holding a drill for their unit to brainstorm ideas to visiting local schools like Salisbury High School to talk with students about staying drug free, Ortiz said. Wednesday, the Young Marines spent the day talking with Red Bluff residents while handing out bags that read "Seat belts or body bags, one size fits all" filled with everything from pam- phlets to freebies like pens and flashlights. "I think it's a good idea," said Harvey Mills, whose 14-year-old son Manuel recently joined the Young Marines. Mills was one of sever- al residents who tried Fatal Vision Goggles pro- vided by CHP. The gog- gles simulate being under the influence. "It's a hard test," Mills said. "I just look at it as if you weren't drunk before you put (the goggles) on you were afterwards. It's a good indication of what it's like." CHP Officer Pat Hur- ton was available to give people testing out the gog- gles a sobriety test with everything from touching their nose to balancing with one foot off the ground or catching a ball. "We're just happy to support the Young Marines' cause," Hurton said. "The goggles really do work well and are a lot like reality. (In a sobriety test people under the influence) get so focused on walking they forget things like how many steps they've taken. They focus on one thing and they're oblivious to the other things you asked them to do." Hurton applauded the Young Marines being involved in keeping the community safe. "I'm paid to do this," Hurton said. "It's neat to see that at their age they are taking their time while on vacation to do this." The Young Marines will be planning activities throughout the year with the biggest being a confer- ence in February at the Capitol in Sacramento, where Rep. Wally Herger and Assemblyman Jim Nielsen will be speaking, Gunnery Sgt. Chris Collins said. "Now that we have competition (in other Young Marine units) we're trying to push hard- er to win the award and do even more events," Ortiz said. ——— Julie Zeeb can be reached at 527-2153, extension 115 or jzeeb@redbluffdailynews. com. Continued from page 1A YOUTH SACRAMENTO (AP) — Hammered by a housing down- turn that contributed to the state's budget crisis, California is boost- ing protections for home buyers and punishing brokers who mis- lead borrowers and steer them into costly loans. Statutes requiring individual loan officers to register with the state, making it a crime to give inaccurate information during the mortgage-application process and ensuring that banks inform poten- tial borrowers of all their loan products are among hundreds of California laws that take effect Friday. Other new laws will ban restaurants from cooking with trans fats, honor gay rights activist Harvey Milk with a day of recognition, make it easier for celebrities to sue the media for invasion of privacy, ban the prac- tice of cutting cow tails and estab- lish a commission to promote blueberries. The most high-profile legisla- tion in a year dominated by bud- get cuts was a package of bills that seeks to change how the state uses water and manages the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, the estuary that funnels fresh water from north to south. Part of that package is an $11.1 billion water bond that will appear on the November ballot. Lawmakers filled the bond with special-interest earmarks to win passage, a potential weak point as they try to persuade voters to pass it. The mortgage bills crack down on what critics say was irrespon- sible subprime lending that left California among the states hard- est hit by the meltdown in the housing market. That has led to higher unemployment and lower tax revenue, adding to budget crises for local and state govern- ments. ''It was certainly in response to what we're seeing across the state with the increase in foreclo- sures and the economic down- turn,'' said Dustin Hobbs, spokesman at the California Mortgage Bankers Association. ''I think lawmakers were trying to make sure we didn't see it in future years.'' A law by Assemblyman Ted Lieu, D-Torrance, will prohibit lenders from steering borrowers who qualify for fixed-rate loans into riskier higher-priced loans. Mortgage brokers and banks will be required to notify clients about all the loans they offer. Loans that get larger the longer a borrower holds them — known as negative amortization loans — will be banned in most cases. Caps also will be placed on the penalties loan providers levy when mortgage holders pay off their loans early. A law by Sen. Fran Pavley, D- Agoura Hills, will make it a crime for mortgage brokers to deliber- ately misrepresent or omit infor- mation to get loans for borrowers. Potential penalties include up to a year in prison. ''If all states had stronger mortgage laws seven years ago, I think this whole crisis could have been mitigated,'' Lieu said. ''Part of the reason it's so important for this kind of reform law is there is a huge knowledge imbalance between what banks know and what you the consumer knows.'' Lawmakers also boosted pro- tections for Californians who already own a home. A law by Mike Feuer, D-Los Angeles, seeks to protect the growing num- ber of senior citizens pursuing reverse mortgages. It will require lenders to give customers a list of independent counseling agencies and a checklist about the risks and alternatives to reverse mortgages, a special type of home loan that converts a portion of a home's equity into cash. Here are some of the other laws that take effect with the new year: GAY RIGHTS — Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger reversed himself this year by signing into law a bill honoring slain gay rights activist Harvey Milk with a special day of recognition in California. Milk is just the second person in state his- tory to gain such a designation, behind conservationist John Muir. Each May 22 — Milk's birthday — will be ''Harvey Milk Day.'' The Republican governor vetoed similar legislation in 2008. TRANS-FAT BAN — Califor- nia becomes the first state in the country to ban restaurants, bak- eries and other retail food estab- lishments from using oil, mar- garine and shortening containing trans fats. Schwarzenegger, a for- mer bodybuilder who regularly talks about healthy eating and exercise, signed the legislation by Assemblyman Tony Mendoza, D- Artesia, in 2008. It did not take effect until 2010 to give outlets time to convert their cooking processes. The law affects oil, shortening and margarine used in spreads or for frying. Restaurants can continue using trans fats to deep-fry yeast dough and in cake batter until Jan. 1, 2011. The leg- islation follows moves by several major cities and fast-food chains to ban the substance. CAR LIENS — California car buyers will get more protection under a law by Sen. Elaine Cor- bett, D-San Leandro. It requires dealers to prove they have paid off vehicle liens before trading or selling them. The bill was in response to a growing problem nationwide triggered by the recession: Dealers often promise to pay off outstanding loans when car buyers still owe money on their trade-in vehicle. But if the dealer goes out of business with- out paying off the loan, lenders can go after the previous owner or repossess the resold car from the new owner. DOG FIGHTING — Watch- ing an illegal dogfight in Califor- nia could cost spectators more jail time. The new law by Assembly- man Pedro Nava, D-Santa Bar- bara, increases jail time from a maximum of six months to one year. Fines are increased from $1,000 to $5,000. BLUEBERRY COMMIS- SION — Assemblywoman Fiona Ma, D-San Francisco, is author of a new law that establishes a com- mission to promote California's growing blueberry industry. The commission's $1.2 million annual budget will come from a surcharge on blueberries. Schwarzenegger over the summer chastised law- makers for promoting a new com- mission while the state was mired in a budget deficit, but the gover- nor later reversed himself and signed the bill. COWS TAILS — California becomes the first state banning the painful practice of tail dock- ing. Dairy officials say the prac- tice of cutting off cow tails to pre- vent them from slinging manure is practiced on fewer than 15 per- cent of the state's 1.5 million dairy cows. Schwarzenegger ini- tially mocked lawmakers for seeking the law, but the governor signed it after lawmakers agreed to resolve the state's budget short- fall. New state laws protect borrowers, consumers