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ByAlisonNoon TheAssociatedPress SACRAMENTO Continu- ing a wave of expanding la- bor policy reforms aimed at addressing income inequal- ity, California's Democratic governor signed legislation Monday to increase time-off pay for employees who must leave work to care for their family. Gov. Jerry Brown signed AB908 to expand the state's paid family leave law, say- ing he wants to create a "more decent and empa- thetic kind of community." At a signing ceremony, Brown said providing more assistance to the state's low- est earners on family leave will help correct the grow- ing income disparity facing California and every other state. "We're trying to compen- sate for the gross inequality that is not an abstraction," Brown said. Brown postponed sign- ing the family leave bill last month during his negotia- tions with labor unions to boost the state's minimum wage. He approved a plan last week to raise the state- wide minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2022. California is one of just four states and territories to mandate any pay during family leave. Its law already allows workers to take up to six weeks off work to bond with a new child or care for sick family members and receive 55 percent of their wages. The measure Brown signed Monday increases the pay to 60 percent of wages starting in 2018 and creates a new classification for low-income workers to receive 70 percent of their pay. California's program is funded by worker contri- butions and is operated by the state's Employment Development Department. A legislative analysis esti- mates increased leave pay will cost that fund about $348 million in 2018 and $587 million annually by 2021, according to a legis- lative analysis. The state EDD has enough in savings from workers' contributions to cover the additional ben- efits, the analysis said. AssemblymanJimmyGo- mez, D-Los Angeles, wrote the bill after a state review found that low-income workers are the least likely to use the benefit. Nine in 10 workers who take paid family leave use it after the birth of a child. Many Republicans op- posed the legislation but there was little debate about it in the state Leg- islature and several GOP lawmakers declined to of- fer comment Monday. The California Chamber of Commerce did not take a position on the bill, spokes- woman Denise Davis said. California's move comes amid other similar steps by local and state governments as issues of income inequal- ity draw more attention this election year. San Francisco last week became the first place in the country to require busi- nesses to provide six weeks of fully paid leave for new parents, a rarity now of- fered to some government sector workers and some private employees. New York state extended partial pay from six weeks to 12 in March. New Jer- sey and Rhode Island pro- vide partial pay for up to six weeks. Federal law requires pri- vate businesses with 50 or more employees and all gov- ernment agencies to allow workers to take 12 weeks of unpaid family leave. CALIFORNIA BrownOKsincreasedpay for family leave absences JEFFCHIU—THEASSOCIATEDPRESS Kim Turner holds her daughter Adelaide Turner Winn before a rally supporting paid family leave at City Hall in San Francisco. JEFF CHIU — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS University of California graduate student Kathleen Gutierrez, center, is comforted by student Erin Bennett, le , and Tyann Sorrell before all spoke at a news conference on Monday. By Lisa Leff The Associated Press BERKELEY Two graduate students at the Univer- sity of California, Berke- ley took their allegations that a professor sexually harassed them to the state agency that investigates discrimination claims on Monday, saying they were frustrated by the campus administration's failure to discipline the faculty mem- ber. The doctoral students, Kathleen Gutierrez and Erin Bennett, filed com- plaints Monday with the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing saying that South and Southeast Asian Stud- ies Assistant Professor Blake Wentworth repeat- edly touched them and made inappropriate sex- ual comments. Accompanied by a law- yer, the women went pub- lic with their claims on the UC Berkeley campus as several student groups prepared to hold a rally to protest a series of sex- ual harassment cases that since the fall have em- barrassed the prestigious school and led to the res- ignations of a prominent astronomer, a law school dean and an assistant bas- ketball coach. Gutierrez, 28, said she has been kept in the dark for months about what UC Berkeley plans to do about her allegations, which were substantiated by campus investigators in October. Bennett, 25, said the stress of her interac- tions with Wentworth and fear of running into him on campus caused her to take medical leave and suspend the second year of her graduate studies. "It's been debilitating," she said. "It's already de- railed my future career, my education." Campus spokesman Dan Mogulof said the school plans to comment later Monday. Wentworth did not immediately reply to an email seeking com- ment. Both women reported their concerns a year ago to the office at UC Berke- ley that investigates sex- ual misconduct cases. An investigator concluded in October that Wentworth had violated university sexual harassment pol- icy with his behavior to- ward Gutierrez, but not during his dealings with Bennett, according to re- dacted records obtained by The Associated Press through a public records request. The records show that the findings were for- warded at that time to the campus vice provost for faculty. Disciplinary pro- ceedings involving fac- ulty members usually are conducted to an Aca- demic Senate committee, and ones involving Wen- tworth still were pend- ing as of last week, the re- cords state. 2 Cal students fil e co mp la in ts over harassment BERKELEY ALISON NOON — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS California Gov. Jerry Brown, right, speaks in his office a er signing into law a bill increasing the amount of income Californians can receive during paid family leave, on Monday in Sacramento. By Ellen Knickmeyer The Associated Press SAN FRANCISCO The fed- eral government will inves- tigate allegations that the state and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation improp- erly used federal funds for a $15.7 billion tunnel proj- ect that would bring water from Northern to Southern California. The inspector general of the U.S. Interior Depart- ment will look into accusa- tions that California took $60 million meant for fish habitat to spend on prelim- inary work for Gov. Jerry Brown's project and oth- erwise mishandled fed- eral funds. Washington, D.C.-based Public Employees for En- vironmental Responsibil- ity requested the review on behalf of an unidenti- fied federal employee who raised the allegations. Press officers for the Cal- ifornia Department of Wa- ter Resources and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation said Monday that their agencies would cooperate with the inspector gener- al's review. They declined to comment on the allega- tions. Brown's administration wants to build 30 miles of 40-foot-wide tunnels to carry water from the Sac- ramento River south to Central and Southern Cal- ifornia. Water districts that would receive the water would pay for the giant tunnels. But key water dis- tricts already have paid at least $250 million total on preliminary work for the project and have recently balked at spending more until and unless the proj- ect wins full state and fed- eral approval. Brown's administration says the tunnels will en- sure a more reliable wa- ter supply in the drought- stricken state. Opponents fear the tunnels will take too much water out the Sacramento River's delta with the San Joaquin River. Opponents and support- ers disagree whether the project will further harm dozens of native fish and wildlife in the delta that are protected by endan- gered-species laws. The review of the spend- ing would begin this month, Mary Kendall, dep- uty inspector general for the Interior Department, said Friday. Six California members of Congress wrote the Bu- reau of Reclamation in February asking for an- swers about use of federal funds for the tunnels proj- ect. The bureau had not yet responded to the con- gressional members' ques- tions but would, spokes- man Daniel DuBray said. Restore the Delta, a group opposed to the tun- nels, said Monday that Brown's administration was diverting "funds that are supposed to benefit fish and wildlife to a project that will principally bene- fit irrigators." CALIFORNIA Feds to review tunnels project funds The Associated Press OAKLAND The Bay Area Rapid Transit and three of its major unions have reached a four-year con- tract extension that in- cludes raises and avoids strikes like those that frus- trated commuters in 2013. The tentative agreement announced Monday comes as Bart officials campaign for a $3.5 billion bond mea- sure to rebuild its aging in- frastructure that will be voted on in November. The contract agreement includes a raise of 10.5 per- cent per employee, spread over four years. BART General Manager Grace Cruncian says it in- sures "five years of labor peace." Union members will have to ratify the contract in the next 30 days. It will then be taken up by BART's board of directors. Nearly 370,000 riders take BART every weekday, and its 104 miles of track make it the nation's fifth- largest commuter rail sys- tem. TRANSIT BART, unions reach tentative 4-year contract extension, averting strike | NEWS | REDBLUFFDAILYNEWS.COM TUESDAY, APRIL 12, 2016 8 A