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ByJoanLowyandTom Krisher The Associated Press WASHINGTON The first U.S. fatality using self-driv- ing technology took place in May when the driver of a Tesla S sports car operat- ing the vehicle's "Autopilot" automated driving system died after a collision with a truck in Florida, federal of- ficials said Thursday. The government is inves- tigating the design and per- formance of Tesla's system. Preliminary reports in- dicate the crash occurred when a tractor-trailer rig made a left turn in front of the Tesla at an intersection of a divided highway where there was no traffic light, the National Highway Traf- fic Safety Administration said. The Tesla driver died due to injuries sustained in the crash, which took place May 7 in Williston, Florida, the agency said. The city is southwest of Gainesville. Tesla said on its website that neither the driver nor the Autopilot noticed the white side of the trailer, which was perpendicular to the Model S, against the brightly lit sky, and neither applied the brakes. "The high ride height of the trailer combined with its positioning across the road and the extremely rare circumstances of the im- pact caused the Model S to pass under the trailer," the company said. The wind- shield of the Model S col- lided with the bottom of the trailer. The company said this was the first known death in over 130 million miles of Autopilot operation. It said the NHTSA investigation is a preliminary inquiry to de- termine whether the system worked as expected. Tesla says that before Au- topilot can be used, drivers have to acknowledge that the system is an "assist fea- ture" that requires a driver to keep both hands on the wheel at all times. Drivers are told they need to "main- tain control and responsi- bility for your vehicle" while using the system, and they have to be prepared to take over at any time, the state- ment said. Autopilot makes frequent checks,makingsurethedriv- er's hands are on the wheel, and it gives visual and au- dible alerts if hands aren't detected, and it gradually slows the car until a driver responds,thestatementsaid. Tesla conceded that the Autopilot feature is not per- fect, but said in the state- ment that it's getting bet- ter all the time. "When used in conjunction with driver oversight, the data is unequivocal that Autopi- lot reduces driver workload and results in a statistically significant improvement in safety," the company said. The Tesla driver was identified as Joshua D. Brown, 40, of Canton, Ohio. He was a former Navy SEAL who owned a tech- nology company, accord- ing an obituary posted on- line by the Murrysville Star in Pennsylvania. SELF-DRIVING VEHICLES Tesla driver killed in crash while using car's 'Autopilot' By Ricardo Alonso- Zaldivar The Associated Press WASHINGTON About 1.6 million people who signed up for coverage this year under President Barack Obama's health care law dropped out by the end of March, according to ad- ministration figures re- leased late Thursday. The report from the Health and Human Ser- vices department said some 11.1 million people were still signed up. But that's a drop of nearly 13 percent from the 12.7 mil- lion who initially enrolled for subsidized private cov- erage this year. Those dropouts failed to seal the deal by paying their pre- miums. The pattern of attrition is not new, and has been seen each year since cus- tomers began receiving health law coverage in 2014. However, this year the administration had been trying to do a better job of weeding out problem applications while sign-up season was still underway. "The drop off is maybe a tad higher than expected, given that they dropped people as they went along," said Larry Levitt, an ex- pert on the health care law with the nonpartisan Kaiser Family Founda- tion. "But it's in the range of reasonable results." The administration said a retention rate of 87 percent is in line with its goal of about 10 million still signed up at the end of this year. Also, some of the dropouts are likely to have switched to another kind of coverage, such as an employer plan. Although the health law's online insurance markets are now working smoothly, there's still con- cern that the overall pro- gram may not be stable. Enrollment has been lower than hoped for, and customers turned out to be sicker than expected. Some major insurance compa- nies have cut back their participation, and 13 of 23 nonprofit insurance co-ops created under the law have folded. Premiums for 2017 are expected to be signifi- cantly higher. The health care law of- fers subsidized private in- surance through online markets like HealthCare. gov, also called exchanges. HEALTH CARE LAW About 1.6M drop-outs from coverage this year By Kathleen Hennessey The Associated Press WASHINGTON President Barack Obama's inability to overhaul the nation's im- migration system will stand as the most glaring failure in his effort to enact a vi- sion of social change. De- spite two campaigns full of promises and multiple strategies, he imposed only incremental, largely tempo- rary modifications. When his presidency ends in January, Obama will leave behind an out- dated and overwhelmed system, with some 11 mil- lion people living in the U.S. illegally. The missed goal is part of a legacy that included a sometimes contradic- tory mix of policies — some aimed at bringing immi- grants "out of the shad- ows," others at removing them from the U.S. Obama will be remem- beredforprotecting730,000 young people, a generation of so-called Dreamers, who were brought to the U.S. as children. Advocates and al- lies will credit him with embracing a newly ag- gressive assertion of exec- utive power that, despite last week's Supreme Court deadlock and political op- position, remains a legal pathway for the next pres- ident. And he will go down as a leader who consistently defended the importance of immigrants in American life, as anti-immigrant sen- timent swelled up in parts of the U.S. and abroad. "Immigration is not something to fear," Obama said last week. "We don't have to wall ourselves off from those who may not look like us right now or pray like we do, or have a different last name." But Obama also will be remembered as a president who prioritized other is- sues, missing perhaps the best chance to pass sweep- ing legislation and only reluctantly adjusting his strategy in the face of firm opposition. And his administration aggressively enforced cur- rent laws, deporting more than 2.4 million people. The total is nearly as many as his two predecessors com- bined. "He was facing an un- precedented, highly per- sonalized opposition from Congress," said Janet Mur- guia, president of the Na- tional Council of La Raza, an immigration advocacy group, who once labeled Obama the "deporter-in- chief." "We fault him, I be- lieve correctly, for failing to recognize soon enough this intransigence by Congress and failing to use his au- thority sooner." If evaluating Obama's re- cord is a matter of tallying two columns — in one, the number of people he pro- tected from removal; in the other, the number deported — the court went a long way toward tipping the ledger toward the latter. With its 4-4 tie, it thwarted Obama's last chance to shield up to 4 million people from depor- tation. The decision left in place an injunction freez- ing his 2014 executive ac- tion, which had expanded his protection of Dreamers and temporarily protected some parents of people with legal status. The deadlock, resulting from a Republican blockade against Obama's Supreme Court nominee, left the con- stitutionality of the action unsettled. But it had a sig- nificant impact on Obama's legacy. "If the Supreme Court had ruled in his favor, he'd probably be remembered as the person who helped to protect half of the un- documented population in the country," said Frank Sharry, founder of the im- migration reform group America's Voice. Instead, he said Obama will be most re- membered for his adminis- tration's deportations. PRESIDENCY Obama legacy: Immigration stands as major failure ANDREWHARNIK—THEASSOCIATEDPRESS President Barack Obama speaks in the White House briefing room. Magazine-size print and online Distribution through July, 2017 Licensedcontractorsonly. If you're a licensed contractor In Tehama County, your business name, Lic #, phone and specialty will be listed at no charge To add information and stand out from the crowd, low cost advertising is available In this directory! AD DEADLINE: FRIDAY, JULY 15 Contact your Advertising Representative for more information: DAILY NEWS RED BLUFF TEHAMA COUNTY 2016TEHAMA COUNTY CONTRACTORS GUIDE Suzy Noble (530) 737-5056 snoble@redbluffdailynews.com Gayla Eckels (530) 737-5044 geckels@redbluffdailynews.com This could be your lucky day by helping a dog or cat find a loving home from... 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