Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/7030
The following infor- mation is compiled from Red Bluff Police Depart- ment, Tehama County Sheriff's Department, Corning Police Depart- ment and California Highway Patrol. Theft •About $70 worth of furniture was reportedly stolen Wednesday from Jackson Street and $100 more from another resi- dence in the neighbor- hood. •Someone found evi- dence of an attempted hot wiring and gas theft Wednesday morning on Fourth Avenue. Altogether the damage was about $75. •Someone reported finding pry marks on a mailbox Thursday evening on Acorn Avenue. •Mail was reported stolen Wednesday from Jennifer Lynn Drive, and someone tried to use a blank check stolen from the victim to buy a vehicle in Redding. Scam Ana Rose Zell reported a telephone scam Wednesday morning on Casa Grande Drive. Found A Social Security card was reportedly found Wednesday evening on Second Street. Fire A structure fire was reported at 7:31 p.m. on Graham Road in the Man- ton area. The structure was fully involved upon CalFire's arrival at 7:59 p.m. The fire, which was contained at 8:19 p.m., did $30,000 damage with no save. The cause is under investigation. Cal- Fire cleared the scene at 11:43 p.m. Friday, February 19, 2010 – Daily News – 3A OPEN: 7 days a week 5:30am - 9pm 259 S.Main St., Red Bluff Not valid with other discounts. 2 EGGS 2 SLICES BACON 2 PANCAKES Offer Good Everyday 5:30-8AM ONLY $ 1 99 Dine in only, No substitutions Coffee 59¢ ADVANCED HYDROPONICS Indoor Lighting 1417 SOLANO ST., CORNING 824-1100 & Gardening B.B.Q. Bud's 22825 Antelope Blvd. 528-0799 Best BBQ Around Cooked Fresh Daily FAST FRIENDY SERVICE 2 Local Calendar To add an upcoming event in the Local Calendar, submit information well in advance to the Daily News, attention Calendar, P.O. Box 220, Red Bluff, 96080 or e-mail to clerk@redbluffdailynews.com. Include a contact name and telephone number. FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 19 Red Bluff Al-Anon, 6 to 7 p.m., Presbyterian Church, Jef- ferson and Hickory Celebrate Recovery, 6:15 p.m., Vineyard Christian Fellowship, 738 Walnut St. 527-2449 Knit for Kids, 9:15 to noon, Presbyterian Church, 838 Jefferson St., 527-0372. Mommy and Me Breastfeeding Class, 10 a.m., Red Bluff Family Resource Center, 220 Sycamore St. Suite 101, 528-8066 Reeds Creek School Board, 1:30 p.m., 18335 Johnson Road, library Corning Adult Wood Carving Class, 10 a.m. to noon, Corning Senior Center, 1015 Fourth Ave, 824- 5669 Spanish Adult Education, 8:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m., Corning Family Resource Center, West and South streets, 824-7670 SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 20 Red Bluff Vagina Monologues, benefit performance for Alternatives to Violence, 2 p.m. and 7 p.m., State Theatre, 333 Oak St., 528-9464 SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 21 Corning Evangelist services, 7 p.m., Family Bible Church, 609 Marin St., 824-9989 MONDAY, FEBRUARY 22 Red Bluff Adult Education Computer Classes, Intro to E-mail and Internet through RBUHS, 4-5:30 p.m. in room 205 on the main campus, 200-2661, free Al-Anon, 6 p.m., Presbyterian Church, Jeffer- son and Hickory (additional meetings noon and 6 p.m. Wednesdays, 6 p.m. Fridays) HIRE (Head Injury Recreational Entity), 10 a.m., St. Elizabeth Community Hospital, Coyne Center, Rusty, 529-2059 Key to Life, 6 p.m., Red Bluff Family Resource Center, 220 Sycamore St. Suite 101, 528-8066 Red Bluff Community Band, 6:45-8:45 p.m., Red Bluff Community / Senior Center, 1500 S. Jackson St., 527-3486. Sun Country Quilters Community Service Group, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Red Bluff Family Resource Center, 220 Sycamore St. Suite 101, 528-8066 Sun Country Quilters Guild Meeting, 7 p.m., Westside Room, Red Bluff Community and Senior Center, 1500 S. Jackson St. Corning Healthcare District, 6 p.m., district office build- ing, 145 Solano St., conference room Narcotics Anonymous, and 7 p.m., 815 First St., 385-1169 or 566-5270. Meetings are everyday through Saturday with an additional meeting at noon on Mondays. Sewing group, 9 a.m., Corning Family Resource Center, West and South streets, 824- 7670 Spanish Adult Education, 5 p.m., Corning Family Resource Center, West and South streets, 824-7670 Strategies for Success, Life Skill classes, 1:30 p.m., Corning Family Resource Center, West and South streets, 824-7670 Gerber Gerber Elementary School Board, 6 p.m., Gerber School, 23014 Chard Ave. TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 23 Red Bluff Red Bluff Garden Club: Bees, 1 p.m., 12889 Baker Road., 529-5122 Red Bluff Unified Elementary School District Special Board Meeting, 5:30 p.m. closed ses- sion, District Office, 1755 Airport Blvd. 7:15 open session, Vista Middle School gym, 1770 S. Jack- son St., 527-7200 ext. 104 No substitutions, not good on to go orders LUNCH SPECIALS 11:30 am - 2 pm Served with 1 menu item 5 Chestnut Ave.,Red Bluff • 527-3161 Comfortably Casual Dining GREEN BARN STEAKHOUSE $ 6 99 Tuesday Barn Burger Wednesday Corned Beef Ruben Thursday Prime Rib French Dip Friday Steak Sandwich Police reports Fidelity becomes player in ETF wars Even as stock market uncertainty grows amid volatile days like we've had last recently, there is a stealth war for retail investors' trading dol- lars. And it's heating up -- especial- ly in the realm of exchange traded funds (ETFs), which are the fastest- growing segment of the retail investment market these days. Fidelity has just announced an exclusive marketing alliance with BlackRock, sponsor of the popular iShares ETFs, which hold a 50 per- cent share of the ETF market. The deal allows Fidelity customers to trade 25 of the most broad-based and popular ETFs absolutely free. It's a response to Charles Schwab's announcement just two months ago that its clients could trade eight ETFs, created and managed by Schwab, without charge. But the Fidelity move allows wider diversification among existing popular ETFs, including four international funds and five fixed-income funds. Not to be outdone, Vanguard is responding by pointing to its over- all lower cost of buying, and hold- ing, its ETFs. It notes that if you are not simply a day-trader, there is a significant differential in the expense ratios of Vanguard ETFs compared with those offered by iShares (and now traded free at Fidelity). The Vanguard ETFs have a 0.09 percent management cost vs. 0.21 percent for iShares. On a $10,000 investment, that means the Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF costs $9 annually vs. $21 for the iShares Russell 3000 ETF, which holds a similar portfo- lio of stocks. It sounds like small change, but if you're holding the ETF over a long period of time, or investing larger sums, that differ- ence can add up. These mutual fund management companies are competing for huge amounts of retail investors' assets. ETF growth was up more than 54 percent in 2009, with assets in the category now totaling more than $1 trillion. If the term "Exchange Traded Fund" or its acronym ETF isn't familiar, you should check out the way they work at the special section on Morningstar.com. They're designed to give retail investors broad access to market sectors. ETFs are closed-end funds that are traded throughout the day, on listed exchanges, with prices set by the market. That contrasts with open-end funds, which are priced daily after the market close, based on the net asset value of the securities owned by the fund. Most ETFs carry a fixed basket of securities and are typically created to match an index, or particular category of stocks, allowing investors to access a portfolio of equities focused on a broad or narrow cross-section of stocks. Recently, some management com- panies have created "managed ETFs," which may change compo- nent stocks or bonds at the manag- er's discretion. At the same time as it offers free ETF trades, Fidelity is making a dramatic move to cut commissions for its online brokerage division. There will now be one flat rate of $7.95 per transaction, instead of the three tiers that have resulted in fees as high as $19.95 for customers who trade infrequently or have smaller accounts. Fidelity doesn't disclose its account structure, but points out that some retail investors will find their trading costs cut by 60 percent. This one-two punch is designed to bring Fidelity new attention in the most popular areas of retail trading. While $7.95 is far from the lowest per-trade fee available from discount brokers, it combines the resources and research provided by Fidelity with a competitive pricing structure. The "free" ETFs will be highlighted on its website, and will be combined with tools for structur- ing a portfolio of ETFs and with an educational com- ponent. Fidelity apparently decided it was easier to partner with BlackRock and offer its existing I- shares ETFs without com- mission, than to create its own portfolio. The 25 funds chosen for its free offering have more than $200 billion in assets and are among the most popu- lar on Fidelity's brokerage platform. Currently, investors can trade more than 800 ETFs and an addi- tional 10,000 mutual funds through Fidelity brokerage. \Some investors may be asking how low commis- sions can go. Well, free is about as low as it gets. Maybe these big financial services companies will ultimately do away with commissions and charge only a small annual fee, rec- ognizing the value of assets held in their accounts. Or maybe this price war will result in a draw -- much as airlines realize they can cut fares only so far without becoming unprofitable. For retail traders, this promises to be an interesting opportunity to either day trade or build a balanced portfolio at a very low cost. And that's The Savage Truth. Terry Savage is a registered investment adviser and is on the board of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. She can be reached at www.terrysavage.com. She is the author of the new book, "The New Savage Number: How Much Money Do You Really Need to Retire?" Terry Savage The Savage Truth on Money A change in federal law effective Feb. 22 allows peo- ple who can legally possess firearms under federal, Cali- fornia and local laws to possess those firearms in the local National Park Service areas of Whiskeytown National Recreation Area and Lassen Volcanic National Park. The new federal law makes possession of firearms in national parks also subject to the firearms laws of the state and communities where the parks are located. "We have been working closely with local, state and federal officials to ensure that we clearly understand the provisions of the laws that will now apply to our visitors when they are in the park," said Whiskeytown Superin- tendent Jim Milestone. "We encourage every visitor who may wish to bring firearms to the park to do their research ahead of time and ensure that they are aware of and abide by the laws that apply," Lassen Volcanic's Superintendent Darlene Koontz said. "Our goal is to provide safe, enjoyable park visits for everyone, and to preserve this very special place for people today and future generations." The new federal law has no effect on existing laws and regulations regarding the use of firearms in national parks or hunting. Hunting still is allowed in Whiskeytown, but continues to be prohibited in Lassen. Federal law contin- ues to prohibit firearms in certain facilities, such as park visitor centers. These facilities are posted with appropri- ate notices at public entrances. "We will administer this law as we do all others – fair- ly," National Park Service Director Jon Jarvis said. "For nearly 100 years, the mission of the National Park Ser- vice has been to protect and preserve the parks and to help all visitors enjoy them. The parks belong to all Americans, and our commitment to American people is to ensure the safety of our visitors and the special places that have been entrusted to our care." For more information about firearms laws that apply to Whiskeytown and Lassen, visit http://ag.ca.gov/firearms/dwcl/12050.php. For more information about Whiskeytown, call 242- 3413 or visit http://www.nps.gov/whis/index.htm. For more information about Lassen, call 595-4480 or visit http://www.nps.gov/lavo/index.htm. New firearms law takes effect monday