1. California has issued drivers’ licenses to more than 1 million undocumented immigrants since a new state law went into effect in 2015, reports Tatiana Sanchez of the Bay Area News Group$. Law enforcement officials and transportation experts say the law has improved traffic safety. Research shows that the number of hit-and-run accidents has declined since the law went into effect.
2. State Sen. Nancy Skinner, D-Berkeley, has introduced legislation that would open up police misconduct records in California, reports Melody Gutierrez of the San Francisco Chronicle$. Skinner said she hopes her bill, which likely will be opposed by law enforcement groups, would increase transparency of police wrongdoing. “California has some of the most strict laws about police records,” Skinner said. “Even hiring agencies can’t get these records.”
3. Oakland Councilmember Desley Brooks has relaunched her proposal to steer tens of millions of dollars in public funds to favored contractors in no-bid deals, reports Kimberly Veklerov of the San Francisco Chronicle$. “Brooks wants the public funds divvied up among unspecified ‘job training centers’ along with three named organizations: the Cypress Mandela Training Center, the Men of Valor Academy, and the Laborers’ Community Training Foundation.”
4. Bay Area tech companies are increasingly opening satellite offices in other cities around the nation because the cost of housing is much too expensive for workers here, reports Marissa Kendall of the Bay Area News Group$. “‘As we’ve been looking to hire, we’re running into the same issue that everyone else is running into — in that the Bay Area is broken,’ said Michael Dougherty, co-founder and CEO of San Mateo-based advertising tech startup Jelli.”
5. The FBI shut down the escort website BackPage.com, alleging that it has facilitated sex trafficking, the Arizona Republic reports. Prosecutors also arrested and filed felony charges against Mike Lacey, co-owner of BackPage.com, and former co-owner of Village Voice Media, which used to own the East Bay Express.
6. And last week’s big storm destroyed a section of the Stinson Beach parking lot and flooded Yosemite Valley, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
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