Senator Richard Pan.
1. The authors of legislation that would end the personal belief exemption for vaccines in California agreed to amend the bill to allow anti-vaxxers to home-school their children together, the Chron reports. The amendments by Democratic state Senator Richard Pan of Sacramento and Ben Allen of Santa Monica are designed to help the bill win enough votes today to pass a Senate committee. Members of the anti-vaxx movement descended on the capital last week, arguing that the bill would have denied their children a constitutional right to a public education. Senator Loni Hancock of Berkeley then voiced support for the anti-vaxxers’ argument.
2. In a move that could undermine California’s climate change goals, state energy regulators are proposing higher rates for people who have been conserving electricity, the Chron$ reports. Administrative law judges for the California Public Utilities Commission say that the current rate structure, in which people who have slashed energy use pay much lower bills, is unfair because the actual cost of delivering electricity to their homes is higher than what they’re paying.
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3. The San Francisco Chronicle editorial board joined the growing chorus of newspapers and other organizations around the state, calling on Governor Jerry Brown to abandon his controversial $25 billion plan to build two giant water tunnels underneath the delta. “[H]e just needs to deep-six those tunnels,” the Chron wrote. Previously, both the Sacramento Bee and the San Jose Mercury News came out against the tunnels.
4. The Oakland City Council agreed last night to pay $275,000 to settle lawsuits stemming from an incident in which an Oakland police officer shot an innocent 16-year-old in the face, because the cop mistakenly thought the youth was a robber, the Chron reports. Councilmember Desley Brooks was the lone vote against the payment, arguing that it is too small.
