August 20, 2018

Orange County

Voice of OC: Homelessness and crime increase at Anaheim’s Maxwell Park

The analysis which spans July 16, 2017 to July 15, 2018, found illegal drug use to be the most common crime at Maxwell. Anaheim PD's report noted that 11 of the 12 reported drug offenses were homeless related.

 

OC Register: FAQs answered on the 405 Freeway widening project, express lanesV

Eventually, the 16-mile stretch of pavement between the 73 Freeway in Costa Mesa and the 605 in Long Beach will gain two lanes each way.

 

OC Register: Triple-murder case could be affected by improper Orange County jail phone recordingsl

The department’s telephone contractor, GTL Corp., said 58 of those recordings were accessed by the Sheriff Department or phone company investigators 87 times. Some of those recordings were shared with local police, said defense attorney Joel Garson, who triggered the discovery.

 

OC Register: Placentia makes change to district elections with November ballot

Voters in Placentia will be deciding winners in the city’s first-ever voting using the by-district election process. Two districts will appear on this fall’s ballot, districts 2 and 4; in 2020 the other three districts will be up for voting.

 

Daily Pilot: FEMA agrees to cut Newport flood zone by more than half, saving property owners millions in insurance costs

That means owners in parts of the Balboa Peninsula, Balboa Island and West Newport won’t need pricey flood insurance, saving up to about $3,700 each, or $10 million combined, each year in premiums, the city estimates.

 

Labor

Economic Policy Institute: Biggest gains in union membership in 2017 were for younger workers

Historically, younger workers have been less likely than older workers to be a member of union. In 2017 about 7.7 percent of workers 16–34 were members of a union, compared with 12.6 percent of workers age 35 and older.

 

California

‘LA Times: With an epidemic of mental illness on the streets, counties struggle to spend huge cash reserves

Proposition 63 — the Mental Health Services Act — has steered billions of dollars to the counties across the state. But huge sums remain unspent at a time when mental illness has become an epidemic among the homeless population.

Publication Date: August 20, 2018