The Brief

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How they try to get you: The text will say you need to pay for use of a FasTrak lane to avoid late fees or potential legal action, and provides a link to a website that claims to be run by The Toll Roads, a California tolling agency. It may also ask you to respond to the text

Why it's a scam: Bonta's office says FasTrak, the state's electronic toll collection system, does not request payment by sending you a text with a website link. The Toll Roads, a state tolling agency, does not send texts to people who don't have an account with them.

What to do if you get this text:

• DO NOT reply or follow the link!
• File a report with the FBI, the Federal Trade Commission and Attorney General Bonta's office and be sure to include the number the text came from and the website.
• Delete the text after you submit your complaints! If you want to delete it right away, take a screenshot so you have the number it came from and website link for when you report it.
• Log into your FasTrak or tolling agency account through their legitimate website to check your account. You can find a list of all tolling agencies in California and their websites here.
• If you did click on the link or provide any personal bank or credit card information, you may need to take steps to secure your info. These could include locking your credit or debit card and requesting your bank issue you a new one with a different number, disputing any unfamiliar charges or contacting your bank to inform them of potential fraud.

For decades, firefighters facing some of the state’s most destructive wildfires worked without proper masks or respirators, despite evidence showing long-term health risks from wildfire smoke.

That’s why a bipartisan group of senators, including California Democrat Adam Schiff and Utah Republican John Curtis, introduced the first-ever respiratory protection standards for wildland firefighters on Monday.

If Congress passes the bipartisan bill, it would ensure the U.S. Forest Service and the U.S. Department of the Interior “take long overdue steps to protect the health of these heroes,” the bill’s authors said in a press release. This legislation was co-sponsored by Sens. Alex Padilla (D-California) and Tim Sheehy (R-Montana).

“Wildland firefighters deploy in the most extreme conditions to combat wildfires, preserve vital ecosystems, and save lives,” Padilla said in a press release. “These heroic men and women should not be forced to face long-term illness or premature death due to smoke exposure on the job.”

For decades, the U.S. Forest Service banned firefighters from wearing masks, arguing that they were too unwieldy for the job. In September, the Forest Service posted new guidance, paving the way for the new legislation.

Sen. Alex Padilla speaks at a press briefing in San Francisco on June 1, 2021.

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Beth LaBerge

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KQED

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Under the Healthy Lungs for Heroes Act, the agencies would work with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health to develop appropriate respiratory protections — masks and other devices — tailored to the unique needs of wildland firefighters when smoke exposure exceeds exposure limits.

The lawmakers noted that wildland firefighters frequently work 16-hour shifts while traversing mountains, ash and debris — all while inhaling toxic smoke. They said there is a clear link between wildfire smoke and adverse health impacts, including multiple forms of cancer. Firefighters have a life expectancy that is around a decade shorter than that of the average adult due to lung damage.

“Firefighters are heroes, and it’s critical that we do everything possible to ensure they’re protected from the health risks associated with wildfires,” Sen. Adam Schiff said in a press release.

Joe Perez, a firefighter based out of Northern California, said he’s fought wildland fires like the Tubbs Fire in 2017 and others in the area.

“My whole career, I’ve worn a bandana or sometimes a facial shroud, which was standard practice,” he said. “But fires are burning thousands of homes, the contents of the homes and vehicles, and you’re sitting in that smoke for weeks at a time.”

Perez was on administrative leave for months in 2024 due to lung damage sustained in the years prior. A person he was dating at the time told him he needed to get checked out because she heard him wheezing, he said. “She could smell the burnt plastics and stuff coming out of my skin for days.”

He now lives with reactive airway disease, which resembles asthma, because of all the smoke he’s breathed.

Perez is part of a wildland firefighter respiratory protection working group with Cal/OSHA, and now fights fires while wearing a mask. He said additional protections could have reduced his exposure to dangerous smoke and chemicals, but the culture of firefighting would have made it tough to be the only one wearing a mask.

“Whether I would have worn it is another question,” Perez said. “That’s the kind of cultural question that’s difficult.”

Firefighters monitor a backfire as they battle the King Fire on September 17, 2014, in Fresh Pond, California.

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He thinks the aim of the legislation is a step in the right direction, but noted that while the agencies study the issue, firefighters will still have to deal with all the smoke without strong rules around masking.

“If I get cancer or something else down the line, I can pretty much point to where it’s probably coming from,” Perez said of the risks firefighters take in breathing in smoke while on a blaze. “But if we can avoid making that sacrifice, especially when we’re in our later years and supposed to be enjoying our retirement and having grandkids and stuff, that feels like something that makes a lot of sense.”

In the September rule change, the Forest Service acknowledged that masks and respirators can protect firefighters against the particles in wildfire smoke. They’re now allowed to use N95 respirators approved by federal workplace safety regulators.

Respirators remain banned during arduous work, like digging trenches, to prevent overheating. Officials note that while N95 respirators filter out particles, they don’t protect against gases, vapors or all tiny solid particles, with no respirators on the market that filter out all inhalation hazards while also complying with federal regulations.

Several firefighter associations, unions and organizations, including the nonprofit Grassroots Wildland Firefighters, endorse the bill.

“For too long, the physical health and well-being of these responders has been ignored by their own agencies,” said Lucas Mayfield, president of the group.

Mayfield added that “wildland firefighters’ lives literally depend on it.”

Republicans in the House could be on track today to approve the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files, a vote that follows President Donald Trump's unexpected blessing for a measure that has driven rancor through the party and its base.

The bipartisan effort, which has been led by Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Ro Khanna, D-Calif., was long fought by Trump and Republican leadership from reaching the House floor. As recently as last week, White House officials met with Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., about her support for releasing the files, but her position was unchanged after the meeting.

Trump has also attacked Republicans for pushing the measure, including Massie and most recently Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga.

However, Trump did an about face over the weekend as it became clear a vote in the House was likely to succeed, and said Republicans should approve the bill.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., speaks at a press conference alongside alleged victims of Jeffrey Epstein at the U.S. Capitol on September 3, 2025.

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On Monday, Trump told reporters at the White House that the Senate can take up the bill as well, and that he would sign it if it passes. The measure, if passed, would compel the Justice Department to release all of its files on the convicted sex offender within 30 days.

"I'm all for it," Trump said from the Oval Office, but maintained it was a "hoax" that he didn't want to "detract" from his party's success.

Trump does not need legislation in order to approve the files for release, but he told reporters that Congress "can do whatever they want" on the vote.

His remarks came after a simple majority of House members signed onto what is known as a discharge petition – a workaround that forces votes without leadership or committee approval. Last week, the chamber's newest member, Rep. Adelita Grijalva, D-Ariz., became the decisive 218th signature on the petition.

President Trump speaks with reporters from the Oval Office on Monday. Trump said he would sign a bill to release the Epstein files if it passes through Congress.

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Grijalva's swearing in was delayed for seven weeks after her election, galvanizing Democrats who accused House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., of stalling in order to put off the vote. Johnson rejected that claim, saying her oath of office would not be taken until the government shutdown fight was resolved. He also committed to not block the vote on the House floor.

Tuesday's expected vote also comes after a wave of Epstein files were released last week by members on the Republican-led House Oversight Committee. Democrats first released a set of three emails, followed by thousands of pages of new files released by the panel's chairman, James Comer, R-Ky. The documents triggered new questions about the extent of Trump's relationship with the disgraced financier and convicted sex offender before his death in 2019.

Ahead of the vote, Massie and Khanna plan to gather with survivors and their families and friends. They last appeared together in September on Capitol Hill to lobby for the release of the Epstein files, saying transparency was the path to holding those involved fully accountable.

Survivors reiterated that position in a Friday letter to Congress in which they urged the release of files relating to Epstein and his longtime confidante Ghislaine Maxwell, who is currently serving time at a Texas facility after her conviction on trafficking charges.

"Epstein and Maxwell's crimes exposed a double standard of justice, where rich and powerful men and women evade repercussions," they wrote.
Copyright 2025 NPR

Americans will likely face higher prices on items for their Thanksgiving dinners this year.

Turkey, typically the centerpiece of the Thanksgiving meal, will be one of the biggest sticker shocks for consumers. Wholesale prices for a turkey have jumped 40% from a year ago, according to the Department of Agriculture. Outbreaks of avian influenza, or bird flu, and increased demand have contributed to these higher prices.

Those opting for beef instead of turkey should also prepare to pay more. Beef prices are nearly 15% higher than they were last year, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Canned vegetables are 5% more expensive compared to last year, due to higher packaging costs from the steel and aluminum tariffs the Trump administration put in place earlier this year.

President Trump announced Friday that he would be rolling back tariffs he imposed on beef, coffee, tropical fruits and other commodities, in an effort to combat high prices at grocery stores.

David Ortega, a professor and food economist at Michigan State University, said those rollbacks won't lower prices completely, as tariffs aren't the only cause of increasing prices.

"By removing the tariffs, what we're doing is we're slowing down the increase in the price of many of these goods," Ortega said. "So while we may not see prices go down for the holidays, it helps in terms of moderating the price increases that we've been accustomed to at the grocery store."

Some grocery items have seen some price decreases in time for the holiday season. Egg prices have seen a decline from earlier this year, and domestic wine prices are down about 1.2% from last year due to a steady supply and softening demand.

Ortega says buying fresh produce rather than canned fruits or vegetables is one way consumers can avoid higher prices from aluminum packaging. He also recommends shoppers plan their meals out in advance, look for private label or store brands over name brands, and shop early for certain items to take advantage of sales or promotions grocery stores might have.

"It really pays off to plan ahead and create a shopping list, making sure you're sticking to it and avoiding impulse purchases," Ortega said.
Copyright 2025 NPR

This story was originally published by Boyle Heights Beat on Nov. 17, 2025.

After a report revealed federal immigration agents are allowed to interfere in medical decisions at Adventist Health White Memorial, the Boyle Heights Immigrant Rights Network is calling for hospital administrators to uphold patient privacy and ensure that staff can advocate for patients without retaliation.

The article, published by LAist on Oct. 9, reported that hospital administrators are blocking doctors from properly treating detainees who need emergency care. Administrators at White Memorial have told doctors not to call a detained patient’s family members, even to find out what type of medication they’re on or what conditions they have, doctors told LAist.

Community demands stronger protections

Since then, community stakeholders who are part of the Boyle Heights Immigrant Rights Network presented demands at a Nov. 5 meeting with hospital leaders, including Kerry Heinrich, the president and chief executive officer of Adventist Health System, and John Raffoul, president of Adventist Health White Memorial.

As part of those demands, the network — which is made up of residents and community leaders from organizations like Legacy LA, InnerCity Struggle and Centro CSO — wants immigration agents out of patient rooms during medical consultations and procedures. Many in the network have deep ties to White Memorial, including having friends who were born there or taking their children for care at the hospital.

Hospital issues memo in response to community concerns

In response, White Memorial, in a Nov. 12 memo, thanked community leaders for sharing their concerns and outlined the following five points:

• “Every patient’s privacy is protected and respected. We follow the laws that keep people’s medical information private, and we take that responsibility very seriously.
• Doctors and nurses make care decisions together with their patients. No outside groups tell them how to treat a patient.
• When there is a medical reason to contact a family, our team can do that through the right process. There are rules we must follow, but our goal is always to support care and connection whenever possible.
• Law enforcement officers cannot interfere with medical care or put anyone’s safety at risk. Our hospital protects the privacy and safety of everyone here — patients, families, and staff.
• We stand by our care teams. They are supported and protected as they care for every person with kindness and respect.”

“We know trust takes time to build and can be lost quickly. Many of you told us that trust has been broken, and we understand that. We want to keep earning your trust through open communication, transparency, and action, not just words,” the memo reads.

The memo — signed by Juan De La Cruz, president of the Adventist Health White Memorial Charitable Foundation — does not specifically address the network’s demand that agents be kept out of patient rooms during medical consultations and procedures.

Leaders say the memo falls short of key demands

Raquel Roman, executive director of Proyecto Pastoral, which operates the Boyle Heights Immigrant Rights Network, said White Memorial’s memo is a “good first attempt.” But, she added, “it doesn’t meet the demands we presented.”

“There is still opportunity to continue dialogue,” Roman said.

“Ultimately, we want to make sure our community and the doctors treating our community feel safe being at White Memorial, whether they go in there on their own or if somebody gets detained by ICE,” she said.

Lucy Herrera, executive director of Legacy LA, said the memo contained “a lot of gray area.”

“The way they [White Memorial] responded in the memo makes it seem like they’ve already been doing all of these things, when we’ve been hearing the opposite,” said Herrera.

Herrera said an open dialogue with White Memorial can be beneficial. “As a coalition, I want to stay vigilant to ensure that they comply with our demands,” she said.

Adventist Health White Memorial Hospital in Boyle Heights.

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For Henry Perez, executive director of InnerCity Struggle, the memo “signals that they have heard the community’s concerns.” However, he said, the hospital’s response is doing the “bare minimum.” As a hospital, “they already should be protecting patients’ privacy,” he said.

“White Memorial has the opportunity to fully stand with our immigrant communities … and it falls short of really communicating and conveying that they understand the horrors that our community is going through at the hands of ICE agents,” Perez said.

Sol Márquez, with the social justice group Centro CSO, wants White Memorial to make specific assurances that hospital staff won’t be punished when advocating for patients. In the memo, Marquez said, “I don’t think that they’re actually saying anything concrete.”

“We just really don’t want any of the staff to be reprimanded for asking ICE to leave the room, and for trying to make a rightful connection with the detainees and their families,” Márquez said.

Network presses for concrete changes in ongoing talks

As part of efforts to call attention to the issue, Centro CSO launched a petition soon after the LAist article was published, calling for White Memorial to uphold HIPAA, the federal law that safeguards patient privacy, and to bar U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement from making medical decisions for patients.

It urges White Memorial not to retaliate against or reprimand doctors and nurses “for asking ICE to leave examination rooms.”

Sammy Carrera with Centro CSO said the petition has garnered more than 300 signatures so far.

The petition highlights the role of White Memorial in Boyle Heights.

“White Memorial is situated in a working-class neighborhood made up of predominantly Chicano, Latino, and undocumented people. ICE is bringing detainees to this hospital knowing their presence threatens the very community they are attacking and deporting,” the petition reads.

The Boyle Heights Immigrant Rights Network is meeting to discuss next steps. De La Cruz notes in the memo that the hospital is “committed to keeping the conversation going.”

“We are opening our doors for guided visits to help you see how care works inside the hospital. We are also creating new ways for you to be part of hospital discussions and advisory groups,” the memo reads.