Democratic California Assemblymember Rob Bonta has been nominated by Gov. Gavin Newsom to be the state's next attorney general. The vacancy is due to Xavier Becerra previously being chosen by President Biden to become secretary of Health and Human Services.

Newsom held a press conference where he officially announced the nomination. He praised Bonta's career and qualifications. Bonta has chaired the California Asian and Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus in the Assembly and was the first Filipino American in the state Legislature. He previously served as a deputy city attorney in San Francisco and was on the Alameda City Council.

Activism organization Californians for Safety and Justice issued a statement in support of the nomination.

There have been allegations against Bonta that he was among others who "used power in an attempt to gain sexual advantage over young women." Trisha Tahmasbi reiterated her allegations against Bonta following the announcement, alleging that he "used his position of power to intimidate me from reporting years of sex abuse, threats & misconduct perpetrated by his friend, Alberto Torrico."

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As if the San Andreas fault wasn't concerning enough, research just released today shows that a nearby portion of it is moving much faster than scientists previously thought.

It's called the Mission Creek strand and it runs from around Indio, through Desert Hot Springs and into the San Bernardino Mountains.

While it was long believed to have a slip rate of around 14 millimeters per year, the paper, published in Science Advances, argues that it's actually around 22 millimeters.

"This particular strand of the San Andreas fault has been interpreted to not be very active," said Kimberly Blisniuk, a geochronologist at San Jose State University and lead author on the study. "It's actually very active and is the fastest slipping fault for the San Andreas in Southern California. Therefore it has the highest likelihood of a large magnitude earthquake to occur on it in the future."

A few millimeters might not sound like a lot but when we're talking about massive tectonic plates pushing up against each other, the stress adds up.

"Higher slip rates on faults mean more risk," said Morgan Page, a geophysicist at the U.S. Geological Survey in Pasadena and one of the developers of the Uniform California Earthquake Rupture Forecast. Page was not associated with the recent study. "It means stress is accumulating faster on that fault and you would need basically either more earthquakes or larger earthquakes over centuries to relieve that stress."

All of which means that this particular strand on the San Andreas has a greater risk than was previously understood. How much of an additional risk? It needs to be assessed.

Any infrastructure in that area, like water or gas lines which run over the fault itself, will need to be looked at with a critical eye, given that offsets of as much as 30 feet could occur in the event of a major quake.

"Their study is in a region where the San Andreas fault is quite complex," said Sally McGill, a geology professor at Cal State San Bernardino. "This is a substantial step in improving our understanding of how the Southern San Andreas fault works."

Regardless of what happens on the Mission Creek strand, we know that sizable earthquakes on the San Andreas are possible.

Like... at any moment.

So now is always a good time to get your earthquake kit ready.

THE BIG ONE IS COMING. GET PREPARED

We don't want to scare you, but the Big One is coming. We don't know when, but we know it'll be at least 44 times stronger than Northridge and 11 times stronger than the Ridgecrest quakes in 2019. To help you get prepared, we've compiled a handy reading list

• Your Guide To Surviving The Big One
• For Earthquakes, Forget The 'Go-Bag.' Here's How To Prepare
• How To Not Get Life-Threatening Diarrhea After A Major Earthquake
• 10 Earthquake-Related Questions To Ask Your Landlord Immediately
• Listen to KPCC's Podcast The Big One: Your Survival Guide

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Los Angeles County health officials have started tackling the complicated task of distributing vaccines to the tens of thousands of people who live in shelters, encampments, and vehicles.

Since early February, county officials have been collaborating with local service providers and healthcare partners to provide a patchwork of pop-up clinics and mobile vaccination sites.

One area that's being prioritized is Skid Row, where several shelters struggled to contain an outbreak of cases earlier this year.

READ THE FULL STORY:

• Distributing COVID Vaccines to Unhoused Angelenos Poses Unique Challenges

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Good morning, L.A. It’s March 24.

Every day, our newsroom’s call-in show, AirTalk, welcomes a physician to answer listeners’ questions about COVID-19 and the vaccine. Earlier this week, host Larry Mantle spoke with Kimberly Shriner, an infectious disease specialist at Huntington Hospital in Pasadena. Here are some of the questions she got, and her answers (the conversation has been edited for length and clarity):

I’m immunosuppressed. Is there an antibody test to see if my body mounted a response after receiving the vaccine?

Yes, there is. You can get a quantitative IgG. The problem is, we don't quite know how to interpret it.

I can tell you that even in people who are immunosuppressed, there does appear to be protection. There are some scientific papers coming out that are evaluating people who had immune problems and got COVID, and their ability to retain antibodies and apparent immunity to the virus at least six months after their disease. We think the same is true for the vaccines.

I am currently undergoing an IVF cycle and I'm stimulating my ovaries. Do you have any input on the safety of the vaccine during this process?

Unfortunately, we don't have a lot of data on that. We do know that pregnant women are at higher risk for more serious disease with COVID. The incidence of failed fertility procedures or possible miscarriage is unclear right now, because those populations haven't been studied.

Once you're fully vaccinated, there shouldn't be any reason not to proceed with your IVF therapies. But it's a tricky question, so I think it's going to be a personal choice.

My sister was asked for her Medicare number at the pharmacy where she was vaccinated. That’s for billing purposes, correct?

The vaccines are free, but if you go to a pharmacy or a doctor's office, there may be a minimal charge for the implementation of the vaccine. If you go to a public health department, or you go to a large vaccine site like Dodger Stadium, there's no charge at all.

Some of that billing information is being registered to keep track of everybody who's been vaccinated. But some doctor’s offices, and I believe some pharmacies, will charge for putting the shot in your arm.

And insurance companies are uniformly reimbursing for it, aren't they?

Absolutely. We don't want any kind of financial barriers and payment issues associated with getting vaccinated. This is so very important that we move this as quickly as possible.

Keep reading for more on what’s happening in L.A. today, and stay safe out there.

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What Else You Need To Know Today

• L.A. city officials are planning to remove all tent dwellers from the Echo Park Lake property for what they say are much needed repairs.
• L.A. County health officials say progress on the vaccination effort is likely pushing down overall coronavirus case numbers.
• Forty-seven additional L.A. County Sheriff’s officials were added to a lawsuit alleging misconduct by a “criminal gang” of deputies called the Banditos at the department’s East L.A. Station. The suit previously named only four former deputies.
• L.A. County will increase funding for a program that works to reduce the population of people with mental illness in county jails.
• A fire destroyed a Long Beach lifeguard tower that was painted in rainbow colors for LGBTQ+ pride.
• A proposal to consider a temporary pay bump for Pasadena’s frontline workers, known as “hero pay,” failed in a four-to-four vote in the City Council.

Before You Go … Where To Find The Best Taiyaki In L.A.

Maybe you've noticed an adorable, fish-shaped pastry popping up on Insta feeds everywhere. Us too. We're big fans of taiyaki. In Japanese, that means "cooked sea bream." This snack, however, has no fish in it. It's a soft, fluffy waffle shaped like a fish and it can be served solo or stuffed with fillings such as red bean paste, Nutella or soft-serve ice cream.

The treat made its way to the U.S. more than two decades ago, and in L.A., you’ll find no shortage — from small stands offering traditional red bean versions to dessert cafes making croissant taiyakis to soft-serve chains. Here are some of the best places to find it.

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