274 Prop HHH-Funded Apartments For Unhoused People Have Sat Empty For Two Months. Why?

Nearly 300 apartments built for unhoused people are sitting empty in the city of Los Angeles more than two months after being declared ready for move-in, largely due to longstanding bureaucratic rules. LAist Senior Reporter Nick Gerda, who covers unhoused communities, broke the story on Thursday. City data he reviewed shows 274 newly constructed apartments — each funded largely by a $1.2 billion voter-approved bond measure called Proposition HHH — had yet to have a resident as of Aug. 1, despite being declared “ready to occupy” by city officials more than 60 days prior. That number is down from 444 empty units in May and 354 in June. And it’s expected to further improve in the coming weeks and months due to waivers L.A. Mayor Karen Bass requested and recently received from federal officials to speed up the process of housing people. In interviews, local officials and service providers said the overall vacancy issues with HHH housing are fueled by federal paperwork rules, and layers of eligibility restrictions regarding who can live in particular units. Officials say many of the vacant units have people matched to them, who are still going through the process of getting their paperwork together. In some cases, people have been living outdoors for months as their assigned apartment sits empty.

Today on AirTalk, Nick joins us to talk about his latest reporting, along with Sarah Dusseault, co-chair of the Los Angeles County Blue Ribbon Commission on Homelessness.

With files from Nick Gerda at LAist.com. Read his full story here.

One Year Later, Is Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act Living Up To Its Promises?

Even President Joe Biden has some regrets about the name of the Inflation Reduction Act: As the giant law turns 1 on Wednesday, it’s increasingly clear that immediately curbing prices wasn’t the point. While price increases have cooled over the past year — the inflation rate has dropped from 9% to 3.2% — most economists say little to none of the drop came from the law. With inflation less of a pressing concern, the president is putting more emphasis on the bill’s provisions aimed at combating climate change, creating jobs and lowering people’s health care bills. Biden has been careful not to declare an outright victory against inflation, as it’s still higher than the Fed’s 2% target. But the White House says the cost savings from the Inflation Reduction Act are coming as the law is getting enacted. One year later, has the Inflation Reduction Act met its goals? Where has it fallen short? Joining us today is Kimberly Clausing, professor of tax law and policy at UCLA School of Law, and James Broughel, senior fellow at the Competitive Enterprise Institute.

With files on the Associate Press

Local Twin Expert’s Latest Book “Gay Fathers, Twin Sons” Dives Into The Complex Case Of The Dvash-Banks Twins

In 2018, the Los Angeles Times ran a story about Andrew and Elad Dvash-Banks, who had conceived twins via a surrogate in Canada that were eventually born just four minutes apart -- Aidan and Ethan. Aidan shares DNA with Andrew -- he was conceived via a donor egg and Andrew’s sperm. Ethan shares DNA with Elad -- he was conceived via an egg from the same donor and Elad’s sperm. But, when Andrew, a Santa Monica native, and Elad, who was born and raised in Israel, applied for birthright citizenship for their children, only Aidan was approved. U.S. law allows children born abroad to receive citizenship from their parents via blood relation, but in the case of Aidan and Ethan, the State Department granted citizenship to Aidan and denied it to Ethan, citing a lack of proof of a blood relationship to a parent with U.S. citizenship. Andrew and Elad sued the State Department and Secretary of State, and the legal battle that followed ended in 2021 with a settlement in favor of the Dvash-Banks’. The case had captivated Cal State Fullerton Psychology Professor Nancy Segal, a leading twin studies expert, but she was unable to speak to the family while the case was still pending. Now that it’s been settled, her new book “Gay Fathers, Twin Sons” tells the Dvash-Banks family’s story in their own words, and also explores themes of twinship, surrogacy and same-sex marriage.

Today on AirTalk, Nancy Segal is with us to talk about her research into this captivating and complex story.

A UCLA Study Wants To Find Out What’s In Illegal Street Drugs

Deaths from drug overdoses have hit record highs across the United States claiming more than 100,000 lives last year alone. A large amount of those deaths are tied to drug mixing. In 2019, nearly half of deadly overdoses across the country involved a combination of fentanyl, cocaine, heroin or methamphetamine, according to a Centers for Disease Control analysis. In response to these overdoses, there’s been a push to help people find out what exactly is in their illicit drugs. A team of researchers at UCLA has taken to the streets of Los Angeles to do just that. They’re using sophisticated technology to determine the contents of the drugs beyond test strips used to detect fentanyl. Joining us to discuss the study is Chelsea Shover, assistant professor in residence at UCLA’s David Geffen School of Medicine and lead investigator for the pilot study and Caitlin Molina, project manager at the Epidemiology, Policy, Implementation Lab (EPI Lab) at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.

EPL At 160 Years: How Has The Biggest Soccer & English Football League Attracted Folks From SoCal To The Beautiful Game?

“Biscuits with the boss!” This is a term many Ted Lasso fans might be familiar with, but when it comes to arguably the top soccer league, the English Premier League, they might not be familiar with the huge milestone it’s hit. The EPL just reached its 160-year anniversary this year, having been the birthplace of ‘the beautiful game’ and has also been considered to have the oldest national competition in the world– the F.A. Cup. Despite being beloved by most of the Americas, the United States has been quite slow to adopt the game. There’s been assistance through the U.S. Women’s National Team, shows like “Ted Lasso” and “Welcome to Wrexham,” and of course the international icons David Beckham and Lionel Messi arriving in the MLS. But what’s the story of those most dedicated fans here in SoCal, who build community every weekend at a pub near you?

Today on AirTalk, Larry sits down with some local fan club members in Southern California, to talk about the game they follow closely and how folks can share in the fun. We’re joined today by John Costello of OC Blues, Bernadette Gilbey of Man City’s Support Club in Hollywood, and Rolfe Jones of LA Spurs.

TV-Talk: 6 Shows To Watch Including ‘Telemarketers,’ ‘Painkiller,’ ‘Ladies First’ & More

Have you felt completely overwhelmed when deciding what new show to watch these days? Us too. There’s just so much content out there between network tv and numerous streaming platforms. Each week, we’re going to try to break through the noise with TV watchers who can point us to the must-sees and steer us clear of the shows that maybe don’t live up to the hype. This week Larry talks to Eric Deggans, tv critic for NPR and Roxana Hadadi, tv critic for Vulture, about the latest in television worth checking out.

Today’s shows include:

• Telemarketers (Max)
• Painkiller (Netflix)
• Ladies First: A Story of Women in Hip-Hop (Netflix)
• Dark Winds [Season 2] (AMC & AMC+)
• Star Trek: Strange New Worlds [Season 2] (Paramount+)
• Justified: City Primeval (FX & Hulu the next day)