As wildfires become more common, California lawmakers are considering easing some of the existing liability. We also discuss the latest on reunification of families who were separated at the border; examine the White House's $12 billion emergency aid plan for farmers; and more.
Family reunification deadline is tomorrow: We discuss the latest
The Trump administration is facing a Thursday deadline to reunify more than 2,500 immigrant children ages 5 and older who were separated from their families at the border.
The administration said in a court filing earlier this week that 463 parents may not be in the United States. It said those findings are based on case notes and are under review, signaling the number could change.
There have been 1,187 children reunified with their parents or "other appropriate discharges," which include guardians and sponsors, according to Monday's filing.
More than 1,600 parents were considered eligible for reunification, including 217 who have been released into the United States. About 900 more are considered "either not eligible, or not yet known to be eligible, for reunification."
Meanwhile, The Trump administration and the American Civil Liberties Union failed to agree on how much time parents should have to decide whether to seek asylum after they are reunited with their children who were separated at the U.S.-Mexico border, the Justice Department said Tuesday.
The administration has a court-appointed deadline of July 10 to reunite children under 5 who were separated at the border with their families.
With files from the Associated Press.
With guest host Libby Denkmann.
Guests:
Kristina Davis, reporter with the San Diego Union Tribune who’s been following the story; she tweets
Ted Hesson, employment and immigration reporter for POLITICO Pro; he tweets
Alicia A. Caldwell, Los Angeles-based immigration reporter for the Wall Street Journal, who covers immigration, border security; she tweets
As White House plans for $12 billion in emergency aid for farmers, we examine the impact on California
Many farmers are critical of President Donald Trump's tariffs and the damage done to commodity prices and markets, but they say they are appreciative that he has offered to provide cash to help make up their losses.
Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced Tuesday a $12 billion plan to borrow money from the U.S. Treasury to pay producers of commodities including soybeans, corn and wheat to compensate for losses due to trade disputes. The USDA also will buy surplus supplies of others including milk, fruit, nuts and rice and distribute them to food banks. Perdue says the plan is a short-term solution to give Trump time to negotiate trade deals. Farmers say they'd rather have tariffs ended and trade restarted with China, Mexico, Canada and the European Union.
The imposed tariffs are causing a drop in demand abroad. As a result, growers and processors, particularly in California, are experiencing a price decline for their products. We examine the impact on California.
With files from the Associated Press
With guest host Libby Denkmann
Guests:
Emily Cadei, D.C. correspondent for the Sacramento Bee; she tweets
Jamie Johansson, president of the private non-profit California Farm Bureau Federation, the largest organization representing California farmers and ranchers
16-year-old girl creates ‘notOK’ app to help others with depression, we look at how to deal with at-risk teens
Hannah Lucas, a 16-year-old high school sophomore from Georgia developed a disorder called postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), which causes her to faint.
Struggling with this condition, Hannah quickly fell into depression. She thought of ways that would help her alert close friends and family whenever she was experiencing a low point. That is when she sought the help of her younger brother. Charlie, 13, used coding skills he learned in summer camp to design a smartphone app. Together, partnering with developers, the siblings created the NotOK app. The app has a digital panic button available at one’s fingertips. Users can send a text message to up to five preselected contacts along with a link to their current GPS location. Contacts on the receiving end get a message that says, “Hey, I'm not OK. Please call me, text me, or come find me.”
The need for such app begs the conversation around teen depression. While Hannah took matters into her own hands, not all teens do the same. Depression rates are on the rise among teenagers, according to health insurance data. We look at the best methods to approach a teenager, who is struggling with depression, and how to start a healthy conversation.
If you are in need of support, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, 1-800-273-8255, for free and confidential help 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
With guest host Libby Denkmann
Guests:
Sermed Alkass, managing psychologist at the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health
Connie Horton, licensed psychologist and vice president for student affairs at Pepperdine University; former director of the Counseling Center at Pepperdine and Illinois Wesleyan universities where her focus included college mental health
Bridgid Conn, clinical psychologist at the Division of Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine at the Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA), where her focus includes teen depression and suicide
Because of climate change, wildfires are inevitable. Who should be liable for the damage?
Some of the worst fires in California have been sparked by power lines from private utilities, who are held liable for the damage caused.
They’re held liable even if they’re not negligent, because of a legal doctrine called “inverse condemnation.” But as wildfires become more common, California lawmakers are considering easing some of that liability.
Governor Brown released a proposal Tuesday that would shrink PG&E’s legal liability for certain wildfire damages. In a conference committee hearing today, lawmakers will discuss the proposal and hear from stakeholders.
PG&E has said it might go bankrupt if it were to take on full wildfire liability. Along with other power companies and some environmentalists, they’re pushing to scale back some of that responsibility. But on the other side, insurance companies, local governments and fire victims are saying that private utilities should not be bailed out and shouldn’t be passing along costs to ratepayers either.
So who should be held liable? What are the current pieces of legislation being considered and what would they accomplish? What does the governor’s proposal mean for utilities?
With guest host Libby Denkmann
Guests:
Sean Hecht, co-executive director of Emmett Institute of Climate Change and the Environment at UCLA Law school
Matt Dorsey, spokesperson for the Building Resilient Infrastructure for Tomorrow’s Economy (BRITE) CA Coalition, which includes Pacific Gas and Electric, as well as other utilities, labor organizations and businesses that aim for California energy infrastructure to address climate change
Tom Long, legal director of the consumer advocacy group The Utility Reform Network (TURN)
As electric scooters screech to a halt in Beverly Hills, we examine municipal regulation of the devices
Though the electric scooters that have popped up in areas around Los Angeles have proved contentious, they’ve managed to persist through local criticism and bureaucratic red tape – until this week.
At a meeting on Tuesday, the Beverly Hills City Council voted 4-1 to ban the scooters from its city, citing public safety concerns and lack of community outreach on the part of scooter companies. This comes as a blow to the electric scooter industry, which saw recent success in Santa Monica with the city's approval of a 16-month pilot program.
But cities all over the U.S. have long been struggling with regulating the new transportation devices, both financially and practically. Places like Santa Monica have been losing out on potential profits by not having fiscally beneficial permits in place, and authorities have had difficulty enforcing safety and traffic rules on scooter riders.
If you’re from Beverly Hills, or other areas of Los Angeles where scooters are picking up, what kinds of regulations are you seeing your city make (if any)? What kinds of safety issues have you seen arise? Do you think cities are entitled to a share of the profits? Call 866.893.5722.
With guest host Libby Denkmann
Guests:
Patrick Sisson, senior reporter covering urbanism and transportation for Curbed L.A.; he tweets
Thomas Lord, Los Angeles-area general manager at Lime, a San Francisco-based startup providing smartbikes, scooters and other urban transportation options