House Democrats introduce spending bill to fund government through Dec. 11 [Wall Street Journal]
The House was expected to move Tuesday to pass a spending bill that would keep the government running through Dec. 11 but without farm-aid funds sought by the White House. … The bill became controversial Monday when Democratic leaders opted not to include a request from the White House to replenish early a program President Trump has tapped as aid to farmers. Negotiators had been discussing pairing an infusion of farm-aid funds with a provision sought by Democrats to extend a program expiring at month’s end for families of school-age children, according to aides from both parties.
‘Wet ashtray’ wine grapes left to birds as fires choke West Coast vineyards [Reuters]
… Atmospheric smoke has obscured grape-ripening sunlight while ash has coated green beans, cauliflower and other produce in nearby fields just days before scheduled harvesting. Poor air quality is slowing harvesting as farms limit fieldwork hours and some run low on particle-filtering masks due to the coronavirus pandemic. … It is too soon to judge how the wildfires will impact 2020 vintages, but harvested grape supplies will likely be smaller, said Glenn Proctor, partner and broker at California-based Ciatti Global Wine & Grape Brokers. Winemakers short of newly harvested grapes are expected to buy bulk wine from the 2019 season for blending with what is available from this year, he said.
Editorial: A better way to help Californians survive wildfires: Focus on homes, not trees [Los Angeles Times]
… One approach, seen in a bill proposed by Sens. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and Steve Daines (R-Mont.), is to log more dead trees and dig more firebreaks, among other things. But it’s outmoded and environmentally problematic; environmental groups have attacked the bill for allowing the fast-tracking of logging permits, bypassing the normal review process, in areas far from any towns that could be threatened. … Rather than going down that road, or cutting trees and brush in order to make fires smaller and slower, the better, more scientifically based approach is to focus more on houses and less on trees.
https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2020-09-22/wildfire-safety-strategy
Ag commissioner to report, defend pesticide information, notification efforts [Monterey Herald]
Public information and notification on pesticide use in Monterey County farm fields whether for area schools or the larger community will take center stage at Tuesday’s Board of Supervisors meeting. During the county board’s morning session starting at 10:30 a.m., the county board is set to hear a report from Agricultural Commissioner Henry Gonzales on the Pesticide Notification Near Schools pilot project. … Gonzales is poised to present a report outlining the history of the pilot project, which tapped state funding to conduct public outreach and set up an online pesticide notification system, and which he promises to continue despite the expiration of the state funding earlier this summer.
Editorial: No on Proposition 15: Vast tax hike during a deep recession is a crazy idea [San Diego Union-Tribune]
… This is a horrible idea for reasons that go beyond the insanity of imposing the largest property tax hike in state history on employers during a deep recession — and beyond the fact that the cost of the tax hikes would be largely passed on to consumers during a deep recession. Approving Proposition 15 is not about preserving essential government services, as advocates assert. It is about preserving generous government pensions that threaten to bankrupt government agencies across the state. … Send a message that pension reform should precede a massive tax hike and vote no on Proposition 15.
Opinion: A clear warning about the Colorado River [Salt Lake Tribune]
… For now, California has avoided flexing its muscle to get its fair share of the Colorado River. … California charges the highest water rates in the West and also pays for efficiency. … The state also invests in smarter irrigation, piping leaky ditches in the Imperial Valley, the Colorado River’s biggest irrigator. And it invests in desalinization plants and reuses some of its water via a program that was first derided as “toilet-to-tap.” … As for the Upper Basin, states continue to push not for water conservation but for more dams and reservoirs that would drain water from the basin.
https://www.sltrib.com/opinion/commentary/2020/09/21/dave-marston-clear/
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