Tag: california

San Jose tells food pantry it must shut down

A popular San Jose neighborhood food pantry is at risk of closing again after being hit with more zoning violations.

Lighthouse Food Rescue & Distribution was cited by San Jose on Sept. 25 for hosting its food distribution on the sidewalk and for not following zoning rules, as a food distribution center is no longer permitted in that neighborhood. If the organization does not comply within 10 days by removing the distribution and canopies from the sidewalk, it will start incurring daily fines of up to $20,000 a day, according to the citation, which also says the food pantry must cease operations within 60 days.

“I’m up against the wall,” Pastor Ralph Olmos, president and CEO of the food pantry, told San José Spotlight. “It’s almost like (the city is) telling me to stop. But my conviction says, ‘How can I leave the people?’”

Residents and advocates have said the food pantry is a lifeline for the community, serving families, older adults, homeless people and those with disabilities. The organization feeds more than 1,000 people a day, five days a week from noon to 5 p.m. It offers a variety of foods that are not available at other pantries — including milk, meat and eggs.

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Nurse: Stillbirths Exploded After COVID Shots Hit Maternity Wards

A California labor-and-delivery nurse says her Fresno hospital went from a handful of stillbirths a year to more than 20 in a single month once COVID shots were pushed on pregnant women, then answered the pile-up with an email on how to handle the dead.

The same product is now sitting in a federal file parents were told not to worry about. An analysis of the National Health Interview Survey, published yesterday, finds COVID-vaccinated children had higher odds of autism, ADHD, anxiety and special-education use than children who never received the shot, and the authors say the shots in children should stop.

Michelle Spencer has worked the antepartum, postpartum and labor-and-delivery floor at Community Regional Medical Center in Fresno since 2017. In interviews that Children’s Health Defense aired, she described the unit before the pregnancy rollout as a place that saw about four stillbirths a year. After the shots started going into pregnant women, she said, it became four a week, and it did not stop.

A total of 22 stillborn babies in 30 days against a baseline of four a year is more than the previous five years combined, on the order of a 6,500 percent jump in a single month. Spencer’s July 30, 2025 complaint in Fresno County Superior Court used a baseline of one fetal death a month before spring 2021 and about 20 a month after, and calls the rise a statistically significant surge of more than 400 percent.

She has said she cannot pull the hospital’s full record, so the monthly figure is her estimate from the floor. The document that is not an estimate is the email.

In September 2022, nurse manager Julie Christopherson wrote to nursing and technical staff about what the hospital called “demise patients.”

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Southern California Power Providers Urge Residents to Conserve Energy, Avoid Using Major Appliances Amid Sweltering Heat Wave to Avoid Rolling Blackouts

California bans the sale of gas-powered vehicles, then urges residents not to plug in their electric vehicles to conserve energy amid sweltering heat waves – or else there will be rolling blackouts.

Southern California is currently baking amid a multi-day October heat wave.

Temperatures soared into the triple digits in Los Angeles, Orange County, San Diego, and Riverside over the weekend and will continue all week.

Even the coastal cities are sizzling.

On Monday, the power providers urged residents to conserve energy. Southern Californians were asked to avoid using major appliances and urged to set thermostats at 78 degrees or higher.

The Orange County Register reported:

Southern California Edison said it is “closely monitoring the electric system and preparing for the potential impacts of increased electrical demand.”

“We use every available resource to provide reliable service,” according to SCE. “Even so, extreme heat can increase energy use and put extra strain on the electric system, which may increase the likelihood of temporary outages.

“We encourage customers to prepare now for possible outages and periods of increased energy use. Consider charging mobile devices, reviewing emergency plans and making sure any critical equipment has backup power if available. You can also help reduce strain on the grid by conserving energy from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m., including limiting use of major appliances during those hours.”

Power providers urged residents to take steps to conserve electricity during the heat wave. The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power recommends setting thermostats to 78 degrees or higher during the hottest parts of the day and avoiding the use of major appliances such as washing machines, dishwashers and vacuum cleaners.

The LADWP also recommends avoiding the use of stoves and ovens, closing curtains and blinds to reduce sunlight, turning off lights and electrical equipment when not in use and unplugging chargers and appliances that continue to draw power.

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California Man Accused Of Routing More Than $300 Million In Restricted Servers To China

A California man has been arrested on federal charges accusing him of helping route more than $300 million in export-controlled computer servers to China through Malaysia and Singapore.

Greg Lui, 38, also known as Yiu Kong Lui, of San Gabriel, was arrested Oct. 1 after a federal grand jury returned a three-count indictment two days earlier.

Lui was the chief executive officer and owner of Earthmade Computer Inc., a company based in City of Industry, California, and established in November 2023. He was also the registered agent of another company, Coindigger, that did business as Earthmade.

Earthmade has not been charged in the case. The company did not respond by publication time to a request for comment.

Lui is charged with conspiracy to violate U.S. export-control laws, outbound smuggling, and conspiracy to commit money laundering. Prosecutors allege payments from Malaysia flowed into Earthmade’s U.S. bank accounts and were then used to buy restricted servers from American manufacturers.

Prosecutors allege the conspiracy began no later than October 2023 and continued through at least Aug. 12, 2026. The indictment’s detailed transaction examples are concentrated in 2024, when Lui and others allegedly bought high-end computer servers and graphics processing units, or GPUs, from U.S. manufacturers and routed them through Malaysia and Singapore before they ultimately reached China.

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California has the nation’s second-highest rate of housing-driven poverty, new study finds

California’s housing crisis is a major contributor to poverty across the state, new research shows.

High housing costs account for 30% of all poverty in California and 36% of childhood poverty, according to an analysis by the Pew Charitable Trusts.

That gives California the nation’s second-highest rate of housing-driven poverty, behind Hawaii, where housing costs account for 34% of overall poverty and 42% of childhood poverty.

Americans spend a significant share of their income on housing.

Half of all renters spend at least 30% of their income on rent, according to a 2025 Harvard study.

California’s median gross rent stands at $2,104, per to a July report from Investopedia, making it the third-most expensive state in the country.

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Hilton Mocks Becerra for Saying Tax Breaks for Those Earning Under $150K Benefit ‘the Wealthiest’

Democrat California gubernatorial hopeful Xavier Becerra started his CNN debate by claiming that his Republican opponent, Steve Hilton, supports tax breaks for the “wealthiest” Californians. Hilton immediately pointed out that the tax breaks will actually benefit people who earn under $150,000 a year.

One of the key points to take away from the debate interchange below, besides the fact that Democrats are going to have to cheat egregiously to boost an obviously sour and disconnected Becerra, is that Democrats are never content with targeting billionaires. All those deluded taxpayers who think they will vote for higher taxes on the wealthy should remember that Democrats’ definition of “the wealthy” is pretty much anyone who earns a good enough salary to be independent of government assistance and government programs.

Becerra lectured at the Wednesday debate, “If you start making tax breaks for the wealthiest, you damage our working families like my parents, Mr. Hilton.” Grinning, Hilton shot back, “I love the way that Xavier says the wealthiest are people who are earning less than $150,000 a year, struggling. But first of all, I just want to say thank you to CNN for bringing Xavier out of hiding. He’s barely been seen in public since the primary, four months ago.”

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Protection Orders, Gun Training, And 3D Printing Laws Among Gun Bills Signed By California Governor

California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a package of 10 gun bills into law that he says will enhance what he considers to be the state’s already exemplary record of firearms safety.

Newsom’s office announced the signing in a press release on Monday. According to the release, the laws are meant to reduce violent crime involving guns and reduce the number of illegal guns on the street, among other things.

They include a training requirement for the purchase of a gun, expanding criteria for the state’s extreme risk protection orders, voluntary firearms storage by law enforcement to prevent violent crime and suicide, and a requirement for firearms blocking technology on 3D printers in the state by July 1, 2029.

“California has been a leader in gun safety. Today’s laws continue that work – using data, prevention, and proven tools to help keep firearms out of dangerous situations and support communities affected by violence,” Newsom stated in the press release.

Senate Bill 948 will make a training requirement necessary for acquiring a state firearms safety certificate for the purchase of a gun. Existing law requires the certificate for the purchase, transfer, or importation of guns within the state within 60 days of the transaction.

The new law adds a requirement for a four-hour training course that must cover firearm handling and safety as well as a live-fire component. The law becomes effective Jan. 1, 2029.

The press release also touted the state’s Gun Violence Restraining Orders (GVRO), crediting them with preventing 58 mass shootings and reducing violent crime overall.

Assembly Bill 175 expands this by allowing courts to issue extreme risk protection orders even if the subject of the order has not been notified. It also prohibits courts from requiring petitioners to show that exceptional circumstances exist that make the order necessary.

Thousands of GVROs have been issued since the first laws were implemented in 2016, the press release states.

“Between 2021 and 2024, the number of longer-term GVROs issued each year in California more than doubled. In 2024 alone, California courts issued GVROs against 1,727 individuals found to pose a significant danger of firearm violence toward themselves or others,” the release states.

Newsom also signed a law meant to prevent suicides by providing temporary gun storage for those who are in crisis.

Assembly Bill 1974 allows law enforcement agencies to establish programs to take temporary possession of firearms from those who request such. The law requires the agency to provide clear instructions on voluntarily transferring custody of a firearm and instructions on requesting its return.

It also requires the agency to ensure the person is not prohibited from owning a firearm. The agency must also ensure the firearm has not been reported lost or stolen, used in a crime, or part of an active investigation. Guns that are not picked up by their owners will be destroyed.

The law also exempts the agencies and gun owners from certain requirements for concealed carry and transfer of firearms.

Assembly Bill 2047 is meant to hamper the production of homemade guns that do not have serial numbers or other identifying marks. The law sets a deadline of July 1, 2029, for any 3D printer sold in the state to have firearms blocking technology.

This technology would prevent the user from 3D printing so-called “ghost guns.” These guns are most often frames of synthetic materials produced on a 3D printer with metal parts purchased separately. The fact that the homemade guns have no serial numbers makes it difficult to trace them back to their source.

The press release states that the number of unserialized guns has been on the decline in recent years.

“Seventeen percent fewer ghost guns [were] recovered as crime guns in 2025, bringing the decline since 2021 to 37 percent,” the release reads.

Gun rights advocates decried the package of gun laws, saying they are about gun control more than gun safety.

Adam Kraut, executive director of the Second Amendment Foundation (SAF), was especially critical of the training requirement, which he considers an obstacle to legal gun ownership.

“It comes after California has already passed an 11 percent excise tax on guns and ammo, and carry permits cost anywhere between $500 and $2,500 in the state, depending on the county. SAF is currently litigating against both of those abuses and will consider a lawsuit against SB 948 as its effective date in 2029 approaches,” Kraut stated in an email to The Epoch Times.

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California State University System Weighs Dropping International Student English Test Requirement

The California State University system is considering dropping the English test international applicants must pass before they can enroll.

The 23-campus system may rewrite its admissions rules so that students whose first language is not English can skip the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). Vice Chancellor Dilcie Perez brought the idea to the Board of Trustees last week, and the trustees could vote on it in November.

Perez said the change would swap the single test for what she called multiple approved measures of English ability. Cal State could judge proficiency the way the UC system already does, accepting the Duolingo English Test, the SAT, or Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate results. She argued that the current requirement shuts out applicants through its cost and limited availability, and insisted the university would not lower its standards.

International enrollment in California has fallen this year during the Trump administration’s crackdown on student visas. One trade group projected a 15-percent drop for the current school year, a loss of about 7,000 students in the state and roughly one billion dollars in tuition and other spending.

Foreign students typically pay full tuition, well above the in-state rate, and that money helps cover the cost of educating domestic students. International applicants make up about 2.5 percent of Cal State’s 470,000 students and about 12 percent of the University of California system.

The degree a foreign student earns at an American university can also open a path to a job in the United States. Foreign graduates are allowed to stay and work through Optional Practical Training, the post-graduation work permit program that runs from a student visa toward an H-1B and, for many, a green card. In 2024, 640,000 foreign graduates held OPT or related work permits.

Some say the looser rule will not matter much, because the State Department still decides who receives an F-1 student visa, and applicants who cannot read, write, and speak English are unlikely to clear that step.

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Newsom Signs Laws Banning Shock Gloves And Taxing Immigration Detention Centers

California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed 21 bills on Sept. 29 aimed at limiting federal immigration enforcement in the state, including a ban on officers using shock gloves and a new 25 percent tax on private detention centers.

“California is taking action to strengthen transparency, accountability, and oversight around immigration enforcement in our state,” Newsom said in a statement.

“This is about stepping up where the federal government has failed our communities,” the Democratic governor said. “We will continue protecting our people, upholding the rule of law, and making clear that if the federal government operates in California, we will hold them accountable.“

The shock glove ban applies to all officers in California, including federal immigration agents. It takes effect next year, expires Jan. 1, 2030, and requires the state Department of Justice to complete a safety study on the devices by Jan. 1, 2029.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) awarded a $16.7 million no-bid contract last month for 6,000 pairs of the gloves, which deliver an electric shock at the push of a button. ICE said at the time that the devices would help officers control resisting detainees and protesters.

“Sanctuary politicians attempting to ban our federal law enforcement from any safety equipment is despicable and a deliberate attempt to undermine and endanger our officers,” the agency said in a statement at the time, responding to a group of Democratic lawmakers who urged the agency to abandon the plan.

California law enforcement groups broadly opposed the shock glove ban, including Sacramento Sheriff Jim Cooper, a Democrat and former state lawmaker.

“When the federal government does something, the state Legislature wants to ban it,” Cooper said at a news conference last month.

“For me, use of force is so important. We talk about it all the time. De-escalating [to] a lower level of force. What they’re doing by trying to ban this glove, and it conducts electricity – a much lower voltage than a taser – they’re making our job harder.”

Newsom also signed a revised ban on officers wearing masks. A federal judge blocked the state’s first mask ban in February, ruling that it unfairly targeted local and federal officers because it exempted state officers. The new law applies to all officers.

Other bills Newsom signed on Tuesday restrict the use of state-owned property for immigration enforcement staging, processing, or detention, and one allows people to sue federal officials accused of violating their constitutional rights.

Another law protects people traveling to and from courthouses from civil arrest, and another bars ICE officers who have committed serious misconduct from becoming police officers or public employees in California.

A fifth law requires rental vehicles that law enforcers use for arrests or transport to display a decal identifying the agency, with limited exceptions.

Detention center taxes will go to state immigration-related services. A separate bill ends a property tax exemption claimed by some detention facilities.

Newsom’s office acknowledged in its announcement that California “cannot dictate federal immigration policy.” It said the state can set requirements for state property, state resources, detention facilities, public records, and law enforcement practices where federal enforcement operates in California.

Courts have mostly sided with the Justice Department in challenges to state limits on federal agents. In April, an appeals court blocked California’s separate law requiring officers to wear identification, ruling that it violates the Supremacy Clause of the Constitution. Federal judges have since blocked mask bans in Virginia on June 30, Philadelphia on July 2, and New York on Aug. 3.

States have fared better on other measures. On Sept. 4, a federal judge dismissed a Justice Department lawsuit challenging an executive order by New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill, a Democrat, that bars federal immigration officers from using state property for enforcement. California’s package includes a similar ban on state-owned property.

“To be crystal clear: we will not abide by unconstitutional mask bans,” a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said in an emailed response to an inquiry from The Epoch Times on Tuesday.

“The Supremacy Clause makes it clear that California’s sanctuary politicians do not control federal law enforcement. No tax will stop ICE from deporting criminal illegal aliens to make California safe again. We need California to cooperate with our officers and stop releasing criminals from their jails into California’s neighborhoods. Seven of the 10 safest cities in America cooperate with ICE.”

The spokesperson said that enforcing immigration law is a federal responsibility under the Constitution. Concerning the shock gloves, the spokesperson said that ICE reviews its equipment to make sure it is “consistent with all applicable law enforcement policies and standards,” and that officers are “highly trained in de-escalation tactics and regularly receive ongoing use of force training.”

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CA Gov. Gavin Newsom Signs ‘No Kings Act,’ Making It Easier to Sue ICE Agents

Democrat California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed 21 bills into law on Tuesday, one of which, the “No Kings Act,” makes it easier for left-wing migrant activists and others to target Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents.

One of the bills attempts to impose a 25-percent tax on private detention centers, another purports to ban law enforcement from using electric shock gloves, and another has a provision that makes it easier to sue federal immigration officers for doing their job.

“Trump has put his political interests above the health, safety and livelihood of American families,” Newsom said in a statement upon signing the bills, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. “California is taking action to strengthen transparency, accountability, and oversight around immigration enforcement in our state. This is about stepping up where the federal government has failed our communities.”

“We will continue protecting our people, upholding the rule of law, and making clear that if the federal government operates in California, we will hold them accountable,” Newsom added.

Radical left-wing state Senator Scott Wiener (D), who sponsored the bill, celebrated the signing.

“ICE and Border Patrol have terrorized California communities with impunity,” Wiener claimed. “That ends today.”

He continued:

When federal agents act lawlessly, they should be held accountable the same as any other lawbreaker. But for too long, a loophole in the law has shielded them from accountability. The No Kings Act provides long overdue accountability to end the impunity powering ICE and Border Patrol’s terror campaign.

It is likely that some of the provisions in these various bills won’t pass legal muster for their attempt to interfere in federal law enforcement matters.

Other provisions include requirements to disclose 911 and emergency response records, the creation of a so-called “detainees’ bill of rights,” a ban on the use of flash-bang devices, and a ban on former ICE officers being hired by state law enforcement agencies.

The Chronicle reported in August that ICE had arrested nearly 50,000 migrants across the state, some 6,800 of them in Southern California and 11,500 in Los Angeles.

California has opposed the Trump administration’s voter-mandated efforts to institute mass deportations of illegal migrants after the state used migrants for years to pad state tax subsidies, especially where it concerned the fattening of education budgets as millions of migrant children flooded the state’s school systems.

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