| Spooky Stuff: On Halloween, Some States Will Have Deadlier Roads Than Others — Streetsblog USA |
| Halloween is a scary time on roads across America — but some states are far more frightful than others, a new study finds.
According to a recent analysis of National Highway Traffic Administration data, Kentucky has the highest rate of fatal crashes per capita on Oct. 31, with 9.1 per million residents — roughly 134.57 percent higher than the national average in the last four years on record. [Article] |
| by , . 2025-10-30 |
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| Immigration Resource Page Divides Garden Grove Council |
| Garden Grove became a flashpoint this week in Orange County’s ongoing immigration debate – raising concerns that city council members could be prosecuted for aiding undocumented immigrants by posting a resource page, along with who’s to blame for the ICE raids. [Article] |
| by , Voice of OC. 2025-10-30 |
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| Today In SCV History: October 29, 1974 – 500-Year-Old Lyons Oak Chopped Down To Make Way For Lyons Avenue Expansion |
| On October 29, 1974, the historic “Lyons Oak” was cut down by Los Angeles County Public Works crews during the widening of Lyons Avenue in Newhall
The expansion plan, approved in 1965, called for Lyons Avenue, once known as Pico Road and later 10th Street, to extend eastward across the railroad tracks and connect with Placerita Canyon Road, forming a vital link between the new Interstate 5 and Antelope Valley (14) freeways.
Within two years, the first homes in Valencia opened, and Lyons Avenue was widened to four lanes between I-5 and Valley Street/Orchard Village Road. [Article] |
| by , . 2025-10-30 |
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| The great EV retreat of 2025 - Los Angeles Times |
| In recent years, it’s become abundantly clear this region’s war on smog hinges on the of adoption electric vehicles. And, for the first time in a generation, we may be headed in the wrong direction.
If you’ve followed my coverage, you probably know that Southern California’s persistently sunny climate and mountains work together to form and trap smog over our region. And, that the leading source of smog-forming pollution is the same today as it was decades ago: gas-guzzling cars and trucks.
State regulators have made tremendous progress in the last few decades when it comes to curbing tailpipe pollution; California, for example, was the first state to adopt engine emission standards and mandate catalytic converters, regulations that were later adopted nationwide. But Southern California has yet to achieve any federal air quality standards for smog.
And now, electric vehicles and hybrids face significant headwinds due to recent policy changes under the Trump administration.
Since President Trump’s return to the Oval Office, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has successfully campaigned to invalidate several California auto emission standards, including a landmark rule that would’ve required 35% of new vehicles that automakers supply to California car dealerships to be zero-emission or plug-in hybrid starting next year.
Separately, Trump’s budget bill terminated federal incentives at the end of September that made zero-emission vehicles more cost-competitive with gas cars. As I recently wrote, California saw record-high sales numbers of EVs and other clean vehicles as consumers scrambled to dealerships to take advantage of expiring deals.
But now, without these two crucial policy levers driving EV adoption, the industry is at an inflection point.
A new EV costs about $8,000 more on average than a gas car, according to Kelley Blue Book.
The overall cost of ownership for EVs can still be cheaper than for gas cars due to lower fuel and maintenance costs. However, the question is, will Americans accept a higher upfront price tag in exchange for fewer costs — and less pollution — down the road?
The auto industry doesn’t pivot on a dime. Car lineups are designed, produced and released years in advance. But, in the last year, amid a torrent of policy decisions coming from the Trump White House, car companies have announced many moves that signal a retreat from some zero-emission vehicles: [Article] |
| by , Los Angeles Times. 2025-10-30 |
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| Opinion | In LA, a park fence won’t cure homelessness. But it’s a start |
| Los Angeles struggles to balance its humane responses to addiction and homelessness with its more instant but often less durable alternatives — police action. MacArthur Park, a 35-acre space in the heart of L.A.’s Westlake neighborhood, is proving to be a frustrating testing ground. [Article] |
| by , CalMatters. 2025-10-30 |
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| New donor fund launched to support Shasta residents during government shutdown – Shasta Scout |
| The Community Foundation of the North State, in collaboration with Shasta County Supervisor Matt Plummer, has set up a fund to make it easier for people to donate to community resources amidst the federal government shutdown. [Article] |
| by , . 2025-10-30 |
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| Layoffs are piling up. Here are companies that have cut jobs - Los Angeles Times |
| It’s a tough time for the job market.
Amid wider economic uncertainty, some analysts have said that businesses are at a “no hire, no fire” standstill. That’s caused many to limit new work to only a few specific roles, if not pause openings entirely. At the same time, some sizeable layoffs have continued to pile up — raising worker anxieties across sectors.
Some companies have pointed to rising operational costs stemming from President Trump’s barrage of new tariffs and shifts in consumer spending. Others cite corporate restructuring more broadly — or, as with big names like Amazon, are redirecting money to artificial intelligence.
Federal employees have encountered additional doses of uncertainty, impacting worker sentiment around the job market overall. Shortly after Trump returned to office at the start of the year, federal jobs were cut by the thousands. And many workers are now going without pay as the U.S. government shutdown nears its fourth week.
“A lot of people are looking around, scanning the job environment, scanning the opportunities that are available to them — whether it’s in the public or private sector,” said Jason Schloetzer, professor business administration at Georgetown University’s McDonough School. “And I think there’s a question mark around the long-term stability everywhere.”
Government hiring data is on hold during the shutdown, but earlier this month a survey by payroll company ADP showed that the private sector lost 32,000 jobs in September.
Here are some companies that have moved to cut jobs recently. [Article] |
| by , Los Angeles Times. 2025-10-30 |
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| California elections chief warns of ‘inaccurate’ text message about ballot status – Daily News |
| California Secretary of State Shirley Weber is warning that “numerous” voters have received an “inaccurate” message suggesting their ballots for California’s special election on redistricting have not been counted.
And she wants the public to know those messages were not sent by her office or local election officials. [Article] |
| by , Los Angeles Daily News. 2025-10-30 |
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| Californians’ economic hopes drop 23% since Trump election – Orange County Register |
| Californians are so spooked about their economic futures that one measure of their collective financial outlook is down 23% since Donald Trump captured his second White House stint.
My trusty spreadsheet found a muddied monetary perspective in the Conference Board’s consumer confidence index for California, which is calculated from public polling. High anxiety is seen when measuring average results for the three months ending in October and the same period 12 months earlier, just before Trump won the presidential election.
The most striking change is the 23% slide in the “expectations” slice of the confidence index – basically, the Californian view of the financial future. That put this yardstick of economic hopes 16% below its average since 2007. [Article] |
| by , Orange County Register. 2025-10-30 |
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| Beverly Hills will restrict parking for new affordable housing - Beverly Press & Park Labrea NewsBeverly Press & Park Labrea News |
| The Beverly Hills City Council on Oct. 28 unanimously approved the first reading of an ordinance that will prohibit certain residents from receiving street parking permits. [Article] |
| by , . 2025-10-30 |
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| Poultry industry pushes back after report shows salmonella is widespread in grocery store chicken - Los Angeles Times |
| A new report based on government inspection documents shows salmonella is widespread in U.S. grocery store chicken and turkey products. But because of how the pathogen is classified, the federal government has no authority to do much about it.
Farm Forward, an organization that advocates for farmworker rights and humane farm practices, released a report this week that examined five years of monthly U.S. Department of Agriculture inspections at major U.S. poultry plants. It found that at many plants, including those that process and sell poultry under brand names such as Foster Farms, Costco and Perdue, levels of salmonella routinely exceeded maximum standards set by the federal government.
“The USDA is knowingly allowing millions of packages of chicken contaminated with salmonella to be sold in stores from major brands,” said Andrew deCoriolis, the organization’s executive director.
Some 1.3 million Americans are sickened each year by eating salmonella-contaminated food, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Most people have only mild symptoms, but others suffer diarrhea, nausea and vomiting. Roughly 19,000 people are hospitalized annually, and an estimated 420 die from the infected food.
Chicken and turkey account for nearly a quarter of all salmonella infections, according to a 2021 government report on food illness. [Article] |
| by , Los Angeles Times. 2025-10-30 |
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| ‘I’ve never seen anything like it.’ Aggressive ICE raids led one man to ask: should I self-deport? | LAist |
| On a warm evening in early August, friends and family gathered in Juan Ramón González’s Pasadena backyard to eat homemade tacos and share stories about the kind-eyed 56-year-old who had lived in the neighborhood for three decades. [Article] |
| by , . 2025-10-30 |
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| CalOptima Probe Finds $460,000 Lost on Failed Real Estate Deal |
| Leaders of CalOptima — Orange County’s health plan for the poor — found the agency lost $460,000 on a failed property deal connected to a county vendor and a former county supervisor in prison for bribery. [Article] |
| by , Voice of OC. 2025-10-30 |
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| Judge rules top federal prosecutor in L.A. is 'unlawfully serving' - Los Angeles Times |
| A federal judge Tuesday ruled that Bill Essayli is “not lawfully serving” in his position as acting U.S. attorney in Los Angeles, the latest rebuke of the Trump administration’s unusual maneuvers to keep political allies in power as chief federal prosecutors across the country.
Although the ruling disqualifies Essayli from continuing in the role of “acting” U.S. attorney, the judge said he can still remain in charge of the office as “first assistant,” a lesser title he already holds.
“I’m still here, I’m not planning to go anywhere. We’re still reviewing that order,” Essayli said at a news conference Wednesday. “We’re less concerned with titles and we’re more concerned with the authority of my position to be able to run this office as the chief federal law enforcement officer of this district. I think the judge has made clear, regardless of my title, I have the authority to run this office.”
Senior U.S. District Judge J. Michael Seabright of Hawaii was brought in to oversee motions seeking to disqualify Essayli after federal judges in Los Angeles recused themselves. His ruling follows a string of challenges nationwide to Trump’s tactics for installing loyalists who wield the power to bring criminal charges and sue on the government’s behalf.
Essayli, 39, a former Riverside County assemblyman, was appointed as the region’s interim top federal prosecutor by U.S. Atty. Gen. Pam Bondi in April.
The top prosecutors in charge of U.S. attorney’s offices are supposed to be confirmed by the U.S. Senate or an interim can be appointed by a panel of federal judges, but the Trump administration has circumvented the normal process in order to allow Essayli and others to remain on the job without ever facing a vote. [Article] |
| by , Los Angeles Times. 2025-10-30 |
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| LAUSD will offer dinners to students as government shutdown delays SNAP benefits | LAist |
| About 600 Los Angeles Unified schools will start serving supper to offset expected delays to the federal food assistance program.
“The rumbling stomach of a child will prevent that child from learning,” said Superintendent Alberto Carvalho at a press conference Thursday. “It is not humane. It is not compassionate. We will not stand by it.” [Article] |
| by , . 2025-10-30 |
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| Edison is changing how it plans to pay Eaton Fire victims. What you need to know | LAist |
| Edison International on Wednesday announced a recovery compensation plan for victims of the Eaton Fire that company officials said would provide “fast payments and fair resolutions.” The announcement was made on LAist’s AirTalk daily news show. [Article] |
| by , . 2025-10-30 |
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| Judge disqualifies acting US Attorney Bill Essayli in 3 cases | AP News |
| A federal judge disqualified acting U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli in Southern California from several cases after concluding Tuesday that the Trump appointee has stayed in the temporary job longer than allowed by law. [Article] |
| by , . 2025-10-30 |
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| LAPD mental health teams should take lead at crisis events instead of patrol officers, city controller says | LAist |
| The Los Angeles City Controller’s Office made several findings about police responses to mental health crisis calls, including that patrol officers often are first to respond to calls for service instead of the department’s mental health teams.
That should change, according to an assessment released this week. [Article] |
| by , . 2025-10-30 |
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| Department of Homeland Security officers involved in shooting - Los Angeles Times |
| Federal authorities are investigating a shooting involving Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in Ontario, the second one in a little more than a week as enforcement operations unfold across the state.
ICE officers were conducting a vehicle stop around 6:30 a.m. Thursday in the 2800 block of Vineyard Avenue in Ontario, according to Tricia McLaughlin, a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security. During the stop, an unknown person who was not the officers’ target pulled their vehicle over in front of them, she said.
Officers ordered the driver to leave, McLaughlin said, but as the driver began to pull away, “the car stopped and attempted to run officers over by reversing directly at them without stopping.”
“An ICE officer, fearing for his life, fired defensive shots at the vehicle,” McLaughlin said. “The subject fled the scene and abandoned his vehicle.”
McLaughlin called it “another example of the threats our ICE officers are facing day in and day out as they risk their lives to enforce the law and arrest criminals.”
The driver’s family identified him as Carlos Jimenez, 24, a U.S. citizen, and said he was on his way to work at a food bank when the shooting occurred.
His two brothers waited outside the two-bedroom mobile home Jimenez shares with his wife, their children, his younger brother and his mother as the FBI, Homeland Security Investigations and Ontario police gathered at the scene. [Article] |
| by , Los Angeles Times. 2025-10-30 |
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| What does a rail storage yard three miles south of downtown LA have to do with a more modern Union Station? | LAist |
| The Metro Board of Directors advanced a plan to modernize Union Station last week without finding a resolution to a dispute that could complicate the project, known as Link US, in the future.
The sticking point lies 3 miles south of Union Station, at a private rail storage yard in the city of Vernon. [Article] |
| by , . 2025-10-30 |
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