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Articles by Don Thompson
U.S. auto insurers want California to approve rate increases after being frozen since pandemic
SACRAMENTO — Top U.S. insurance companies and associations say California is risking a crisis in the nation’s largest automobile insurance market by refusing to approve any rate increases for more than two years, since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. The companies already are cutting back and say they can't continue operating at a loss while Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara delays rate cases filed by companies representing three-quarters of the California market.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Ford Motor Company on Tuesday settled claims by 40 U.S. state attorneys general that the company made misleading claims about the fuel economy and payload capacity of some of its vehicles, violating state consumer protection laws. The company agreed to pay $19.2 million to the states and refrain from making misleading advertising claims as part of the settlement filed in San Diego Superior Court in California.
California has $600M in unclaimed can, bottle deposits
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California is sitting on a $600 million pile of unclaimed nickel and dime deposits on recyclable cans and bottles and now wants to give some of that back to consumers. To get the state's nearly 40 million residents to recycle more and send more deposits back to them, Gov. Gavin Newsom's administration unveiled a plan Friday to temporarily double to a dime the refund for a 12-ounce (355 milliliters) bottle or can.
California to lift indoor mask mandate for vaccinated people next week
DON THOMPSON ASSOCIATED PRESS February 7, 2022, 3:25PM Updated 1 hour ago SACRAMENTO — California will end its indoor masking requirement for vaccinated people next week but masks still are the rule for schoolchildren, state health officials announced Monday amid rapidly falling coronavirus cases. After Feb.
California to lift indoor mask mandate for vaccinated people next week
DON THOMPSON ASSOCIATED PRESS February 7, 2022, 3:25PM Updated 2 hours ago SACRAMENTO — California will end its indoor masking requirement for vaccinated people next week but masks still are the rule for schoolchildren, state health officials announced Monday amid rapidly falling coronavirus cases. After Feb.
Experts believe California has reached omicron peak. Here’s why
DON THOMPSON ASSOCIATED PRESS January 25, 2022, 5:03PM Updated 2 hours ago SACRAMENTO — California showed signs it turned the corner on the omicron wave of the coronavirus pandemic, with infection rates falling and hospitalizations well short of the overwhelming deluge officials feared a few weeks ago. Over 15,000 people are hospitalized with coronavirus, a huge figure but well short of last January's peak of about 22,000 and half of what officials had feared.
California sues ‘sharing ministry’ health insurance plan
Breaking News Update: Here’s how to get the White House to send a free COVID test to your home Attorney General Rob Bonta. (Doug Duran/Bay Area News Group) SACRAMENTO — California on Wednesday sued what the state’s attorney general called a sham health insurance company operating as a “health care sharing ministry” — one the state claims illegally denied members benefits while retaining as much as 84% of their payments.
California governor mulls RFK assassin Sirhan Sirhan parole
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California's governor must soon decide whether to free one of America's most notorious assassins, a decision he has said evokes one of the darkest periods in the nation's history. Gov. Gavin Newsom has until sometime next month to allow or block the parole recommendation for Robert F. Kennedy assassin Sirhan Sirhan.
Gov. Newsom boosts efforts to combat smash-and-grabs across California
SACRAMENTO — Stung by recent headline-grabbing smash-and-grab robberies, California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Friday said he will seek more than $300 million in state funding over three years to boost law enforcement efforts to combat retail theft. “The issue of crime and violence is top of mind all throughout not only the state of California but across the United States, highlighted recently by some high-profile retail theft operations,” Newsom said. He added that “these organized retail mobs ...
California workplace COVID rules to change
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Workplace regulators are poised on Thursday to extend California’s coronavirus pandemic regulations into next year with some revisions that business groups say could worsen the labor shortage. The main change to the California Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board’s revised temporary rule is that it would erase current distinctions between vaccinated and unvaccinated employees.
Martinez electrician ordered to pay $481 million for part in Solano County Ponzi scheme
SACRAMENTO — A California electrician was ordered Tuesday to pay $481.3 million in restitution as part of his sentence for participating in a $1 billion Ponzi scheme that suckered Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc., among many others. Joseph W. Bayliss, 46, of Martinez, was sentenced to three years in federal prison on top of the restitution.
Colorado Joins New Mexico & California In Offering COVID Boosters To All Adults
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California along with Colorado and New Mexico are now allowing coronavirus booster shots for all adults even though federal health officials recommend limiting doses to those considered most at risk. The three states instituted their policies to try to head off a feared surge around the end-of-year holidays when more people are gathering inside.
California preparing for possible winter pandemic surge
STEFANIE DAZIO AND DON THOMPSON ASSOCIATED PRESS November 11, 2021, 10:15AM Updated 1 hour ago LOS ANGELES — California has begun positioning equipment and locking in contracts with temporary health care workers in preparation for another possible winter surge of coronavirus cases, Gov. Gavin Newsom said Wednesday. The most populous state in the country still is doing comparatively well with the rest of the U.S. in terms of cases and hospitalizations.
California virus cases stop falling; Gov. Newsom urges caution
ADAM BEAM AND DON THOMPSON ASSOCIATED PRESS October 27, 2021, 6:47PM Updated 36 minutes ago SACRAMENTO — California Gov. Gavin Newsom rolled up his sleeve Wednesday and received a coronavirus vaccine booster shot, a move he encouraged others to take as the state heads into the time of year that in 2020 ushered in the deadliest spike of COVID-19 cases.
California may impose toughest rules on recycling labels in US
SACRAMENTO — California lawmakers have approved what advocacy groups say are the nation's strongest protections against falsely labeling items as recyclable when they in fact are destined for landfills. The measure sent late Thursday to Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom for his consideration would reserve the “chasing arrows” recycling symbol for items that actually can be recycled. The author of the bill named SB 343, Democratic Sen.
California epidemiologist 'hopeful' coronavirus surge is abating
SACRAMENTO — A summer coronavirus surge driven by the delta variant is again straining some California hospitals, particularly in rural areas, but the trend shows signs of moderating and experts predict improvement in coming weeks. The pattern is similar to the infection spikes California experienced last summer and much more severely over the winter when intensive care units were overflowing.
California spent $200 million to set up, operate care sites during pandemic
DON THOMPSON ASSOCIATED PRESS July 31, 2021, 10:25AM Updated 9 hours ago SACRAMENTO — California spent nearly $200 million to set up, operate and staff alternate care sites that ultimately provided little help when the state's worst coronavirus surge spiraled out of control last winter, forcing exhausted hospital workers to treat patients in tents and cafeterias. It was a costly way to learn California's hospital system is far more elastic than was thought at the start of the pandemic.
Report: Hate Crimes Were Up By 31% In California In 2020, Led By Anti-Black Bias
SACRAMENTO (AP) – Hate crime in California surged 31% in 2020, fueled mainly by a big jump in crimes targeting Black people during a year that saw the worst racial strife in decades, according to an annual report released Wednesday by the state’s attorney general. Overall hate crimes increased from 1,015 to 1,330 last year, while the number of victims increased 23%, from 1,247 to 1,536.
California Moves To Phase Out Its Last 3 Remaining State-Run Youth Prisons
SACRAMENTO (AP) – California is phasing out its state-run youth prisons and shifting the responsibility to counties, 162 years after lawmakers created the first alternative to housing children as young as 12 alongside adults in San Quentin and Folsom state prisons. Advocates said the move reflects their belief that children who commit crimes can be reformed and are better served when held closer to their homes.
California Gov. Newsom pledges consistent workplace mask rules
SACRAMENTO — Gov. Gavin Newsom said Friday that he's confident his workplace regulators will soon fall in line with California's plan to drop virtually all masking and social distancing requirements next week for people vaccinated against the coronavirus. The California Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board is set to consider revising its conflicting rules Thursday, two days after the state more broadly eases its pandemic restrictions.
Even vaccinated California workers may have to keep masks on when state reopens
DON THOMPSON ASSOCIATED PRESS June 3, 2021, 9:00AM SACRAMENTO — California is set to fully reopen in less than two weeks and do away with virtually all mask and social distancing requirements for vaccinated people. But officials who regulate workplaces in the state aren't ready to go that far and that's angering business groups.
Even Vaccinated California Workers May Have To Keep Masks On After June 15
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (CBS13/AP) — California is set to fully reopen in less than two weeks and do away with virtually all mask and social distancing requirements for vaccinated people, but those who regulate workplaces in the state aren’t ready to go that far and that has business groups upset.
Even Vaccinated California Workers May Have To Keep Masks On After June 15
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (CBS13/AP) — California is set to fully reopen in less than two weeks and do away with virtually all mask and social distancing requirements for vaccinated people, but those who regulate workplaces in the state aren’t ready to go that far and that has business groups upset.
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