KQED's The California Report

The Citizen app brands itself as a tool to report on local crimes and emergencies in your area. But it can also lead to false reporting as was the case last week, when a man was falsely accused of starting a fire in Pacific Palisades, after his picture appeared on the app.Guest: Boone Ashworth, Contributing Writer, WIREDSanta Clara County is one of four across the state that moved into the least restrictive yellow tier for reopening this week. Now, officials are mandating that businesses keep track of the vaccination status of employees.Providing people a guaranteed income with no questions asked has moved from a fringe notion to the mainstream with pilot projects popping up across the state.  The possibility of a Guaranteed Basic Income program in Los Angeles County took a step forward Tuesday with a vote by the L.A. County Board of Supervisors. Reporter: Libby Denkmann, KPCC Just months after Shirley Weber was confirmed as California's Secretary of State, she'll have to oversee her first statewide election. It's a recall election of Governor Gavin Newsom, who appointed Weber to her post back in December.  Reporter: Guy Marzorati, KQED  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Despite new guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, allowing vaccinated people to go maskless in most settings, California won’t change its current mask mandates until the state’s scheduled reopening on June 15th. Since the pandemic began, workers in the grocery delivery business have been trying to organize to get more protections and benefits. Workers at the venture capital-backed Bay Area company, Imperfect Foods just voted to form a union, but it's likely not a model for the rest of the industry. Reporter: Sam Harnett, KQEDThe University of California says it’s one step closer to requiring COVID-19 vaccination of students and employees who want to return to campus in the fall. Reporter: Adolfo Guzman-Lopez, KPCCTwo out of three Californians believe businesses like concert venues and sports stadiums should be allowed to verify their customers’ vaccination status before allowing them to come in. That’s according to a new U.C. Berkeley poll. Reporter: April Dembosky, KQEDSan Francisco is suing the state of California because regulators would like the region to forfeit some of its water supply. The State Water Board would like to see more water flow down the Tuolumne River and not stored in reservoirs.Reporter: Ezra David Romero, KQED Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The fire has forced about a thousand people to evacuate their homes. Fire investigators are still trying to determine the cause but said that it is suspicious in nature.The recall election for Governor Gavin Newsom has gotten most of the headlines, but there are several local recall efforts underway across the state, including in Shasta County. Three county supervisors are facing backlash for following the state's guidelines during the pandemic. Guest : Doni Chamberlain, founder and editor of "A News Cafe" blogFire victims and public officials are calling for increased oversight of the Fire Victim Trust set up to distribute billions of dollars in compensation to families displaced by fires sparked by Pacific Gas and Electric Co. equipment. That’s following a KQED investigation which found the Trust spent $51 million on overhead last year, while the vast majority of fire victims haven’t received a dime.Reporter: Lily Jamali, The California ReportThe job of Lieutenant Governor tends to be a low-profile office in California. But the campaign to recall Governor Gavin Newsom will put current Lt. Governor Eleni Kounalakis front and center. Reporter: Katie Orr, KQED  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

CDC Says Vaccinated People Don't Need to Wear MasksCalifornia’s mask rules are still in place, but Governor Newsom has indicated changes are coming to the state’s mask mandate by June 15th..the target date to reopen the state.Most of California is in Extreme or Severe Categories of DroughtDrought conditions have intensified in parts of California over the past week, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor report released Thursday. These factors have prompted Governor Newsom to expand a drought emergency declaration to 41 of California's 58 counties. Guest: Cora Kammeyer, senior researcher at the Oakland-based Pacific Institute The Number of Unaccompanied Children Crossing the Border Decreased in AprilEmergency intake sites like the convention center have allowed the federal government to quickly move children out of ill-equipped Border Patrol facilities. Currently, only a few hundred children are in those facilities — and none for more than 72 hours. Reporter: Max Rivlin-Nadler, KPBS The California Report Magazine: The Year of Singing DangerouslyIn a preview of our sister show, the California Report’s weekly magazine, KQED’s Chloe Veltman explores how singers across California got creative during the pandemic. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Republican gubernatorial candidate Kevin Faulconer said he wants to eliminate state income taxes for low and middle-income Californians. He said this would allow Californians to keep more of their hard-earned revenue and make the state more affordable.Reporter: Guy Marzorati, KQEDHospital care at home is nothing new for patients with low-level health needs. But since the pandemic, a growing number of health providers, including California-giant Kaiser Permanente, are offering people with more serious health conditions hospital-level treatment in the comfort of their homes.   Reporter: Stephanie O’Neill  Every 4-year-old in the state would get access to transitional kindergarten under a major education spending plan announced by Governor Gavin Newsom on Wednesday. It's all part of his revised budget which will be released on Friday. Reporter: Vanessa Rancaño, KQEDIdentity theft, fraud, ransomware. Cybercrime is a plague upon the digital landscape. It was bad before the pandemic, and it surged during .Reporter: Rachael Myrow, KQED Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

California health officials said the Pfizer vaccine could be available for 12-15 year olds as early as Thursday. This comes after the Food and Drug Administration authorized the shots for adolescents earlier this week.Reporter: Lesley McClurg, KQEDState Senator Richard Pan of Sacramento is a pediatrician and led the effort to tighten California’s childhood immunization law. He says parents should ask questions and do research if they're concerned about getting their kids vaccinated.Guest: State Senator Richard PanCalifornia’s new Attorney General has announced the formation of a Racial Justice Bureau to address racial injustice, in the wake of increased attacks in Asian communities across the state.Reporter: Alice Woelfle, KQED Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With more than 90% of California experiencing extreme drought conditions, Governor Gavin Newsom is expanding a state drought emergency from just two to 41 counties. The new drought proclamation represents 30% of the state’s population.Reporter: Ezra David Romero, KQEDState Attorney General Rob Bonta has championed criminal justice reform during his time in Sacramento as a legislator. But can he implement real change as attorney general?Guest: Rob Bonta, California Attorney GeneralAs he fights a recall campaign to oust him from office, there’s some good news for Governor Gavin Newsom in a new poll. The Berkeley IGS Poll finds just 36% of California voters support recalling Newsom and 49% say they’ll vote no on the recall.Reporter: Katie Orr, KQEDA map of power lines has been created that the California Public Utilities Commission and Pacific Gas & Electric think are at great risk of starting a fire. Reporter: The California Report's Lily Jamali with KRCB Reporter Marc Albert Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Project Homekey allows cities and counties to purchase buildings and then covert them into long-term housing for the homeless. Martha Fuentes of Los Angeles says it's been a lifesaver and sanctuary as she's had to live in her car.Reporter: Saul Gonzalez, The California ReportGovernor Gavin Newsom announced an economic stimulus plan on Monday, one that will see most Californians getting tax refunds. The governor is expected to unveil more pieces of the "California Comeback Plan" in the coming days.Reporter: Scott Shafer, KQED Tackling COVID-19 misinformation in languages other than English has been complicated. In the South Bay, that's especially been the case for the Vietnamese community, which has been hit hard by the pandemic.Reporter: Adhiti Bandlamudi, KQED2020 proved to be a historic year in California and not just because of the pandemic. The state’s population dropped for the first time since it began tracking annual population estimates. Reporter: Scott Rodd, CapRadio   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Young kids are starting to get their first COVID vaccines in an early clinical trial at Stanford. If all goes well widespread distribution could begin by this fall. Reporter: Lesley McClurg, KQEDOfficials in charge of monitoring air quality in Southern California officials are voting on a rule Friday that aims to hold warehouses accountable for diesel truck pollution. The rise of e-commerce has led to a warehouse boom in the Inland Empire over the last decade.Reporter: Megan Jamerson, KVCR The State Senate has passed a bill that would clamp down on a common feature of employment in Silicon Valley, Hollywood, and beyond: the non-disclosure agreement. It's an attempt to limit the scope of NDA's. Reporter: Rachael Myrow, KQED A lot of college students have been stuck at home during the pandemic but one way they’ve tried to find community is through online video games. This competitive gaming is gaining popularity on California college campuses, where professors say recreational play is leading to professional opportunities. Reporter: Marisa Martinez, KQED and CalMatters Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After waiting months for an update on their unemployment claims, nearly a million out of work Californians will likely have to wade through even more red tape to access their benefits. That's because the Employment Development Department has disqualified their applications.Reporter: Mary Franklin Harvin, The California ReportA federal judge has struck down the CDC’s nationwide eviction moratorium, a decision the Justice Department is appealing. The ruling could have major ramifications for millions of tenants struggling to pay rent during the pandemic, but not here in California. Reporter: Molly Solomon, KQED Reality TV celebrity Caitlyn Jenner caused a media frenzy when she jumped into the California governor’s race two weeks ago. On Wednesday night, she sat down for an interview on Fox News.Reporter: Scott Shafer, KQEDA KQED investigation has found that the Fire Victim Trust, set up to distribute money to victims of wildfires caused by Pacific Gas and Electric, has spent the vast majority of its money on overhead, rather than fire survivors themselves.Guest: Scott McNutt, Bankruptcy Attorney and former California State Bar governorMost sports facilities are back in full swing, as L.A. County moves into the yellow tier for reopening this week. But that's not the case for basketball courts in Venice Beach. Reporter: Angel Carreras, KCRW Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices