Jerry Brown’s Message About Daylight Saving Time in California
Connecting state and local government leaders
STATE AND LOCAL ROUNDUP | Absent Pennsylvania mayor may lead to city’s shuttering … Austin’s $925 bond issue vote … and Don Jr.’s Chicago City Hall meeting.
Here are state and local government news stories that caught Route Fifty’s attention.
- Sacramento, California: Gov. Jerry Brown signed a stack of bills on Thursday and among the big items of note, the governor approved A.B. 375, a closely watched online privacy bill that will let consumers “ask for the data a company has collected on them and whom the data has been sold to.” Also in the legislative mix: Brown opened the door to California ditching the state’s Daylight Saving Time Act. In his signing message for A.B. 807—which directs the Secretary of State to put the question to voters on a future statewide ballot—recognized that there’s a “circuitous path” for the state in getting federal approval to eliminate Daylight Saving Time. But Brown also wrote: “Fiat lux!” For those unfamiliar with the Latin phrase, that means “let there be light.” [CNet; Gov. Jerry Brown]
- Monessen, Pennsylvania: What a mess in this economically challenged steel town near Pittsburgh: Municipal operations, including police and fire services, will cease operations on Sunday due to “the mayor’s absence from council meetings has kept the city from purchasing liability insurance.” Another council member’s absence has prevented a quorum, leaving “a stack of unfinished business and unpaid bills.” [Observer-Reporter]
- Austin, Texas: During a meeting Thursday night, the Austin City Council approved a $925 million bond issue that will be put to voters in November. That package includes $250 million that would fund affordable housing, “which is by far the largest affordable housing measure ever included in a local bond package.” [Austin American-Statesman]
ELSEWHERE …
- Chicago, Illinois: Donald Trump Jr. visited Chicago City Hall for meeting with Alderman Brendan Reilly about a riverfront retail space in Chicago’s Trump Tower. [Chicago Tribune]
- St. Louis County, Missouri: County Executive Steve Stenger has declared an opioid crisis a public health emergency. In the past five years, the county has seen a 70 percent increase in overdose-related fatalities. [MissouriNet]
- Los Angeles, California: Meet the Los Angeles Police Department’s new chief, Michel Moore. He replaces Charlie Beck, who stepped down from his position on Wednesday. [LAist / KPCC]
- Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Mayor Jim Kenney signed a new city building code that modernizes construction practices and considers more severe weather conditions associated with climate change. [PlanPhilly / WHYY]
- St. Paul, Minnesota: State regulators OK certificate of need for a controversial Enbridge pipeline project across northern Minnesota. [Star Tribune]
- Miami, Florida: This street in the Coconut Grove area could be a model for how the city adapts to rising sea levels. [Miami Herald]
- Portland, Oregon: Oregon’s exploding Baby Boom population is flocking to the "vanlife," turning a once-grungy counterculture into big business. [Willamette Week]
- Greenville, South Carolina: City Hall repairs could carry a $2.5 million price tag. [Greenville Journal]
- Topsham, Maine: Say goodbye to the Frank J. Wood Bridge. [Times Record]
Michael Grass is Executive Editor of Government Executive's Route Fifty and is based in Seattle.
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