CARLSBAD
The Carlsbad City Council met in special session Tuesday to discuss the city’s economic and financial update for the third quarter of the fiscal year 2021. The council heard a report and discussed ways to address the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Staff was asked to bring back information on supporting nonprofits. The council also discussed how to use the excess general fund reserve. The council voted to allocate $10 million to pay down pension liability to the California Public Employees Retirement System, and also transfer $3.5 million to the Infrastructure Replacement Fund. The council also allocated $8.3 million to pay for some of its 2021-22 goals, which include reducing the homeless population by 50 percent within five years.
Illinois State University graduate students vote “yes” to strike, union delays until fall
Milner Library, Illinois State University (Photo: Wikipedia)
Workers’ demands include increasing the graduate students’ 9 month stipend above the obscenely low rate of $9,441, full access to health care and dental, and increased protection for international students who are often charged more in fees every semester. The elimination of mandatory administration fees taken from students’ paychecks every semester is also a key demand.
The results of the vote were delayed due to technical problems and the final vote count was not released until last Thursday. Almost immediately after the results of the vote were announced the GWU called for delaying the strike until the fall semester. On Friday, the GWU leadership held an online meeting open to all Teaching Assistant (TAs) to discuss the outcome of the vote. At the meeting, the union revealed to the graduate workers that, in fact, the st
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NOTE: City councils and school boards have begun to reopen their meeting spaces to the public during the pandemic. Public participation is still possible by phone links to the meetings, livestreaming meetings and/or emailing comments. Visit each agency’s website for details.
CITY COUNCILS
CARLSBAD
The Carlsbad City Council will meet in special session at 10 a.m. Tuesday to discuss the city’s economic and financial update for the third quarter of the fiscal year 2021. The board will hear a report and discuss ways to address the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic; discuss use of the excess general fund reserve balance; and discuss its goals work plans for 2021-22.
Group asserts years of public health cuts contributed to Solano’s, state’s Covid crisis
Dr. Bela Matyas
FAIRFIELD A coalition of public health associations, labor groups and other county political advocates said a decade of public health funding cuts inhibited the ability of Solano County and the state to respond to the Covid-19 pandemic.
“Covid-19 confirmed the worst fears of public health officials who have been warning that a decade of budget cuts would leave our workforce hollowed out and our infrastructure wiped out just when we needed it most,” Colleen Chawla, president of the California Health Executives Association of California and director of the Alameda County Health Care Services Agency, said in a statement released by California Can’t Wait.