This week, I sent a letter to Supervisor Steel and the OC Board of Supervisors, to discuss the critical delay in COVID-19 testing being experienced by first responders. This is a problem we must address urgently.
Excerpted from Orange County Register
By Theresa Walker
A first-of-its-kind legislative hearing in Buena Park Tuesday covered a wide range of issues related to homelessness in Orange County, from the cost of operating emergency shelters to support for medical-based treatment for jailed addicts to the dynamics some people face for being viewed as ‘resistant’ to accepting services.
Excerpted from Los Angeles Times
By Luke Money
The 10 people who assembled in front of the Heroes Hall veterans museum Friday morning hailed from diverse walks of life. Their experiences and expertise are wide-ranging, as are their interests.
Despite their differences, they all share a love of country and a willingness to serve it as part of the armed forces.
Excerpted from Orange County Register
By Teri Sforza
COSTA MESA — After a legislative session that sent a quartet of reform bills to the governor’s desk, Assemblymember Cottie Petrie-Norris will hold a hearing on California’s still-loosely-regulated addiction treatment industry at Costa Mesa City Hall at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 30.
Excerpted from Daily Pilot
By Daily Pilot Staff
Assemblywoman Cottie Petrie-Norris (D-Laguna Beach) has named Huntington Beach-based Vegware as her district’s Small Business of the Year, according to a news release.
Vegware manufactures plant-based compostable food service packaging — such as drink cups, takeout boxes and containers — out of renewable, recycled or lower-carbon materials.
Excerpted from CalMatters
By Julie Cart
On a recent day at an expansive National Guard airfield in Los Alamitos, local fire officials put on display what $4.5 million can buy: planes crammed with high-definition cameras, radar and infrared equipment that peers through smoke. This eye in the sky can provide commanders on the ground with a broad picture of a wildfire in its infancy, the most critical time for decision-making.
Excerpted from Orange County Register
By Cottie Petrie-Norris
The scope and scale of America’s opioid crisis is staggering, and thousands lose the battle with opioid addiction each year in California alone.
According to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 130 Americans die from opioids every single day. Far too many of us know and love someone in our community or family who has suffered the consequences.
Excerpted from Ms. Magazine
California Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB 963, the Student Civic and Voter Empowerment Act, into law yesterday. The bill, authored by Assembly member Cottie Petrie-Norris (D-Laguna Beach), calls for historic investment to increase civic engagement among the state’s 3.1 million students enrolled at 147 public universities and colleges.
Excerpted from Los Angeles Times
Laguna Beach will receive $1 million from the state to fund local efforts aimed at removing or replacing vegetation that could provide fuel for wildfires, officials announced this week.
Excerpted from Los Angeles Times
Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed a bill from Assemblywoman Cottie Petrie-Norris (D-Laguna Beach) that will invest in ecofriendly infrastructure projects designed to protect coastal communities from sea-level rise.
Assembly Bill 65 will support projects such as adding kelp and sea grass to protect against greater wave impacts, shoring up land marshes and restoring natural ecosystems.