By Adam Ashton, Sacramento Bee

Ten workers and retirees from government agencies in two far corners of California likely will see their pensions slashed because their employers have not paid bills to the state’s largest retirement fund in more than a year.

Trinity County Waterworks District No. 1 west of Redding and Niland Sanitary District from Imperial County are in line to become the third and fourth government agencies to break with CalPERS over the past 12 months in a manner that shortchanges their retirees.

The CalPERS Board of Administration is scheduled next week to vote on ending contracts with the two small districts because they’re in default.

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Water in several Tahoe Keys lagoons has been tainted by blue-green algae since Aug. 11. Photo/LTN

By Kathryn Reed

Results from the latest water samples in the Tahoe Keys reveal blue-green algae still lurks in the canals.

“Levels of cyanotoxins are still present, but compared to levels detected on Aug. 28 it appears that toxin levels are decreasing,” Mary Fiore-Wagner with Lahontan Regional Water Quality Control Board told Lake Tahoe News.

Sept. 6 is when the last samples were taken. Results came in Sept. 13.

The toxic levels remain at caution. This means the signs posted throughout the South Lake Tahoe neighborhood will remain. Contact with the contaminated water is a risk to humans and pets.

“The cooling temperatures we have experienced the last few weeks are an environmental factor that is likely helping to limit cyanobacteria growth and algal blooms,” Fiore-Wagner said.

Water will continue to be monitored until the threat is gone.

Blue-green algae occurs naturally. Scientists don’t know what causes it or makes it goes away.

By Nicole Raz, Las Vegas Review-Journal

What actually happens when businesses look to relocate to Nevada?

It usually starts with a phone call, which leads to a series of other phone calls to coordinate the process, said Ryan Smith, business development manager with the Governor’s Office of Economic Development.

He said the call either comes from somebody working within a company — usually from a tax incentive division or real estate division, or even an executive-level decision maker, depending on company size — or from a third-party site selector working on behalf of a company.

Everything after that call just depends, Smith said, because each company is looking for something different.

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Live Violence Free is hosting two workshops Sept. 21 about social issues.

Addison Rose Vincent will talk about how to create safe and affirming spaces for LGBTQIA+ clients in nonprofit or other service organizations including schools, libraries, medical facilities, and more. This will be from 10am-noon.

FBI Special Agent Brad Bilderback takes over from 1-3pm to educate people about uncovering the dangers of social media use, and teach attendees how to keep themselves and youth safe from these harms.

To participate in one or both sessions, email kpostell@liveviolencefree.org.

The workshops will be at the Forest Suites Resort in South Lake Tahoe. There is no fee.

·      Tahoe Donner ski resort has renovated the base lodge sundeck, enhanced tree skiing off Eagle Ridge chair, and has installed more snowmaking.

·      Author Gini Cunningham will explore the connection between music and memory, and revitalizing individuals with a dementia through the simple experience of listening to music. The free talk will be Nov. 13 from 1-3pm at Lake Tahoe Resort Hotel in South Lake Tahoe.

·      The third annual Mike Davie Softball Tournament is Sept. 16-17 starting at 8am at North Tahoe Regional Park in Tahoe Vista. It’s a benefit for the Placer County law enforcement chaplaincy. For more info, contact Kristen at 530.581.6369 or kmann@placer.ca.gov.

·      North Tahoe PUD crews will be working along Highway 28 in the Tahoe Vista and Carnelian Bay areas during the next two weeks doing a variety of water and sewer repairs and sewer line cleaning.  

Beginning Sept. 18, the El Dorado Beach boat ramp at Lakeview Commons will be closed Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

It will remain open Thursday-Sunday.

The hours will be 8am-6pm, with the last launch at 4:30pm.

The last day of boat ramp operations will be Oct. 1.

The maximum boat length is 23 feet. The boat length is subject to change due to water levels. The boat ramp passes under Lakeview Avenue and there is a bridge with a maximum 12-foot clearance.

By Associated Press

WASHINGTON — Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke on Tuesday directed all land managers and park superintendents to be more aggressive in cutting down small trees and underbrush to prevent wildfires as the smoke-choked West faces one of the worst fire seasons in a decade.

In a memo, Zinke said the Trump administration will take a new approach and work proactively to prevent fires “through aggressive and scientific fuels reduction management” to save lives, homes and wildlife habitat.

Wildfires are chewing across dried-out Western forests and grassland. To date, 47,700 wildfires have burned more than 8 million acres across the country, with much of the devastation in California, Oregon and Montana, Zinke said.

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Thanks to the San Francisco-based nonprofit Mission Asset Fund, scholarships are available to cover the costs for California community college students who need to renew their Deferred Action for Childhood Arrives (DACA) status before the Oct. 5 deadline.

MAF, which has a long history of supporting Dreamers, has dedicated scholarship funds specifically to help California community college students, along with CSU and UC students, pay for the $495 DACA renewal fee.

DACA students who are interested in applying for this scholarship opportunity should go online to learn more and to complete the online application. 

Stevie Tucker

Eight stolen vehicles were recovered and a woman was arrested last week in El Dorado County.

Twenty-eight-year-old Stevie Tucker is accused of possessing stolen property.

Among the items found at the Mt. Aukum property was a backhoe that belongs to El Dorado Irrigation District.

This was a joint investigation by the El Dorado County Sheriff’s Office, California Highway Patrol and Truckee Police Department.

— Lake Tahoe News staff report

For more than seven years kids have been gaining confidence in their reading with the help of some local dogs. RUFF (Reading Up For Fun), a Humane Society of Truckee Tahoe program, has been partnering with schools and libraries to pair young readers with certified therapy dogs, but recently expanded the program to include Elvis, RUFF’s first listening cat.

Elvis, who was adopted by his owner Cherri Gilmore from the Humane Society of Truckee-Tahoe as a kitten, is now 10, a gray tabby Manx and is the first feline to become part of the shelter’s pet assisted therapy program.

RUFF builds self-esteem in young readers by giving the child a comforting audience to read out loud. Elvis, along with owner/handler Gilmore, spent the summer at Glenshire Elementary helping students with their reading.

According to Erin Ellis, volunteer and humane education programs manager for HSTT, children that read to animals don’t feel the same pressure of judgment that they might feel in a classroom or peer setting.

RUFF teams (dog/cat and handler) meet once a week one-on-one with each of their students for 20 minutes.