###

PREVIOUSLY

• ‘Concentrating Poverty’: City of Eureka to File Formal Appeal Over State-Mandated Housing Allocation

###

Where should Humboldt County plan to put more low-income housing? If your answer was “nowhere,” sorry. Not an option. For more than 50 years now the State of California has required all local jurisdictions (cities and counties) to plan for the housing needs of everyone in the community. 

It works like this: The California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) decides how much housing, at a variety of affordability levels, is needed for each region in the state. Regional governments — in our case, the Humboldt County Association of Governments (HCAOG) — then develop a methodology to allocate those housing units among the various local jurisdictions. 

This process, known as the Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA), happens on an eight-year cycle, and our local turn has arrived again. For Cycle 7, which covers the period of 2027-2035, the state ordered Humboldt County governments to plan for 5,962 new housing units across all income levels. 

The process for accomplishing this chore fairly has gotten increasingly complex over the years as the state keeps adding new statutory objectives. Cycle 7, for example, requires regional governments to factor in “opportunity scores,” a data-driven metric designed to measure access to such resources as education, jobs and reduced pollution.

After accounting for these and many other factors, HCAOG staff came up with a plan, and in December its board of directors adopted a final draft of its allocation methodology. In other words, the board figured out how it should divide the region’s housing allocation among the local jurisdictions, and HCD signed off on the plan.

But local jurisdictions were given the opportunity to appeal. Each of them was fine with the plan except for Eureka, which has been directed to plan for 1,740 new housing units, including 967 units for low-income residents. In January, the city council agreed that this allocation would saddle the county seat with too big a share of the region’s low-income housing units.

Councilmember Renee Contreras-DeLoach said it “feels weird” to “shove people into one spot,” even if it’s under the guise of improving access to opportunities.

The city’s development services director, Cristin Kenyon, explained that Eureka residents’ relatively short work commutes likely played a factor. The city has the lowest average work-based vehicle miles traveled (VMT) of any local jurisdiction, so from the state’s perspective it makes sense to put more low-income housing there.

“[L]iving in a place where you can access your job without a car is helpful if you’re living in poverty,” she said. “It’s part of having access to opportunity. I mean, if you’re going to concentrate poverty anywhere, you would want to do it in an urban area with transit — but I would rather us not concentrate poverty, period.”

The council agreed and unanimously directed staff to file a formal appeal.

Tomorrow afternoon, the HCAOG board will hold a public hearing to consider that appeal.

“This is kind of a novel process for us to be working through here at HCAOG,” Executive Director Brendan Byrd said when reached by phone this morning. 

A staff report prepared for Thursday’s appeal hearing takes a deep dive into the data that informed HCAOG’s allocation methodology, complete with graphs showing how high- and low-income housing gets distributed in the plan as well as the existing high- and low-income housing stock in each jurisdiction and more.

The report does not take a position on Eureka’s appeal, and Byrd said that’s intentional. 

“The intent is to be thoughtful and put objective information forward as best we can get it,” he said. Thursday’s hearing represents “the public’s opportunity to comment, the board’s opportunity to consider the information and Eureka’s opportunity to present their case for an appeal. … From my mind, we’re talking about an objective measurement, and there are other pieces in the process that we as staff feel should happen before we say, ‘This is what we think.’”

Eureka’s appeal letter argues that HCAOG gave too much weight to the city’s short average work commute. It doesn’t challenge the total number of housing units assigned to the city; rather, it says Eureka was improperly assigned a higher share of below-moderate-income housing despite having a lower opportunity than other county jurisdictions. 

“In this context, further reducing the proportion of Moderate and Above-Moderate housing assigned to Eureka risks reinforcing income imbalance rather than promoting a more integrated and economically diverse housing stock,” the appeal letter argues.

The appeal letter doesn’t get specific about how Eureka’s RHNA should be adjusted; it just asks the HCAOG board for a “rebalancing.”

HCAOG’s eight-member board of directors includes the mayors of Eureka, Arcata, Fortuna, Blue Lake and Trinidad, one councilmember apiece from Rio Dell and Ferndale and, representing the county, Supervisor Steve Madrone.

After considering Eureka’s appeal and public feedback at tomorrow’s meeting, the board will have 45 days to issue a certified written decision accepting, rejecting or modifying the appeal. Since the board meets monthly, that means it will have to make that decision before its April 16 meeting, Byrd explained.

“The point here is to provide the data from an objective perspective,” he said about tomorrow’s hearing. “Then the board can consider that and provide their direction.”

The meeting, which is scheduled to begin at 4:30 p.m. Thursday, will be held in the council chamber at Eureka City Hall, 531 K Street. You can find a Zoom link and links to all of the relevant documents on HCAOG’s website.

From the Humboldt County Department of Health and Human Services:

Amanita phalloides, aka a Death Cap mushroom. | Archenzo, CC BY-SA 3.0.

 

A local individual is currently in an out-of-area ICU suffering from amatoxin poisoning after consuming mushrooms foraged by a friend in Humboldt County. While details are very limited, it appears that the individual who picked the mushrooms was an experienced forager who shared the mushrooms with the now sick individual and possibly other friends on Friday, March 13.

The individual consumed the mushrooms on Friday and went to a local emergency department Saturday after feeling sick. They have since been transferred to an out-of-area hospital. The individual has been too ill to provide any additional information about who they received the mushrooms from. While the type of mushroom has not been verified, health officials believe it is likely a Death Cap.

In December, the California Department of Public Health issued an alert after 21 cases of amatoxin poisoning were identified by the California Poison Control System. Although significant clusters were reported in the Monterey and San Francisco Bay areas, officials warned the risk could be statewide. As of February, confirmed cases had resulted in severe liver damage in both pediatric and adult patients, including four deaths.

Anyone with information about the current incident, should contact the Humboldt County Department of Health & Human Services Public Health Branch at 707-268-2182.

If you have consumed foraged mushrooms in the last week:

Symptoms of mushroom poisoning

• Symptoms may not appear until 6 to 24 hours after eating a poisonous mushroom.
• Mild symptoms (even mild nausea) can be the beginning of a more severe reaction. Sometimes early symptoms go away within a day, but serious to fatal liver damage can still develop within 2 to 3 days.
• Seek help immediately, if you or someone you know has eaten a poisonous mushroom. Do not wait for symptoms to appear. Treatment is more difficult once symptoms start.    

Common early symptoms include (but are not limited to):

• Stomach pain
• Cramping
• Diarrhea
• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Drop in blood pressure
• Fatigue
• Confusion

Mushroom poisoning can lead to serious complications, including:

• Liver damage (sometimes leading to the need for a liver transplant)
• Kidney damage
• Hallucinations and euphoria
• Seizures
• Death

What to do if you may have eaten a poisonous mushroom:

• Immediately seek medical care and call the California Poison Control Hotline at 1-800-222-1222 if you or someone you know may have eaten a poisonous mushroom. The hotline can tell you exactly what to do in the case of a mushroom poisoning. They also provide guidance to medical providers to help ensure proper care. The hotline is free and operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, in over 200 languages.
• When you go to the hospital take any of the uneaten mushroom with you if you can. Experts can identify the mushroom, which can help with your medical care. To preserve the mushroom, place it in a paper bag or waxed paper (not plastic) and refrigerate. If you don’t have the mushroom, photos of the mushroom (including its cap, stem and underside) can be helpful.

The arraignment for new murder charges against two Hoopa teens for the death of 17-year-old Dylan Moon was continued to Friday.

Codefendants Tse-Lin Lincoln and William Warren each face six felony counts, including gang-related enhancements and attempted murder charges.

The District Attorney’s Office filed additional murder charges this week following Moon’s death from injuries sustained in the March 10 shooting, where he was shot in the head.

Lincoln and Warren each pleaded not guilty to the charges in the original complaint — they have yet to formally hear the new murder charges in court or enter a plea, something expected later this week.

The arraignment Wednesday morning was continued because an attorney appointed to represent Lincoln had only just met his client, shackled and in an orange jumpsuit in court.

Attorney Ken Bareilles, appointed after a conflict was declared by the Public Defender’s Office, asked for the arraignment to be delayed two days. Prosecutor Deputy District Attorney Roger Rees was agreeable to the request.

Judge Steven Steward pointed out Bareilles had just shaken his client’s hand for the first time that morning, and in light of this fact, set the case to proceed on Friday.

The arraignment will be held March 20 at 8:30 a.m..

The third suspect arrested, 15-year-old Preston Ruiz II, was previously booked into juvenile hall — these proceedings are confidential. 

The Sheriff’s Office continues to investigate the shooting.

PREVIOUSLY

• One Person Hospitalized With ‘Life-Threatening’ Injuries Following Yesterday’s Shooting in Hoopa; Suspect Remains At-Large, Says HCSO
• Hoopa Valley Tribe Offers $10K Reward for Information Leading to Arrest of Suspect in Tuesday’s Shooting; Emergency Community Meeting in Council Chambers Tonight
• 15-Year-Old Arrested in Connection With Hoopa Shooting, Sheriff’s Office Says; Two Other Teenage Suspects Still at Large
• Another Suspect in Monday’s Shooting in Hoopa Taken Into Custody
• Third Suspect in Hoopa Shooting Surrenders at the Sheriff’s Office
• The Victim in the Hoopa Shooting Has Died
• Teenagers Charged With Murder in Hoopa Shooting

###

PREVIOUSLY:

• ATTENTION, ST. PADDY’S DAY PARTY PEOPLE! EPD Will Hold a DUI Checkpoint at an Undisclosed Location in Eureka on Tuesday Night

###

Press release from the Eureka Police Department:

On March 17, 2026, the Eureka Police Department (EPD) conducted a Driver’s License and DUI checkpoint in the area of Harris Street and Ocean Street. The checkpoint was operational from 7:00 p.m. to midnight as part of EPD’s ongoing commitment to reducing impaired driving and promoting roadway safety.

A total of 474 vehicles passed through the checkpoint, with officers conducting 30 enforcement stops. As a result, one driver was cited, one driver was arrested for driving under the influence, one vehicle was towed, and four field sobriety tests were administered.

This checkpoint was made possible through grant funding provided by the California Highway Patrol’s Cannabis Tax Fund Program. Funding from this program supports EPD’s efforts to prevent impaired driving, reduce traffic-related injuries, and keep our community safe.

EPD reminds the public that impaired driving is preventable. Plan ahead, designate a sober driver, use a rideshare service, or call a taxi. Your choices can save lives.

###

This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters.

###

One candidate wants to suspend a host of state environmental policies that boost the price of gas. Another wants to suspend the 61 cent-a-gallon state gas tax.

Amid a spike in gas prices fueled by President Donald Trump’s war in Iran, at least two Democratic contenders for California governor are capitalizing on the moment to push for policies they say would give drivers a break.

Recent proposals from former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan reflect how Democrats are trying to use rising gas prices, a potent election-year issue, to distinguish themselves as prioritizing the cost of living.

Their Republican opponents have been saying the same for months.

Villaraigosa is calling for a moratorium on a variety of state greenhouse-gas reduction rules that he called “failed policies.” They include carbon emissions limits at refineries, standards to reduce carbon in fuels and other rules he blames for forcing refineries to close. Such policies collectively add about 50 cents to the price of each gallon of gas, state estimates show.

Villaraigosa has received several campaign donations from the fossil fuel industry, including from Chevron, Marathon, the state’s largest oil and gas producer California Resources Corporation, and executives of two Kern County drilling companies.

Mahan supports temporarily suspending the state gas tax, but in an interview said he wouldn’t rule out also curbing some of the state’s refinery regulations.

Both candidates are lower-polling moderates, and their proposals are similar to ideas the two top-polling Republican candidates have been pushing.

Republican Steve Hilton has promised to lower the price of gas to $3 a gallon statewide by cutting the gas tax in half and eliminating policies that reduce emissions. Chad Bianco would do away with the gas tax altogether. Both Republicans would expand in-state oil drilling and keep refineries open, a goal Villaraigosa and Mahan also share.

Top-polling Democratic candidates Katie Porter, Tom Steyer and Eric Swalwell have not weighed in on what they would do to mitigate gas prices. Steyer and Swalwell on Tuesday night both dismissed the proposals of Villaraigosa and Mahan as unserious. Steyer’s spokesperson Danni Wang said he would rather focus on making “sure oil companies aren’t reaping excess profits” while Swalwell’s spokesperson Micah Beasley said he would prioritize keeping refineries’ fuel inventories stable as the state transitions to clean energy. Porter’s campaign did not respond to inquiries.

Democratic strategist Andrew Acosta said the ideas from Villaraigosa and Mahan could help the moderate Democrats boost their campaigns’ affordability bona fides, but he questioned whether they will make a difference in a crowded race in which voters are not yet paying much attention.

The latest polling shows Mahan and Villaraigosa tied with just 3% of likely voters’ support, but a quarter of those surveyed remain undecided on a candidate. Both have been dwarfed in ad spending by self-funding billionaire candidate Steyer, and Acosta said the gas proposals won’t gain traction if the candidates don’t spend big to promote them on TV.

“It could be a ploy, or good politics. Will anyone hear it? I don’t know,” Acosta said of the gas proposals. “It’s a little harder to get anyone’s attention just on the race itself, let alone this issue.”

Why are California’s gas prices so high?

As candidates blame taxes and climate rules for high gas prices, experts point to a more complicated, less politically convenient reality: The recent spike is largely driven by a global oil shock tied to the war with Iran, not state policy.

Nevertheless the war increases a deeper vulnerability for California, where gas prices climbed above $5.50 a gallon Tuesday compared to nearly $3.80 nationally: As refinery capacity declines and reliance on imports grows, global disruptions can trigger higher prices in California than anywhere else.

“The current increase is almost entirely due to global oil markets,” said Paasha Mahdavi, a UC Santa Barbara political science professor and energy policy expert. “The problem, though … is that our starting point is so much higher than nationally.”

State analyses show California’s higher gas prices come not only from taxes and climate programs but also a large remaining “mystery surcharge,” an unexplained markup oil companies add to gasoline prices.

That unexplained premium averaged about 41 cents per gallon between 2015 and 2024, costing drivers an estimated $59 billion, according to the state’s petroleum market watchdog.

“Gas prices are much higher in California for reasons that have to do with the market for refined gasoline,” said Michael Wara, a Stanford legal scholar who focuses on climate. “It’s something that is in the control of the industry.”

The oil industry blames California policies.

Prices “are higher in California because of taxes and compliance costs, but also because state policies have driven refineries and crude production out, said Jim Stanley, a spokesman for the Western States Petroleum Association, in a written statement.

Stanley declined to comment on Villaraigosa’s proposal for a regulatory moratorium.

Villaraigosa’s call to “overhaul” the state’s air resources board and for “an immediate moratorium on costly regulations overburdening California refineries” is a familiar refrain.

The air board’s climate programs — including the low carbon fuel standard and the state’s cap-and-trade program, recently rebranded as cap-and-invest — have faced repeated political and industry pushback, especially as regulators consider updates that could affect refinery costs.

Those climate policies raise fuel costs but have also generated billions for clean energy and transportation programs.

California’s air board has faced mounting criticism over both programs — the fuel standard drew opposition from Republicans, the oil industry, and even environmental justice advocates when it was revised in 2024, and this year oil companies, some Democratic lawmakers and Villaraigosa have warned that tightening cap-and-trade rules could accelerate refinery closures.

A touchy political issue

An even easier target in campaign promises is the gas tax, which lawmakers voted to raise in 2017.

It has risen by 20 cents per gallon since then, to 61 cents, and generates nearly $8 billion a year — the vast majority of state funding for highway and road repairs.

It’s also been a touchy issue for Democrats, especially in swing districts.

Porter, running as a Democrat to flip a GOP-held Orange County congressional seat in 2018, backed a failed Republican-led ballot measure to repeal that gas tax increase and ran ads declaring that “I oppose higher gas taxes.”

The move cost her a labor endorsement — unions generally support the tax because the revenue pays for projects their members work on — but it helped her head off claims that she supported the hike as she ran as an economic progressive.

Two Democratic lawmakers have lost their seats to Republicans in recent years after criticism about the gas tax.

Now Mahan, a Democrat, is pitching a gas tax holiday. He suggested that it last for the “duration of the war,” with a ballpark goal of keeping average prices below $5 a gallon.

“I would leave it to the experts in Sacramento to set that limit, but I think something around $5 is reasonable,” he said.

Asked how he would pay for road and highway repairs in the meantime, Mahan said he would find other funding elsewhere in the state budget.

Ryan Cummings, chief of staff at the Stanford Institute of Economic Policy Research, said he’s skeptical a suspension would save drivers because it’s possible gas companies would pocket some of the savings.

But he also warned against any governor removing the tax without providing alternative funding for road maintenance; reinstating a tax in the future would be seen as raising the price of gas by 60 cents a gallon at once.

If history is any guide, voters would likely balk at that: In 2003, facing a recall, then-Gov. Gray Davis tried to reinstate a vehicle license fee that the state had lowered for years. Opponent Arnold Schwarzenegger leapt to attack him for tripling the “car tax,” a move that observers agree helped him oust Davis.

“Taking the gas tax off is an easy thing to do,” Cummings said. “Putting it back on is extraordinarily difficult — and essential.”

###

This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters.

###

Following pressure from powerful California growers, the Trump administration’s Interior Department announced Tuesday that it will put $40 million toward efforts to raise Shasta Dam — a controversial project that opponents say could swamp sacred sites and harm a protected river.

North of Redding, the 602-foot-high dam on the Sacramento River forms California’s largest reservoir, storing more than 40% of the water socked away for irrigating Central Valley farmland.

The administration announced the funding for “planning and preconstruction activities associated with raising Shasta Dam”, in addition to roughly half a billion dollars dedicated to rehabilitating Central Valley water-delivery canals.

Westlands Water District, the nation’s largest agricultural water supplier, applauded the move, calling it a “long-overdue investment in water supply reliability.” The water giant is a major player in California’s $60 billion agricultural industry, serving nearly 700 farms on the west side of the San Joaquin Valley.

Environmental groups warned that the expensive project threatens the McCloud river that flows into Lake Shasta, and would doom efforts to restore critically endangered Chinook salmon to the river. The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation estimated more than a decade ago that raising the dam would cost nearly $2 billion today, according to a federal calculator.

“It’s astonishing. This is a project that would only benefit one small group of growers in California,” said Barry Nelson, a senior policy analyst for the Golden State Salmon Association, referring to growers supplied by Westlands. “The project is a disaster. It is prohibited by state law. So it will be interesting to see how the state of California responds to this.”

Raising Shasta dam would also swallow what remains of the Winnemem Wintu Tribe’s homeland. The tribe lost 90% of its historic and sacred sites at the reservoir’s construction in the 1940s, said Gary Mulcahy, government liaison for the tribe.

If the reservoir were expanded, all of it would be lost – a sacred pool, the rocks used for cultural teachings and coming-of-age ceremonies, the burial site for a massacre at Kabyai Creek.

Still, Mulcahy was skeptical that the funding announcement will move the project forward; between inflation and other construction cost increases in recent years, he called $40 million “not even a drop in the bucket” of what’s needed to raise the dam.

He said he expects federal staff cuts and other losses under the Trump administration to stymie any major infrastructure projects before they start.

“Throw $40 million away,” Mulcahy said. “They do not have the personnel, one way or the other, to even complete a planning process.”

A long-running fight

California tried to block this project before — and it didn’t stick.

For decades, the California Wild and Scenic Rivers Act has barred any state agency or “agency of the state” — such as a water district — from assisting or cooperating with federal, state, or local government efforts to expand Shasta reservoir in any way “that could have an adverse effect on the free-flowing condition of the McCloud River, or on its wild trout fishery.”

But the first Trump administration pushed environmental planning efforts forward anyway under Interior Secretary David Bernhardt – a former Westlands lobbyist. Congress approved $20 million in funding.

California sued and secured a settlement against Westlands Water District, which then-Attorney General Xavier Becerra said was “taking unlawful action” to assist in dam raise efforts.

But the push for a bigger dam never stopped. In February, growers — including those served by Westlands Water District — wrote to President Trump, urging him to direct funding from his One Big Beautiful Bill Act to raise Shasta Dam.

“You will meet a once-in-a-generation opportunity to deliver the water storage our communities desperately need and create economic stability for the farms, workers, and rural communities in the Central Valley,” the letter said.

Raising the dam, the Trump administration said, would increase the 4.5 million acre-foot reservoir’s capacity by around 14%. That’s enough to supply 2.5 million people for a year, the administration said — though the federally-managed Central Valley Project delivers most of the water from Lake Shasta to farms.

Nelson said the federal government’s framing is wildly misleading: California actually has to have the water to fill the reservoir — which in this state is never guaranteed.

Rather than vow to fight back, California Gov. Gavin Newsom took the opportunity to plug another long-delayed and deeply controversial water storage project on the Sacramento River, Sites reservoir, and urged the Trump administration to help pay for it.

“Let’s not get distracted by conceptual projects, years from viability. Let’s get Sites Reservoir built,” said spokesperson Tara Gallegos. “Our state is already a significant investor in the project, and the federal government should join us in ensuring this project comes to fruition.”

In Loving Memory of Daberion Hill
April 4, 1979 — February 27, 2026

Daberion Hill, age 46, passed away on February 27, 2026, at Providence St. Joseph Hospital in Eureka, California.

Born on April 4, 1979, in Spencer, Oklahoma, to Timothy Hill and Barbara Greer, Daberion was a man of immense heart and fire. He was best known for his passionate spirit and his gift for commanding a room with his entertaining stories. 

Above all, Daberion was a fierce protector. He was deeply devoted to “his people,” always ready to jump to the defense of those he loved at a moment’s notice. To be in Daberion’s circle was to know you were safe and supported; his loyalty was a rare and powerful force.

He is survived by his parents, Timothy Hill and Barbara Greer, his daughters: Azhaya Lax, Kazhaya Lax, Kahlea Lax, and Daybreonna (Ocean) Tanae Hill, his siblings: Decorian Peoples, Sir Hill, and Tanyell Hill, his nieces and nephews: Briana Hill, Logan Sims, Nicholas Sims, and Takendrick Hopkins, along with a whole host of friends and family who were proud to call themselves such.

Birthday Celebration of Life: In honor of what would have been Daberion’s 47th birthday, a memorial service will be held on Saturday, April 4, 2026, at the Foot of C Street in Eureka. 

The gathering will begin at 3 p.m. Family and friends are invited to come share their favorite stories of Daberion and celebrate the man who always stood his ground for others. 

Refreshments and good company will be provided as we toast to his memory on the waterfront. 

Final arrangements were handled by Ayres Family Cremation.

It would be deeply appreciated if you’re able to donate to the GoFundMe. Your contributions will be used for final arrangements, the celebration of life, and for his children to travel here: https://gofund.me/1e967660e

###

The obituary above was submitted on behalf of Daberion Hill’s family. The Lost Coast Outpost runs obituaries of Humboldt County residents at no charge. See guidelines here. Email news@lostcoastoutpost.com.