As artificial intelligence technology advances, state agencies would like to make use of it. California as of today is one of the first states with formal rules for government departments to follow when buying AI tools.

The guidelines introduced this week are the product of an executive order aimed at challenges and opportunities from generative AI by Governor Gavin Newsom late last year.

Generative AI produces text, imagery, audio, or video from simple text prompts. Since the release of ChatGPT in fall 2022, the technology has triggered fear of job loss, election inference, and human extinction. The technology can also produce toxic text and imagery that amplifies stereotypes and enables discrimination.

The guidelines require all state agencies to designate an employee responsible for continuous monitoring of generative AI tools, and carry out assessments to evaluate the risk of use to individuals and society before using generative AI. State agencies must report use of generative AI, determine if it increases risk that a public agency can harm citizenry, and submit for review by the California Department of Technology any contracts involving generative AI before signing them.

The guidelines also require state agency executives, technical experts, and government workers receive training on the meaning of artificial intelligence and usage best practices such as how to prevent discrimination.

Though the guidelines extend protections against irresponsible use of generative AI, that’s only one form of artificial intelligence, a technology and scientific discipline that first emerged in the late 1950s.

The guidelines will not protect people from other forms of the technology that have already proven harmful to Californians.

For example, millions of people were wrongfully denied unemployment benefits by the California Employment Development Department. A February 2022 Legislative Analyst’s Office report found more than 600,000 unemployment claims were denied when the agency started using ID.me for identity verification and a fraud detection algorithm made by Thomson Reuters. The problems were listed in a Federal Trade Commission complaint in January by the Electronic Privacy Information Center against Reuters in 42 states.

Electronic Privacy Information Center fellow Grant Fergusson evaluated AI contracts signed by state agencies across the U.S. He found they total more than $700 million in value and roughly half involve fraud detection algorithms. The California unemployment benefits incident, he says, is one of the worst instances of harm he encountered while compiling the report and “a perfect example of everything that’s wrong with AI in government.”

Still, he thinks California deserves credit for being one of the first states to formalize AI purchasing rules. By his count, only about half a dozen US states have implemented policy for automated decision-making systems.

State agency executives stress that California’s guidelines are an initial step, and that an update could occur following the completion of five pilot programs underway that aim to reduce traffic fatalities and give business owners tax advice, among other things.

Outside contributors to California’s efforts on generative AI include experts in academia like the Stanford University Human-Centered AI Institute, advocacy groups like the Algorithmic Justice League and Common Sense Media and major AI companies, including Amazon, Apple, IBM, Google, Nvidia, and OpenAI.

Responsible AI rules

A fall 2023 report by state officials about potential risks and benefits says generative AI can produce convincing but inaccurate results and automate bias, but the report also lists several potential ways state agencies can use the technology.

Speaking from a Nvidia conference in San Jose, Government Operations Agency secretary Amy Tong said the intent of the framework is to make sure the state uses AI in an ethical, transparent, and trustworthy way.

Just because these guidelines wouldn’t have stopped California from inaccurately flagging unemployment claims doesn’t mean they’re weak, she said. Together with Tong, California State Chief Technology Officer Jonathan Porat likened the actions required by Newsom’s executive order to writing a book.

“The risks and benefits study last fall were the forward, contract rules are like an introduction or table of contents, and deliverables coming later in the year like guidelines for use in marginalized communities, how to evaluate workforce impacts, and ongoing state employee training, will be the chapters,” he said.

What the government attempts to monitor in risk assessments and initial uses of generative AI will be important to California residents and help citizens understand the kinds of questions to ask that hold government officials accountable, Porat said.

In addition to Newsom’s 2023 executive order about AI, other government efforts to create rules around the technology include an AI executive order by President Biden and a forthcoming bill stemming from AI Forum discussions in the U.S. Senate, which also focuses on setting rules for government contracts.

Supporters of that approach in the responsible AI research community argue that the government should regulate private businesses in order to prevent human rights abuses.

Last week a group of 400 employees at local government agencies across the country known as GovAI Coalition released a letter urging citizens to hold public agencies accountable to high standards when the agencies use AI. At the same time, the groups released an AI policy manual with government contract rulemaking best practices.

Next week the group is hosting its first public meeting with representatives from the White House Office of Science and Technology in San Jose. City of San Jose Privacy Officer Albert Gehami helped form the group and advised state officials on the formation of contract rules..

Gehami said the impetus for forming the coalition came from repeatedly encountering companies that make proprietary claims to justify withholding information about their AI tool, but still try to sell their technology to public agencies without first explaining key information. It’s important for government agencies to know first about factors like accuracy and performance for people from different demographics. He’s excited to see California take a stance on government contracts involving AI and overall he calls the guidelines a net positive, but “I think many people could argue that some of the most harmful AIs are not what people will call generative, and so I think it lays a good foundation, and I think it’s something that we can expand upon.”

Debunking AI fears

Fear of generative AI algorithms has been exaggerated, Stanford University Law School professor Daniel Ho, who helped train government employees tasked with buying AI tools following the passage of a U.S. Senate bill that requires government officials with the power to sign contracts participate in training about AI. Ho coauthored a 2016 report that found that roughly half of AI used by federal government agencies comes from private businesses.

He told a California Senate committee last month that he thinks effective policy should require AI companies to report adverse events just like companies are required to report cybersecurity attacks and personal data breaches. He notes that fear of large language models making biological weapons was recently debunked, an incident that demonstrates that the government cannot effectively regulate AI if state employees don’t understand AI.

At the same hearing, State Sen. Tom Umberg, a Democrat from Santa Ana, said government uses of AI must meet a higher standard because of the potential impact to things like human rights. But in order to do so, government must overcome the pay gap between government procurement officers and their counterparts that negotiate such contracts in private industry.

Government agencies can’t compete with the kind of pay that private companies can afford, Ho said, but removing bureaucratic hurdles can help improve the current perception that it’s hard to make a difference in government.

Since the accuracy of results produced by AI models can degrade over time, a contract for AI must involve continuous monitoring. Ho thinks modernizing rules around contracts government agencies sign with AI tool makers is essential in the age of AI but also part of attracting and retaining talent in government. Signing AI contracts is fundamentally different, he said, than purchasing a bunch of staplers in bulk.

In that same hearing, Services Employees International Union spokesperson Sandra Barreiro said it’s important to consult rank-and-file workers before government agencies sign contracts because they are best suited to determine whether the public will benefit. Tech Equity Collective chief program officer Samantha Gordon, who helps organize meetings between people in the tech industry and labor unions, urged state senators to adopt policy that ends AI contracts if tests find the technology proves ineffective or harmful.

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CalMatters.org is a nonprofit, nonpartisan media venture explaining California policies and politics.

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Someday, the Eureka City Council is going to have to decide how to rezone the former Jacobs Middle School campus to guide future development on the long-blighted site. But not yet.

During Tuesday night’s meeting, the city council considered two options that would change the zoning designation of the Jacobs Campus, which the Eureka City Unified School District agreed to trade to a private developer, “AMG Communities-Jacobs, LLC,” for another piece of land in December. The city council expressed interest in moving forward with an overlay zone that, if approved, would modify future zoning designations on the site, but did not make a formal decision on the item.

The former school site has been a lightning rod of controversy well before Citizens for a Better Eureka launched its “Housing for All and Downtown Vitality Initiative,” an upcoming ballot measure that would block the city’s plans to develop affordable housing on city-owned parking lots and require the city to amend its General Plan to accommodate single- and multi-family housing on the Jacobs Campus. The school district’s controversial decision to sell the property has only exacerbated local concerns about the future of the site, located in Eureka’s Highland Park neighborhood.

In a brief presentation to the council, Assistant Planner Penelope Ponce provided a brief overview of the property and went over some of the key findings from the recent town hall meeting on the Jacobs Campus, which was largely attended by residents of the Highland Park neighborhood. 

“Most of the neighbors are concerned about what will happen to the site and how it’s going to affect them,” Ponce said. “There’s also a strong consensus for transparency and public involvement in the planning and development process of the site. In contrast, we found that there is no consensus on the best way to use the site moving forward. Some community members expressed their disappointment that the district’s negotiations with CHP were unsuccessful. Given that the district is selling to a private developer, there was a lot of discussion about what types of private development may be appropriate for the site.”

Many meeting attendees spoke in favor of developing housing on the site. “Top concerns about housing include density, building height, traffic and parking impacts, as well as the resulting effects on the neighborhood’s character safety and property values,” Ponce added. “People also expressed a desire for low-density housing and owner-occupied housing.” 

Ponce noted that the sale of the property has yet to be finalized, adding that the developer “has not informed the city about their plans for development.”

While the city doesn’t have absolute control over what kind of development can occur on private property, it does have the power to affect zoning decisions. The Jacobs Campus is currently zoned as “Public Facilities,” a designation that restricts land use to government facilities and schools. Any proposed residential or commercial development at the site would require a zoning change.

Development Services Director Cristin Keyon went over the two options before the council:

1. Rezone the site. This option could be completed in a few months and would cost the city an estimated $75,000 for environmental review and an economic feasibility analysis. However, if the Housing for All Initiative is passed by voters during the November General Election the city would be required to rezone the site a second time to be consistent with the initiative, which would cost the city more money.
2. Develop a new “Mixed Neighborhood” overlay zone that could potentially be applied to the Jacobs site and other sites within the City in the future. Overlay zones can be applied to specific areas on the city’s Zoning Map “to add special requirements, limitations, or enhanced flexibility on top of the base zoning district standards,” Kenyon said. This option would ensure – regardless of what zone base is adopted for the Jacobs site – that new uses fit the existing neighborhood’s scale and character. The cost is estimated at $40,000.

The council also considered a third option to take no action and see what happens with the property exchange and ballot initiative.

Some residents who spoke during the public comment portion of the meeting seemed confused about the pending land exchange and the city’s involvement in the zoning process. 

One commenter, who only identified herself as Patty, complimented staff’s presentation but asked why staff didn’t devote the same amount of time to its “half-assed” Bike Plan update. “It looks really odd to me,” she said, adding that the Bike Plan affects city streets whereas the matter at hand concerned private property.

Another resident, Shannon Townsend, said she was glad to see renewed interest in developing the site but didn’t like how the school district’s negotiations for the property went down. “All this happened behind closed doors – as far as the sale of the property and who the school district sold the property to – and all that seems just kind of icky to me,” she said. “I don’t think we should do anything as a city until we figure out what their intentions are.”

Following public comment, Councilmember Kati Moulton emphasized the importance of keeping the public informed about issues happening in their neighborhoods. 

Moulton | Screenshot

“[P]eople are fired up about this right now,” she said. “I think that the people of the Second Ward deserve to have their voices heard. I think that we need to catch this now and not let it dissolve and become a footnote and let the Jacobs Campus be a pawn in the broader scheme of everything that is happening in Eureka. … The cost of not doing anything is not nothing. The cost of not doing anything is the input, the goodwill and the happiness of people in the Second Ward.”

Moulton added that she is not in favor of “pushing spending that could potentially just end up going out the window,” and spoke in favor of creating an overlay zone for the Jacobs Campus.

Councilmember Leslie Castellano also expressed interest in the overlay option and asked if the public would have an opportunity to provide input on what should be included in the overlay zone. Kenyon confirmed.

Councilmember G. Mario Fernandez asked if city staff have contacted AMG Communities to discuss their plans for the site. City Manager Miles Slattery said, “Yes, multiple times,” adding that staff’s efforts have been unsuccessful. Fernandez said he felt inclined to wait and see what happens with the ballot measure, noting that he “is in favor of an overlay.”

Councilmember Scott Bauer asked how many large-scale development projects the city is currently working on. Kenyon said staff are “actively helping with” five projects located on city-owned property, facilitating community meetings on affordable housing and helping with private developments, including the two ACGC projects being constructed in Old Town.

“Are staff pretty consumed by these projects?” Bauer asked.

“Yes, we’re swamped,” Kenyon said. “We have a lot of balls in the air – adding another ball just means, you know, some other stuff is taking longer … .”

Bauer later added that he generally agreed with his fellow councilmembers, but agreed with Fernandez that the council should wait and see. 

After a bit of additional discussion, the council unanimously agreed, with Councilmember Renee Contreras-DeLoach absent, to accept staff’s report and continue the item at a future date.

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PREVIOUSLY:

• Eureka City Schools Board of Trustees Unanimously Votes for So-Called ‘Land Exchange’ with Mystery Developer
• The Eureka City Schools Board Voted on a Resolution Last Week That Was Not Published Before the Meeting. Is That Legal?
• At Town Hall Meeting, Frustrated Residents Discuss Future Development of Eureka’s Jacobs Campus; Mystery Developer Still Mysterious

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On Tuesday morning, near the border of Redwood National and State Parks, a group of about a dozen people gathered at the former site of the Orick Sawmill, 125 mostly flat acres that, over the past decade, have been painstakingly restored to a semblance of their former natural state.

The folks gathered included representatives of Save the Redwoods League, the National Park Service, California State Parks and, perhaps most significantly, the Yurok Tribe.

This land, nestled between Prairie Creek, Redwood Creek and an expanse of forest that includes the world’s tallest trees, is known as ‘O Rew in the Yurok language, and it lies near the center of the Tribe’s ancestral territory. 

The purpose of the gathering was to celebrate a landmark agreement to repatriate this property back to the Yurok Tribe and to enter a long-term co-management arrangement of the site, the details of which are explained in a press release below.

Shortly after arriving, the group walked across the former mill site toward the forest on an old, dirt logging road to get a better vantage of the property, which, over the next couple of years, will be transformed into a new southern gateway to the park, complete with a visitor and cultural center along with a reconstructed traditional Yurok village, including plank houses and a sweat house.

The assorted luminaries on hand took turns speaking to the significance of the moment. Sam Hodder and Jessica Carter of Save the Redwoods League talked about the extensive environmental restoration work that has been done since their organization took ownership of the property from Green Diamond in 2013.

Rosie Clayburn, tribal historic preservation officer for the Yurok Tribe, said the new visitor center will highlight “the amazing restoration work” that’s been done onsite while also offering a place to house important cultural items that the Yurok Tribe has reacquired over the past couple of decades.

Yurok Tribal Chairman Joseph L. James asked those in attendance to reflect on how they were feeling while standing in this place, surrounded by nature. 

“There’s no better way of feeling,” James said. “Redwoods, the ferns, the alders — everything you see here today we used, and we still do. … traditional natural resources that we use every day, just to wake up, just to open our mind with what the Earth provides us. … This trail system here, being around all these redwoods here will open your mind and just feel the good vibe, the good medicine around this area.”

Then it was Phillip Williams’s turn. A member of the Yurok Tribal Council, Williams (pictured above) recalled working at the sawmill back in the 1990s. 

“It was unsettling inside myself, watching the redwoods get cut up, but I’m working there because I had to provide for my family,” he said.

At the time, the Tribe had an adversarial relationship with the mill’s then-owner, Simpson Timber Company, with the Tribe longing to preserve the trees that were being cut down and converted into lumber.

“Once, I was disenfranchised from this place,” Williams said. “It wasn’t mine. I didn’t have any ownership. I never, ever had any hope of getting any ownership. And now with the partnership that you guys are having, I feel an ownership.”

He looked around that the people gathered there on the hill and then looked back down at the prairie where the mill used to stand. “And so, for me, it’s a big part inside of me that’s satisfied that I get to see this in my lifetime,” he said. “So it’s really, really — you know, it’s empowering.”

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Below is a joint press release from the Yurok Tribe, Save the Redwoods and the National Park Service explaining more about the landmark agreement:

Orick, CA — [On Wednesday] the Yurok Tribe, Save the Redwoods League, National Park Service and California State Parks signed a landmark memorandum of understanding, a historic first step toward transferring ‘O Rew, a 125-acre ecologically and culturally important property, from Save the Redwoods League back to its original steward, the Yurok Tribe.

In addition, the agreement describes the four partners’ shared vision for long-term co-management of the site as a gateway for the visiting public to the adjacent Redwood National and State Parks (RNSP). This would be a first-ever cooperative arrangement for the National Park Service and California State Parks on tribe-owned land. The partners envision building a new visitor and cultural center and trails at ‘O Rew that will highlight the distinct histories and cultures of local tribes. 

“On behalf of the Yurok people, I want to sincerely thank Save the Redwoods League for committing to repatriate this critical part of our homeland. We are also appreciative of Redwood National and State Parks’ participation in this truly one-of-a-kind partnership. Together, we are creating a new conservation model that recognizes the value of tribal land management,” said Joseph L. James, the Chairman of the Yurok Tribe. 

“Today we acknowledge and celebrate the opportunity to return Indigenous guardianship to ‘O Rew and reimagine how millions of visitors from around the world experience the redwoods,” said Sam Hodder, president and CEO of Save the Redwoods League. “Today’s agreement starts the process of changing the narrative about how, by whom and for whom we steward natural lands. There’s a lot of important work to be done in the coming years to realize our shared vision. But the League and our partners are fully committed, and we’re honored to collaborate with the Yurok Tribe, National Park Service and California State Parks to create a new model of shared environmental and recreational stewardship.” 

New Trail Access and Cultural Gateway to RNSP 

The vision codified in today’s memorandum of understanding is for Save the Redwoods League to convey ‘O Rew to the Yurok Tribe in 2026, after the Redwoods Gateway and Prairie Creek Restoration project, currently in progress, is completed. Conveniently located off U.S. Highway 101 at the base of Bald Hills Road in Orick, CA, the site will become a southern gateway to Redwood National and State Parks. The ‘O Rew Redwoods Gateway will be the first co-management model whereby National Park Service and California State Parks will support visitation and stewardship on land owned by a Tribe. 

Critical elements of the new recreational and cultural gateway will be built in 2025 prior to the transfer. These comprise more than one mile of accessible new trails, including a new segment of the California Coastal Trail, interpretive exhibits across the site and other visitor amenities. The new trails will connect to numerous existing trails in the parks, including direct access to one of the most popular old-growth redwood groves in the parks, Lady Bird Johnson Grove. 

The agreement outlines that, after the transfer, the Yurok Tribe aims to construct a visitor center highlighting the distinct history and living culture of the Tribe and the extraordinary natural, cultural and recreational resources of the parks. The Yurok Tribe also plans to build a traditional village onsite, including plank houses and a sweat house. 
“This is a first-of-its-kind arrangement, where Tribal land is co-stewarded with a national park as its gateway to millions of visitors.

This action will deepen the relationship between Tribes and the National Park Service,” said Redwoods National Park Superintendent Steve Mietz. “The restoration efforts completed by the partners on this site link the large-scale watershed restoration upstream by the Redwoods Rising collaborative with downstream landowner-led efforts to restore the Redwood Creek Estuary, healing the land while healing the relationships among all the people who inhabit this magnificent forest.” 

“This agreement further strengthens California State Parks’ relationship with the Yurok Tribe, and we welcome the opportunity to forge additional actions that support Indigenous land management with state, federal and nonprofit resources,” said Armando Quintero, director of California State Parks. “This historic agreement provides a pathway for the addition of Indigenous lands to the suite of values employed in co-managing and protecting Redwood National and State Parks lands for the enjoyment of public and Indigenous peoples in the region.” 

About ‘O Rew 

The 125-acre property — ‘O Rew in the Yurok language — encompasses a significant place for the Yurok people on Prairie Creek. Located near Orick in Northern California, ‘O Rew is roughly in the center of Yurok ancestral territory. During the mid-1800s, there was an attempt to forcibly remove Yurok people from their homeland, including ‘O Rew and nearby Owr-rekw, to expedite exploitation of the region’s natural resources, including old-growth coast redwood trees. 

Save the Redwoods League purchased and conserved the site in 2013. Before that, for more than 50 years, it operated as a lumber mill and was referred to as the Orick Mill Site and Mill Site A. While the mill was in operation, large portions of the land were paved over, and much of the natural channel and floodplain of Prairie Creek was buried. For the last 10 years, the League has partnered with accomplished restoration experts, including the Yurok Tribe Construction Corporation and 3 Fisheries Department and California Trout, to undertake a full restoration of a critical stretch of Prairie Creek on the site for the benefit of federally listed coho salmon and steelhead. 

As part of that effort, Yurok Tribe restoration crews built a new, nearly one-mile-long meandering stream channel with abundant features to support fish, two connected ponds and approximately 20 acres of floodplain habitat. More than 50,000 native plants, including grass-like slough sedge, black cottonwood and coast redwood trees, have been planted in specific locations on the banks of the creek, ponds and floodplain of the Redwood Creek tributary. Thousands of juvenile coho and chinook salmon and steelhead are already taking advantage of the new habitat. Multiple wildlife species are also returning to the restored environment. Red-legged frogs, northwestern salamanders, elk and many species of waterfowl and songbirds have been observed at ‘O Rew. 

This important and ongoing restoration project at ‘O Rew Redwoods Gateway is funded by the following: Save the Redwoods League, California State Coastal Conservancy, California Wildlife Conservation Board, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Restoration Center, California Ocean Protection Council, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the National Park Foundation and The Cantus Foundation. California Trout and numerous local professionals and partners have provided essential expertise in the planning and implementation of the project. Please visit the ‘O Rew project web page for additional information and opportunities to support this exciting new initiative.

Press release from Coast Central Credit Union:

In a concerning development reported on March 19, Coast Central Credit Union has issued an urgent warning to its members about a sophisticated phone scam designed to defraud them. Members have reported receiving fraudulent calls from an individual posing as a Coast Central employee, with the caller ID misleadingly displaying the credit union’s main number, (707) 445-8801.

The scammer, claiming to be affiliated with the credit union, has been contacting members under the guise of needing to verify recent or pending transactions. These include wire transfers, ACH transactions, fraud alerts, or issues related to Online Banking. The caller cunningly requests personal financial information, purportedly to assist the member.

Coast Central Credit Union wishes to clarify that these calls are not originating from their offices and are, in fact, a deliberate attempt to deceive and defraud our valued members.

We strongly urge the community to remain vigilant and exercise caution when receiving such calls. Members are advised to never disclose personal account information over the phone. Instead, inquire about the caller’s name, department, and direct contact information, then promptly terminate the call. Following this, members should directly contact our Member Support team at (707) 445-8801 to verify the legitimacy of any communication.

Your security is our utmost priority. Coast Central Credit Union is committed to safeguarding your personal and financial information. We appreciate your immediate attention to this matter and your cooperation in helping us prevent these fraudulent activities. Stay alert, and protect yourself against these unscrupulous scams.

More information can be found at https://www.ftc.gov/ and https://www.coastccu.org/security/

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If you’ve been driving in Arcata this week, you’ve probably already noticed that the two blocks of Eighth and Ninth Streets between K and I are closed, and that traffic on K Street has been a bit of a shitshow. 

The reason behind the chaos is that the City of Arcata is busy converting those sections of Eighth and Ninth into one-way traffic — a change the City has been planning for years to help calm traffic conditions and beautify the downtown area as a part of the City’s 8th and 9th Street Improvement Project

Construction began at the beginning of the week and is expected to be complete by Thursday, Mar. 21. Once complete, both streets will be one lane instead of two, with Eighth Street running eastbound and Ninth Street running westbound. In addition to removing one traffic lane, both streets will have new crosswalks and buffered bike lanes. 

Assuming that the construction timeline is on track, the streets could be reopened with their new one-way lanes on Friday, so make sure you are paying extra close attention when turning onto Eighth or Ninth. Both streets are already one-way between F and I Streets, so the change only extends the one-way traffic by two blocks. 

Seems easy enough to remember. But this Arcata driver knows that old habits die hard, so remembering that you can’t turn left onto Ninth Street from K Street to get to the Co-op anymore is going to take some getting used to! 

Safe driving, Arcata! Here’s more from a City of Arcata press release:

As planned Eighth and Ninth streets will be converted from two-way travel to one-way travel between I and K streets as part of the Eighth and Ninth Streets Improvement Project. The one-way conversion is scheduled to begin on Monday, March 18 with anticipated completion by Thursday, March 21, weather permitting.

Eighth and Ninth streets will be temporarily closed to through traffic between I and K streets while new pavement markings and striping are being installed for the conversion of the roadways to one-way travel. Residents and traffic going to and from businesses will have access during the closure; however, it may be limited at times and/or detours may be in place.Activities may take several days to complete depending on the weather. Once the new pavement markings and striping have been installed and existing new signage is uncovered, the streets will be re-opened with the new one-way travel configuration in phases as sections of the roadway are completed.

Changeable Message Signs (CMS) will be placed throughout the project area to provide additional notification and scheduling details for regular users of the roadways. Also, once the one-way conversion is in place, temporary signage will remain onsite for two weeks to help provide additional awareness and reminders of the new traffic pattern. Members of the community are encouraged to follow all safety directional signs and messages on the CMS.

Additional information about the project and traffic control changes will be posted online at the City’s Active Construction webpage cityofarcata.org/413/Current-City-Construction-Projects. For more information on the project’s planning process, check out the City’s Featured Project webpage at: cityofarcata.org/980/8th-and-9th-Street-Improvement-Project.

If problems are encountered with this project, please contact RAO Construction at (707) 443-2118 or the City of Arcata at (707) 825-2175.

Paskenta Band of Nomlaki Indians release:

Today, the Paskenta Band of Nomlaki Indians announced the acquisition of the Mad River Brewery from the Yurok Tribe in Northwestern California. Based in Blue Lake, California, Mad River Brewery has distinguished itself as a producer of premium craft beers, recognized for their quality and dedication to environmental stewardship.

In November 2021, The Paskenta Band of Nomlaki Indians opened The Paskenta Brewery and Distillery, becoming the first tribal-owned distillery in California. With the acquisition of Mad River Brewery, the Paskenta Tribe continues to build its economic portfolio.

“Acquiring Mad River Brewery is another milestone in Paskenta’s commitment to building an economically sustainable future for our tribe and serving as an economic growth driver for our neighbors,” said Tribal Chairman Andrew “Dru” Alejandre. “We’ve enjoyed great community response since opening Paskenta Brewery & Distillery. Now, with the acquisition of Mad River Brewery, we’re honored to extend our expertise in blending tribal identity and craft beer to the Northern California community and tribes across the nation. As we continue to innovate, we proudly lead the way in crafting beers and spirits within Indian Country.” added Alejandre.

In 2019, Mad River Brewery became one of the first Tribal Breweries in the United States, making it a trailblazer in the craft beer industry. A women-led company formed the first partnership between a tribally owned brewery and a professional baseball team, making Mad River Brewery hand-crafted a staple at San Francisco Giants home games at Oracle Park. Mad River Brewery has won notable local, national, and international awards, including the Word Beer Cup and the Great American Beer Festival.

“It fills my heart to know the business will remain in tribal hands and continue supporting the tribal community. I have no doubt Mad River Brewery will continue its growth with this Paskenta Partnership.” said Linda Cooley the CEO of Mad River Brewery.

Californians without health insurance are again facing tax penalties this year, and some may pay more in fines than they’d spend buying coverage, state officials say.

That’s because some of them may qualify for heavily subsidized insurance and not know it. California’s insurance marketplace, Covered California, offers health insurance for as little as $10 a month, with rates depending on household income and size, as well as location and age.

“There are alot of people who are paying more for the penalty by a large margin, in some cases, than they would pay to have the peace of mind of coverage. We should all take that to heart as a call to action because that should not be happening,” said Jessica Altman, executive director of Covered California, the state’s insurance marketplace, during her board’s February meeting.

During the 2022 tax season, the latest year for which data is available, more than 271,000 households paid fines for lacking health insurance the year prior, according to the Franchise Tax Board. All together those Californians paid the state about $312 million.

The average penalty per household that year? $1,149.

California is one of four states, plus the District of Columbia, that penalizes residents for not having health insurance. This tax season, Californians are seeing health insurance penalties of up to $850 per adult and $425 per child.

Who pays the California health insurance penalty?

Lower-income households bear the brunt of the state’s insurance penalty. About 60% of those who paid the fines earned $50,000 or less.

About 600,000 uninsured Californians are eligible for subsidized insurance through Covered California, according to estimates by the UCLA Health Policy Research Center cited by the agency.

Of those, 260,000 could sign up for a health plan for less than $10 a month or snag a high-deductible plan with free monthly premiums, Covered California spokesperson Jagdip Dhillon said in an email.

For example, a family of four in Los Angeles earning $50,000 could qualify for a standard plan for $28 a month or a high deductible plan with no monthly premiums, according to Covered California’s quote tool. Meanwhile a single person making the same amount in the same city would have to pay about $295 a month for a standard plan.

People may be going without insurance because it is still unaffordable for them, or because they’re unaware of the generous subsidies, said Alicia Emanuel, a staff attorney and advocate with the National Health Law Program.

“Californians continue to really struggle between having to pay for health care and think about basic needs,” Emanuel said.

“As good a job as Covered California does in all of their marketing and outreach efforts, I think that health care continues to be a scary topic for people. It’s complicated. I think that means we have to work harder collectively to get the word out.”

Privacy law limits direct outreach

While the state may have an idea of who is going without insurance and who may qualify for a low-cost plan, targeting those individuals is not as easy as having an insurance agent call them. Covered California officials said that by state law, the agency cannot proactively share information about consumers with enrollment counselors. The agency instead sends information to individuals so that they then can seek help on their own.

Not all Californians who lack insurance are penalized. There are exemptions for reasons such as living only part of the year in California, reporting a hardship or going without coverage less than three months. People can also seek an exemption if health coverage is considered unaffordable, if that coverage would cost more than 8.17% of their household income.

Undocumented immigrants are also exempt from the insurance mandate because the federal Affordable Care Act bars them from buying health coverage on states’ insurance marketplaces. California allows low-income undocumented people into the Medi-Cal program, but they are not penalized if they don’t sign up.

The open enrollment period to buy a plan through Covered California is now closed, but people can still sign up if they have a life-changing event, such as having a child, getting married or if they lose a job.

California’s subsidized health care coverage

Insurance plans bought through the marketplace are heavily subsidized for thousands of Californians because of federal aid provided first by the American Rescue Plan in 2021 and continued by the Inflation Reduction Act in 2022. Extra federal funding means Californians can receive enhanced subsidies for health insurance through 2025.

Experts say the extra help makes a difference. Last month, Covered California announced that a record number of people — close to 1.8 million — had selected a plan through the marketplace for 2024, that includes about 300,000 new enrollees. Emanuel said she would expect this to translate into fewer households paying penalties next year.

In 2019, Congress and the Trump administration eliminated a provision in the 2010 Affordable Care Act that required people to buy insurance or pay a tax penalty. Soon after, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a law requiring Californians to buy insurance and instituting a penalty for those who go uninsured..

The health mandate has been regarded as unpopular but effective in nudging people to get covered.

In 2022, California reached an uninsured rate of 6.2% in people under 65 — a historic low. Experts and state officials say that as California reduces its number of uninsured people, those remaining will simply be the toughest to reach.

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Supported by the California Health Care Foundation (CHCF), which works to ensure that people have access to the care they need, when they need it, at a price they can afford. Visit www.chcf.org to learn more.

CalMatters.org is a nonprofit, nonpartisan media venture explaining California policies and politics.