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San Jose leaders agree Thomas Fallon statue must be removed

After residents demanded for decades the Thomas Fallon statue, seen as a symbol of oppression by many, be taken from its lofty perch in the center of downtown San Jose, a key panel agreed. The Rules and Open Government Committee of the San Jose City Council, which sets future City Council agendas, voted unanimously Wednesday...

Post-scandal, former SVO leader Matt Mahood launches San Jose consulting firm

Rising from the ashes of scandal, former Silicon Valley Organization CEO Matt Mahood has a new gig — working for himself. The business executive founded a consulting firm called MRM strategies in January, three months after a racist attack ad was published on SVO’s website under his watch. The ad sparked outrage from lawmakers and community members alike...

Santa Clara County could issue $10,000 fine for ‘interference’ in public meetings

If you try to stop someone from speaking at the county’s Board of Supervisors meeting, you might be fined $10,000. Santa Clara County supervisors are considering a plan to levy a $10,000 fine against anyone who might threaten, intimidate or use violence to prevent someone from participating in a public decision-making process. The ordinance would...

Kaiser moves vaccine eligibility back up to patients 75 and older

The only private health care provider in Santa Clara County to vaccinate people under 74 has changed course. After vaccinating people 65 and up for several days, Kaiser Permanente has changed its COVID-19 vaccine age eligibility back to patients 75 years and over — despite California allowing people 65 and up to get vaccinated. The...

Santa Clara County warns about vaccine sign-up misinformation sent via texts

Residents of Santa Clara County on Tuesday might have received a text message that said local medical providers had “extra” COVID-19 vaccines and to register for an appointment. According to the county, these texts originated from “unofficial sources” and health providers are still only vaccinating residents in the state’s vaccination Phase 1A, which includes health care...

State watchdog fines San Jose Water executive, Cupertino political committee for campaign violations

The state’s political watchdog has fined a Silicon Valley political action committee and San Jose Water Chief Administrative Officer Andrew Walters $5,000 for failing to file campaign finance reports on time. The Cupertino Chamber PAC and Walters, who was the committee’s treasurer at the time, failed to timely file two expenditure reports disclosing a total...

San Jose man tapped to serve as Biden’s assistant press secretary

A San Jose man is headed to the White House to help run President-elect Joe Biden’s communications. Biden selected Vedant Patel— former communications director to San Jose’s congressional representative Mike Honda — to be the new assistant White House press secretary. Patel was one of 16 new members of the White House communications and press...

Two Silicon Valley legislators eyeing run for California Secretary of State

With speculation swirling that California Secretary of State Alex Padilla could be selected to fill Kamala Harris’ U.S. Senate seat once she becomes vice president next month, some local politicians are lining up to potentially replace him. Five California legislators have opened exploratory committees looking into a run for secretary of state, including two South...

San Jose Councilmember Sylvia Arenas tests positive for COVID-19

San Jose Councilmember Sylvia Arenas tested positive for COVID-19 yesterday after falling ill during this Tuesday’s City Council meeting. The District 8 representative posted on Facebook this morning that both she and most of her family members contracted the virus and are exhibiting “somewhat mild symptoms compared to others.” “It appears that a member of...