Voting has never been a universal right throughout America’s history, some officials say, and the present is no exception. Political and community leaders discussed Thursday what can be done to encourage participation despite current forms of voter suppression in Santa Clara County. Secretary of State Alex Padilla joined Supervisors Cindy Chavez and Dave Cortese, County...
San Jose: East Side leaders call for more equity on powerful panel
For months, a long-winded battle over the appointment of a new commissioner to San Jose’s Planning Commission has had the city’s East Side community up in arms, as they demand the city’s leadership for equal representation on the powerful committee that makes important planning and land use decisions. Days before the City Council is set...
Santa Clara officials vote on affordable housing, massage parlor rules
Santa Clara elected leaders Tuesday night faced a full agenda, voting on issues around affordable housing, 2020 voting centers and the future of massage parlors in the city. The meeting was a relatively tame one following last week’s council meeting, where officials ridiculed the San Francisco 49ers for alleged mismanagement of Levi’s Stadium and voted...
San Jose lawmakers approve extension of tax breaks for high-rises
At the forefront of Tuesday’s San Jose City Council meeting, lawmakers discussed how the two interwoven crises plaguing the region — housing and homelessness — are alarmingly growing worse. In response, the councilmembers passed a smorgasbord of housing measures, which include expediting the study of a commercial linkage fee and extending a contentious tax break...
Longtime South Bay attorney Anne Kepner joins Assembly race
South Bay consumer attorney Anne Kepner, who’s served five years on the West Valley-Mission Community College Board, is running for an open Assembly seat in what’s shaping up to be one of the most closely-watched races this fall. Kepner, 50, last week joined the race to succeed Kansen Chu in Assembly District 25, which covers...
Santa Clara County has highest wage theft in the state. But a new office can help with that.
Santa Clara County has the highest number of wage theft claims in California, but county leaders announced plans Monday to open a new enforcement office to fix that. Established in Sept. 2018, the Office of Labor Standards Enforcement leads the county’s data collection and research initiatives to advance labor standards, including combating wage theft. The office opened its...
San Jose lawmakers to discuss strategies to end homelessness
The San Jose City Council is set to hear several big ticket items on Tuesday, including a proposal to extend a tax break for high-rise developments in downtown and updates on the city’s homelessness and housing crises. Lawmakers will hear an annual update on the city’s ongoing homelessness crisis, and a proposal led by Councilmember...
Santa Clara County is aging fast, but resources for elders remain scarce
Elders are projected to make up nearly a quarter of Santa Clara County’s population by 2046. With that growing number of older adults, county lawmakers say a focus on elder abuse, housing, transportation, social participation and safety needs to grow, too. Those issues were discussed during a special meeting by Santa Clara County’s Children, Seniors...
Milpitas Vice Mayor Karina Dominguez drops out of Assembly race
Three months after announcing a bid for California Assembly, Milpitas Vice Mayor Karina Dominguez announced early Saturday on Facebook that she’s dropping out of the race. “While an Assembly seat provides the opportunity to create great change for our families, after deep reflection and very thoughtful consideration, I have decided to withdraw and end my...
Hundreds marched through downtown San Jose for climate strike
Hundreds of climate protestors marched from Diridon Station to City Hall in a climate strike Friday afternoon, one of dozens of environmental protests planned around the Bay Area. “We need to save our world,” said Devon Johnson, 22. “Nothing’s really working, so we need to pull out all the stops. We need to be making this...