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SAN FRANCISCO – California Attorney General Edmund G. Brown Jr. is accusing the Bush administration of siding with the auto industry by illegally adopting “dangerously misguided” gas mileage rules for SUVs, pickups and minivans.
Brown, in a lawsuit backed by 11 states and several environmental organizations, said the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s new mileage standards violate federal law by ignoring both the environment and our country’s growing dependence on foreign oil.
The lawsuit, which was argued Monday in a San Francisco federal appeals court, accuses the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration of ordering only a trivial increase in vehicle mileage standards – an increase from 22.2 mpg to 23.5 mpg by 2010. Such administrative action is contrary to federal rules mandating energy conservation, according to a statement from Brown's office.
The administration should have considered the effects of the vehicles' greenhouse gas emissions on global warming when formulating new mileage standards, the lawsuit alleges. Had the administration done so, the government would have demanded greater fuel efficiency, according to the lawsuit.
“After years of neglect, it is unconscionable to increase vehicle mileage standards by only one mile per gallon,” Brown said outside the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, where the case was argued Monday. “We are asking the court to reject this dangerously misguided policy that exacerbates global warming and enriches foreign sponsors of terrorism.”
When approving the regulations last year, the Bush administration primarily emphasized the financial costs to the auto industry instead of seriously considering the cost to the environment and people's health, lawyers for Brown and the other plaintiffs argued Monday to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco.
Suing along with Brown are Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, New York, the District of Columbia, New York City, the Center for Biological Diversity, Natural Resources Defense Council, Environmental Defense and the Sierra Club.
About 8 percent of the United States' greenhouse gas emissions come from the vehicles at issue.
Some say global warming does not exist, but even the U.S. Supreme Court has acknowledged it, according to Brown's statement.
On April 2, the Supreme Court demanded the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency consider adopting regulations to combat climate change.
In that case, the high court wrote "the harms associated with climate change are serious and well recognized." The Supreme Court noted environmental changes "have already inflicted significant harms" from retreating glaciers, to early spring snow melts to an "accelerated rate of rise of sea levels during the 20th century relative to the past few thousand years."
The lawsuit accuses the Bush administration of violating the Energy Policy and Conservation Act and the National Environmental Policy Act, and says greater fuel efficiency is vital "to avert environmental disaster."
The National Environmental Policy Act and other regulations require the Bush administration, when formulating new mileage standards, to consider the effects of the vehicles’ greenhouse gas emissions on global warming, which the Bush administration failed to do, Brown said.
Instead, the Bush administration adopted a standard oblivious to how manmade pollution is harming the environment and changing the climate, Brown claimed.
On Monday, at the same time as the lawsuit was being argued in San Francisco, President Bush gave an address in the White House Rose Garden in which he stated his desire “to cut America’s gasoline usage by 20 percent.”
Brown said that he applauded the president’s favorable comments on reducing greenhouse gas emissions and cutting back on gas-guzzling, but urged the president to take two immediate steps: tell the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to grant California and 12 other states permission to reduce vehicle greenhouse gas emissions and junk last year’s token 1-mile-per gallon increase in fuel efficiency standards and “propose something real.”
“The president doesn’t offer a single concrete proposal on how to combat global warming and instead directs his bureaucracy 'to work together’ to come up with a plan,” Brown said. “California already has a plan that can be adopted immediately.”
Arguing for California and the other states is California Deputy Attorney General Susan S. Fiering.
A decision by the three-judge appeals court panel is expected anytime.
The case is California v. National Highway Traffic Safety Agency, 06-72317.
Court records in the case can be found at: www.ag.ca.gov/newsalerts/.
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SACRAMENTO – The Senate Appropriations Committee on Monday approved the following bills by Senator Patricia Wiggins (D – Santa Rosa):
– SB 557, which seeks to include qualified doctors of audiology among those medical professionals who may be appointed by the administrative director of the Division of Workers' Compensation as qualified medical evaluators.
The bill’s sponsor, the California Academy of Audiology, asserts that an audiologist is the most qualified professional to determine whether a hearing loss would impair a worker's ability or whether a hearing loss was secondary to noise exposure on the job.
– SB 565, which would create the position of hospital and health services director at the Yountville Veterans’ Home.
Yountville is the only state veterans’ home with a hospital. Yountville has an emergency room, skilled nursing facility, pharmacy, and an Alzheimer unit. Yountville has a medical director and a nursing director but no one to administer and coordinate the medical care and medical personnel for all the facilities on the property.
Veterans and veterans’ advocacy groups believe that patients would be better served with a hospital and health services director on-site.
– SB 581, which would transfer the Volunteer Firefighters Length of Service Award System away from CalPERS and direct administrative responsibilities of the program to the California State Fire Employees Welfare Benefit Corporation.
Currently there are approximately 54 fire departments participating in the program, and 128 volunteer firefighters who are receiving monthly payments and who are eligible for the death benefit. The total membership is comprised of 3,983 volunteer firefighters and the balance in the fund is approximately $2.6 million.
In 1998, CalPERS changed the methods and assumptions it used in determining the administrative costs of the VFLSA. Since that time, the administrative costs have increased from $10,000 to an estimated cost of $139,025 for 2007-08.
The system is funded entirely by contributions from contracting fire entities and investment earnings.
– SB 861, which would authorize the North Coast Railroad Authority (NCRA) to use $5.5 million in previously allocated state funds for environmental cleanup of rail lines.
Specifically, this bill would allow the NCRA to use $5.5 million in funds allocated through the Transportation Congestion Relief Program to meet cleanup obligations under an environmental remediation consent decree ($4 million), along with some administrative responsibilities.
The authority would be prohibited from spending more than $500,000 annually on administrative expenses.
Monday's actions mean that all four bills are now eligible for a vote by the full Senate.
Wiggins represents California’s 2nd Senate District, which stretches from Solano County to Humboldt County and includes part or all of Lake, Mendocino, Napa and Sonoma Counties as well. Visit her Web site at http://dist02.casen.govoffice.com/.
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- Written by: Lake County News Reports
BLACK FOREST – The first phase of the Black Forest demonstration project was completed last week, thanks to additional help from state and local officials, and community volunteers.
The project has been going on since last month, and was aimed at creating a fire break along Soda Bay Road at the forest's edge.
On Wednesday, proud and exhausted members of Cal Fire's Konocti 5 Unit climbed into their big red truck and headed home for dinner and to be ready to fight a fire tomorrow rather than prevent one today. The young men even took time out to rescue some wild turkey eggs and build a nest for them and the mother turkey, using some of the cut branches.
Cal Fire was joined by three chipping operators – Ray and David Mostin, Adam Nichols and Jack Paulin; volunteers Hans Dobusch and Kathy Johnson from the Big Valley Lions Club; Buckingham Homes Association volunteers Kris Perkins, Gail Dyne, Wayne and Jodelle Scott, and Neil and Bobbi Towne. All of them worked very hard to finish the Black Forest Fire Prevention Phase I work started during Earth Day Week in April.
The Black Forest has begun to be transformed back to the way it looked before Soda Bay Road was constructed and the "new sunlight " allowed the underbrush to grow unmitigated along the road.
The former canopy of the large Black Forest trees caused firefighters to nickname it the "asbestos forest" because it stayed moist all year round due to its northeast exposure. Only one fire that got "nowhere" in 1950 can be remembered. The 15-foot-high rocks always stayed green from moss, until recently.
However, the road construction that allowed our family to buy a home in the Black Forest also created a detrimental change in the road environment leading to a critical fire danger level.
The formerly held private property owners were not held to a fire safety standard that is expected today in Lake County. Undergrowth awaited the fire of a cigarette or an overheated car to engulf the forest in fire and destroy the $650,000 investment of both public tax money and donations, and possibly the neighboring subdivisions.
The recent LA Zoo fire is a reminder of how fragile our open space is due to both deferred maintenance and careless smokers.
When the 250-acre forest property was transferred to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) in September 2004, a "fire prevention prescription" was adopted calling for removal of the unmitigated underbrush. The plan calls for ultimately removing 300 feet of underbrush from the road. Pine and Douglas fir over 3 inches and all sizes of oak and madrone trees were maintained, with only limbs removed up to 10 feet. This is to prevent fire laddering and may allow fire personnel to extinguish the fire before it gets out of control.
Phase I removed 100 feet of underbrush along an estimated 75 percent of the portion of Soda Bay Road adjacent to the forest.
Phase II, which will continue cleaning up the forest and making it safe from fire, is scheduled to begin Saturday, September 29, as part of National Public Lands Day, if volunteers continue with their support and BLM is able to continue with financial support. BLM paid for all costs for Cal Fire services, chipping and support for the volunteers who have worked for the past month on the project.
On May 11 a celebration of Phase I and an informal discussion of Phase II took place in Buckingham, across from the forest.
Contact Joel Witherell at
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- Written by: Lake County News Reports
LAKE COUNTY – After months of declining home sales, the numbers have started to look up this spring.
Home sales increased in the county 13.3 percent in April compared with the same period a year ago, while the median price of a home decreased 8.7 percent according to information gathered from the Lake County Multiple Listing Service.
Home sales increased by eight extra sales to 68, up from last April’s 60. In addition, April's sales increased by three homes – or 4.4 percent – over March, which had 65 sales.
“The sluggish home sales activity is a reaction to an uptick in mortgage rates earlier this year along with tighter underwriting standards,” said Phil Smoley, owner/broker CPS Country Air Properties. “Moreover, recent news regarding foreclosures and the subprime situation had an adverse impact on the market psychology of many buyers, leading some to delay their home-purchase decisions.”
Closed escrow sales of existing homes in Lake County totaled 68 in April according to the Multiple Listing Service. Statewide, home resale activity decreased 20.8 percent from the home sales pace in March 2006, in which 539,170 sales took place.
The median price of home in Lake County during April was $289,975, an 8.7-percent decrease from the $317,500 median for April 2006, the Multiple Listing Service reported. The April 2007 median price decreased 4.9 percent compared with March’s $305,000 median price.
“Home sales have been gradually increasing over the last few months, ever since the asking prices have come closer to reflecting the reality of the current market,” said Smoley.
“Currently the difference between listing prices and sale prices is 10.8 percent,” Smoley continued. “Overall, listing prices have to come down much further in order to stimulate the market. Homes that are priced right are still selling while others that are overpriced will continue to sit on the market month after month.”
Lake County’s Unsold Inventory Index for homes in April was 18.4 months, compared with 17.8 months for the same period a year ago. The index indicates the number of months needed to deplete the supply of homes on the market at the current sales rate.
Thirty-year fixed-mortgage interest rates averaged 6.875 percent during April, compared with 7.125 percent in April 2006, according to Del Whitehead of Cal Bay Mortgage. Adjustable-mortgage interest rates averaged 5.029 percent with a 3.4 percent margin in April 2007 compared with 4.011 percent with a 2.8 percent margin in April 2006.
The median number of days it took to sell a home was 166 days in April, compared with 146 days for the same period a year ago.
Highlights of Lake County’s housing figures for April 2007:
(Information listed from left to right includes area, number of listings, median price, average number of days on the market, number of sales, median sold price and the days on market.)
Buckingham – 17; $667,500; 92; 2; $537,000; 166.
Clear Lake Riviera – 88; $317,947; 121; 5; $274,000; 271.
Cobb – 53; $339,000; 83; 4; $302,000; 142.
Hidden Valley – 195; $389,000; 116; 9; $335,000; 190.
Jago Bay – 2; $447,000; 92; 1; $233,000; 100.
Kelseyville – 32; $369,500; 99; 1; $349,000; 264.
Lakeport North – 88; $451,500; 129; 11; $289,900; 129.
Lakeport South – 27; $429,000; 111; 1; $350,000;176.
Middletown – 18; $549,750; 129; 1; $350,000; 21.
Riviera Heights – 26; $382,500; 120; 2; $500,500; 253.
Riviera West – 20; $434,250; 149; 1; $439,000; 184.
Soda Bay – 4; $462,450; 69; 0; 0; 0.
Ray Perry sells real estate in Lake County. Visit his Web site at http://RayPerry.com.
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