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Key Spending Proposals in 2016-17 California Budget

Gov. Jerry Brown proposed a $122.6 billion general fund spending plan Thursday, bringing California’s overall spending to an all-time high of $170.6 billion. The budget sets the stage for a months-long debate with the Legislature over spending priorities. Here’s a look at some of the numbers:

El Nino: It’s Here and Are We Ready?

The sun shone down on the suddenly soddened Santa Clarita Valley Thursday, but officials warn the at-times heavy rainstorms seen this week could be just the first taste of what’s to come as the historically strong El Nino weather event continues in the Pacific Ocean.

 

Back-to-back storms on Tuesday and Wednesday dropped almost 4 inches of rain in the Newhall Pass, with about 2 inches falling in Saugus, according to the latest records from the National Weather Service.

Governor Brown’s State Budget Includes Salton Sea Funding

Gov. Jerry Brown’s $122.6 billion budget plan out Thursday contained $80.5 million for the restoration of habitat at the shrinking Salton Sea, the creation of a longterm plan for the lake’s management, and is raising hopes for its restoration, officials said.

 

“This $80.5 million will not fund the entire program, but it takes us a long way in the right direction,” said Bruce Wilcox, who Gov. Brown appointed in May as assistant secretary for Salton Sea Policy at the Natural Resources agency.

Vallecitos Water District Delivers Desalinated Water

The Vallecitos Water District is now receiving high-quality desalinated water directly from the Claude “Bud” Lewis Desalination Plant in Carlsbad, California. The direct connection pipe, located at the corner of Pawnee and Cherokee Streets in San Marcos, will deliver as much as 4,083 acre feet of desalinated water annually to Vallecitos’ distribution system. This equates to approximately 27 percent of the District’s annual supply and is enough water to meet the needs of more than 8,100 families for one year.

Tracking San Diego River Levels during El Niño Storms

 

The San Diego River is overflowing from this week’s El Niño-driven downpours. Four days of relentless rain have transformed the river to a raging torrent at times, flooding roads and parking lots across Mission Valley.

 

The U.S. Geological Survey is closely monitoring conditions with a small, boat-like instrument called an acoustic Doppler profiler, which is floated back and forth across the river.

After Much Damage, an El Niño Breather

San Diego’s week of wild weather isn’t quite over yet, although it is winding down.

 

After repeated soakings in recent days — with a casualty list that includes battered businesses, flooded homes and waterlogged cars — many residents surely have this question on their minds: Is this just El Niño’s opening act?

In the short term, it’s safe to relax in terms of flash flooding, tornadoes and widespread clogging of storm drains.

El Niño Danger: Rain and Gravity Combine To Create Sea Of Mud

As the latest El Niño rainstorm moved into Southern California, there were already signs that the combination of rain and gravity was creating problems.

 

Mud and debris flowed onto the 101 Freeway in northern Ventura County in an area that was recently burned in a fire, shutting northbound lanes.

Here are some questions and answers about mudslides.

Debris flow has long been a concern in areas where wildfires have recently burned. Vegetation, once burned, can no longer hold back loose sediment.

Storms Cause Floods, Damage in San Diego

Roads were washed out, trees toppled, sinkholes formed and residents became trapped as strong El Niño storms swept through San Diego County Tuesday and Wednesday.

 

San Diego lifeguards worked swiftly to rescue people from rising water. One of those rescues took place Wednesday at Miramar Road and Cabot Drive, where lifeguards rushed to help four to five cars with people trapped inside.

The California Highway Patrol issued a Sig Alert for the 8100 block of Miramar Road as they continued rescues.

The $2.4 Billion Plan to Water California

Scott Slater has a plan. It is not a popular plan, but he wants to pump 814 billion gallons of water from under the Mojave Desert to Los Angeles and other drought-stricken communities in southern California, and make more than $2 billion doing so.

 

“Yes, it’s quite a lot of money,” Slater, the 57-year-old chief executive of Cadiz Inc, says as he stands in front of a scale model of the project in the foyer of the company’s office on the 28th and top floor of a LA city centre office block. “It’s worth whatever the community who wants the water is willing to pay for it to meet their demands.”