This week, Rep. Mike Thompson (D-CA-04) and Rep. Greg Steube (R-FL-17) announced that they have founded the bipartisan Natural Disaster Caucus.

Members of the Natural Disaster Caucus are dedicated to natural disaster preparation, response and relief.

Reps. Thompson and Steube will serve as co-chairs of the caucus, which will provide resources for members of Congress and their staff to help districts across our country prevent, prepare for, and respond to natural disasters.

“Every community across our country is at risk of natural disasters, whether it’s wildfires, hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, or other disasters. It just makes sense that we work together to improve the ways in which we prepare for disasters, respond to them, and ultimately deliver relief to survivors,” said Thompson. “It’s great to partner with my colleague Rep. Greg Steube to establish this bipartisan caucus to continue our work preventing and responding to disasters.”

“Millions of Americans are impacted every year by natural disasters. When trials come, our constituents deserve to know their leaders are working together on their behalf in order to help them rebuild. I am pleased to partner with my colleagues on the Natural Disaster Caucus to advance common sense policies that will better prepare our communities for when the next natural disaster strikes,” said Steube.

Natural disasters continue to impact Americans around the country. In 2024, there were 27 natural disasters in the United States, including droughts, floods, severe storms, cyclones, wildfires and winter storms.

These disasters led to over 500 deaths and incurred losses exceeding $180 billion.

The caucus founders said the nation must work to prepare for and respond to natural disasters to mitigate the widespread impacts.

Reps. Thompson and Steube founded the Natural Disaster Caucus following their successful effort to deliver disaster relief to survivors of wildfires in California’s Fourth District and hurricanes in Florida’s 17th District.

Last Spring, Rep. Thompson and Rep. Greg Steube (FL-17) led a bipartisan group of 218 Members of Congress to successfully advance a discharge petition which forced House Speaker Mike Johnson to bring their bill, the Federal Disaster Tax Relief Act, to the House floor for a vote.

The Federal Disaster Tax Relief Act supports the nearly 70,000 qualified survivors who suffered significant losses during three major federally declared California fires in 2015, 2017, and 2018 who received related settlement payments.

At the time, the historic advancement of Rep. Thompson and Rep. Steube’s petition marked only the third time a House discharge petition had succeeded in the 21st Century.

Their efforts succeeded as the Federal Disaster Tax Relief Act passed the Senate and was signed into law by President Biden at the end of 2024.

Thompson represents California’s Fourth Congressional District, which includes all or part of Lake, Napa, Solano, Sonoma and Yolo counties.

LAKEPORT, Calif. — The expanding effort to end the high number of Indigenous people becoming crime victims was celebrated in a special Friday event.

The Lake County Tribal Health Consortium hosted its annual Missing and Murdered Indigenous Peoples Day event on Friday afternoon in Lakeport’s Xabatin Park.

The movement to raise awareness of the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Peoples, or MMIP, epidemic has grown stronger in recent years, thanks in part to events like the one Tribal Health hosts annually.

This year’s gathering had an attendance of 1,655 people, said Darnell Aparicio, Tribal Health’s public health outreach manager.

They came to watch Pomo dancers performing with Clear Lake and Mount Konocti in the background, enjoy lunch and tour 78 booths hosted by nonprofit service organizations and agencies such as Behavioral Health, the Lake County Sheriff’s Office, California Highway Patrol and many others.

Visitors were greeted with a display of red dresses, fluttering in the wind, representing the thousands of individuals whose stories have been added to the evidence of the crisis’ toll on Indian Country.

Those who attended also were given a black ink stamp of a hand, which is another symbol of MMIP.

Studies highlighted by the Bureau of Indian Affairs have found that the rates of murder, rape and other violent crimes are higher for Indigenous people than the national average.

Aparicio said Tribal Health placed the event’s focus on resilience, titling it, “Resilient Spirits Healing Together.”

“It really boils down to the fact that we experience a trickle-down effect — when a loved one goes missing or is taken by violence, our children lose out on a vital part of their culture,” Aparicio said. “The grief and loss ripple through generations, deeply impacting our families’ sense of identity, safety, and community belonging.”

He said Friday’s MMIP event and those like it “are essential steps in addressing the trauma and beginning the process of healing.”

Aparicio thanked the county’s agencies and leadership for their cooperation and collaboration, including the city of Lakeport allowing them to use Xabatin Park.

“This growing alliance represents a positive and necessary step forward in addressing and helping to combat the devastating plight of Missing and Murdered Indigenous People,” he said.

He added that they’re also deeply thankful to the community and its overwhelming support, not only regarding recognition “but to the urgent need for sustained awareness around this epidemic of epic proportions.”

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, and on Bluesky, @erlarson.bsky.social. Find Lake County News on the following platforms: Facebook, @LakeCoNews; X, @LakeCoNews; Threads, @lakeconews, and on Bluesky, @lakeconews.bsky.social.

NORTH COAST, Calif. — Redwood Region Resilient Inclusive Sustainable Economy, or RISE, has announced the preliminary selection of Catalyst Awardees who will receive a total of $9 million in funding to boost economic development throughout the Redwood Region.

With North Edge Financing as fiscal agent and the California Center for Rural Policy at Cal Poly Humboldt as regional convener, this California Jobs First initiative will support pre-development projects that align RRRISE’s 10-year Regional Roadmap.

“The Catalyst Fund represents critical investment in the future of Redwood Region’s rural economies,” says Susan Seaman, Program Director of North Edge. “These preliminary awards mark the beginning of projects that will leverage our key industry sectors and foster inclusive economic development and job growth for all Redwood Region residents.”

The Catalyst Awards support high-impact projects at two key stages: early-stage “exploratory” initiatives and near implementation-ready "last-mile" efforts. These awards position promising projects to compete for future regional, state, private and federal implementation funding, focusing on initiatives that advance the RRRISE Regional Roadmap's four key sectors: Arts, culture, and tourism; health and caregiving; renewable and resilient energy; and working lands and blue economy.

With over 70% of the Catalyst funding directed to projects led by priority and disinvested communities, officials said the selected awardees address critical regional challenges through sustainable food systems, renewable energy projects, affordable housing solutions, workforce training, cultural preservation, and forest management practices.

Many projects specifically target priority communities to overcome persistent barriers to economic advancement in rural and tribal areas.

The preliminary list of Catalyst Awardees includes:

• BLBS GRID Workforce Training Tiny Home Construction ($331,702): Building Lives By Building Structure Hoopa. Combining affordable housing construction with renewable energy integration while training Native American youth.

• Career Pathways: Fire, Forest, Fish & Facilities ($1,127,936): Trees Foundation, creating sustainable wage opportunities in natural resource jobs across three counties.

• Del Norte Performing Arts and Civic Center ($268,250): Partnership for Performing Arts, cultural hub serving as performance venue, educational space and emergency resource.

• Fire Lines & Fiber Bioregions: A Regional Wool Industry Cluster ($607,856): Kaos Sheep Outfit, developing sustainable fiber production and exploring a regional wool industry cluster.

• Lake County Healthcare Education and Simulator ($650,000): Lake County Economic Development Corp., Enhancing healthcare education and workforce development through simulation facilities.

• Middletown Rancheria Community RISE Project ($500,000): Middletown Rancheria of Pomo Indians of California, addressing tribal community challenges through housing, climate resilience, and cultural preservation.

• North Coast Resilient Food Systems Initiative ($2,306,574): Connecting Del Norte Meat Processing Facility, Hmong Association of Crescent City with North Coast Food System Network, North Coast Growers' Association to strengthen regional food systems.

• Redwood Corridor SEEDS Network ($450,000): North Coast Opportunities, creating community food hubs along Highway 101 to address food security and access.

• Tribal Energy Sovereignty Initiative ($795,316): Pinoleville Solar Port & Renewable Energy Workforce Development, Pinoleville Pomo Nation with Red Hills Bioenergy Facility & Central Wood Processing Plant ($345,316), Scotts Valley Energy Corp. to advance renewable energy solutions and workforce training.

• Timber & Workforce Development Initiative ($1,959,897): Three interconnected initiatives: Carving a Legacy: Tribal Traditions, Woodworking, and Workforce Development, Blue Lake Rancheria Tribe; Connecting Mass Timber to Regional Housing and Building Needs, Mad River Mass Timber; and Developing a Climate Forward Workforce and Innovation Pipeline, Forest WRX Alliance.

“The California Center for Rural Policy is proud to support this process as the Regional Convener,” said Dawn Arledge, executive director of CCRP. “These projects reflect RRRISE’s 150+ organization’s collaborative vision of and commitment to help rural and Tribal communities access the resources they need to thrive.”

Preliminary Catalyst Awardees will undergo contracting and compliance measures before receiving funding. Implementation is expected to begin in May of 2025, with completion by September 2026.

The Redwood Region RISE Collaborative and its four sector investment coordinators are committed to supporting these and the many other excellent economic development projects throughout the region.

The work of Redwood Region RISE is supported by the statewide initiative California Jobs First and has helped inform the newly released California Jobs First Economic Blueprint.

UPDATE: Thompson's office reported on May 7 that the event is being rescheduled due to a death in Zandi's family.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — A virtual town hall this week will give community members a chance to ask questions about the economy as well as trade policies.

Rep. Mike Thompson will be hosting a live town hall via Zoom with Moody’s Analytics Chief Economist, Dr. Mark Zandi.

The town hall will take place via Zoom beginning at 6 p.m. Wednesday, May 7.

Follow this link to register.

The town hall also can be watched on Thompson’s Facebook page.

Thompson and Zandi will discuss the state of the economy and answer questions about how the Trump Administration’s economic and trade policies are affecting the community.

If you are not able to make the town hall but have any questions for Thompson, call him at 202-225-3311 or click here to email him.

Thompson represents California’s Fourth Congressional District, which includes all or part of Lake, Napa, Solano, Sonoma and Yolo counties.

 

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — The Board of Supervisors this week will consider nine letters to federal and state agencies regarding legislation and budget matters, as well as amendments to multimillion-dollar county agreements for mental health programs.

The‌ ‌board will meet beginning ‌at‌ ‌9‌ ‌a.m. Tuesday, May 6, in the board chambers on the first floor of the Lake County Courthouse, 255 N. Forbes St., Lakeport.

The‌ ‌meeting‌ ‌can‌ ‌be‌ ‌watched‌ ‌live‌ ‌on‌ ‌Channel‌ ‌8, ‌online‌ ‌at‌ ‌https://countyoflake.legistar.com/Calendar.aspx‌‌ and‌ ‌on‌ ‌the‌ ‌county’s‌ ‌Facebook‌ ‌page. ‌Accompanying‌ ‌board‌ ‌documents, ‌the‌ ‌agenda‌ ‌and‌ ‌archived‌ ‌board‌ ‌meeting‌ ‌videos‌ ‌also‌ ‌are‌ ‌available‌ ‌at‌ ‌that‌ ‌link. ‌ ‌

To‌ ‌participate‌ ‌in‌ ‌real-time, ‌join‌ ‌the‌ ‌Zoom‌ ‌meeting‌ ‌by‌ ‌clicking‌ ‌this‌ ‌link‌. ‌ ‌

The‌ ‌meeting‌ ‌ID‌ ‌is‌ 865 3354 4962, ‌pass code 726865.‌ ‌The meeting also can be accessed via one tap mobile at +16694449171,,86533544962#,,,,*726865#. The meeting can also be accessed via phone at 669 900 6833.

At 10:30 a.m., the board will consider a proposed “findings of fact and decision” by county counsel which denies the appeal of a commercial cannabis cultivation permit by the appellant NinaStar LLC.

The permit was first denied by the Planning Commission in December. NinaStar LLC immediately filed an appeal to the Board of Supervisors.

On April 1, the board determined to deny the appeal by a vote of four to one, with Supervisor Eddie Crandell the only no vote.

According to the proposal to be considered this week, the appellant failed to provide sufficient evidence to its appeal and the board finds that “this project would have a significant effect on the environment.”

At 11:30 a.m., the board will hold a public hearing on proposed changes to the county’s master fee schedule, which would adjust service fees starting July 1.

In the untimed items, the board will consider a letter of opposition to proposed presidential budget that would eliminate Head Start funding for fiscal year 2026.

“Local programs providing critical Head Start services in Lake County also include the Lake Family Resource Center Early Head Start (serving 74 children and employing 22 staff), and the Kelseyville ‘E Center,’” the letter said. “Together, these programs offer an additional 108 slots, increasing access to essential early childhood education for families in the region.”

The letter highlighted the impact of eliminating the program: “Defunding Head Start would eliminate a vital safety net for some of the most vulnerable populations in our region, jeopardizing children’s futures, forcing parents and Head Start staff out of the workforce, and increasing the burden on already strained social systems.”

The board will also consider a letter to Gov. Gavin Newsom to support the extension of the BioMAT program, which requires procurement of 250 megawatts of energy from new, small-scale bioenergy projects.

The staff report says that California-based entities have received $30 million in federal funding that hinges on full BioMAT implementation. However, only 20% of the required megawatts have been procured to date.

If no action is taken, the BioMAT program will “sunset” by the end of 2025, and much of that $30 million will have to be returned to the Federal Government.

The board will also consider three letters of support for Federal Forest Health and Wildfire and Disaster Resiliency Legislation.

The proposed Disaster Resiliency and Coverage Act would establish a new state program that provides up to $10,000 for disaster mitigation work on homes and 30% tax credit for qualified mitigation activities undertaken by individuals and businesses, according to the staff memo.

The board will consider signing four coalition letters in support of state legislation focused on fire insurance.

The bills include: AB 1, which addresses how insurers incorporate wildfire risk mitigation into rate-setting; AB 441, which extends two wildfire resilience and mitigation programs; SB 547, which expands a moratorium on insurance non-renewals in wildfire disaster areas to include commercial properties; and SB 616, which revises the state’s wildfire mitigation program and establishes a Community Hardening Commission.

In four separate items, the board will also consider amendments to four agreements for mental health programs, totaling more than $5 million.

The full agenda follows.

CONSENT AGENDA

5.1: Approve continuation of proclamation declaring a Clear Lake Hitch emergency.

5.2: Approve continuation of proclamation of the existence of a local emergency due to pervasive tree mortality.

5.3: Approve continuation of emergency proclamation declaring a shelter crisis in the county of Lake.

5.4: Adopt proclamation designating May 2025 as Lake County Month of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and People.

5.5: Adopt proclamation designating May 1 to 7, 2025, as Elks National Youth Week in Lake County.

5.6: Adopt proclamation designating May 2025 as Community Action Month.

5.7: Adopt proclamation designating May 2025 as Wildfire Community Preparedness Month in Lake County.

5.8: Adopt a proclamation designating May 2025 as Mental Health Matters Month.

5.9: Adopt resolution authorizing Amendment No. 2 to the standard agreement between the county of Lake and the Behavioral Health Services Oversight and Accountability Commission (BHSOAC) for the period ending December 31, 2026 and authorizing the Behavioral Health Director to sign the amendment.

5.10: Approve Board of Supervisors meeting minutes February 25, 2025, April 1, 2025, and April 8, 2025.

5.11: Approve first amendment of agreement between the county of Lake and 360 Junk Removal & Hauling annual compensation by $50,000; for a total compensation not to exceed $150,000 for abatement services and authorize the chair to sign.

5.12: (a) Rescind resolution 2024-19 approving an application for funding and the execution of a grant agreement and any amendments thereto form the 2023-2024 funding year of the State CDBG Mitigation (CDBG-MIT) Resilient Planning and Public Services (MIT-PPS) Program and (b) adopt resolution approving and application for funding and the execution of a grant agreement and any amendments thereto from the 2023-2024 funding year of the State CDBG Mitigation (CDBG-MIT) Resilient Planning and Public Services (MIT-PPS) Program.

5.13: Adopt proclamation designating the week of May 4-10, 2025 as Correctional Officers Week in Lake County.

5.14: Adopt proclamation designating May 2025 as CalFresh Awareness Month.

TIMED ITEMS

6.1, 9:02 a.m.: Public input.

6.2, 9:03 a.m.: Pet of the week.

6.3, 9:04 a.m.: New and noteworthy at the library.

6.4, 9:05 a.m.: (a) Presentation of proclamation designating May 2025 as Lake County Month of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and People; and (b) authorize Public Services to hang the flag at the courthouse for the month of May 2025.

6.5, 9:10 a.m.: Presentation of proclamation designating May 1-7, 2025, as Elks National Youth Week in Lake County.

6.6, 9:15 a.m.: Presentation of proclamation designating May 2025 as Community Action Month.

6.7, 9:20 a.m.: (a) Presentation of proclamation designating May 2025 as Wildfire Community Preparedness Month in Lake County.

6.8, 9:25 a.m.: Presentation of proclamation designating May 2025 as Mental Health Matters Month.

6.9, 9:30 a.m.: Presentation of proclamation designating the week of May 4 to 10, 2025 as Correctional Officers Week in Lake County.

6.10, 9:35 a.m.: Presentation of proclamation designating May 2025 as CalFresh Awareness Month.

6.11, 10:30 a.m.: Consideration of proposed findings of fact and decision in the appeal of NinaStar LLC (AB 24-05).

6.12, 11:30 a.m.: Public hearing, consideration of a resolution amending the master fee schedule for departmental services rendered by the county.

NONTIMED ITEMS

7.1: Supervisors’ weekly calendar, travel and reports.

7.2: Consideration of use of staff time in excess of 8 hours to research the feasibility of a dedicated special tax for county roads.

7.3: Consideration of a letter of opposition to proposed defunding of Head Start programs.

7.4: Consideration of a letter to Governor Newsom supporting extension of the BioMAT Program.

7.5: Consideration of three letters of support for federal forest health and wildfire and disaster resiliency legislation, in furtherance of established Board of Supervisors federal legislative priorities (a) the Disaster Resiliency and Coverage Act (H.R. 1105, Thompson); (b) the Facilitating Increased Resilience, Environmental Weatherization, and Lowered Liability (FIREWALL) Act (S. 1323, Schiff and Sheehy); and (c) the Fix Our Forests Act (FOFA, H.R. 471; S. 1462).

7.6: Consideration of four coalition letters related to fire insurance in consistency with Board-adopted 2025 state legislative priorities.

7.7: Consideration of the agreement between county of Lake and Community Behavioral Health for substance use disorder medication assisted treatment services for FY 2025-26 in the amount of $1,000,000.

7.8: Consideration of amendment No. 4 to the agreement between county of Lake and Lake County Office of Education for the Mental Health Student Services Act Grant Program based specialty mental health services for fiscal year 2021-26 in the amount of $2,112,250.

7.9: Consideration of amendment No.1 to the agreement between county of Lake and Parkview Healthcare Center for adult residential and skilled nursing support services and specialty mental health services for fiscal year 2024-25 in the amount of $340,000.

7.10: Consideration of amendment No.1 to the agreement between county of Lake and Hilltop Recovery Services for ASAM Level 1.0, 2.0, 3.1 & 3.5 services for FY 2024-25 in the amount of $1,963,200.

7.11: Consideration of administrative encroachment permit #25-06 - temporary closure of a portion of Clear Lake near Buckingham Homes Association office from May 16 to 18, 2025 for the Buckingham Test and Tune Boat and Car Show.

CLOSED SESSION

8.1: Conference with legal counsel: significant exposure to litigation pursuant to Gov. Code section 54956.9(d)(2), (e)(1) – one potential case

8.2: Conference with labor negotiator: (a) Chief negotiator: C. Torrez; county negotiators: S. Parker, S. Carter, C. Moreno, P. Samac and D. Rico; and (b) employee organizations: LCDDAA, LCDSA, LCCOA, LCEA, LCSEA and LCSMA

8.3: Public employee evaluation: Air Pollution Control Director Doug Gearhart.

8.4: Public employee evaluation: Community Development Director Mireya Turner.

Email staff reporter Lingzi Chen at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..