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LAKEPORT, Calif. — The Lakeport Utilities Department is continuing its water infrastructure improvement project along Lakeshore Boulevard.
The Water Pipeline Replacement Project is currently under way. It is designed to replace aging water mains and service connections, improving system reliability, reducing the risk of leaks, and preparing the corridor for future upgrades.
The project is taking place on Lakeshore Boulevard, from Giselman Avenue to Beach Lane.
The project’s first phase began on Tuesday and continues to May 23. It is taking place on Lakeshore Boulevard, from Giselman Avenue to Lange Street.
The second phase, set to occur from May 27 to June 13, will take place on Lakeshore Boulevard from Lange Street to Beach Lane.
During construction, road closures will be in effect within active work zones.
Motorists are advised to follow posted detour signs, drive slowly, and use caution when traveling near construction crews and equipment.
The city urges residents to plan for minor delays, equipment noise, and possible dust throughout the duration of the work.
“This project represents a key investment in the long-term sustainability of our water infrastructure,” said Utilities Director Paul Harris. “We appreciate the community’s patience as we work to improve water service and prepare the area for resurfacing.”
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- Written by: LAKE COUNTY NEWS REPORTS
On Tuesday, U.S. Senators Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), ranking member of the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration with oversight over elections, Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Vice Chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) led 11 senators in sounding the alarm on the devastating impacts of President Trump’s anti-voter “election integrity” executive order and the SAVE Act on Native American voting rights.
In a letter to Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum, the senators specifically warn about the challenges Native communities will face with the proposed requirements of documentary proof of citizenship and restrictions on mail-in voting.
“Enactment of new voter registration policies under the Executive Order and the SAVE Act would lead to mass disenfranchisement of eligible Native voters and further depress the Native vote,” wrote the senators. “Tribal IDs generally lack place of birth information required by the legislation, and the vast majority of these IDs lack the specific U.S. citizenship documentation required by the Executive Order. And the SAVE Act’s in-person requirement would exacerbate existing barriers, such as requiring IDs that list residential mailing addresses, by forcing many Native voters to travel great distances, including costly flights or multi-hour drives, to reach their local elections office or polling place.
“As Secretary of the Interior, you have a special moral and legal responsibility to uphold our nation’s trust and treaty obligations,” continued the senators. “If implemented, the sweeping federal mandates included in the Executive Order and the SAVE Act would disenfranchise eligible Native voters who are following state laws. We encourage your active engagement with the White House and the Department of Justice to ensure that Native communities are able to exercise the franchise fully and have their voices heard at the ballot box.”
Tribal IDs are currently an acceptable form of documentation to register to vote in nearly every state, but the SAVE Act and Trump executive order require that an ID must show place of birth and citizenship, which the majority of tribal IDs lack, adding another barrier to the ballot box for many Native American communities.
The senators underscored that if enacted, these provisions would force tribal voters who live in rural and remote locations to travel significant distances to prove their citizenship in order to register to vote.
The senators also emphasized the disproportionate impact the vote-by-mail restrictions would have on Native communities, which often rely more on mail-in voting because of a lack of infrastructure and transportation access.
Trump’s executive order penalizes states that accept absentee or mail-in ballots received after Election Day, harming Native voters in states like Alaska, North Dakota, Oregon, and California that process ballots as long as they are postmarked by Election Day.
In Alaska specifically, which has 229 federally recognized tribes, vote-by-mail is essential because polling sites can be hundreds of miles away for villages that are not on the road system.
Only 66 percent of Native Americans eligible to participate in elections are currently registered to vote, leaving more than one million eligible voting-age Native Americans unregistered. Creating further obstacles to register to vote would likely reduce these numbers even further.
In addition to Senators Padilla, Schatz, and Wyden, the letter was also signed by Senators Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.).
The full text of the letter is below.
Dear Secretary Burgum:
We write to express our serious concern over the impact of the Administration’s March 25 Executive Order 14284 “Preserving and Protecting the Integrity of American Elections” on Native communities. As former Governor of North Dakota, and now as Secretary of the Interior, you must appreciate that Indian Country faces voting challenges unique to the rest of the country, including remote locations, limited resources, and a legacy of legal discrimination. Unfortunately, both this Executive Order, and the related Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act (H.R. 22) recently passed by the House of Representatives, would represent the largest steps backwards for Native American voting rights in many decades. We urge you to ensure that the federal government meets its trust responsibility to safeguard Native American voting rights and to engage in Tribal consultation on any new policies that impact the Native vote.
Enactment of new voter registration policies under the Executive Order and the SAVE Act would lead to mass disenfranchisement of eligible Native voters and further depress the Native vote. For example, both the Executive Order and the SAVE Act include a requirement for voters to provide documentary proof of citizenship when registering or re-registering to vote. Tribal IDs generally lack place of birth information required by the legislation, and the vast majority of these IDs lack the specific U.S. citizenship documentation required by the Executive Order. And the SAVE Act’s in-person requirement would exacerbate existing barriers, such as requiring IDs that list residential mailing addresses, by forcing many Native voters to travel great distances, including costly flights or multi-hour drives, to reach their local elections office or polling place.
What’s more, under the Executive Order, the Attorney General is directed to take action against states with laws that accept absentee or mail-in ballots received after Election Day. This directive will have a disproportionate impact on Native communities, given the remote locations of many Native communities, along with a general lack of infrastructure and transportation access. As a result, Native voters often must rely on vote-by-mail systems to cast their ballots, but extremely long distances and unpredictable weather can result in mail delays that impact the arrival times of ballots. For example, in states like Alaska, which is home to 229 federally recognized Tribes, voters must rely on mail-in ballots due to the lack of local polling sites in Native villages, the majority of which are not on the road system; in fact, the nearest polling site might be hundreds of miles away by plane or boat. So, it is standard practice for many states to allow ballots to be counted for several days following the federal election as long as they were postmarked before or on election day. Of note, no state allows hand-delivered ballots to be returned after Election Day. If the Executive Order’s provision were enforced, it risks further disenfranchisement of Native voters in states like Alaska, North Dakota, Oregon, and California that accept absentee or mail-in ballots postmarked by the day before Election Day.
As Secretary of the Interior, you have a special moral and legal responsibility to uphold our nation’s trust and treaty obligations. If implemented, the sweeping federal mandates included in the Executive Order and the SAVE Act would disenfranchise eligible Native voters who are following state laws. We encourage your active engagement with the White House and the Department of Justice to ensure that Native communities are able to exercise the franchise fully and have their voices heard at the ballot box.
Thank you for your attention to this matter and we welcome the opportunity to further discuss these concerns with you.
In a letter to Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum, the senators specifically warn about the challenges Native communities will face with the proposed requirements of documentary proof of citizenship and restrictions on mail-in voting.
“Enactment of new voter registration policies under the Executive Order and the SAVE Act would lead to mass disenfranchisement of eligible Native voters and further depress the Native vote,” wrote the senators. “Tribal IDs generally lack place of birth information required by the legislation, and the vast majority of these IDs lack the specific U.S. citizenship documentation required by the Executive Order. And the SAVE Act’s in-person requirement would exacerbate existing barriers, such as requiring IDs that list residential mailing addresses, by forcing many Native voters to travel great distances, including costly flights or multi-hour drives, to reach their local elections office or polling place.
“As Secretary of the Interior, you have a special moral and legal responsibility to uphold our nation’s trust and treaty obligations,” continued the senators. “If implemented, the sweeping federal mandates included in the Executive Order and the SAVE Act would disenfranchise eligible Native voters who are following state laws. We encourage your active engagement with the White House and the Department of Justice to ensure that Native communities are able to exercise the franchise fully and have their voices heard at the ballot box.”
Tribal IDs are currently an acceptable form of documentation to register to vote in nearly every state, but the SAVE Act and Trump executive order require that an ID must show place of birth and citizenship, which the majority of tribal IDs lack, adding another barrier to the ballot box for many Native American communities.
The senators underscored that if enacted, these provisions would force tribal voters who live in rural and remote locations to travel significant distances to prove their citizenship in order to register to vote.
The senators also emphasized the disproportionate impact the vote-by-mail restrictions would have on Native communities, which often rely more on mail-in voting because of a lack of infrastructure and transportation access.
Trump’s executive order penalizes states that accept absentee or mail-in ballots received after Election Day, harming Native voters in states like Alaska, North Dakota, Oregon, and California that process ballots as long as they are postmarked by Election Day.
In Alaska specifically, which has 229 federally recognized tribes, vote-by-mail is essential because polling sites can be hundreds of miles away for villages that are not on the road system.
Only 66 percent of Native Americans eligible to participate in elections are currently registered to vote, leaving more than one million eligible voting-age Native Americans unregistered. Creating further obstacles to register to vote would likely reduce these numbers even further.
In addition to Senators Padilla, Schatz, and Wyden, the letter was also signed by Senators Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.).
The full text of the letter is below.
Dear Secretary Burgum:
We write to express our serious concern over the impact of the Administration’s March 25 Executive Order 14284 “Preserving and Protecting the Integrity of American Elections” on Native communities. As former Governor of North Dakota, and now as Secretary of the Interior, you must appreciate that Indian Country faces voting challenges unique to the rest of the country, including remote locations, limited resources, and a legacy of legal discrimination. Unfortunately, both this Executive Order, and the related Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act (H.R. 22) recently passed by the House of Representatives, would represent the largest steps backwards for Native American voting rights in many decades. We urge you to ensure that the federal government meets its trust responsibility to safeguard Native American voting rights and to engage in Tribal consultation on any new policies that impact the Native vote.
Enactment of new voter registration policies under the Executive Order and the SAVE Act would lead to mass disenfranchisement of eligible Native voters and further depress the Native vote. For example, both the Executive Order and the SAVE Act include a requirement for voters to provide documentary proof of citizenship when registering or re-registering to vote. Tribal IDs generally lack place of birth information required by the legislation, and the vast majority of these IDs lack the specific U.S. citizenship documentation required by the Executive Order. And the SAVE Act’s in-person requirement would exacerbate existing barriers, such as requiring IDs that list residential mailing addresses, by forcing many Native voters to travel great distances, including costly flights or multi-hour drives, to reach their local elections office or polling place.
What’s more, under the Executive Order, the Attorney General is directed to take action against states with laws that accept absentee or mail-in ballots received after Election Day. This directive will have a disproportionate impact on Native communities, given the remote locations of many Native communities, along with a general lack of infrastructure and transportation access. As a result, Native voters often must rely on vote-by-mail systems to cast their ballots, but extremely long distances and unpredictable weather can result in mail delays that impact the arrival times of ballots. For example, in states like Alaska, which is home to 229 federally recognized Tribes, voters must rely on mail-in ballots due to the lack of local polling sites in Native villages, the majority of which are not on the road system; in fact, the nearest polling site might be hundreds of miles away by plane or boat. So, it is standard practice for many states to allow ballots to be counted for several days following the federal election as long as they were postmarked before or on election day. Of note, no state allows hand-delivered ballots to be returned after Election Day. If the Executive Order’s provision were enforced, it risks further disenfranchisement of Native voters in states like Alaska, North Dakota, Oregon, and California that accept absentee or mail-in ballots postmarked by the day before Election Day.
As Secretary of the Interior, you have a special moral and legal responsibility to uphold our nation’s trust and treaty obligations. If implemented, the sweeping federal mandates included in the Executive Order and the SAVE Act would disenfranchise eligible Native voters who are following state laws. We encourage your active engagement with the White House and the Department of Justice to ensure that Native communities are able to exercise the franchise fully and have their voices heard at the ballot box.
Thank you for your attention to this matter and we welcome the opportunity to further discuss these concerns with you.
- Details
- Written by: LAKE COUNTY NEWS REPORTS
MALIBU, Calif. — Julianne Carter, a lifelong Lake County resident currently attending Pepperdine University School of Law in Malibu, has been named the school’s 2025 Terry M. Giles Honor Scholar.
The Giles Honor Scholar is a student in their third and final year of law school who is selected on the basis of scholastic achievement, co-curricular and extracurricular activities, personality, and character.
The scholarship is the namesake of its donor, Terry Giles is a Pepperdine Law alum who established one of the largest and most successful criminal law firms on the West Coast, and is also an award-winning author and law professor. Giles personally interviewed the applicants and selected Carter.
Carter, 22, will graduate from Pepperdine Law this month as the youngest student to ever receive a Juris Doctor law degree from the institution.
Prior to law school, she graduated from Pepperdine University with honors at age 19, receiving a bachelor's degree in philosophy.
While in law school, she was an advocate on the Honors Trial Team, where she competed in state and national trial competitions.
She was also a member of the Trial Team Executive Board and the Criminal Law Society; clerked at Legal Aid in downtown Los Angeles; worked at the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office; and spent two years appearing in criminal court in Lake County as a certified law student supervised by her mother, local attorney Angela Carter.
"I'm incredibly proud of Julianne," Angela Carter said. "It has been amazing to get to work with her. My clients and our local judges have been so kind to her. She is already a fantastic advocate with extreme intelligence and a kind heart. I am one lucky mom to have her as my daughter and one lucky lawyer to have her as my partner. She had her choice of jobs all over California, and she chose to come back and help her local community."
Following her graduation, Julianne Carter will join Angela Carter at her private criminal defense practice in Lakeport, which will be renamed Carter Law.
"I'm excited to return home to Lake County and practice law there," Julianne Carter said. "Our county is incredibly important to me, and I'm so grateful to have had everyone's support during my legal education."
- Details
- Written by: LAKE COUNTY NEWS REPORTS
CLEARLAKE, Calif. — The Clearlake City Council is set this week to consider approving a new Cal Fire map that rates thousands more acres within the city as being in the highest fire hazard severity zone.
The council will meet at 6 p.m. Thursday, May 15, in the council chambers at Clearlake City Hall, 14050 Olympic Drive.
The agenda can be found here.
The meeting will be broadcast live on the city's YouTube channel or the Lake County PEGTV YouTube Channel.
Community members also can participate via Zoom. The webinar ID is 899 0339 3920, the pass code is 024684. One tap mobile is available at +16694449171,,82771053751#, or join by phone at 669-444-9171 or 646-931-3860.
The council meeting will start with a presentation on May’s adoptable dogs, a proclamation declaring May 18 to 24 as Public Works Week and a presentation by Police Chief Tim Hobbs, who will give an update on Proposition 36, an initiative passed by voters last year to increase the penalties for drug and theft offenses.
On Thursday, the council will hold three public hearings.
The first is to discuss and consider Ordinance 281-2025, which will designate fire hazard severity zones in the Local Responsibility area as required by state law.
The zones are shown in a new map released to the public in February.
That new map adds a total of 14,000 acres of Lake County land to the “very high” fire hazard severity zone, marking an 878% increase in acreage designated the highest severity category, as Lake County News https://www.lakeconews.com/news/81111-cal-fire-s-new-fire-hazard-map-expands-very-high-zones-across-lake-county-local-officials-express-concernhas reported.
In Clearlake, the acreage rated as “very high” increases from 1,583 to 4,054 acres.
So far, city officials said they have had little to no public comment on the map, which officials are concerned could have a negative impact on the county, especially when it comes to fire insurance ratings, which the map isn’t supposed to be used to set.
If the first reading of the ordinance passes, a second reading and adoption will be set. The cities and the county have until July 1 to approve the map.
The council’s second public hearing involves the closeout of the Community Development Block Grant Covid 2/3 Funds for the Senior Community Center Upgrades, with the third being to consider adoption of fees related to Ordinance No. 280-2025, which authorizes bingo games for charitable purposes only.
Under business, the council will consider letters of opposition to SB 226 (Cabaldon) regarding community college territory transfers, and also will discuss a presentation regarding Safe Routes to Schools plans for Burns Valley and Pomo Elementary schools.
On the meeting's consent agenda — items that are considered routine in nature and usually adopted on a single vote — are warrants and council minutes; continuation of the emergency declarations for the winter storms and Boyles Fire; adoption of the update to Resolution 2024-15, HOME Application to increase the requested not-to-exceed amount to $10,200,000; and an update to the City Council meeting calendar to include June 19 as a regular City Council
meeting date.
The council also will hold a closed session for a performance evaluation of City Manager Alan Flora and discuss litigation with Highlands Mutual Water Co.
Email Elizabeth Larson atThis 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.
The council will meet at 6 p.m. Thursday, May 15, in the council chambers at Clearlake City Hall, 14050 Olympic Drive.
The agenda can be found here.
The meeting will be broadcast live on the city's YouTube channel or the Lake County PEGTV YouTube Channel.
Community members also can participate via Zoom. The webinar ID is 899 0339 3920, the pass code is 024684. One tap mobile is available at +16694449171,,82771053751#, or join by phone at 669-444-9171 or 646-931-3860.
The council meeting will start with a presentation on May’s adoptable dogs, a proclamation declaring May 18 to 24 as Public Works Week and a presentation by Police Chief Tim Hobbs, who will give an update on Proposition 36, an initiative passed by voters last year to increase the penalties for drug and theft offenses.
On Thursday, the council will hold three public hearings.
The first is to discuss and consider Ordinance 281-2025, which will designate fire hazard severity zones in the Local Responsibility area as required by state law.
The zones are shown in a new map released to the public in February.
That new map adds a total of 14,000 acres of Lake County land to the “very high” fire hazard severity zone, marking an 878% increase in acreage designated the highest severity category, as Lake County News https://www.lakeconews.com/news/81111-cal-fire-s-new-fire-hazard-map-expands-very-high-zones-across-lake-county-local-officials-express-concernhas reported.
In Clearlake, the acreage rated as “very high” increases from 1,583 to 4,054 acres.
So far, city officials said they have had little to no public comment on the map, which officials are concerned could have a negative impact on the county, especially when it comes to fire insurance ratings, which the map isn’t supposed to be used to set.
If the first reading of the ordinance passes, a second reading and adoption will be set. The cities and the county have until July 1 to approve the map.
The council’s second public hearing involves the closeout of the Community Development Block Grant Covid 2/3 Funds for the Senior Community Center Upgrades, with the third being to consider adoption of fees related to Ordinance No. 280-2025, which authorizes bingo games for charitable purposes only.
Under business, the council will consider letters of opposition to SB 226 (Cabaldon) regarding community college territory transfers, and also will discuss a presentation regarding Safe Routes to Schools plans for Burns Valley and Pomo Elementary schools.
On the meeting's consent agenda — items that are considered routine in nature and usually adopted on a single vote — are warrants and council minutes; continuation of the emergency declarations for the winter storms and Boyles Fire; adoption of the update to Resolution 2024-15, HOME Application to increase the requested not-to-exceed amount to $10,200,000; and an update to the City Council meeting calendar to include June 19 as a regular City Council
meeting date.
The council also will hold a closed session for a performance evaluation of City Manager Alan Flora and discuss litigation with Highlands Mutual Water Co.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
- Details
- Written by: Elizabeth Larson