As a result of improved water supply conditions, the California Department of Water Resources on Wednesday announced an increase in 2019 State Water Project allocations.

State Water Project contractors south of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta are set to receive 35 percent of their requests for the 2019 calendar year, up from 15 percent allocation announced last month.

Allocations are reviewed monthly based on snowpack and runoff information and are typically finalized by May.

Clear Lake is part of the Sacramento River Watershed, which also drains into the Bay Delta.

“Recent storms boosted California’s snowpack and total precipitation well above average, which allows us to have a more abundant water supply allocation,” said California Department of Water Resources Director Karla Nemeth. “Although we’ve got more water in the system now, we must always manage our precious resources with tomorrow’s climate uncertainties in mind.”

Statewide, the Sierra snowpack is 146 percent of average for this date. Most of the state’s major reservoirs are at or above their historical averages for this time of year.

Lake Oroville, the State Water Project’s largest reservoir, is currently at 53 percent of capacity and 78 percent of average for this time of year. It has been managed conservatively to provide additional flood capacity to ensure public safety as work continues on the spillways.

Shasta Lake, the Central Valley Project’s largest reservoir, is at 74 percent of capacity and 105 percent of average.

San Luis Reservoir, the largest off-stream reservoir in the United States where water is stored for the State Water Project and Central Valley Project, is at 93 percent of capacity and 112 percent of average.

In Southern California, the State Water Project’s Castaic Lake is 94 percent of average.

Reservoir storage, snowpack, precipitation and releases to meet local deliveries are among several factors used in determining allocations.

The Department of Water Resources transports the State Water Project water to 29 contractors which serve more than 27 million Californians and 750,000 acres of farmland. The 2019 allocation of 35 percent amounts to 1,473,046 acre-feet of water.

UPPER LAKE, Calif. – A vehicle crash near Blue Lakes west of Upper Lake has led to an extended closure of Highway 20.

The California Highway Patrol reported shortly before 4 p.m. Wednesday that Highway 20 is closed from Potter Valley in Mendocino County to the junction of Highway 20 and Highway 29 in Upper Lake due to the crash.

The CHP said the hard closure is anticipated to be in effect for up to 14 hours.

Several emergency vehicles, along with AT&T and Pacific Gas and Electric trucks, are working in the area, the CHP said.

The crash was first reported just after 1:15 p.m. at Midlake Road and Highway 20, according to the CHP.

Initial reports from the scene indicated a truck had hit a utility pole, and that a big rig also may have been involved. Utility lines also were reported to be down.

One crash victim was reported to have been flown to Santa Rosa for medical treatment.

PG&E's online outage center is reporting a small outage affecting 17 customers in the area, which began at the same time as the crash. The company hasn't yet offered an estimate of when power there will be restored.

Additional details will be posted as they become available.
 
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Lakeport City Council on Tuesday night voted to set hours for all city parklands in an effort to bring Westside Community Park’s hours of use in line with other city park facilities.

Tuesday night’s public hearing was the second necessary step in accepting the new rules. The proposed ordinance to address hours for all parklands was introduced at the council’s Feb. 5 meeting.

The staff report for Tuesday’s meeting, with the proposed ordinance, begins on page 71 of the agenda published below, and the discussion begins at the 4:20 mark in the video above.

Public Works Director Doug Grider said that Library Park is currently the only park with posted hours of use. It's closed to the public from 12 a.m. to 5 a.m. daily, with the exception of special events approved in advance by the City Council.

The ordinance the council considered on Tuesday amends a section of municipal code to change the wording so that instead of referring only to Library Park, it refers to city “parklands.”

Grider said there have been issues at Westside Community Park which were brought up by one of the Parks and Recreation Commission members as well as from residents of the nearby Parkside Subdivision.

Westside Community Park, located off of Parallel Drive, remains under development by the Westside Community Park Committee, which leases it.

There are no hours posted there, and while doing research Grider said city staff discovered that Westside Community Park wasn't included in the city's rules for park use hours that were established in 1993 and specifically refer to Library Park.

Grider said the proposal was to bring all park facilities under the same rules.

He said there's really no need for anybody to be out on the baseball fields at Westside Park at midnight or 2 a.m., and with the new rules police can ask people to leave.

During public comment, Chris Macedo, a resident of the Parkside Subdivision – and the county's undersheriff – wanted the council to change the rules to make them more stringent, closing Westside Park from sunset to sunrise.

He said there are a lot of problems that go on at the park from sunset to midnight, ranging from speed contests, to drinking, unlawful sexual activity and drugs.

“Nothing good goes on at a park after dark,” he said, adding that Westside Park is not near a commercial zone but rather residences.

Councilman George Spurr asked City Attorney David Ruderman if they would need a different ordinance if they chose to adopt Macedo's suggestion.

“If you wanted to change it then we would have to bring it back for another reading after this,” said Ruderman, explaining that the hours would need to be changed and, if making the hours different from Library Park, that a separate section would be needed in the city code.

Councilwoman Mireya Turner asked Lakeport Police Chief Brad Rasmussen about activity at the park.

Rasmussen said the police department does get calls out to Westside Park, but he didn't have statistics in front of him to give them an idea of how many calls they get between the hours when darkness falls and midnight.

“We do get calls out there at all kinds of different hours, even on the weekends, sometimes during the daytime,” Rasmussen said, adding he could research it if the council wanted more information.

When Turner asked about why the hours were set the way they are, Rasmussen said that, originally, the city had been having issued at Library Park and wanted codified rules. He said Library Park has a high concentration of community activities and, with that in mind, the decision was that midnight and early morning closure times would be good, as it would still allow for legitimate uses of the park after dark.

“That's why Library Park ended up with those hours,” Rasmussen said.

City Manager Margaret Silveira noted that there are no lights at Westside Community Park.

Returning to the microphone, Macedo reiterated the point about a lack of lights at Westside Park, contrasting that with Library Park, where there are lights. He said people like to fish along the shoreline at night, and he didn't see a reason to close Library Park earlier, but the situation is different at Westside Park, where he said people tend to be more mischievous. As such, he was only asking for an hours change there.

Councilman Kenny Parlet noted that issues with drinking, racing and sexual misconduct are reportable, and that the police department has response times between three and six minutes.

He felt sunset, especially in winter, is too early to close the park, adding that there also is a dog park there.

However, he agreed, “If anyone is out there at midnight, they need to be gone.”

Parlet said he didn't want to dial in different parts of the city with different rules and saw no reason to change the rules further at this time. However, he said he would be happy to look at it again in the future if there are problems.

Councilman George Spurr agreed with Parlet. He said he wanted to get the new rules on the books and have Rasmussen monitor the situation. Once they have more information, they could dial the hours back.

Turner said she was open to changing the hours from midnight to 10 p.m. “I think that midnight is late enough that there could be problems with allowing it to stay at midnight.”

She said she was OK with keeping the rules general rather than breaking them out into specific parks, noting that she didn't think it would be an issue for people to walk through the park after hours.

Mayor Tim Barnes asked how difficult it would be to say that all parks are closed from midnight to 5 a.m. except for Westside Community Park, which would close from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. Silveira said there isn't an issue with doing that.

Rasmussen said that if the park is closed, people can't be there for any reason. “It's a lot cleaner to enforce it across the board.”

He said that if the proposal for the Lake County Theatre Co's theater comes to fruition out at the park, the council could have exceptions for approved events, allowing for later hours. Rasmussen explained that the city's popular July 4 event usually goes until past 10 p.m. “It may already be in the ordinance.”

He added that his officers will enforce the rules as they are laid out in the ordinance.

Turner said the council could move forward with what was before them that night, then have staff bring back something specific.

Councilwoman Stacey Mattina said very little information about the issue, but that they should add Westside Park to the rules and they can look at more possible changes in the future.

Parlet said 10 p.m. is way too early to him, adding they also could look at 11 p.m. “Our parklands are to be used by the local citizens as much as possible,” he said, adding that the last thing they need are more laws and rules when they already have rules for handling things like drinking, racing and mischief.

“If there's any issues, we're more than happy to hear it again,” he said.

Turner, who is a planner with the county of Lake, said she had brought up a change of hours to 10 p.m. because it's standard to switch decibel levels to quieter levels at 10 p.m. in noise ordinances.

Barnes also asked for more enforcement out at Westside Community Park. Rasmussen said he can put out a briefing to ask officers to visit the area more often. He also encouraged residents near the park to call police with concerns so they will have a record.

Silveira said staff can also ask the Parks and Recreation Commission to further analyze the hours at Westside Community Park for future changes and bring them back to the council.

In the meantime, Parlet moved to adopt the ordinance, which Mattina seconded and the council approved 5-0.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

021919 Lakeport City Counci... by on Scribd

CLEARLAKE, Calif. – Two members of the Clearlake Planning Commission, Lisa Wilson and Nathalie Antus, were sworn into office during the Tuesday Clearlake Planning Commission meeting.

Wilson is a local business owner who has been very active with community service in Lake County.

In addition to being on the Clearlake Planning Commission, Wilson is a board member of the Anderson Marsh Interpretive Association and is vice president of the Lake County Chamber of Commerce.

Antus is a returning commissioner who has served since 2015 and is, in fact, currently
the longest serving planning commissioner.

Former Planning Commissioners Dirk Slooten and Russ Cremer were elected to the Clearlake City Council last year.

“Planning commissioners serve a vital role in helping to guide development in the city. Nathalie Antus has been an excellent commissioner and I have no doubt that Lisa Wilson will be a tremendous addition to the Planning Commission,” said City Manager Greg Folsom.

The Clearlake Planning Commission meets on the first and third Tuesdays of the month, as necessary.

The commission provides oversight for land use and development applications.

CLEARLAKE, Calif. – The Clearlake Police Department is investigating a shooting that occurred late last week.

The agency told Lake County News that on Friday, officers were dispatched to the Lake County Fire Protection District station on Olympic Drive for a report of a gunshot wound victim.

At 3:15 p.m. firefighters reported that a gunshot wound victim had walked into the station, according to radio reports.

The chief requested an air ambulance over the radio, but none were available due to weather and, in the case of the California Highway Patrol’s helicopter, it was committed to a water rescue on the coast, based on scanner traffic.

Lake County Fire transported the victim to Adventist Health Hospital Clear Lake, where the victim was treated and released, police said.

Police said the victim was uncooperative with the investigation.

“There are a lot of unanswered questions including where this occurred, who shot the victim or why,” the department said in a statement released to Lake County News.

Anyone with information on the shooting is urged to call the Clearlake Police Department at 707-994-8251.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

NICE, Calif. – A family in Nice was displaced on Monday night due to a house fire.

The fire in the 3300 block of Lakeview Drive was first reported just before 9 p.m. Monday, according to radio reports.

Northshore Fire Chief Mike Ciancio said his agency, along with Lakeport Fire personnel, responded to the fire. The Northshore Fire Support Team also was called to the scene.

He said the residence – a double wide mobile home – was fully charged with smoke and starting to vent through the roof when firefighters arrived.

Ciancio said it took about an hour to bring the fire under control.

As to the cause, Ciancio said they believe they’ve narrowed it down to the area of origin.

“It’s still under investigation but we’ve kind of narrowed it down to the enclosure that held the water heater,” Ciancio said.

Once the fire was controlled, Ciancio said firefighters remained on scene for another three and a half hours – until just after 12 a.m. Tuesday – for overhaul.

“Overhaul includes a lot of things,” Ciancio said.

For one, it includes checking there is no heat in the structure. He said they pull ceilings to check to eliminate hot spots.

Also, they work to protect people's belongings with salvage covers so the items don’t get ruined from water or other causes, Ciancio said.

He said the home was significantly damaged, estimating 50 percent of it was probably lost. The entire home also had smoke damage and wasn’t habitable.

Red Cross was called to provide housing for two adults, a child and two cats, Ciancio said.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Lakeport Senior Center is putting on its Surf and Turf Crab Feed on Saturday, Feb. 23, with the event to benefit the center’s expanding outreach and services to county seniors.

The dinner will be held at the center, located at 527 Konocti Ave.

The bar opens at 4:30 p.m. and the food hits tables at 5:30 p.m.

Tickets cost $60 and are for sale online in the Facebook event, The Meals on Wheels Thrift Store of Lakeport and the senior center.

The dinner includes cooked and cracked crab, prime rib, roasted rosemary potatoes, bacon pasta carbonara, tossed salad vinaigrette and house-baked focaccia bread served family style to each table of eight.

There will be a live auction of Lake County wines, tasting adventures donated by Thorn Hill Vineyards, Laujor Estate Winery and Six Sigma Ranch and Winery with many other great items with a silent auction of desserts to top the evening off.

Center officials said this fundraiser is a vital source of income to support the 500 meals the center serves daily.

It distributes Meals on Wheels to 270 homebound seniors and caters congregate lunches to the Lakeport, Kelseyville and Lucerne senior activity centers. Next month, Upper Lake will begin hosting these catered congregate lunches at their senior center.

Lakeport was granted the responsibility for providing its services to the seniors in the north Lake County region that extends from Buckingham up to Blue Lakes and over to Glenhaven starting in July.

Funding from grants and local governments leave a shortfall of $250,000 each year to keep these services going.

The Meals on Wheels Thrift Store has driven the ability of Lakeport Senior Center to keep up with the growing needs of the community but is not enough.

Lakeport Catering is a recent opportunity to support the center by using them for any catering needs and offers a great event space at the Lakeport Senior Center. Experience what Lakeport Catering, Chef Jon Hork and the crew can offer while supporting the center’s efforts that are vital to hundreds in our communities.

For more information call 707-263-4218.

KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – The Lake County Sheriff’s Office is investigating an incident last week in which a Kelseyville man said he shot at four males who were on his property, with the men in question telling authorities they were there because they had gotten lost while on the way to visit a friend.

The noninjury shooting occurred on the night of Saturday, Feb. 16, according to Lt. Corey Paulich.

Paulich said that just after 9 p.m. Saturday sheriff’s deputies responded to a residence located in the 9800 block of Diener Drive in Kelseyville, where the home’s owner, 29-year-old Trevor McAfee, reported he had discharged his handgun at four males who came to his property and pointed a firearm at him. McAfee reported that the four males had fled on foot.

While the deputies were responding they received additional information from David Brooks, who reported that his friends had gotten lost while coming to visit him at his home located on Seigler Springs Road North, Paulich said.

Brooks told authorities that his friends went to the wrong property and someone shot at them. Paulich said Brooks had located two of his friends running down the road and waited for deputies near Diamond Dust Trail and Highway 175.

Paulich said Brooks told deputies that earlier he was at his residence speaking to his friends on the phone. He was explaining to them that they were at the wrong residence, and he could hear someone yelling at them and told them to give the phone to the person yelling at them. He then heard several gunshots while on the phone.

Brooks then traveled to the area and located his friends running down the road, Paulich said.

The deputies – with assistance from officers from the California Highway Patrol – contacted McAfee at his residence, which Paulich said was located several miles out an unmaintained road with several gates.

McAfee told deputies he heard a loud vehicle outside his trailer. He went outside with his handgun and saw four males walking towards him. McAfee reported to deputies that he told the males to get off his property and they refused, according to Paulich’s report.

Paulich said McAfee told deputies that the driver of the vehicle pointed a silver revolver at him so he fired two or three shots and all the males ran away.

The deputies examined the vehicle that had been left at McAfee’s property. They observed holes in the vehicle consistent with bullet holes. They did not find any firearms or ammunition in the vehicle, Paulich said.

Paulich said deputies were able to speak to the males who had fled McAfee’s residence. The males told deputies they had traveled from the Oakland area to visit Brooks. They tried to use their GPS, but ended up at McAfee’s residence.

The men said McAfee was yelling at them to leave. They were on the phone with Brooks and tried to explain to McAfee that they were lost. Paulich said they told deputies that when they tried to hand the cell phone to McAfee he started shooting at them and they ran away.

The men told deputies they never had a firearm, Paulich said.

Paulich told Lake County News that the sheriff’s office has had minimal previous contacts with McAfee, and none of them were negative.

The investigation is being forwarded to the District Attorney’s Office for review and determination of criminal charges, Paulich said.

Anyone with information regarding this investigation is asked to contact the Lake County Sheriff’s Office at 707-263-2690.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – Sheriff Brian Martin got a mixed reception from the Board of Supervisors last week when he went to ask for support for restructuring his agency’s administration and adjusting pay rates as part of addressing retention and salary compaction.

The board voted to approve the restructuring proposal in concept but held off on approving the pay increases for the retitled jobs until a classification and compensation study is completed later this year.

Martin’s department has faced a deepening struggle with both retention and recruitment, primarily concerning deputies and correctional officers.

The sheriff’s request went to the county’s Classification and Compensation Committee before he took it to the board.

According to a Feb. 4 email to Martin from County Administrative Officer Carol Huchingson, the committee approved the restructuring but not the salary increase request, in anticipation of the compensation study, the results of which are “needed to establish a reliable baseline from which the Board can consider implementing salary and benefit increases,” Huchingson wrote.

Martin decided to go ahead and take the matter to the board, and last Tuesday he laid out his plan, which he estimated in his written report would cost the county an additional $2,000 per month.

His administrative staffing currently includes one filled undersheriff’s position; two deputy sheriff captains, one filled and one unfilled and unfunded; five deputy sheriff lieutenants, three filled and two unfilled and unfunded; one unfilled central dispatch manager; one correctional captain, which is unfilled but being performed by a deputy sheriff lieutenant; and one filled correctional lieutenant.

Martin’s restructuring plan includes eliminating the correctional captain and central dispatch position and changing the titles to chief deputy. At the same time, he sought to consolidate the captain and lieutenant’s positions, also converting them to the chief deputy title.

Overall, Martin said he would still have 11 allocated management positions, three of which would remain unfunded and unfilled. He said he expects to eliminate those three unfunded positions in the new fiscal year budget.

The correctional lieutenant would remain in place as a promotional opportunity for staff in the correctional officers series, he said.

Martin explained that he wanted to establish a proper classification for recruitment and retention, to reduce salary compaction and remove a layer of management.

He said there is salary compaction all across the county and in his department that has resulted from decisions and actions over a very long period of time.

Martin said the entry level monthly pay for a lieutenant is $5,953 a month, only 13 percent more than the entry level monthly pay for a sergeant, $5,244.

He said the new chief deputy classification has an entry level monthly salary of $6,171, which represents a $188-per-month change. He said it’s is inadequate to relieve salary compaction, and he wanted the board to consider bringing it up to $6,636 per month.

The sheriff explained his ongoing recruitment challenges, noting that over the last 12 months he’s lost 26 full-time employees, including 14 correctional officers and six deputies, three dispatchers and three civilian employees.

During the same time period, he’s only been able to hire eight new employees – four civilian staff, two dispatchers and two deputy sheriffs.

While Martin said he understands there is a salary compensation survey under way, “This is a matter that needs to be addressed sooner rather than later.”

He said his plan won’t be a fix, but it will be helpful. “It’s not a cure, it’s a Band-Aid to get us through.”

Supervisor Rob Brown questioned if it would address retention, as he hadn’t seen administrative staff leaving, and suggested retention is an issue for correctional officers and deputies. Martin replied that it’s more of a recruitment issues.

Brown said the county was telling the employees it’s having the most trouble keeping that they have to wait for raises – due to the compensation study – and that the board needed to factor that into its decision as a matter of principal.

Supervisor Bruno Sabatier said he liked Martin’s plan because he thought it created stability, which does create retention.

Law enforcement is foundational, and Sabatier said he didn’t think the county had to wait to help other staff. “I think us waiting is us choosing to wait.”

Supervisor Moke Simon, who sits on the Classification and Compensation Committee, told Martin, “We understand the long term need for this,” and said the classification study is coming out in September.

Sabatier moved to approve Martin’s restructuring proposal, which the board approved 4-0. Supervisor EJ Crandell was absent for the meeting.

However, when Sabatier moved to approve the resolution for position allocations, which would have given the $188-per-month increase for the chief deputy position, it was voted down, with only Sabatier voting for it.

Huchingson said that with the resolution failing, there was no mechanism for the restructuring, suggesting Martin could resubmit an updated resolution. Martin said he didn’t want to do that.

County Counsel Anita Grant offered an alternative. “You can approve in concept and defer the outcome until you get the study.”

Simon moved Grant’s suggestion, which the board approved unanimously.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Cold temperatures and clearer weather are forecast for this week, according to the National Weather Service.

Conditions are expected to remain clear over the next several days, punctuated by slight chances of rain midweek and at the weekend.

Much of the snow on Lake County’s mountaintops from the weekend melted off under Monday’s bright, clear sunshine.

This week it’s also time for the “super snow moon” – the largest supermoon of 2019. The moon was at 99.5 percent when it rose on Monday night. It will peak just after 7 a.m. Tuesday, and will be at 99.7 percent when it rises on Tuesday night.

The wet weather from last week, coupled with snowmelt, pushed Clear Lake’s level to just over 8.0 feet Rumsey, which is monitor stage. The lake is full at 7.56 feet Rumsey the special measure for Clear Lake.

The local forecast calls for clear and sunny skies on Tuesday, with chances of showers on Wednesday and Wednesday night.

The National Weather Service’s Sacramento office reported that the change in conditions will come from a weak cold low pressure system dropping out of the Gulf of Alaska, which will bring rain to lower elevations and light snow to Northern California’s mountains midweek.

In Lake County, Thursday and Friday are expected to once again be sunny, with chances of showers Saturday and Sunday.

Nighttime temperatures this week will drop into the high 20s, with daytime temperatures ranging into the low 50s.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – The Napa County Sheriff’s Office said it is investigating the circumstances that led to a deputy’s fatal shooting of a man on Sunday night.

The shooting occurred on Sunday at 11 p.m. near the 1100 block of Henry Road in Napa during a traffic stop.

Authorities said the male suspect fired the first shot, from his car, at the deputy. The sheriff’s deputy returned fire and the suspect died at the scene.

The agency said its investigators are reviewing and assessing the deputy’s body worn camera footage which shows what transpired prior, during and after the incident.

The decedent’s identity hadn’t been released on Monday due to the man’s next of kin having not yet been notified, officials said.

The Napa County Sheriff’s Office said the deputy did not suffer any physical injuries and she has been placed on administrative leave.

The investigation is in the early stages and is being conducted by the Napa County Major Crimes Task Force, which consists of investigators with the Napa County Sheriff’s Office, Napa Police Department and the Napa County District Attorney’s Office.

“We fully intend to issue information in a timely manner without jeopardizing the integrity of the investigation. We don’t anticipate issuing additional details of this incident before Wednesday afternoon,” the sheriff’s office said.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Attorney General Xavier Becerra, leading a 16-state coalition, on Monday filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California challenging President Trump’s declaration of a national emergency and his attempt to divert funding appropriated by Congress for other purposes.

Joining Attorney General Becerra in filing the lawsuit are the attorneys general of Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawai'i, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon and Virginia.

In the complaint, the coalition alleges that the Trump Administration’s emergency declaration and diversion of funds is unconstitutional and otherwise unlawful.

The states seek to block the Trump Administration’s emergency declaration, the unauthorized construction of the border wall, and any illegal diversion of Congressionally-appropriated funds.

“President Trump is manufacturing a crisis and declaring a made-up 'national emergency' in order to seize power and undermine the Constitution,” said Gov. Newsom. “This 'emergency' is a national disgrace. Rather than focusing on fighting the real vulnerabilities facing Americans, the President is using the powers of America’s highest office to fan the flames of nativism and xenophobia. Our message to the White House is clear: California will not be part of this political theater. We will see you in court.”

“President Trump treats the rule of law with utter contempt. He knows there is no border crisis, he knows his emergency declaration is unwarranted, and he admits that he will likely lose this case in court. He is willing to manipulate the Office of the Presidency to engage in unconstitutional theatre performed to convince his audience that he is committed to his ‘beautiful’ border wall,” said Attorney General Becerra. “Today, on Presidents Day, we take President Trump to court to block his misuse of presidential power. We’re suing President Trump to stop him from unilaterally robbing taxpayer funds lawfully set aside by Congress for the people of our states. For most of us, the Office of the Presidency is not a place for theatre.”

The complaint filed Monday alleges that the Trump Administration’s action declaring a national emergency due to a purported border crisis is unlawful and unconstitutional. The states argue that President Trump’s hyped crisis is a pretext to justify redirecting congressionally-appropriated funds to pay to build a wall along the southern border after he failed to get Congress – or Mexico – to pay for it.

The states filing the action argue that the facts do not support President Trump’s rhetoric or his declaration.

They cite statistics showing that unlawful southern border entries are at their lowest point in 20 years, immigrants are less likely than native-born citizens to commit crimes, and illegal drugs are more likely to come through official ports of entry. Representatives of the opposing state say there is no credible evidence to suggest that a border wall would decrease crime rates.

The states allege that the Trump Administration’s action exceeds the power of the executive office, violates the U.S. Constitution and federal statutes, and would illegally and unconstitutionally divert federal funds appropriated by Congress for other purposes.

The suit seeks declaratory and injunctive relief to block the emergency declaration, the construction of the wall, and any illegal diversion of congressionally-appropriated funds.

A copy of the complaint is posted below.

021819 Multistate Emergency... by on Scribd