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Mendocino National Forest begins reconstruction of High Glade Lookout

A view of High Glade Lookout in 2009. The lookout, destroyed in a wildfire in 2018, was originally built in the 1930s and is being rebuilt. USDA Forest Service photo by Mendocino National Forest.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — This week Mendocino National Forest contractors began reconstruction of the High Glade Lookout, which was destroyed by a wildfire in 2018.

The lookout is located near the southern boundary of Mendocino National Forest in Lake County on 16N37 Rd, or High Glade Road.

Forest officials ask visitors to avoid High Glade Road and to expect increased traffic on 16N30 Road, which also is known as Sam Alley Road off Pitney Lane). Access to the construction site will be closed to the public.

Prior to the Ranch Fire, High Glade lookout was in use and staffed seasonally to detect wildfires in the summer and fall months. After the rebuild, the lookout will be staffed again. The location provides 360-degree views of the southern end of the forest as well as communities around Clear Lake in Lake County.

“This is an important milestone to rebuild our critical infrastructure on the forest after the Ranch Fire,” said Upper Lake District Ranger Frank Aebly. “Lookout towers serve an important role in wildfire detection, but even beyond that High Glade Lookout provides vital visitor services, education and communication during emergencies.”

The lookout was originally built in the 1930s in the Civilian Conservation Corps era when other lookouts on the forest were built. At the time that it burned, the lookout was around 85 years old.

The replacement lookout tower will be similar in shape and size to the previous structure, a 10 foot by 10 foot square cabin sitting atop a 35 foot steel tower.

Forest engineers secured funding for the design and rebuild in 2022 through the Disaster Supplemental funding. Construction is expected to take a year to complete, weather permitting.

The Mendocino National Forest consists of approximately 927,650 acres along northern California’s coastal range. The forest includes the Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument, four designated wilderness areas, two designated wild and scenic rivers, Red Bluff Recreation Area, and the Chico Seed Orchard. Headquartered in Willows, the forest maintains district offices in the communities of Covelo and Upper Lake.
Written by: LAKE COUNTY NEWS REPORTS

Senate approves governor special session proposal to stop gas price spikes

On Friday, the California Senate advanced Gov. Gavin Newsom’s special session proposal aimed at preventing gas price spiking during the floor session of the Second Extraordinary Session and passed a resolution to adjourn, marking an end to the one-week special session in the upper house.

The Senate passage of ABx2-1 — authored by Assemblymembers Gregg Hart and Cecilia Aguiar-Curry and Sen. Nancy Skinner — follows the Assembly advancing the measure last week.

The bill allows the state to require oil refiners to maintain a minimum inventory of fuel to avoid supply shortages that create higher gasoline prices for consumers, and higher profits for the industry.

It would also authorize the California Energy Commission to require refiners to plan for resupply during refiner maintenance outages.

“Californians are one step closer to getting the protections they need against Big Oil’s price spikes. I’m grateful to our partners in the Senate for helping to save Californians money at the pump. Price spikes cost consumers more than $2 billion last year, and we’re taking the action necessary to help put this to an end,” Newsom said.

Now the measure goes back to the Assembly for a final concurrence vote.

The Senate convened the Extraordinary Session, the second in two years, on Oct. 7, held two committee hearings regarding the bill, and held a floor vote on ABX2-1 before adjourning today. The bill addresses maintaining California’s fuel supply, in an effort to help prevent price spiking that directly impacts consumers. It now heads back to the Assembly for a concurrence vote.

ABX2-1, authored by Assemblymembers Gregg Hart and Cecilia Aguiar-Curry, and Senator Nancy Skinner, is focused on helping prevent gas price spiking by giving the California Energy Commission, or CEC, authority to require refiners to store more gas. Amendments to the bill include requiring that regulations must protect the health and safety of employees, local communities and the public, specifying that regulations may not interfere with existing safety laws, allowing the CEC to cap the small refineries exemption at 75,000 barrels per day, and other technical, clarifying language.

“Rising gas prices impact everyone in California and nearly every facet of our lives – from how much we’re paying at the pump to the cost of what we’re buying at the store. Putting mechanisms in place to help prevent costs from spiking and sending family budgets into a tailspin benefits us all, and working together, we’ve been able to do just that,” said Senate President pro Tem Mike McGuire (D-North Coast). “Thank you to all of the Senators for the swift, hard work and focus this week, and to our Assembly partners and Governor Newsom for their partnership on this effort.”

“All members of the Senate share concerns about the effect rising gas prices have on California families and the ripple effects that may have on the costs of other goods. Protecting consumers has always been our top priority,” said Sen. Steven Bradford (D-Gardena), who chaired the Senate Special Committee on Fuel Supply and Price Spikes. “As policymakers, we must be diligent in our oversight of the regulatory agencies to ensure that this legislation is implemented in a manner that protects the safety of the workers and makes gasoline more affordable for families. There is still much work to be done.”

Experts have come out in support of this measure, including Stanford economists who praised the proposal for being “an economically sound policy that addresses an important problem in a well-targeted way” and the “additional supply would free up refinery capacity to serve Nevada and Arizona, also reducing prices in these markets.”

Supporters of the bill include mayors, local leaders, consumer organizations, environmental advocates, labor, business leaders and consumer groups.

Last month, the governor and supporters met and discussed how gasoline price spikes affect millions of Californians’ everyday lives, and shared why this plan will help California families.

Watch the Friday floor session and archived footage here.
Written by: LAKE COUNTY NEWS REPORTS

Clearlake Animal Control: ‘Grace’ and the dogs

“Grace.” Photo courtesy of Clearlake Animal Control.

CLEARLAKE, Calif. — Clearlake Animal Control has many great dogs waiting for homes this week.

The shelter has 38 adoptable dogs listed on its website.

This week’s dogs include “Grace,” a female Maremma sheepdog mix with a white coat.

The shelter is located at 6820 Old Highway 53. It’s open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.

For more information, call the shelter at 707-762-6227, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., visit Clearlake Animal Control on Facebook or on the city’s website.

This week’s adoptable dogs are featured below.

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.

Written by: Elizabeth Larson

US inflation rate fell to 2.4% in September − here’s what that means for interest rates and markets

 

All eyes on the CPI. Sila Damrongsaringkan/Getty Images Plus

It wasn’t that long ago that the Federal Reserve, the central bank for the United States, was worrying that annual inflation would surpass 9% in the middle of 2022. The U.S. economy hadn’t seen prices rise that fast since the 1980s, and most everyone feared that a series of interest rate hikes would plunge the economy into a recession.

What a difference two years can make.

Inflation cooled to 2.4% in September 2024, according to consumer price index data released by the Labor Department on Oct. 10. That’s down from 2.5% the previous month and in line with market expectations of 2.3% to 2.4%. The inflation rate peaked at 8.9% in June 2022 – a 41-year high.

The news brings the Fed – and its chair, Jerome Powell – much closer to reaching its 2% inflation target. It also marks the fourth straight month that year-over-year price changes have been below 3% and the third consecutive month of declining inflation rates.

Speaking as an economist and finance professor, I think this could be a big deal for the Federal Reserve, which next meets – and could again cut interest rates – in November.

Fodder for another rate cut?

The Fed has what’s called a dual mandate: It pursues both low inflation and stable employment, two goals that can sometimes be at odds. Cutting interest rates can help employment but worsen inflation, while hiking them can do the opposite.

Since inflation started to take off during the COVID-19 pandemic, Fed officials have emphasized that their job isn’t done until price increases are back down to the 2% target.

But in light of recent labor market news, Powell and his colleagues have changed their messaging a bit. This indicates that the upside risks of inflation are lower than the risks associated with a weakening labor market.

And in September, the Fed slashed the federal funds rate by 0.5 percentage point, or 50 basis points – the first cut since it began hiking rates in March 2022. The move came as unemployment had ticked up to 4.3% in July, job openings plummeted and broader labor markets weakened.

Increasingly optimistic markets

Equity markets rallied on the news of the September rate cut. Investors believe reductions in the federal funds rate, which is a prime rate that helps to dictate mortgage rates, auto loans, credit card rates and home equity lines of credit, will spur increases in investment and consumption, guiding the economy to a so-called soft landing instead of a recession.

After that meeting, most members of the Federal Reserve Board indicated they would also favor cutting rates by 25 basis points at each of their upcoming November and December meetings.

Between today’s inflation news and the unexpectedly sunny jobs report on Oct. 4, investors and markets have a lot of news to digest as they consider what path interest rates will take in the months ahead. Many continue to believe that we may well see two 25-basis-point cuts by the end of 2024 – and so do I.The Conversation

Jason Reed, Associate Teaching Professor of Finance, University of Notre Dame

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Written by: Jason Reed, University of Notre Dame
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