LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Pacific Gas and Electric reported Saturday afternoon that it has completed the process of restoring power to 738,000 customers in 34 counties who were impacted in a public safety power shutoff that began on Wednesday.

The company said it initiated the shutoff – believed to be the largest of its kind carried out by any utility in the state – in response to a wind event that brought with it increased fire risk.

In Lake County, the all clear was given on Thursday afternoon to begin system inspections in order to restore power to the more than 37,409 customer accounts that had been shut off.

Power began to come on across Lake County on Thursday night, with the restoration process continuing through Friday and into Saturday.

Sumeet Singh, PG&E’s vice president for asset and risk management and the Community Wildfire Safety Program, said at a press briefing that the company on Saturday had confirmed 50 instances of weather-related damage to its system in the shutoff-impacted areas, and were reviewing another 100 locations with potential damage.

As examples, he showed pictures of trees and branches that had fallen into overhead power lines in Glenn, Shasta and Napa counties.

A map presented at the briefing appeared to indicate four damage locations in Lake County, with a total of 13 overall in the North Bay.

Bill Johnson, PG&E’s president and CEO, emphasized that safety – and no other motivation – was behind the shutoff.

“These outages were intended solely – solely – to keep our communities safe from wildfire. And we achieved that purpose. We did not have catastrophic wildfire in our service area here in Northern and Central California like the ones going on in Southern California at the moment, despite the fact that winds that surpassed our safety threshold were blowing over vast, dry areas,” he said.

Johnson said vegetation coming into contact with energized distribution lines is the primary cause of fires involving electrical equipment.

“We will do better in communicating with all of our customers in future events,” Johnson said.

He thanked partners at various state and local agencies and the thousands of PG&E employees and contractors who had inspected 25,000 miles of line – a distance he pointed out is the same circumference as the Earth – and restored power to the impacted customers within 48 hours of the all clear.

Johnson acknowledged that the shutoff was not popular and that, as a result, PG&E has been the subject of intense scrutiny and criticism over the past week.

He addressed several misconceptions and story lines in the public, including PG&E turning off power to save its own skin or that its system was in shambles.

“What is true is the risk of wildfire has grown exponentially,” said Johnson, with more of PG&E’s system now in high fire threat areas.

He explained that in 2012, the state’s high fire threat area designation applied to 15 percent of PG&E’s system. This year, more than half of the system is in the high fire threat area.

“The fire risk geography has more than tripled in seven years,” he said, noting that more than 120 million trees across the state are dead, dying or diseased. “All of this has happened with unnerving speed.”

One of the ways PG&E can deal with the threat is turning off the power. “It’s the opposite of what we want to do,” said Johnson.

Johnson, who took over the leadership of PG&E earlier this year, admitted that PG&E has given people little reason in recent years to trust it because of events in which it didn’t keep people safe.

He said the company is trying to live up to its commitments and intends to earn back that trust.

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. – Preparations are under way for the Lake County Land Trust’s annual “Dinner with Direction: Geography of Hope.”

The dinner will be held on Saturday, Oct. 19, at The Lodge at Blue Lakes, from 4 to 8 p.m.

The event will feature a silent auction, live music, a fund-a-need paddle raise, and Dr. Tosha Comendant, conservation science manager for Pepperwood Preserve, as the evening’s keynote speaker.

“We’re very excited. We plan on this event really taking the Lake County Land Trust to the next level of land conservation and stewardship. It will be an inspiring night,” said Val Nixon, Lake County Land Trust Board president. “There are so many people in Lake County who are really committed to our environment and who understand what is at stake.”

Tickets, $85 each, can be purchased by visiting the Land Trust’s Web site or by calling 707-262-0707.

Dinner, a selection of Lake County wines and entertainment are included in the price. Guests wishing to stay the night can make arrangements at the Lodge at Blue Lakes, who will donate ten percent of the proceeds (with ten or more bookings) to the Lake County Land Trust.

Proceeds from the event will go toward the maintenance and stewardship of the Lake County Land Trust’s existing properties and acquisition of land parcels that are part of the Land Trust’s Conservation Priority Plan.

This plan identifies the areas that are most critical for the health of our watersheds, especially Clear Lake; as well as wildlife corridors, and historically or biologically unique lands.

The Lake County Land Trust owns and/or manages four properties, including Rabbit Hill in Middletown, the Rodman Preserve in Upper Lake, Boggs Lake in the Cobb/ Kelseyville area, and the Big Valley Wetlands/ Melo Property in South Lakeport along the shores of Clear Lake.

The trust, with lots of community support, also protected the Black Forest near Buckingham, and oversees three conservation easements.

The Lake County Land Trust would like to thank their sponsors for this event: Adventist Health Clear Lake, Community First Credit Union, Clear Lake Dental, The Law Office of Dennis Fordham, Katzoff & Riggs LLP, Jonas Energy Solutions, Foods Etc. of Clearlake, Friends of Jessica Pyska, Tje Koski, Joyce & Russell Porterfield, and Kathy & Brad Barnwell.

For more information, contact the Lake County Land Trust at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 707-262-0707.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Lake County Animal Care and Control has many new dogs this week, including a group of terriers.

Dogs available for adoption this week include mixes of boxer, Chihuahua, dachshund, German Shepherd, Labrador Retriever, terrier and wirehaired terrier.

Dogs that are adopted from Lake County Animal Care and Control are either neutered or spayed, microchipped and, if old enough, given a rabies shot and county license before being released to their new owner. License fees do not apply to residents of the cities of Lakeport or Clearlake.

If you're looking for a new companion, visit the shelter. There are many great pets hoping you'll choose them.

The following dogs at the Lake County Animal Care and Control shelter have been cleared for adoption (additional dogs on the animal control Web site not listed are still “on hold”).

Male Labrador Retriever

This male Labrador Retriever has a short yellow coat.

He is in kennel No. 19, ID No. 12930.

Female wirehaired terrier

This female wirehaired terrier has a long black and tan coat.

She is in kennel No. 21a, ID No. 13069.

Female dachshund

This female dachshund has a short brown and tan coat.

She is in kennel No. 21b, ID No. 13070.

‘Dante’

“Dante” is a male German Shepherd with a medium-length black and tan coat.

He’s in kennel No. 23, ID No. 12972.

Male terrier

This male terrier has a coarse brown and black coat.

He is in kennel No. 27, ID No. 13050.

Female boxer

This female boxer has a short white coat.

She is in kennel No. 29, ID No. 13048.

Male terrier

This male terrier has a short brown and tricolor coat.

He is in kennel No. 31, ID No. 13027.

Male Chihuahua

This male Chihuahua has a short brindle coat.

He is in kennel No. 33, ID No. 13018.

Lake County Animal Care and Control is located at 4949 Helbush in Lakeport, next to the Hill Road Correctional Facility.

Office hours are Monday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., and 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday. The shelter is open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday and on Saturday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Visit the shelter online at http://www.co.lake.ca.us/Government/Directory/Animal_Care_And_Control.htm.

For more information call Lake County Animal Care and Control at 707-263-0278.

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.

Gov. Gavin Newsom on Saturday signed into law a package of bills to fight animal cruelty and promote animal welfare.

They include first-in-the-nation legislation to ban the sale of new fur products, groundbreaking legislation that bans animals like elephants and bears from being used in circus acts and legislation prohibiting hunting or killing bobcats in California.

AB 44 by Assemblymember Laura Friedman (D-Glendale) implements a statewide prohibition on the sale and manufacture of new fur products in California.

“California is a leader when it comes to animal welfare and today that leadership includes banning the sale of fur,” said Gov. Newsom. “But we are doing more than that. We are making a statement to the world that beautiful wild animals like bears and tigers have no place on trapeze wires or jumping through flames. Just YouTube the videos showing the cruel way these animals – often stripped from their mothers as babies – are trained to do dangerous tricks. It’s deeply disturbing.”

AB 44 would make it unlawful to manufacture, sell, offer for sale, display for sale, trade, give donate or otherwise distribute a fur product in the state. The prohibition would apply to clothing, handbags, shoes, slippers, hats, or key chains that contain fur and provides for a civil penalty for each violation.

The new law exempts leather, cowhide and shearling, as well as fur products used for religious purposes.

The law also has provisions that exempt taxidermy products, fur from an animal lawfully taken with a hunting license, and used fur.

The governor also signed the following legislation into law:

SB 313 by Senator Ben Hueso (D-San Diego) bans the use of bears, tigers, elephants, monkeys and other wild animals in circuses.

AB 1254 by Assemblymember Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D-Los Angeles) prohibits hunting, trapping or killing bobcats in California until 2025 at which point the state can issue limited licenses and implement a bobcat management plan that protects the species.

AB 128 by Assemblymember Todd Gloria (D-San Diego) protects California’s wild and domestic horses from slaughter. AB 128 requires the operator of an animal auction yard to determine and post online any identifying brand, tattoo, or implanted microchip an animal may have before being sold at auction. The operator is also required to maintain records of sales for one year and make such records available to specified officials and to post notice at an auction that the sale of horses in California for slaughter for human consumption is a felony. The bill also requires a purchaser of an animal at auction to sign a sworn statement, under penalty of perjury, agreeing to comply with provisions of the Penal Code relating to the slaughter and sale of horses or horse meat for human consumption.

AB 1260 by Assemblymember Brian Maienschein (D-San Diego) adds more types of animals – iguana, skink, caiman, hippopotamus, and three types of lizards – to the import and trade prohibition of dead animals and dead animal parts.

If you could travel back in time 3.5 billion years, what would Mars look like?

The picture is evolving among scientists working with NASA's Curiosity rover.

Imagine ponds dotting the floor of Gale Crater, the 100-mile-wide (150-kilometer-wide) ancient basin that Curiosity is exploring. Streams might have laced the crater's walls, running toward its base.

Watch history in fast forward, and you'd see these waterways overflow then dry up, a cycle that probably repeated itself numerous times over millions of years.

That is the landscape described by Curiosity scientists in a Nature Geoscience paper published today. The authors interpret rocks enriched in mineral salts discovered by the rover as evidence of shallow briny ponds that went through episodes of overflow and drying.

The deposits serve as a watermark created by climate fluctuations as the Martian environment transitioned from a wetter one to the freezing desert it is today.

Scientists would like to understand how long this transition took and when exactly it occurred. This latest clue may be a sign of findings to come as Curiosity heads toward a region called the "sulfate-bearing unit," which is expected to have formed in an even drier environment. It represents a stark difference from lower down the mountain, where Curiosity discovered evidence of persistent freshwater lakes.

Gale Crater is the ancient remnant of a massive impact. Sediment carried by water and wind eventually filled in the crater floor, layer by layer.

After the sediment hardened, wind carved the layered rock into the towering Mount Sharp, which Curiosity is climbing today.

Now exposed on the mountain's slopes, each layer reveals a different era of Martian history and holds clues about the prevailing environment at the time.

"We went to Gale Crater because it preserves this unique record of a changing Mars," said lead author William Rapin of Caltech. "Understanding when and how the planet's climate started evolving is a piece of another puzzle: When and how long was Mars capable of supporting microbial life at the surface?"

He and his co-authors describe salts found across a 500-foot-tall (150-meter-tall) section of sedimentary rocks called "Sutton Island," which Curiosity visited in 2017. Based on a series of mud cracks at a location named "Old Soaker," the team already knew the area had intermittent drier periods. But the Sutton Island salts suggest the water also concentrated into brine.

Typically, when a lake dries up entirely, it leaves piles of pure salt crystals behind. But the Sutton Island salts are different: For one thing, they're mineral salts, not table salt. They're also mixed with sediment, suggesting they crystallized in a wet environment — possibly just beneath evaporating shallow ponds filled with briny water.

Given that Earth and Mars were similar in their early days, Rapin speculated that Sutton Island might have resembled saline lakes on South America's Altiplano. Streams and rivers flowing from mountain ranges into this arid, high-altitude plateau lead to closed basins similar to Mars' ancient Gale Crater. Lakes on the Altiplano are heavily influenced by climate in the same way as Gale.

"During drier periods, the Altiplano lakes become shallower, and some can dry out completely," Rapin said. "The fact that they're vegetation-free even makes them look a little like Mars."

Signs of a drying Mars

Sutton Island's salt-enriched rocks are just one clue among several the rover team is using to piece together how the Martian climate changed. Looking across the entirety of Curiosity's journey, which began in 2012, the science team sees a cycle of wet to dry across long timescales on Mars.

"As we climb Mount Sharp, we see an overall trend from a wet landscape to a drier one," said Curiosity Project Scientist Ashwin Vasavada of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. JPL leads the Mars Science Laboratory mission that Curiosity is a part of. "But that trend didn't necessarily occur in a linear fashion. More likely, it was messy, including drier periods, like what we're seeing at Sutton Island, followed by wetter periods, like what we're seeing in the 'clay-bearing unit' that Curiosity is exploring today."Up until now, the rover has encountered lots of flat sediment layers that had been gently deposited at the bottom of a lake. Team member Chris

Fedo, who specializes in the study of sedimentary layers at the University of Tennessee, noted that Curiosity is currently running across large rock structures that could have formed only in a higher-energy environment such as a windswept area or flowing streams.

Wind or flowing water piles sediment into layers that gradually incline. When they harden into rock, they become large structures similar to "Teal Ridge," which Curiosity investigated this past summer.

"Finding inclined layers represents a major change, where the landscape isn't completely underwater anymore," said Fedo. "We may have left the era of deep lakes behind."

Curiosity has already spied more inclined layers in the distant sulfate-bearing unit. The science team plans to drive there in the next couple years and investigate its many rock structures.

If they formed in drier conditions that persisted for a long period, that might mean that the clay-bearing unit represents an in-between stage — a gateway to a different era in Gale Crater's watery history.

"We can't say whether we're seeing wind or river deposits yet in the clay-bearing unit, but we're comfortable saying is it's definitely not the same thing as what came before or what lies ahead," Fedo said.

For more about NASA's Curiosity Mars rover mission, visit https://mars.nasa.gov/msl/ and https://nasa.gov/msl .

KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – A group of community volunteers have formed a nonprofit dedicated to fundraising for Kelseyville’s tennis courts and promoting tennis for players of all ages.

The Lake County Tennis Association was officially formed in May.

Its purpose is to provide a vehicle to conduct fundraising efforts designed to target maintenance and improvement costs, to carry out funding for future replacement of the old Gard Street courts with new ones, and to promote ongoing tennis opportunities among the young and old for the entire county.

The Gard Street tennis courts, located in Kelseyville at the corner of Second and Gard streets, have provided the community and high school students with a tennis sanctuary for generations.

The six tennis courts are located on the Kelseyville Unified School District property, providing a facility for the Kelseyville High School tennis team and tennis enjoyment to the general public.

Generations of community tennis players have enjoyed the use of the courts over the years and many have devoted their time, effort and money to keeping the courts maintained and usable as a viable tennis facility for all.

Kelseyville Unified Superintendent Dave McQueen recalls playing on these courts while attending high school.

The association said the mortality of these facilities is all too real when faced with the costs of maintaining and/or replacing tennis courts in small and rural communities. These tennis courts are the only viable courts remaining in the entire Lake County which are presently serving the students and community.

Three of the six courts have struggled with disrepair over the years due to ground movement and playing surface wear which have resulted in a constant battle against the effects of weather extremes in our area.

Two of the six courts are practice courts on the badly cracked original asphalt play surface which existed for the old Gard Street grammar school.

The sixth court was removed and remains as a weed patch serving as a reminder of the fate looming for the rest of the courts if people were to just stop caring.

This is why a handful of concerned community volunteers formed the Lake County Tennis Association.

The association will conduct fundraising efforts at local, state and national levels, including the US Tennis Association, for future maintenance monies and possible replacement of six new courts for the facility.

The group’s future dream features six brand new courts on site for all to enjoy tennis.

Completed repairs on three courts

An exhaustive, two-week repair process was completed on Sept. 27. It consisted of the complete removal, repair and replacement of the playing surface on the three courts facing Gard Street.

This project required more than 600 work hours by 25 volunteers from the local tennis community. It was carefully planned and executed by the association members, resulting in approximately $5,500 of material cost which was paid for by Kelseyville Unified.

The new court surfacing was installed over a heavy coating of a special bonding agent which will provide increased protection against future blistering caused by moisture and poor adhesion.

Association welcomes members

The Lake County Tennis Association is offering voluntary, annual memberships for $50 per individual or $100 per family. Students are free and so are families with a student participating on a tennis team.

All contributions can be provided with nonprofit, tax-exempt information. Support from a caring community will make a difference in the quest of the Lake County Tennis Association.

On Saturday, Oct. 12, at 4 p.m. at the Clear Lake Riviera Community Hall, 9689 Highway 281, Kelseyville, a meet and greet will be hosted by the Association for all members and future members who wish to attend.

Special thanks are extended to the following founding Lake County Tennis Association Board Members for their participation: Mike Shay, Richard Hernaez, Di Roger, Kim Shay, Iris Angeleri, Andy Dobusch, Ellen Karnowski, Jane McKnight and Connie Wright.

Memberships by community members will greatly assist the goals of the tennis association and can be obtained by contacting Mike Shay at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or by phone at 310-486-8427.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – As power restoration continued on Friday following what is believed to be the biggest electrical shutoff of its kind, more waves of residents around Lake County reported getting power service back.

As of the latest information released Friday night, Pacific Gas and Electric said it had restored power to 97 percent of the customers impacted by the public safety power shutoff which began early Wednesday.

Systemwide, 738,000 customers – a number relating to accounts – were affected from the Northern Sierra to the Greater Bay Area to Kern County, PG&E said.

In Lake County, 37,403 customers were included in the shutoff. By Friday night, 98 percent of Lake County’s residents had power restored, according to PG&E spokesperson Fiona Chan.

In Lucerne, where power began to come back late Thursday night, Lucerne Elementary School went on with classes on Friday, although Superintendent Mike Brown reported the bus was running about an hour late.

In the Lakeport, Konocti, Middletown and Upper Lake school districts, school remained closed on Friday due to the continuing outage, with classes in those district set to resume next week.

On Friday morning, residents of areas including Hidden Valley and Lakeport reported their power came back on, with Kelseyville said to be restored Friday night.

PG&E said it initiated the shutoff on Wednesday due to dry, windy weather across its service area, which also had led the National Weather Service to issue a red flag warning for Lake County and much of the rest of Northern California. That warning expired on Friday morning.

Wind gusts in excess of 70 miles per hour were recorded Wednesday evening and into Thursday, PG&E said.

The company’s system for tracking weather includes more than 600 weather stations, 200 of which have been added this year.

Chan said there are 12 weather stations and one high definition wildfire camera installed in Lake County.

Before reenergizing the impacted communities, PG&E deployed 6,300 on-the-ground field personnel and 44 staged helicopters to conduct safety patrols and inspections, which the company said can only take place during daylight hours. Those inspections will continue at daybreak on Saturday.

PG&E officials said those inspections have identified 30 instances of weather-related damage to its system in the shutoff-impacted areas, and the company is working to address these repairs.

Examples of damage included downed lines and vegetation on power lines, which PG&E President and CEO Bill Johnson said during a Friday evening press briefing could have led to fires.

Chan said that in Lake County there were two reports of damage to equipment from the wind event.

There were 25,000 miles of electrical lines that were deenergized across PG&E’s service area as part of the shutoff and which required inspection before restoring power, the company said.

Chan said in Lake County, electrical system line miles total 715.1 for distribution and 201 for transmission. She could not say late Friday how much of the county’s lines had been inspected.

The company said it will be submitting a report detailing the damages to the system to the California Public Utilities Commission within 10 days of the completion of the shutoff.

PG&E has operated more than 30 community resource centers throughout the shutoff areas, including one at the Clearlake Senior/Community Center, 3245 Bowers Ave. in Clearlake. The centers provide water, phone charging stations, air-conditioned seating and restrooms for customers.

Centers in communities where power hasn’t yet been fully restored – including Lake County – will be open again from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, PG&E reported.

Company continues to face criticism over shutoffs

PG&E executives this week have continued to defend and explain the need for cutting power to much of the region in the face of mounting criticism from residents and state leaders.

This week, Gov. Gavin Newsom promised to hold PG&E accountable and said the shutoff had been carried out too broadly and created an “unacceptable” situation.

On Friday, Assemblymember Marc Levine (D-Marin County) joined the chorus of critics, calling the shutoff “irresponsible and incompetent.”

“For decades, PG&E has lined the pockets of their investors with billions while abandoning their legal obligation to deliver energy safely to homes and businesses throughout the state. PG&E’s latest stunt by cutting power to over two million Californians put vulnerable populations at risk, kept over 130,000 students from attending school and failed to address PG&E’s continued neglect of their electrical infrastructure,” Levine said.

Levine even went so far as to suggest that “something more sinister” is on PGE’s agenda. “For years PG&E has unsuccessfully sought legislation to eliminate ‘inverse condemnation,’ or in common terms, the requirement that PG&E be financially liable for wildfire damage caused by their equipment.”

As for the possibility of impacted customers receiving some manner of compensation for losses incurred during the shutoff, during a Friday evening press briefing, Johnson said it’s the policy of all utilities in the state that when there is a weather event, they are not liable for the costs.

With California having experienced winds, drought and wildland fires in the past, Johnson was asked why measures such as the shutoff weren’t taken earlier.

Johnson said the risk has increased dramatically over the past few years. “Were we fully prepared to meet this risk? No, we weren’t,” he said.

He added, “The risk is increasing every year. And this is a climate-related risk.”

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.

KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – The Lake County Literacy Coalition announced that the 30th Vineyard Run for Literacy will go on as scheduled on Sunday, Oct. 13, at Steele Wines.

The walk (5K) and runs (5K or 10K) start promptly at 9 a.m.

Online registration has closed, but participants can register on-site between 7:45 and 8:30 a.m.

Registration fees are $15 for youth (ages 7-18) and $35 per adult (age 19 and over). There is no fee for children through age 6.

“We are thrilled that Steele Wines decided to proceed with the Harvest Festival, and grateful they encouraged us to do the same,” said Coalition President Deb Ehrhardt. “After the power outages of the last few days, we hope our event will be a breath of fresh air. The weather will be cool in the morning, so dress in layers.”

For additional information about the nonprofit cCoalition and the Vineyard Run for Literacy, visit the coalition’s Web site at http://lclcoalition.wixsite.com/lclc or call 707-263-7633.

Steele Wines is located on Thomas Drive at Highway 29.

Gov. Gavin Newsom on Friday signed a package of 15 bills aimed at strengthening gun violence protections.

The bills are meant to strengthen gun violence restraining orders, regulate ghost guns to mitigate the use of untraceable firearms by criminals, and will prohibit the sale of firearms and ammunitions at the Del Mar Fairgrounds in the county of San Diego, the city of Del Mar and the city of San Diego starting next year.

“Gun violence is an epidemic in this country, one that’s been inflamed by the inaction of politicians in Washington,” said Gov. Newsom. “While Washington has refused to act on even the most basic gun safety reforms, California is once again leading the nation in passing meaningful gun safety reforms.”

“California continues to be a leader in fighting the threat of gun violence,” said former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, co-founder of Giffords: Courage to Fight Gun Violence. “The legislative package Gov. Newsom signed today will help make California safer for all who call it home, and it shows the nation what committed, active, and thoughtful leadership on gun safety looks like.”

Giffords said she is proud to have played a strong role in helping craft this package and to have partnered with Gov. Newsom, the legislature's gun violence working group and other leaders.

The bills signed Friday by Gov. Newsom include the following.

Strengthening gun violence restraining orders

AB 12 by Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin (D-Thousand Oaks) extends the duration of a gun violence restraining order (GVRO) to a maximum of five years.

AB 61 by Assemblymember Philip Ting (D-San Francisco) allows an employer, coworker, or an employee or teacher to file a petition requesting a gun violence restraining order.

AB 164 by Assemblymember Sabrina Cervantes (D-Riverside) holds any person subject to a valid restraining order, injunction, or protective order issued out of state to the same restrictions on buying or possessing firearms in California as they are under in the state where the order or injunction is operative.

AB 339 by Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin (D-Thousand Oaks) requires law enforcement agencies to develop and adopt written policies and standards regarding the use of gun violence restraining orders.

AB 1493 by Assemblymember Philip Ting (D-San Francisco) authorizes a person who is the subject of a gun violence restraining order to petition to submit a form to the court voluntarily relinquishing their firearm rights.

Regulating firearms sales

SB 61 by Senator Anthony Portantino (D-La Cañada Flintridge) prohibits the sale of a semiautomatic centerfire rifle to any person under 21 years of age, and applications to purchase more than one semiautomatic centerfire rifle in any 30-day period, with a few exceptions.

SB 376 by Senator Anthony Portantino (D-La Cañada Flintridge) prevents individuals from selling large numbers of firearms without a license by capping the number of annual sales at five transactions or 50 firearms.

AB 645 by Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin (D-Thousand Oaks) requires packaging for firearms to contain a warning statement on suicide prevention.

AB 879 by Assemblymember Mike Gipson (D-Carson) requires, starting in 2024, that the sale of firearms precursor parts be conducted through a licensed firearms precursor part vendor.

AB 1669 by Assemblymember Rob Bonta (D-Alameda) updates existing law by applying the same gun show regulations that already apply to firearms dealers to ammunition vendors, and ensures that sufficient funding is available for firearm regulatory efforts.

AB 1297 by Assemblymember Kevin McCarty (D-Sacramento) requires any local authority issuing concealed firearm licenses to charge an applicant a fee sufficient to cover the reasonable costs of processing, issuing and enforcement of the license, and eliminates the existing $100 limit on processing fees for concealed firearm licenses.

AB 893 by Assemblymember Todd Gloria (D-San Diego) prohibits the sale of firearms and ammunitions at the Del Mar Fairgrounds in the County of San Diego, the City of Del Mar, the City of San Diego.

Additional legislation

AB 1548 by Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel (D-Encino) codifies the California State Nonprofit Security Grant Program to improve the physical security of nonprofit organizations that are at high risk of violent attacks or hate crimes due to ideology, beliefs, or mission.

AB 1603 by Assemblymember Buffy Wicks (D-Oakland) codifies the California Violence Intervention and Prevention Grant Program to help reduce violence in communities that are disproportionately impacted by violence.

AB 521 by Assemblymember Marc Berman (D-Palo Alto) requires, with the adoption of a resolution by the University of California, the UC Firearm Violence Research Center at the University of California, Davis to develop multifaceted education and training programs for medical and mental health providers on the prevention of firearm-related injury and death.

In the 2019-20 state budget, Governor Gavin Newsom and the Legislature made significant investments in gun violence prevention, security for hate-crime targets, and gun safety measures.

The budget triples funding for the California Violence Intervention and Prevention Program, which funds support services such as community education, diversion programs, outreach to at-risk transitional age youth and violence reduction models.

The budget also secures long-term funding for the Firearm Violence Research Center at the University of California, Davis to circumvent NRA-backed federal limits on research.

Previously, the governor signed AB 1292 by Assemblymember Rebecca Bauer-Kahan (D-Orinda) which specifies circumstances following the death of a firearm owner, and circumstances in which a person takes a gun from someone committing a crime against them, which allow a firearm to be transferred from one person to another by operation of law without the need to go through a firearms dealer.

In total, the governor signed the following gun-related bills:

AB 12 by Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin (D-Thousand Oaks) – Firearms: gun violence restraining orders.

AB 61 by Assemblymember Philip Ting (D-San Francisco) – Gun violence restraining orders.

AB 164 by Assemblymember Sabrina Cervantes (D-Riverside) – Firearms: prohibited persons.

AB 339 by Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin (D-Thousand Oaks) – Gun violence restraining orders: law enforcement procedures.

AB 521 by Assemblymember Marc Berman (D-Palo Alto) – Physicians and surgeons: firearms: training.

AB 645 by Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin (D-Thousand Oaks) – Firearms: warning statements.

AB 879 by Assemblymember Mike Gipson (D-Carson) – Firearms.

AB 893 by Assemblymember Todd Gloria (D-San Diego) – 22nd District Agricultural Association: firearm and ammunition sales at the Del Mar Fairgrounds.

AB 1297 by Assemblymember Kevin McCarty (D-Sacramento) – Firearms: concealed carry license.

AB 1493 by Assemblymember Philip Ting (D-San Francisco) – Gun violence restraining order: petition.

AB 1548 by Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel (D-Encino) – California State Nonprofit Security Grant Program.

AB 1603 by Assemblymember Buffy Wicks (D-Oakland) – California Violence Intervention and Prevention Grant Program.

AB 1669 by Assemblymember Rob Bonta (D-Alameda) – Firearms: gun shows and events.

SB 61 by Senator Anthony Portantino (D-La Cañada Flintridge) – Firearms: transfers.

SB 376 by Senator Anthony Portantino (D-La Cañada Flintridge) – Firearms: transfers.

The Legislature also passed the following resolution, not requiring the governor’s signature:

AJR 4 by Assemblymember Cecilia Aguiar-Curry (D-Winters) – Firearms.

After successfully launching Thursday night, NASA’s Ionospheric Connection Explorer spacecraft is in orbit for a first-of-its-kind mission to study a region of space where changes can disrupt communications and satellite orbits, and even increase radiation risks to astronauts.

A Northrop Grumman Stargazer L-1011 aircraft took off at 8:31 p.m. EDT from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida carrying the Ionospheric Connection Explorer, or ICON, on a Northrop Grumman Pegasus XL rocket, to launch altitude of about 39,000 feet.

The first launch opportunity at around 9:30 p.m. was skipped due to communication issues between the ground team at Cape Canaveral and the aircraft.

On the second attempt, the aircraft crew released its payload at 9:59 p.m. EDT and automated systems on the Pegasus rocket launched ICON, a spacecraft roughly the size of a refrigerator, into space.

The spacecraft’s solar panels successfully deployed, indicating it has power with all systems operating. After an approximately month-long commissioning period, ICON will begin sending back its first science data in November.

ICON will study changes in a region of the upper atmosphere called the ionosphere. In addition to interfering with communications signals, space weather in the ionosphere can also prematurely decay spacecraft orbits and expose astronauts to radiation-borne health risks.

Historically, this critical region of near-Earth space has been difficult to observe. Spacecraft can’t travel through the low parts of the ionosphere and balloons can’t travel high enough.

“ICON has an important job to do – to help us understand the dynamic space environment near our home,” said Nicola Fox, director for heliophysics at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “ICON will be the first mission to simultaneously track what’s happening in Earth’s upper atmosphere and in space to see how the two interact, causing the kind of changes that can disrupt our communications systems.”

ICON explores the connections between the neutral atmosphere and the electrically charged ionosphere with four instruments. Three of the instruments rely on one of the upper atmosphere’s more spectacular phenomena: colorful bands called airglow.

Airglow is created by a similar process that creates the aurora – gas is excited by radiation from the Sun and emits light. Though aurora are typically confined to extreme northern and southern latitudes, airglow happens constantly across the globe, and is much fainter.

But it’s still bright enough for ICON’s instruments to build up a picture of the ionosphere’s density, composition and structure. By way of airglow, ICON can observe how particles throughout the upper atmosphere are moving.

ICON’s fourth instrument provides direct measurements of the ionosphere around it. This instrument characterizes the charged gases immediately surrounding the spacecraft.

“We put as much capability on this satellite that could possibly fit on the payload deck,” said Thomas Immel, the principal investigator for ICON at the University of California, Berkeley. “All those instruments are focused on the ionosphere in a completely new science mission that starts now.”

ICON’s orbit around Earth places it at a 27-degree inclination and altitude of about 360 miles. From there, it can observe the ionosphere around the equator. ICON will aim its instruments for a view of what's happening at the lowest boundary of space, from about 55 miles up to 360 miles above the surface. This rapid orbit circles Earth in 97 minutes while precessing around the equator, allowing ICON to sample a wide range of latitude, longitude and local times.

ICON is an Explorer-class mission. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, manages the Explorer Program for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington.

The University of California at Berkeley developed the ICON mission and the two ultraviolet imaging spectrographs, Extreme Ultra-Violet instrument and the Far Ultra-Violet instrument.

The Naval Research Laboratory in Washington developed the Michelson Interferometer for Global High-resolution Thermospheric Imaging instrument.

The University of Texas in Dallas developed the Ion Velocity Meter. The spacecraft was built by Northrop Grumman in Dulles, Virginia. The Mission Operations Center at UC Berkeley’s Space Sciences Laboratory is tasked with operating the ICON mission.

For more information on ICON, visit https://www.nasa.gov/icon.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Pacific Gas and Electric began restoring power to Lake County late Thursday, nearly 48 hours after it cut power to the area as part of a massive public safety power shutoff in response to high winds and fire danger.

Approximately 37,403 Lake County customers were included in the shutoff, which began early Wednesday and was rolled out over dozens of counties and ultimately impacted 738,000 customer accounts, according to PG&E’s revised numbers.

The utility gave the “all clear” and began system inspections in Lake County to look for possible wind damage at 3 p.m. Thursday.

Company officials said there are 44 helicopters and 6,300 PG&E staff and contractors assigned to carry out inspections of the 25,000 miles of line that were deenergized across PG&E’s service area.

Early on Thursday evening, a helicopter was flying low over lines between Kit’s Corner and Lower Lake in what appeared to be a line inspection.

Safety patrols and inspections, which can only take place during daylight hours, concluded at nightfall. PG&E said customers will be restored once safety patrols, inspections and necessary repairs are complete.

PG&E said Thursday night that it had identified 11 instances of weather-related damage to its system in the shutoff-impacted areas.

Sumeet Singh, PG&E’s vice president for asset and risk management and the Community Wildfire Safety Program, said 77-mile-per-hour winds were tracked on Mount St. Helena, with wind speeds of 53 miles per hour reported in Placer County, 56 miles per hour in Butte County and 54 miles per hour in Santa Cruz County.

Late Thursday, PG&E said that more than half of customers impacted by the public safety power shutoff have had their power restored. About 426,000 out of a total 738,000 customers have been restored, including full restoration in Humboldt, Siskiyou and Trinity counties. At that point, about 312,000 customers remained without power.

Areas where all-clear has not yet been declared include portions of Butte, Plumas and Yuba counties as well as Kern County, where a third shutoff phase was implemented late Thursday morning impacting approximately 4,000 customers. PG&E said the weather conditions in Kern County are expected to continue into early Friday.

Residents in parts of Lake County reported that their power began to come on shortly after 10 p.m. Thursday.

Three percent of Lake County’s impacted customers had power restored as of 11:15 p.m. Thursday, PG&E said.

Clearlake and Lakeport officials said they were told by PG&E that 98 percent of power is expected to be restored to Lake County be 11 p.m. Friday.

Twenty-seven PG&E community resource centers remain open throughout the service area to provide water, phone charging stations, air-conditioned seating and restrooms for customers. More than 3,300 customers utilized the centers on Thursday.

The Clearlake Senior Center, 3245 Bowers Ave., is where Lake County’s community resource center is located. It’s open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Clearlake City Manager Alan Flora told the Clearlake City Council at its Thursday night meeting that the center had been busy.

Flora also reported that the Lake County Office of Emergency Service listed the Lake County Jail and Sutter Lakeside Hospital as priority facilities and asked PG&E to restore power to them first.

He lauded city employees who kept facilities working, with police conducting extra patrols. In addition, city staff, including Police Chief Andrew White, rigged some equipment to ensure that the wifi in Austin Park continued to work and was available to community members.

The Lakeport Police Department, like the Clearlake Police Department, also has put emphasis on increased patrols during the shutoff to protect the community, and both city halls have remained open and on generator power during the shutoff, with Lakeport also continuing to operate its water and sewer services.

The county of Lake, which purchased more generators earlier this year in response to the shutoff threat, kept facilities including the Lake County Courthouse open and operating, which in turn allowed the Lake County Superior Court to continue to operate this week.

Schools plan to reopen

In Lake County, the outage led to school closures beginning on Wednesday morning.

On Thursday night, the different districts were attempting to update parents through social media posts to let them know of the latest plans for resuming classes.

Lakeport Unified said that if power service was restored by 6 a.m. Friday, schools would reopen.

Likewise, Lucerne Elementary School reported at about midnight that classes would reopen on Friday. “We’ve missed you and are happy to have you back to school!” the school posted on its Facebook page.

However, Konocti Unified, Middletown Unified and Upper Lake Unified reported that they would be closed on Friday.

Kelseyville Unified did not post a status late Thursday.

Governor criticizes shutoff action; PG&E says shutoffs may be needed in future

In a Thursday afternoon briefing, Gov. Gavin Newsom said the shutoffs needed to be done in a more surgical way, and that this week’s event was done with broad strokes, impacting areas that didn’t have extreme weather.

He called the situation “unacceptable,” and promised to drive reforms and hold PG&E accountable.

Later on Thursday, PG&E President and CEO Bill Johnson acknowledged problems with how the company handled the public safety power shutoff, which he said is believed to be the largest event of its kind.

Johnson said they may need to do such shutoffs again but they will do them better next time.

He said the company commits to communicating with customers and communities with as much notice as possible, with as much clarity as possible and as frequently as possible.

“We did not deliver on that commitment this time,” Johnson said, referring to the Web site being overwhelmed by traffic, inconsistent maps and an overloaded call center.

“We were not adequately prepared to support the operational event,” Johnson said, adding, “This will improve.”

Johnson also said such shutoffs are “the best we can do today.”

PG&E also reported on Thursday that during the shutoff period, customers in impacted areas will not be billed. The company has paused disconnection and collection activities in those areas.

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 city of Lakeport and Lakeport Disposal Co. announced that the Community Cleanup Day for city of Lakeport residents will take place Saturday, Oct. 19.

The event will take place from 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. in the public parking lot north of the Fifth Street boat ramp in downtown Lakeport.

This event is limited to city of Lakeport residents and those dropping off trash and waste will be required to provide photo identification and copy of a Lakeport utility bill.

Household trash, televisions, specified appliances, electronic waste, mattresses, household furniture, unusable clothes/blankets/towels and similar materials will be accepted.

Refrigerators, hot tubs/spas, construction debris and household hazardous waste will not be accepted.

For more details please see the city’s Web site, its Facebook page or contact Lakeport Disposal at 707-263-6080.