UCLA Chancellor to Capitol Hill

Hi Netter News Community,

A busy Wednesday morning. These are a few of the headlines for May 22:

✔ A new law aims to curb speeding with mandatory speed-limiting tech in new cars.

✔ UCLA Chancellor to face tough questioning on Capitol Hill over his handling of campus violence.

✔ Californians are leaving a lot of💵🤑 money behind at our airports, just how much might surprise you.

✔  Is ‘pink noise’ the key to a good night’s sleep?

Make it a good one!

Netter News Team

SPEED LIMIT LAW TO DRIVE UP PRICES?

California is considering a new law that would mandate technology to monitor driving speeds, raising concerns that this could also lead to higher car prices.

The Proposed Law

If approved, Senate Bill 961 would require technology to be installed in all new cars sold in California (by 2032) that would alert drivers when they are speeding more than 10 mph. Such technology is called Intelligent Speed Assistance (ISA)

What is ISA Technology

🚘ISA uses GPS to check the car's speed against the speed limits.

🚘If the car goes over the speed limit by at least 10 mph, the system will give a quick visual and audio alert to the driver.

🚘The technology is not new and it’s been used for years in Europe.

If you are curious, this is how it works in a KIA:

Bill Sponsors

The measure is sponsored by Democratic lawmaker Scott Wiener who said it’s needed to save lives. The measure faces an uphill battle, just like most of Wiener’s submissions to the Assembly. The San Francisco lawmaker last week failed in his second attempt to make psychedelics legal in California and also was defeated on his housing bill that would have eliminated environment reviews on projects in San Francisco.

Who’s Against it?

Many lawmakers voted against the measure, but perhaps the most vocal was State Senator Brian Dahle of Gold River. Dahle said he voted against it in part because sometimes people need to drive faster than the speed limits in emergencies but also because the state needs to let drivers monitor their speeds.

What’s Next

📌It faces an uphill battle, as the measure narrowly passed in Tuesday’s vote.

📌But if it does get signed into law, it would make California the first state in the country to require a speed-limiting device.

📌As for the cost to taxpayers, it could vary.

📌Adding intelligent speed assistance technology to new cars could increase the price of vehicles, but the exact amount would depend on the cost of the technology and how it is implemented by US manufacturers.  

POLITICS, ECONOMY, EDUCATION & SCIENCE

FONG WINS SPECIAL ELECTION

State Assemblyman Vince Fong will succeed former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy on Capitol Hill.

Fong won the special election against Tulare County Sheriff Mike Boudreaux Tuesday. Fong will face Boudreaux again in November when they compete for a full two-year term.

McCarthy endorsed Fong, a former staffer, as his successor for his Central Valley seat after he resigned from Congress in 2023.

CAMPUS VIOLENCE TESTIMONY

UCLA Chancellor Gene Block is expected to face tough questions on Capitol Hill this Thursday regarding the recent anti-Israel protests that escalated into violence and vandalism.

What We Know

• This will mark the first time that the head of a California university will go before the House Committee on Education and the Workforce. 

• Lawmakers are investigating how UCLA handled the protest and violence, the 200 arrests, and also the increase of antisemitism on campus.

• Last week, the committee chairwoman asked the US Department of Education to open a federal civil rights investigation into the incidents at UCLA.

• Block will be joined by the leaders of Rutgers and Northwestern universities.

A Reminder…

The same members of Congress have questioned university leaders in the past over their handling of antisemitism on campus, including the presidents of Harvard, University of Pennsylvania, and MIT. Only the president of MIT is still actively serving in her role.

FLYERS FORGOTTEN FUNDS

Every year the TSA gives Congress a detailed report on how much cash gets left behind at airport security. The latest TSA stats for 2023 reveal that travelers forgot almost $1 million in pocket change at checkpoints all over the U.S.

🛬Two of California’s biggest airports made the top 10 list of airports where people are leaving the most money:

 Who gets the Money?

The report said TSA makes sure that everything travelers leave behind, even coins, gets back to the rightful owner. But if no one claims the money, it goes to important aviation security programs.

PROOF OF PURCHASE

Retailers across California often park employees at store exits to check the receipts of customers as they leave. Have you ever wondered if you are legally required to comply?

Unless the store suspects you of theft, employees cannot force you to show your receipt.

Know the Law

The big retailers know they have the right to take reasonable measures to protect their property from theft. That is why places like Target and Walmart for years have employed “greeters” at entrances and exits to their stores.

Here in California, there is a law that helps protect against shoplifters. It’s known as the “Merchants Privilege” law:

The Big Box Exception

Now, Costco and Sam’s Club are on another level. Both retail giants say they stop you to make sure you are being charged correctly for the stuff you bought. And while refusing to show your receipt is not illegal, it would be a violation of both store’s policies and could result in your memberships being revoked. So tread lightly, cowboys.

HOT TAKES

🚨 PIXAR STUDIO LAYOFFS: The Emeryville-based animation studio laid off 14% of its workforce, roughly 175 employees. It’s an effort to cut costs and refocus on what Disney calls “quality over quantity”.

🚨 TARGET SLASHES PRICES: To get people shopping, Target says it’s cutting prices on 5,000 items that shoppers need and buy frequently, including meat, milk, pet food, paper towels, diapers, and more. Why President Biden said you can thank him for this?

🚨 GOP IVF ACCESS: Senators Ted Cruz and Katie Britt introduced a bill that aims to ensure IVF is available across the country by stopping states from getting Medicaid funding if they completely ban fertility treatments. A similar effort by Democrats failed earlier this year.

🚨 MATTHEW PERRY DEATH: The LAPD and DEA are investigating the death of the beloved Friends actor, specifically how Perry received the Ketaminen that was found in his system.

🚨 MORE BRAIN IMPLANTS: Elon Musk’s Neuralink (based in Fremont) is set to implant its brain chip in a second person after getting approval from the FDA. The man who received the first implant had some side effects but overall is doing okay.

🚨 PINK NOISE BENEFITS: You’ve heard of white noise, but could other types of noise help you better relax, concentrate and sleep? There’s growing research about the benefits of pink noise which sounds more like rain or the ocean.

GOLDEN STATE GLOW

• 🌴 Construction crews are busy building the world’s largest wildlife crossing over the 101 freeway in Southern California. In the past five weeks, they have installed 82 massive girders to support the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing near Agoura Hills.

• 🌴 Okay foodies, perhaps you’ve been waiting for this: a cult favorite sandwich shop with 650 locations worldwide has finally opened a standalone cafe in California. Pret a Manger, with its grab-and-go sandwiches, coffee, and baked goods opened in Westwood near UCLA about 10 days ago.

 🗓THIS DAY IN CALI-HISTORY

May 22: 

• 1909: San Francisco launched its first steam-powered fireboat named after David Scannell, the city’s first fire chief.

• This was a big deal because, during the 1906 quake, the city had no fireboats to fight the disastrous fires that spread through San Francisco.

• 1915: This is a good reminder that many Californians live near the ‘Ring of Fire’: This day in 1915, Lassen Peak, just east of Redding erupted creating a mushroom cloud that rained volcanic ash across the region.

• 1992: If you are old enough, you will remember this terrifying accident that injured 13 members of the California Angeles major league baseball team on May 22, 1992. The team’s tour bus crashed off the New Jersey Turn Pike while traveling from New York to Baltimore.