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Our 167th Year
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W E DN E SDAY, J U LY 12 , 2 023
California Wine Festival returns to Santa Barbara
California receives $67 million grant for electric grid resiliency By RIA ROEBUCK JOSEPH THE CENTER SQUARE CONTRIBUTOR
One of the many wine options at the 2022 California Wine Festival in Santa Barbara.
PHOTOS COURTESY CALIFORNIA WINE FESTIVAL
By LIAM HIBBERT
Less than half of watchdog’s pandemic recommendations addressed
NEWS-PRESS CORRESPONDENT
The California Wine Festival is set to return to Santa Barbara to showcase wines from around the region and introduce some new ideas to the event’s 20th anniversary. The two-day event planned for Friday and Saturday will take place at the Chase Palm Park House and, on the second day, along the beach at the Chase Palm Park Oceanside. Anybody aged 21 and older is invited before tickets are sold. “It’s going to be a great event, one not to be missed,” said California Wine Festival CoFounder Emily Kaufmann. “It’s a chance to go to one event and taste wine from as far north as Lake County, as far South as Temecula, and everywhere in between.” The Friday event, Sunset Rare & Reserve Tasting, is billed as a romantic evening of rare wine tasting with appetizers from top local chefs. The event runs from 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m., and tickets cost $120. The Saturday tasting at the beach is from 1 to 4 ppmp and costs $80. $125 VIP tickets access an expanded VIP area and items such as specialty wine. There are also $105 early access tickets which allow entrance at 12 p.m. Both days will feature live music, and the Beachside Wine Festival will showcase over 65 wineries from around the state. Please see WINE on A4
By BRETT ROWLAND THE CENTER SQUARE
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Most of those have yet to be addressed. Congress and federal agencies had fully or partially addressed 45% of the recommendations as of April 30, 2023. “GAO has played a critical role in providing oversight of the federal government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic,” Comptroller General of the United States Gene Dodaro said in a statement. “While Congress and the Administration have made progress addressing many of GAO’s recommendations, it’s essential that they continue to do so to help better prepare for, respond to, and recover from future emergencies.” Among the recommendations that have gone addressed is one that has been overdue for 16 years. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services failed to put in place a data system that it was, by statute, required to have in place by 2008. “HHS had made little progress on implementing a nationwide public health situational awareness capability through an interoperable network of systems to help ensure timely and Please see PANDEMIC on A4
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(The Center Square) – The investigative arm of Congress has made nearly 400 recommendations and brought 19 matters to the attention of Congress related to the government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, but less than half of those issues have been addressed. The Government Accountability Office, an independent and nonpartisan agency, released a report Tuesday that found many of its recommendations have not been addressed. The Government Accountability Office has regularly reported on the accountability and effectiveness of the federal government’s $4.7 trillion pandemic response since 2020. The CARES Act included a provision for the Government Accountability Office to report regularly on the federal response to the pandemic. In its pandemic-related work, the Government Accountability Office has made 386 recommendations to 26 federal agencies and raised 19 matters for congressional consideration.
Wine is tasted at the 2022 festival.
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California has been awarded $67 million to enhance the physical resilience of the state’s electric grid against extreme weather and natural disasters that impact its ability to provide affordable and reliable energy. The funding comes from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act signed into law by President Joe Biden in 2021. The Power On Act championed by Senator Alex Padilla which provided the template for the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, includes funding through the Grid Resilience State and Tribal Formula Grants. Grants can only be used to strengthen existing infrastructure, technologies, and equipment to address the current and projected impact of extreme weather, wildfires or any other natural disaster. They can be used for research, development, demonstration and commercial application activities to improve the resilience of the electric grid. “I’m proud that the critical funding secured in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, modeled off of my POWER ON Act, has brought home millions of dollars that will help California avoid shut-offs and keep the lights on,” said Sen. Padilla. A total of $2.3 billion will be available over the next five years through the grant program. Projects demonstrating the ability to provide clean, affordable and
reliable energy for the greatest community benefit will be prioritized. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act creates a new Grid Deployment Authority “to provide electricity to everyone, everywhere by maintaining and investing in critical generation facilities” and ensuring resilience to hydroelectric and nuclear facilities while developing highcapacity electric transmission lines nationwide. “As once-in-a-generation weather events test the resiliency of our grid, these life-saving investments will ensure families – especially ones in disadvantaged communities – are not left in the dark,” Sen. Padilla affirmed. While the grant does not support new construction it authorizes $100,000,000 annually for fiscal years 2022 through 2026. “Renewable energy has helped many parts of the country withstand a crippling heat dome, and the President’s Investing in America agenda will increase the amount of clean power sources available on the nation’s grid,” said U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm. “These grants will help modernize the electric grid to reduce impacts of extreme weather and natural disasters while enhancing power sector reliability.” California will use its funding , the highest of any endowed state this year, on selected projects that advance the state’s goal of achieving 100% clean energy that reduce fossil fuel reliance.
Sudoku................. B3 Weather................ A4
Saturday’s SUPER LOTTO: 1-25-44-45-46 Mega: 20
Tuesday’s DAILY 4: 2-1-2-3
Tuesday’s MEGA MILLIONS: 10-17-33-51-64 Mega: 5
Tuesday’s FANTASY 5: 10-15-19-22-26
Tuesday’s DAILY DERBY: 07-12-03 Time: 1:45.12
Tuesday’s POWERBALL: 7-23-24-32-43 Meganumber: 18
Tuesday’s DAILY 3: 9-5-7 / Midday 9-2-1