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Good morning! It’s Monday, June 8. This is Rob.
Sunny: Cooler today, with highs in the upper 80s, but the real heat is scheduled to check in later this week, with temperatures topping triple digits. NOAA
Happy Pride! Fresno celebrated unity and community over the weekend with the annual Rainbow Pride parade through the Tower District. ABC30
Oh, gee: An historic symbol returns to the Fresno skyline. KMPH
Listen up: Following KVPR’s recent interview with Mayor Jerry Dyer advocating for a massive sprawl development known as SEDA, the Central Valley Daily podcast sits down with opponents of the project to hear their side of the story. KVPR
1. Crunch time
The City of Fresno kicks off weeklong budget hearings Monday as the council begins reconciling Mayor Jerry Dyer’s latest balanced-budget proposal.
Budget talks get underway this morning with presentations on the city’s general fund as well as breakdowns of spending plans for the several top departments, including PARCs, and the city’s general and informational services departments.
Dyer’s initial draft budget was presented with relatively little discussion in early May. It would close a projected $35 million deficit, avoid layoffs and require departments to cut expenses by 5% across the board.
The mayor’s budget included funding for key programs like Advance Peace, but it’s unclear whether the available funding would be enough to keep the program on mission.
2. Bridging the political divide?
California will require all high schools to offer a personal finance course starting in 2027, and all students must take the class beginning with the class of 2031. As EdSource reports, Fresno Unified schools have emerged as early adopters, with one Fresno teacher helping guide the statewide rollout.
With the changes looming, most Fresno Unified high schools offer personal finance as a yearlong course.
The lessons include retirement plans, savings, investments and credit scores.
Students also learned how to build and maintain strong credit, including by making payments on time.
“(The class) teaches you to manage money correctly,” said 16-year-old Autumn Walker.
3. It’s a problem
The City of Huron is struggling with a stray dog problem, YourCentralValley reports, but the community of about 6,000 residents is far from alone.
Assemblymember Esmeralda Soria has proposed the Spay and Neuter Improvements for Pets Act, which attempts lower restrictions on high-volume clinics, but does not provide any new funding for the program.
Currently, high-volume spay and neuter providers must often comply with facility requirements designed for permanent veterinary clinics.
Today’s newsletter was edited by Fresnoland’s Omar S. Rashad.
