How has life in the Bay Area changed over the last 20 years? These stories straight from our Bay City News archives capture news of the day from 5, 10, and 20 years ago – as originally published at the time. Explore these history snapshots and ponder how today’s news compares to that of years past.
JUNE 10, 2021
Labor and policy leaders argued California could create one million jobs while shifting toward a cleaner economy. The report connects to current climate debates over whether decarbonization can also protect workers and expand middle-class employment.
Bay City News Reported:
“Report Sees One Million Clean-Economy Jobs”
As California’s economy reopens, numerous labor union representatives at a news conference Thursday morning demanded a safe and equitable transition to the green economy for workers. Union members made their demands virtually at the conference, also sharing their thoughts on a new related report on California jobs by researchers at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. The research, led by economics professor Robert Pollin, says California can create one million new jobs a year through 2030 by investing in energy efficiency, clean renewable energy, manufacturing/infrastructure, and land restoration/agriculture. “Our study shows how to get there,” Pollin said.
As California transitions to a greener economy, new jobs can be created while other jobs will be lost. The report says $76 billion is needed to create 416,000 jobs in energy efficiency and clean renewable energy while $62 billion is needed to create 626,000 jobs in manufacturing/infrastructure and land restoration/agriculture. Pollin said about 112,000 workers are employed in California’s fossil fuel and bioenergy industries and about 58,000 are expected to lose their jobs by 2030 as those two industries contract and coal use ends. The damage may be most severe in Kern, Contra Costa, and Los Angeles counties, where 50 percent of all fossil fuel job losses will occur when the state’s fossil fuel industry contracts, according to the study.
But about 350,000 a year can be created with the investments that Pollin’s team suggests. About 320,000 of those will be created in Los Angeles County. Some of the money from the $138 billion to be invested would go toward helping those out of work train and relocate, if needed, to new jobs, according to the report. About half or $70 billion of the total investment would come from public coffers while the other half would come from private investors. If President Joseph Biden gets the American Jobs Plan passed, it could provide $40 billion a year for clean energy and infrastructure investments in California, covering about 60 percent of the $70 billion that may need to come from public funding. “The Congressional THRIVE Agenda would provide about $100 billion per year for the clean energy, infrastructure/manufacturing and land restoration/agriculture programs we describe,” the researchers said. Also, the state can borrow to supplement federal funding.
Union members who spoke at the news conference were excited about the prospect for one million new jobs, but they want them to be good-paying, union jobs. Some union members were sober about the prospect of the fossil fuel industry coming to an end. Norman Rogers, vice president of the United Steelworkers Local 675 said working at a refinery it’s hard not to see the writing on the wall with cars like the Prius and Teslas on the road. “Now is the time for an equitable transition,” he said. He wants to make sure workers nearing retirement, those at the mid-career level and newcomers are taken care of. Dave Campbell, secretary-treasurer for Local 675, said they are prepared to take Pollin’s work to Gov. Gavin Newsom to discuss “securing the funding for this disaster relief and recovery package for fossil fuel workers, in this budget cycle.”
JUNE 10, 2016
Civil-rights and legal groups demanded that San Francisco stop seizing and destroying belongings during homeless sweeps. The demand remains central to today’s debate over encampment policy, public space and whether enforcement can coexist with constitutional protections.
Bay City News reported:
“Advocates Challenge San Francisco Homeless Sweeps“
Civil rights activists and legal groups critical of San Francisco’s recent treatment of its homeless population delivered a demand letter to the mayor’s office Thursday asking for a change in policies. The letter, delivered to Mayor Ed Lee’s office, requests that the city put an immediate moratorium on the practice of confiscating and destroying the belongings of homeless individuals during sweeps while implementing a policy “that conforms with well-established law.”
The demands come from a coalition that includes the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights, the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California and the law firm known as WilmerHale. In an announcement Thursday, the coalition argued that in February, March and April homeless encampments were cleared out on Division Street and in the Showplace Square area in an “unconstitutional” manner. “The United States and California constitutions protect all persons, including persons who may not have a permanent address, from the seizure and destruction of their property by the government,” Keith Slenkovich, a partner at WilmerHale, said in a statement.
The coalition also characterized the sweeps as unethical, pointing to alleged examples of city workers throwing away a disabled individual’s walker and trashing many tents used for shelter by transients. “Seizing and destroying people’s property causes irreparable damage to an already vulnerable population, particularly when… they lose the clothing, shelter and medication they need to remain healthy or the tools they may use to make a living,” said Michael Risher, a senior staff attorney for American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California. The coalition’s officials said the city is legally required to store property it takes from residents, but its Department of Public Works only accounted for 19 items stored between Feb. 23 and April 23. The mayor’s office did not immediately respond to requests for a response to the coalition’s demands.
JUNE 10, 2006
Alta Bates Summit announced discounts for uninsured patients who did not qualify for charity care. The policy remains relevant as health systems continue to face questions about medical debt, hospital pricing and access for patients without coverage.
Bay City News reported:
“Alta Bates Offers Discounts To Uninsured Patients“
Alta Bates Summit Medical Center announced Friday it will offer discounts to all uninsured patients regardless of their financial status. The new policy will extend discounts to uninsured patients who do not qualify for full or partial charity care, the medical center reported in a written statement. Those patients will receive a 60 percent discount on inpatient services and a 44 percent discount for outpatient services, according to the medical center.
Alta Bates Summit and 24 other northern California hospitals affiliated with the not-for-profit Sutter Health network of doctors and hospitals have all adopted policies to discount rates for uninsured patients. Sutter Health affiliates, including Alta Bates, have been providing free charity care for low-income patients since the network’s inception. They expanded eligibility for free care in 2004 by offering discounts to uninsured patients who did not qualify for free care. Uninsured patients who have an annual income below $50,000 for a family of four are eligible for free care. Uninsured patients earning an annual $50,000 to $100,000 for a family of four will be expected to pay the equivalent of Medicare reimbursement plus 20 percent.
Alta Bates also provides catastrophic protection to low-income uninsured patients by limiting their liability to 30 percent of their annual household income. As a result of the expanded charity care throughout the Sutter Health system, Sutter’s combined annual charity care write-offs grew from $109 million in 2003 to $226 million in 2005. Alta Bates alone discounted $43 million from patient bills under their discount policies in 2005.
Editor’s Note: All the reporting, writing, and editing of this content was done by human journalists at the time of initial publication. AI tools were used to surface these stories from our internal Bay City News archives and provide the introductory context.