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"content": "\u003cp>California occupational safety officials have issued a $142,700 fine against the University of California, San Francisco, after documenting multiple “serious” safety violations surrounding the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12066248/stabbing-at-san-francisco-general-hospital-leaves-social-worker-in-critical-condition\">fatal stabbing of a social worker\u003c/a> in December, along with a record fine of $130,500 against the city’s primary public hospital.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The reports from California’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health arrive nearly six months after a patient allegedly stabbed and killed Alberto Rangel, a 51-year-old social worker at San Francisco General Hospital’s HIV clinic, Ward 86. The incident has \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/forum/2010101912297/fatal-ucsf-stabbing-heightens-concerns-about-health-worker-safety\">sparked tough conversations\u003c/a> between staff and leadership at the Department of Public Health and the University of California, San Francisco, which both oversee SF General, about \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12075387/hospital-security-debate-swirls-after-san-francisco-social-worker-stabbing\">healthcare worker safety and security\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It also comes on the heels of a city investigation into the incident, which found that another social worker at the clinic pulled the attacker off Rangel, contradicting claims from local law enforcement that a sheriff’s deputy was the first to intervene.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>UCSF faces eight citations, with seven marked “serious.” Citations in the 38-page report say that the institution failed to immediately report the incident to Cal/OSHA and failed to provide records of workplace safety inspections and maintain violent incident logs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">“Since December, UCSF and the San Francisco Department of Public Health have implemented meaningful improvements to security and response protocols, and we continue evaluating ways to further reduce risk across all settings where our employees provide care,” UCSF said in a statement. “Alberto Rangel’s death was a profound loss, and we remain focused on strengthening workplace safety in ways that are thoughtful, collaborative, responsive and enduring.”\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Cal/OSHA report against SF General included seven citations, six of which were marked as “serious.” Those included that the hospital failed to develop a safety plan after the patient made threats of violence, no photo or physical description of the perpetrator was shared with clinical staff and the hospital did not notify staff about the threats of violence.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The report also pointed out that the clinic did not have security cameras or weapons screening at the building, and failed to provide security guards at all entrances to the building after threats were made. The suspect, Wilfredo Tortolero Arriechi, 35, was arrested at the hospital and has been charged with murder. He has pleaded not guilty.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12068510\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12068510\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/251230-SFSocialWorker-11-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/251230-SFSocialWorker-11-BL_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/251230-SFSocialWorker-11-BL_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/251230-SFSocialWorker-11-BL_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Alex Alvarez, a clinical social worker, stands on a parking garage at UCSF Parnassus campus in San Francisco on Dec. 30, 2025. He said the view from the gym helps him recover, reflect and think following the fatal stabbing of his colleague Alberto Rangel at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital on Dec. 4, 2025. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Alejandro Alvarez, the social worker who \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12068599/salt-to-a-wound-social-workers-still-reeling-in-aftermath-of-ward-86-stabbing\">pulled the attacker off Rangel\u003c/a> the day of the stabbing, said the Cal/OSHA report findings were validating but unsurprising.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s pretty upsetting to hear our security cameras weren’t working right in the hallway of the clinic,” Alvarez said. “The work is demanding, but at the same time, we still deserve to be working in a safe space.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Alvarez added that the $130,500 fine against SF General, the largest so far from Cal/OSHA against the hospital, is “not accountability. It is a beginning.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Officials at San Francisco’s Department of Public Health have responded to the incident with a number of safety changes at Ward 86. Those changes have so far included hiring more security staff, launching a threat management team to triage reported threats and installing metal detectors at entrances.[aside postID=news_12080895 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/006_KQED_SanFrancisco_GeneralHospital_03102020_6321_qed.jpg']“The safety for our staff, our patients and our community is not negotiable, and we will continue to keep staff and patients safe with a strengthened and modernized approach to safety and security,” a spokesperson for the department said. “Countless additional security measures have been initiated or expedited to strengthen workplace safety, including enhanced physical security measures, expanded security staffing, increased crisis prevention and response training, and a fundamental change in security structure governance to better connect leadership to frontline staff and their concerns.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>City officials have also \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12080895/san-francisco-directs-15-million-to-health-department-security-after-fatal-stabbing\">committed $15 million annually\u003c/a> and $7.5 million in one-time infrastructure improvements for healthcare worker safety throughout the Department of Public Health.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Rangel’s husband, Stuart Moulder, meanwhile, plans to sue the city for his wrongful death and for failing to take necessary steps to protect workers after multiple reports of the alleged attacker’s violent behavior were reported to hospital management.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Nick Casper, the attorney representing Moulder, said the findings in the latest Cal/OSHA report dovetail with the allegations in their complaint.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The findings really paint a picture of two specific-but-related failures,” Casper said. “There were longstanding systemic deficiencies involving security, training, coordination and workplace violence prevention. And there were specific failures about appropriately responding to a known and escalating threat posed by this patient.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Casper pointed to previous workplace safety violations and resulting fines from Cal/OSHA at SF General, and a lack of proper recourse from the city.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12066544\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12066544\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/251209-SFGENERALMEMORIAL-01-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/251209-SFGENERALMEMORIAL-01-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/251209-SFGENERALMEMORIAL-01-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/251209-SFGENERALMEMORIAL-01-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A memorial for social worker Alberto Rangel, who was fatally stabbed on Dec. 4 at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, outside the hospital on Dec. 9, 2025. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In 2020, the hospital was fined more than $26,000 after a nurse was attacked and staff faced retaliation for complaining about a dangerous work environment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“For years, there have been prior Cal/OSHA investigations and citations from violent attacks on their frontline healthcare workers. And many of the same deficiencies that were cited in this same report relating to Alberto Rangel were also cited in those citations,” Casper said. “There were all these years of notice to the city, and they failed to act until one of their frontline healthcare workers was killed.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The institution’s failure to act on known deficiencies in the hospital’s safety response has haunted Alvarez, who remains on leave from his position.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Their own leadership had already identified these exact deficiencies for Ward 86. Four years before Alberto was killed, someone inside that institution put it in writing. And nothing happened,” he said. I do not know how to sit with that. I am still trying.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>California occupational safety officials have issued a $142,700 fine against the University of California, San Francisco, after documenting multiple “serious” safety violations surrounding the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12066248/stabbing-at-san-francisco-general-hospital-leaves-social-worker-in-critical-condition\">fatal stabbing of a social worker\u003c/a> in December, along with a record fine of $130,500 against the city’s primary public hospital.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The reports from California’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health arrive nearly six months after a patient allegedly stabbed and killed Alberto Rangel, a 51-year-old social worker at San Francisco General Hospital’s HIV clinic, Ward 86. The incident has \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/forum/2010101912297/fatal-ucsf-stabbing-heightens-concerns-about-health-worker-safety\">sparked tough conversations\u003c/a> between staff and leadership at the Department of Public Health and the University of California, San Francisco, which both oversee SF General, about \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12075387/hospital-security-debate-swirls-after-san-francisco-social-worker-stabbing\">healthcare worker safety and security\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It also comes on the heels of a city investigation into the incident, which found that another social worker at the clinic pulled the attacker off Rangel, contradicting claims from local law enforcement that a sheriff’s deputy was the first to intervene.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>UCSF faces eight citations, with seven marked “serious.” Citations in the 38-page report say that the institution failed to immediately report the incident to Cal/OSHA and failed to provide records of workplace safety inspections and maintain violent incident logs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">“Since December, UCSF and the San Francisco Department of Public Health have implemented meaningful improvements to security and response protocols, and we continue evaluating ways to further reduce risk across all settings where our employees provide care,” UCSF said in a statement. “Alberto Rangel’s death was a profound loss, and we remain focused on strengthening workplace safety in ways that are thoughtful, collaborative, responsive and enduring.”\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Cal/OSHA report against SF General included seven citations, six of which were marked as “serious.” Those included that the hospital failed to develop a safety plan after the patient made threats of violence, no photo or physical description of the perpetrator was shared with clinical staff and the hospital did not notify staff about the threats of violence.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The report also pointed out that the clinic did not have security cameras or weapons screening at the building, and failed to provide security guards at all entrances to the building after threats were made. The suspect, Wilfredo Tortolero Arriechi, 35, was arrested at the hospital and has been charged with murder. He has pleaded not guilty.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12068510\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12068510\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/251230-SFSocialWorker-11-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/251230-SFSocialWorker-11-BL_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/251230-SFSocialWorker-11-BL_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/251230-SFSocialWorker-11-BL_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Alex Alvarez, a clinical social worker, stands on a parking garage at UCSF Parnassus campus in San Francisco on Dec. 30, 2025. He said the view from the gym helps him recover, reflect and think following the fatal stabbing of his colleague Alberto Rangel at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital on Dec. 4, 2025. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Alejandro Alvarez, the social worker who \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12068599/salt-to-a-wound-social-workers-still-reeling-in-aftermath-of-ward-86-stabbing\">pulled the attacker off Rangel\u003c/a> the day of the stabbing, said the Cal/OSHA report findings were validating but unsurprising.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s pretty upsetting to hear our security cameras weren’t working right in the hallway of the clinic,” Alvarez said. “The work is demanding, but at the same time, we still deserve to be working in a safe space.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Alvarez added that the $130,500 fine against SF General, the largest so far from Cal/OSHA against the hospital, is “not accountability. It is a beginning.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Officials at San Francisco’s Department of Public Health have responded to the incident with a number of safety changes at Ward 86. Those changes have so far included hiring more security staff, launching a threat management team to triage reported threats and installing metal detectors at entrances.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“The safety for our staff, our patients and our community is not negotiable, and we will continue to keep staff and patients safe with a strengthened and modernized approach to safety and security,” a spokesperson for the department said. “Countless additional security measures have been initiated or expedited to strengthen workplace safety, including enhanced physical security measures, expanded security staffing, increased crisis prevention and response training, and a fundamental change in security structure governance to better connect leadership to frontline staff and their concerns.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>City officials have also \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12080895/san-francisco-directs-15-million-to-health-department-security-after-fatal-stabbing\">committed $15 million annually\u003c/a> and $7.5 million in one-time infrastructure improvements for healthcare worker safety throughout the Department of Public Health.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Rangel’s husband, Stuart Moulder, meanwhile, plans to sue the city for his wrongful death and for failing to take necessary steps to protect workers after multiple reports of the alleged attacker’s violent behavior were reported to hospital management.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Nick Casper, the attorney representing Moulder, said the findings in the latest Cal/OSHA report dovetail with the allegations in their complaint.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The findings really paint a picture of two specific-but-related failures,” Casper said. “There were longstanding systemic deficiencies involving security, training, coordination and workplace violence prevention. And there were specific failures about appropriately responding to a known and escalating threat posed by this patient.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Casper pointed to previous workplace safety violations and resulting fines from Cal/OSHA at SF General, and a lack of proper recourse from the city.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12066544\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12066544\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/251209-SFGENERALMEMORIAL-01-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/251209-SFGENERALMEMORIAL-01-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/251209-SFGENERALMEMORIAL-01-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/251209-SFGENERALMEMORIAL-01-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A memorial for social worker Alberto Rangel, who was fatally stabbed on Dec. 4 at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, outside the hospital on Dec. 9, 2025. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In 2020, the hospital was fined more than $26,000 after a nurse was attacked and staff faced retaliation for complaining about a dangerous work environment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“For years, there have been prior Cal/OSHA investigations and citations from violent attacks on their frontline healthcare workers. And many of the same deficiencies that were cited in this same report relating to Alberto Rangel were also cited in those citations,” Casper said. “There were all these years of notice to the city, and they failed to act until one of their frontline healthcare workers was killed.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The institution’s failure to act on known deficiencies in the hospital’s safety response has haunted Alvarez, who remains on leave from his position.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Their own leadership had already identified these exact deficiencies for Ward 86. Four years before Alberto was killed, someone inside that institution put it in writing. And nothing happened,” he said. I do not know how to sit with that. I am still trying.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"slug": "california-stoneworkers-with-silicosis-struggle-to-get-workers-comp",
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"content": "\u003cp>Eleazar Resendiz Cortes has seen an \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12064693/california-doctors-urge-ban-on-engineered-stone-as-silicosis-cases-surge\">incurable job-related lung disease\u003c/a> disable six of his coworkers in the countertop fabrication industry. Two of the men in their 50s needed oxygen machines to breathe before they had lung transplants, he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Resendiz Cortes, who was diagnosed with silicosis in 2024, fears a similar fate. The 38-year-old can no longer work. He pursued workers’ compensation insurance benefits that are meant to support people injured on the job, but has received no payment after two years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Things are really hard,” Resendiz Cortes, a Bakersfield resident who ran out of savings and has no income, told KQED in Spanish. “It’s terrible. As a worker, one wants to improve oneself. But then you are the one who gets sick, you are the one who ends up suffering and struggling.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California’s silicosis epidemic is exposing deep failures in the state’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.dir.ca.gov/dwc/WCFaqIW.html\">workers’ compensation\u003c/a> system. As hundreds of countertop fabrication workers become gravely ill from inhaling dust generated by a factory-made stone, many say insurers are delaying or denying benefits meant to cover lost wages and medical care. The disputes are leaving some workers destitute while taxpayers shoulder the cost of expensive treatments, including lung transplants, even as state regulators consider restricting the material linked to the disease’s spread.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Occupational doctors are simultaneously \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12067166/health-emergency-california-doctors-urge-ban-of-countertop-material-linked-to-deadly-disease\">pressing California regulators\u003c/a> to restrict engineered stone, the countertop material many physicians believe is driving the surge in silicosis cases, a claim disputed by manufacturers of the popular product in a multibillion-dollar industry.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The companies \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12070138/stone-industry-proposes-self-policing-as-california-weighs-artificial-stone-ban\">oppose\u003c/a> the move to limit engineered stone, also known as quartz or artificial stone, arguing that it’s not their product that’s causing the problem, but fabrication shops that fail to follow proper safety measures.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Taxpayers are bearing the cost of lifesaving medical treatment for many sick stoneworkers, including lung transplants estimated at more than $1 million each. Medi-Cal, the state’s public health insurance program, was the main payer — not workers’ compensation — even though the disease is occupational, according to \u003ca href=\"https://academic.oup.com/ajrccm/article/211/Supplement_1/A6310/8338415#google_vignette\">a study\u003c/a> published last year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12084041\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-12084041 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-1826-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-1826-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-1826-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-1826-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Eleazar Resendiz Cortes and his wife prepare lunch with ingredients from his garden on Thursday, May 14, 2026, in Bakersfield, California. Cortes says the garden has helped keep him busy after he could no longer work. \u003ccite>(Julie Leopo for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“Ultimately, workers’ comp should be paying for these patients’ medical care, especially if they do not have some other form of insurance, because that is the goal of workers’ comp,” said Dr. Sheiphali Gandhi, a pulmonologist at UCSF, who co-authored the report. “Silicosis, there’s no other cause other than work exposure.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The California Department of Insurance, which oversees insurer behavior and the workers’ compensation market, did not respond to multiple requests for comment. In 2024, Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara requested a \u003ca href=\"https://www.insurance.ca.gov/0400-news/0100-press-releases/2024/release030-2024.cfm\">detailed \u003c/a>analysis on silicosis claims to “ensure that affected workers receive the benefits they are entitled to.” But it’s unclear what the outcome was.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lara called for an evaluation shortly after a \u003cem>Los Angeles Times\u003c/em> \u003ca href=\"https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2024-07-11/his-lungs-failed-doctors-blame-work-had-to-fight-workers-comp\">story\u003c/a> detailed the struggles of a lung transplant patient to get workers’ compensation from AmTrust North America, the same insurer that continues to deny Resendiz Cortes’ claim.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Mounting scientific evidence shows people get sick from inhaling toxic crystalline silica particles generated when cutting or polishing artificial stone, even when safety precautions are followed. The silica dust released by engineered stone is much more dangerous than that of granite and other natural stones, doctors say.[aside postID=news_12064693 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251115-DEADLY-LUNG-DISEASE-MD-01-KQED-1.jpg']The Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board plans \u003ca href=\"https://www.dir.ca.gov/oshsb/documents/agendaMay2026.pdf\">to vote\u003c/a> Thursday on whether to advance a medical association’s petition to ban the fabrication and installation of artificial stone with more than 1% crystalline silica. In an \u003ca href=\"https://www.dir.ca.gov/oshsb/documents/petition-609-staffeval.pdf\">analysis\u003c/a> disclosed last week, the board’s staff concluded a prohibition may be the quickest and most cost-effective way to stem the industry’s silicosis epidemic.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Why are we keeping a toxic product in our state that is costing taxpayers millions of dollars?” said Gandhi, who cares for dozens of silicosis patients. “It’s not benefiting the California population other than just the way people’s countertops look.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Silicosis is an ancient illness afflicting stonemasons, sandblasters and miners that has resurfaced in the U.S. as artificial stone became the top countertop material. The global market for engineered stone, valued at $26.5 billion in 2025, is estimated to reach $45 billion by 2033.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Consumers prefer it to natural stones because it’s often cheaper, stain-resistant and available in beautiful designs and colors. But many ignore the risks the material brings to the workers who make and install their kitchen and bathroom countertops.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Australia became the first country to ban artificial stone in 2024, and some manufacturers have developed alternatives with lower crystalline silica.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In California, the only state \u003ca href=\"https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CCDPHP/DEODC/OHB/Pages/essdashboard.aspx\">actively tracking\u003c/a> silicosis linked to the material, 31 stoneworkers have died, and nearly 60 have undergone lung transplants since 2019. At least 560 people have been diagnosed with the disease, a figure that’s expected to balloon. Most of these cases, 75%, were confirmed over the last three years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12084036\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12084036\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-0636-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-0636-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-0636-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-0636-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Eleazar Resendiz Cortes, 38, points to countertops in his Bakersfield, California, home made from artificial stone leftover from his previous jobs on Thursday, May 14, 2026. Cortes says the material serves as a harsh reminder of his silicosis diagnosis. \u003ccite>(Julie Leopo for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Nearly all of those sick statewide are low-income Latino immigrants who didn’t know about the dangers of inhaling engineered stone dust until they or coworkers got sick.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Resendiz Cortes worked in countertop fabrication shops for a decade, first in the San Fernando Valley, which has become the U.S. silicosis epicenter, and then in Bakersfield. The father of three girls said a back injury, which he attributes to lifting heavy stone slabs on the job, also prevents him from returning to work.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He received state disability benefits for the maximum period of one year. His family now relies on help from relatives to survive. Resendiz Cortes worries about their economic uncertainty as well as the worsening shortness of breath that keeps him from biking or swimming with his children as he used to. He mourns that his entire life was transformed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I don’t see anything positive. Just negative things, and that doesn’t help much,” said Resendiz Cortes, who doesn’t leave his house most days. “What I want is for someone to take responsibility. In this case, the insurance companies.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In California, all employers with more than one employee are required to have workers’ compensation insurance. Workers who suffer an injury or illness on the job should be technically eligible to receive compensation to cover medical care and long-term disability, but the system often does not function well for ill laborers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12084039\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12084039\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-1289-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-1289-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-1289-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-1289-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Eleazar Resendiz Cortes’ wife shows scans of his chest in their home on Thursday, May 14, 2026, in Bakersfield, California, that revealed particles around his lungs linked to his silicosis diagnosis. \u003ccite>(Julie Leopo for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>AmTrust North America denied all liability in Resendiz Cortes’ case in an August 2024 letter viewed by KQED, citing “no substantial medical, legal or factual evidence to support the cumulative trauma claim.” The Cleveland, Ohio-based company did not respond to requests for comment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A top executive for a second insurer, Omaha National, said the company could not comment on the specifics of Resendiz Cortes’ case but is investigating.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We remain committed to handling every claim fairly and in accordance with policy terms and established processes,” said Chris LaMantia, Omaha National’s chief sales and marketing officer, in a statement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Resendiz Cortes said his last place of employment, Custom Stone Interiors, dry-cut artificial stone slabs, and also used wet methods to tamp the dust down. Although he wore a filter respirator when polishing and cutting countertops, he said, he still found white dust over his face and nostrils at the end of the day. He would blow the dust out of his nose.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Custom Stone Interiors declined to comment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12084038\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12084038\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-1088-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-1088-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-1088-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-1088-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Eleazar Resendiz Cortes, 38, stands in his garden on Thursday, May 14, 2026, in Bakersfield, California. Cortes started gardening after he could no longer work and now grows fresh vegetables for his family. \u003ccite>(Julie Leopo for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“We saw your email but are not interested in a comment,” a company representative said when reached by phone before hanging up.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Statewide, at least 80 other sick stonecutters remain without workers’ comp payment after fighting for a year or longer for the benefits, according to Barry Rodich, whose L.A. law firm represents them and Resendiz Cortes. Insurers have an economic incentive to deny or delay the expensive claims, he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They will always try to say, ‘Well, there’s a latency period, and it’s not my client that’s responsible. It’s somebody before us,’” said Rodich, whose firm specializes in silicosis cases. “These delays by the insurance company just make my clients worse.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Laborers can challenge insurance denials at the state Division of Workers’ Compensation and the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board, but obtaining a resolution can take months or years. About 460 cases were awaiting a judge’s decision at the appeals board last month, a smaller backlog than in recent years, according to the Department of Industrial Relations, which oversees the agencies.[aside postID=news_12070138 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/StoneWorkerGetty2.jpg']“Penalties related to unreasonable delays or refusals are addressed through the adjudication process on a case-by-case basis and depend on the facts and circumstances of each individual matter,” the spokesperson said in a statement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Most of the hundreds of California stonecutters with silicosis don’t seek workers’ compensation benefits because they are self-employed or past workplaces lack the insurance. Others decline to apply for benefits that will likely increase costs for their former employers, according to Rodich.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There’s a lot of loyalty,” he said. “Some of these individuals feel like they have an allegiance to these employers. And the reason why is because they helped get them a job, they may have helped them in other ways… And so when they find out that their insurance premiums could potentially be affected in the following year, they don’t want to do anything.”\u003cstrong> \u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Rodich’s firm has settled a handful of silicosis cases for amounts ranging between $1.5 million and $3 million each, usually when the workers’ disease is so advanced that a lung transplant is required, he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The high price tag likely elicits extra scrutiny from insurers, which aim to weed out any fraudulent claims. Insurers’ investigations aim to determine whether their client employer indeed hired the injured worker and is liable for illness.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But in the countertop fabrication industry, workers often have multiple employers over their careers, and job records might be missing, said Yvonne Lang, who has represented insurers on silicosis claims and helped settle one case recently.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12084035\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12084035\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-0557-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-0557-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-0557-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-0557-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Eleazar Resendiz Cortes, 38, points to countertops in his Bakersfield, California, home made from artificial stone leftover from his previous jobs on Thursday, May 14, 2026. \u003ccite>(Julie Leopo for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“When there’s multiple employers, the employers are going to point the fingers at each other,” said Lang, a former president of the California Workers’ Compensation Defense Attorneys Association. “And if the employers are pointing the fingers at each other, the [insurance] carriers are going to point the fingers at each other.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Insurance companies are more likely to deny claims for illnesses developed over time, when compared to physical injuries linked to a single accident, such as a ladder fall, according to experts. To fight the insurer’s denial, workers must often enlist an attorney willing to help on time-consuming and costly cases, which is another barrier.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Sick workers’ struggle to get compensation benefits has led the federal government to intervene and create separate programs to support some of them, such as for Virginia coal miners with black lung disease, and nuclear plant workers with cancer from radiation, said Glenn Shor, a retired public policy and research analyst with the California Department of Industrial Relations, Cal/OSHA, and Division of Workers’ Compensation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For insurers, “denial is often the first step because they think some of those cases will go away,” said Shor. “If they’re denied, some people will contact a lawyer, but some people just say, I shouldn’t have worked at that place or I should have worn a mask more.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "Many California countertop workers diagnosed with silicosis from engineered stone are struggling to obtain workers’ compensation benefits as insurers deny claims and taxpayers fund costly lung transplants through Medi-Cal.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Eleazar Resendiz Cortes has seen an \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12064693/california-doctors-urge-ban-on-engineered-stone-as-silicosis-cases-surge\">incurable job-related lung disease\u003c/a> disable six of his coworkers in the countertop fabrication industry. Two of the men in their 50s needed oxygen machines to breathe before they had lung transplants, he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Resendiz Cortes, who was diagnosed with silicosis in 2024, fears a similar fate. The 38-year-old can no longer work. He pursued workers’ compensation insurance benefits that are meant to support people injured on the job, but has received no payment after two years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Things are really hard,” Resendiz Cortes, a Bakersfield resident who ran out of savings and has no income, told KQED in Spanish. “It’s terrible. As a worker, one wants to improve oneself. But then you are the one who gets sick, you are the one who ends up suffering and struggling.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California’s silicosis epidemic is exposing deep failures in the state’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.dir.ca.gov/dwc/WCFaqIW.html\">workers’ compensation\u003c/a> system. As hundreds of countertop fabrication workers become gravely ill from inhaling dust generated by a factory-made stone, many say insurers are delaying or denying benefits meant to cover lost wages and medical care. The disputes are leaving some workers destitute while taxpayers shoulder the cost of expensive treatments, including lung transplants, even as state regulators consider restricting the material linked to the disease’s spread.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Occupational doctors are simultaneously \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12067166/health-emergency-california-doctors-urge-ban-of-countertop-material-linked-to-deadly-disease\">pressing California regulators\u003c/a> to restrict engineered stone, the countertop material many physicians believe is driving the surge in silicosis cases, a claim disputed by manufacturers of the popular product in a multibillion-dollar industry.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The companies \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12070138/stone-industry-proposes-self-policing-as-california-weighs-artificial-stone-ban\">oppose\u003c/a> the move to limit engineered stone, also known as quartz or artificial stone, arguing that it’s not their product that’s causing the problem, but fabrication shops that fail to follow proper safety measures.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Taxpayers are bearing the cost of lifesaving medical treatment for many sick stoneworkers, including lung transplants estimated at more than $1 million each. Medi-Cal, the state’s public health insurance program, was the main payer — not workers’ compensation — even though the disease is occupational, according to \u003ca href=\"https://academic.oup.com/ajrccm/article/211/Supplement_1/A6310/8338415#google_vignette\">a study\u003c/a> published last year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12084041\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-12084041 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-1826-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-1826-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-1826-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-1826-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Eleazar Resendiz Cortes and his wife prepare lunch with ingredients from his garden on Thursday, May 14, 2026, in Bakersfield, California. Cortes says the garden has helped keep him busy after he could no longer work. \u003ccite>(Julie Leopo for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“Ultimately, workers’ comp should be paying for these patients’ medical care, especially if they do not have some other form of insurance, because that is the goal of workers’ comp,” said Dr. Sheiphali Gandhi, a pulmonologist at UCSF, who co-authored the report. “Silicosis, there’s no other cause other than work exposure.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The California Department of Insurance, which oversees insurer behavior and the workers’ compensation market, did not respond to multiple requests for comment. In 2024, Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara requested a \u003ca href=\"https://www.insurance.ca.gov/0400-news/0100-press-releases/2024/release030-2024.cfm\">detailed \u003c/a>analysis on silicosis claims to “ensure that affected workers receive the benefits they are entitled to.” But it’s unclear what the outcome was.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lara called for an evaluation shortly after a \u003cem>Los Angeles Times\u003c/em> \u003ca href=\"https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2024-07-11/his-lungs-failed-doctors-blame-work-had-to-fight-workers-comp\">story\u003c/a> detailed the struggles of a lung transplant patient to get workers’ compensation from AmTrust North America, the same insurer that continues to deny Resendiz Cortes’ claim.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Mounting scientific evidence shows people get sick from inhaling toxic crystalline silica particles generated when cutting or polishing artificial stone, even when safety precautions are followed. The silica dust released by engineered stone is much more dangerous than that of granite and other natural stones, doctors say.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>The Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board plans \u003ca href=\"https://www.dir.ca.gov/oshsb/documents/agendaMay2026.pdf\">to vote\u003c/a> Thursday on whether to advance a medical association’s petition to ban the fabrication and installation of artificial stone with more than 1% crystalline silica. In an \u003ca href=\"https://www.dir.ca.gov/oshsb/documents/petition-609-staffeval.pdf\">analysis\u003c/a> disclosed last week, the board’s staff concluded a prohibition may be the quickest and most cost-effective way to stem the industry’s silicosis epidemic.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Why are we keeping a toxic product in our state that is costing taxpayers millions of dollars?” said Gandhi, who cares for dozens of silicosis patients. “It’s not benefiting the California population other than just the way people’s countertops look.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Silicosis is an ancient illness afflicting stonemasons, sandblasters and miners that has resurfaced in the U.S. as artificial stone became the top countertop material. The global market for engineered stone, valued at $26.5 billion in 2025, is estimated to reach $45 billion by 2033.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Consumers prefer it to natural stones because it’s often cheaper, stain-resistant and available in beautiful designs and colors. But many ignore the risks the material brings to the workers who make and install their kitchen and bathroom countertops.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Australia became the first country to ban artificial stone in 2024, and some manufacturers have developed alternatives with lower crystalline silica.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In California, the only state \u003ca href=\"https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CCDPHP/DEODC/OHB/Pages/essdashboard.aspx\">actively tracking\u003c/a> silicosis linked to the material, 31 stoneworkers have died, and nearly 60 have undergone lung transplants since 2019. At least 560 people have been diagnosed with the disease, a figure that’s expected to balloon. Most of these cases, 75%, were confirmed over the last three years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12084036\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12084036\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-0636-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-0636-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-0636-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-0636-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Eleazar Resendiz Cortes, 38, points to countertops in his Bakersfield, California, home made from artificial stone leftover from his previous jobs on Thursday, May 14, 2026. Cortes says the material serves as a harsh reminder of his silicosis diagnosis. \u003ccite>(Julie Leopo for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Nearly all of those sick statewide are low-income Latino immigrants who didn’t know about the dangers of inhaling engineered stone dust until they or coworkers got sick.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Resendiz Cortes worked in countertop fabrication shops for a decade, first in the San Fernando Valley, which has become the U.S. silicosis epicenter, and then in Bakersfield. The father of three girls said a back injury, which he attributes to lifting heavy stone slabs on the job, also prevents him from returning to work.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He received state disability benefits for the maximum period of one year. His family now relies on help from relatives to survive. Resendiz Cortes worries about their economic uncertainty as well as the worsening shortness of breath that keeps him from biking or swimming with his children as he used to. He mourns that his entire life was transformed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I don’t see anything positive. Just negative things, and that doesn’t help much,” said Resendiz Cortes, who doesn’t leave his house most days. “What I want is for someone to take responsibility. In this case, the insurance companies.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In California, all employers with more than one employee are required to have workers’ compensation insurance. Workers who suffer an injury or illness on the job should be technically eligible to receive compensation to cover medical care and long-term disability, but the system often does not function well for ill laborers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12084039\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12084039\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-1289-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-1289-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-1289-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-1289-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Eleazar Resendiz Cortes’ wife shows scans of his chest in their home on Thursday, May 14, 2026, in Bakersfield, California, that revealed particles around his lungs linked to his silicosis diagnosis. \u003ccite>(Julie Leopo for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>AmTrust North America denied all liability in Resendiz Cortes’ case in an August 2024 letter viewed by KQED, citing “no substantial medical, legal or factual evidence to support the cumulative trauma claim.” The Cleveland, Ohio-based company did not respond to requests for comment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A top executive for a second insurer, Omaha National, said the company could not comment on the specifics of Resendiz Cortes’ case but is investigating.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We remain committed to handling every claim fairly and in accordance with policy terms and established processes,” said Chris LaMantia, Omaha National’s chief sales and marketing officer, in a statement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Resendiz Cortes said his last place of employment, Custom Stone Interiors, dry-cut artificial stone slabs, and also used wet methods to tamp the dust down. Although he wore a filter respirator when polishing and cutting countertops, he said, he still found white dust over his face and nostrils at the end of the day. He would blow the dust out of his nose.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Custom Stone Interiors declined to comment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12084038\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12084038\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-1088-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-1088-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-1088-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-1088-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Eleazar Resendiz Cortes, 38, stands in his garden on Thursday, May 14, 2026, in Bakersfield, California. Cortes started gardening after he could no longer work and now grows fresh vegetables for his family. \u003ccite>(Julie Leopo for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“We saw your email but are not interested in a comment,” a company representative said when reached by phone before hanging up.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Statewide, at least 80 other sick stonecutters remain without workers’ comp payment after fighting for a year or longer for the benefits, according to Barry Rodich, whose L.A. law firm represents them and Resendiz Cortes. Insurers have an economic incentive to deny or delay the expensive claims, he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They will always try to say, ‘Well, there’s a latency period, and it’s not my client that’s responsible. It’s somebody before us,’” said Rodich, whose firm specializes in silicosis cases. “These delays by the insurance company just make my clients worse.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Laborers can challenge insurance denials at the state Division of Workers’ Compensation and the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board, but obtaining a resolution can take months or years. About 460 cases were awaiting a judge’s decision at the appeals board last month, a smaller backlog than in recent years, according to the Department of Industrial Relations, which oversees the agencies.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“Penalties related to unreasonable delays or refusals are addressed through the adjudication process on a case-by-case basis and depend on the facts and circumstances of each individual matter,” the spokesperson said in a statement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Most of the hundreds of California stonecutters with silicosis don’t seek workers’ compensation benefits because they are self-employed or past workplaces lack the insurance. Others decline to apply for benefits that will likely increase costs for their former employers, according to Rodich.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There’s a lot of loyalty,” he said. “Some of these individuals feel like they have an allegiance to these employers. And the reason why is because they helped get them a job, they may have helped them in other ways… And so when they find out that their insurance premiums could potentially be affected in the following year, they don’t want to do anything.”\u003cstrong> \u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Rodich’s firm has settled a handful of silicosis cases for amounts ranging between $1.5 million and $3 million each, usually when the workers’ disease is so advanced that a lung transplant is required, he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The high price tag likely elicits extra scrutiny from insurers, which aim to weed out any fraudulent claims. Insurers’ investigations aim to determine whether their client employer indeed hired the injured worker and is liable for illness.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But in the countertop fabrication industry, workers often have multiple employers over their careers, and job records might be missing, said Yvonne Lang, who has represented insurers on silicosis claims and helped settle one case recently.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12084035\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12084035\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-0557-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-0557-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-0557-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/ELEAZAR-RESENDIZ-CORTES-KQED-LEOPO-2026-0557-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Eleazar Resendiz Cortes, 38, points to countertops in his Bakersfield, California, home made from artificial stone leftover from his previous jobs on Thursday, May 14, 2026. \u003ccite>(Julie Leopo for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“When there’s multiple employers, the employers are going to point the fingers at each other,” said Lang, a former president of the California Workers’ Compensation Defense Attorneys Association. “And if the employers are pointing the fingers at each other, the [insurance] carriers are going to point the fingers at each other.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Insurance companies are more likely to deny claims for illnesses developed over time, when compared to physical injuries linked to a single accident, such as a ladder fall, according to experts. To fight the insurer’s denial, workers must often enlist an attorney willing to help on time-consuming and costly cases, which is another barrier.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Sick workers’ struggle to get compensation benefits has led the federal government to intervene and create separate programs to support some of them, such as for Virginia coal miners with black lung disease, and nuclear plant workers with cancer from radiation, said Glenn Shor, a retired public policy and research analyst with the California Department of Industrial Relations, Cal/OSHA, and Division of Workers’ Compensation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For insurers, “denial is often the first step because they think some of those cases will go away,” said Shor. “If they’re denied, some people will contact a lawyer, but some people just say, I shouldn’t have worked at that place or I should have worn a mask more.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"slug": "california-proposes-ending-prison-heat-rule-exemption-as-temperatures-rise",
"title": "California Proposes Ending Prison Heat Rule Exemption as Temperatures Rise",
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"headTitle": "California Proposes Ending Prison Heat Rule Exemption as Temperatures Rise | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>The potentially record-shattering heat wave roasting \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/california\">California\u003c/a> this week reminds Lawrence Cox of the people locked in suffocating state prison cells with no windows.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Temperatures inside aging prison buildings can climb much higher than outdoors, with little to no relief, said Cox, who was formerly incarcerated at correctional facilities in Solano, Kern and Imperial counties.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The 41-year-old used to soak a bed sheet with water and wrap it around himself to try to keep cool during triple-digit summer temperatures. The fans that he and his cellmates were provided with just “pushed hot air,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It was extremely uncomfortable, headaches, feeling closed in, like you’re in a furnace,” said Cox, now an organizer with the Oakland-based nonprofit Legal Services for Prisoners with Children. “If it’s 100 degrees outside, it’s at least 115 degrees inside these cells, and there’s no air conditioner\u003cem>.\u003c/em>”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation holds nearly 90,000 incarcerated people, many of whom are required to work, and more than 58,000 employees. But the state’s largest agency has been exempted from required worker protections against dangerous heat that apply to most other job sites in California\u003cem>.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>State workplace safety regulators are now proposing to end that carve-out. \u003ca href=\"https://www.dir.ca.gov/dosh/doshreg/heat-illness-corrections/\">Draft regulations \u003c/a>released earlier this month would require CDCR to provide employees, including incarcerated workers, with drinking water and rest breaks in cool-down areas when indoor temperatures reach or exceed 87 degrees Fahrenheit.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12076614\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12076614\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/230726-SAN-QUENTIN-MHN-09_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/230726-SAN-QUENTIN-MHN-09_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/230726-SAN-QUENTIN-MHN-09_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/230726-SAN-QUENTIN-MHN-09_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Inmates perform yard work at San Quentin State Prison in San Quentin on July 26, 2023. \u003ccite>(Martin do Nascimento/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The department should reduce temperatures in indoor work areas to below 87 degrees or limit workers’ exposure to heat, such as by changing their shifts. But employers could skirt the requirements, which would also cover local jails and juvenile detention facilities, if they can demonstrate that the measures are unfeasible or would imperil safety.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For Cox, Cal/OSHA’s draft represents a much-awaited first step to kickstart the rulemaking process, which can take months or years. It’s unclear how much tens of thousands of incarcerated workers would be protected if large exemptions are allowed, he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The proposal appears to protect staff way more than protecting the incarcerated population,” Cox said. “With a more refined and intentional approach, I think we could do better. Because what’s proposed now basically can delay or dilute real relief and turn this rule basically into a paper rule, leaving it largely up to discretion.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Mary Xjimenez, a spokesperson for CDCR, said safety is a priority and the department takes proactive steps to prevent excessive heat exposure for workers at its facilities.\u003cbr>\n“If the new indoor heat regulations are implemented, CDCR will work with the Administration to assess impacts and follow the existing state budget processes to the extent additional state resources are needed,” Xjimenez said in a statement. [aside postID=news_12071751 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/EchoesOfIsolation_01.jpg']Cal/OSHA spokesperson Denisse Gómez said feedback from stakeholders and others will inform the proposed regulation, which will be discussed next at a public meeting on May 7.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>CDCR operates dozens of correctional and rehabilitation facilities, many of them \u003ca href=\"https://www.cdcr.ca.gov/bph/divisions/severe-mental-health-disorder/mdo-evaluators/map-of-californias-correctional-and-rehabilitation-institutions/\">located\u003c/a> in the Central Valley, Inland Empire and other regions that often reach triple digits during the summer. Climate change is expected to exacerbate the risks of very high temperatures, which can result in heat stroke and death.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A coalition of workplace safety advocates and unions representing prison staffers backs a state bill that would require CDCR to implement minimum relief measures during excessive weather events. AB 2499 would also mandate cooling systems at correctional facilities’ living quarters, work areas, and recreational spaces. The Assembly’s public safety committee plans to hear the proposed legislation on March 24.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>State prison officials have estimated that it would cost \u003ca href=\"https://www.cdcr.ca.gov/green/wp-content/uploads/sites/176/2025/06/Climate-and-the-Impact-on-CDCR.pdf\">about $6 billion\u003c/a> to implement effective air cooling mechanisms to protect prison workers from extreme heat. Cost concerns led policymakers \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11991314/california-board-approves-long-awaited-heat-protections-for-most-indoor-workers\">to exclude CDCR\u003c/a> from indoor heat rules issued in 2024 for restaurants, warehouses, manufacturing plants and other indoor workplaces.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Those\u003ca href=\"https://www.dir.ca.gov/DOSH/HeatIllnessInfo.html\"> regulations\u003c/a> have a lower temperature trigger than the current proposal for prisons and jails, as businesses are required to provide workers with drinking water and cool-down options when indoor temperatures climb to 82 degrees. If an area reaches 87 degrees, employers must lower the temperature through air conditioning, ventilation and other measures, or reduce worker exposure to the heat.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12007882\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1973px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12007882\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/107520204_qed.jpg\" alt=\"Imprisoned people wearing orange outfits hang out in an outdoor area of the prison, while a guard watches from a tower overhead.\" width=\"1973\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/107520204_qed.jpg 1973w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/107520204_qed-800x540.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/107520204_qed-1020x689.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/107520204_qed-160x108.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/107520204_qed-1536x1038.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/107520204_qed-1920x1297.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1973px) 100vw, 1973px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">California Department of Corrections officer looks on as inmates at Chino State Prison exercise in the yard Dec. 10, 2010, in Chino, California. \u003ccite>(Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>CDCR has been working on a $38 million\u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2025/09/california-prison-heat-death-pilot/\"> pilot program \u003c/a>to test insulation and cooling system improvements at three prisons in Madera, Kern and Los Angeles counties. Results are not expected until 2028 at the earliest. The department is also working on projects to improve cooling at housing units in five institutions, at a cost of about \u003ca href=\"https://www.cdcr.ca.gov/green/wp-content/uploads/sites/176/2025/06/Climate-and-the-Impact-on-CDCR.pdf\">$246 million\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last year, the Office of the Inspector General \u003ca href=\"https://www.oig.ca.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Audit-of-the-California-Department-of-Corrections-and-Rehabilitations-Management-of-Temperature-Conditions-Within-Californias-Prisons.pdf\">reviewed\u003c/a> the department’s preparedness for extremely hot and cold temperatures at three prisons — High Desert State Prison, California State Prison, Corcoran and California State Prison, Los Angeles County — and found CDCR was failing to take steps to protect vulnerable incarcerated people. Old cooling and heating equipment commonly failed, as some systems were more than 30 years old, the review found.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The department has long acknowledged the challenges it has with its aging infrastructure, including heating and cooling systems,” the report said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "California regulators are considering new heat protections for prison employees and incarcerated workers, requiring water, rest breaks and cooling measures as extreme temperatures rise in state facilities. ",
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"title": "California Proposes Ending Prison Heat Rule Exemption as Temperatures Rise | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>The potentially record-shattering heat wave roasting \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/california\">California\u003c/a> this week reminds Lawrence Cox of the people locked in suffocating state prison cells with no windows.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Temperatures inside aging prison buildings can climb much higher than outdoors, with little to no relief, said Cox, who was formerly incarcerated at correctional facilities in Solano, Kern and Imperial counties.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The 41-year-old used to soak a bed sheet with water and wrap it around himself to try to keep cool during triple-digit summer temperatures. The fans that he and his cellmates were provided with just “pushed hot air,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It was extremely uncomfortable, headaches, feeling closed in, like you’re in a furnace,” said Cox, now an organizer with the Oakland-based nonprofit Legal Services for Prisoners with Children. “If it’s 100 degrees outside, it’s at least 115 degrees inside these cells, and there’s no air conditioner\u003cem>.\u003c/em>”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation holds nearly 90,000 incarcerated people, many of whom are required to work, and more than 58,000 employees. But the state’s largest agency has been exempted from required worker protections against dangerous heat that apply to most other job sites in California\u003cem>.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>State workplace safety regulators are now proposing to end that carve-out. \u003ca href=\"https://www.dir.ca.gov/dosh/doshreg/heat-illness-corrections/\">Draft regulations \u003c/a>released earlier this month would require CDCR to provide employees, including incarcerated workers, with drinking water and rest breaks in cool-down areas when indoor temperatures reach or exceed 87 degrees Fahrenheit.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12076614\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12076614\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/230726-SAN-QUENTIN-MHN-09_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/230726-SAN-QUENTIN-MHN-09_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/230726-SAN-QUENTIN-MHN-09_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/230726-SAN-QUENTIN-MHN-09_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Inmates perform yard work at San Quentin State Prison in San Quentin on July 26, 2023. \u003ccite>(Martin do Nascimento/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The department should reduce temperatures in indoor work areas to below 87 degrees or limit workers’ exposure to heat, such as by changing their shifts. But employers could skirt the requirements, which would also cover local jails and juvenile detention facilities, if they can demonstrate that the measures are unfeasible or would imperil safety.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For Cox, Cal/OSHA’s draft represents a much-awaited first step to kickstart the rulemaking process, which can take months or years. It’s unclear how much tens of thousands of incarcerated workers would be protected if large exemptions are allowed, he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The proposal appears to protect staff way more than protecting the incarcerated population,” Cox said. “With a more refined and intentional approach, I think we could do better. Because what’s proposed now basically can delay or dilute real relief and turn this rule basically into a paper rule, leaving it largely up to discretion.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Mary Xjimenez, a spokesperson for CDCR, said safety is a priority and the department takes proactive steps to prevent excessive heat exposure for workers at its facilities.\u003cbr>\n“If the new indoor heat regulations are implemented, CDCR will work with the Administration to assess impacts and follow the existing state budget processes to the extent additional state resources are needed,” Xjimenez said in a statement. \u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Cal/OSHA spokesperson Denisse Gómez said feedback from stakeholders and others will inform the proposed regulation, which will be discussed next at a public meeting on May 7.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>CDCR operates dozens of correctional and rehabilitation facilities, many of them \u003ca href=\"https://www.cdcr.ca.gov/bph/divisions/severe-mental-health-disorder/mdo-evaluators/map-of-californias-correctional-and-rehabilitation-institutions/\">located\u003c/a> in the Central Valley, Inland Empire and other regions that often reach triple digits during the summer. Climate change is expected to exacerbate the risks of very high temperatures, which can result in heat stroke and death.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A coalition of workplace safety advocates and unions representing prison staffers backs a state bill that would require CDCR to implement minimum relief measures during excessive weather events. AB 2499 would also mandate cooling systems at correctional facilities’ living quarters, work areas, and recreational spaces. The Assembly’s public safety committee plans to hear the proposed legislation on March 24.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>State prison officials have estimated that it would cost \u003ca href=\"https://www.cdcr.ca.gov/green/wp-content/uploads/sites/176/2025/06/Climate-and-the-Impact-on-CDCR.pdf\">about $6 billion\u003c/a> to implement effective air cooling mechanisms to protect prison workers from extreme heat. Cost concerns led policymakers \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11991314/california-board-approves-long-awaited-heat-protections-for-most-indoor-workers\">to exclude CDCR\u003c/a> from indoor heat rules issued in 2024 for restaurants, warehouses, manufacturing plants and other indoor workplaces.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Those\u003ca href=\"https://www.dir.ca.gov/DOSH/HeatIllnessInfo.html\"> regulations\u003c/a> have a lower temperature trigger than the current proposal for prisons and jails, as businesses are required to provide workers with drinking water and cool-down options when indoor temperatures climb to 82 degrees. If an area reaches 87 degrees, employers must lower the temperature through air conditioning, ventilation and other measures, or reduce worker exposure to the heat.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12007882\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1973px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12007882\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/107520204_qed.jpg\" alt=\"Imprisoned people wearing orange outfits hang out in an outdoor area of the prison, while a guard watches from a tower overhead.\" width=\"1973\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/107520204_qed.jpg 1973w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/107520204_qed-800x540.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/107520204_qed-1020x689.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/107520204_qed-160x108.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/107520204_qed-1536x1038.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/107520204_qed-1920x1297.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1973px) 100vw, 1973px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">California Department of Corrections officer looks on as inmates at Chino State Prison exercise in the yard Dec. 10, 2010, in Chino, California. \u003ccite>(Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>CDCR has been working on a $38 million\u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2025/09/california-prison-heat-death-pilot/\"> pilot program \u003c/a>to test insulation and cooling system improvements at three prisons in Madera, Kern and Los Angeles counties. Results are not expected until 2028 at the earliest. The department is also working on projects to improve cooling at housing units in five institutions, at a cost of about \u003ca href=\"https://www.cdcr.ca.gov/green/wp-content/uploads/sites/176/2025/06/Climate-and-the-Impact-on-CDCR.pdf\">$246 million\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last year, the Office of the Inspector General \u003ca href=\"https://www.oig.ca.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Audit-of-the-California-Department-of-Corrections-and-Rehabilitations-Management-of-Temperature-Conditions-Within-Californias-Prisons.pdf\">reviewed\u003c/a> the department’s preparedness for extremely hot and cold temperatures at three prisons — High Desert State Prison, California State Prison, Corcoran and California State Prison, Los Angeles County — and found CDCR was failing to take steps to protect vulnerable incarcerated people. Old cooling and heating equipment commonly failed, as some systems were more than 30 years old, the review found.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The department has long acknowledged the challenges it has with its aging infrastructure, including heating and cooling systems,” the report said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "california-fines-sfpd-for-death-of-police-recruit-during-training",
"title": "California Fines SFPD in Death of Police Recruit During Training",
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"content": "\u003cp>California workplace regulators fined the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco-police-department\">San Francisco Police Department\u003c/a> $40,500 for serious violations related to the death of a recruit during a strenuous training exercise last summer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In a citation letter issued last month obtained by KQED, the state’s workplace safety agency, better known as Cal/OSHA, said SFPD did not effectively identify or evaluate safety and health risks tied to the arduous physical drills, and concluded the department failed to correct hazards associated with the training. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Investigators also found that the department did not adequately train supervisors responsible for overseeing the exercises.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The violations stem from the collapse and subsequent death of Jon-Marques Psalms, a 30-year-old Southern California native and former tech industry worker.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The coroner’s report lists his official cause of death as “sequelae of rhabdomyolysis in the setting of a high-intensity training exercise,” in which excessive exertion essentially causes muscle cells to die and leak toxic substances into the body.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Psalms’ family has said they’ve struggled to get clarity from the city or police department about what they described as a “highly controversial” exercise.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12036907\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12036907\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFPDFILE-39-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFPDFILE-39-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFPDFILE-39-BL-KQED-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFPDFILE-39-BL-KQED-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFPDFILE-39-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFPDFILE-39-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFPDFILE-39-BL-KQED-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A San Francisco Police Department officer stands at 16th and Mission Streets in San Francisco on April 18, 2025. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Police have \u003ca href=\"https://x.com/SFPD/status/1959104169325068636/photo/1\">said\u003c/a> the training is required by the California Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training, which establishes statewide standards for police academies.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to accounts of the training, participants reportedly donned padded \u003ca href=\"https://sfstandard.com/2025/09/12/sfpd-recruit-jon-marques-psalms-family-gofundme-second-autopsy-academy-death/\">red suits\u003c/a> to simulate confrontation with suspects and sparred with one another. Psalms “suffered a medical emergency,” and was treated at the scene before paramedics transported him to the hospital, where he died two days later, SFPD said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to the family’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-jons-family-in-their-search-for-answers\">GoFundMe fundraiser\u003c/a>, Psalms — who had dreamt of joining the police force — was not yet eligible for life insurance or other benefits that could have helped his family financially, as they pursue a second autopsy and legal action.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>CalOSHA said the department has appealed the citation. SFPD did not respond to a request for comment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>KQED’s \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/author/tgoldberg\">\u003cem>Ted Goldberg \u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>contributed to this report.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>California workplace regulators fined the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco-police-department\">San Francisco Police Department\u003c/a> $40,500 for serious violations related to the death of a recruit during a strenuous training exercise last summer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In a citation letter issued last month obtained by KQED, the state’s workplace safety agency, better known as Cal/OSHA, said SFPD did not effectively identify or evaluate safety and health risks tied to the arduous physical drills, and concluded the department failed to correct hazards associated with the training. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Investigators also found that the department did not adequately train supervisors responsible for overseeing the exercises.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The violations stem from the collapse and subsequent death of Jon-Marques Psalms, a 30-year-old Southern California native and former tech industry worker.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The coroner’s report lists his official cause of death as “sequelae of rhabdomyolysis in the setting of a high-intensity training exercise,” in which excessive exertion essentially causes muscle cells to die and leak toxic substances into the body.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Psalms’ family has said they’ve struggled to get clarity from the city or police department about what they described as a “highly controversial” exercise.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12036907\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12036907\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFPDFILE-39-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFPDFILE-39-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFPDFILE-39-BL-KQED-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFPDFILE-39-BL-KQED-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFPDFILE-39-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFPDFILE-39-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250418-SFPDFILE-39-BL-KQED-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A San Francisco Police Department officer stands at 16th and Mission Streets in San Francisco on April 18, 2025. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Police have \u003ca href=\"https://x.com/SFPD/status/1959104169325068636/photo/1\">said\u003c/a> the training is required by the California Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training, which establishes statewide standards for police academies.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to accounts of the training, participants reportedly donned padded \u003ca href=\"https://sfstandard.com/2025/09/12/sfpd-recruit-jon-marques-psalms-family-gofundme-second-autopsy-academy-death/\">red suits\u003c/a> to simulate confrontation with suspects and sparred with one another. Psalms “suffered a medical emergency,” and was treated at the scene before paramedics transported him to the hospital, where he died two days later, SFPD said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to the family’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-jons-family-in-their-search-for-answers\">GoFundMe fundraiser\u003c/a>, Psalms — who had dreamt of joining the police force — was not yet eligible for life insurance or other benefits that could have helped his family financially, as they pursue a second autopsy and legal action.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>CalOSHA said the department has appealed the citation. SFPD did not respond to a request for comment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>KQED’s \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/author/tgoldberg\">\u003cem>Ted Goldberg \u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>contributed to this report.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "California Authorities Launch Investigation of Criminal Negligence in Deadly Tahoe Avalanche",
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"content": "\u003cp>Local and state authorities are investigating whether criminal negligence was involved in the backcountry skiing trip caught up in Tuesday’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12073933/treacherous-sierra-nevada-storm-delays-recovery-of-9-presumed-avalanche-victims\">deadly avalanche in Lake Tahoe\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The avalanche on Tuesday, the deadliest in modern California history, buried a group of 15 skiers who were part of a three-day guided backcountry tour in the Donner Summit region. Six of the skiers were rescued Tuesday night, while\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12073851/tahoe-avalanche-heres-what-we-know-about-the-victims\"> eight have been confirmed dead\u003c/a>, and a ninth is still missing but presumed dead. The victims include six mothers and three guides from Blackbird Mountain Guides, an outdoor adventure company.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On Friday, the Nevada County Sheriff’s Office said in an email that it was conducting a “standard investigation,” and that it is too early to know if criminal charges would be applicable. In a statement, Cal/OSHA said it was also investigating and has up to six months to complete that examination and issue any citations for “violations of workplace safety regulations.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While questions surrounding what preceded the incident have already begun to arise, snow and ski safety consultant Mark Di Nola said whether the company can be found liable will depend on what those investigations determine regarding what operators knew about weather and terrain conditions throughout the trip, and when.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Is a big storm foreseeable? Yes. Did they know about it? We don’t know when. Did the avalanche danger increase during that period of time? The investigation will bear that out,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to family members, the group that was caught in Tuesday’s avalanche had traveled to Lake Tahoe last week for the two-night backcountry hut trip from the Bay Area, Truckee and as far as Idaho.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12073999\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12073999\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/CaliforniaAvalancheAP3-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/CaliforniaAvalancheAP3-1.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/CaliforniaAvalancheAP3-1-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/CaliforniaAvalancheAP3-1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Snow covers the roof of the Nevada County Sheriff’s office on Friday, Feb. 20, 2026, in Truckee, California. \u003ccite>(Godofredo A. Vásquez/AP Photo)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“They were experienced backcountry skiers who deeply respected the mountains,” the families of the victims wrote in a statement. “They were trained and prepared for backcountry travel and trusted their professional guides on this trip. They were fully equipped with avalanche safety equipment.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The group of 11 skiers and four guides had departed for the Frog Lake Huts near Castle Peak on Sunday, despite warnings from the Sierra Avalanche Center that a “strong winter storm” was expected to begin in the evening, bringing feet of snow to the region on Monday and Tuesday. A twelfth member of the group backed out of the trip before they left.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Throughout the day Sunday and into the week, weather conditions in Tahoe became significantly more perilous. More than 28 inches of snow fell around the Donner Summit on Monday, according to UC Berkeley’s Sierra Snow Lab, and Donner Ski Ranch reported another 26 inches on Tuesday. The snow shuttered Interstate 80 for much of the early week, and some ski resorts closed on Tuesday due to the storms.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to Nevada County Sheriff Shannon Moon, the group was travelling out of the backcountry, coming back to the trailhead when they encountered the avalanche midday Tuesday.[aside postID=news_12073851 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/260220-AVALANCHE-VICTIMS-KQED.jpg']“Anytime you go in the back country with lots of new snow, it’s risky,” Di Nola, a ski industry investigations consultant for more than 20 years, told KQED.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He said that most guide companies require participants to sign liability waivers that acknowledge that risk, and that guides who lead these trips have generally received applicable training.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For Blackbird Mountain Guides to be found liable, he said, investigations or potential lawsuits against the company that could emerge would have to find that the company acted “recklessly.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Lawyers would look at this and say, releases are signed … expected they don’t release negligence that is reckless or more than just normal,” Di Nola told KQED.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He said an investigation may look into when the group decided to depart the Frog Lake Huts on Tuesday.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There’s a reason why you hire an organization to guide you in these situations,” Di Nola said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If there was a decision … to move these people [and] at that time, they had knowledge of an increased avalanche danger, yeah, that’s a jury question, and it’s a question for a judge,” he continued.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12073957\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12073957\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/SierraAvalanche1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1500\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/SierraAvalanche1.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/SierraAvalanche1-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/SierraAvalanche1-1536x1152.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sierra Avalanche Center forecasters observe a crack in the snow on Feb. 17, 2026. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Nolan Averbuch)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In a statement issued Wednesday, Blackbird founder Zeb Blais said guides in the field were American Mountain Guides Association-trained or certified in backcountry skiing, and each was an instructor with the American Institute for Avalanche Research and Education. The company offers courses in “Avalanche Education” and avalanche rescue.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Blais also said that guides in the field are in communication with senior guides at the company’s base “to discuss conditions and routing based upon conditions.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The company, which operates in Northern California and Washington, has suspended its field operations in Tahoe through Saturday at least, and said it could extend that into the next few weeks, and the U.S. National Service has closed the national forest lands and trails in the Castle Peak area through mid-March.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As of Friday, the Nevada County Sheriff’s Office is still conducting its search and rescue operation and has not yet been able to recover the bodies of the eight deceased.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We don’t have all the answers yet, and it may be some time before we do. In the meantime, please keep those impacted in your hearts,” Blais wrote.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Local and state authorities are investigating whether criminal negligence was involved in the backcountry skiing trip caught up in Tuesday’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12073933/treacherous-sierra-nevada-storm-delays-recovery-of-9-presumed-avalanche-victims\">deadly avalanche in Lake Tahoe\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The avalanche on Tuesday, the deadliest in modern California history, buried a group of 15 skiers who were part of a three-day guided backcountry tour in the Donner Summit region. Six of the skiers were rescued Tuesday night, while\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12073851/tahoe-avalanche-heres-what-we-know-about-the-victims\"> eight have been confirmed dead\u003c/a>, and a ninth is still missing but presumed dead. The victims include six mothers and three guides from Blackbird Mountain Guides, an outdoor adventure company.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On Friday, the Nevada County Sheriff’s Office said in an email that it was conducting a “standard investigation,” and that it is too early to know if criminal charges would be applicable. In a statement, Cal/OSHA said it was also investigating and has up to six months to complete that examination and issue any citations for “violations of workplace safety regulations.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While questions surrounding what preceded the incident have already begun to arise, snow and ski safety consultant Mark Di Nola said whether the company can be found liable will depend on what those investigations determine regarding what operators knew about weather and terrain conditions throughout the trip, and when.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Is a big storm foreseeable? Yes. Did they know about it? We don’t know when. Did the avalanche danger increase during that period of time? The investigation will bear that out,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to family members, the group that was caught in Tuesday’s avalanche had traveled to Lake Tahoe last week for the two-night backcountry hut trip from the Bay Area, Truckee and as far as Idaho.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12073999\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12073999\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/CaliforniaAvalancheAP3-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/CaliforniaAvalancheAP3-1.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/CaliforniaAvalancheAP3-1-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/CaliforniaAvalancheAP3-1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Snow covers the roof of the Nevada County Sheriff’s office on Friday, Feb. 20, 2026, in Truckee, California. \u003ccite>(Godofredo A. Vásquez/AP Photo)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“They were experienced backcountry skiers who deeply respected the mountains,” the families of the victims wrote in a statement. “They were trained and prepared for backcountry travel and trusted their professional guides on this trip. They were fully equipped with avalanche safety equipment.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The group of 11 skiers and four guides had departed for the Frog Lake Huts near Castle Peak on Sunday, despite warnings from the Sierra Avalanche Center that a “strong winter storm” was expected to begin in the evening, bringing feet of snow to the region on Monday and Tuesday. A twelfth member of the group backed out of the trip before they left.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Throughout the day Sunday and into the week, weather conditions in Tahoe became significantly more perilous. More than 28 inches of snow fell around the Donner Summit on Monday, according to UC Berkeley’s Sierra Snow Lab, and Donner Ski Ranch reported another 26 inches on Tuesday. The snow shuttered Interstate 80 for much of the early week, and some ski resorts closed on Tuesday due to the storms.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to Nevada County Sheriff Shannon Moon, the group was travelling out of the backcountry, coming back to the trailhead when they encountered the avalanche midday Tuesday.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“Anytime you go in the back country with lots of new snow, it’s risky,” Di Nola, a ski industry investigations consultant for more than 20 years, told KQED.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He said that most guide companies require participants to sign liability waivers that acknowledge that risk, and that guides who lead these trips have generally received applicable training.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For Blackbird Mountain Guides to be found liable, he said, investigations or potential lawsuits against the company that could emerge would have to find that the company acted “recklessly.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Lawyers would look at this and say, releases are signed … expected they don’t release negligence that is reckless or more than just normal,” Di Nola told KQED.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He said an investigation may look into when the group decided to depart the Frog Lake Huts on Tuesday.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There’s a reason why you hire an organization to guide you in these situations,” Di Nola said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If there was a decision … to move these people [and] at that time, they had knowledge of an increased avalanche danger, yeah, that’s a jury question, and it’s a question for a judge,” he continued.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12073957\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12073957\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/SierraAvalanche1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1500\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/SierraAvalanche1.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/SierraAvalanche1-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/SierraAvalanche1-1536x1152.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sierra Avalanche Center forecasters observe a crack in the snow on Feb. 17, 2026. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Nolan Averbuch)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In a statement issued Wednesday, Blackbird founder Zeb Blais said guides in the field were American Mountain Guides Association-trained or certified in backcountry skiing, and each was an instructor with the American Institute for Avalanche Research and Education. The company offers courses in “Avalanche Education” and avalanche rescue.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Blais also said that guides in the field are in communication with senior guides at the company’s base “to discuss conditions and routing based upon conditions.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The company, which operates in Northern California and Washington, has suspended its field operations in Tahoe through Saturday at least, and said it could extend that into the next few weeks, and the U.S. National Service has closed the national forest lands and trails in the Castle Peak area through mid-March.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As of Friday, the Nevada County Sheriff’s Office is still conducting its search and rescue operation and has not yet been able to recover the bodies of the eight deceased.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We don’t have all the answers yet, and it may be some time before we do. In the meantime, please keep those impacted in your hearts,” Blais wrote.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "as-california-silicosis-cases-rise-engineered-stone-industry-seeks-immunity-in-dc",
"title": "As California Silicosis Cases Rise, Engineered Stone Industry Seeks Immunity in DC",
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"content": "\u003cp>Facing \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12064693/california-doctors-urge-ban-on-engineered-stone-as-silicosis-cases-surge\">hundreds of lawsuits by sick workers\u003c/a> in California, a major U.S. artificial stone manufacturer and other industry representatives testified in support of a bill in Congress that would immunize their companies from liability during a Republican-led hearing on Wednesday.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Artificial stone is linked to an aggressive form of an incurable lung disease diagnosed in more than 480 California stonecutters who inhaled toxic silica dust released when slicing and polishing the popular kitchen countertop material. Dozens have undergone lung transplants and 27 people have died from silicosis since 2019, according to \u003ca href=\"https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CCDPHP/DEODC/OHB/Pages/essdashboard.aspx\">state health authorities\u003c/a>. Reported cases nationwide are expected to surge as awareness and surveillance increase.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/5437/text\">H.R. 5437\u003c/a>, introduced by Republican Rep. Tom McClintock last September, would prohibit civil lawsuits against stone slab manufacturers or sellers for harm resulting from the alteration of their products, such as to make kitchen and bathroom countertops and other construction surfaces. The bill would also dismiss hundreds of pending lawsuits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Industry representatives, led by Minnesota-based Cambria, told lawmakers they are being unfairly targeted for damages they attribute to downstream employers at countertop fabrication shops that fail to follow required worker protections.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Rather than hold the bad actors accountable, the lawsuits are being filed against dozens of innocent stone slab manufacturers,” Rebecca Schult, Cambria’s chief legal officer, said. “The wrong parties are being sued, and the lawsuits are overwhelming good companies throughout our industry.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Republican members of the House Judiciary subcommittee seemed sympathetic to the companies’ plight. They denounced job safety regulators for insufficient enforcement and focused many of their questions on the impacts of mounting litigation and insurance costs for businesses, which jeopardize industry jobs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12033047\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1999px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12033047\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A stone fabricator places his hand on a table that he cut at his home in San Francisco on Oct. 17, 2023. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Gary Talwar, vice president of Natural Stone Resources, said the Los Angeles area distribution company his family owns faces 65 silica lawsuits and higher insurance premiums. Many small operations are struggling to keep their doors open as well, he added.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“As far as a small business, I bring product in, I put it in a warehouse, and I ship it out. Once it leaves my warehouse, I don’t know who cuts it, how they cut it, or what happens,” Talwar said. “There’s hundreds of, maybe thousands of companies across the country, just like myself, that are being hammered with lawsuits. We’re fighting for our lives, and we can’t afford it anymore.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>During the two-hour hearing, Democrats slammed H.R. 5437 as a proposal seeking special treatment for artificial stone manufacturers and distributors and preventing injured workers from accessing justice in court.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Congress would make a millionaire CEO’s problems go away just like that, while the workers who cut, grind, polish, and install this dangerous product struggle to make ends meet, struggle to stay alive,” said Rep. Hank Johnson, a Georgia Democrat, referring to Cambria’s CEO, Marty Davis, whose campaign donations have benefitted President Donald Trump and GOP candidates.[aside postID=news_12066901 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251115-DEADLY-LUNG-DISEASE-MD-04-KQED-2.jpg']Artificial stone, also known as engineered stone or quartz, can contain more than 90% crystalline silica. Resins and other chemicals added to the factory-made slabs contribute to making engineered stone dust \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12067166/health-emergency-california-doctors-urge-ban-of-countertop-material-linked-to-deadly-disease\">more dangerous than dust from natural stones\u003c/a> such as granite or marble, according to doctors.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cambria faces 400 lawsuits from stoneworkers for silica-related injuries, most of them in California, Schult said. Other major manufacturers facing lawsuits, such as Israel-based Caesarstone and Cosentino, headquartered in Spain, have developed low or no-crystalline silica alternatives. But Cambria, which owns a quartz mine that supplies its high-silica products, has not.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin said the courts should determine whether manufacturers have any responsibility for the impact of their products on stoneworkers. In one of the two cases against Cambria and other manufacturers that went to trial, the company was found \u003ca href=\"https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2024-08-07/jury-finds-stone-companies-at-fault-in-suit-by-countertop-cutter-with-silicosis\">partially liable\u003c/a> in a $52.4 million verdict for failing to adequately warn of the hazards. Cambria appealed the jury decision. In a separate case, a jury ruled in favor of the defendant manufacturers, a decision that is also on appeal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“You are looking for categorical absolute immunity in all of these cases,” Raskin said in a testy exchange with Schult. “On your definition, there’s no defect on the product, right? So how could you ever be held liable?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cambria has emerged as a vocal opponent of a \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12067166/health-emergency-california-doctors-urge-ban-of-countertop-material-linked-to-deadly-disease\">doctor’s petition\u003c/a> last month asking California to ban cutting and polishing of artificial stone. The Western Occupational and Environmental Medicine Association said such a ban would encourage the \u003ca href=\"https://www.dir.ca.gov/oshsb/documents/petition-609.pdf\">use of safer substitutes\u003c/a> developed by some manufacturers for the Australian market. That country was the world’s first to prohibit the sale and use of high-silica artificial stone in 2024.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Schult said Cambria’s own fabrication shops have cut artificial stone safely for more than 20 years, without a single silicosis case. A Cambria safety video played at the start of the hearing showed state-of-the-art facilities that use robotic machines to cut slabs in glass-enclosed areas. The company told KQED that Cambria’s fabrication practices include the use of handheld devices, but declined to specify how many of its cutting tasks are done by the robotic machines.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12067172\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12067172\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/StoneworkerGetty1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/StoneworkerGetty1.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/StoneworkerGetty1-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/StoneworkerGetty1-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A stone countertop fabricator wears a mask to help protect against airborne particles, which can contribute to silicosis, at a shop on Oct. 31, 2023, in Sun Valley, California. \u003ccite>(Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Some silicosis experts and employers doubt the sophisticated and expensive measures needed to safely handle engineered stone are feasible or affordable for most fabrication shops, which are typically small businesses with fewer than 10 employees.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cal/OSHA inspectors have found that about 95% of the fabrication operations they’ve visited were not following all of the state’s safety rules. California’s regulations, the nation’s strictest, require artificial stone to be cut or polished with machines that cover the material’s surface in water to suppress dust. Employers must also provide workers with sophisticated respirators that can cost more than $1,000 each, and a ventilation system to clean the air.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>James Nevin, an attorney at Brayton Purcell LLP representing hundreds of stonecutters, said that workers are contracting silicosis in even the most sophisticated fabrication facilities.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This epidemic starts and stops with crystalline silica artificial stone. It is entirely the uniquely toxic product that is the problem, not ‘a few bad actors’ in the countertop fabrication process,” Nevin told KQED in a statement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Nearly all of the sick stoneworkers in California are Latino men, many of them undocumented immigrants. McClintock, whose district includes parts of California’s Central Valley, said fabrication shops that violate worker protections undercut law-abiding competitors while regulators fail to enforce existing rules.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12064718\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-12064718 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251119-Miners-Lung-silicosis-01-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1500\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251119-Miners-Lung-silicosis-01-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251119-Miners-Lung-silicosis-01-KQED-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251119-Miners-Lung-silicosis-01-KQED-1536x1152.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A photo of a pair of lungs with silicosis used in a Cal/OSHA presentation slide about the disease, and rising numbers of cases in California, at a public meeting on Nov. 13, 2025. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Museomed via Wikimedia Commons)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“It appears they’re just turning a blind eye to law-breaking by sweatshops that are breaking our immigration laws, labor, health and safety laws, exposing their employees to the dust that causes silicosis,” McClintock told Schult. “And it appears that instead of enforcing the law against these illegal practices, the Democrats prefer to drive you out of business.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California is not the only state facing a growing silicosis problem. Dozens of additional cases have been identified in Washington, Utah, Colorado, Illinois, Massachusetts and other states where engineered stone is being cut. David Michaels, a former assistant secretary at the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, believes thousands more silicosis cases across the country have not been reported.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Lawsuits play an important role in public health protection. If lawsuits by workers with silicosis are prohibited, these manufacturers will make no effort to prevent more workers from dying or becoming disabled by silicosis,” Michaels, an epidemiologist and professor at the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health, said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We shouldn’t be discussing immunity from litigation. We should be discussing banning this product to make it safe for workers, and that would protect the manufacturers and the distributors as well,” he added. “We should not allow the carnage to continue.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On Wednesday, fabrication workers not yet diagnosed with silicosis sued Cambria and other major manufacturers and distributors in federal court in San Francisco, seeking to require the companies to pay for medical monitoring for all California workers exposed to artificial stone dust.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "Artificial stone manufacturers, facing hundreds of silicosis lawsuits in California, urged lawmakers in Washington, D.C., to pass a bill shielding the industry from liability as cases rise nationwide among countertop fabrication workers.",
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"title": "As California Silicosis Cases Rise, Engineered Stone Industry Seeks Immunity in DC | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Facing \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12064693/california-doctors-urge-ban-on-engineered-stone-as-silicosis-cases-surge\">hundreds of lawsuits by sick workers\u003c/a> in California, a major U.S. artificial stone manufacturer and other industry representatives testified in support of a bill in Congress that would immunize their companies from liability during a Republican-led hearing on Wednesday.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Artificial stone is linked to an aggressive form of an incurable lung disease diagnosed in more than 480 California stonecutters who inhaled toxic silica dust released when slicing and polishing the popular kitchen countertop material. Dozens have undergone lung transplants and 27 people have died from silicosis since 2019, according to \u003ca href=\"https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CCDPHP/DEODC/OHB/Pages/essdashboard.aspx\">state health authorities\u003c/a>. Reported cases nationwide are expected to surge as awareness and surveillance increase.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/5437/text\">H.R. 5437\u003c/a>, introduced by Republican Rep. Tom McClintock last September, would prohibit civil lawsuits against stone slab manufacturers or sellers for harm resulting from the alteration of their products, such as to make kitchen and bathroom countertops and other construction surfaces. The bill would also dismiss hundreds of pending lawsuits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Industry representatives, led by Minnesota-based Cambria, told lawmakers they are being unfairly targeted for damages they attribute to downstream employers at countertop fabrication shops that fail to follow required worker protections.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Rather than hold the bad actors accountable, the lawsuits are being filed against dozens of innocent stone slab manufacturers,” Rebecca Schult, Cambria’s chief legal officer, said. “The wrong parties are being sued, and the lawsuits are overwhelming good companies throughout our industry.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Republican members of the House Judiciary subcommittee seemed sympathetic to the companies’ plight. They denounced job safety regulators for insufficient enforcement and focused many of their questions on the impacts of mounting litigation and insurance costs for businesses, which jeopardize industry jobs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12033047\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1999px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12033047\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A stone fabricator places his hand on a table that he cut at his home in San Francisco on Oct. 17, 2023. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Gary Talwar, vice president of Natural Stone Resources, said the Los Angeles area distribution company his family owns faces 65 silica lawsuits and higher insurance premiums. Many small operations are struggling to keep their doors open as well, he added.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“As far as a small business, I bring product in, I put it in a warehouse, and I ship it out. Once it leaves my warehouse, I don’t know who cuts it, how they cut it, or what happens,” Talwar said. “There’s hundreds of, maybe thousands of companies across the country, just like myself, that are being hammered with lawsuits. We’re fighting for our lives, and we can’t afford it anymore.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>During the two-hour hearing, Democrats slammed H.R. 5437 as a proposal seeking special treatment for artificial stone manufacturers and distributors and preventing injured workers from accessing justice in court.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Congress would make a millionaire CEO’s problems go away just like that, while the workers who cut, grind, polish, and install this dangerous product struggle to make ends meet, struggle to stay alive,” said Rep. Hank Johnson, a Georgia Democrat, referring to Cambria’s CEO, Marty Davis, whose campaign donations have benefitted President Donald Trump and GOP candidates.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Artificial stone, also known as engineered stone or quartz, can contain more than 90% crystalline silica. Resins and other chemicals added to the factory-made slabs contribute to making engineered stone dust \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12067166/health-emergency-california-doctors-urge-ban-of-countertop-material-linked-to-deadly-disease\">more dangerous than dust from natural stones\u003c/a> such as granite or marble, according to doctors.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cambria faces 400 lawsuits from stoneworkers for silica-related injuries, most of them in California, Schult said. Other major manufacturers facing lawsuits, such as Israel-based Caesarstone and Cosentino, headquartered in Spain, have developed low or no-crystalline silica alternatives. But Cambria, which owns a quartz mine that supplies its high-silica products, has not.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin said the courts should determine whether manufacturers have any responsibility for the impact of their products on stoneworkers. In one of the two cases against Cambria and other manufacturers that went to trial, the company was found \u003ca href=\"https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2024-08-07/jury-finds-stone-companies-at-fault-in-suit-by-countertop-cutter-with-silicosis\">partially liable\u003c/a> in a $52.4 million verdict for failing to adequately warn of the hazards. Cambria appealed the jury decision. In a separate case, a jury ruled in favor of the defendant manufacturers, a decision that is also on appeal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“You are looking for categorical absolute immunity in all of these cases,” Raskin said in a testy exchange with Schult. “On your definition, there’s no defect on the product, right? So how could you ever be held liable?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cambria has emerged as a vocal opponent of a \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12067166/health-emergency-california-doctors-urge-ban-of-countertop-material-linked-to-deadly-disease\">doctor’s petition\u003c/a> last month asking California to ban cutting and polishing of artificial stone. The Western Occupational and Environmental Medicine Association said such a ban would encourage the \u003ca href=\"https://www.dir.ca.gov/oshsb/documents/petition-609.pdf\">use of safer substitutes\u003c/a> developed by some manufacturers for the Australian market. That country was the world’s first to prohibit the sale and use of high-silica artificial stone in 2024.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Schult said Cambria’s own fabrication shops have cut artificial stone safely for more than 20 years, without a single silicosis case. A Cambria safety video played at the start of the hearing showed state-of-the-art facilities that use robotic machines to cut slabs in glass-enclosed areas. The company told KQED that Cambria’s fabrication practices include the use of handheld devices, but declined to specify how many of its cutting tasks are done by the robotic machines.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12067172\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12067172\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/StoneworkerGetty1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/StoneworkerGetty1.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/StoneworkerGetty1-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/StoneworkerGetty1-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A stone countertop fabricator wears a mask to help protect against airborne particles, which can contribute to silicosis, at a shop on Oct. 31, 2023, in Sun Valley, California. \u003ccite>(Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Some silicosis experts and employers doubt the sophisticated and expensive measures needed to safely handle engineered stone are feasible or affordable for most fabrication shops, which are typically small businesses with fewer than 10 employees.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cal/OSHA inspectors have found that about 95% of the fabrication operations they’ve visited were not following all of the state’s safety rules. California’s regulations, the nation’s strictest, require artificial stone to be cut or polished with machines that cover the material’s surface in water to suppress dust. Employers must also provide workers with sophisticated respirators that can cost more than $1,000 each, and a ventilation system to clean the air.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>James Nevin, an attorney at Brayton Purcell LLP representing hundreds of stonecutters, said that workers are contracting silicosis in even the most sophisticated fabrication facilities.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This epidemic starts and stops with crystalline silica artificial stone. It is entirely the uniquely toxic product that is the problem, not ‘a few bad actors’ in the countertop fabrication process,” Nevin told KQED in a statement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Nearly all of the sick stoneworkers in California are Latino men, many of them undocumented immigrants. McClintock, whose district includes parts of California’s Central Valley, said fabrication shops that violate worker protections undercut law-abiding competitors while regulators fail to enforce existing rules.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12064718\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-12064718 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251119-Miners-Lung-silicosis-01-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1500\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251119-Miners-Lung-silicosis-01-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251119-Miners-Lung-silicosis-01-KQED-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251119-Miners-Lung-silicosis-01-KQED-1536x1152.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A photo of a pair of lungs with silicosis used in a Cal/OSHA presentation slide about the disease, and rising numbers of cases in California, at a public meeting on Nov. 13, 2025. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Museomed via Wikimedia Commons)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“It appears they’re just turning a blind eye to law-breaking by sweatshops that are breaking our immigration laws, labor, health and safety laws, exposing their employees to the dust that causes silicosis,” McClintock told Schult. “And it appears that instead of enforcing the law against these illegal practices, the Democrats prefer to drive you out of business.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California is not the only state facing a growing silicosis problem. Dozens of additional cases have been identified in Washington, Utah, Colorado, Illinois, Massachusetts and other states where engineered stone is being cut. David Michaels, a former assistant secretary at the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, believes thousands more silicosis cases across the country have not been reported.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Lawsuits play an important role in public health protection. If lawsuits by workers with silicosis are prohibited, these manufacturers will make no effort to prevent more workers from dying or becoming disabled by silicosis,” Michaels, an epidemiologist and professor at the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health, said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We shouldn’t be discussing immunity from litigation. We should be discussing banning this product to make it safe for workers, and that would protect the manufacturers and the distributors as well,” he added. “We should not allow the carnage to continue.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On Wednesday, fabrication workers not yet diagnosed with silicosis sued Cambria and other major manufacturers and distributors in federal court in San Francisco, seeking to require the companies to pay for medical monitoring for all California workers exposed to artificial stone dust.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"title": "California Doctors Urge Ban on Engineered Stone as Silicosis Cases Surge",
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"headTitle": "California Doctors Urge Ban on Engineered Stone as Silicosis Cases Surge | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>A former stoneworker named Lopez sat confined to his \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/east-bay\">East Bay\u003c/a> home, breathing with the help of a whirring oxygen supply machine through clear tubes pronged to his nostrils. After years of making kitchen countertops from engineered stone, the 43-year-old was \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11969381/california-regulators-to-vote-on-emergency-rules-for-stonecutters-safety\">diagnosed with silicosis\u003c/a>, an often deadly lung disease linked to inhaling toxic dust the material releases when powercut.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The once-active father of four now awaits a double lung transplant. He can no longer support his family or walk a few steps without pausing to catch his breath. Two stonecutter friends died after working with the man-made material, also known as artificial stone or quartz. Three others are on a waitlist for lung transplants, he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I feel desperate just sitting here unable to do anything,” said Lopez, an undocumented immigrant who worked in California for more than two decades. KQED is withholding his full name, as he fears losing vital medical care if arrested by federal authorities.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s agonizing waiting for the hospital to call me so I can finally get the transplant I’m waiting for and be able to go back to work,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As silicosis cases surge in California’s countertop fabrication industry, medical and occupational safety experts warn that current regulations won’t protect hundreds more relatively young workers like Lopez from contracting the incurable illness. The state must act urgently to phase out hazardous engineered stone from fabrication shops, as Australia did, they say, to stem a growing health crisis.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Australia banned the use, supply and manufacture of engineered stone benchtops in July 2024, forcing major manufacturers to switch to silica-free alternatives in that market, though they still sell their higher-silica products in the U.S. The companies maintain that their products are safe if fabrication shops follow protocols.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12064718\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12064718\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251119-Miners-Lung-silicosis-01-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1500\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251119-Miners-Lung-silicosis-01-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251119-Miners-Lung-silicosis-01-KQED-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251119-Miners-Lung-silicosis-01-KQED-1536x1152.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A photo of a pair lungs with silicosis used in a Cal/OSHA presentation slide about the disease, and rising number of cases in California, at a public meeting on Nov. 13, 2025. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Museomed via Wikimedia Commons)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“Silicosis is preventable when proper safety and health measures are in place to protect workers against inhalation of silica dust in the workplace,” a spokesperson for Cosentino North America said in a statement. “The company continues its efforts in research and development for the ongoing improvement of its products.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Between 1,000 to 1,500 stoneworkers in California could develop silicosis within the next decade, leading to roughly 285 deaths, according to California’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health, or Cal/OSHA. The state is home to about 5,000 countertop fabrication workers, predominantly Latino immigrants.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Artificial stone in the U.S. market often contains more than 90% pulverized crystalline silica, far more than natural stones such as marble and granite. When workers powercut, polish and grind slabs of the material, tiny silica particles are released. If inhaled, they can lodge in the lungs and cause tissue scarring that progressively impedes breathing. Respirable silica can also lead to lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and other illnesses.[aside postID=news_12033036 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/StonecutterGetty-1020x680.jpg']To save lives, the Governor’s Office could issue an emergency declaration pausing the processing of artificial stone until a permanent ban is pursued through rulemaking, according to a Sept. 4 memorandum obtained by KQED. Drafted by a committee of doctors, occupational safety experts and worker advocates convened by Cal/OSHA, the letter was addressed to the state board responsible for adopting new workplace safety regulations, but was not sent.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Gov. Gavin Newsom’s press office did not respond to requests for comment about his position on banning engineered stone in fabrication shops. A spokesperson with the Department of Industrial Relations, which oversees press requests for both Cal/OSHA and the Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board, said the draft had not been vetted.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The memo referenced … is an incomplete working draft by the Silica Technical Committee and not by Cal/OSHA. None of the recommendations are final,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “Cal/OSHA continually works to protect the health and safety of California’s workers and enforces all regulations adopted by the Board.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Several board members have publicly expressed dismay for months at the steep climb in silicosis cases, but the agenda for their next meeting on Thursday does not include decision-making on artificial stone.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Maegan Ortiz, director of the Instituto de Educacion Popular del Sur de California, said that although the state approved stricter standards nearly two years ago, California has made little progress in protecting stoneworkers still inhaling engineered stone dust on the job.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12064281\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12064281\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251115-DEADLY-LUNG-DISEASE-MD-04-KQED-2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251115-DEADLY-LUNG-DISEASE-MD-04-KQED-2.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251115-DEADLY-LUNG-DISEASE-MD-04-KQED-2-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251115-DEADLY-LUNG-DISEASE-MD-04-KQED-2-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Lopez adjusts the breathing tube connected to his oxygen tank in his home in Pittsburg on Nov. 15, 2025. \u003ccite>(Martin do Nascimento/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“We need to ban this. I think the concern is great, but it is kind of like thoughts and prayers in the face of other crises that don’t go far enough,” said Ortiz, whose organization has been surveying stoneworkers in Los Angeles County, the state’s silicosis epicenter. “We’ve seen the conditions ourselves on the ground in terms of the amount of dust that is there, even in these bigger shops that are following the regulations. Workers see the dust, they carry it on them.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since 2019, more than 430 workers have been confirmed with silicosis in California, including 25 who died and 48 who underwent a lung transplant, according to state public health officials tracking \u003ca href=\"https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CCDPHP/DEODC/OHB/Pages/essdashboard.aspx\">reported cases\u003c/a>. Half of those sick are located in Los Angeles County. Nearly all are Latino men, some in their 20s, who said they didn’t know how dangerous artificial stone dust could be. About 40% of silicosis cases were identified this year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lopez said he worked in licensed shops using safety gear and methods his supervisors said would protect him. He wore filter masks and cut and polished engineered stone with machines that covered slabs with water to suppress dust. But mounting evidence shows silica particles in artificial stone dust are so small and toxic that it doesn’t take much to hurt workers. Silica can penetrate filter masks and remain on workers’ clothes and tools when water dries.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Australia tried banning drycutting of engineered stone, similar to Cal/OSHA rules in place since December 2023 and a bill Newsom signed last month, SB 20. Australia also tried additional safeguards, including full-face powered air-purifying respirators, ventilation systems and monitoring, like California’s strict \u003ca href=\"https://worksafewithsilica.org/employer-information#rp\">regulations\u003c/a> that go beyond federal requirements. But in both places, experts say, the sophisticated and costly measures are not realistic for an industry made up of mostly small shops with only a few workers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12064282\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12064282\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251115-DEADLY-LUNG-DISEASE-MD-05-KQED-2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251115-DEADLY-LUNG-DISEASE-MD-05-KQED-2.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251115-DEADLY-LUNG-DISEASE-MD-05-KQED-2-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251115-DEADLY-LUNG-DISEASE-MD-05-KQED-2-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Lopez coils the breathing tube connected to his oxygen tank in his home in Pittsburg on Nov. 15, 2025. \u003ccite>(Martin do Nascimento/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“I think it’s completely unfeasible,” said Dr. Ryan Hoy, a respiratory physician and researcher at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia. “I often use the analogy that you can work with asbestos safely, you can work with uranium safely, but you need to have in place very sophisticated control measures.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In California, most fabrication shops are not complying with drycutting bans, respiratory protection, monitoring or other requirements. About 94% of 107 worksites investigated by Cal/OSHA had violations of the silica regulations as of Oct. 16.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lopez’s wife said she wished her husband had more accurate information from manufacturers, vendors and employers before working with artificial stone so he could have chosen whether to take on the risk. Considering the impact of his disease on her family, the 41-year-old choked back tears.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s painful because I’ve always seen him working. He’s always looked out for us. He’s the pillar of our family,” she said in Spanish, adding that her youngest son is 3. “It hurts us deeply.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12064276\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12064276\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251115-DEADLY-LUNG-DISEASE-MD-03-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251115-DEADLY-LUNG-DISEASE-MD-03-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251115-DEADLY-LUNG-DISEASE-MD-03-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251115-DEADLY-LUNG-DISEASE-MD-03-KQED-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Lopez’s wife draws in a coloring book with their 3-year-old in their home in Pittsburg on Nov. 15, 2025. \u003ccite>(Martin do Nascimento/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Lopez’s state disability benefits have run out, he said, and the family relies on financial support from their oldest daughter, a 20-year-old medical assistant. He became one of hundreds of workers in the U.S. and other countries who have sued top manufacturers of engineered stone — including Minnesota-based Cambria, Israel-based Caesarstone and Cosentino, headquartered in Spain — claiming silica-related injuries.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Caesarstone, which generated nearly half of its $303 million in revenue so far this year in the U.S. market, reported claims by more than 500 individuals in its latest \u003ca href=\"https://ir.caesarstone.com/news/news-details/2025/Caesarstone-Reports-Third-Quarter-2025-Financial-Results/default.aspx\">financial results\u003c/a>. The company recorded a $46 million provision for probable losses, with $24.3 million covered by insurance. But costs could grow, as most of the 320 U.S. claims are awaiting trial.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Caesarstone won one case in the U.S., which remains under appeal, and settled another this year, according to Nahum Trust, Caesarstone’s chief financial officer, during an earnings call this month. Last year, a jury \u003ca href=\"https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2024-08-07/jury-finds-stone-companies-at-fault-in-suit-by-countertop-cutter-with-silicosis\">awarded\u003c/a> a 34-year-old stoneworker $52 million after finding Caesarstone and other companies liable, a decision the company has appealed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The company developed crystalline silica-free countertop surfaces in preparation for restrictions in Australia and recently unveiled what it advertises as safer alternatives for fabrication workers in the U.S. Caesarstone’s sales were down this quarter in the U.S. and Canada, due to softness in the market and competitive pressures, according to Trust, but sales are up in Australia.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12033047\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1999px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12033047\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A stone fabricator places his hand on a table that he cut at his home in San Francisco on Oct. 17, 2023. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“Our first year of real growth in this market since the silica ban implementation,” Trust said. “This reflects early recovery and the successful launch of our zero silica collection.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cosentino said it has also moved to offer newer products due to safety concerns, including a new mineral-surface product with zero crystalline silica that will be available next year globally.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cosentino, Caesarstone and associations representing manufacturers declined to comment on why they continue selling their high-silica engineered stone products in the U.S. if they have alternatives for the Australian market.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Global demand for artificial stone, a multibillion-dollar industry in the U.S., is expected to significantly grow. In California, sales are expected to increase even more due to efforts to rebuild the more than 16,000 homes and buildings destroyed by January wildfires in Los Angeles.[aside postID=news_12063843 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/CaregiverGetty.jpg']Consumers prefer the stain-resistant material because it’s often cheaper than natural stone and offers diverse colors and designs. But many homeowners don’t know of the potential health impacts to the workers who make their countertops.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Pulmonologists predict silicosis cases will keep rising, even if exposure to silica dust stopped immediately. By the time workers feel symptoms, the disease has often advanced, Hoy said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Unfortunately, that is definitely the tip of the iceberg of workers that are currently affected,” said Hoy, who screened stoneworkers in Australia for silicosis and treats diagnosed patients.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As manufacturers switched to silica-free products in Australia, costs increased, but consumers still purchased countertops for renovations and new buildings. The industry carried on without the old material.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dr. Hayley Barnes, a pulmonologist who studied silicosis in Australia, said that initially, talking about banning the material in that country felt like a huge ordeal, with predictions that the building industry would collapse and jobs would disappear. But that didn’t happen, she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The companies just made a low-silica or no-silica product, which is currently available in Australia and many other countries,” Barnes said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now medical director of UCSF’s Interstitial Lung Disease Program, she worries many cases in California have not yet been diagnosed, and stoneworkers are suffering.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12037908\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12037908\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/20250424_UCSFFILE_GC-12-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1236\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/20250424_UCSFFILE_GC-12-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/20250424_UCSFFILE_GC-12-KQED-800x494.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/20250424_UCSFFILE_GC-12-KQED-1020x630.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/20250424_UCSFFILE_GC-12-KQED-160x99.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/20250424_UCSFFILE_GC-12-KQED-1536x949.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/20250424_UCSFFILE_GC-12-KQED-1920x1187.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">UCSF Medical Center at Mission Bay in San Francisco on April 24, 2025. \u003ccite>(Gina Castro/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“We could do better. It’s been done elsewhere,” Barnes said. “People would still get their houses and apartments built and workers would be better protected.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dr. Sheiphali Gandhi, an assistant professor of medicine at UCSF and a colleague of Barnes who treats dozens of silicosis patients, said she wants California to begin phasing out artificial stone countertops. The move would ensure consumers purchase materials that also protect workers, she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’ve tried all these regulations, but we still are seeing that the cases are going up,” Gandhi said. “We need to move towards the more effective strategies of elimination or substitution, where we really go for safer alternatives.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For now, Gandhi must wade through a stack of about 40 additional cases of very sick workers she has been referred.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s just like every month, my mailbox is full of more referrals of silicosis cases,” she said. “The number of cases is exploding. It’s insane.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "California stoneworkers are becoming severely ill from silica dust exposure from cutting engineered stone, prompting urgent warnings from doctors and workplace safety experts as Australia’s 2024 ban underscores the urgency.",
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"title": "California Doctors Urge Ban on Engineered Stone as Silicosis Cases Surge | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>A former stoneworker named Lopez sat confined to his \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/east-bay\">East Bay\u003c/a> home, breathing with the help of a whirring oxygen supply machine through clear tubes pronged to his nostrils. After years of making kitchen countertops from engineered stone, the 43-year-old was \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11969381/california-regulators-to-vote-on-emergency-rules-for-stonecutters-safety\">diagnosed with silicosis\u003c/a>, an often deadly lung disease linked to inhaling toxic dust the material releases when powercut.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The once-active father of four now awaits a double lung transplant. He can no longer support his family or walk a few steps without pausing to catch his breath. Two stonecutter friends died after working with the man-made material, also known as artificial stone or quartz. Three others are on a waitlist for lung transplants, he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I feel desperate just sitting here unable to do anything,” said Lopez, an undocumented immigrant who worked in California for more than two decades. KQED is withholding his full name, as he fears losing vital medical care if arrested by federal authorities.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s agonizing waiting for the hospital to call me so I can finally get the transplant I’m waiting for and be able to go back to work,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As silicosis cases surge in California’s countertop fabrication industry, medical and occupational safety experts warn that current regulations won’t protect hundreds more relatively young workers like Lopez from contracting the incurable illness. The state must act urgently to phase out hazardous engineered stone from fabrication shops, as Australia did, they say, to stem a growing health crisis.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Australia banned the use, supply and manufacture of engineered stone benchtops in July 2024, forcing major manufacturers to switch to silica-free alternatives in that market, though they still sell their higher-silica products in the U.S. The companies maintain that their products are safe if fabrication shops follow protocols.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12064718\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12064718\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251119-Miners-Lung-silicosis-01-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1500\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251119-Miners-Lung-silicosis-01-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251119-Miners-Lung-silicosis-01-KQED-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251119-Miners-Lung-silicosis-01-KQED-1536x1152.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A photo of a pair lungs with silicosis used in a Cal/OSHA presentation slide about the disease, and rising number of cases in California, at a public meeting on Nov. 13, 2025. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Museomed via Wikimedia Commons)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“Silicosis is preventable when proper safety and health measures are in place to protect workers against inhalation of silica dust in the workplace,” a spokesperson for Cosentino North America said in a statement. “The company continues its efforts in research and development for the ongoing improvement of its products.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Between 1,000 to 1,500 stoneworkers in California could develop silicosis within the next decade, leading to roughly 285 deaths, according to California’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health, or Cal/OSHA. The state is home to about 5,000 countertop fabrication workers, predominantly Latino immigrants.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Artificial stone in the U.S. market often contains more than 90% pulverized crystalline silica, far more than natural stones such as marble and granite. When workers powercut, polish and grind slabs of the material, tiny silica particles are released. If inhaled, they can lodge in the lungs and cause tissue scarring that progressively impedes breathing. Respirable silica can also lead to lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and other illnesses.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>To save lives, the Governor’s Office could issue an emergency declaration pausing the processing of artificial stone until a permanent ban is pursued through rulemaking, according to a Sept. 4 memorandum obtained by KQED. Drafted by a committee of doctors, occupational safety experts and worker advocates convened by Cal/OSHA, the letter was addressed to the state board responsible for adopting new workplace safety regulations, but was not sent.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Gov. Gavin Newsom’s press office did not respond to requests for comment about his position on banning engineered stone in fabrication shops. A spokesperson with the Department of Industrial Relations, which oversees press requests for both Cal/OSHA and the Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board, said the draft had not been vetted.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The memo referenced … is an incomplete working draft by the Silica Technical Committee and not by Cal/OSHA. None of the recommendations are final,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “Cal/OSHA continually works to protect the health and safety of California’s workers and enforces all regulations adopted by the Board.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Several board members have publicly expressed dismay for months at the steep climb in silicosis cases, but the agenda for their next meeting on Thursday does not include decision-making on artificial stone.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Maegan Ortiz, director of the Instituto de Educacion Popular del Sur de California, said that although the state approved stricter standards nearly two years ago, California has made little progress in protecting stoneworkers still inhaling engineered stone dust on the job.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12064281\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12064281\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251115-DEADLY-LUNG-DISEASE-MD-04-KQED-2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251115-DEADLY-LUNG-DISEASE-MD-04-KQED-2.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251115-DEADLY-LUNG-DISEASE-MD-04-KQED-2-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251115-DEADLY-LUNG-DISEASE-MD-04-KQED-2-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Lopez adjusts the breathing tube connected to his oxygen tank in his home in Pittsburg on Nov. 15, 2025. \u003ccite>(Martin do Nascimento/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“We need to ban this. I think the concern is great, but it is kind of like thoughts and prayers in the face of other crises that don’t go far enough,” said Ortiz, whose organization has been surveying stoneworkers in Los Angeles County, the state’s silicosis epicenter. “We’ve seen the conditions ourselves on the ground in terms of the amount of dust that is there, even in these bigger shops that are following the regulations. Workers see the dust, they carry it on them.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since 2019, more than 430 workers have been confirmed with silicosis in California, including 25 who died and 48 who underwent a lung transplant, according to state public health officials tracking \u003ca href=\"https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CCDPHP/DEODC/OHB/Pages/essdashboard.aspx\">reported cases\u003c/a>. Half of those sick are located in Los Angeles County. Nearly all are Latino men, some in their 20s, who said they didn’t know how dangerous artificial stone dust could be. About 40% of silicosis cases were identified this year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lopez said he worked in licensed shops using safety gear and methods his supervisors said would protect him. He wore filter masks and cut and polished engineered stone with machines that covered slabs with water to suppress dust. But mounting evidence shows silica particles in artificial stone dust are so small and toxic that it doesn’t take much to hurt workers. Silica can penetrate filter masks and remain on workers’ clothes and tools when water dries.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Australia tried banning drycutting of engineered stone, similar to Cal/OSHA rules in place since December 2023 and a bill Newsom signed last month, SB 20. Australia also tried additional safeguards, including full-face powered air-purifying respirators, ventilation systems and monitoring, like California’s strict \u003ca href=\"https://worksafewithsilica.org/employer-information#rp\">regulations\u003c/a> that go beyond federal requirements. But in both places, experts say, the sophisticated and costly measures are not realistic for an industry made up of mostly small shops with only a few workers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12064282\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12064282\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251115-DEADLY-LUNG-DISEASE-MD-05-KQED-2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251115-DEADLY-LUNG-DISEASE-MD-05-KQED-2.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251115-DEADLY-LUNG-DISEASE-MD-05-KQED-2-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251115-DEADLY-LUNG-DISEASE-MD-05-KQED-2-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Lopez coils the breathing tube connected to his oxygen tank in his home in Pittsburg on Nov. 15, 2025. \u003ccite>(Martin do Nascimento/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“I think it’s completely unfeasible,” said Dr. Ryan Hoy, a respiratory physician and researcher at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia. “I often use the analogy that you can work with asbestos safely, you can work with uranium safely, but you need to have in place very sophisticated control measures.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In California, most fabrication shops are not complying with drycutting bans, respiratory protection, monitoring or other requirements. About 94% of 107 worksites investigated by Cal/OSHA had violations of the silica regulations as of Oct. 16.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lopez’s wife said she wished her husband had more accurate information from manufacturers, vendors and employers before working with artificial stone so he could have chosen whether to take on the risk. Considering the impact of his disease on her family, the 41-year-old choked back tears.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s painful because I’ve always seen him working. He’s always looked out for us. He’s the pillar of our family,” she said in Spanish, adding that her youngest son is 3. “It hurts us deeply.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12064276\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12064276\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251115-DEADLY-LUNG-DISEASE-MD-03-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251115-DEADLY-LUNG-DISEASE-MD-03-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251115-DEADLY-LUNG-DISEASE-MD-03-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251115-DEADLY-LUNG-DISEASE-MD-03-KQED-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Lopez’s wife draws in a coloring book with their 3-year-old in their home in Pittsburg on Nov. 15, 2025. \u003ccite>(Martin do Nascimento/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Lopez’s state disability benefits have run out, he said, and the family relies on financial support from their oldest daughter, a 20-year-old medical assistant. He became one of hundreds of workers in the U.S. and other countries who have sued top manufacturers of engineered stone — including Minnesota-based Cambria, Israel-based Caesarstone and Cosentino, headquartered in Spain — claiming silica-related injuries.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Caesarstone, which generated nearly half of its $303 million in revenue so far this year in the U.S. market, reported claims by more than 500 individuals in its latest \u003ca href=\"https://ir.caesarstone.com/news/news-details/2025/Caesarstone-Reports-Third-Quarter-2025-Financial-Results/default.aspx\">financial results\u003c/a>. The company recorded a $46 million provision for probable losses, with $24.3 million covered by insurance. But costs could grow, as most of the 320 U.S. claims are awaiting trial.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Caesarstone won one case in the U.S., which remains under appeal, and settled another this year, according to Nahum Trust, Caesarstone’s chief financial officer, during an earnings call this month. Last year, a jury \u003ca href=\"https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2024-08-07/jury-finds-stone-companies-at-fault-in-suit-by-countertop-cutter-with-silicosis\">awarded\u003c/a> a 34-year-old stoneworker $52 million after finding Caesarstone and other companies liable, a decision the company has appealed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The company developed crystalline silica-free countertop surfaces in preparation for restrictions in Australia and recently unveiled what it advertises as safer alternatives for fabrication workers in the U.S. Caesarstone’s sales were down this quarter in the U.S. and Canada, due to softness in the market and competitive pressures, according to Trust, but sales are up in Australia.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12033047\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1999px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12033047\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A stone fabricator places his hand on a table that he cut at his home in San Francisco on Oct. 17, 2023. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“Our first year of real growth in this market since the silica ban implementation,” Trust said. “This reflects early recovery and the successful launch of our zero silica collection.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cosentino said it has also moved to offer newer products due to safety concerns, including a new mineral-surface product with zero crystalline silica that will be available next year globally.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cosentino, Caesarstone and associations representing manufacturers declined to comment on why they continue selling their high-silica engineered stone products in the U.S. if they have alternatives for the Australian market.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Global demand for artificial stone, a multibillion-dollar industry in the U.S., is expected to significantly grow. In California, sales are expected to increase even more due to efforts to rebuild the more than 16,000 homes and buildings destroyed by January wildfires in Los Angeles.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Consumers prefer the stain-resistant material because it’s often cheaper than natural stone and offers diverse colors and designs. But many homeowners don’t know of the potential health impacts to the workers who make their countertops.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Pulmonologists predict silicosis cases will keep rising, even if exposure to silica dust stopped immediately. By the time workers feel symptoms, the disease has often advanced, Hoy said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Unfortunately, that is definitely the tip of the iceberg of workers that are currently affected,” said Hoy, who screened stoneworkers in Australia for silicosis and treats diagnosed patients.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As manufacturers switched to silica-free products in Australia, costs increased, but consumers still purchased countertops for renovations and new buildings. The industry carried on without the old material.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dr. Hayley Barnes, a pulmonologist who studied silicosis in Australia, said that initially, talking about banning the material in that country felt like a huge ordeal, with predictions that the building industry would collapse and jobs would disappear. But that didn’t happen, she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The companies just made a low-silica or no-silica product, which is currently available in Australia and many other countries,” Barnes said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now medical director of UCSF’s Interstitial Lung Disease Program, she worries many cases in California have not yet been diagnosed, and stoneworkers are suffering.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12037908\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12037908\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/20250424_UCSFFILE_GC-12-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1236\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/20250424_UCSFFILE_GC-12-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/20250424_UCSFFILE_GC-12-KQED-800x494.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/20250424_UCSFFILE_GC-12-KQED-1020x630.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/20250424_UCSFFILE_GC-12-KQED-160x99.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/20250424_UCSFFILE_GC-12-KQED-1536x949.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/20250424_UCSFFILE_GC-12-KQED-1920x1187.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">UCSF Medical Center at Mission Bay in San Francisco on April 24, 2025. \u003ccite>(Gina Castro/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“We could do better. It’s been done elsewhere,” Barnes said. “People would still get their houses and apartments built and workers would be better protected.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dr. Sheiphali Gandhi, an assistant professor of medicine at UCSF and a colleague of Barnes who treats dozens of silicosis patients, said she wants California to begin phasing out artificial stone countertops. The move would ensure consumers purchase materials that also protect workers, she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’ve tried all these regulations, but we still are seeing that the cases are going up,” Gandhi said. “We need to move towards the more effective strategies of elimination or substitution, where we really go for safer alternatives.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For now, Gandhi must wade through a stack of about 40 additional cases of very sick workers she has been referred.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s just like every month, my mailbox is full of more referrals of silicosis cases,” she said. “The number of cases is exploding. It’s insane.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/california\">California\u003c/a> lawmakers put top state officials tasked with protecting worker health and safety under intense fire on Wednesday for falling short of their mission, as highlighted by a recent state audit.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The hearing in Sacramento exposed deficiencies that are hampering Cal/OSHA’s ability to prevent job-related deaths and injuries. The agency failed to conduct some on-site inspections and levy appropriate fines, even when doing so would have better protected workers, \u003ca href=\"https://www.auditor.ca.gov/reports/2024-115/\">the report \u003c/a>published July 17 said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The California State Auditor identified severe \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12049005/california-osha-inspectors-dont-visit-worksites-even-when-workers-are-injured\">staffing shortages\u003c/a> and outdated policies and practices as “root causes,” including handling investigations primarily on paper, which makes it difficult to track more than 12,000 complaints Cal/OSHA receives annually.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Employers who put workers in danger are not being held accountable,” Assemblymember Liz Ortega, D-San Leandro, told Cal/OSHA officials at the hearing, including agency Chief Debra Lee. “What I really hope my colleagues and the public understand is the severity of Cal/OSHA’s failure to protect workers.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California has some of the nation’s strongest workplace safety laws, but advocates have \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11875988/minimal-to-non-existent-safety-inspector-shortage-worsened-in-pandemic-leaving-california-workers-vulnerable\">long complained\u003c/a> that weak enforcement leaves \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11932758/health-and-safety-are-at-risk-only-1-california-safety-inspector-is-bilingual-in-chinese-or-vietnamese\">employees at risk\u003c/a>, especially in construction, manufacturing and agriculture.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12054060\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1997px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12054060\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/DSC3491_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1997\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/DSC3491_qed.jpg 1997w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/DSC3491_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/DSC3491_qed-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1997px) 100vw, 1997px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Assemblymember Liz Ortega, D-San Leandro, speaks at a rally in front of UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital in Oakland on Sept. 6, 2019. \u003ccite>(Stephanie Lister/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Cal/OSHA, also known as the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health, is generally supposed to send inspectors to a workplace soon after receiving a report of a fatality, serious injury or danger. On-site inspections can result in fines for the employer if violations are found. Less serious hazards are often addressed through letters asking employers to self-investigate and correct issues, without monetary penalties.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The auditor found Cal/OSHA closed complaints and accident reports without verifying employers had fixed safety hazards and declined to conduct on-site inspections even when state law likely required them. Some cases involved serious injuries, including a chainsaw laceration resulting in surgery and weeks of recovery, and a skull fracture rendering a worker unconscious for several minutes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The agency also reduced penalties without documenting a rationale. In one case, a forklift accident that caused a worker’s death resulted in a $21,000 fine, though penalties could have been twice as high, according to the audit, which reviewed 60 complaints and accident files handled by Cal/OSHA between 2019 and 2024.[aside postID=news_12049005 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/070125-Farmworker-Harvest-LV-CM-54-copy.jpg']Staffing was another major issue. The agency had 32% of its positions unfilled last year, but vacancies were more severe in enforcement, where critical industrial hygienist positions were 81% unfilled.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California State Auditor Grant Parks told lawmakers that the agency needs enough staff, clear policies and systems to monitor employee performance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The problems that Cal-OSHA is facing is really a sort of a three-legged stool,” Parks said. “And currently, we don’t have any of those three legs fully fleshed out, in our opinion.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>State Sen. Lola Smallwood-Cuevas, D-Los Angeles, chair of the Senate Labor, Public Employment and Retirement Committee, said lawmakers must ensure Cal/OSHA implements needed changes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s incredible that an agency that has been around for decades doesn’t have any legs to its stool,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lee, a 30-year employee at Cal/OSHA before she was appointed by Gov. Gavin Newsom to head the agency in 2024, seemed at times nervous and tepid in her responses. At one point, she referred to a manual before responding to a question by Ortega about when the agency refers cases for criminal prosecution.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ortega repeatedly cited three workers who died after being crushed by machinery at a metal manufacturing and recycling plant in her district, without sufficient consequences for the employer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12054063\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1999px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12054063\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250801-BERKELEY-OSHA-DEATH-MD-04_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250801-BERKELEY-OSHA-DEATH-MD-04_qed.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250801-BERKELEY-OSHA-DEATH-MD-04_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250801-BERKELEY-OSHA-DEATH-MD-04_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Construction at Sylvia Mendez Elementary School in Berkeley on Aug. 1, 2025. \u003ccite>(Martin do Nascimento/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“When do you decide that it’s time to hold an employer accountable? Is it after the first death? Is it the second death? Is it after the third death?” Ortega asked.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lee quoted related labor codes but acknowledged that the agency does not yet have a clear policy for referring cases to district attorneys.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I acknowledge the audit’s findings and their recommendations, which makes it clear and certain that improvements are needed at Cal/OSHA,” Lee said. “My priority is to improve the lives of California workers and empower employers to provide a safe workplace. In fact, under my leadership, Cal/OSHA was already working to fix issues identified by the state auditor.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Records show the agency issued progressively stiffer \u003ca href=\"https://www.osha.gov/ords/imis/establishment.search?p_logger=1&establishment=Alco+Iron&State=CA&officetype=all&Office=all&sitezip=&p_case=all&p_violations_exist=all&startmonth=08&startday=26&startyear=2015&endmonth=08&endday=26&endyear=2025\">penalties\u003c/a> against San Leandro-based Alco Iron & Metal Co., the workplace Ortega referred to: $7,000 for a 2017 worker fatality, $18,185 for a second death in 2022, and $95,500 for a third earlier this year. It is unclear whether the company has paid the fines. Cal/OSHA did not immediately respond to requests for more information.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In an email, Michael Bercovic, chief operating officer at Alco Iron & Metal, declined to comment on the two most recent fatalities, which remain under investigation and in legal proceedings. He said that the 2017 accident was caused by a manufacturer’s design flaw in the equipment that crushed the worker.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The employee’s family filed a lawsuit against the equipment manufacturer, and they reached a settlement prior to trial,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cal/OSHA has prioritized hiring, reducing its overall vacancy rate to 12% this year after eliminating 66 positions due to budget cuts, according to Lee. Vacancies remain higher in enforcement, with 30% of field staff positions unfilled, a spokesperson said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The agency is modernizing operations with a new electronic data management system that spokesperson Daniel Lopez called the “biggest technology project” in Cal/OSHA’s history. Officials said it will help collect and standardize information.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The state auditor’s office plans to follow up on Cal/OSHA’s progress next month.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
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"title": "California Lawmakers Slam Cal/OSHA Over Audit Showing Weak Worker Protections | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/california\">California\u003c/a> lawmakers put top state officials tasked with protecting worker health and safety under intense fire on Wednesday for falling short of their mission, as highlighted by a recent state audit.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The hearing in Sacramento exposed deficiencies that are hampering Cal/OSHA’s ability to prevent job-related deaths and injuries. The agency failed to conduct some on-site inspections and levy appropriate fines, even when doing so would have better protected workers, \u003ca href=\"https://www.auditor.ca.gov/reports/2024-115/\">the report \u003c/a>published July 17 said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The California State Auditor identified severe \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12049005/california-osha-inspectors-dont-visit-worksites-even-when-workers-are-injured\">staffing shortages\u003c/a> and outdated policies and practices as “root causes,” including handling investigations primarily on paper, which makes it difficult to track more than 12,000 complaints Cal/OSHA receives annually.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Employers who put workers in danger are not being held accountable,” Assemblymember Liz Ortega, D-San Leandro, told Cal/OSHA officials at the hearing, including agency Chief Debra Lee. “What I really hope my colleagues and the public understand is the severity of Cal/OSHA’s failure to protect workers.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California has some of the nation’s strongest workplace safety laws, but advocates have \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11875988/minimal-to-non-existent-safety-inspector-shortage-worsened-in-pandemic-leaving-california-workers-vulnerable\">long complained\u003c/a> that weak enforcement leaves \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11932758/health-and-safety-are-at-risk-only-1-california-safety-inspector-is-bilingual-in-chinese-or-vietnamese\">employees at risk\u003c/a>, especially in construction, manufacturing and agriculture.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12054060\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1997px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12054060\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/DSC3491_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1997\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/DSC3491_qed.jpg 1997w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/DSC3491_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/DSC3491_qed-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1997px) 100vw, 1997px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Assemblymember Liz Ortega, D-San Leandro, speaks at a rally in front of UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital in Oakland on Sept. 6, 2019. \u003ccite>(Stephanie Lister/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Cal/OSHA, also known as the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health, is generally supposed to send inspectors to a workplace soon after receiving a report of a fatality, serious injury or danger. On-site inspections can result in fines for the employer if violations are found. Less serious hazards are often addressed through letters asking employers to self-investigate and correct issues, without monetary penalties.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The auditor found Cal/OSHA closed complaints and accident reports without verifying employers had fixed safety hazards and declined to conduct on-site inspections even when state law likely required them. Some cases involved serious injuries, including a chainsaw laceration resulting in surgery and weeks of recovery, and a skull fracture rendering a worker unconscious for several minutes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The agency also reduced penalties without documenting a rationale. In one case, a forklift accident that caused a worker’s death resulted in a $21,000 fine, though penalties could have been twice as high, according to the audit, which reviewed 60 complaints and accident files handled by Cal/OSHA between 2019 and 2024.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Staffing was another major issue. The agency had 32% of its positions unfilled last year, but vacancies were more severe in enforcement, where critical industrial hygienist positions were 81% unfilled.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California State Auditor Grant Parks told lawmakers that the agency needs enough staff, clear policies and systems to monitor employee performance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The problems that Cal-OSHA is facing is really a sort of a three-legged stool,” Parks said. “And currently, we don’t have any of those three legs fully fleshed out, in our opinion.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>State Sen. Lola Smallwood-Cuevas, D-Los Angeles, chair of the Senate Labor, Public Employment and Retirement Committee, said lawmakers must ensure Cal/OSHA implements needed changes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s incredible that an agency that has been around for decades doesn’t have any legs to its stool,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lee, a 30-year employee at Cal/OSHA before she was appointed by Gov. Gavin Newsom to head the agency in 2024, seemed at times nervous and tepid in her responses. At one point, she referred to a manual before responding to a question by Ortega about when the agency refers cases for criminal prosecution.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ortega repeatedly cited three workers who died after being crushed by machinery at a metal manufacturing and recycling plant in her district, without sufficient consequences for the employer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12054063\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1999px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12054063\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250801-BERKELEY-OSHA-DEATH-MD-04_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250801-BERKELEY-OSHA-DEATH-MD-04_qed.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250801-BERKELEY-OSHA-DEATH-MD-04_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250801-BERKELEY-OSHA-DEATH-MD-04_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Construction at Sylvia Mendez Elementary School in Berkeley on Aug. 1, 2025. \u003ccite>(Martin do Nascimento/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“When do you decide that it’s time to hold an employer accountable? Is it after the first death? Is it the second death? Is it after the third death?” Ortega asked.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lee quoted related labor codes but acknowledged that the agency does not yet have a clear policy for referring cases to district attorneys.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I acknowledge the audit’s findings and their recommendations, which makes it clear and certain that improvements are needed at Cal/OSHA,” Lee said. “My priority is to improve the lives of California workers and empower employers to provide a safe workplace. In fact, under my leadership, Cal/OSHA was already working to fix issues identified by the state auditor.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Records show the agency issued progressively stiffer \u003ca href=\"https://www.osha.gov/ords/imis/establishment.search?p_logger=1&establishment=Alco+Iron&State=CA&officetype=all&Office=all&sitezip=&p_case=all&p_violations_exist=all&startmonth=08&startday=26&startyear=2015&endmonth=08&endday=26&endyear=2025\">penalties\u003c/a> against San Leandro-based Alco Iron & Metal Co., the workplace Ortega referred to: $7,000 for a 2017 worker fatality, $18,185 for a second death in 2022, and $95,500 for a third earlier this year. It is unclear whether the company has paid the fines. Cal/OSHA did not immediately respond to requests for more information.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In an email, Michael Bercovic, chief operating officer at Alco Iron & Metal, declined to comment on the two most recent fatalities, which remain under investigation and in legal proceedings. He said that the 2017 accident was caused by a manufacturer’s design flaw in the equipment that crushed the worker.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The employee’s family filed a lawsuit against the equipment manufacturer, and they reached a settlement prior to trial,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cal/OSHA has prioritized hiring, reducing its overall vacancy rate to 12% this year after eliminating 66 positions due to budget cuts, according to Lee. Vacancies remain higher in enforcement, with 30% of field staff positions unfilled, a spokesperson said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The agency is modernizing operations with a new electronic data management system that spokesperson Daniel Lopez called the “biggest technology project” in Cal/OSHA’s history. Officials said it will help collect and standardize information.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The state auditor’s office plans to follow up on Cal/OSHA’s progress next month.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "what-newsoms-approach-to-battling-trump-might-mean-for-political-aspirations",
"title": "What Newsom's Approach To Battling Trump Might Mean For Political Aspirations",
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"headTitle": "What Newsom’s Approach To Battling Trump Might Mean For Political Aspirations | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cb>Here are the morning’s top stories on Thursday, August 28, 2025…\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">California Governor Gavin Newsom is making national waves as he takes on President Donald Trump — on social media and, soon, \u003c/span>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12052064/newsom-calls-for-special-election-to-redraw-californias-congressional-maps\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">at the ballot box\u003c/span>\u003c/a>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">, with an initiative that would redraw congressional districts to give Democrats more seats in the House of Representatives. What does all this mean for the famously ambitious politician? \u003c/span>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">In a hearing in Sacramento on Wednesday, state lawmakers grilled officials tasked with \u003c/span>\u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2025/07/california-osha-inspections-state-audit/\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">protecting the health and safety of workers\u003c/span>\u003c/a>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">. \u003c/span>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Family and friends of a Los Angeles teen are demanding answers, after the 18-year-old was \u003ca href=\"https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-08-28/l-a-teen-nabbed-on-street-by-ice-transferred-out-of-state-without-parents-knowledge\">moved to an ICE detention center out of state\u003c/a> this week.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003ch2>Governor Newsom Takes Unique Approach In Fight Against Trump Administration\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">California Governor Gavin Newsom is making national waves as he takes on President Donald Trump — on social media and, soon, at the ballot box, with \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12052064/newsom-calls-for-special-election-to-redraw-californias-congressional-maps\">an initiative that would redraw congressional districts\u003c/a> to give Democrats more seats in the House of Representatives. \u003c/span>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">What does all this mean for the famously ambitious politician?\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Newsom’s take-no-prisoners style toward Trump in recent months is a marked contrast from his posture at the beginning of the year, when he tried to make nice with the incoming president as Los Angeles was consumed by wildfires. As those blazes burned, the governor’s office struggled to break through the chaotic media environment. But that all changed in June, when the Trump administration \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/justice/2025/06/national-guard-los-angeles/\">sent armed military troops into L.A.\u003c/a> over Newsom’s objections.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since then, Newsom and his staff have taken an increasingly aggressive — and cheeky — tone. He’s not only confronting the president in the media and in court, but recently, mocking his social media posts with parodies that echo Trump’s own language, tone and style. Mike Madrid is a Republican political consultant. “They really learned, we cannot respond with facts and honesty and good information. We have to take the offense. And that’s what you saw to great effect during the ICE raids and continue to see it with sort of the quote unquote trolling that’s going on now where Gavin and his team are completely dominating the narrative,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And polls indicate it’s working. Since April, Newsom’s approval rating has jumped eight points to 51% in \u003ca href=\"https://escholarship.org/uc/item/9f06d6p8\">UC Berkeley’s Institute of Governmental Studies poll\u003c/a>. 59% support his more vocal criticisms of Trump, and Democrats are far more enthusiastic about him running for president in 2028 than former Vice President Kamala Harris.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>\u003cstrong>Lawmakers Question Cal/OSHA On Worker Safety\u003c/strong>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>On Wednesday, state lawmakers questioned officials with California’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health about a \u003ca href=\"https://www.auditor.ca.gov/reports/2024-115/\">recent scathing audit\u003c/a> criticizing the department’s work site inspections.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Auditors \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2025/07/california-osha-inspections-state-audit/\">found that California’s worker safety agency\u003c/a> is under-inspecting workplaces after accidents and worker injuries and failing to enforce labor regulations in a way that “may undermine” them because it does not have enough employees to do the inspections.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>During Wednesday’s hearing, East Bay Assemblymember Liz Ortega questioned whether the agency is doing enough to protect workers across the state. “What I really hope my colleagues and the public understand is the severity of Cal/OSHA’s failure to protect workers. Employers who put workers in danger are not being held accountable!” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last year out of more than 12,000 complaints, the agency found 87% valid; staff inspected just 17% of those workplaces in person rather than investigating “by letter.” Out of 5,800 workplace accidents, the agency deemed 42% serious enough to send an inspector. Cal/OSHA’s chief said the agency is addressing the issues. The auditor plans to follow up next month.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Los Angeles Teen Briefly Transferred To Out Of State Detention Facility\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>A high school senior from Los Angeles’ San Fernando Valley was \u003ca href=\"https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-08-28/l-a-teen-nabbed-on-street-by-ice-transferred-out-of-state-without-parents-knowledge\">transferred to an out-of-state immigration detention facility\u003c/a> this week, and his family was not notified of that move.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Benjamin Guerrero-Cruz was originally grabbed by immigration agents on August 8, while walking his dog near his home in Van Nuys. The Department of Homeland Security said he was taken into custody for overstaying his visa. He had been held at the Adelanto Detention Facility in San Bernardino County. But late Monday, he was transferred to a facility in Arizona. \u003ca href=\"https://rivas.house.gov/media/press-releases/congresswoman-luz-rivas-statement-reseda-high-school-senior-returned\">Congresswoman Luz Rivas\u003c/a> has been in touch with Guerrero-Cruz’s family. “\u003cspan dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"EN-US\">I visited the Adelanto Detention Center to demand answers and probe into his unjustified detainment and transfer. (Now) Benjamin Guerrero-Cruz is back in California and closer to his family. The nightmare for him, his family, and thousands in similar situations is not over yet. I will not accept the current reality that ICE shuffles and transfers detainees without notifying their family to inflict psychological pain for all of those involved,” she said in a statement.\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Rivas \u003ca href=\"https://rivas.house.gov/media/press-releases/congresswoman-luz-rivas-introduces-immigration-bill-after-constituent\">introduced a bill this week\u003c/a> that would require Immigration and Customs Enforcement to notify families within 24 hours if their loved ones are transferred to other detention facilities. Current law does not require ICE to notify family members when a detainee is transferred. The only instance ICE notifies the family is in the case of death.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cb>Here are the morning’s top stories on Thursday, August 28, 2025…\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">California Governor Gavin Newsom is making national waves as he takes on President Donald Trump — on social media and, soon, \u003c/span>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12052064/newsom-calls-for-special-election-to-redraw-californias-congressional-maps\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">at the ballot box\u003c/span>\u003c/a>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">, with an initiative that would redraw congressional districts to give Democrats more seats in the House of Representatives. What does all this mean for the famously ambitious politician? \u003c/span>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">In a hearing in Sacramento on Wednesday, state lawmakers grilled officials tasked with \u003c/span>\u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2025/07/california-osha-inspections-state-audit/\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">protecting the health and safety of workers\u003c/span>\u003c/a>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">. \u003c/span>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Family and friends of a Los Angeles teen are demanding answers, after the 18-year-old was \u003ca href=\"https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-08-28/l-a-teen-nabbed-on-street-by-ice-transferred-out-of-state-without-parents-knowledge\">moved to an ICE detention center out of state\u003c/a> this week.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003ch2>Governor Newsom Takes Unique Approach In Fight Against Trump Administration\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">California Governor Gavin Newsom is making national waves as he takes on President Donald Trump — on social media and, soon, at the ballot box, with \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12052064/newsom-calls-for-special-election-to-redraw-californias-congressional-maps\">an initiative that would redraw congressional districts\u003c/a> to give Democrats more seats in the House of Representatives. \u003c/span>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">What does all this mean for the famously ambitious politician?\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Newsom’s take-no-prisoners style toward Trump in recent months is a marked contrast from his posture at the beginning of the year, when he tried to make nice with the incoming president as Los Angeles was consumed by wildfires. As those blazes burned, the governor’s office struggled to break through the chaotic media environment. But that all changed in June, when the Trump administration \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/justice/2025/06/national-guard-los-angeles/\">sent armed military troops into L.A.\u003c/a> over Newsom’s objections.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since then, Newsom and his staff have taken an increasingly aggressive — and cheeky — tone. He’s not only confronting the president in the media and in court, but recently, mocking his social media posts with parodies that echo Trump’s own language, tone and style. Mike Madrid is a Republican political consultant. “They really learned, we cannot respond with facts and honesty and good information. We have to take the offense. And that’s what you saw to great effect during the ICE raids and continue to see it with sort of the quote unquote trolling that’s going on now where Gavin and his team are completely dominating the narrative,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And polls indicate it’s working. Since April, Newsom’s approval rating has jumped eight points to 51% in \u003ca href=\"https://escholarship.org/uc/item/9f06d6p8\">UC Berkeley’s Institute of Governmental Studies poll\u003c/a>. 59% support his more vocal criticisms of Trump, and Democrats are far more enthusiastic about him running for president in 2028 than former Vice President Kamala Harris.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>\u003cstrong>Lawmakers Question Cal/OSHA On Worker Safety\u003c/strong>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>On Wednesday, state lawmakers questioned officials with California’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health about a \u003ca href=\"https://www.auditor.ca.gov/reports/2024-115/\">recent scathing audit\u003c/a> criticizing the department’s work site inspections.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Auditors \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2025/07/california-osha-inspections-state-audit/\">found that California’s worker safety agency\u003c/a> is under-inspecting workplaces after accidents and worker injuries and failing to enforce labor regulations in a way that “may undermine” them because it does not have enough employees to do the inspections.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>During Wednesday’s hearing, East Bay Assemblymember Liz Ortega questioned whether the agency is doing enough to protect workers across the state. “What I really hope my colleagues and the public understand is the severity of Cal/OSHA’s failure to protect workers. Employers who put workers in danger are not being held accountable!” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last year out of more than 12,000 complaints, the agency found 87% valid; staff inspected just 17% of those workplaces in person rather than investigating “by letter.” Out of 5,800 workplace accidents, the agency deemed 42% serious enough to send an inspector. Cal/OSHA’s chief said the agency is addressing the issues. The auditor plans to follow up next month.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Los Angeles Teen Briefly Transferred To Out Of State Detention Facility\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>A high school senior from Los Angeles’ San Fernando Valley was \u003ca href=\"https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-08-28/l-a-teen-nabbed-on-street-by-ice-transferred-out-of-state-without-parents-knowledge\">transferred to an out-of-state immigration detention facility\u003c/a> this week, and his family was not notified of that move.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Benjamin Guerrero-Cruz was originally grabbed by immigration agents on August 8, while walking his dog near his home in Van Nuys. The Department of Homeland Security said he was taken into custody for overstaying his visa. He had been held at the Adelanto Detention Facility in San Bernardino County. But late Monday, he was transferred to a facility in Arizona. \u003ca href=\"https://rivas.house.gov/media/press-releases/congresswoman-luz-rivas-statement-reseda-high-school-senior-returned\">Congresswoman Luz Rivas\u003c/a> has been in touch with Guerrero-Cruz’s family. “\u003cspan dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"EN-US\">I visited the Adelanto Detention Center to demand answers and probe into his unjustified detainment and transfer. (Now) Benjamin Guerrero-Cruz is back in California and closer to his family. The nightmare for him, his family, and thousands in similar situations is not over yet. I will not accept the current reality that ICE shuffles and transfers detainees without notifying their family to inflict psychological pain for all of those involved,” she said in a statement.\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Rivas \u003ca href=\"https://rivas.house.gov/media/press-releases/congresswoman-luz-rivas-introduces-immigration-bill-after-constituent\">introduced a bill this week\u003c/a> that would require Immigration and Customs Enforcement to notify families within 24 hours if their loved ones are transferred to other detention facilities. Current law does not require ICE to notify family members when a detainee is transferred. The only instance ICE notifies the family is in the case of death.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cp>Police and California workplace safety officials are investigating the death of a 41-year-old man who fell several stories at a \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/berkeley\">Berkeley\u003c/a> elementary school while installing scaffolding last week, the Berkeley Police Department said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On July 24, the Berkeley Fire Department responded to a 911 call around 12:50 p.m. that someone had fallen from scaffolding on the 2800 block of Ellsworth Street. Crews found a construction worker on the ground after he fell from a height of about 40 feet. The man had been working on a renovation project at Sylvia Mendez Elementary School.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The man died after being taken to a hospital, police said. The Alameda County coroner’s office identified him as Jonathan Dillard Guidi of Sacramento. Guidi was a father of seven children.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“He had the biggest heart and always put others first,” said a \u003ca href=\"https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-mama-kids-after-sudden-loss-of-father\">GoFundMe\u003c/a> opened to help support Guidi’s family. “There are simply no words to describe the hole his absence leaves behind.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12050644\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12050644\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250801-BERKELEY-OSHA-DEATH-MD-01-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250801-BERKELEY-OSHA-DEATH-MD-01-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250801-BERKELEY-OSHA-DEATH-MD-01-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250801-BERKELEY-OSHA-DEATH-MD-01-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Construction workers operate atop scaffolding at Sylvia Mendez Elementary School in Berkeley on Aug. 1, 2025. \u003ccite>(Martin do Nascimento/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The Berkeley Police Department, which is conducting a death investigation, said the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health also responded to the scene.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cal/OSHA did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the occupational safety investigation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The agency, which inspects workplaces across the state for occupational safety and health violations, conducts investigations in cases where a death or other serious injury or illness is reported. Cal/OSHA “must issue any citations within six months” of when a violation occurred, according to the agency.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The man died after being taken to a hospital, police said. The Alameda County coroner’s office identified him as Jonathan Dillard Guidi of Sacramento. Guidi was a father of seven children.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“He had the biggest heart and always put others first,” said a \u003ca href=\"https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-mama-kids-after-sudden-loss-of-father\">GoFundMe\u003c/a> opened to help support Guidi’s family. “There are simply no words to describe the hole his absence leaves behind.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12050644\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12050644\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250801-BERKELEY-OSHA-DEATH-MD-01-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250801-BERKELEY-OSHA-DEATH-MD-01-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250801-BERKELEY-OSHA-DEATH-MD-01-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250801-BERKELEY-OSHA-DEATH-MD-01-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Construction workers operate atop scaffolding at Sylvia Mendez Elementary School in Berkeley on Aug. 1, 2025. \u003ccite>(Martin do Nascimento/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The Berkeley Police Department, which is conducting a death investigation, said the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health also responded to the scene.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cal/OSHA did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the occupational safety investigation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The agency, which inspects workplaces across the state for occupational safety and health violations, conducts investigations in cases where a death or other serious injury or illness is reported. Cal/OSHA “must issue any citations within six months” of when a violation occurred, according to the agency.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cb>Here are the morning’s top stories on Tuesday, July 1, 2025…\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">As Immigration and Customs Enforcement actions ramp up across California, fear is spreading through communities, even in small Central Valley towns like Dinuba. But one grocery store owner is doing more than just ringing up customers – he’s delivering food right to their doors.\u003c/span>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">On Monday, state lawmakers \u003c/span>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12046558/california-lawmakers-approve-major-overhaul-of-landmark-environmental-law\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">passed two controversial bills\u003c/span>\u003c/a>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\"> that will overhaul the state’s landmark environmental law, known as CEQA.\u003c/span>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">Several new state laws are taking effect Tuesday, including one meant to \u003c/span>\u003ca href=\"https://www.dir.ca.gov/DIRNews/2025/2025-60.html\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">help agency-hired domestic workers.\u003c/span>\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>The U.S. Department of Justice \u003ca href=\"https://laist.com/news/politics/trump-adminstration-sues-los-angeles-sanctuary-city-policies\">is suing Los Angeles\u003c/a> over its sanctuary city policies, alleging that the city’s laws “deliberately” obstruct federal immigration enforcement.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003ch2>\u003cstrong>Central Valley Business Starts Food Delivery For Immigrant Community\u003c/strong>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Inside the Dinuba Food Center, customers trickle in and out. Behind the counter is Mohmaed Saeed. He opened the store back in March. In towns like Dinuba in the Central Valley, immigrants make up much of the workforce. Now, stepped-up immigration enforcement isn’t just stoking fear, it’s threatening small businesses like Saeed’s and putting entire neighborhoods on edge.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>With many residents worried about going to work or even in some cases, going outside at all, Saeed launched a home delivery service. He’s now making up to 40 deliveries a day, using his store’s truck and rotating staff. “I was thinking to do something. Not just for the store but for the clients, for all the neighborhood,” Saeed said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Saeed moved to California from Yemen when he was 13. He lived in Bakersfield, and now he’s in Fresno, where his family runs several food centers. But he opened this Dinuba store on his own. And he remembers how much the neighborhood showed up for him when he first opened. “They said, ‘We just want to help. We’re happy to see a new business here.’ I’m not going to forget that,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2 class=\"routes-Site-routes-Post-Title-__Title__title\">\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12046558/california-lawmakers-approve-major-overhaul-of-landmark-environmental-law\">California Lawmakers Approve Major Overhaul Of Landmark Environmental Law\u003c/a>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>After weeks of tense negotiations with Gov. Gavin Newsom, California lawmakers on Monday passed two \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12036917/bill-reform-controversial-environmental-law-faces-first-legislative-hurdle\">controversial bills\u003c/a> that promise to make big changes to the state’s landmark environmental law to boost housing and clean energy projects.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The two bills — AB 609 from Asm. Buffy Wicks, D-Oakland, and SB 607, by Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco — were folded into addendums to the state budget, which was \u003ca href=\"https://www.gov.ca.gov/2025/06/27/budget/\">approved Friday\u003c/a>. They both take aim at the \u003ca href=\"https://oag.ca.gov/environment/ceqa\">1970 California Environmental Quality Act\u003c/a>, known as CEQA , which has been the ire of \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/housing/2025/03/ceqa-infill-housing-wicks/\">housing\u003c/a> \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/commentary/2025/06/ceqa-environmental-law-reform/\">advocates\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://lhc.ca.gov/report/california-environmental-quality-act-ceqa/\">oversight agencies\u003c/a> for years. Critics claim its ever-broadening scope and lengthy review process have slowed development and made it too expensive to build.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For years, however, reforming CEQA has been a divisive issue among state Democrats, due to its ardent support among labor, \u003ca href=\"https://ceja.org/what-we-do/green-zones/ceqa-case-studies/\">environmental\u003c/a> \u003ca href=\"https://ceqaworks.org/\">groups\u003c/a> and others, who have heralded it as one of the \u003ca href=\"https://w.ecovote.org/california-environmental-quality-act-the-myths-vs-the-facts/\">most important tools\u003c/a> to fight pollution and sprawl. And they often point to \u003ca href=\"https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3956250\">studies \u003c/a>\u003ca href=\"https://www.cp-dr.com/articles/how-long-can-the-swiss-cheese-approach-ceqa-go/b24c31e081204b8eb4cbbf4f6313f2db\">calling into question\u003c/a> whether it truly stops development from moving forward.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>\u003cstrong>Domestic Workers Get New Protections \u003c/strong>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>New legislation that went into effect Tuesday \u003ca href=\"https://www.dir.ca.gov/DIRNews/2025/2025-60.html\">ensures health and safety protections\u003c/a> to more than 175,000 agency-hired domestic workers in California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Coverage under the Department of Occupational Safety and Health, or Cal/OSHA is now extended to these domestic workers, including housekeepers, nannies and home care workers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Businesses that employ household domestic service workers on a temporary or permanent basis will have several responsibilities. They will have to establish, implement, and maintain an effective injury and illness prevention program (IIPP), inspect workplaces to identify, evaluate and correct potential safety hazards, and report any serious workplace injuries to Cal/OSHA. Domestic workers will also be able to access information and guidance from Cal/OSHA on how to be safe in the workplace.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca style=\"font-size: 24px;font-weight: bold\" href=\"https://laist.com/news/politics/trump-adminstration-sues-los-angeles-sanctuary-city-policies\">\u003cstrong>Trump Administration Sues Los Angeles Over Its Sanctuary City Policies\u003c/strong>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Department of Justice is suing Los Angeles over its sanctuary city policies, alleging that the city’s laws “deliberately” obstruct federal immigration enforcement. In the lawsuit filed Monday, the department blames the ordinance for why it deployed the National Guard and U.S. Marines. “Sanctuary policies were the driving cause of the violence, chaos, and attacks on law enforcement that Americans recently witnessed in Los Angeles,” Attorney General Pamela Bondi said in a statement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>L.A. declared itself a sanctuary city in 2019 and enshrined its policies into law last year. The declaration does not allow the city to cooperate with federal agents and prohibits federal agents from using city resources — staff and property — for immigration enforcement. “Trump is tearing families apart and he’s trying to force every city and town to help him carry out his white nationalist agenda,” L.A. City Council member Hugo Soto-Martinez said. “The lawsuit gets one thing right. We refuse to stand by and let Donald Trump deport innocent families. We’re going to do everything within our power to keep families together.”\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cb>Here are the morning’s top stories on Tuesday, July 1, 2025…\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">As Immigration and Customs Enforcement actions ramp up across California, fear is spreading through communities, even in small Central Valley towns like Dinuba. But one grocery store owner is doing more than just ringing up customers – he’s delivering food right to their doors.\u003c/span>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">On Monday, state lawmakers \u003c/span>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12046558/california-lawmakers-approve-major-overhaul-of-landmark-environmental-law\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">passed two controversial bills\u003c/span>\u003c/a>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\"> that will overhaul the state’s landmark environmental law, known as CEQA.\u003c/span>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">Several new state laws are taking effect Tuesday, including one meant to \u003c/span>\u003ca href=\"https://www.dir.ca.gov/DIRNews/2025/2025-60.html\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">help agency-hired domestic workers.\u003c/span>\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>The U.S. Department of Justice \u003ca href=\"https://laist.com/news/politics/trump-adminstration-sues-los-angeles-sanctuary-city-policies\">is suing Los Angeles\u003c/a> over its sanctuary city policies, alleging that the city’s laws “deliberately” obstruct federal immigration enforcement.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003ch2>\u003cstrong>Central Valley Business Starts Food Delivery For Immigrant Community\u003c/strong>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Inside the Dinuba Food Center, customers trickle in and out. Behind the counter is Mohmaed Saeed. He opened the store back in March. In towns like Dinuba in the Central Valley, immigrants make up much of the workforce. Now, stepped-up immigration enforcement isn’t just stoking fear, it’s threatening small businesses like Saeed’s and putting entire neighborhoods on edge.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>With many residents worried about going to work or even in some cases, going outside at all, Saeed launched a home delivery service. He’s now making up to 40 deliveries a day, using his store’s truck and rotating staff. “I was thinking to do something. Not just for the store but for the clients, for all the neighborhood,” Saeed said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Saeed moved to California from Yemen when he was 13. He lived in Bakersfield, and now he’s in Fresno, where his family runs several food centers. But he opened this Dinuba store on his own. And he remembers how much the neighborhood showed up for him when he first opened. “They said, ‘We just want to help. We’re happy to see a new business here.’ I’m not going to forget that,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2 class=\"routes-Site-routes-Post-Title-__Title__title\">\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12046558/california-lawmakers-approve-major-overhaul-of-landmark-environmental-law\">California Lawmakers Approve Major Overhaul Of Landmark Environmental Law\u003c/a>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>After weeks of tense negotiations with Gov. Gavin Newsom, California lawmakers on Monday passed two \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12036917/bill-reform-controversial-environmental-law-faces-first-legislative-hurdle\">controversial bills\u003c/a> that promise to make big changes to the state’s landmark environmental law to boost housing and clean energy projects.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The two bills — AB 609 from Asm. Buffy Wicks, D-Oakland, and SB 607, by Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco — were folded into addendums to the state budget, which was \u003ca href=\"https://www.gov.ca.gov/2025/06/27/budget/\">approved Friday\u003c/a>. They both take aim at the \u003ca href=\"https://oag.ca.gov/environment/ceqa\">1970 California Environmental Quality Act\u003c/a>, known as CEQA , which has been the ire of \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/housing/2025/03/ceqa-infill-housing-wicks/\">housing\u003c/a> \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/commentary/2025/06/ceqa-environmental-law-reform/\">advocates\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://lhc.ca.gov/report/california-environmental-quality-act-ceqa/\">oversight agencies\u003c/a> for years. Critics claim its ever-broadening scope and lengthy review process have slowed development and made it too expensive to build.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For years, however, reforming CEQA has been a divisive issue among state Democrats, due to its ardent support among labor, \u003ca href=\"https://ceja.org/what-we-do/green-zones/ceqa-case-studies/\">environmental\u003c/a> \u003ca href=\"https://ceqaworks.org/\">groups\u003c/a> and others, who have heralded it as one of the \u003ca href=\"https://w.ecovote.org/california-environmental-quality-act-the-myths-vs-the-facts/\">most important tools\u003c/a> to fight pollution and sprawl. And they often point to \u003ca href=\"https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3956250\">studies \u003c/a>\u003ca href=\"https://www.cp-dr.com/articles/how-long-can-the-swiss-cheese-approach-ceqa-go/b24c31e081204b8eb4cbbf4f6313f2db\">calling into question\u003c/a> whether it truly stops development from moving forward.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>\u003cstrong>Domestic Workers Get New Protections \u003c/strong>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>New legislation that went into effect Tuesday \u003ca href=\"https://www.dir.ca.gov/DIRNews/2025/2025-60.html\">ensures health and safety protections\u003c/a> to more than 175,000 agency-hired domestic workers in California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Coverage under the Department of Occupational Safety and Health, or Cal/OSHA is now extended to these domestic workers, including housekeepers, nannies and home care workers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Businesses that employ household domestic service workers on a temporary or permanent basis will have several responsibilities. They will have to establish, implement, and maintain an effective injury and illness prevention program (IIPP), inspect workplaces to identify, evaluate and correct potential safety hazards, and report any serious workplace injuries to Cal/OSHA. Domestic workers will also be able to access information and guidance from Cal/OSHA on how to be safe in the workplace.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca style=\"font-size: 24px;font-weight: bold\" href=\"https://laist.com/news/politics/trump-adminstration-sues-los-angeles-sanctuary-city-policies\">\u003cstrong>Trump Administration Sues Los Angeles Over Its Sanctuary City Policies\u003c/strong>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Department of Justice is suing Los Angeles over its sanctuary city policies, alleging that the city’s laws “deliberately” obstruct federal immigration enforcement. In the lawsuit filed Monday, the department blames the ordinance for why it deployed the National Guard and U.S. Marines. “Sanctuary policies were the driving cause of the violence, chaos, and attacks on law enforcement that Americans recently witnessed in Los Angeles,” Attorney General Pamela Bondi said in a statement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>L.A. declared itself a sanctuary city in 2019 and enshrined its policies into law last year. The declaration does not allow the city to cooperate with federal agents and prohibits federal agents from using city resources — staff and property — for immigration enforcement. “Trump is tearing families apart and he’s trying to force every city and town to help him carry out his white nationalist agenda,” L.A. City Council member Hugo Soto-Martinez said. “The lawsuit gets one thing right. We refuse to stand by and let Donald Trump deport innocent families. We’re going to do everything within our power to keep families together.”\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "huge-martinez-refinery-fire-renews-neighbors-fear-frustration",
"title": "Huge Martinez Refinery Fire Renews Neighbors’ Fear and Frustration",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cem>Updated 5:27 p.m. Monday\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last weekend’s major \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12025273/martinez-refining-company-investigating-if-leak-during-maintenance-contributed-to-fire\">fire at an East Bay refinery\u003c/a>, which caused dangerous air conditions and spurred a shelter-in-place order, has reignited concern from community members over the facility’s rocky few years and impact on their neighborhoods.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The blaze at \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/martinez-refinery\">Martinez Refining Co.’s petroleum refinery\u003c/a> was reported by the company around 1:45 p.m. Saturday, hours after the Bay Area Air District began receiving complaints of odors in the area. It sent plumes of black smoke into the air for hours and forced much of Martinez and the surrounding communities of Pacheco and Clyde to shelter in place until late Saturday night.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Fire officials mostly extinguished the fire by 11 a.m. Sunday and Martinez Refining Co. said it was fully contained to the refinery site. However, dangerous airborne chemicals released by the fire could spread much farther and linger for days, adding to the burden already faced by neighboring communities.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I think it’s a constant issue with the refinery that people are concerned about — what’s escaping the stacks?” asked Dawn Elton, who manages an ACE Hardware store less than a mile from the refinery. She shut down her store Saturday afternoon after seeing the huge black cloud.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On Monday afternoon, the Bay Area Air District issued two notices of violation to the Martinez refinery for public nuisance, excessive smoke and soot fallout. The agency said more violations are possible as it continues to investigate. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The fire started after two workers discovered a leak of hydrocarbon material while preparing for planned maintenance at one of the refinery’s process units. They evacuated the area before the material caught on fire and spread within the immediate vicinity, according to the company.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11968800\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11968800\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/12/GettyImages-1467777894-e1738620843534.jpg\" alt=\"A view of two large industrial facilities — both refineries — each with many smokestacks - with hills in the background.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A view of the Martinez Refining Company in the foreground and the Marathon Refinery in the background, on Nov. 24, 2019, in Martinez, California. \u003ccite>(Michael R. Lopez/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>At least six people have been treated for health concerns related to the fire, including three who were taken to hospitals with minor injuries. Workers who were taking air quality readings experienced dizziness, the company said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Although most of the visible smoke had cleared by late Sunday and the shelter-in-place was downgraded to a health advisory — meaning conditions were mostly dangerous to elderly and immuno-compromised people — Elton is worried that there could also be longer-term effects for her and other locals.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It was raining, so did [rainwater] go into the soil? Was anything dangerous to us that will come back later to harm us in some way?” she asked.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Living near oil refineries like the one in Martinez is already hazardous, even without a fire or flaring incident.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID=news_12025273 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/02/475966196_17941090172958161_4612211217959910985_n-e1738464480621-1020x706.jpg']\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to the Environmental Protection Agency, petroleum refineries can release thousands of pounds of BTEX compounds — benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylene, as well as carbon monoxide, hydrogen sulfide and sulfur dioxide — each year. Many of these are known or suspected to cause cancer and developmental or reproductive problems and worsen pre-existing respiratory conditions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There can be potentially more risk for people living nearby because they have chronic exposure to hazardous chemicals and then these spikes of exposure that could exacerbate many different types of health risks,” said David Gonzalez, an assistant professor at the UC Berkeley School of Public Health. “This is something that people living near the refinery have been calling attention to for a long time.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Saturday’s fire was the third major incident at the Martinez refinery since Shell sold it to PBF Energy in 2020.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 2022, the refinery released \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11952517/martinez-refinery-chemical-release-poses-no-long-term-hazard-tests-find\">nearly 50,000 pounds of powdered industrial chemicals\u003c/a> into the air. There were also more than a dozen notices that hazardous materials were released or spilled by the site in 2023, and flaring occurred at least three times last year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Martinez Refining Co. said in a statement that it would investigate the root cause of the fire and apologized “for the disruption and concern” it caused to the community.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>However, many residents want the site to be shut down, and some, like Samantha Viano, are hoping local officials will step in to make sure this trend doesn’t continue.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It just seems like this kind of stuff is happening more and more, which is really scary,” said Viano.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Most of her extended family lives in Martinez, and she said in her 30 years in the city, there have been many spills, but only one other shelter-in-place order.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“How are they going to stop this from happening?” she said. “Because I think the whole community is really scared now.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>KQED’s \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/author/shossaini\">\u003cem>Sara Hossaini\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem> contributed to this report. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "Last weekend’s East Bay refinery fire caused dangerous air conditions and led to a shelter-in-place order. People living nearby have long raised concerns about the facility.",
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"title": "Huge Martinez Refinery Fire Renews Neighbors’ Fear and Frustration | KQED",
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"headline": "Huge Martinez Refinery Fire Renews Neighbors’ Fear and Frustration",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cem>Updated 5:27 p.m. Monday\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last weekend’s major \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12025273/martinez-refining-company-investigating-if-leak-during-maintenance-contributed-to-fire\">fire at an East Bay refinery\u003c/a>, which caused dangerous air conditions and spurred a shelter-in-place order, has reignited concern from community members over the facility’s rocky few years and impact on their neighborhoods.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The blaze at \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/martinez-refinery\">Martinez Refining Co.’s petroleum refinery\u003c/a> was reported by the company around 1:45 p.m. Saturday, hours after the Bay Area Air District began receiving complaints of odors in the area. It sent plumes of black smoke into the air for hours and forced much of Martinez and the surrounding communities of Pacheco and Clyde to shelter in place until late Saturday night.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Fire officials mostly extinguished the fire by 11 a.m. Sunday and Martinez Refining Co. said it was fully contained to the refinery site. However, dangerous airborne chemicals released by the fire could spread much farther and linger for days, adding to the burden already faced by neighboring communities.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I think it’s a constant issue with the refinery that people are concerned about — what’s escaping the stacks?” asked Dawn Elton, who manages an ACE Hardware store less than a mile from the refinery. She shut down her store Saturday afternoon after seeing the huge black cloud.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On Monday afternoon, the Bay Area Air District issued two notices of violation to the Martinez refinery for public nuisance, excessive smoke and soot fallout. The agency said more violations are possible as it continues to investigate. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The fire started after two workers discovered a leak of hydrocarbon material while preparing for planned maintenance at one of the refinery’s process units. They evacuated the area before the material caught on fire and spread within the immediate vicinity, according to the company.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11968800\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11968800\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/12/GettyImages-1467777894-e1738620843534.jpg\" alt=\"A view of two large industrial facilities — both refineries — each with many smokestacks - with hills in the background.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A view of the Martinez Refining Company in the foreground and the Marathon Refinery in the background, on Nov. 24, 2019, in Martinez, California. \u003ccite>(Michael R. Lopez/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>At least six people have been treated for health concerns related to the fire, including three who were taken to hospitals with minor injuries. Workers who were taking air quality readings experienced dizziness, the company said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Although most of the visible smoke had cleared by late Sunday and the shelter-in-place was downgraded to a health advisory — meaning conditions were mostly dangerous to elderly and immuno-compromised people — Elton is worried that there could also be longer-term effects for her and other locals.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It was raining, so did [rainwater] go into the soil? Was anything dangerous to us that will come back later to harm us in some way?” she asked.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Living near oil refineries like the one in Martinez is already hazardous, even without a fire or flaring incident.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to the Environmental Protection Agency, petroleum refineries can release thousands of pounds of BTEX compounds — benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylene, as well as carbon monoxide, hydrogen sulfide and sulfur dioxide — each year. Many of these are known or suspected to cause cancer and developmental or reproductive problems and worsen pre-existing respiratory conditions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There can be potentially more risk for people living nearby because they have chronic exposure to hazardous chemicals and then these spikes of exposure that could exacerbate many different types of health risks,” said David Gonzalez, an assistant professor at the UC Berkeley School of Public Health. “This is something that people living near the refinery have been calling attention to for a long time.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Saturday’s fire was the third major incident at the Martinez refinery since Shell sold it to PBF Energy in 2020.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 2022, the refinery released \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11952517/martinez-refinery-chemical-release-poses-no-long-term-hazard-tests-find\">nearly 50,000 pounds of powdered industrial chemicals\u003c/a> into the air. There were also more than a dozen notices that hazardous materials were released or spilled by the site in 2023, and flaring occurred at least three times last year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Martinez Refining Co. said in a statement that it would investigate the root cause of the fire and apologized “for the disruption and concern” it caused to the community.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>However, many residents want the site to be shut down, and some, like Samantha Viano, are hoping local officials will step in to make sure this trend doesn’t continue.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It just seems like this kind of stuff is happening more and more, which is really scary,” said Viano.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Most of her extended family lives in Martinez, and she said in her 30 years in the city, there have been many spills, but only one other shelter-in-place order.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“How are they going to stop this from happening?” she said. “Because I think the whole community is really scared now.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>KQED’s \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/author/shossaini\">\u003cem>Sara Hossaini\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem> contributed to this report. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"info": "What kind of no sabo word is Hyphenación? For us, it’s about living within a hyphenation. Like being a third-gen Mexican-American from the Texas border now living that Bay Area Chicano life. Like Xorje! Each week we bring together a couple of hyphenated Latinos to talk all about personal life choices: family, careers, relationships, belonging … everything is on the table. ",
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"info": "The Political Mind of Jerry Brown brings listeners the wisdom of the former Governor, Mayor, and presidential candidate. Scott Shafer interviewed Brown for more than 40 hours, covering the former governor's life and half-century in the political game – and Brown has some lessons he'd like to share. ",
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"marketplace": {
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"info": "Our flagship program, helmed by Kai Ryssdal, examines what the day in money delivered, through stories, conversations, newsworthy numbers and more. Updated Monday through Friday at about 3:30 p.m. PT.",
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"mindshift": {
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"info": "The MindShift podcast explores the innovations in education that are shaping how kids learn. Hosts Ki Sung and Katrina Schwartz introduce listeners to educators, researchers, parents and students who are developing effective ways to improve how kids learn. We cover topics like how fed-up administrators are developing surprising tactics to deal with classroom disruptions; how listening to podcasts are helping kids develop reading skills; the consequences of overparenting; and why interdisciplinary learning can engage students on all ends of the traditional achievement spectrum. This podcast is part of the MindShift education site, a division of KQED News. KQED is an NPR/PBS member station based in San Francisco. You can also visit the MindShift website for episodes and supplemental blog posts or tweet us \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/MindShiftKQED\">@MindShiftKQED\u003c/a> or visit us at \u003ca href=\"/mindshift\">MindShift.KQED.org\u003c/a>",
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"order": 12
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"info": "For decades, the process for how police police themselves has been inconsistent – if not opaque. In some states, like California, these proceedings were completely hidden. After a new police transparency law unsealed scores of internal affairs files, our reporters set out to examine these cases and the shadow world of police discipline. On Our Watch brings listeners into the rooms where officers are questioned and witnesses are interrogated to find out who this system is really protecting. Is it the officers, or the public they've sworn to serve?",
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"info": "Our weekly podcast explores how the media 'sausage' is made, casts an incisive eye on fluctuations in the marketplace of ideas, and examines threats to the freedom of information and expression in America and abroad. For one hour a week, the show tries to lift the veil from the process of \"making media,\" especially news media, because it's through that lens that we see the world and the world sees us",
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"info": "The economy explained. Imagine you could call up a friend and say, Meet me at the bar and tell me what's going on with the economy. Now imagine that's actually a fun evening.",
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"politicalbreakdown": {
"id": "politicalbreakdown",
"title": "Political Breakdown",
"tagline": "Politics from a personal perspective",
"info": "Political Breakdown is a new series that explores the political intersection of California and the nation. Each week hosts Scott Shafer and Marisa Lagos are joined with a new special guest to unpack politics -- with personality — and offer an insider’s glimpse at how politics happens.",
"airtime": "THU 6:30pm-7pm",
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"possible": {
"id": "possible",
"title": "Possible",
"info": "Possible is hosted by entrepreneur Reid Hoffman and writer Aria Finger. Together in Possible, Hoffman and Finger lead enlightening discussions about building a brighter collective future. The show features interviews with visionary guests like Trevor Noah, Sam Altman and Janette Sadik-Khan. Possible paints an optimistic portrait of the world we can create through science, policy, business, art and our shared humanity. It asks: What if everything goes right for once? How can we get there? Each episode also includes a short fiction story generated by advanced AI GPT-4, serving as a thought-provoking springboard to speculate how humanity could leverage technology for good.",
"airtime": "SUN 2pm",
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"source": "Possible"
},
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"pri-the-world": {
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"title": "PRI's The World: Latest Edition",
"info": "Each weekday, host Marco Werman and his team of producers bring you the world's most interesting stories in an hour of radio that reminds us just how small our planet really is.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 2pm-3pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-World-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
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},
"radiolab": {
"id": "radiolab",
"title": "Radiolab",
"info": "A two-time Peabody Award-winner, Radiolab is an investigation told through sounds and stories, and centered around one big idea. In the Radiolab world, information sounds like music and science and culture collide. Hosted by Jad Abumrad and Robert Krulwich, the show is designed for listeners who demand skepticism, but appreciate wonder. WNYC Studios is the producer of other leading podcasts including Freakonomics Radio, Death, Sex & Money, On the Media and many more.",
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},
"reveal": {
"id": "reveal",
"title": "Reveal",
"info": "Created by The Center for Investigative Reporting and PRX, Reveal is public radios first one-hour weekly radio show and podcast dedicated to investigative reporting. Credible, fact based and without a partisan agenda, Reveal combines the power and artistry of driveway moment storytelling with data-rich reporting on critically important issues. The result is stories that inform and inspire, arming our listeners with information to right injustices, hold the powerful accountable and improve lives.Reveal is hosted by Al Letson and showcases the award-winning work of CIR and newsrooms large and small across the nation. In a radio and podcast market crowded with choices, Reveal focuses on important and often surprising stories that illuminate the world for our listeners.",
"airtime": "SAT 4pm-5pm",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.revealnews.org/episodes/",
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},
"link": "/radio/program/reveal",
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"rss": "http://feeds.revealradio.org/revealpodcast"
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},
"rightnowish": {
"id": "rightnowish",
"title": "Rightnowish",
"tagline": "Art is where you find it",
"info": "Rightnowish digs into life in the Bay Area right now… ish. Journalist Pendarvis Harshaw takes us to galleries painted on the sides of liquor stores in West Oakland. We'll dance in warehouses in the Bayview, make smoothies with kids in South Berkeley, and listen to classical music in a 1984 Cutlass Supreme in Richmond. Every week, Pen talks to movers and shakers about how the Bay Area shapes what they create, and how they shape the place we call home.",
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"order": 16
},
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},
"science-friday": {
"id": "science-friday",
"title": "Science Friday",
"info": "Science Friday is a weekly science talk show, broadcast live over public radio stations nationwide. Each week, the show focuses on science topics that are in the news and tries to bring an educated, balanced discussion to bear on the scientific issues at hand. Panels of expert guests join host Ira Flatow, a veteran science journalist, to discuss science and to take questions from listeners during the call-in portion of the program.",
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