Lake Powell at Historic Low: California Faces Mandatory Water Reductions

The new article reveals that the food insecurity rate among military families is nearly three times the national rate of food insecurity in 2024, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. It also states that 85% of respondents were paying more than they could comfortably afford for housing, rent, or utility payments, and that junior enlisted families reported the highest rate of food insecurity at about 74%. For the first time in over a decade, military families identified grocery prices as a significant factor preventing them from making ends meet, with nearly 58% saying rising food costs were the biggest barrier to saving money. Spouse unemployment among currently-serving families is nearly a third, compared with 19% across the entire population, driven largely by lack of affordable child care. Nearly 60% of active duty families are paying more than their basic allowance for housing. The rate of respondents with less than $500 in emergency savings was highest among veteran and retiree families, at 36%. The report urged treating military families’ financial health as a national security imperative, stating "economic security has emerged not just as a matter of household welfare but as the foundational infrastructure for readiness." Active duty spouses were the least likely to recommend military life. The increase from 2023 was partly driven by changes in the survey population, which included a larger share of currently serving families and enlisted respondents.

Over a third of military families (34.1%) have less than $500 of emergency savings, according to a Military Family 360 study released this week. The report states that rising grocery prices and housing costs are the main contributors to financial stress, and that "food security, housing burden and financial well-being are strongly associated.

A new survey from the Military Family Advisory Network (MFAN) reveals a dramatic increase in food insecurity among military families, with more than 41% of respondents reporting they are struggling to afford enough food. This marks a sharp jump from 16% in 2023, even before the inflationary effects of the Iran war that began in February.

The biennial report, based on responses from over 10,000 families surveyed between October 2025 and January 2026, highlights the mounting economic pressures on those who serve.

The survey found that more than half of respondents (53.8%) cited food costs as a major barrier to eating healthy, pointing to high grocery prices and limited access to nutritious options. Perhaps most alarming, many families reported skipping meals or cutting portions so that other household members could eat.

One spouse of a deployed service member living near Camp Pendleton in Southern California, who asked to remain anonymous due to fear of retaliation, said: "Things have gotten a lot more expensive, especially with the gas prices." Her family currently receives extra pay during her husband's deployment, but she worries about when that ends.

The report also underscores severe mental health challenges within the military community. One in four military households (25.1%) said a member had used an emergency room for mental health care because they could not get a timely appointment.

Military spouses emerged as the most vulnerable demographic, with a concerning prevalence of suicidal ideation. MFAN CEO Shannon Razsadin noted: "We've seen it consistently over time, but it became more acute this time, specifically as it relates to mental health."

Financial strain is also pushing families toward predatory lending. The survey found that 10.3% of respondents had used auto title loans and 5.5% had taken out payday loans.

Frequent military moves create additional burdens, with many families paying over $1,000 out of pocket beyond what they are reimbursed—up sharply from 44.9% to between 63% and 69% depending on the expense category. Razsadin emphasized that this is a national security issue: "This is truly a national security imperative that military spouses are able to be whole while they're supporting the service member and raising a family."

The Defense Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment. While some findings showed improvement—such as a drop in reports of poor family health by more than half since 2023—the overall picture remains grim.

Razsadin called for better support systems, including expanded access to mental health care and broader resources for military families.

California Governor Gavin Newsom has signed an executive order aimed at accelerating and modernizing public transit across the state, directly countering proposed federal budget cuts from the Trump administration that threaten to slash funding for public transportation and clean energy programs. The order comes as Trump's Fiscal Year 2027 budget request proposes a 23% cut to federal public transit funding and an 82% reduction in passenger rail funding, eliminating billions of dollars in planned investments for transit systems nationwide.

According to industry analysis, the budget would also zero out funding under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act for key clean transportation programs, resulting in multi-billion dollar losses for modern transit, passenger rail, and decarbonization projects across the country. In response, Newsom's order directs the California State Transportation Agency (CalSTA) and other state agencies to prioritize transit projects statewide, streamline project delivery, close service gaps, and modernize transit data and payment systems.

The order also supports the development of Bus Rapid Transit and bus-only lanes on state highways, and establishes a dedicated active transportation project delivery team within Caltrans. California Transportation Secretary Toks Omishakin stated, "California is continuing to build on Governor Newsom's vision for a transportation system that is safer, cleaner and more connected for all Californians." The order reflects recommendations from the SB 125 Transit Transformation Task Force Final Report and fulfills a requirement in SB 960 (Wiener, 2024) to establish a statewide transit policy.

It also aligns with the administration's ongoing efforts to invest more than $11.5 billion through SB 1 and the Cap-and-Invest program to support public transit, high-speed rail, and transit-oriented development. The executive order arrives at a time when the Trump administration's economic policies are squeezing American families.

Since the conflict with Iran began, American households have faced an estimated $62.4 billion in extra fuel expenses, or roughly $476 per household. New York Fed research shows low-income households cut gas consumption by 7% in March yet still faced a 12% spike in expenses due to rising prices.

Newsom's order aims to give every Californian a reliable, affordable alternative to the car, reducing reliance on fossil fuels amid global instability.

An investigation by The California Newsroom and UC Berkeley’s Investigative Reporting Program has revealed that between 2014 and 2024, 148 California law enforcement officers engaged in explicitly biased conduct, including racist, sexist, and homophobic slurs, violent threats, and demeaning comments. Only about 12% were fired.

The records, obtained from nearly 500 agencies, show that many faced minor penalties like reprimands or training. For example, Rafael Silva, a former Delano police officer, posted violent threats against transgender people on TikTok in 2023, including comments like "You ain’t safe.

We finna change your pronouns soon" and "My AR will track y’all down." Despite the FBI deeming these threats imminently dangerous, Silva was allowed to resign and later worked for police departments in Avenal and Wasco. He remains employed in Wasco as of June 2026.

The California Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) declined to decertify him. Experts say such behavior erodes public trust, undermines court credibility, and hampers recruitment of diverse officers.

"With such an important job, if someone is exhibiting any type of bias against a member of their community, I just don’t think they should have that job," said Vida Johnson, a Georgetown law professor. The investigation also found that bias extended to incarcerated people and fellow officers, with 61 correctional officers identified, over half still employed.

Only about 20% of officers received reprimands or training, and many appealed discipline successfully. The findings are likely just a fraction of incidents, as complaints are underreported due to the "Blue Wall of Silence" and fear of police.

The investigation highlights a systemic failure to hold officers accountable, with uneven discipline allowing many to remain on the job.

A Venezuelan woman living in San Francisco is grieving the loss of her sister, who died when a building collapsed during a series of powerful earthquakes in La Guaira, Venezuela. Gladys Aparicio, a resident of the City and County of San Francisco, said the building where her sister Yolanda was staying crumbled to the ground, trapping her inside.

The tragedy has left Aparicio heartbroken and struggling to come to terms with the sudden loss. "No se lo deseo a nadie" (I wouldn't wish it on anyone), she said through tears, describing the shock and pain of losing a loved one in such a catastrophic event.

The earthquakes, which struck the coastal region of La Guaira, caused widespread destruction, leveling multiple structures and leaving many families displaced. Aparicio, who had moved to San Francisco years ago, said she had been in constant communication with her sister before the disaster.

The last message she received was a photo of the building just moments before it gave way. Rescue efforts in La Guaira have been hampered by aftershocks and debris, with local authorities confirming dozens of casualties.

Aparicio hopes to travel to Venezuela to attend a memorial service, though the logistics remain difficult amid the ongoing crisis. The San Francisco Venezuelan community has rallied around her, offering support and condolences.

This tragedy underscores the vulnerability of those with family in disaster-prone regions, and the emotional toll on diaspora communities far from home.

A rare pair of powerful earthquakes, known as a 'doublet,' struck Venezuela on June 24, 2026, killing at least 188 people and raising new questions for Californians about whether a similar back-to-back quake could hit the Golden State. The two quakes, each with a magnitude of 7.5, hit just a minute apart and originated from different faults, according to the U.S.

Geological Survey (USGS). The USGS, using predictive modeling, estimated that the death toll in Venezuela would most likely run into the thousands, with a substantial probability of exceeding 10,000.

A website set up to track missing people by leaders from the country's opposition reported that about 24,000 people remain unaccounted for, according to Reuters. The worst-affected area was La Guaira state, near Caracas and home to the city's airport.

Interim Venezuelan President Delcy Rodríguez said rescue crews from other countries would arrive soon and thanked leaders, including President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Trump said there had been a 'devastating' number of deaths.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said rescue teams were being deployed and the Pentagon would send assets to the damaged airport.

Beyond the devastation, the unusual timing of the quakes is drawing attention from earthquake experts because of how rare and destructive such events can be. Doublet earthquakes are rare; there is only a 5% chance of having two large quakes in a sequence be within 0.2 units of magnitude, according to the USGS.

Doublets can greatly increase damage with prolonged or repeated shaking. For California, where hundreds of active faults crisscross densely populated areas, the sequence is a reminder of the state’s own seismic risks and the possibility of complex, multi-event earthquakes.

California’s fault system is complex enough to produce earthquake sequences that resemble a doublet, though scientists say exact 'mirror' events like Venezuela’s are uncommon. California has over 500 active faults, many of them interconnected, and large earthquakes can trigger nearby faults, creating cascading events.

Recent research from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa warns that stress is building across the San Andreas and San Jacinto fault systems, particularly near Cajon Pass — a key junction between fault zones in the Inland Empire. Researchers say that while no earthquake is imminent, the region could see a multi-fault rupture, in which several segments break together rather than as a single, isolated quake.

That kind of event could extend shaking over a wider area, increase duration and intensity, and amplify damage across multiple regions. While this isn’t exactly the same as two separate quakes minutes apart, it highlights a similar risk: compounded seismic impacts.

Like Venezuela, California sits along a major tectonic boundary — in this case between the Pacific Plate and the North American Plate. Instead of colliding, the plates slide past each other along the San Andreas Fault system, building stress over time.

Key risk factors include long stretches of fault that haven’t ruptured in more than a century, dense population centers near major faults (Los Angeles, Inland Empire, Bay Area), and soft soils in some regions that can amplify shaking. Scientists say stress levels in parts of Southern California are among the highest in at least 1,000 years — though that does not mean a quake is imminent.

In a large rupture scenario, strong shaking could last 30 to 60 seconds or more, roads, pipelines and buildings could be offset by feet of movement, and areas near faults and on loose soils would face the greatest damage. Unlike common myths, California will not fall into the ocean; the motion along the San Andreas Fault is horizontal, meaning the land shifts sideways rather than drops.