Grilled corn smothered in peanut sauce a tasty mess B3
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DAILYREPUBLIC.COM | Well said. Well read.
Biden vows G-7 will stay united on Ukraine Tribune Content Agency KRÜN, Germany — President Biden and the leaders of the world’s leading democracies convened here Sunday for the annual Group of Seven summit, displaying resolve – and a bit of levity – in maintaining their commitment to supporting Ukraine as they seek to address global economic woes, food shortages and the needs of the developing world. As meetings got underway Sunday morning at Schloss Elmau, a historic chateau in the Bavarian Alps, Biden said the U.S. and its allies would announce a ban on imports of Russian gold in a new effort to deny Moscow an economic lifeline amid ongoing sanctions from the West. “We have to stay together because Putin has been counting on, from the beginning, that somehow NATO would – and the G-7 – would splinter,” Biden said, referencing Russian President Vladimir Putin, as he began a meeting with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. “But we haven’t and we’re not going to.” Although a formal announcement of the ban on Russian gold is set for Tuesday, Biden tweeted about it on Sunday, declaring that the move would stop Moscow from profiting from “a major export that rakes in tens of billions of dollars.” The G-7 leaders also mocked Putin as they posed for a photo at the start of a meeting. As he sat down at a round table, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson asked the others about whether to keep his suit jacket on. “We have to show we’re tougher than Putin,” Johnson joked. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau joked back: “Bare-chested horseback ride,” referencing a photo of the Russian leader from years ago. The jocular banter came just hours after Russian forces launched a brutal missile attack on civilian targets in Ukraine’s capital city of Kyiv, a clear signal from Putin that he is not relenting in his ongoing war, despite the pressure campaign from G-7 nations and NATO. Asked moments earlier to comment on the shelling, Biden was more serious, calling it See Ukraine, Page A8
Roberto Schmidt/AFP/Getty Images/TNS
Abortion rights demonstrators yell in front of the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., Saturday.
Poll: Majority disapproves of Court decision Bloomberg News WASHINGTON — A CBS News poll found that a majority of Americans disapprove of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision overturning the constitutional right to an abortion, which is inflaming a partisan divide on display in comments by senior lawmakers. The poll, conducted Friday and Saturday, found 59% disapproved of the ruling, including 67% of women. While 78% of Republicans were in favor of the decision, 83% of Democrats disapproved. The survey has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points. A concurring opinion by Justice Clarence Thomas in the Roe v. Wade decision raised the prospect for many Americans that other rights, including the rights to same-sex marriage and contraception, are now at risk. That prompted Sen. Lindsey Graham to voice support for the majority opinion written by Justice Samuel Alito. See Poll, Page A8 INDEX Arts B4 | Business B2 | Classifieds B6 Comics A5, B5 | Crossword A6, B4 | Food B3 Opinion A7 | Sports B1 | TV Daily A5, B5
Robinson Kuntz/Daily Republic
Water spurts from the fountain in front of the Solano County Government Center in Fairfield, Thursday. The Board of
Supervisors on Tuesday approved the largest budget in county history.
Board of Supervisors
Adopt largest recommended budget in Solano County history Todd R. Hansen
THANSEN@DAILYREPUBLIC.NET
FAIRFIELD — Solano County will provide $100,000 in "seed money" to help the reorganization of CAP Solano regional homeless efforts, and $1.5 million more to the Solano360 fairgrounds redevelopment project. Both were late expenditures added within the largest recommended budget in county history. The Board of Supervisors on Tuesday approved the $1.35 billion 2022-23 fiscal plan – the first budget to have an "actual buying power" greater than $1 billion as well. The full budget is 4.9% larger than the 2021-22 adopted budget. County Administrator Bill Emlen, presenting his first budget as Solano County's top executive,
called it a "solid budget" and said it reflects the "rebuild of the county" since the 2008 Great Recession. But it is a budget that also arrives during a challenging economic environment. Emlen noted the county is still coming out of the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, is still in the LNU fire recovery stage and faces a lot of unknowns in an economy troubled by inflation and other pressures. "Those are things we will have to keep an eye on as we head into the new fiscal year," said Emlen, who was appointed county administrator in March. The budget was presented by Ian Goldberg, who was recently promoted from budget officer to assistant county administrator. The General Fund was approved
at $342.8 million, up 1.9% over the 2021-22 adopted budget. Taxes, and particularly property taxes, represent $170.9 million of the General Fund revenues. The Special Revenue Fund is listed at $942.1 million. It includes the Health and Social Services and Public Protection budget units, which make up about $660 million of that total. The Capital Project Funds – including the extensive energy infrastructure upgrade and conservation project, as well as the mental health board and care facility – is listed at $38.46 million. Supervisor Mitch Mashburn said he is concerned the county has yet to hire a project manager for the massive energy project, and said See Budget, Page A8
Coyote, bear, lion activity prompt desire for trapper capacity boost Supervisor also cites bee oversight as necessary Todd R. Hansen
THANSEN@DAILYREPUBLIC.NET
FAIRFIELD — Coyotes are taking more livestock, and the Solano County Agriculture Department is getting more reports of increased bear and lion activity in the county. "I don't have any definitive numbers," Agriculture Commissioner Ed King said Thursday in a phone interview. "But by and large (increased coyote predation) is true," King said. The loss of calves and lambs prompted Supervisor Mitch Mashburn to renew his call last week for
increased trapping capacity in the county. Right now, the county – through a contract with the U.S. Department of Agriculture – pays for one wildlife specialist. That contract expires June 30, 2023, the last year of a five-year deal. The county pays $95,000 annually for the service. "We will have to look at some different options and see how we can go about it," King said. Mashburn's comments came during a Board of Supervisors budget hearing when he also called for an increase in code enforcement due to bee hives being stored in residential areas. "That's dangerous," said Mashburn, noting the risks created by swarming bees. King said there have been some issues, and those problems have increased as more and
WEATHER 95 | 60 Sunny and clear. Five-day forecast on B8.
more almond acres come into production. Thousands of beekeepers from around the country come to California for the almond bloom, and typically, King said, it is the outsiders whose hives have been the problem. "At times we do run into beekeepers who . . . move hives into areas that are not suitable for a large number of hives," King said. "By and large, the local beekeep-
— N A PA VA L L E Y —
ers are responsible and follow the rules, and have established contracts with the growers." King said the first step would be to better educate the beekeepers about the situation. Most, of course, take their hives with them when the pollination season ends, but some do stick around. One of the problems is there are fewer and fewer areas where hives can be store.
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