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F R I DAY, M AY 6 , 2 02 2
Siding with ExxonMobil Chambers of commerce throughout Santa Barbara County blast supervisors’ decision to deny trucking plan
Federal judge will sentence Chauvin to 20 to 25 years By MARY STROKA THE CENTER SQUARE CONTRIBUTOR
(The Center Square) – U.S. District Judge Paul Magnuson has accepted Derek Chauvin’s plea agreement and will sentence him to 20 to 25 years in prison, according to a one-page order issued Wednesday. “At the change-of-plea hearing, the Court deferred accepting Defendant’s plea pending issuance of the preliminary presentence investigation report,” Judge Magnuson said. “That report has now issued, and acceptance of the plea is appropriate.” Mr. Chauvin, a former Minneapolis police officer, will serve the federal sentence concurrently with the 22.5-year state sentence issued in June 2021. He was convicted in April of second-degree unintentional murder in the May 25, 2020, death of George Floyd that a bystander caught on videotape. Mr. Chauvin is appealing the state conviction. The brief his attorneys submitted April 25 said, among other arguments, that Mr. Chauvin’s motion to change venue should have been
KENNETH SONG / NEWS-PRESS
Above are the ExxonMobil Las Flores Canyon and POPCO Facilities in Goleta. Exxon had requested a development plan revision to install and operate a new oil tanker truck loading rack at the Santa Ynez Unit processing facility and transportation of crude oil from multiple platforms to two receiving terminals in Santa Barbara and Kern counties.
By KAITLYN SCHALLHORN NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
Santa Barbara County chambers of commerce are warning of potential economic ramifications after the Board of Supervisors denied an ExxonMobil trucking plan in March. In a 3-2 vote earlier this year, the Santa
Barbara County Board of Supervisors nixed Exxon’s request to truck oil along area roads because of potential unmitigable safety impacts. Exxon had requested a development plan revision to install and operate a new oil tanker truck loading rack at the Santa Ynez Unit processing facility and transportation of crude
MORE ON SUNDAY To see the entire joint letter from the Santa Barbara County chambers of commerce regarding ExxonMobil, turn to the Voices section in Sunday’s News-Press.
oil from multiple platforms to two receiving terminals in Santa Barbara and Kern counties. Some supervisors, including Chair Joan Hartmann, expressed concerns about the environmental impact of Exxon’s project. But in a recent joint letter, the Santa Barbara County chambers of commerce — which includes the Buellton Chamber, Lompoc Valley Chamber, Santa Barbara South Coast Chamber, Santa Maria Valley Chamber and Solvang Chamber — urged local leadership to work with oil companies to ensure the community has a reliable local energy resource, can develop good-paying jobs and Please see EXXONMOBIL on A4
Republicans raise questions about Biden allies receiving government contracts By CASEY HARPER THE CENTER SQUARE (The Center Square) – Republicans on the U.S. Oversight Committee have begun an inquiry into why multiple allies of President Joe Biden have received federal contracts that are now under scrutiny. The lawmakers sent a letter to Tae Johnson, acting director of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, demanding documentation and written communication around an $87 million contract that was awarded to house illegal immigrants. An Inspector General report later said that the contractor wasted $17 million because hotel rooms went unused. “We write to express alarm at the potential waste of millions in taxpayer money and abuse of the contracting process by U.S. Immigration and Customs
Enforcement (ICE) officials,” the letter, sent this week, said. “According to a recent Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Inspector General (OIG) report, ICE officials bypassed the ordinary competitive process to award a large, sole source $87 million contract and then wasted at least $17 million of taxpayer money because hotel rooms intended for migrant families sat empty and were mostly unused. “Not only have the Biden Administration’s policies exacerbated the crisis on our border, it now appears the Administration is exploiting the crisis to reward its political allies with sole source contracts,” the letter added. In addition to the reported waste, Republicans are questioning how the contract was awarded and if any wrongdoing occurred. According to Republicans
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SB County Board focuses on infant, toddler childcare By KAITLYN SCHALLHORN NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
NEWS-PRESS FILE PHOTO
President Joe Biden
the taxpayers is unacceptable. Unfortunately, these problems are not surprising given the potential conflicts of interest inherent in this particular contract,” the letter said. “A report has now surfaced that he is interviewing to return to ICE as its Chief of Staff. The revolving door appears to be quite lucrative for those who benefit from the Administration’s mismanagement of the border.”
accepted, there was prejudice, jurors demonstrated bias against Mr. Chauvin and the judge allowed cumulative opinion on the use of force. Mr. Chauvin pleaded guilty Dec. 15 to federal charges that he abused his authority to violate George Floyd’s rights in December 2021, following a plea deal for prosecutors to seek a 25year sentence instead of life in prison. Pre-sentence investigations are still underway for the other three ex-officers convicted for charges regarding the murder, J. Alexander Kueng, Thomas Lane and Tou Thao. They were charged in February in federal court with failing to provide medical aid to Mr. Floyd, who allegedly tried to spend a counterfeit $20 bill. Mr. Thao and Mr. Keung were also charged with failing to intervene in Mr. Chauvin’s unreasonable use of force. Mr. Lane had asked Mr. Floyd to reposition. The three are due for a state court trial beginning June 13 on charges of aiding and abetting Mr. Chauvin in the murder of Mr. Floyd, AP reported. They rejected plea deals regarding the state charges.
The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors homed in on access to childcare for infants and toddlers this week as it considered how to allocate $2 million in federal pandemic relief money. First 5 Santa Barbara County, which is focused on early childhood development and family support programs, told the board this week its ideas for how to allocate the funds for its Emergency Child Care Initiative. First 5 recommended either providing direct support to households, giving funding to small businesses or related industries or developing a request for a proposal on how to allocate funding. After the presentation, the board unanimously agreed to work with First 5 in developing an RFP for the funds with a focus on infant and toddler childcare. “I believe we have a structural
problem,” said Chair Joan Hartmann. “We have $2 million, and if it just goes to individual family support, that money will be gone, but we will not have addressed a major structural problem that faces all employers and families in this county.” There are nearly 72,000 children (ages birth to 12) in Santa Barbara County, First 5 estimated in its presentation to the board. Before COVID-19, more than 46,750 needed some type of childcare outside of the home because of their parents’ work schedules during the week, according to First 5 Santa Barbara County. There are about 18,000 known licensed and licensedexempt spaces for childcare in the county. The strongest need is seen among infants and toddlers: There are only about 1,627 spaces available for the 9,967 children who need care, according to First 5 Santa Please see CHILDCARE on A2
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on the committee, Endeavors received the contract “after hiring Andrew Lorenzen-Strait as Senior Director for Migrant Services and Federal Affairs, a political ally of the Biden Administration. Mr. Lorenzen-Strait served on the Biden-Harris transition team and is a former official at ICE … The OIG’s investigation found that Endeavors sent an unsolicited proposal to ICE to house migrant families despite having no prior experience in providing these services.” This latest Biden relationship is one of several under scrutiny. The lawmakers have also launched an inquiry into a major Democratic donor who received a spot on a White House council of advisors and another donor who received a major loan from a federal agency. Now, Republicans are demanding answers. “Wasting $17 million in unused hotel rooms paid for by
George Floyd
MINNESOTA DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS
Derek Chauvin
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Wednesday’s SUPER LOTTO: 5-9-20-27-42 Mega: 17
Thursday’s DAILY 4: 9-0-1-2
Tuesday’s MEGA MILLIONS: 15-19-27-35-57 Mega: 17
Thursday’s FANTASY 5: 2-11-18-21-27
Thursday’s DAILY DERBY: 12-03-05 Time: 1:46.89
Wednesday’s POWERBALL: 37-39-55-63-69 Meganumber: 23
Thursday’s DAILY 3: 6-8-7 / Midday 3-0-4