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Representatives of Nuiqsut, an Inupiat village on the North Slope, have sued the Trump administration over the abrupt cancellation of a program that gave protections to the Teshekpuk Lake area and the caribou herd that uses it. Teshekpuk Lake is the largest lake in the Arctic region and known as a diverse and sensitive wetland […]

(The Center Square) – Amid a projected $18 billion budget shortfall for the 2026-27 fiscal year, the state is also dealing with $99.1 billion in bond debt, according to a new report. The report released by the California Debt & Investment Advisory Commission shows that the state and local debt load sits at $99.1 billion, and long-term debt across the state makes up $90.1 billion. That debt load is up 11.6% over the five-year average, the report states, and is up 8.8% year-over-year. “I always say the insidious thing about taking a loan out is that you’ve got to pay it back,” state Sen. Roger Niello, R-Roseville and vice chair of the Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Committee, told The Center Square on Monday. “I tend to be very conservative on that because of that fact that you have to pay it back. If there’s any part of today’s budget difficulties that are motivating us to go to the bond market to help pay for things that the general fund can’t, that’s a huge mistake.” An additional $7 billion in debt has been proposed statewide, according to the report. Local governments in California, additionally, have taken on $71.3 billion in local debt. That is driven, in large part, by the energy sector, the report states. Electricity demand increased significantly between 2021 and 2024 in places where artificial intelligence data centers were built or expanded, according to the report. Debt issuance went up by 30% in that time, mostly to help pay for supporting electric systems, renewable energy projects and grid modernization. Government-run joint power authorities that help supply energy to private electrical companies took on the most debt in that time period. Approximately 40% of the electricity consumed by private utility companies is purchased through these agencies, and those agencies are able to get tax-free bonds to help pay for increased electricity infrastructure to meet the higher demand generated by AI data centers, according to the report. Those bonds essentially pre-paid renewable energy for customers of these agencies for the next 30 years, the report states. “My first impression is that we’re kicking off our problems to the future,” said Wayne Winegarden, a senior fellow in business and economics at Pasadena-based Pacific Research Institute. “We keep adding on more debt," Winegarden told The Center Square on Monday. "In theory, some of the electric grid or power investments should be good, that’s what you use debt for.” But Winegarden added bond money has to be invested in something that yields a higher return. “And it certainly doesn’t seem like our investments have been doing that,” Winegarden told The Center Square. “When you take this growth in debt and combine it with the fact that we’re already very indebted, it’s really setting us up for long-term fiscal troubles.” Lawmakers who sit on taxation and revenue-related committees told The Center Square Monday that despite the multi-year budget deficit and the increasing debt burden, it shouldn’t be residents of the state who ultimately pay the price of those bonds. “I will avoid putting the burden on ratepayers and taxpayers,” Sen. Jerry McNerney, D-Stockton and chair of the Senate Revenue and Taxation Committee, told The Center Square. “If there’s going to be a burden, it should be placed on the people that are making the money on these data centers.” In total, $25.7 billion were issued in bonds to joint power authorities, $21.2 billion were issued to publicly-owned utilities, while more than $4.57 billion worth of bonds were issued to other electricity supply programs. Silicon Valley Power, a publicly-owned utility owned by the city of Santa Clara, is working on a system upgrade that the commission said will cost $450 million. The upgrade is necessary to meet the demand of data centers, among other users, the report said. The system upgrade will be done in 2028, according to the report. Private utility companies like Pacific Gas & Electric, which utility industry experts refer to as investor-owned utilities, often don’t use bonds to pay for system upgrades and infrastructure projects. Because these companies pay for those projects with their own company revenues, no bond debt issuance to these companies was included in the report. Officials with the California Debt & Investment Advisory Commission were unavailable to answer questions from The Center Square. Assemblymember Mike Gipson, D-Gardena and chair of the Assembly Revenue and Taxation Committee, was also unavailable.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. House is expected to vote as soon as Tuesday on the government funding package that will end the ongoing partial government shutdown once it becomes law.  The Senate voted Friday evening to approve the legislation after President Donald Trump and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., brokered a deal to remove the full-year […]

A federal judge has halted the termination of TPS for Haitians, preserving protections for more than 350,000 people beyond the Feb. 3 deadline. The post Judge halts TPS termination for Haitians — for now appeared first on The Haitian Times.

(The Center Square) – Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass wants residents to remain unified and continue helping one another in times of difficulty. During her State of the City Address, the longtime Democrat said these are divided times. But she added she wants residents to show the world what the city, its people, neighborhoods and cultures have to offer. “We were built by immigrants from every corner of the world,” said the mayor. “Our city has always been about bringing people together.” Bass, a member of the U.S. House from 2011 to 2022, said many people looked after one another when the Trump administration deployed the National Guard to the city last summer. “Neighbors looked out for neighbors,” said Bass, who was born and raised in Los Angeles. “Communities formed rapid-response networks. People stood together — to protect human beings they had never met.” Bass said these events made her proud to be an Angeleno. “While the National Guard has since left, the brutality of the raids has not,” said Bass. “Raids continue every day in Los Angeles, and with them have come the devastating losses of life.” Examples offered by Bass include the deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis as well as Keith Porter in Los Angeles. The three were killed by immigration officers. “Keith Porter, a 43-year-old father of two, was shot to death by an off-duty ICE officer,” said Bass. “Staying silent or minimizing what is happening is not an option. This administration does not care about safety. They do not care about order. And they certainly do not care about the law.” The Trump administration has stood by its actions and those of officers with Border Patrol and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Still, Bass called for the “senseless death, lawlessness, and violence” to end as well as ICE’s presence in Los Angeles. The mayor added that ICE is present in other cities as well, but officials are taking a stand. “Mayors and local leaders have become the last line of defense,” said Bass. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has repeatedly told The Center Square that Democrats are vilifying immigration agents, which has greatly increased assaults on them and puts them in danger. The department has stressed it's working to make America safer from criminals. The mayor also addressed rebuilding efforts in areas such as Pacific Palisades one year after the devastating Palisades Fire. After thanking families for sharing their stories and frustrations with her, Bass said, "Recovery should never feel harder than the disaster itself.” According to Bass, 400 homes are under construction and hundreds more are ready to be rebuilt. Later, Bass touched on affordability issues, saying her administration is committed to helping people in different stages of life. “The city that prices out its next generation is a city that stops believing in its own future,” said Bass. “We’ve expanded tenant rights and capped rent increases.” The mayor also announced $14 million in rental assistance for seniors and people with disabilities. Meanwhile, Los Angeles will host various watch parties for the FIFA World Cup, parties that Bass said will be free and open to the public. When it comes to homelessness, Bass said her office has also moved with urgency. “We broke down silos, challenged policies that kept people trapped on our streets and began building a coordinated system with one clear goal: End street homelessness,” said Bass. Bass was introduced by Angel City Football Club co-founder and CEO Julie Uhrman. Uhrman announced a partnership with Los Angeles as part of the mayor’s efforts to promote youth sports. Angel City Football Club is a professional team that competes in the National Women's Soccer League.

Amb motiu del Dia Escolar de la No-Violència i la Pau, els infants de les escoles on treballa Fundesplai han fet una crida per la pau. Les accions que han tingut lloc en aquest dia s’han emmarcat en la proposta educativa “Amb Veu i en Pau”, unes accions que impulsen Fundesplai i Fundipau per la [...] L'entrada 20.000 infants d’arreu de Catalunya criden per la pau ha aparegut primer a El Diari de l'Educació.

Roughly 350,000 Haitians are in the U.S. through legal status granted because of natural disasters and armed conflict in their home country.

“Mencemari laut sama dengan membunuh nelayan,” “Nelayan Batam menggugat: tegakan hukum, pulihkan lingkungan dan hak nelayan.” Begitu spanduk yang nelayan bentangkan dari atas kapal ketika aksi protes reklamasi Desember lalu. Tak mau ruang hidup mereka makin rusak, para nelayan di Nongsa, Kota Batam, Kepulauan Riau (Kepri) menggelar protes dari atas kapal. Aksi itu mereka lakukan […] The post Ketika Suara Nelayan Batam Terdampak Reklamasi Terabaikan appeared first on Mongabay.co.id.

El segundo semestre de este año comenzará el pago de las expropiaciones de terrenos donde construirán el primer tramo del proyecto de doble vía de la ruta hacía el Aeropuerto El Tepual de Puerto Montt, confirmaron desde la Seremi de Obras Públicas. Actualmente la Dirección de Vialidad está trabajando en la primera de las tres … Continua leyendo "En segundo semestre comenzará pago de expropiaciones para doble vía al Aeropuerto El Tepual" The post En segundo semestre comenzará pago de expropiaciones para doble vía al Aeropuerto El Tepual appeared first on BioBioChile.

Hundreds of Ohioans gathered at a church in Springfield on Monday morning to call for an extension of Temporary Protected Status for Haitians set to expire on Tuesday.   Later that day, U.S. District Court Judge Ana C. Reyes blocked the Trump administration’s attempt to end protected status for about 330,000 Haitians living in the United States […]

Local party leaders disagree on what Taylor Rehmet’s Texas Senate win foreshadows for 2026.

Whether you’re a skier or just enjoying the mountain views, the problem isn’t hard to see — there’s not much snow in Utah.  Statewide snowpack has reached new record lows since measurement began in 1980, according to a report released Monday by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service.  Utah gets “approximately 95% […]

A partnership between National School District and Olivewood Gardens and Learning Center has earned statewide recognition, with the district receiving a California School Boards Association Golden Bell Award in the "Climate Change Innovation" category.

Қазақстанда екінші атом электр станциясы (АЭС) салынатын орын ресми түрде бекітілді. Тиісті қаулыға премьер-министр Олжас Бектенов 26 қаңтарда қол қойып, құжат сол күннен бастап күшіне енген деп жазды жергілікті басылымдар. Қаулыға сәйкес, елдегі екінші АЭС те Алматы облысы Жамбыл ауданы аумағында салынады деп белгіленді. "Екінші атом электр станциясы" ядролық қондырғысын (бұдан әрі – ядролық қондырғы) салу және Алматы облысының Жамбыл ауданы – ядролық қондырғы салынатын аудан туралы шешім...

Sign up for Chalkbeat New York’s free daily newsletter to get essential news about NYC’s public schools delivered to your inbox. The 4-year-olds in Rebecca Schneider-Kaplan’s prekindergarten class are doing a science experiment designed to document the demise of a pumpkin named Jack. Since October, Schneider-Kaplan has recorded their observations in a binder. The kids use paint and cotton balls to illustrate the mold swallowing Jack’s flesh. In previous years, the pumpkin experiment stopped much sooner. But this class loves science, Schneider-Kaplan said, so she adapted. Ushering a room full of pre-K students toward a learning goal requires constant improvisation. On a recent Tuesday morning at Stepping Stones Pre-School in Staten Island, Schneider-Kaplan held 11 pairs of eyes on a rotting pumpkin (seven students were missing because of the weather), while simultaneously sending a squirming child to the bathroom, keeping tabs on a boy who was more interested in pulling blocks off a shelf, and reminding multiple kids to keep their hands on their own bodies. Rebecca Schneider-Kaplan's pre-K classroom on Jan. 26 at Stepping Stones Pre-school. Schneider-Kaplan, who has taught for 18 years, would earn significantly more money if she did the same job at a public school down the road, rather than a private child care center contracted to run pre-K through the city’s Education Department. She would also get regular raises, health insurance, a pension, and additional pay for experience or extra training. And she’d enjoy the same perks as city teachers, with prep time, a lunch break, and summers and school holidays off. The city has promised to fix the inequities for years, but an audit released by the city comptroller two years ago found that 90% of community-based lead teachers with master’s degrees still earned less than their early childhood counterparts who worked in public schools. In the Bronx and Brooklyn, some certified teachers start at less than $36,000 a year — close to $30,000 less than at public schools, the audit found. Educators, who plan to hold a rally next week at City Hall, are angry that Mayor Zohran Mamdani is moving to expand care to 2-year-olds before addressing the existing inequities in the 3-year-old and 4-year-old programs. “It’s just a complete lack of respect,” Schneider-Kaplan said. “I needed two degrees to become an early childhood educator, but I cannot afford to pay back my loans because I don’t make enough money.” Early childhood wages are ‘impoverishing’ workers The city’s subsidized early childhood system – which served nearly 160,000 babies and children last year – relies on a vast ecosystem of programs in public schools, neighborhood centers, and private homes. This fall, the Mamdani administration will add 2,000 new, free spots for 2-year-olds — a first step toward meeting his campaign promise of universal subsidized child care for kids under age 5. In a December report, Emmy Liss — who became the executive director of the mayor’s Office of Child Care just a few weeks after the report’s publication — wrote that subsidized early education programs were built in part as anti-poverty programs. “It is somewhat ironic then that child care as a field is impoverishing its own workers, creating an entire class of working people who earn too little to provide for their families,” Liss wrote, adding that the city’s child care workers are almost entirely women of color. “Since the time of slavery in the United States, Black women have been pushed toward caregiving roles for other children, and their work has been systematically underpaid and undervalued,” Liss continued. In response to a request for comment, a spokesperson for the mayor’s office wrote, “Mayor Mamdani has been clear — the individuals providing these critical services must be paid fairly and equitably. We are committed to continuity for our 3-K and Pre-K providers and the families they serve.” Low pay isn’t limited to teachers. Early childhood programs directors, who sometimes have decades of teaching and leadership experience, earn a median wage of $37 per hour, most without health insurance, according to a report by the Center for New York City Affairs at The New School. Assistant teachers typically earn well under $40,000 a year. That has serious consequences for kids and parents, advocates and providers say. Programs struggle to hire staff, which results in empty classrooms and long waitlists. And when they do fill positions, teachers often leave as soon as public school jobs become available. City funding for early childhood classrooms “doesn’t cover what the programs cost,” said Michelle Kindya, the co-director of Stepping Stones Pre-School. “Our liability insurance has doubled. Utilities go up. Everything has gone up except the budget.” Kindya and her business partner, Marilynn Hopkins, have been running early education programs together for more than 40 years. They each have many years of teaching experience; Kindya was an early childhood professor at Brooklyn College for 11 years. And yet they earn less money than teachers with a few years of experience at public schools. “We’re not valued,” Kindya said. ‘What would make them think we can survive?’ Like a lot of early childhood educators, Kindya and Hopkins say they stick with the job because they love what they do. Five years ago, the city gave them a little bit of hope when a new round of contracts included a salary bump for pre-K teachers. There were no raises for directors or assistants, but Kindya and Hopkins figured they could hold out until the next contract negotiations. The system was finally moving in the right direction. Then, at a meeting in November 2025, early childhood directors learned their contracts would be extended for two years with no funding increase — a decision made under former Mayor Eric Adams. Meanwhile, Mamdani — who would soon take office — was promising a massive expansion of the system in which many programs were barely treading water. “We were shocked,” Kindya said. “Before they spend the money to add 2-year-olds, shouldn’t they fix the programs they already have? What would make them think we can survive?” The news galvanized many program directors, who decided to throw their weight behind a movement demanding pay equity for early childhood educators. They launched a letter-writing campaign to the mayor and a social media campaign to raise awareness. Much of the organizing happens over a group chat that uses a play on the acronym for New York City Early Education: “No more NYCEE.” Early childhood classrooms will remain open during the Feb. 12 rally at City Hall, though some will rely on substitutes or alternate staffing. “It will probably irritate people that we won’t be at work. We may lose pay, or PTO. It won’t be convenient,” one organizer wrote on a Facebook group for early educators. “THIS is our opportunity. SHOW UP PEOPLE.” For Schneider-Kaplan, the tipping point came when she saw a series of social media posts showing Mamdani and Ms. Rachel, a YouTube star who makes videos for young children. One post was captioned, “If you’re excited for universal child care and you know it, clap your hands.” Schneider-Kaplan responded with a post of her own, writing under the name ‘Ms. Becky’: “If you see every post about Universal Childcare as a slap in the face because you’re an underpaid and under insured teacher, clap your hands!” Abigail Kramer is a reporter in New York City. Contact Abigail at akramer@chalkbeat.org.

Companies profiting from unregulated convenience store slot machines would have two years to pull their games off the market under a bill advanced Monday in a Missouri House committee. The bill — the latest in a years-long effort by law enforcement and legislators to rein in the games — would create a state-run video lottery […]

Una Alerta Roja fue declarada este lunes para la provincia de Isla de Pascua a raíz de un incendio forestal que se mantiene en combate y que presenta amenaza inminente a sectores habitados. Según la información entregada por Conaf y el Sistema Nacional de Prevención y Respuesta ante Desastres (Senapred), el siniestro afecta hasta ahora … Continua leyendo "Declaran alerta roja en Isla de Pascua por incendio forestal cercano a casas: 5 hectáreas afectadas" The post Declaran alerta roja en Isla de Pascua por incendio forestal cercano a casas: 5 hectáreas afectadas appeared first on BioBioChile.

Mérida, February 2, 2026 (venezuelanalysis.com) – Venezuelan Acting President Delcy Rodríguez met with US Chargé d’Affaires Laura Dogu in Miraflores Presidential Palace on Monday afternoon. According to Communications Minister Miguel Pérez Pirela, the meeting took place “in the context of the working agenda” between Caracas and Washington. National Assembly President Jorge Rodríguez was likewise present.... The post Venezuela: Rodríguez Hosts US Chargé d’Affaires Dogu in Presidential Palace appeared first on Venezuelanalysis.

Alaska children who are deaf and hard-of-hearing would be guaranteed a local education under a proposal passed unanimously by the Alaska House of Representatives on Monday. The House passed a different version of House Bill 39, by Rep. Jamie Allard, R-Eagle River, during the 33rd Alaska State Legislature, but that bill never received a Senate […]

Voters can expect a lot of political polling in the lead-up to NZ’s general election in November. It’s important to know what the numbers can and can’t reveal.