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December 10
1941 - Three days after Pearl Harbor attack, 165th and 185th Infantry Regiments assigned to Saugus; Edison power substation guarded 24/7 [timeline]
Edison substation timeline


A trusted adviser to Vice President Harris and leader of the nation’s largest organization dedicated to electing women, Butler will make history as California’s first openly LGBTQ United States Senator and the first Black lesbian to openly serve in Congress in American history.
| Monday, Oct 2, 2023
Laphonza Butler

California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Sunday the selection of Laphonza Butler — the President of the nation’s largest organization dedicated to electing women, EMILY’s List — to complete the United States Senate term of the late Senator Dianne Feinstein, which runs through 2024.

Butler, a longtime senior adviser to Vice President Kamala Harris, labor leader, and advocate for women and working people, will be the first openly LGBTQ person to represent California in the Senate. She will also be the first Black lesbian to openly serve in Congress in American history and the second Black woman to represent California in the Senate following Vice President Kamala Harris.

“An advocate for women and girls, a second-generation fighter for working people, and a trusted adviser to Vice President Harris, Laphonza Butler represents the best of California, and she’ll represent us proudly in the United States Senate,” said Newsom. “As we mourn the enormous loss of Senator Feinstein, the very freedoms she fought for — reproductive freedom, equal protection, and safety from gun violence — have never been under greater assault. Laphonza will carry the baton left by Senator Feinstein, continue to break glass ceilings, and fight for all Californians in Washington D.C.”

Butler comes from a working-class family. Her father — a small-business owner — was diagnosed with a terminal illness and died when Butler was 16 years old. Her mother was the household’s sole provider, working as a classroom aide, a home care provider, a security guard, and a bookkeeper to provide for Butler and her two siblings.

With her selection to the Senate, Butler will step down from her role as president of EMILY’s List, where she was the first woman of color and mother to lead the organization. Prior to joining EMILY’s List, Butler ran political campaigns and led strategy efforts for numerous companies, organizations, and elected leaders — including for Vice President Kamala Harris and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Butler was a key leader of Vice President Harris’s presidential campaign. For more than a decade, she served as the president of the largest labor union in California — SEIU Local 2015 — a union representing more than 325,000 nursing home and home-care workers throughout the state.

Previously, Butler served as President of SEIU United Long Term Care Workers (ULTCW) and also as SEIU’s Property Services Division Director, in which she was responsible for the strategic direction of organizing on behalf of more than 250,000 janitors, security officers, window cleaners, and food service workers across the country. Butler also served as an SEIU International Vice President and president of the SEIU California State Council.

Butler was the former director of the Board of Governors of the Los Angeles branch of the Federal Reserve System. In 2018, she was appointed to the University of California Board of Regents by Governor Jerry Brown, where she served until 2021. She served in various other roles, including as a board member for the National Children’s Defense Fund, BLACK PAC, and the Bay Area Economic Council Institute, and as a fellow for the MIT Community Innovators Lab.

Butler was named a “Champion for Change” by President Barack Obama.

Butler received a bachelor of arts degree in political science from Jackson State University. Butler is married to her wife, Neneki, and together they have a daughter, Nylah.

However, not everyone was pleased with the governor’s appointment, citing Butler’s Maryland residency.

Assembly Republican Leader James Gallagher (Yuba City) issued the following statement:

“Out of 40 million California residents, Gavin Newsom seriously couldn’t find one to serve in the Senate? Heck, if he wanted someone with California roots and legislative experience, he could have given me a call.

“Californians deserve real representation, not a political favor for a well-connected campaign operative who doesn’t even live here.”

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SCV NewsBreak
LOCAL NEWS HEADLINES
Friday, Dec 8, 2023
Dec. 12: City Council Meets for Annual Council Reorganization
The Santa Clarita city council will hold its regular meeting Tuesday, Dec. 12. The council will first meet in special meeting at 5 p.m. for the annual city council reorganization where a new mayor will take up the gavel and a new mayor pro tem will be elected.
Friday, Dec 8, 2023
National Weather Service Issues Red Flag Warning for L.A. County
The National Weather Service has issued the potential for Red Flag fire weather conditions for Los Angeles County Saturday, Dec. 9, to Sunday, Dec. 10.
Friday, Dec 8, 2023
Weekly COVID-19 Roundup: New Data Dashboards Monitor Transmission
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health confirmed Thursday 217 new laboratory confirmed cases and two additional deaths from COVID-19 in the Santa Clarita Valley within the last week.
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Latest Additions to SCVNews.com
1941 - Three days after Pearl Harbor attack, 165th and 185th Infantry Regiments assigned to Saugus; Edison power substation guarded 24/7 [timeline]
Edison substation timeline
1983 - U.S. release of John Carpenter's "Christine;" blew up fake gas station in Valencia [watch scene (R)]
Christine gas station explosion in Valencia
The annual organizational meeting and regular board meeting of the Saugus Union School District Governing Board will be held Tuesday, Dec. 12, beginning with a closed session at 5:30 p.m. followed by the open public session at 6:30 p.m.
Dec. 12: Saugus School Board to Elect New Officers
In what has become a Newhall Christmas tradition, Faith Community Church looks forward to welcoming hundreds of neighbors to the church campus for this year’s “Festividad for Christ” event.
Dec. 16: 18th Annual ‘Festividad for Christ’ Neighborhood Christmas
The regular and organizational meetings of the William S. Hart Union High School District’s Governing Board will be held Wednesday, Dec. 13, beginning at 7 p.m.
Dec. 13: Hart Board to Elect New Officers
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health has added a new tool to help keep you and your family safe during the current flu, COVID-19 and RSV respiratory illness season.
Public Health Adds New Resp-Watch Survillance Report
The time for holiday cheer is here! Enjoy all the free festivities at your local Los Angeles County park this season, complete with toys, music, games, crafts, caroling and snow at select locations.
Dec. 16: Holiday in the Park, Castaic Sports Complex, Rioux Park
The Valencia Town Center mall will be spreading Christmas cheer for all to hear this season. Enjoy the sounds of season with strolling carolers throughout December.
Carolers at Valencia Town Center Bring Holiday Cheer
The Agua Dulce Women's Club held the 29th Annual Parade of Tables on Saturday, Dec. 2. Procceds from the fundrasing event will benefit local schools, scholarships and philanthropic activities, as well as the Agua Dulce Women’s Club and it’s programs.
Agua Dulce Women’s Club Parade of Tables
The Santa Clarita city council will hold its regular meeting Tuesday, Dec. 12. The council will first meet in special meeting at 5 p.m. for the annual city council reorganization where a new mayor will take up the gavel and a new mayor pro tem will be elected.
Dec. 12: City Council Meets for Annual Council Reorganization
The Santa Clarita Valley Water Agency welcomed the news that the California Department of Water Resources has taken a major step forward to make the state's water system more resilient to climate change and natural disasters while protecting and enhancing the environment in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.
SCV Water Expresses Support for Delta Conveyance Project
The National Weather Service has issued the potential for Red Flag fire weather conditions for Los Angeles County Saturday, Dec. 9, to Sunday, Dec. 10.
National Weather Service Issues Red Flag Warning for L.A. County
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health confirmed Thursday 217 new laboratory confirmed cases and two additional deaths from COVID-19 in the Santa Clarita Valley within the last week.
Weekly COVID-19 Roundup: New Data Dashboards Monitor Transmission
Ken & Joe’s "Season of Giving Winter Charity Event" will be held Saturday, Dec. 16, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the dealership's location at 21618 Golden Triangle Road, Santa Clarita, CA 91350.
Dec. 16: Ken & Joe’s Season of Giving Winter Charity Event
Do you have a love for history and hockey? If you do, head over to The Cube—Ice and Entertainment Center, Powered by FivePoint Valencia for the “United by Hockey” Mobile Museum on Wednesday, Dec. 13, from 3 – 9 p.m.
NHL’s ‘United By Hockey’ Mobile Museum Visits Santa Clarita
The Ridge Route Preservation Organization was cleared by the Angeles National Forest to repair potholes along the north section of the Old Ridge Route from the 138 to the Tumble Inn.
Ridge Route Preservation Organization Begins Pothole Project
As Los Angeles county residents start preparing for holiday festivities L.A.County Public Health urges everyone to consider getting the newly updated COVID-19 vaccine to protect against severe illness this winter virus season. It is recommended for everyone 6 months and older.
Public Health Recommends Newly Updated COVID Vaccine
The South Coast Air Quality Management District recently issued two Notices of Violations to Chiquita Canyon Landfill. One Notices of Violation was issued for the landfill’s failure to maintain the leachate collection and storage system in good operating condition, failure to report the breakdown of equipment and other permit condition violations. The other Notices of Violation was issued for failure to submit a landfill excavation plan.
AQMD Issues More Notices of Violation to Chiquita Canyon Landfill
The Federal Railroad Administration announced a $500,000 grant award from the Corridor Identification and Development Program to the High Desert Corridor Joint Powers Agency.
High Desert Corridor Project Awarded $500K Grant
1941 - Julius Dietzmann family of Castaic arrested as German enemy aliens [story]
Julius Dietzmann
Each year the Santa Clarita Valley Economic Development Corporation, in collaboration with economist Dr. Mark Schniepp, releases the Economic Outlook Book.
SCVEDC’s 2023 Economic Outlook Book Now Available
The Master's University will host its acclaimed Winter 5K run on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2024, starting at 9 a.m.
Start 2024 at TMU’s Winter 5K
The Santa Clarita Arts Commission will hold its regular meeting Thursday, Dec. 14, at 6 p.m., in Council Chambers at City Hall.
Dec. 14: Santa Clarita Arts Commission Regular Meeting
The Castaic Union School District Governing Board will hold its regular/organizational meeting Monday, Dec. 11, at 6 p.m.
Dec. 11: CUSD Regular/Organizational Board Meeting
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