Amador County – California Congressman Dan Lungren issued a statement Friday saying the federal government shut-down was averted, and “now the real budget discussion begins.”

Lungren (R-District 3), Chairman of the Committee on House Administration said: “I am pleased that Speaker Boehner and Majority Leader Reid have reached an agreement to keep the government running.” He said the “cuts are historic” and “represent the largest year-to-year spending cut since World War II.”

He released a summary of the “bipartisan agreement on spending cuts to support American job creation,” saying it was the “largest spending cut in American history in terms of dollars,” and will immediately cut $38.5 billion in federal spending “just months after President Obama asked Congress for a spending freeze that would mean zero cuts.”

Lungren said the agreement would make hundreds of billions of dollars in spending cuts over the next decade, and officially end the “stimulus spending binge,” which former Fed chief “Alan Greenspan and other economists say hurt job creation in America by crowding out private investment.” Lungren said the agreement set the stage for trillions more in spending cuts.

He said the “agreement reached with Senate Democrats guarantees a Senate debate and vote on legislation that would repeal President Obama’s government takeover of health care in its entirety.”

It also guarantees a Senate vote and debate on de-funding Planned Parenthood, and bans taxpayer funding of abortion in the District of Columbia. The agreement also denies additional funding to the IRS, and sets mandatory audits of “new job-crushing bureaucracy.”

Lungren said: “It is time that all parties get serious about cutting spending and I applaud Speaker Boehner for standing firm on this issue. Now is the time to have an open and honest debate about the course of our fiscal future.”

He said “House Republicans will now advance our fight from saving billions of dollars to saving trillions of dollars as we turn our focus in earnest to Chairman Paul Ryan’s ‘Path to Prosperity’ budget.”

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Amador County – The California Department of Water Resources last week announced that water content in California’s mountain snowpack is 165 percent of the April 1 full season average.

“Recent storms have significantly contributed to the above-average snowpack, helping to stabilize California’s water supply for the year,” said DWR Director Mark Cowin. “While this is beneficial for California’s farms, businesses and communities, we remind residents to practice sensible water use and conservation as we transition to warmer weather.”

The snowpack readings prompted Gov. Jerry Brown to officially rescind emergency proclamations and executive orders issued in 2008 and 2009 relating to water shortage associated with the drought.

Snowpack water content is measured both manually on, or near, the first of the month from January to May, and in real-time by electronic sensors. Water Resources Department Information Officer Ted Thomas said the latest surveys and readings, released March 30, are the “most important of the year, because April 1 is the date when the state’s snowpack normally is at its peak before it melts into streams and reservoirs in the spring and summer months.”

Thomas said “March precipitation has helped register 2011 among the top years in snowpack water content, despite dry weather conditions in January and early February.” The mountain snowpack provides approximately one-third of the water for California’s households, industry and farms as it melts into streams and reservoirs.

Manual readings off Highway 50 near Echo Summit showed snow was 153 inches deep at Lyons Creek, with 56 percent “water content,” at 180 percent of the long-term average for April 1. The reading was at the 6,700-foot elevation.

Electronic readings indicated that water content in the northern mountains is 174 percent of the April 1 seasonal average. At Central Sierra it was at 163 percent, and Southern Sierra it was 158 percent. Statewide, the average is 165 percent. The locations already had more than 100 percent of the average snowfall by the March 1 readings.

The National Weather Service last week issued a Hydrologic Outlook, saying the “highest risk for potential spring flooding is on the San Joaqin River and tributaries.” Current area lake levels were already above average for this time of year, and “in anticipation of snowmelt runoff,” the reservoirs were already making “elevated releases.”

The outlook said “this snow will melt into a large volume of water that will have to pass through area reservoirs and rivers before moving through the Delta.”

Peak reservoir inflows normally occur in mid- to late-May.

Flooding risk is lower for the Sacramento River and its tributaries because the region has larger capacities in both the river channels and reservoirs.

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Amador County – The U.S. Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Land Management on Monday announced plans to burn piles of wood at its Pine Hill Preserve.

David Christy of BLM’s Mother Lode Field Office said the Bureau plans to start burning piles on Monday, April 11 at the Pine Hill Preserve in western El Dorado County, if conditions allow.

Brian Mulhollen, BLM fuels management specialist, said the “management of fuel loading at strategic areas of the Pine Hill Preserve allows us to reduce high levels of fuel near residences and will help us to protect the unique biological diversity that exists within the preserve lands.”

Pile burning will start on the fuel break behind residences near Este Vista and Sudbury drives, working toward Meder Road through the spring as conditions allow.

BLM has set up an information line at (916) 941-3155 and will have staff at an information booth at Sudbury and Este Vista drives. The pile burning is being coordinated with the California Department of Fire Protection, the El Dorado County Air Quality Management District and the Cameron Park Community Services District.

As part of ongoing fuel management efforts at the Pine Hill Preserve, the BLM will burn vegetation cut and piled at strategic areas within fuel breaks along the boundaries of a 360-acre parcel at the Cameron Park unit and a 10-acre parcel of the Pine Hill unit. Christy said the “fuel breaks were created during the last two years to enhance public and firefighter safety and protect valuable natural resources at the Pine Hill Preserve in the event of a wildland fire.”

He said “BLM’s management goal is to restore and/or mimic in a responsible manner the natural habitat dynamics at the Pine Hill Preserve.” The BLM has implemented successful alternatives to manage vegetation using different methods to suit the Cameron Park and Pine Hill communities and the Preserve needs. Pile burning previously cut vegetation will help to reduce the amount of fuels.

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Amador County – The California Inspector General last week released a report saying Mule Creek State Prison must improve how it oversees some of its employees’ work hours and timekeeping.

Inspector General Bruce A. Monfross delivered the report April 6, with a letter to Matthew L. Cate, secretary of the California Department of Corrections & Rehabilitation.

Monfross in the letter said the “report concludes that many of the prison’s mental health and educational employees were fully paid, but did not average working full days inside the prison over a three-month period, ending August 2010.” He said “for example, according to the prison’s electronic security system data, 46 of 51 mental health clinicians – consisting of psychiatrists, psychologists, and licensed clinical social workers – averages working 8.4 hours of their scheduled 10-hour days, the equivalent of 33.6 hours per week. The employee with the lowest average spent only 6.4 hours per day, or the equivalent of 25.6 hours per week, inside the prison.”

Monfross said the prison’s educators – “12 academic teachers, five vocational instructors, and three educational supervisors – also averaged working less than full days, ranging between 33 to 39 hours per week.”

He said “in total, these employees’ unaccounted-for hours – time for which they were paid but which they did not spend inside the prison, in training, or in time off – amounted to $272,900 over the three-month period, or, at this rate, nearly $1.1 million in a year.”

Monfross in the letter said his report “concludes that timekeeping mistakes made by employees and the prison’s personnel office on a sample of timesheets over a four-month period resulted in some employees being overcharged more than $6,500 and other employees being undercharged nearly $102,000 in leave hours.”

The report said “many of Mule Creek State Prison’s mental health employees received full-time pay, but appeared to work only part time.” It also found that “academic teachers” and supervisors “appeared to work less than full days.” The report said ineffective supervisory oversight of timesheets and personnel practices at Mule Creek “have resulted in costly mistakes.”

The report recommended changes “to the extent permissible” under “employees’ labor agreements.” One would switch mental health shifts to eight-hour days. It also recommended developing “a method to hold supervisors and managers” in mental health and education divisions accountable.

The report said “timekeeping mistakes made by the prison’s personnel office resulted in dozens of employees receiving extra time-off hours,” combined to cost the prison a total of $92,000. Most mistakes “were caused by illegible writing or by common arithmetic errors.” About $2,000 of it was from “inconsistent application of the state’s rules for using or accruing holiday time-off and excess hours.”

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Amador County – The Jackson Rancheria Casino & Hotel this week announced the commission of a custom-made motorcycle to be named and designed to honor the Miwuk heritage.

Jim Giuffra of Amador Fine Tune Customs of Martell, world class custom metric bike builders, will build “Asumati,” a 750 cc Honda Street Tracker-style custom bike with race inspired suspension. It will be a convertible with a passenger seat/tail section and passenger pegs that can be added with a few bolts.

The bike is the latest creation by Giuffra and AFT Customs for Jackson Rancheria, and will be displayed on tour around the country. “We have known the local builder for years,” said Chad Lewis, Promotions Coordinator for the casino. “This build between AFT and Jackson Casino will be a fun project for everyone involved.”

Jackson Rancheria Casino & Hotel is owned and operated by the Jackson Rancheria Band of Miwuk Indians.

Lewis said the name selected for the bike is “Asumati,” a Miwuk word meaning grizzly bear, the monarch of the forest. In Miwuk stories, the bear is a symbol of great strength and courage. There is a tale of a young brave who fought a long and furious struggle with a grizzly bear, finally killing the huge animal with a tree limb.

His accomplishment was so remarkable that his tribe called him Chief Yo Semitee – the name for a full grown grizzly – and this name was passed to his children and eventually to the entire tribe and even the valley in which they lived.

Lewis said “Like most Native Americans, the Miwuks had no written language until they came into contact with white men. Theirs was a spoken language and their history and traditions were passed down through the generations by elders repeating stories as they had been told them.”

He said “white men took it upon themselves to write down the words the Indians spoke, so the written vocabulary was necessarily phonetic. The Indians had no use for these writings. For them words were sounds that lived in the memories of the people.”

There are many spellings of the word, various white man’s spellings, the more familiar being Yosemite. But the Jackson Rancheria Miwuks prefer asumati. Lewis said “this word, meaning a creature of strength, courage, intelligence, and a kinship with man, is the name they have chosen for this very special custom bike.”

Asumati is scheduled to be unveiled at the Los Angeles Calendar Show in June, then go on to the American Motorcycle Dealer World Championship of Custom Bike Building in Sturgis, South Dakota, and the Rat’s Hole Custom Bike Show. This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Amador County – The Ione City Council learned Tuesday that it has lost part of its grant funding for a building and restroom project at Ed Hughes Memorial Arena due to a bidding error.

City Engineer John Wanger said Amador County Recreation Agency had to request an extension on $100,000 in Prop 40 funds it had pledged to the project, due to delays.

It went to bid in February, and an “unusual bid bond” submitted by a subcontractor to the general contractor, Wanger said: “We proceeded with the low bidder,” and a notice of award was issued, then another bidder submitted a protest. City staff looked at wording, which said they must have a bond with the bidding contractor.

Wanger said “we actually had to find the bid non-responsive,” reject the award that was given to the low bidder, and award the project to the second lowest bidder. He said that put the project 2-3 weeks behind schedule.

City Manager Kim Kerr said the project originally would be paid for by $82,000 from the State Resource Bond Act, the ACRA funds, and park fees. She said ACRA pulled back the $100,000 for reprogramming because the funds had to be spent by March 31. She said ACRA’s board of directors at its April 13 meeting “will look at how they can assist the city with reprogramming those funds.” Kerr said “this has been a project where everything that can go wrong has” gone wrong.

Kerr sent a letter to Assemblywoman Alyson Huber to see if she can help get an extension on the funds, and the state has said it has “about 20 projects in the situation we are in.” She said this is the number one project they want to get done in Howard Park.

ACRA Executive Director Tracey Towner-Yepp reiterated that she “wanted to make sure that those funds were safe,” and she wants to help with backfilling for the restroom and building project.

During public comment, Dominic Atlan said attended motorcycle races held recently in Hughes Arena, which despite the hard rain drew about 500 people. He said two porta-potties were not enough, and the wait for the bathrooms was about 25 minutes. He said Pizza Factory was the only vendor there, and a fundraising concession could have done good business.

“We were all surprised by the people there,” he said. They had 145 entrants and “bring their own crowd,” including spectators and mechanics. They are scheduled to come back April 30, Atlan encouraged the city to seek more races there by the Stockton racing league.

Recreation Commissioner Laurie Lord said crowds for horse events at the arena are also big, and can have 100 riders in one open division.

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Amador County – The Amador County Sheriff’s Office announced the investigation of the death of an unidentified person whose body was found badly burned in a vehicle after a suspected crash and fire off of Steiner Road. 

Undersheriff Jim Wegner released details of the death investigation in a statement Thursday, which said that at about 7:35 a.m. Wednesday, March 30, “the Amador County Sheriff’s Office received a report of a burned vehicle on Steiner Road which may contain a body.”

Amador County Sheriff’s Deputies responded to the scene near the intersection of Steiner Road and Oakstream Road where they located a burned 1994 Isuzu Trooper which appeared to have been involved in a low speed collision with a fence. The driver’s side doors of the SUV were resting against the fence. In the rear passenger portion of the vehicle, Sheriff’s Deputies located burned human remains.

The Undersheriff’s statement said “Amador County Sheriff’s Detectives responded to conduct a death investigation. The investigation determined the vehicle was currently owned and driven by a 37-year-old male worker at a local winery who was last seen by witnesses the evening before and who was reported to be intoxicated.”

California Department of Fire investigators “were asked to assist with the investigation as it related to the cause of the vehicle fire. The Cal Fire Investigators reported that the burn indicators were consistent with an accident and there was no immediate evidence indicating the fire was intentionally set, however evidentiary samples were taken and are being analyzed at the California Department of Justice.” The California Highway Patrol was requested to conduct a vehicle collision investigation.

ACSO’s statement said: “Due to the severity of the burns to the decedent, Sheriff’s Detectives are utilizing DNA obtained from a relative in San Joaquin County to confirm the identity. A forensic pathologist conducted an autopsy of the decedent and determined the cause of death to be ‘Total Body Thermal Injury’.”

The statement said there “was no evidence of gunshot wounds, sharp force or blunt force trauma located on the decedent during the autopsy.” This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Amador County – Sutter Amador Hospital in Jackson announced Thursday that a “focused risk assessment” confirmed that radiation exposure is not a concern in the hospital’s Outpatient Center and Pediatric Center.

The hospital temporarily relocated the Pediatric Center for a week after employees expressed concern over recent health issues. The clinic is normally located on the second floor of the building above the radiology department.

Anne Platt, SAH Chief Executive Officer said: “We took our employees’ concerns very seriously and addressed them immediately.” The hospital “not only conducted internal tests but also brought in an external expert to evaluate the radiation safety program.” Test results finalized Wednesday “will assure our staff that the building meets all industry standards and their environment is safe for our staff and for our patients.”

On March 30, experts from both the hospital and the Sutter Health System tested radiation levels in the first floor radiology department and in the Pediatric Clinic. Readings were normal, and an independent health physicist, Michael Grissom completed his risk assessment Wednesday confirming those findings. Grissom said: “The structural integrity of the building is intact and the performance of all radiation shields is in compliance with all regulations.”

Dr. David Stone, director of the Pediatric Center was “pleased with how promptly the hospital administration responded and provided reassurance to our staff while also maintaining their confidentiality.” He was confident the Outpatient Center, including the Pediatric Center, is a “safe environment.” Stone said: “We all look forward to moving back as soon as possible.”

The hospital in a release said “diagnosis of a thyroid nodule is the most common endocrine problem in the United States,” and “in this case, it was a small number of employees that had thyroid nodules detected.” Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.