As of July 1st Californians pay more California Refund Value (CRV) on beverage containers at the store.  Assembly Bill (AB) 3056 raised the CRV that consumers pay for aluminum, glass, and plastic beverage containers.  Consumers pay a nickel for containers less than 24 ounces and a dime for containers larger than 24 ounces.  Prior to July 1, 2007 the charge at the store for containers, 24 oz and less and 24 oz and greater, was 4 cents and 8 cents respectively.  However, consumers will continue to receive 5 cents on smaller containers and 10 cents on larger ones at the recycling buy-back centers.

Residents of Jackson and Ridge Road seem to be at odds at the moment over Casino traffic. The Jackson City Council, at their last meeting discussed agenda items at both the Board of Supervisors and Jackson City Council meetings, over traffic coming to and from the Jackson Rancheria Casino. The Ridge Road Coalition reported to the Board of Supervisors recently that while they were told that the Rancheria had directed all service deliveries, tour busses and employees to use the Dalton Road access off of Hwy. 88, casino patrons are continuing to use Ridge Road to New York Ranch Road

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and his administration have reached an agreement with legislative budget writers on a plan that will stop sending juvenile offenders convicted of less-serious and nonviolent crimes to state institutions, instead detaining them at the local level, beginning this year. If the full Legislature approves the plan, the continuing population decline at the Division of Juvenile Justice will continue, dropping over the next two years from 2,600 currently to 1,500, according to the agency's projections. Instead of being housed in the state's eight juvenile facilities, this would put the incarceration of less-serious juvenile offenders squarely on the shoulders of the local level. How would this impact Amador County since we currently have no juvenile facility?

There could be problems on the south side of Camanche Lake for residents of more than 200 mobile homes on the CalaverasCounty side of the lake. East Bay Municipal Services District, which owns and operates the lake, and the land on which the mobile homes are located  may be writing the homes and their utilities out of the company’s upcoming long-term plan. East Bay MUD has been working on the plan, called the Mokelumne Watershed Master Plan since February 2006. The plan is reevaluating land management policies and reevaluating land uses for all properties owned by the utility as consultants for the district compare the costs and environmental impacts of different alternatives, according to a letter from the district to tenants and lessees. One alternative mentioned in the letter is the elimination of the mobile home parks as a "general increase in protective measures related to water quality." 

The FBI's Sacramento Violent Crimes Task Force (SVCTF), comprised of Federal Bureau of Investigation agents and Sacramento County Sheriff's Department robbery detectives, and the Sacramento Police Department are seeking information on an unidentified male bank robber believed to be responsible for six bank robberies in Sacramento, California. The individual in question is described as a black male adult with a light complexion, 30-39 years of age, 5'10" - 5'11", slender build, black hair that is balding on top and a thin moustache. The robber has what appears to be spider-web tattoos on both arms. The "Spiderman Bandit" is suspected in the robbery 6 Sacramento banks. Anyone with information regarding these robberies is asked to contact the FBI in Sacramento at (916) 481-9110, the Sacramento Police Department at (916) 808-0665, or Crime Alert at (916) 443-HELP. Callers can remain anonymous and may be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000.00.

Amador County vocalists, between the ages of 16 and 28, will have a chance to compete at this year’s county fair to be crowned the Amador Idol, with the winner moving on to the California State Fair competition.  Modeled after the popular TV show American Idol, Amador Idol promises to be very entertaining with the audience helping the judges to choose the ultimate winner.  Idol contestants will be competing for a chance to advance to the State competition at Cal Expo on September 1, and the opportunity to win an undisclosed cash prize, a makeover, and roundtrip airfare to the national talent competition of their choice.

Last night a solo vehicle collision into a power pole on Curran Rd near Village Drive knocked power lines down and into a field sparking a wild land fire. A quick response by the Jackson Valley Fire department helped avert what had the potential to be a serious incident. The first crews on scene reported power lines down and no injuries to the driver of the car. PG&E was called for with a request of an ASAP response as the Power Pole and lines were both down across the roadway blocking both lanes of Curran Rd. Amador County Sheriff’s Deputies were then called upon to assist the CHP for traffic control to direct drivers traveling down the closed road. It was determined by law enforcement on scene that the road closure would be for an extended time as the pole also included a transformer and the Amador County Road Department was requested to the scene.

Saturday night around 10:05 pm a suspicious item was found near Castle Oaks Course Community in Ione- the item resembled something that could have been an explosive device. The device was discovered by an Ione Police Officer and a citizen while on an unrelated call on Hwy 104 near Mule Creek State Prison. The Calaveras County Bomb squad was once again called to Amador County to investigate the suspicious item described as a pipe. Chief of Police Bob Olson responded, as did another Ione unit, a CHP Unit and a CHP Supervisor unit. Traffic on Hwy 104 was shut down for about 2.5 hours. The device was rendered safe by the Calaveras County Bomb squad which determined that the device was not an explosive device.