In an interview Wednesday on TSPN, Amador County Registrar of Voters Sheldon Johnson encouraged registered voters and high-school students over the age of 16 to sign up to work at the polls during the February 5 Presidential Primary Election. “We always need more poll workers,” said Johnson, “and I want people to know there is still time to sign up and get involved.” “Being a poll worker is a fun and easy way to get involved in the electoral process,” said county’s chief elections officer. Amador Countystanding who is a United States citizen, at least 16 years old, and has a grade-point average of at least 2.5. Student poll workers must also have a California residents can serve as a poll worker if he or she is a registered voter, or a high-school student in good driver’s license. Poll workers earn a stipend of $88 for the day. Interested in working on Election Day? Call the county elections office to sign up – there is also a poll worker application form in the county elections booklet. For more information about how to be a poll worker, call the elections office at 223-6465.

Don’t give babies and toddlers over-the-counter cough and cold medicine, says the U.S. Food & Drug Administration. Following an industry recall of infant cold and cough remedies in October, the FDA has completed their findings and recommendations regarding the use of over-the-counter cough and cold products for children under the age of 2. This week the FDA issued a Public Health Advisory for parents and caregivers, recommending that over-the-counter cough and cold products should not be used to treat infants and children less than 2 years of age because serious and potentially life-threatening side effects can occur. Rare, but serious conditions reported include “death, convulsions, rapid heart rates, and decreased levels of consciousness”.

If you, or a student you know, wants to go to a California State University campus for the first time this fall, the deadline to submit your application was just moved up by about 6 months. CSU Chancellor Charles Reed has moved up the freshman application deadline to Feb. 1 for all 23 CSU campuses in anticipation of $386 million in proposed state budget cuts. Last fall, the deadline to apply at Sacramento State University was Aug. 10. CSU officials say the big cuts proposed in Gov. Schwarzenegger's 2008-09 budget plan will force the university system to reduce the the number of students by about 10,000.

Sales for new and existing homes in the eight-county region of Amador, El Dorado, Nevada, Placer, Sacramento, Sutter, Yolo and Yuba counties totaled 33,627 for the year 2007. That was almost 10,000 fewer sales than 2006 and the lowest home sales figure since 1997, when 35,667 homes changed hands, according to real estate research firm DataQuick. The firm reported that 12 percent of the 13,994 homes now for sale in El Dorado, Placer, Sacramento and Yolo counties are priced below $200,000, with the majority of those being homes repossessed by banks. A year ago only 2 percent of homes for sale in the region were priced below $200,000. Last month's home sales for all of California made for the slowest December in DataQuick's records, which go back to 1988. The Sacramento Bee contributed to this story.

An unbelted passenger was injured in a minor accident on Highway 88 near Carriage Way on Tuesday evening. According to the California Highway Patrol, a young Stockton couple were having an argument in their car Tuesday evening around 4PM when the 18-year old male passenger grabbed the car’s steering wheel and turned it sharply to the right. The female driver pulled the steering wheel back, causing the car to spin counterclockwise and run off of Hwy 88 and down an embankment. The vehicle had only minor damage, and the driver suffered only minor injuries. The passenger was not wearing his seatbelt and struck the dash with his chest. He was transported to Sutter Amador with moderate injuries.  Bill Lavallie contributed to this story

 

The Amador County Sheriff's Office is welcoming a new member to the local law enforcement team – 20-month old “Rico” – a Belgian Malenois service dog. Until last year, the Sheriff’s office had three canines on staff, however with the unexpected retirement of two of those service dogs over the past year, the Sheriff's Office was left with only one service dog available for Sheriff's Office duties and for mutual aid requests from the city police departments and CHP. The Sheriff’s 2007/2008 budget did not include money for new service dogs, so the Amador County Deputy Sheriff's Association explored options to purchase a canine which would eventually be assigned to one of its members.

Last Tuesday’s Ione City Council meeting covered a number of topics, including a development agreement, the local railroad and updates to existing codes. Council members were surprised by an unusual lack of public comment during the proceedings. The most significant ordinance to be adopted was an agreement with Ryland Homes regarding the Wildflower planned development. It will allow Ryland Homes to continue its plan to build some 201 residential units near the Howard Park recreation area.

The appointment of planning commissioner Wayne Garibaldi to replace Drew Stidger on the Jackson City Council has left a vacancy on the Jackson Planning Commission. The City of Jackson is now taking applications for this position. Planning Commission duties include recommending plans for the regulation of future growth, development and beautification of the City; reviewing and making recommended updates to the City’s General Plan and conducting public hearings. If you are interested, you must reside within the City of Jackson and be able to dedicate time to attend the commission’s monthly meetings held the 3rd Monday of each month, and some special meetings. Knowledge of planning and development-related matters is desirable, but not mandatory. The City Council will appoint the position. If you are selected, you would serve out the remainder of a two-year term which expires June 30, 2009. The deadline to apply is 5:00 p.m., February 6, 2008. Applications and additional information are available at Jackson City Hall, 33 Broadway, Jackson, CA  95642.

Jackson Rancheria Casino & Hotel has cancelled all concert entertainment at the Casino until further notice due to a major relocation of gaming areas. If you’ve already purchased tickets for an upcoming show, refunds are available at the place of purchase. As reported on TSPN TV earlier this week, a structural defect discovered at the Jackson Rancheria Casino building has caused casino managers to temporarily close down about half of the casino’s gaming area. Until the building can be assessed and repaired, casino officials will relocate its gaming activities to nearby Dalton Town Hall – casino officials call this action “a precautionary measure.” Inspectors have evaluated the remainder of the facility and deemed it fundamentally sound.