Inland Empire

I am a native Desert resident who just recently moved above Palm Desert to a town called Mountain Center which neighbors Hemet, Anza and Banning. This community has been impacted in a good and bad way with visitors enjoying nature and outside activities as they are social distancing.

Sixteen new COVID-19 cases were reported Friday, Dec. 31 in Riverside County, a “severely under-reported” figure stemming from technical problems attributed to technical issues with the state data-collection system. “We are working to correct the issue, and the correct figures will be reported as soon as the issue is resolved,” said Jose Arballo, a spokesman for the Riverside University Health System.

On Tuesday, January 5th, Governor Gavin Newsom previewed his Equitable Recovery for California’s Businesses and Jobs plan, the business and workforce recovery elements of his 2021-22 State Budget that will help California through the COVID-19 pandemic and advance an equitable, broad-based recovery.

Eastern Municipal Water District (EMWD) has received a $25 million authorization to support its desalination program through the recently passed Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) that was signed into law in late December 2020. The recent WRDA passage increases Federal funding support for EMWD’s South Perris Desalination Program from $25 million to $50 million.

Frances Salgado Diaz has made the decision to retire from the All Mission Indian Housing Authority (AMIHA) board after serving for 50 years. Members are elected by their tribes and she was Chairwoman of the (Soboba) Board of Commissioners, a position she was elected to by fellow AMIHA board members.