The Mountain Communities Fire Safe Council has received Federal Emergency Management Agency authority to begin its cedar shake shingle roof replacement project, according to Executive Director Edwina Scott. Work will begin over the next few weeks and homeowners may receive 75 percent of the replacement cost. Scott can be reached at 951-659-6208.

Despite numerous forecasts of a strong El Niño arriving this winter, sometimes the actual weather surprises us. For several weeks, the National Weather Service’s has forecast that there is a “… 95 percent chance El Niño will continue through the Northern Hemisphere winter 2015-16, gradually weakening through spring 2016.” Yet chances are not certainties. For…

Earlier this month, the California Supreme Court unanimously affirmed what many believed. If a public employee or officer who uses a private device, for example, cell phone or computer, to conduct public business, those messages (texts or emails) have to be disclosed if requested, pursuant to the California Public Records Act. The ruling arose from…