In the News

Proposed state legislation and class action lawsuits have taken shape recently in light of Uber driver fraud and concerns of rider safety.

CBS News California Investigates has uncovered a growing number of cases of Uber drivers who have used stolen identities to get hired with the company, suggesting there are hundreds, maybe more, drivers who aren't who they say they are.  

"Apparently, you never know who's picking you up," the wife of a victim of employment fraud said, after her husband's identity was stolen by someone who then used it to get a job at Uber.

California senate bill 913 would allow utilities and grid operators to treat home backup batteries like real power plants, opening the door for programs that can pay homeowners to share excess energy capacity during peak demand.

An independent privacy audit of Microsoft, Meta and Google web traffic in California found the companies appear to be violating state regulations, potentially exposing themselves to significant fines.

SB 913 would designate residential batteries as resource adequacy capacity. Ava Community Energy’s SmartHome Battery program creates incentives for residential battery-sharing.

In a time of global uncertainty and volatility in energy markets, Senator Josh Becker (D-Menlo Park) announced the launch of his “Good News Climate” blog—an effort to highlight real progress and stories of optimism in the shared fight for a sustainable future.

San Mateo County leaders pledged to continue the fight for $157 million in critical in-lieu vehicle license fee funding that cities and the county have not received from the state during a packed press conference April 7. 

Hundreds of San Mateo County workers and elected officials rallied Tuesday in Redwood City to demand that the state of California pay the county millions of dollars in owed funding.

According to the county, it has so far been shorted about $157 million of legally owed funding from the state.

Read more here. 

Legislation could tie executive salaries to rising electricity rates