Silchar: A massive fire broke out on Hospital Road in Silchar on Wednesday afternoon, destroying two shops, several houses, and a political party's office. The blaze sparked widespread panic, prompting SP Cachar Numal Mahatta and a large police contingent to rush to the scene. Eight fire tenders eventually brought the fire under control. A shop selling scientific medical equipment, a hardware store, a CPI(M) party office and a house, located behind the party office, was completely gutted before the fire tenders could reach. Initially, only one fire engine had reached the spot on time, but could do very little as the situation had taken a turn for the worse. Locals reported that the fire may have been caused by a short circuit, while the SP attributed it to a gas cylinder explosion. However, what caught the eye of the locals were leakages in the pipes of the fire tenders, leading to a chaotic scenario. An eyewitness said a short circuit had led to a spark in one of the shops and within a few minutes smoke had started to come out. Local shopkeepers brought the situation under control by shutting off the electrical lines, he said. “At about 1:30 pm, we saw smoke coming out once again and called the fire brigade and emergency services. However, the sight of leaking pipes is extremely disappointing. We still have old vehicles for services, when modern facilities should utilised.” Assam Rifles and ONGC too were pressed into action. We also published the following articles recently Massive fire razes several establishments in Silchars Hospital Road A devastating fire engulfed two shops, homes, and a political office on Hospital Road in Silchar Wednesday. Eight fire tenders battled the blaze, which locals suspect started from a short circuit, while authorities pointed to a gas cylinder explosion. Leaking fire truck pipes hampered efforts, raising concerns about outdated equipment. Fire breaks out in shop, one injured A fire ignited by a generator spark engulfed a quilt and mattress shop in Unnao's Ganga Ghat Kotwali area on Sunday, spreading to neighboring businesses. One person sustained burns. Police swiftly managed traffic while firefighters extinguished the blaze. The incident underscores fire safety concerns in commercial areas. Massive fire engulfs shops in Ranchi's commercial hub A fire erupted Wednesday morning in a Ranchi battery shop on Lalji Hirji road, near Sarjana Chowk, quickly spreading to neighboring businesses. Firefighters battled the blaze, fueled by potentially explosive lithium batteries, for three hours. Six fire tenders from three stations responded to the scene around 10:30 am. Stay updated with the latest news on Times of India . Don't miss daily games like Crossword , Sudoku , and Mini Crossword .OKAPI WILDLIFE RESERVE, Congo — Scattered along the banks of the Ituri River, buildings cram together, cranes transport dirt and debris scatters the soil. The patches of trees are a scant reminder that a forest once grew there. Nestled in eastern Congo's Ituri province, the Chinese-run gold mine is rapidly encroaching on an area that many say it shouldn’t be operating in at all - the Okapi Wildlife Reserve, an endangered World Heritage site. The original boundaries of the reserve were established three decades ago, by Congo’s government and encompassed the area where the Chinese company now mines. But over the years under opaque circumstances, the boundaries shrunk, allowing the company to operate inside the plush forest. The reserve was already on the endangered list, amid threats of conflict and wildlife trafficking. Now the rapid expansion of the Chinese mines threatens to further degrade the forest and the communities living within. Residents and wildlife experts say the mining's polluting the rivers and soil, decimating trees and swelling the population, increasing poaching, with little accountability. “It is alarming that a semi-industrial mining operation is being given free rein in what’s supposed to be a protected World Heritage Site, that was already on the danger list,” said Joe Eisen, executive director, of Rainforest Foundation UK. Get the latest breaking news as it happens. By clicking Sign up, you agree to our privacy policy . Spanning more than 13,000 square kilometers (5,000 square miles), the reserve became a protected site in 1996, due to its unique biodiversity and large number of threatened species, including its namesake, the okapi, a forest giraffe, of which it holds some 15% of the world’s remaining 30,000. It's part of the the Congo Basin rainforest — the world’s second-biggest — and a vital carbon sink that helps mitigate climate change. It also has vast mineral wealth such as gold and diamonds. Mining is prohibited in protected areas, which includes the reserve, according to Congo's mining code. Issa Aboubacar, a spokesperson for the Chinese company, Kimia Mining Investment, said the group is operating legally. It recently renewed its permits until 2048, according to government records. Congo's mining registry said the map they’re using came from files from the ICCN, the body responsible for managing Congo's protected areas, and it’s currently working with the ICCN on updating the boundaries and protecting the park. The ICCN told The Associated Press that in meetings this year with the mining registry the misunderstandings around the boundaries were clarified and the original ones should be used. An internal government memo from August, seen by AP, said all companies in the Reserve will be closed down, including Kimia Mining. However, it was unclear when that would happen or how. The document has not previously been reported and is the first acknowledging that the current boundaries are wrong, according to environmentalists working in Congo. Rights groups in Congo have long said the permits were illegally awarded by the mining ministry based on inaccurate maps. Shifting boundaries and rules Eastern Congo’s been beset by violence for decades and the Okapi Reserve’s endured years of unrest by local militia. In 2012, in Epulu town, a local rebel group slaughtered several residents including two rangers, as well as 14 okapis, the latter were part of a captive breeding program. The reserve’s also been threatened by artisanal — small scale — mining, by thousands of Indigenous peoples who live in and around the forest. The Muchacha mine — the biggest in the reserve and one of the largest small and medium scale gold mines in the country — spans approximately 12 miles (19 kilometers) along the Ituri River and consists of several semi-industrial sites. Satellite images analyzed by AP show consistent development along the southwestern section of the Reserve, since it began operating in 2016, with a boom in recent years. Joel Masselink, a geographer specializing in satellite imagery, who previously worked on conservation projects in the forest, said the mining cadastral — the agency responsible for allocating mineral licenses — is using a version of the reserve's maps in which the area's been shrunk by nearly a third. This has allowed it to award and renew exploration and extraction concessions, he said. The mining cadastral told the U.N. that the boundaries were changed due to a letter from the Congolese Institute for the Conservation of Nature, the body in charge of protected areas in Congo, but didn’t provide a copy, said a report from U.N. experts. The ICCN told the AP it's never seen the letter and the boundaries used should be the original ones. Changing World Heritage Site boundaries needs to be approved by UNESCO experts and the World Heritage Committee, which analyze the impact of the modification, a spokesperson for the World Heritage Center told AP. The Center said no request to modify the Reserve's boundaries had been made and that cases of boundary modifications to facilitate development were rare. Civil society groups in Congo accuse some government officials of intentionally moving the boundaries for personal gain. “We all knew that Muchacha was within the reserve,” said Alexis Muhima, executive director of the Congolese Civil Society Observatory for Peace Minerals. He said the discrepancy over the park's boundaries started when they realized the mine was producing large quantities of gold. The U.N. report said mines are controlled by the military, and some members are under the protection of powerful business and political interests, with soldiers at times denying local officials access to the sites. Residents, who once mined in the reserve, are infuriated by the double standard. “The community is worried, because the Chinese are mining in a protected area when it's forbidden for the community,” said Jean Kamana, the chief of Epulu, a village inside the Reserve. Despite being a protected forest, people still mined there until authorities cracked down, largely after the Chinese arrived. Kimia Mining grants limited access to locals to mine areas for leftovers, but for a fee that many can't afford, say locals. Muvunga Kakule used to do artisanal mining in the reserve while also selling food from his farm to other miners. The 44-year-old said he's now unable to mine or sell produce as the Chinese don't buy locally. He's lost 95% of his earnings and can no longer send his children to private school. Some residents told The AP there are no other options for work and have been forced to mine secretly and risk being jailed. Losing land, animals and income During a trip to the reserve earlier this year, Kimia Mining wouldn’t let AP enter the site and the government wouldn't grant access to patrol the forest with its rangers. But nearly two dozen residents, as well as former and current Kimia Mining employees from villages in and around the Reserve, told The AP the mining was decimating the forests and the wildlife and contaminating the water and land. Five people who had worked inside Kimia's mines, none of whom wanted to be named for fear of reprisal, said when the Chinese finished in one area, they leave exposed, toxic water sources. Sometimes people would fall into uncovered pits and when it rains, water seeps into the soil. Employees and mining experts say the Chinese use mercury in its operations, used to separate gold from ore. Mercury is considered one of the top ten chemicals of major public health concern by the U.N. and can have toxic effects on the nervous and immune systems. One 27-year-old woman who worked as a cook for Kimia for six months and lives in Badengaido town, close to the mine, said the soil has become infertile. “(It's) poisoned by chemicals used by the Chinese," she said. The AP could not independently verify her claim. However, a report from the University of Antwerp that researched the impact of conflict and mining on the Reserve said chemicals used to purify gold, such as mercury or cyanide, can enter the ecosystems and pollute the soil. In the past, 15 kilograms (33 pounds) of peanut seeds would yield approximately 30 bags, but now it’s hard to get three, she said. The loss of income has made it challenging to afford school and medical care for her siblings. Assana, a fisher who also worked in the mines and only wanted to use his first name, said it now takes four days to catch the same amount of fish he used to get in a day. While doing odd jobs for the company last year, the 38-year-old saw the Chinese repeatedly chop swaths of forest, making the heat unbearable, he said. Between last January and May, the reserve lost more than 480 hectares (1,186 acres) of forest cover — the size of nearly 900 American football fields — according to a joint statement from the Wildlife Conservation Society and government agencies, which said it was concerned at the findings. Aboubacar, Kimia’s spokesperson in Congo, said the company respects environmental standards and pays tax to the government for reforestation. Mining is a crucial revenue stream for Congo and it "can't place a higher value on the environment than on mining," he said. Kimia is supporting the population and has employed more than 2,000 people, said Aboubacar. Conservation is an uphill battle Conservation groups are trying to protect the reserve, but say it's hard to enforce when there's ambiguity on the legalities. “On the one hand, Congo's law clearly states that mining is illegal in protected areas. On the other hand, if a mine is operating with an official permit, then that creates confusion, and that becomes hard to enforce on the ground," said Emma Stokes, Vice President of field conservation for The Wildlife Conservation Society. The internal memo, seen by AP, outlines discussions by a joint task force between the ICCN and Congo’s mining registry, which was created to try and resolve the boundary issue. The document said it will trigger the process of stopping all mining within the Reserve and integrate the agreed upon map from the joint commission into the mining registry's system. UNESCO's requested a report from Congo by February, to provide clarity on what will be done to resolve the problem. But this comes as little comfort to communities in the reserve. Wendo Olengama, a Pygmy chief, said the influx of thousands of people into the Chinese-run mines has increased poaching, making it hard to earn money. During the authorized hunting season, he could capture up to seven animals a day, eating some and selling others. Now it's hard to get two, he said. Sitting in a small hut beside his wife, as she bounces their 3-year-old granddaughter on her lap, the couple says they want the Chinese company to provide business opportunities, such as cattle raising and teach people responsible hunting. “If the situation persists, we'll live in misery,” said his wife, Dura Anyainde. "We wont have food to eat.” ___ Associated Press reporter Jean-Yves Kamale contributed from Kinshasa.Black Friday deals are everywhere right now, and many of the major streaming services will probably announce special promotions to entice new customers soon, too. If you’re thinking about “cutting the cord,” or switching from a traditional cable provider to a streaming service , this might be a good time to try it. “The deals that will be coming out will be attractive to new subscribers and most likely will be basic plans with ads,” Chad Gammon, an Iowa-based certified financial planner, said in an email interview. While some streaming services might also offer deals on plans without ads, Gammon, who owns Custom Fit Financial, said they’ll come at a higher cost. So keep an eye out for the deals, but make sure you look at the terms and conditions, too. Some streaming services will roll out their Black Friday prices in the coming days — and some have already started offering deals. For example, ESPN+ is running a promotion offering 12 months for the price of nine, as long as subscribers choose the annual plan. That deal is good through Dec. 2. Last year’s Black Friday deals can be a good indication of what’s to come. "Past Black Friday deals, like Hulu's $1.99/month offer, really show the range of savings,” Clay Cary, a senior trends analyst at CouponFollow, said in a prepared statement. “More often than not, bundles like Disney+/Hulu/ESPN+ tend to give the most value if your household uses multiple platforms," Cary said. We contacted these services about their Black Friday plans. Disney+ said there are no deals to announce quite yet. Hulu and ESPN+ did not respond to requests for information. While you’re waiting for the deals to drop, consider the different streaming plans, your budget, and whether one service can give you all the programming you want. Streaming services present themselves as cheaper alternatives to cable companies with long contracts, poor service, lots of commercials and expensive monthly contracts. But do they make good on that promise? You might think you’re scoring a great streaming service deal only to realize it’s for the version with ads. Pay attention to other details, too. A streaming service might offer a seasonal deal, but on a plan that limits the number of devices that can stream at once, and video quality can vary. Crackdowns on password sharing have also hit the streaming world hard and frustrated many consumers — and the alternatives aren’t great. “Paid-sharing options, like Netflix's, haven't been popular because they feel like an extra charge without added value,” Cary said. “For budget-conscious viewers, these changes could push them toward free ad-supported services instead.” If you were hoping to cut ties with your cable provider, you might have to think twice. You’ll still need the internet to use your streaming service. Many households bundle cable and internet costs, so if you cut cable, you will need to get a price for an internet-only plan. If multiple people in your household are streaming at once, you might find your old internet speed isn’t cutting it. A boost in internet speed will cost more, so you’ll need to adjust your budget accordingly. If you’re a sports fan with kids in the house and a spouse who likes shows from premium channels, you might have to sign up for three different streaming services to get all the content you want. Signing up for multiple streaming services can get pricey and can also be a real headache. Gammon described this as “subscription fatigue,” where people subscribe to multiple services and end up not using them because they can’t find which programs are on which streaming service. To stay within your budget, Cary said consumers should focus “on platforms that align with what you actually watch rather than trying to subscribe to everything.” The excitement of scoring a cheap deal won’t last forever. “When promotional deals lapse, prices can spiral upward alarmingly, doubling in some cases,” Cary said. “To avoid such surprises, set a reminder before the discounted rate expires to review your subscription,” he said. Before signing up, ask yourself: How do streaming services fit into my budget? In a 50/30/20 budget , streaming services fit squarely into the 30% wants category, alongside travel, entertainment and dining out. If your budget is tight, check your current memberships, because some major retailers offer significant discounts or free subscriptions on streaming services. For example: While most of these offers are for base-level plans with ads, tapping into existing benefits is a low-stakes way to try out one of these platforms. More From NerdWallet Amanda Barroso writes for NerdWallet. Email: abarroso@nerdwallet.com . The article Black Friday Streaming Deals: Read the Fine Print First originally appeared on NerdWallet.
Laura Anne Cousineau, 58, of Patterson, CA, passed away on December 10, 2024 in Santa Rosa, CA. Laura Anne Cousineau was born in Patterson, CA to Frank and Luisa Gonzales on March 17, 1966. Laura went to elementary & junior high school in Patterson, CA and high School in Modesto, CA. Laura was married to Francisco Arturo Cousineau on May 31, 1996 in Modesto, CA. Francisco is currently employed as a lumber salesman for Mead Clark Lumber Company. Laura worked in the restaurant industry, Medtronic, Agilent Technologies, had her own daycare center for children, and for the past 19 years homemaker to her husband Francisco (Paco) and 3 children Christian, Jasmine, & Angelina. Laura was in charge of and never missed doctor appointments for her 3 children and weekly physical therapy sessions for the children's' cerebral palsy. Her children always came 1st, soccer games, baseball games, cheerleading, and her favorite vacation spot Disneyland. In her spare time she very much enjoyed many arts and crafts, knitting, scrap booking, cooking at home and making homemade Tamales at Christmas time, and visiting with her family in Modesto, California. Laura is preceded in death by her parents Francisco and Luisa Gonzales-Reza. Laura is survived by her husband Francisco Cousineau and her 3 children Christian (18), Jasmine (16), and Angelina (14), sister Yvonne Slayton, brother Louis Gonzales, brother Brian Gonzales, and sister Kathy Gonzales. The family of Laura Cousineau wishes to extend our sincere thanks to Satellite Healthcare Windsor, Sutter Santa Rosa, Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital, St Mary's Chapel-Petaluma, St Eugene's Cathedral, Sacred Heart Church-Patterson, and Daniel Chapel of the Roses. Rosary and Visitation, was held Tuesday, December 17, 2024 at Daniels Chapel of the Roses, 1225 Sonoma Ave Santa Rosa, CA 95405 Funeral services where held Wednesday December 18, 2024 at St Eugene's Cathedral, 2323 Montgomery Dr. Santa Rosa, CA 95405 and Friday December 20, 2024 at Sacred Heart Catholic Church, 529 I St Patterson, CA 95363 Burial will be at a later date at Acacia Memorial Park, Modesto, CA. Arrangements are by Daniels Chapel of the Roses.Georgia's Carson Beck has elbow injury, uncertain for Sugar Bowl
Lions rush for 3 scores and use stingy defense to beat Colts 24-6 for 9th straight winSports on TV for Monday, Nov. 25
By EMILY WAGSTER PETTUS JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — The U.S. Supreme Court should overturn Mississippi’s Jim Crow-era practice of removing voting rights from people convicted of certain felonies, including nonviolent crimes such as forgery and timber theft, attorneys say in new court papers. Most of the people affected are disenfranchised for life because the state provides few options for restoring ballot access. “Mississippi’s harsh and unforgiving felony disenfranchisement scheme is a national outlier,” attorneys representing some who lost voting rights said in an appeal filed Wednesday. They wrote that states “have consistently moved away from lifetime felony disenfranchisement over the past few decades.” This case is the second in recent years — and the third since the late 19th century — that asks the Supreme Court to overturn Mississippi’s disenfranchisement for some felonies. The cases use different legal arguments, and the court rejected the most recent attempt in 2023. The new appeal asks justices to reverse a July ruling from the conservative 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which said Mississippi legislators, not the courts, must decide whether to change the laws. Stripping away voting rights for some crimes is unconstitutional because it is cruel and unusual punishment, the appeal argues. A majority of justices rejected arguments over cruel and unusual punishment in June when they cleared the way for cities to enforce bans on homeless people sleeping outside in public places. Attorneys who sued Mississippi over voting rights say the authors of the state’s 1890 constitution based disenfranchisement on a list of crimes they thought Black people were more likely to commit. A majority of the appeals judges wrote that the Supreme Court in 1974 reaffirmed constitutional law allowing states to disenfranchise felons. About 38% of Mississippi residents are Black. Nearly 50,000 people were disenfranchised under the state’s felony voting ban between 1994 and 2017. More than 29,000 of them have completed their sentences, and about 58% of that group are Black, according to an expert who analyzed data for plaintiffs challenging the voting ban. Related Articles National Politics | Trump convinced Republicans to overlook his misconduct. But can he do the same for his nominees? National Politics | Beyond evangelicals, Trump and his allies courted smaller faith groups, from the Amish to Chabad National Politics | Trump gave Interior nominee one directive for a half-billion acres of US land: ‘Drill.’ National Politics | Trump’s team is delaying transition agreements. What does it mean for security checks and governing? National Politics | Judge delays Trump hush money sentencing in order to decide where case should go now To regain voting rights in Mississippi, a person convicted of a disenfranchising crime must receive a governor’s pardon or win permission from two-thirds of the state House and Senate. In recent years, legislators have restored voting rights for only a few people. The other recent case that went to the Supreme Court argued that authors of Mississippi’s constitution showed racist intent when they chose which felonies would cause people to lose the right to vote. In that ruling, justices declined to reconsider a 2022 appeals court decision that said Mississippi remedied the discriminatory intent of the original provisions in the state constitution by later altering the list of disenfranchising crimes. In 1950, Mississippi dropped burglary from the list. Murder and rape were added in 1968. The Mississippi attorney general issued an opinion in 2009 that expanded the list to 22 crimes, including timber larceny, carjacking, felony-level shoplifting and felony-level writing bad checks. Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson wrote in a 2023 dissent that Mississippi’s list of disenfranchising crimes was “adopted for an illicit discriminatory purpose.”
Trevor Lawrence could very well be done for the season. The Jaguars have placed the quarterback on injured reserve with a concussion and his time on the field during the 2024 NFL season is likely over. Lawrence would be eligible to return in Week 18, though it will be Mac Jones under center to finish the season with the Jags at 2-10 and mathematically eliminated from the playoffs. Lawrence was injured during Sunday’s loss to the Texans when Azeez Al-Shaair hit him in the head area as the QB slid during a run. The Jaguars star remained down on the ground for several moments and was quickly ruled out for the rest of the game. The hit has drawn plenty of criticism for Al-Shaair who was handed a three-game suspension on Tuesday. In a statement on his social media, Lawrence wrote on Dec. 1 that he had been “home and feeling better” while thanking everyone for their concern. While speaking with reporters on Wednesday, Jags running back Travis Etienne told reporters that Lawrence was “in great spirits.” “Just seeing him on that field, just kind of running over and seeing him like that, I never seen that ever,” Etienne said about the moment the injury occurred. “You kind of hate that. You kind of hate that feeling because we’re brothers first and we’re football players second. ... I’m just happy he’s in a better place mentally. “I told him, ‘you have a daughter — you have a blessing that’s coming. So get right, take care of yourself, take care of your family. And we’ll be here holding it down and waiting til’ you get back next year” If Lawrence has played his final game of the season then he’ll finish the year with 2,045 passing yards, 11 touchdown passes and seven interceptions. His best game of the season occurred during Week 5 when the Jaguars defeated the Colts and Lawrence finished the day with 371 passing yards, two touchdown passes and an 82.4 completion percentage.AP Trending SummaryBrief at 5:37 p.m. EST
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump said Wednesday he plans to have Kari Lake, a politician and former Arizona journalist, appointed head of the international government-funded broadcaster Voice of America. Trump announced on his social media platform Truth Social that Lake would be appointed director of VOA. Lake is a close political ally of the president-elect and a former anchor for a Fox News television station in Phoenix, Arizona. She worked in journalism for 27 years before leaving the profession in 2021 to run for Arizona governor. During an unsuccessful run for Senate in 2024, Lake said Arizona should be a “standard bearer for America First policies.” Trump also wrote Wednesday that he would soon announce his pick to head the U.S. Agency for Global Media, known as USAGM, which oversees VOA along with other U.S.-funded broadcasters. That position is presidentially nominated and requires Senate approval. Trump said his pick for CEO would appoint and work closely with Lake. The chief executive of the publicly funded USAGM ensures that the broadcasters are meeting their missions to produce credible and accurate journalism to countries with limited free media. VOA’s current director, Mike Abramowitz, sent an email to staff Thursday morning saying that he read the announcement about Lake Wednesday night and had not been given additional information beyond the social media post. “I welcome a smooth transition of power for both USAGM and VOA. I intend to cooperate with the new administration and follow the process” for the appointment of the director of VOA, he wrote. 2020 law restructured agency management The USAGM CEO has the power to hire or dismiss network heads, but under a bipartisan bill passed in December 2020, network head changes require a majority vote of the International Broadcasting Advisory Board. The board consists of six presidentially appointed members who serve staggered terms, plus the secretary of state. Its function is to advise the CEO to ensure that he or she respects the editorial independence and integrity of the networks and grantees, and that the highest standards of journalism are upheld. In a post on the social media platform X, Lake said she is honored to be considered for the VOA role. She said that VOA is a “vital international media outlet” that promotes “democracy and truth.” “Under my leadership, the VOA will excel in its mission: chronicling America’s achievements worldwide.” VOA attempted to reach Lake for comment via the media section of her campaign website, but as of publication had not received a response. VOA broadcasts to a weekly audience of 354 million people in 49 languages. Its current director , Abramowitz, is the former president of Freedom House and was a reporter and editor for The Washington Post for 24 years.Californians who try to withdraw money but don’t have enough in their bank accounts won’t fall deeper into a financial hole from having to pay a fine, thanks to a new state law. The law covers instances in which banks charge customers when their withdrawals are declined instantaneously, such as at ATMs, because of insufficient funds. It takes effect Jan. 1. Assembly Bill 2017 applies to banks and credit unions that are regulated by the state; Gov. Gavin Newsom signed it in September. The bill was backed by several consumer advocacy groups, including the California Low-Income Consumer Coalition and East Bay Community Law Center, which called penalties for insufficient funds “ junk fees ” and said getting rid of them will protect financially vulnerable consumers. Tim Grayson, the bill’s author, said when he introduced it in May that it would “help prevent fee creep in the banking industry.” Grayson, a Democrat from Concord, is an incoming senator who was in the Assembly through the end of the 2024 legislative session. The Consumer Federation of America, a sponsor of the bill, said common charges for insufficient funds are $30 or more. The California Credit Union League, which at first opposed the bill and said credit unions “do not charge these types of fees,” eventually took a neutral position. But the state Department of Financial Protection & Innovation has found that many credit unions do have income from insufficient-fund charges; a 2022 state law tasked the agency with collecting data from banks and credit unions about their fees. The law by Grayson is similar to a rule by the Consumer Protection Financial Bureau — the federal watchdog agency that’s in President-elect Donald Trump’s crosshairs — that applies to federally chartered banks. In line with the growing nationwide push to eliminate junk fees , Newsom also signed another bill addressing overdraft fees: Senate Bill 1075 will limit credit-union fees for insufficient funds to $14 unless a lower federal limit is set. That becomes law in 2026. And he signed Assembly Bill 2863 , which will make it easier for consumers to cancel subscriptions and requires companies to get consent from their customers before charging them to renew or when a free trial ends. It goes into effect July 1.
Homebound seniors living alone often slip through health system’s cracksNone