KPBS Midday Edition

After years of being stuck in bureaucratic limbo, it appears that the old Central Library in Downtown San Diego will begin offering shelter services to the homeless later this month. Then, a volunteer group is providing medical care to unhoused people in Sacramento, where in 2021, almost 200 unsheltered people died. The practice of bringing medicine to the people is taking off around the state. Ne...

Republicans are still grappling over who will lead their party - the U.S. House of Representatives is still without a Speaker after voting over 2 days. And, the cost of natural gas has skyrocketed, and so could your household gas bills. SDG&E is warning customers to prepare for higher utility bills. Then, with storms flooding parts of California there is a bit of good news. California’s first snow...

San Diego’s most recent storm arrived late Monday night, bringing more rain and high winds to the region, with another storm forecasted to hit Thursday. Then, for decades, cases of police misconduct in San Diego have been protected by some of the strictest privacy laws in the country. But new state law could lead to greater transparency on the issue. Also, 2022 was an eventful year for immigration...

A new year brings a flurry of new laws taking effect across California. We take a closer look at a few of them. Then, California is poised to add millions of electric cars to local roads in the next decade, but is there enough electricity to fuel them? In September, KPBS Environment Reporter Erik Anderson looked into whether the grid can handle the load. Next, after a 50 year absence, Vietnam’s fi...

Southwest airlines flight cancellations in San Diego are expected to continue today, but good news may be on the horizon. The airline now says it hopes to resume its full schedule of flights tomorrow. Then, the county has appointed its first Chief Geriatric Officer to help San Diego’s growing senior population prepare for the challenges and expand the opportunities of aging. Also, the San Diego Bl...

Pandemic-era border restrictions remain in place after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled to keep Title 42 active in a ruling announced Tuesday. Then, we replay a piece about San Diego researchers looking to the region’s wetlands to stave off the worst impacts of global warming. Next, earlier this year the city of San Diego apologized for supporting the removal and incarceration of Japanese-Americans du...

Migrants made their way to San Diego International after being left at bus stations across the county last Friday. Traditional shelters said they were too full to take them. So The US Border Patrol released dozens of asylum seekers, some with no phones and no nearby relatives, at the bus stations. Then, the state is spending 10 million dollars to encourage people to use e-bikes as a more climate f...

Blue skies and warm temperatures are expected to turn to rain and snow in much of California this week. Then, a local restaurant is the first eatery in the region to earn a coveted Michelin three-star designation. Next, we revisit a segment with San Diego author Madhushree Ghosh who talks about her book “Khabaar” and how food helps her stay connected to her Indian heritage and culture. And, KQED’s...

Title 42 has been used to turn away migrants at the Mexican border 2.5 million times since it started in 2020 under the Trump Administration. Republican political leaders in San Diego’s East County are asking the state and federal government for resources to help the county aid migrants when Title 42 lifts. Then, headlines suggest thousands of migrants are waiting at the border to request asylum w...

By Christmas Day the forecast in San Diego is expected to be 78 degrees and sunny. Meanwhile, just about every other part of the U.S. is preparing for a bitterly cold winter storm. We’ll talk about how this will impact holiday travel. Then, eviction cases are on the rise according to data from the San Diego County Superior Court. Advocates say the numbers show the once “looming” crisis of housing...

The legal tug-of-war with Title 42 continues. Days before the Trump-era immigration rule was set to expire, U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts ordered a temporary hold on the policy. Then, many people are celebrating the holidays with gatherings and letting their guards down when it comes to COVID-19. But, cases are rising. And, water bills in San Diego are about to go up, and the incre...

The House Jan. 6 committee unveiled a criminal referral for former President Donald Trump, citing evidence that it says merits prosecution by the Justice Department. Then, voting is underway on a tentative contract agreement between the University of California and 36,000 academic workers still on strike. Finally, a look at how sea level rise could push contaminants into neighborhoods, especially...

According to a new UC San Diego survey, the partisan gap of trust in the integrity of U.S. elections grew in 2022. Then, as the year winds down, some San Diegans are packing up and heading out - not for a holiday trip, but for a change of residence. Finally, for our weekend arts preview, we have a local jazz trumpet legend, a Kate Bush cover band, contemporary dance for the Jewish holidays and…sew...

San Diego County and the rest of Southern California are under a new drought emergency announced this week. Local waters officials are encouraging conservation but say our local water supply is stable. Then, natural gas bills will see a sharp increase for the month of December, and an even sharper one in January. San Diego Gas and Electric estimates the average gas bill for customers this month wi...

We speak to Councilmember Kent Lee, who was sworn in Monday to represent the city of San Diego’s District 6. This includes Mira Mesa, Kearny Mesa, most of University City, Sorrento Valley and portions of Scripps Ranch. Plus, the uncertainty clouding California’s solar marketplace could be settled this week as regulators consider a proposal that changes the rules for electricity generated by roofto...

The new law is intended to protect same-sex and interracial marriages if the U.S. Supreme Court reverses Obergefell v. Hodges, the 2015 decision legalizing gay marriage nationwide. Then, California’s Reparations Task Force has reached a pivotal point in its goal to develop reparations proposals for African Americans. The next two hearings happening this week could cement recommendations for who wo...

On Monday, schools in the Julian Union, Spencer Valley, and Warner Unified school districts were closed by the winter storm lingering over the county. Then, while some of the striking University of California academic workers ratified a new contract over the weekend thousands remain on strike across the state. We hear from some of them who say they will not give up what they consider a fight for t...

A study, commissioned by the San Diego city council, wanted to find out why we’re behind. It may look like there’s a lot of construction underway in San Diego, but the city is way below the estimated 13,500 new housing units a year needed to keep up with the population. Then, the Pentagon is finishing a review of its policies regarding suicide. Though the number of military suicides declined sligh...

No charges will be filed against any of the SDSU football players accused of a gang rape on campus last year. And, for the fourth month in a row, the number of homeless people in downtown San Diego has reached a new record high. Plus, Zillow says the average price for a home in Escondido is $800-thousand dollars. So it’s not surprising that hundreds of families have signed up for a chance at a hom...

COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations are rising dramatically across the nation. How deadly will this surge be? And what can we do to protect ourselves and our loved ones over the holidays? Next, when you think of San Diego’s Mira Mesa neighborhood you might think of car-dependent strip malls and vast open spaces. But a recently approved blueprint could bring big changes to the neighborhood. Then, a...

San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria is in Washington DC today , speaking at the National Housing conference and meeting with the head of Homeland Security. He’ll also have meetings about his new executive order to crack down on fentanyl use. Then, the San Diego City Council bids farewell to its sole Republican representative - Chris Cate. Then, at the Salk Institute, there is one researcher who is able to...

The San Diego Unified School District has been hit by a cybersecurity threat. Also, city officials face a dilemma on how city towing policies should handle people living in vehicles. Next, Chula Vista representatives claim a new policy bans the sale of data picked up by police surveillance tools. But privacy advocates warn most personal information could still lawfully be sold. And, the authors of...

This week, San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria signed an executive order responding to the fentanyl crisis in San Diego. It directs the San Diego police department to focus more of its efforts on disrupting sales of the drug. Later, Santa takes on a group of mercenaries who hold a family captive on Christmas Eve in the new R-rated action comedy film Violent Night. David Harbour plays the put upon St. Nick...

It’s the third week of the academic workers strike at UC San Diego, and students are feeling it. Then, the eruption of Hawaii's Mauna Loa volcano has shut down a research project that’s measured carbon dioxide in the air since 1958. And, earlier this year San Diego passed a new law that would tighten regulations on street vendors throughout the city. Enforcement of these new rules, however, hasn’t...

Concerns about the condition of the Lake Hodges dam prompted officials to release water from the lake this week. Water is flowing into the San Dieguito river to bring the lake’s level down to 275 feet. Then, the U.S. Men’s national soccer team reached the final round of 16 of the World Cup after a dramatic 1-0 win against Iran on Tuesday. San Diego Wave FC’s President Jill Ellis, reflects on the g...