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The Malibu City Council on Monday unanimously approved agreements that would lay the foundation to separate the city’s schools from the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District.and argued that local control would better serve students.
Santa Monica community members previously have raised concerns the split would leave the community’s schoolsDistrict and Malibu leaders have said splitting the district will require action from an outside body, for example through special state legislation or action from the state Board of Education. “It’s not going to happen next year or the year after this,” Malibu City Councilmember Bruce Silverstein said. “It’s going to be a while, but the sooner it can get done, the better, and we can start tonight.” Santa Monica community members previously have raised concerns the split would leave the community’s schoolsDistrict and Malibu leaders have said splitting the district will require action from an outside body, for example through special state legislation or action from the state Board of Education. “It’s not going to happen next year or the year after this,” Malibu City Councilmember Bruce Silverstein said. “It’s going to be a while, but the sooner it can get done, the better, and we can start tonight.”A correctional officer keeps watch over a prisoner in an undisclosed California medical facility near San Francisco on May 18, 2021.A new report on discipline in California prisons highlights slow handling of several sex assault cases filed against officers. In lawsuits, women have accused 83 officers of sexual misconduct., released last week, is a twice-a-year summary of how the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation addresses complaints about its staff members. Overall, the inspector general found fault with the internal affairs department’s investigations into prison guard misconduct.’s internal affairs disciplinary and criminal caseload as “inadequate” or “needs improvement” — only 14% of the cases handled by the internal affairs department were rated “adequate.” Inadequate means there were significant problems with the investigation that affected its final outcome. The less-serious label, “needs improvement,” meant that the process had problems, but none so serious that they compromised the investigation.Five California correctional officers who were accused of sexually assaulting incarcerated people over the last dozen years remain employed by the state, according to a new audit from the state prisons’ inspector general., released last week, is a twice-a-year summary of how the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation addresses complaints about its staff members. Overall, the inspector general found fault with the internal affairs department’s investigations into prison guard misconduct.’s internal affairs disciplinary and criminal caseload as “inadequate” or “needs improvement” — only 14% of the cases handled by the internal affairs department were rated “adequate.” Inadequate means there were significant problems with the investigation that affected its final outcome. The less-serious label, “needs improvement,” meant that the process had problems, but none so serious that they compromised the investigation. It comes as the department faces what the report called “a wave” of lawsuits from incarcerated and formerly incarcerated women who allege they were sexually abused by prison staff. The audit said at least 279 women have sued the department, and they have accused at least 83 prison employees of sexual misconduct. The inspector general report does not include the names of the officers or even identify the prisons where they work, which is in keeping with its past disciplinary audits. The Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation did not immediately return calls and emails seeking comment for this story. California has two prisons that primarily house women. At the larger prison, the Central California Women’s Facility in Chowchilla,As Rodriguez’s case unfolded, the inspector general’s office learned of other sex assault lawsuits. The inspector general’s office in the new report said it looked at 68 cases and it faulted prison lawyers for being too slow in referring names to internal investigators who could have developed disciplinary cases against officers. On average, the audit said it took nine months for the corrections department’s legal staff to send cases to internal investigators. “Delayed investigation of sexual assault significantly impairs the integrity and effectiveness of the investigative process,” the audit said. The audit then described three cases involving six officers, five of whom continue to work for state prisons. In a separate case not connected to the “wave” of lawsuits, internal investigators took so long to review allegations of sexual assault that a lieutenant accused by a dozen women was able to retire before facing discipline, the audit said. The inspector general’s office wrote that the officer allegedly traded chewing gum, a radio and marijuana for sexual favors between 2021 and 2023, and then lied to the prison system’s internal affairs unit when asked about it. The internal affairs unit “unnecessarily delayed the completion of the investigation, which prevented the department from imposing discipline for some allegations,” the audit found. Other violations ranged from minor administrative chicanery, like two guards who allegedly faked the numbers in a prisoner count so they could use the time to eat Thanksgiving dinner instead, to allegations that a prison guard loudly, publicly and untruthfully indicated to other inmates that a prisoner was acting as an informant. The audit reflects a chaotic process for even routine investigations. In a January 2024 case, one of eight prison guards who had broken up a fight struck an incarcerated person with a baton, even though the incarcerated person had already “disengaged.” The Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation was aware of the case in January 2024, according to the lawsuit, but didn’t refer it to internal affairs until June 2024, according to the audit. An investigator didn’t start conducting interviews until August 2024. Then the case was reassigned to a second investigator, who didn’t start interviews until November 2024, and tried to close the case without interviewing the incarcerated person, the guard who allegedly struck him or any witnesses. Then, the second investigator went on extended leave, handing the case off to a third investigator who had weeks to wrap up an investigation that is supposed to take months to complete. Ultimately, the prison system was handed a case four days before the deadline for disciplinary action with “a wholly deficient investigative report.”Demand for professional Santas and other seasonal workers seems to have cooled. Could that be a sign we're in a recession?Every year, American retailers hire extra help as the holiday shopping season approaches. In recent years, these jobs have numbered roughly aroundper season. These seasonal jobs run the gamut. Think temporary cashiers, gift wrappers, sales associates, greeters, merchandisers, warehouse unloaders, delivery drivers.Demand for professional Santas seems to have cooled. It's one small part of a broader decline in the demand for seasonal workers this holiday season.'Tis the season to be jolly. That is, unless you're a worker who was banking on getting a seasonal job and haven't been able to find one this season. Every year, American retailers hire extra help as the holiday shopping season approaches. In recent years, these jobs have numbered roughly aroundper season. These seasonal jobs run the gamut. Think temporary cashiers, gift wrappers, sales associates, greeters, merchandisers, warehouse unloaders, delivery drivers. But the quintessential — and most iconic — seasonal worker has got to be… Santa Claus. In addition to sliding down chimneys to deliver presents on Christmas, Jolly Old Saint Nicholas takes gigs at places like malls, department stores, corporate events, and private parties in the weeks leading up to Dec. 25. However, this year, Santa may be making fewer trips from the North Pole than in years past. As we report in this week'snewsletter, demand for professional Santas seems to have cooled. It's one small part of a broader decline in the demand for seasonal workers this holiday season. It got us wondering how the market for Santas fluctuates with the business cycle, which sectors of the Santa market are recession-proof, and whether a decline in Santa demand this season could be a sign that the U.S. economy is going down the chimney.Sure, Allen says, his company may occasionally get requests for Santa at"Christmas in July"-style events, when Santa shows up in a Hawaiian shirt and flip flops. But, no surprise, prime time for his business is right now. He says demand for Santa typically begins in early November, picks up steam on weekends in December and explodes the week before Christmas, especially on Christmas Eve."It really falls off after Christmas Eve, like midnight Christmas Eve," Allen says. Allen says he's seeing less demand for Santa visits this season. His leading indicator for Santa demand is what he calls"leads," or inquiries to his business to book Santa at events. On that metric, he says,"we're down almost 27% year to date, compared with last year. And last year was down compared with the year before."My family has experienced this decline in Santa appearances first hand. Last year, when our son was about 15 months old, we took him for his first time to sit on Santa's lap. A hotel in Lake Tahoe had a public event that served as a toy drive for Toys for Tots. There was festive music, ice skating, skiing, hot chocolate, sleigh rides, and, of course, Santa. To be honest, our son was too young to understand why we were putting him on an old, bearded man's lap, but the whole experience was fun for us parents and we got cute pictures. We wanted to go back this year, but the hotel decided not to host its community event this year. No Santa. Bah, humbug!We're living through a weird economic moment right now, with mixed signals about how good or bad the economy is doing. And we just had the longest government shutdown in American history, which not only, but basically created a blackout for official economic statistics. Since the end of the shutdown, the Trump administration has delayed and evensome economic reports, and we're now all sort of in the dark, trying to figure out what the heck the economy really looks like right now. But there are some candles illuminating what's going on — and this seeming decline of demand for Santa could be one small one suggesting that the overall economy is sleighing downward. It's part of a broader decline in the demand for seasonal workers this year, something a number of sources have reported in recent weeks. For instance, back in late September, Challenger, Gray, & Christmas, a human-resources firm, released their annualPart of the story could be that holiday shopping is increasingly moving online, and brick-and-mortar retailers are struggling and maybe hiring less help. That's an ongoing, long-term structural change to the economy that doesn't say much about whether we're heading into recession. However, there are a number of signs that softened demand for seasonal workers is related more to a broader slowdown in the economy. Andrew Challenger, a senior vice president at Challenger, Gray, & Christmas, told us we haven't seen a miraculous turnaround in the market for seasonal workers since they issued their projection back in late September. Even more, he says, the broader labor market seems to have only gotten worse since they made their projection. In November, his company, which also tracks layoffs, reported an. That includes prominent online retailers like Amazon and delivery companies like UPS."So we have two signals, and both are not good for the labor market or seasonal hiring," Challenger says. Likewise, Indeed Hiring Lab, which leverages the job site Indeed's large amount of data to provide insights about the labor market, recently reported they're also seeing bad news in the job market this season. "What we're seeing right now in seasonal hiring is kind of a microcosm of what we're seeing in the broader labor market, which is that things are cooling down, things are slowing down," says Cory Stahle, a senior economist at Indeed Hiring Lab.The National Bureau of Economic Research, the official body that calls recessions, defines a recession as"a significant decline in economic activity that is spread across the economy and lasts more than a few months" . The lack of official economic statistics for the last few months makes it hard to say whether we're on our way to a recession — or whether we're already in one. But, while reporting this story, we've found ourselves wondering: could declining demand for Santa visits during the holidays potentially be a recession indicator? Like, can it be a sign we're in a ho-ho-horrible economy? Do paid Santa appearances boom in good economic times and go bust during recessions? Or is demand for Santa fairly recession-proof? Hire Santa didn't officially launch until 2012 — after the Great Recession — and Head Elf Allen couldn't tell us much about the hard data on how Santa demand fluctuates over the business cycle. Moreover, his business doesn't capture the full market for Santa, including DIY Santas where people buy or rent Santa costumes and do events themselves. But Allen did offer us a theory of how he thinks demand for professional Santas is affected by recessions. For one, he says, there will always be parts of the economy where demand for Santa is fairly recession-proof. He says that many businesses use Santa appearances to"help drive traffic and associate their brand with Christmas." In this way, a store or mall paying for Santa to sit in a chair and converse with children could be seen as a kind of loss leader, a product or service that costs a company money as a way to attract more customers, nudge them to shop, and help their business make more money. Think like free or cheap alcohol at a casino. Allen says that, even in recessions, certain types of businesses and organizations will always want to hire Santa. "But I don't think that translates to a company party or a home visit," Allen says."That's not something that youto have. You can go to the mall and see Santa. You can go to outdoor stores and see Santa. You can see Santa if you want to. You don't have to have 'em come to your home or office." Indeed, that's a pattern that Allen believes he's seeing with a cursory look at his company's data. He believes the primary driver of the decline of demand for paid Santa visits is from private holiday parties and events. "Consumers are not reaching out to have Santa or Mrs. Claus or other holiday entertainers come to their home or office for a Christmas party," Allen says."And so I view that as like people scaling back their own Christmas plans. They may still be having parties but they're not having sort of blowout parties with Santa and other holiday characters there." Allen pointed to recent reports that companies are laying off workers and thatSo, yeah, maybe a big decline in Santa appearances could be a recession indicator. The good news, Allen says, is that, while overall demand is down, he's still seeing plenty of requests for Santa. In other words, don't worry, Santa is coming to town. There just might be fewer places or times to see him this year.Mallory Rogers and Andrew Waibel, with their children, Adeline and Tristan, are saving for next year’s costs to treat Adeline’s Type 1 diabetes when they switch her to a high-deductible health insurance plan.and many of the subsidies to help people pay for them poised to expire at year’s end, more people face tough choices as they weigh monthly premium costs against deductibles.To afford insurance at all, people may opt for a plan with low premium payments but with a high deductible, gambling that they won’t have any medical crises.who live with Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes. Adults with diabetes who are involuntarily switched to a high-deductible plan, compared with adults on other types of insurance, face an 11% higher risk of being hospitalized with a heart attack, a 15% higher risk of hospitalization for a stroke, andDavid Garza sometimes feels as if he doesn’t have health insurance now that he pays so much to treat his Type 2 diabetes. His monthly premium payment of $435 for family coverage is roughly the same as the insurance at his previous job. But the policy at his current job carries an annual deductible of $4,000, which he must pay out-of-pocket for his family’s care until he reaches that amount each year. “Now everything is full price,” said the 53-year-old, who works at a warehouse just south of Dallas-Fort Worth. “That’s been a little bit of a struggle.” To reduce his costs, Garza switched to a lower-cost diabetes medication, and he no longer wears a continuous glucose monitor to check his blood sugar. Since he started his job nearly two years ago, he said, his blood sugar levels have inched upward from an A1c of 7% or less, the target goal, to as high as 14% at his most recent doctor visit in November. “My A1c is through the roof because I’m not on, technically, the right medication like before,” Garza said. “I’m having to take something that I can afford.” Plans with high deductibles — the amount that patients must pay for most medical care before insurance starts pitching in — have become increasingly common. In 2024,participating in medical care plans were offered this type of insurance, up from 38% in 2015, according to federal data. Such plans are also offered through the Affordable Care Act marketplace.and many of the subsidies to help people pay for them poised to expire at year’s end, more people face tough choices as they weigh monthly premium costs against deductibles. To afford insurance at all, people may opt for a plan with low premium payments but with a high deductible, gambling that they won’t have any medical crises.who live with Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes. Adults with diabetes who are involuntarily switched to a high-deductible plan, compared with adults on other types of insurance, face an 11% higher risk of being hospitalized with a heart attack, a 15% higher risk of hospitalization for a stroke, andThe initial rationale behind such high-deductible plans was to encourage people to become wiser health care shoppers, said McCoy, an associate professor of medicine at the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore. And they can be a good fit, proponents say, for people who don’t use a lot of medical care or who have cash on hand for a health crisis. But while people with an excruciating earache will seek care, McCoy said, those with unhealthy blood sugar levels might not feel as urgent a need to seek treatment — despite the potential long-term damage — given the acute financial pain.$12,022 annually to treat the disease, according to an analysis of 2022 data. Type 2 diabetes, the more common form, is diagnosed when the body can no longer process or produce enough insulin to adequately regulate blood sugars. With Type 1, the body can’t produce insulin. Those with the disease may end up on the financial hook not just for insulin and other types of medication but for related equipment. Mallory Rogers, whose 6-year-old daughter, Adeline, has Type 1, calculates that it costs roughly $1,200 a month for insulin, a pump, and a continuous glucose monitor. That figure doesn’t include the cost of emergency supplies needed in case Adeline’s technology malfunctions. Those include another type of insulin, blood-testing strips, and a nasal spray that’s nearly $600 for a two-pack of vials — supplies that must be replaced once a year or more frequently. “If she doesn’t have insulin, it would become an emergency situation within two hours,” said Rogers, a technology consultant who lives in Sanford, Florida. Rogers has been saving for the coming year when her daughter moves to the high-deductible health plan offered by Rogers’ employer, which has a $3,300 deductible for family coverage. To treat her diabetes, Adeline relies on insulin, a pump, and a continuous glucose monitor that together cost about $1,200 a month, not including emergency supplies in case her technology malfunctions.Many insurance plans carry increasingly high deductibles. But to be defined as a high-deductible health plan — and thus be eligible to offer a health savings account — a plan’s deductible for 2026 must be Health savings accounts enable people to squirrel away money that can be rolled over from year to year to be used for eligible medical expenses, including prior to meeting a deductible. Such accounts, available through a plan or employer, can provide tax benefits. The contributions are limited to $4,400 individually and $8,750 for a family in 2026, and employers may contribute toward that total. Rogers’ employer pays $2,000 spread out over the year, and Garza’s contributes $1,200. Rogers recognizes that she’s fortunate to have accumulated $7,000 so far in her health savings account to prepare for her daughter’s insurance shifting to Rogers’ plan. “Adding a financial burden to an already very stressful medical condition, it hurts my heart,” she said, reflecting on those who can’t similarly stockpile. “Nobody asks to have diabetes, Type 1 or Type 2.” The median deductible for employer health insurance plans was $2,750 in 2024, but deductibles can run $5,000 or higher, said George Huntley, CEO of both the When deductibles are too high, Huntley said, routine maintenance is what patients skimp on: “You don’t take the drug that you’re supposed to take to maintain your blood glucose. You ration your insulin, if that’s your scenario. You take pills every other day.” Garza knows he should do more to control his blood sugar, but financial realities complicate the equation. His previous health plan covered a newer class of diabetes medication, called a GLP-1 agonist, for $25 a month. He wasn’t charged for his remaining medications, which included blood pressure and cholesterol drugs, or his continuous glucose monitor. With his new insurance, he pays $125 monthly for insulin and several other medications. He doesn’t see his endocrinologist for checkups more than twice a year. “He wants to see me every three months,” Garza said. “But I told him it’s not possible at $150 a pop.”In 2026, the deductible for a “silver”-level plan on the marketplace will average $5,304 without cost-sharing reductions, according to an analysis from KFF, a health think tank that includes KFF Health News. For a. An annual visit and some preventive screenings, such as a mammogram, would be covered free of cost to the patient., whether through their employer or the marketplace, should figure out their annual out-of-pocket maximum, which still applies after the deductible is met, Huntley said.Given Garza’s high blood sugar levels, his doctor prescribed a fast-acting form of insulin to take as needed with meals, which costs an additional $79 monthly. He planned to fill it in December, when he’s responsible for only 20% of the cost after he has hit his deductible but not yet reached his out-of-pocket maximum. Garza likes his job despite its health plan, saying he’s never missed a day of work, even recently when he had a stomach bug. As of late 2025, he remained conflicted about whether to sign up for health insurance when his company’s enrollment period rolls around in mid-2026. He worries that dropping insurance would place his family too much at risk if a major medical crisis struck. Still, he pointed out, he could then use the money he now spends on monthly premiums to directly pay for care to better manage his diabetes.is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFF—an independent source of health policy research, polling, and journalism. Learn more aboutThe move comes as the administration looks to address economic concerns from key Trump constituencies as the tariff effects play out but also on the heels of a trying few years for row crop farmers.Prices for row crops such as corn and soybeans have fallen in recent years, according to the Farm Bureau, and prices for inputs have risen over time. However, tariffs have also driven costs up on those inputs,The move was outlined during a White House roundtable event, featuring farmers affected as well as Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins. Trump touted the program in relation to the revenue the government is taking in as a result of his sweeping tariff program and also referenced his popularity among farmers. "What we're doing is we're taking a relatively small portion of that, and we're going to be giving and providing it to the farmers in economic assistance. And we love our farmers," he said."And as you know, the farmers like me, because, you know, based on, based on voting trends, you could call it voting trends or anything else, but they're great people." The move comes as the administration looks to address economic concerns from key Trump constituencies as the tariff effects play out but also on the heels of a trying few years for row crop farmers. Prices for row crops such as corn and soybeans have fallen in recent years, according to the Farm Bureau, and prices for inputs have risen over time. However, tariffs have also driven costs up on those inputs, The White House is calling the new policy the Farm Bridge Assistance program, saying it is intended to support farmers until Trump's economic policies, such as lowering some taxes and imposing stiff tariffs, take greater effect. "President Trump is helping our agriculture industry by negotiating new trade deals to open new export markets for our farmers and boosting the farm safety net for the first time in a decade. Today's announcement reflects the President's commitment to helping our farmers, who will have the support they need to bridge the gap between Biden's failures and the President's successful policies taking effect," said White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly. The money will be coming from the USDA's Commodity Credit Corporation, which Trump also used to give farmers economic aid in his first term. Trump framed the new aid program as a part of his attempt to respond to concerns about high prices. In introducing the topic, Trump dismissed Democrats' recent emphasis on affordability. "They have a tendency to just say, 'This election's based on affordability,' and no one questions them," he said."Nobody says, 'oh well, what do you mean by that?' They just say the word. They never say anything else because they caused the problem. But we're fixing the problem." Trump also said he would remove environmental regulations on large machinery, such as tractors, in an attempt to lower prices on those.
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