At its meeting last night, the Benicia City Council debated and approved a proposal to hold a special meeting next week to consider instituting a Citywide indoor mask mandate.
The meeting will be held next Tuesday, August 24 at 6pm. Here’s the Agenda.
Some observers at yesterday’s meeting felt that Council members Trevor Macenski and Lionel Largaespada indicated likely opposition for the measure. They have invited Solano County Health Officer Bela Matyas to attend next week. Matyas is the ONLY county health officer in the Bay Area who has not instituted masking requirements to head off the spread of the Delta variant. His presence next week will no doubt muddy the waters.
We can only hope that Council will get the required three votes. It’s so sad that face coverings have become a political issue here in Benicia and Solano County. We remember fondly how in March of 2020 our previous City Manager and City Council took charge and declared emergency action in the absence of leadership from the County.
Video of the August 17 City Council discussion and Public Comments on the mask mandate
NOTE: the Council discussion, public comments and action on the issue takes just under an hour, beginning at 1:37:53. Public comments begin at 2:02:30. Final discussion by Council begins at 2:23, and ends with the unanimous vote at 2:30:50. (From there if you’re interested, the Council discusses COVID protocol for reopening the Council Chambers.) And… if the above video does not work for you, you can click here to go to the City website to view the video clip on the mask mandate.
The mailer funded by Sen. Bill Dodd spotlights the Arizona man with the furry hat and horns at the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol attempted take-over. (Courtesy photo)
By Richard Freedman, Vallejo Times-Herald, August 18, 2021
State Sen. Bill Dodd’s recent bout with vertigo has nothing to do with the dizzying feeling he gets seeing the number of names — 46 — on the California Gubernatorial Recall Election ballot hitting mailboxes this week.
Not that Dodd, a former Republican, is concerned about potential replacements for Gavin Newsom. It’s the two boxes — “Yes” and “No” — he’s focusing on, backing up his support of the Democrat governor with a $75,000 mailer campaign.
The state’s Department of Finance says the recall election is costing taxpayers roughly $215.2 million — money Dodd believes “would go a long way of funding so many projects like improving Highway 37. There are so many needs. The idea we’re going to spend it on a sham recall effort doesn’t rise to the level of what I call good government.”
Just short of 1.5 million verified signatures were needed to trigger a statewide ballot. The state verified roughly 1.6 million signatures.
Recall organizers claim government overreach has led to dissatisfaction with Newsom’s leadership. They cite his executive order to phase out gasoline-powered cars by 2035 and rolling power outages to prevent wildfires, among other issues. They also cite a number of issues surrounding his handling of the coronavirus.
“There are a lot of people out there for some reason or other want to support this recall,” Dodd said by phone. “It’s my firm belief that a lot of things that have gone on — COVID-19, wildfires, utility shut-offs — since he became the chief executive officer of this state would happen no matter who is the governor of the state. He had little or no control over those things happening.”
Of the 22 million registered voters in California about 10 million (or 46%) are Democrat and 5 million (24%) are Republicans. The remaining 6.5 million (30%) are independents or registered to other parties, according to the most recent Report of Registration from the California Secretary of State released in February.
Newsom was elected in 2018, beating Republican challenger John Cox 61.9 % to 38.1%.
The thought of a sitting governor with that overwhelming a victory losing his job to someone with a comparatively minuscule portion of the vote on a crowded ballot doesn’t sit right with Dodd.
State Sen. Bill Dodd, D-3, Napa. (Courtesy photo)
“They (recall supporters) are counting on this as their ‘January 6 opportunity’ to overturn the government, but doing it through a recall,” Dodd said, alluding to the failed takeover of the U.S. Capitol.
“This is what happens when either party can go too far,” said Dodd. “These are reactionary times.”
A main figure of that Capitol insurrection, an Arizona man wearing U.S. flag colors face paint, a furry hat and horns, is featured prominently on Dodd’s “Vote No” mailer. Another version of the mailer includes a photograph of the U.S. Capitol building from Jan. 6.
“His point is that the same people who stormed the Capitol are the same people who want to recall Newsom,” said Dodd spokesman Paul Payne.
Dodd is banking on the registered voter party difference to secure Newsom’s remaining term, set to end in January of 2023. Endorsed by Newsom in the 2016 state senate election, Dodd funded the mailout — “Are You Going to Let Them Win?” — as a reminder to vote and vote “No.”
“I think if the people of the state of California turn out and vote on this, I don’t think the chances are very good he will get recalled,” Dodd said. “I think we need to peel back the onion a little bit and stop and think what has been accomplished in terms of policies on climate change, trying to get a handle on the homeless, our budgets and what we’re investing in.”
“I ask that people just vote and let their voices be heard,” Dodd said, believing that “organizers of this recall see this as an opportunity to use COVID-19 and some of these other issues to try and move him out. They have a much better chance of getting someone elected through a recall than with a traditional election.”
Dodd believes recall supporters are counting on the heavy Democratic advantage to be distracted by the pandemic and forgo voting.
“If we don’t vote, we let them potentially win,” he said. “We know that if Democrats and independents vote in large numbers, this recall will fail.”
Dodd declined to speculate how a failed recall could backfire on Republicans.
“I’m not looking for a pound of flesh after this. For me, it’s about having them fail on this issue,” he said. “I’m happy to debate them or work with them on other issues that make sense for everyone who lives in the state or certainly in my district.”
Dodd believes there needs to be “some narrow criteria, whether a governor, legislator or local elected official” can be recalled. He cited Placerville, which is trying to recall four of its five council members because they want to “change the look of Main Street,” according to a recall organizer.
“That’s what elections are for,” Dodd said. “That’s direct democracy put in for a reason.”
Dodd, D-Napa, represents District 3, including all of Napa and Solano counties and parts of Contra Costa, Yolo and Sonoma counties.
DEATHS: Solano County reported 5 new deaths today, 1 age 50-64, and 4 age 65+. A new total of 259 of us have died of COVID since the pandemic began.
CASES: The County reported 250 new COVID cases over the weekend, 83 per day!CASES-PER DAY TREND: We are clearly experiencing a dramatic “summer surge” in cases. Cases-per-day were trending downward in the Spring, but rose rapidly in July and are extremely high in early August:
ACTIVE CASES:Solano’s 838 ACTIVE cases is down from Friday’s 910, but still very high. Recent active case numbers are up alarmingly from 212 on July 2, and higher than anything since last February’s surge.
POSITIVE TEST RATE: INCREDIBLY HIGH – much higher than US & California! Our 7-day average percent positivity rate was down a bit today from 18.9% Friday to 18.6% today, still more than double the purple tier margin, and nearly 4 times California’s rate and over 1½ times the U.S. rate. COMPARE: The California rate at 4.9% today, and today’s U.S. rate is 11.5%.[Source: Johns Hopkins]WARNING:The Delta Variant is among us and spreading fast. Time to mask up again – watch out and take care!
Hospitalizations up again today
CURRENT hospitalizations rose today from 105 to 129 persons.
ICU Beds Available were up slightly today from 20% to 21%, in the yellow danger zone and lower than any time since January 29, 2021.
Ventilators Availableremained steady todayat 56%, lower than anytime since February 26, 2021.
TOTAL Hospitalized– The County’s Monday-Friday dashboard shows an intake/discharge total of CURRENTLY hospitalized cases (above), but never reports on the TOTAL hospitalized over the course of the pandemic. That total must be independently discovered in the County’s occasional update of the Hospitalizations by Age Group chart. The County updated its Hospitalizations by Age Group chart today. The County reported 3 new hospitalizations today, 2 persons age 50-64, and 1 age 65+. Percentages remain the same. The Age Group chart shows a total of 2,046 persons hospitalized since the beginning of the outbreak, in the following age groups:
Age Group
Hospitalizations
% of Total
0-17
36
2%
18-49
582
29%
50-64
547
27%
65+
881
43%
TOTAL
2,046
100%
Hospitalizations are also recorded on the County’s demographic chart labeled “Hospitalizations by Race / Ethnicity.”The chart was updated today, adding 2 persons, both White. Here are the current numbers. Interestingly, the total doesn’t square with the total by age groups.
Race / Ethnicity
Hospitalizations
% of Total
Asians
323
17%
Black / African American
332
17%
Hispanic / Latinx
552
29%
White
628
33%
Multirace / Others
84
4%
TOTAL
1,919
100%
Face Coverings…
Good news! Benicia Mayor Steve Young and Vice Mayor Tom Campbell are proposing a mandatory face covering policy for Benicia. Benicia City Council will address the matter in the first of a two-step process tomorrow, Tuesday, August 17. See also California’s recent Guidance for the Use of Face Coverings. The guidelines include a recommendation for universal masking indoors statewide, adding of Adult and Senior Care Facilities to settings where all individuals must wear masks indoors, and a reference to new requirements for unvaccinated workers. Some California cities and counties are returning to mandatory masks for all in crowded places. In the Bay Area, Solano County REMAINS the only holdout against even RECOMMENDING masks in public indoors spaces. It looks like Dr. Matyas will refuse to make the difficult decisions. Sad – and dangerous!
STUDY SHOWS HIGHER RATE OF “BREAKTHROUGH” CASES AMONG THE VACCINATED
See latest info here: Post-Vaccine COVID-19 Cases by the California Department of Public Health, August 11, 2021. From the report: “For the week of August 7, the average daily COVID-19 case rate among unvaccinated Californians is 51 per 100,000 and the average daily COVID-19 case rate among fully vaccinated Californians is much lower at 8.2 per 100,000.” [I’m no mathematician – could it be that this 51 to 8.2 ratio suggests that one in every seven California cases is a vaccinated person? Someone please confirm or correct me! rogrmail at gmail dot com]
Wearing masks again, social distancing & vaccination…
The “breakthrough” numbers are small in comparison to the huge surge in cases and hospitalizations among the unvaccinated, but it’s still a significant new factor. We were just beginning to associate more freely with fully vaccinated friends and family, and now we understand that a small percentage of the vaccinated among us may be asymptomatic and unknowingly transmitting the virus, and inevitably helping spread the disease to someone who knows someone, who knows someone else, who knows yet another someone who is not vaccinated, or who is too young or too health-compromised to be vaccinated – and who may end up seriously ill or even dead! Please mask indoors in public now, and maybe even indoors with vaccinated family and friends! And PLEASE talk to anyone you know who isn’t vaccinated. This thing ain’t over yet!
Cases by City on Monday, August 16:
Beniciaadded 10 new cases today, a total of 1,177 cases since the outbreak began, 4.2% of its population of 27,570.
Dixon added 14 new cases today, total of 2,114 cases, 10.6% of its population of 19,794.
Fairfield added 54 new cases today, total of 10,291 cases, 8.7% of its population of 117,149.
Rio Vista added 2 new cases today, total of 464 cases, 4.9% of its population of 9,416.
Suisun Cityadded 13 new cases today, total of 2,673 cases, 9.0% of its population of 29,447.
Vacaville added 60 new cases today, a total of 9,900 cases, 10.0% its of population of 98,807.
Vallejoadded 96 new cases today, a total of 11,177 cases, 9.3% of its population of 119,544.
Unincorporatedadded 1 new case today, a total of 118 cases (population figures not available).
Friday, August 13: Solano County reported 314 new infections over the last 2 days, updated total of 910 active cases, availability of ICU beds and ventilators down dramatically.
DEATHS: Solano County reported no new deaths today, the total remaining at 254 COVID deaths since the pandemic began.
CASES: The County reported 314 new COVID cases just since Wednesday, 157 per day!CASES-PER DAY TREND: We are clearly experiencing a dramatic “summer surge” in cases. Cases-per-day were trending downward in the Spring, but rose rapidly in July and are extremely high in early August:
ACTIVE CASES:Solano’s 910 ACTIVE cases is up from Wednesday’s 754, and nearing our remarkable July 30 high of 972. Active cases are up alarmingly from 212 on July 2, and higher than anything since last February’s surge.
POSITIVE TEST RATE: INCREDIBLY HIGH – much higher than US & California! Our 7-day average percent positivity rate was up again today from 17.8% Wednesday to 18.9% today, more than double the purple tier margin, and nearly 4 times California’s rate and over 1½ times the U.S. rate. COMPARE: The California rate remained at 5.1% today, and today’s U.S. fell to 11.2%.[Source: Johns Hopkins]WARNING:The Delta Variant is among us and spreading fast. Time to mask up again – watch out and take care!
Hospitalizations up again today
CURRENT hospitalizations fell today from 127 to 105 persons.
ICU Beds Availabletook a dramatic turn for the worse today, falling from 30% to only 20%, in the yellow danger zone and lower than any time since January 29, 2021.
Ventilators Availablealso fell dramatically today from 74% to only 56%, lower than anytime since February 26, 2021.
TOTAL Hospitalized– The County’s Monday-Friday dashboard shows an intake/discharge total of CURRENTLY hospitalized cases (above), but never reports on the TOTAL hospitalized over the course of the pandemic. That total must be independently discovered in the County’s occasional update of the Hospitalizations by Age Group chart. The County updated its Hospitalizations by Age Group chart today. The County reported 2 new hospitalizations today, 1 person age 50-64, and 1 age 65+. Percentages remain the same. The Age Group chart shows a total of 2,043 persons hospitalized since the beginning of the outbreak, in the following age groups:
Age Group
Hospitalizations
% of Total
0-17
36
2%
18-49
582
29%
50-64
545
27%
65+
880
43%
TOTAL
2,043
100%
Hospitalizations are also recorded on the County’s demographic chart labeled “Hospitalizations by Race / Ethnicity.”The chart was updated today, adding 2 persons, both White. Here are the current numbers. Interestingly, the total doesn’t square with the total by age groups.
Race / Ethnicity
Hospitalizations
% of Total
Asians
323
17%
Black / African American
332
17%
Hispanic / Latinx
552
29%
White
626
33%
Multirace / Others
84
4%
TOTAL
1,917
100%
Face Coverings…
Good news! Benicia Mayor Steve Young and Vice Mayor Tom Campbell are proposing a mandatory face covering policy for Benicia. Benicia City Council will address the matter on Tuesday, August 17. See also California’s recent Guidance for the Use of Face Coverings. The guidelines include a recommendation for universal masking indoors statewide, adding of Adult and Senior Care Facilities to settings where all individuals must wear masks indoors, and a reference to new requirements for unvaccinated workers. Some California cities and counties are returning to mandatory masks for all in crowded places. In the Bay Area, Solano County REMAINS the only holdout against even RECOMMENDING masks in public indoors spaces. It looks like Dr. Matyas will refuse to make the difficult decisions. Sad – and dangerous!
STUDY SHOWS HIGHER RATE OF “BREAKTHROUGH” CASES AMONG THE VACCINATED – About wearing masks again, Social Distancing & Vaccination…
We heard seriously shocking news on July 29 about the large number of FULLY VACCINATED persons who are catching the virus and actively transmitting it. As the Washington Post reports, “A sobering scientific analysis published Friday found that three-quarters of the people infected during an explosive coronavirus outbreak fueled by the delta variant were fully vaccinated. …vaccinated people can spread the more transmissible variant and may be a factor in the summer surge of infections.”
This is HUGE! We were just beginning to associate more freely with fully vaccinated friends and family, and now we understand that some among us may be asymptomatic and unknowingly transmitting the virus, and inevitably helping spread the disease to someone who knows someone, who knows someone else, who knows yet another someone who is not vaccinated, or who is too young or too health-compromised to be vaccinated – and who may end up seriously ill or even dead! Please mask indoors in public now, and maybe even indoors with vaccinated family and friends! And PLEASE talk to anyone you know who isn’t vaccinated. This thing ain’t over yet!
Cases by City on Friday, August 13:
Beniciaadded 14 new cases today, a total of 1,167 cases since the outbreak began, 4.2% of its population of 27,570.
Dixon added 13 new cases today, total of 2,100 cases, 10.6% of its population of 19,794.
Fairfield added 103 new cases today, total of 10,237 cases, 8.7% of its population of 117,149.
Rio Vista added 4 new cases today, total of 462 cases, 4.9% of its population of 9,416.
Suisun Cityadded 19 new cases today, total of 2,660 cases, 9.0% of its population of 29,447.
Vacaville added 76 new cases today, a total of 9,840 cases, 10.0% its of population of 98,807.
Vallejoadded 84 new cases today, a total of 11,081 cases, 9.3% of its population of 119,544.
Unincorporatedadded 1 new case today, a total of 117 cases (population figures not available).
At its meeting last night, the Benicia City Council debated and approved a proposal to hold a special meeting next week to consider instituting a Citywide indoor mask mandate.
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