Solis’ action gets more Vote Centers in Boyle Heights
Los Angeles County Hilda L. Solis (D-Downtown LA, East LA, Pico-Union, Boyle Heights, El Monte, West Covina, Baldwin Park, Pomona) on Friday successfully lobbied the Registrar/County Clerk to install Vote Centers in the Boyle Heights community after learning the community wthin the City of Los Angeles didn’t have any for the upcoming special election.
“Upon learning that Boyle Heights did not have any designated Vote Center locations for the upcoming Statewide Special Election, I requested that the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk take immediate steps to ensure residents would have access to in-person voting. Every community deserves the opportunity to make its voice heard, and no neighborhood should be left without accessible options to participate in our democracy,” said Solis.
“Thanks to these efforts, the following pop-up Vote Centers have been confirmed:
Saturday, November 1 — Pop-up Voting Team at the Día de los Muertos celebration on 1st Street between State Street and Boyle Avenue, from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Sunday, November 2 — Pop-up Vote Center at Boyle Heights City Hall, 2130 E. 1st Street, from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Monday, November 3 — Pop-up Vote Center at Boyle Heights City Hall, 2130 E. 1st Street, from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
I am also working to secure an additional location for Tuesday, November 4, to further expand in-person voting access for Boyle Heights residents. These efforts reflect my ongoing commitment to ensuring equitable access to the ballot box for all Los Angeles County residents.”
Raman celebrates new signalized crosswalk in Los Feliz
Los Angeles City Councilmember Nithya Raman (D-Silver Lake to Los Feliz to the Hollywood Hills, Sherman Oaks to Encino, and parts of Studio City, Van Nuys, Reseda), last week joined U.S. Rep. Laura Friedman, leadership from the Los Angeles Department of Transportation and Bureau of Streets Services, and members of the community, to celebrate the completion of a new signalized crosswalk at Franklin Avenue and Harvard Boulevard in Los Feliz.
The new crossing fills a critical gap along a half-mile stretch of Franklin Avenue between Western and Normandie Avenues that previously had no marked crosswalk by bringing long-awaited safety improvements to the neighborhood. The Pedestrian Hybrid Beacon (PHB)/HAWK signal now provides a controlled, ADA-accessible connection linking residents south of Franklin to Griffith Park via the Fern Dell entrance and residents north of Franklin to businesses on Hollywood Boulevard, while also improving safety and access for riders using the DASH stops at the intersection.
Council District 4 partnered with then-Assemblymember Laura Friedman to include the project in a $4 million State Earmark package secured in 2022. The Bureau of Street Services (BSS) and the Los Angeles Department of Transportation (LADOT) designed and delivered the crosswalk and signal on a prioritized timeline, ensuring this long-requested safety feature became a reality for the community.
“This half-mile stretch of Franklin is notorious for its lack of crosswalks, posing a serious hazard for kids walking to school, residents jogging, or anyone engaged in daily life in the neighborhood,” said Raman. “Improvements like these are not only critical for making Los Angeles more accessible, they quite literally save lives. I am so grateful that we were able to install this new signalized crosswalk in record time with the help of our incredible partners, including Congresswoman Laura Friedman who, during her time as an Assemblymember, obtained state funding, City staff who prioritized the project, and residents and stakeholders who kept up the pressure.”
Barragán Opposes GOP Plan to Raise Phone Rates for Incarcerated People
U.S. Rep. Nanette Barragán (D-San Pedro, Wilmington, Carson, Compton), U.S. Rep. Yvette Clarke (D-NY), and 33 of their colleagues in the House of Representatives sent a letter to Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Brendan Carr to oppose his decision to roll back the bipartisan 2024 Incarcerated People’s Communications Services (IPCS) framework, which has helped incarcerated individuals stay in contact with their loved ones at affordable rates.
Carr’s draft order would raise the per-minute rate caps for phone calls by as much as 83 percent and as much as 64 percent for video calls. This could shift hundreds of millions of dollars in additional annual costs onto the families and loved ones of incarcerated people.
Under Carr’s proposal, the smallest jails would face the highest per-minute rate caps, placing the burden of these costs on families in low-income and rural communities. Furthermore, it would enable jails and prisons to tack on new “facility” and “security” fees that would further inflate the overall cost consumers must pay to speak with those in prison.
“To raise the price caps for phone and video calls in prison is to take away from the voices of incarcerated people,” said Barragán. “These calls serve as a lifeline for those behind bars, and their families and loved ones often already sacrifice too much to afford every minute of connection. Before the FCC acted in 2024, some families were paying up to tens of thousands of dollars per year just to hear their loved ones’ voices.
“Chairman Carr’s proposal to roll back those reforms and cut off access to what is often incarcerated people’s only form of communication is inhumane. The FCC must preserve and enforce the 2024 IPCS framework to guarantee every incarcerated person the basic right to stay in contact at an affordable rate.”
Hochman announces Chipotle must allow refunds for California consumers
Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan J. Hochman announced Friday that the Chipotle Mexican Grill has settled a consumer protection lawsuit alleging it failed to allow California consumers to cash out Chipotle gift cards with a remaining balance of less than $10.
The national restaurant chain has over 500 stores in California,,
“Gift cards are real money purchased with hard-earned cash,” said Hochman. “California law is clear that consumers have the right to redeem gift cards with a balance under $10 for cash. I thank Deputy District Attorney Duke Chau of our Consumer Protection Division for handling this case along with our partner district attorney’s offices throughout California. Thanks to their hard work, companies throughout California are held accountable.”
The judgment, in which the company denied any wrongdoing, also provides the following injunctive relief for a period of four years:
- Chipotle must create and maintain a website portal, initially accessible at chipotle.com/gift-card-cashback, where consumers can request a refund for any card that carries a balance of less than $10. To obtain a refund, California consumers must enter their gift card’s identifying information.
- Chipotle must ensure that its new gift certificates, including those purchased through third parties, contain an updated notice on the front or back alerting California consumers that they may redeem the gift card for cash when its cash value is less than $10. The notice must include the website where consumers can obtain the refund.
- The company cannot use the information associated with gift card redemptions provided by California consumers for any other purposes unrelated to the redemptions such as advertising or marketing without consumers’ consent to these unrelated activities.
