LAKEPORT
Congratulations to Bethany Moss, Certified Fire Marshal
At last night’s City Council meeting, city officials recognized Bethany Moss for earning her Certified Fire Marshal (CFM) designation from the International Code Council (ICC) — her 10th ICC certification.
This prestigious certification required Moss to pass a series of challenging exams in management, legal standards, and technical fire codes. With this milestone, she becomes just the 102nd person in California to achieve this honor.
The ICC is a global leader in building safety, and officials noted Moss’s accomplishment reflects her deep expertise and commitment to protecting our community through code administration, public safety, and resilient development.
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LAKE COUNTY
Notice of offices up for election of directors to be held on Nov. 4, 2025
Notice is hereby given that a General District Election is scheduled to be held on Nov. 4, 2025, to fill the offices of Director (for a term of 4-years unless otherwise indicated) for the Scotts Valley Water Conservation District that shall become vacant on the first Friday in December 2025 or until a successor is elected and qualifies for office:
- Scotts Valley Water Conservation District Division I – 1 vacancy- 2-year unexpired term
- Scotts Valley Water Conservation District Division II – 1 vacancy- 4-year term
Official Declaration of Candidacy forms for eligible candidates desiring to file for any of the offices enumerated above may be obtained from the Lake County Registrar of Voters office (707) 263-2372, 325 N Forbes St. Lakeport, CA 95453 during regular business hours of 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Please be aware that the filing period begins on Monday, July 14, 2025, and ends on Friday, Aug. 8, 2025, at 5 p.m.
For Additional Information Phone (707)263-2372 or Toll Free at (888)-235-6730
Contact: Maria Valadez, Registrar of Voters or Lourdes Pantaleon, Deputy Registrar of Voters
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WASHINGTON
Legislators join union workers to announce legislation to protect workers from extreme heat
On the heels of another harsh heat wave across California, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) and Representative Judy Chu (D-Calif.-28) joined union workers from the United Farm Workers (UFW), American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, and United Steelworkers to announce their bipartisan, bicameral legislation to implement federal enforceable workplace heat stress protections.
Co-leads of the legislation include U.S. Senators Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), and Representatives Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (D-Va.-03), Ranking Member of the House Committee on Education and Workforce, and Alma Adams (D-N.C.-12).
To address the increasing risks from extreme temperatures, the lawmakers introduced the Asunción Valdivia Heat Illness, Injury, and Fatality Prevention Act, legislation to protect the safety and health of indoor and outdoor workers who are exposed to dangerous heat conditions in the workplace. The legislation would protect workers against occupational exposure to excessive heat by requiring the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to establish an enforceable federal standard to protect workers in high-heat environments with commonsense measures like paid breaks in cool spaces, access to water, limitations on time exposed to heat, and emergency response for workers with heat-related illness. The bill also directs employers to provide training for their employees on the risk factors that can lead to heat illness and guidance on the proper procedures for responding to symptoms.
The bill is named in honor of Asunción Valdivia, who died in 2004 after picking grapes for 10 hours straight in 105-degree temperatures. Mr. Valdivia fell unconscious, but instead of calling an ambulance, his employer told Mr. Valdivia’s son to drive his father home. On his way home, he died of heat stroke at the age of 53.
“This summer, Americans across the country are grappling with some of the hottest temperatures on record. Yet workers in this country still have no legal protection against excessive heat—one of the oldest, most serious, and most common workplace hazards. Heat illness affects workers in our nation’s fields, warehouses, and factories, and climate change is making the problem more severe every year,” said Ranking Member Scott, House Committee on Education and Workforce.
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 2024 was the warmest year on record for the United States. The past decade, including 2024, was the hottest on record, marking a decade of extreme heat that will only get worse. Heat-related illnesses can cause heat cramps, organ damage, heat exhaustion, stroke, and even death. Between 1992 and 2017, heat stress injuries killed 815 U.S. workers and seriously injured more than 70,000. The Washington Center for Equitable Growth estimates hot temperatures caused at least 360,000 workplace injuries in California from 2001 to 2018, or about 20,000 injuries a year. The failure to implement simple heat safety measures costs U.S. employers nearly $100 billion every year in lost productivity.
From 2011-2020, heat exposure killed at least 400 workers and caused nearly 34,000 injuries and illnesses resulting in days away from work; both are likely vast underestimates. Farm workers and construction workers suffer the highest incidence of heat illness. And no matter what the weather is outside, workers in factories, commercial kitchens, and other workplaces, including ones where workers must wear personal protective equipment (PPE), can face dangerously high heat conditions all year round.
“For the Steelworkers Union, we represent workers in manufacturing settings and in a host of other areas where not only is it hot outside, but the areas that they work around are as hot as up to 3,000 degrees and they must wear protective equipment. The Asunción Valdivia Heat, Illness, Injury, and Fatality Prevention Act is important because it will provide a basic standard for not just outdoor, but indoor workplaces as well to ensure that there is proper rest breaks and the ability to stay cool. The Steelworkers are absolutely supportive of this bill and are going to work with Republicans and Democrats to ensure that heat illness is the last thing a worker should worry about,” said Roy Houseman, Legislative Director of United Steelworkers.
“It’s long past time for meaningful legislation to protect Teamsters and other workers from the effects of prolonged heat exposure and dangerous heat levels while at work,” said Teamsters General President Sean M. O’Brien. “Paid breaks in cool spaces, access to water, and limitations on time exposed to heat are simple common sense steps that should be mandated immediately. Waiting to implement these measures is unacceptable and will result in the further loss of lives.”
Padilla previously joined union members and workers from UFW and the Kern, Inyo, and Mono Counties Central Labor Council, AFL-CIO in Forty Acres, California in 2023 to announce his legislation to implement an enforceable federal workplace heat standard.
A one-pager on the Asunción Valdivia Heat Illness, Injury, and Fatality Prevention Act is available online at: https://www.padilla.senate.gov/wp-content/uploads/Asuncio%CC%81n-Valdivia-Heat-Illness-One-Pager.pdf. Full text of the bill is available at https://www.padilla.senate.gov/wp-content/uploads/WIL25235.pdf
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