Daily Business Report-Oct. 1, 2013
The government shutdown means that all federal parks are closed, including the Cabrillo National Monument (above) in Point Loma. Federal websites have been shut down.
How San Diegans Will Feel the Government Shutdown
From Washington D.C. to San Diego, a government shutdown will have far-reaching impacts. Thousands of government employees, including 26,000 local civilian employees of the Department of Defense, will only be working a half-day today to take care of shutdown-related tasks. Then they’ll be out of work — and a pay check — until Congress comes to a resolution.
The region’s federal parks will be closed, including the Cabrillo National Monument in Point Loma, and there will be no federal loans available for small businesses and people buying a home.
The Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children, known as WIC, is expected to run out of money soon, according to NPR. The program provides supplemental food, health care referrals and nutrition education for pregnant women, mothers and their children.
One exception to the shutdown, military service members will still be paid; President Obama signed it into law late Monday night.
A bipartisan group of San Diego City Council members on Monday afternoon called on Congress to avoid a shutdown of the federal government, San Diego City Councilman and mayoral candidate David Alvarez said the city has a substantial reserve to keep essential services going, for now. “If this goes on for a prolonged period of time then we’re going to have some situations we’re going to have to be dealing with in the next couple of months, but at least for the short time being, we have enough in our reserves to manage and continue our operations as normal,” said Alverez.
Airport operations and the U.S. Postal Service are not expected to be impacted. Also unaffected will be people receiving Medicare, Social Security and unemployment checks. — Reported by KPBS
Former Mayor Leads Lobbying Trip to DC
This week, 115 of San Diego’s business and elected leaders are on the other side of the country, visiting Washington, D.C. on an annual lobbying trip led by the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce, KPBS reports. Former Mayor Jerry Sanders, now the Chamber’s CEO, is leading the group on the seventh annual trip to lobby national leaders and bring more money to San Diego. Sanders said they’ll meet with California Sens. Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein, Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx, Navy Secretary Ray Mabus and Marine Corps Commandant Gen. James Amos.
“We’ll talk to them about transportation needs in the region — in the past we’ve been successful at bringing money from that,” Sanders said. The idea is to build new relationships, rekindle existing ones and generally remind people in Washington, D.C. that San Diego is here, he said.
Along for the ride will be Interim Mayor Todd Gloria, Council members Lorie Zapf and Mark Kersey and other business leaders and elected officials. While the mayor usually attends these trips, the Chamber had uninvited Bob Filner during the sexual harassment scandal that enveloped him and led to his resignation.
There is a chance the federal government could shut down during the trip if a budget deal isn’t reached. If that happens, Sanders said some of his group’s scheduled tours will be canceled, but its meetings will likely continue as planned.
City Files Complaint to Shut Down
North Park Medical Marijuana Dispensary
The San Diego City Attorney’s Office code enforcement unit filed a civil complaint in Superior Court to force a medical marijuana dispensary in North Park to shut down because it was operating illegally under city zoning laws, City News Service reports. The complaint against Central Wellness Collective, at 2621 El Cajon Blvd. was filed last week. Officials with the City Attorney’s Office said the business was ordered to cease operations in July after inspectors spotted marijuana displayed in glass jars and glass cabinets, a menu board listing the types of marijuana available for sale and building code violations. The business has since remained open, so the case was referred to the City Attorney’s Office.
Scientists Discover Important Wound-Healing Process
Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute have discovered an important process by which special immune cells in the skin help heal wounds. They found that these skin-resident immune cells function as “first responders” to skin injuries in part by producing the molecule known as interleukin-17A (IL-17A), which wards off infection and promotes wound healing. “This appears to be a critical and unique component of mammals’ defense against skin wounds, and we hope that it will point the way towards better therapies for people with difficulties in healing wounds,” said Professor Wendy L. Havran.
Imperial Beach Woman Named to State Post
Tammy Endozo, 43, of Imperial Beach, has been appointed to the California Board of Vocational Nursing and Psychiatric Technicians by Gov. Jerry Brown. Endozo has served as a licensed vocational nurse at the Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility since 2006. She was a licensed vocational nurse at Scripps Mercy Hospital from 2003 to 2011 and a residential care unit leader and licensed vocational nurse at the Veterans Home of California, Chula Vista from 2000 to 2006. The position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Endozo is a Democrat.
San Diego Agency Tapped Again for Vehicle Rebate Program
The California Air Resources Board has selected the San Diego-based California Center for Sustainable Energy to continue for a fourth year as administrators of the statewide Clean Vehicle Rebate Project that promotes the purchase or lease of new plug-in hybrid and zero-emission vehicles. For the current fiscal year, the ARB and the California Energy Commission allocated an additional $59.55 million to the CVRP, which will fund approximately 29,000 rebates, depending on the mix of vehicles, through mid-2014.
