We\u2019ve got a lot of news from Politifest. People said newsworthy things. It will take us some time to process all the transcripts but we\u2019ll have some headlines, videos and the podcast out as soon as possible.<\/p>\n
Couple good nuggets:<\/strong> San Diego City Councilmember Sean Elo-Rivera proposed a tax on second-homes in the city. Mayor Todd Gloria suggested merging the Harbor Police with the San Diego Police Department.<\/p>\n We\u2019ll examine both.<\/p>\n Gloria wanted residents to be more optimistic and understand, from his point of view, how far San Diego has come. His presentation was both a collection of achievements of his time so far as mayor and a collection of hopes he had. <\/p>\n It came after a broadside:<\/strong> This week, Councilmember Kent Lee delivered his most scathing criticism of the mayor yet when he recountedall the controversial decisions they have made to increase fees. <\/p>\n \u201cI can\u2019t help but believe that the way this administration is being led is eroding public trust,\u201d he said Tuesday at City Council. <\/p>\n Friday, Lee appeared on the Voice of San Diego Podcast and he elaborated on his concerns but stopped short of escalating his rhetoric on the point.<\/p>\n Listen to the podcast here.<\/a> <\/p>\n State Supe Highlights School Test Scores That Are Good (At Least Better Than Before)<\/p>\n State Superintendent Tony Thurmond on Friday visited San Diego Unified\u2019s Burbank Elementary to heap praise on the district, which he said is \u201csetting the bar high and then giving the students the resources that they need to get there.\u201d<\/p>\n The full scores of last year\u2019s standardized tests aren\u2019t out yet, but officials did realize some topline numbers. The percentage of students meeting state standards in English rose by nearly two points to about 56 percent, while the percentage meeting standards in math rose nearly one and a half points to about 45 percent. It\u2019s the largest combined increase since the pandemic, which has been marked by significant learning loss and anemic recovery.<\/p>\n \u201cKids are more than a test score and there are many factors that go into how students perform, but we also know that this is our one measure that allows us to know how one student is doing in comparison to their same grade peers,\u201d Thurmond said. \u201cSo, we have to do all that we can.\u201d<\/p>\n At Burbank, a Barrio Logan school where 95 percent of students qualify for free and reduced priced meals, English scores increased even more significantly. The percentage of students meeting English standards jumped by nearly 7 points, to about 30 percent.<\/p>\n Legal Battle Over Immigration Enforcement <\/p>\n CA Attorney General Rob Bonta filed a lawsuit against the city of El Cajon Friday over its controversial license plate surveillance program<\/a> after a KPBS story revealed El Cajon\u2019s Police Department continued to share data from the program with out-of-state and federal law enforcement agencies.\u00a0<\/p>\n Meanwhile, more enforcement:<\/strong> KPBS reveals there were more San Diego area ICE (Immigration Customs and Enforcement) arrests of Asian and Pacific Islanders in a single month this summer<\/a> than all of last year combined.\u00a0<\/p>\n