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First Amendment and civil rights advocates say the governor’s signature on two new state laws dealing with the release of police records will go a long way toward improving transparency of information and enhancing public trust in their local governments. Gov. Jerry Brown signed...

Morgan Hill Unified School District’s Debra Chappell and Gilroy Unified School District’s Rachael Cornaggia are among 36 top teachers who were honored “for their excellence in the classroom, commitment to professional development and dedication to students, school and community,” in recognition ceremonies Oct. 22...

Santa Clara County’s Department of Tax and Collections Department has mailed out the 2018-19 property tax bills to all property owners and  tax payments are due Nov. 1, according to an Oct. 16 press release. The California Revenue and Taxation Code Section 2610.5 does not...

With only a few weeks until Election Day Nov. 6, the Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters’ Office is facing a critical shortage of volunteers to serve at the 849 polling places throughout the county, according to an Oct. 15 announcement. Over 1,000 Election Officers...

With nearly 438,000 children living in Santa Clara County, it is important elected officials and voters understand how funding and policy decisions impact children’s lives, according to an Oct. 11 announcement from the County Office of Education. In partnership with the Local Early Education Planning...

Feet, don't fail those fish now. Herman Garcia, the founder and primary driver of CHEER, Coast Habitat Education and Environmental Reform, set off Oct. 13 on a solitary journey of over 150 miles—from Gilroy, on foot, all the way to the State Capitol in Sacramento—to...

The Dispatch sent three questions to all of the local candidates for the Gavilan College Board of Trustees in contested races for the Nov. 6 election. Answers were limited to 50 words each question. Here’s what they had to say: Trustee Area 3 EDWIN DIAZ If Measure X...

Not fake news “Fake news” is the accusatory term used by Phill Laursen in his Oct. 5 Dispatch letter toward Dan Harney supporters. He goes on to say that his candidate, Carol Marques “proved" that Dan Harney had voted in favor of the 721-acre, 4,000-home...

In an otherwise cordial candidate forum, hosted Oct. 8 at Ann Sobrato High School in Morgan Hill, Santa Clara County Board Incumbent Claudia Rossi went on the offensive—questioning the character and judgment of Gino Borgioli, her lone opponent in the District 7 race. Rossi held...

Eighty-five percent of Gilroy teachers voted Oct. 4 to ratify their new contract agreement with their employers that includes a 6 percent salary increase over 18 months, according to a Oct. 5 announcement from the Gilroy Teachers Association. “The agreement was signed on Sept. 18,...