Cat declawing, book censorship among new 2026 laws
Every year, lawmakers in Sacramento introduce a flurry of bills, most of which are eviscerated during the legislative process and end up on the Assembly or Senate trash heap. A select few make it to the governor’s desk, and assuming they dodge the veto...
Health officer urges residents to get booster shots
Santa Clara County’s top health official urged residents Monday to get an updated Covid-19 booster vaccine if they are eligible to do so as the holiday season approaches.
According to Health Officer and Public Health Director Dr. Sara Cody, just 11% of Santa Clara County...
Volunteers pick up tons of garbage on Coastal Cleanup Day
Events at 52 local sites on Coastal Cleanup Day, Sept. 23, resulted in the removal of a number of unusual discarded items, including an ATM machine, iMac computer, a counterfeit $100 bill, a sign declaring “Not a Through Street,” a Statue of Liberty figurine,...
Nonprofit teams up with GUSD to feed Gilroy families
A Bay Area nonprofit launched an emergency weekend meal program last weekend in partnership with the Gilroy Unified School District, and is planning to serve 500 children and their families every Saturday and Sunday in November.
The program, led by Community Seva, was launched in...
County healthcare patients to receive refunds
About 43,000 former patients of Santa Clara Valley Healthcare (SCVH) will soon receive notice of possible billing corrections and refunds as part of a settlement between Santa Clara County and some past patients of the public hospital system.
The county said in a news release...
Santa Clara County will expand services targeting substance use crisis
The County of Santa Clara announced last week that it will be augmenting its substance use treatment services with additional inpatient, residential and outpatient offerings through the Behavioral Health Services Department and Santa Clara Valley Healthcare to serve thousands of the county’s most vulnerable...
Photos: Winter persists in Gilroy
The wild and suspenseful saga that is the winter of 2023 continues, with the latest chapter bringing rare snowfall to South Valley—not just once, but multiple times since last week—blanketing the hills above Morgan Hill, Gilroy and Hollister with accumulated frozen precipitation.
Some locations in...
Record temperatures take a toll on South Valley
The historic heat wave that has gripped most of California this week has resulted in broken temperature records, prompted cities and counties to open public “cooling centers” for the vulnerable, limited outdoor school activities—and might have even damaged a stretch of highly traveled asphalt...
Saint Louise announces first baby of 2026
The first baby of 2026 in South Santa Clara County is 5-pound, 10-ounce Brittany Sanchez.
Sanchez was born on Jan. 1 at Saint Louise Regional Hospital in Gilroy, according to county officials. Brittany was 18 inches long. Her parents are Antonia Lopez Sanchez and Bartolo...
Demand jumps for blood donors
More than two years after the Covid-19 pandemic started, hospitals and medical facilities throughout the region are still “desperate” for blood supplies for their patients, according to an American Red Cross representative. One way that many people, organizations and venues are committed to helping...























