SACRAMENTO – State Controller Betty T. Yee has launched a daily tracker allowing users to follow personal income tax receipts through April, a crucial period for the state’s fiscal outlook as Californians file tax returns.

Last fiscal year, personal income taxes accounted for 65.2 percent of all state General Fund revenues. A disproportionate share of personal income taxes – 16.6 percent – arrived in April.

The daily tally, available at http://sco.ca.gov/2015_personal_income_tax_tracker.html , will be accompanied by a chart showing how the running total compares to the $12.2 billion estimate of April personal income tax receipts in the budget proposed by Governor Jerry Brown in January.

The total consists of personal income taxes minus refunds.

As of the end of March, personal income tax receipts for the 2014-15 fiscal year totaled $48.1 billion, 2.2 percent higher than anticipated in the governor’s budget proposal.

MIDDLETOWN, Calif. – Water. The drink of life. What if it stops flowing or becomes unsafe to consume?

Earthquakes and droughts disrupt our water supply and without water, all living things are doomed. We need to understand and properly manage this precious resource.

The Middletown Luncheon Club's speaker on Wednesday, April 15 will be John Hamner, the general manager of the Callayomi County Water District, who will offer the tools to do just that.

Lunch will be served at noon at the Middletown Senior Center, 21256 Washington St. The program will end promptly at 1 p.m.

For only $5 per person, enjoy a picnic-style lunch of barbecue pork sandwiches with sweet potato fries and a green salad.

In light of last year's earthquake in Napa, Hamner will bring the club members up-to-date on what they can do to be prepared for a short-term water outage.

He will also address Gov. Jerry Brown's conservation requirements and what they mean to Lake County.

Finally, he will bring everyone current on the district's actions for obtaining a new well and water storage tank.

Reservations are required for lunch. Please call 707-987-3113 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for more information or to make a reservation.

Community members also may come and listen to the presentation without having lunch for free.

NORTH COAST, Calif. – Caltrans reports that the following road projects will be taking place around the North Coast during the coming week.

Included are Mendocino County projects that may impact Lake County commuters.

LAKE COUNTY

There is no major roadwork scheduled for Lake County from Friday, April 10 through Thursday, April 16.

MENDOCINO COUNTY

Highway 1
 
– Highway repairs just north of Ocean Meadows Circle will continue. One-way traffic control with a temporary signal will be in effect 24 hours per day, seven days per week. Motorists should anticipate 5-minute delays.

Highway 101

– Caltrans will perform slide repairs near the Korean War Veterans Memorial Bridge (near Frog Woman Rock). Northbound traffic will be restricted to one lane 24 hours per day, seven days per week. Motorists may experience minor traffic slowdowns.

– Caltrans will perform routine maintenance from Alder Lane to Casteel Lane Monday, April 13, through Wednesday, April 15. Traffic will be restricted to one lane in each direction of travel from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. Motorists may experience minor traffic slowdowns.  

– PG&E has been issued a Caltrans encroachment permit for utility repairs near the north Willits railroad crossing on Friday, April 10. One-way traffic control will be in effect from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Motorists should anticipate 10-minute delays.

Highway 128

– Beverly Burger has been issued a Caltrans encroachment permit to construct a commercial road approach near Beebe Creek beginning Monday, April 13. One-way traffic control will be in effect from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., weekdays. Motorists should anticipate five-minute delays.

Caltrans advises motorists to drive with caution when approaching work areas and to be prepared to stop at traffic control stations.
 
The Caltrans Traffic Operations Office has reviewed each project and determined that individual project delays are expected to be less than the statewide policy maximum of 30 minutes, unless noted otherwise above.

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – A bill by Assemblyman Bill Dodd (D-Napa) to provide assistance to the communities impacted by the South Napa Earthquake got one step closer to passage on Wednesday, when it cleared the Assembly Governmental Organization Committee with unanimous bipartisan support.

“When a natural disaster strikes, it is critical that we pull together as a state to help impacted communities,” Dodd said. “Our local families and businesses have done an amazing job coming together and recovering, but the impacts of the South Napa Earthquake are still being felt by many. It’s time for the state to come together to render additional relief.”

“The South Napa Earthquake, the strongest to hit the Bay Area since the 1989 earthquake, did significant damage to Napa, Solano, and Sonoma Counties. AB 18 provides these counties the necessary disaster relief assistance to defray the cost of repairs that are not covered by other federal and state disaster assistance, and allow these local communities to continue to rebuild,” said Sen. Lois Wolk.

Dodd and Wolk have teamed up to introduce two bills to help the communities and residents impacted by the South Napa Earthquake recover.

While the federal and state government have provided emergency relief to help local communities, there is still an estimated $5 million in losses on these local governments straining services to impacted residents.

This shortfall would be addressed by Dodd’s bill, AB 18. The other half of the earthquake relief effort is SB 35 – introduced by Wolk and co-authored by Dodd – which would allow impacted residents to amend their previous year’s return to claim those losses and generate a refund in the current year.

“Napa is open for business, but there is still work to be done,” Napa Mayor Jill Techel said. “Additional support from the state is essential for Napa and the other communities hit by the earthquake to continue to recover, and I would like to recognize Assemblymember Bill Dodd for his efforts.”

On Aug. 24, 2014, a 6.0-magnitude earthquake hit South Napa, causing significant damage. In Napa alone there was an estimated $300 million in damages to private commercial properties, and another $58 million in damages to public infrastructure.

Dodd represents the Fourth Assembly District of California, which includes all or portions of Napa, Solano, Yolo, Sonoma, Lake and Colusa counties. You can learn more about the district at www.asm.ca.gov/dodd .

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – Construction signs have been installed for a slope protection project on Highway 128/Oat Valley Road in Sonoma County.

The project is located two miles west of the three-way intersection of North Cloverdale Boulevard/ North Redwood Highway/Oat Valley Road, and approximately 1.8 miles east of the Mendocino County line.

Construction will continue through October 2015.
 
Groundbreaking activities are expected to begin the week of April 6. Please be alert for construction workers and follow the directions of flaggers.

One-way reversing traffic control will be in place during this project, and motorists should expect delays when traveling through the construction zone.

Starting in late April or early May, the width of Highway 128 roadway will be temporarily reduced at a hair-pin curve so big rigs will not be able to travel through the construction zone.

The segment of Highway 128 between N. Cloverdale Boulevard and Highway 253 will be closed to big rigs over 30 feet in length.

Portable changeable message signs will be in place one week prior to alert drivers regarding the closure for big rigs. Big rigs will be detoured to Highway 253.
 
A second slope protection project will begin in May, approximately 2.4 miles east of the Mendocino County line.

This project will not have a big rig restriction, but the restriction will remain in effect until the completion of the previously mentioned project.
 
If this work is delayed due to weather conditions, it will be rescheduled for a later time. Please drive cautiously through the construction zone, leave a safe traveling distance between your vehicle and the vehicle ahead of you, and Slow for the Cone Zone.
 
For information about other Caltrans projects in the Bay Area, visit www.dot.ca.gov/dist4 .

KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – Come double your fun when the first-ever Ely Stage Stop Marketplace joins the Fiddlers’ Jam at the Ely Stage Stop & Country Museum on Sunday, April 12.

The marketplace, just outside the Ely barn, will feature local handcrafted goods and Ely surplus items for sale and will run from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

As usual, musicians will jam from noon to 2 p.m. inside the barn.

Items available at the marketplace will include wine racks, birdhouses and furniture crafted from old barn wood.

Wine barrel furniture and other natural wood tables and crafts will be represented as will various styles of handcrafted jewelry, including pieces of French beading/bead weaving.

Other offerings include stuffed elephants, crocheted baby blankets, various sized afghans, and scarves and cowls. And Ely surplus items are still being identified.

Beverages and tasty treats will be provided by the docents in the barn. Donations made during the fiddling benefit both the Ely Stage Stop, helping to fund the blacksmith shop now under construction by volunteers, and the Old Time Fiddlers Association, District 10, who uses it to partially fund their scholarship programs.

This free, family friendly, fun-packed day can be enjoyed by all, young and old alike. Make it a day. Bring a lunch and maybe some wine and picnic in the Oak Grove.

View the stagecoach, chuck wagon, buckboard and other large display items on the grounds around the barn. Celebrate local musicians and the American music heritage from the Ely Stage Stop Victorian Era.

Take a ride up to the house on the hay wagon where you can enjoy the newest display and learn about the history of the Dairy Industry in Lake County. Many surprises await. So see you there!

Home to the Lake County Historical Society, the stage stop is located at 9921 State Highway 281 (Soda Bay Road) in Kelseyville, near Clearlake Riviera, just north of Highway 29-Kit's Corner.

Current hours of operation are 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. each Saturday and Sunday. Fiddlers’ Jams occur the first Sunday of every month (except in April when it was moved to the second Sunday due to the Easter holiday) from noon until 2 p.m. living history events featuring local historians are held on the fourth Saturday of every month, again, from noon to 2 p.m.

Visit www.elystagestop.org or www.lakecountyhistory.org , check out the stage stop on Facebook at www.facebook.com/elystagestop or call the museum at 707-533-9990.