Category: Lisa Bartlett

John Wayne Airport to Offer Travelers Free COVID-19 Test

SANTA ANA, Calif.—As travelers pack their bags for the holiday getaway, John Wayne Airport is offering free self-collection COVID-19 testing kits to travelers beginning Dec. 8. “The holidays are about spending quality time with family and friends,” County Supervisor Doug Chaffee said in a statement. “This is also a time for us to come together…


John Wayne Airport to Offer Free COVID-19 Test to Travelers

SANTA ANA, Calif.—As travelers pack their bags for the holiday getaway, John Wayne Airport is offering free self-collection COVID-19 testing kits to travelers beginning Dec. 8. “The holidays are about spending quality time with family and friends,” County Supervisor Doug Chaffee said in a statement. “This is also a time for us to come together…


Orange County Fire Authority Attorney Racks Up $40,000 in Travel Fees

The Orange County Fire Authority (OCFA) has spent more than $40,000 on a lawyer’s travel fees in the past three years, an expense that continues to draw the ire of some elected officials. An attorney representing the OCFA was compensated $40,425 for billed travel between Los Angeles and Orange County from 2017 to 2020. The rate is…


OCTA Grapples With California Policies Aimed at Reducing Carbon Emissions

State policies that aim to reduce carbon emissions in California by minimizing driving will impact planned future projects of the Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA), officials say. OCTA’s Director of Strategic Planning said at an April 12 meeting that state requirements designed to combat climate change aim to decrease the distance drivers travel and will…


Coalition Forms to Prod Feds on Nuclear Waste Removal From San Onofre

A newly formed “coalition of stakeholders” is calling on the federal government to get serious about removing millions of pounds of radioactive waste from a closed nuclear power plant on Southern California’s coast. Doug Bauder, vice president and chief nuclear officer for Southern California Edison (SCE), told The Epoch Times that the coalition wants to…


Orange County Crosses One Million Mark of Administered Vaccines

Orange County, Calif., has administered more than one million doses of COVID-19 vaccines in what one supervisor calls “a major milestone” in the region’s inoculation efforts. Local health workers have administered 1,037,074 doses according to the latest data available on a state website March 16. Since those receiving the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines require two shots…


Orange County Supervisors Slam Othena App for Vaccines

SANTA ANA (CNS)—Orange County supervisors Jan. 26 offered blistering criticism of Othena, the county’s app and website for COVID-19 vaccinations, as they raised concerns about a shortfall in the medicine and rising costs for testing and vaccines. Supervisor Don Wagner said many of his constituents have called him to complain about Othena. “Othena sucks,” Wagner…


Hundreds Line Up for the Opening of Disneyland Vaccination Center

Cars lined up early in the morning Jan. 13 at Disneyland Resort in Anaheim for the opening of Orange County’s first super POD (point of distribution) site designed to facilitate COVID-19 vaccinations for up to 7,000 county residents per day. More than 200 people waited in long lines for nearly two hours outside the tents…


Orange County Cities, Districts Roll Out Latest Relief Plans for Ailing Businesses

As small business owners across California anxiously await distribution of the latest round of stimulus checks while pandemic restrictions linger on, some Orange County cities—along with the Board of Supervisors—have created relief programs of their own. Laguna Beach, Costa Mesa, and Mission Viejo are among the cities that have created their own grant programs to…


Economic Uncertainty Troubles Orange County Supervisor Lisa Bartlett

Reflecting on a difficult year, Orange County Supervisor Lisa Bartlett says a new set of challenges awaits after the clock strikes midnight New Year’s Day. As the Southern California county grapples with a $200 million budget deficit, its board of supervisors is bracing for more financial hardship with the Dec. 31 expiration of the federal…