Source: Herald file photo
Could affect outcomes in close races
By Allen D. Payton
As of Thursday afternoon, Nov. 5, 2026, the Contra Costa Elections office announced there are 184,200 unprocessed ballots remaining to be counted in the county from Tuesday’s election.
Also, they announced the next results update is expected to be provided Friday afternoon, Nov. 6 at 4:00 p.m.
The remaining ballots could affect the outcome of several close races in the county.
Following is the breakdown of the Estimated number of unprocessed ballots:
Ballots voted at a voting location – 200
Vote-by-mail ballots received on or before Election Day – 165,000
Vote-by-mail ballots received after Election Day – 12,000
Provisional ballots – 500
Conditional Voter Registration Provisional ballots – 4,000
Other (In Review, Damaged) – 2,000
Total – 184,200
Next Results Expected (date and time): Friday, 11/6/2026 – 4:00 PM.
As of Wednesday morning’s update at 12:12 AM, a total of 280,686 ballots had been counted, out of 733,037 registered voters in the county. The remaining ballots make up almost 40 percent of the total 464,886 estimated ballots cast. They don’t include ballots that can still arrive by next Tuesday at 5:00 p.m. that were mailed and postmarked this past Tuesday.
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Said at yesterday’s meeting amendments don’t go far enough to address costs of mandated appliance renovations
By Keegan Coleman, Director, Actum
SAN FRANCISCO – The California Rental Housing Association (CalRHA) issued a statement after the Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD) Board of Directors yesterday voted to adopt amendments to Rule 9-6, the district’s ban on the sale and installation of new natural gas water heaters.
According to a post on the Air District’s X account Wednesday afternoon, “The Air District Board approved updates to the zero-NOx water heater rule that delay implementation to January 2028 and allow exemptions for low-income homeowners, properties with electrical limitations and space-constrained homes.” (See meeting agenda and presentation, watch video and see related article)
CalRHA was joined by hundreds of Bay Area residents including housing and property organizations, such as Better Housing Policies, Business and Housing Network, Santa Clara Association of Realtors, San Mateo County Association of Realtors, East Bay Rental Housing Association, Berkeley Property Owners Association, South County Business Alliance, Silicon Valley Business Alliance, and Small Property Owners of San Francisco Institute, in opposing the gas appliance ban and testifying at the Air District’s September, October and November board meetings. CalRHA will continue to advocate for policies that protect residents, small rental property owners and the renters who depend on them.
“Today’s vote to delay implementation by one year happened despite concerns from Board members over costs, impact to seniors and families on fixed incomes, and electric grid blackouts,” said Adam Pearce, President, CalRHA. “We are grateful to every member, affiliate and coalition partner who spoke out at the September, October, and November Board meetings, and took time away from their families and businesses to make their voices heard. But a delay and set of unworkable exemptions don’t fix the core problem. A hard sales ban tied to replacement cycles still puts the financial and logistical burden on housing providers.
Under the amended rule, a gas water heater that fails after the compliance date must be replaced with an electric model, which in many Bay Area buildings constructed before 1980 means new circuits, upgraded electrical panels and often new service lines from the street. Upgrading panels and service lines alone can cost from $11,500 to more than $120,000 per building, according to a 2023 California Public Utilities Commission report.
“We have asked the Air District for a new cost analysis that reflects what conversion really costs in older buildings,” added Pearce. “We have also asked for alternative financial incentives, so mom-and-pop housing providers already dealing with rent control, rising insurance premiums and thinning margins aren’t left to absorb those costs on their own. We share the goal of clean air, and we will keep working with the Air District to reach it without making housing more expensive or pushing small housing providers out of the industry.”
For a small property owner with a duplex or fourplex, compliance could cost six figures across the property and wipe out years of net operating income, and where rent control applies, capital improvement pass-throughs are slow, contested and often capped far below actual costs.
About the California Rental Housing Association
The California Rental Housing Association represents 14,000+ members totaling more than 805,000+ units, made up of small, medium, and large rental housing owners throughout the State of California. Our purpose is to advocate for the best interests of the rental housing industry and collectively address industry needs.
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Source: BAAQMD
Directly address affordability concerns and installation barriers while maintaining public health benefits
One of Contra Costa’s three representatives, Gioia votes in favor, Carlson, Adams absent
By Bay Area Air Quality Management District Communications
SAN FRANCISCO – The Bay Area Air District Board of Directors voted on Wednesday, November 4, 2026, to amend Rule 9-6, delaying the zero-NOx residential water heater requirement by one year and establishing exemptions for low-income property owners and for properties where electrical or space constraints make the transition especially difficult. The motion passed 14-1 with eight directors absent.
The amendments delay the compliance date from January 2027 to January 2028. The standard applies only when a property owner replaces an existing water heater. It does not require any household to remove a working appliance, and it does not apply to stoves, dryers or fireplaces.
“Water heaters are a significant source of air pollution in the Bay Area, and cleaner alternatives can help people live longer, healthier lives,” said Dr. Philip Fine, executive officer of the Air District. “With these practical amendments, the Board focuses the rule on the properties that can most easily make the switch and gives relief to households that cannot afford the change without financial assistance.”
“The Board raised real questions about cost and implementation in May. Staff did the work, and the rule we adopted today reflects what we heard,” said Air District Board Chair Lynda Hopkins. “This decision protects public health and respects what households can manage. I thank the residents, contractors and local governments who took part in this process.”
Contra Costa County District 1 Supervisor John Gioia explains his vote in favor of the amendments to Rule 9-6 at the Bay Area Air District Board of Directors meeting on Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2026. Video screenshot
During the Board discussion, Contra Costa County District 1 Supervisor John Gioia, who is one of three representatives to the regional agency, along with District 4 Supervisor Ken Carlson and Pittsburg’s current Mayor Dionne Adams, said, “…when we started this rule, we said we’re going to check in and that’s what we’ve done. We’ve checked in a couple times. We’re actually delaying the rule so we can allow more time. That was a promise we made to the public and that’s what we’re doing.”
“If this was the previous version as last year I wouldn’t be voting for it,” he continued. “But I think it’s come to us in a way to make it possible to vote for it, continue to evaluate, get what changes that need to be made, and we’re moving this industry to making higher quality, cheaper heat-pump water heaters and…there’s going to be plenty of health benefits…and in time, we’re going to get a better piece of equipment.”
“I want to get us to the point where we help lower-income residents take advantage of the incentives, so they don’t have to be exempt. The exemption is voluntary,” Goia added before voting in favor of the motion to adopt.
Neither Adams nor Carlson attended the meeting. He was sick, according to his Supervisor’s Office staff.
The Air District Board of Directors voted on November 4 to amend Rule 9-6, delaying the zero-NOx residential water heater requirement by one year and establishing exemptions for low-income property owners and for properties where electrical or space constraints make the transition especially difficult.
The Air District published the draft amendments on July 14, 2026, a rule proposal package on October 2, 2026, and accepted public comment through the fall.
The amendments establish exemption categories:
- Low-income property owners, defined as those earning less than 80 percent of Area Median Income and including participants in programs such as Medi-Cal or CalFresh; or households paying more than 28 percent of their income toward their mortgage and property taxes.
- Space-constrained properties without enough room or ventilation to install a compliant unit.
- Properties with electrical limitations, such as panels below 100 amps, insufficient panel capacity or a need to run electrical lines more than 50 feet.
The adopted amendments also include allowances for temporary installations for emergency situations and a further delayed compliance date to January 1, 2033, for water heaters installed in multifamily buildings and deed restricted affordable housing as well as certain product categories such as hydronic units, specialized high heat uses, and large water heaters. Water heaters with capacity of 30 gallons or less and mobile home water heaters are not required to comply with the zero-NOx standard.
Rule 9-6 has been in place since 1992, limiting emissions of nitrogen oxides, or NOx, from natural gas-fired water heaters. The Air District amended the rule in 2023 to set a zero-NOx standard. NOx contributes to smog and fine particulate matter, and Air District analysis found that pollution from gas-fired water heaters and furnaces cause as many as 85 premature deaths and 15,000 asthma attacks in the Bay Area each year.
Property owners can find guidance on the compliance timeline, the exemption categories and available rebates on the Air District’s Building Appliances web page.
The Bay Area Air District is the regional agency responsible for protecting air quality in the nine-county Bay Area. Connect with the Air District via X, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.
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Night vision testing and operations. Photos by Matt Woods. Courtesy of CAL FIRE.
Expect helicopter activity around Rio Vista
By Linnea Edmeier, Aviation Communications Officer II, California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection
Sacramento, CA — CAL FIRE’s Aviation Program reaches a milestone as it conducts night operations training this week for crewmembers from three helitack bases—Kneeland and Bieber Helitack from Northern California, and San Diego Helitack from Southern California.
This training officially expands night firefighting capabilities to all 11 CAL FIRE Helitack crews statewide. Standardizing night operations across every base ensures that crews can seamlessly integrate during nighttime assignments anywhere in the state.
Context & Milestones
- 2020: CAL FIRE introduced the CAL FIRE HAWK (S-70i) into its aerial fleet, laying the groundwork for advanced night-vision operations.
- 2025: Virtual Reality Air Rescue Hoist Simulator introduced at the CAL FIRE Aviation Training Center (CATC). By year’s end, six simulators were operational: OV-10, S2T Airtanker, C130H Airtanker, S70i Helicopter, S70i Helicopter (NVG compatible), Hoist Air Rescue.
- May 2026: CAL FIRE achieved two major milestones—the addition of its 11th Helitack base, thereby completing a full Helitack transition from the UH-1H Huey to the CAL FIRE HAWK.
- November 2026: Night operations capability achieved across all 11 bases.
Importance of Night Operations Training
Nighttime operations are demanding and require advanced training that begins with classroom instruction on night vision, its limitations and crew coordination, followed by flight simulator exercises and nighttime flight training. While simulator hours reduce equipment wear and reduce operational risk, simulated environments cannot fully replicate the sensory inputs, spatial cues, and lighting of live nocturnal flight.
During night exercises, crews gain experience using Night Vision Goggles (NVG) for water drops and low-light navigation while building the coordination needed to operate safely and effectively after dark.
Community and Safety Notice
All training flights are conducted in accordance with Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulations and CAL FIRE safety protocols.
Residents in and around the McClellan and San Diego training areas can expect helicopter activity during evening hours, concluding by 11:00 PM, Wednesday, November 4 – Friday, November 6. Training areas near McClellan include Mammoth Bar and Folsom Lake along with regional airports including Placerville, Georgetown, Grass Valley, and Rio Vista.
Areas in and around Ramona Airport in Southern California, including San Vicente, El Capitan, Henshaw, and Sutherland Reservoirs will experience helicopter activity.
We prioritize safety and are committed to minimizing local disruptions. CAL FIRE appreciates the community’s support as we prepare our Helitack crews for night operations.
Learn more at CAL FIRE Aviation Program.
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By William Elwood, Public Affairs Officer, U.S. Attorney Northern District of California
OAKLAND – Carson Fries was sentenced today to 72 months in federal prison for drug trafficking. U.S. District Judge Haywood S. Gilliam, Jr. handed down the sentence.
Fries, 34, of Bay Point, California, was charged by Criminal Complaint on September 22, 2025, and charged by Information on May 12, 2026. Fries pleaded guilty on July 29, 2026, to Possession with Intent to Distribute 50 Grams or More of a Mixture or Substance Containing a Detectable Amount of Methamphetamine, in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1) and (b)(1)(B)(viii)). Fries was a significant drug supplier in Contra Costa County. According to the plea agreement, Fries admitted to selling large quantities of meth on at least three instances between August 29, 2025, and September 9, 2025, in Bay Point. On August 29, 2025, he sold approximately 478 gross grams of methamphetamine. On September 3, 2025, Fries sold approximately 518 gross grams of methamphetamine. And on September 9, 2025, Fries sold approximately 506 gross grams of methamphetamine. Additionally, 160 grams of methamphetamine and 33 firearms and a stockpile of ammunition were found at Fries’ residence during a search conducted pursuant to a search warrant.
United States Attorney Craig H. Missakian and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Special Agent in Charge Bob P. Beris made the announcement. In addition to the prison term, Judge Gilliam also sentenced the defendant to four years of supervised release.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Ivana Djak is prosecuting the case with the assistance of Jessie Chelsea and Amala James. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the DEA and the Concord Police Department.
According to localcrimenews.com, the six-foot, one-inch tall, 200-pound Fries is White and was previously arrested Jan. 11, 2014 by CHP – Contra Costa for evading a police officer.
Further Information:
Case No. 26-CR-231
Electronic court filings and further procedural and docket information are available at https://ecf.cand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. Judges’ calendars with schedules for upcoming court hearings can be viewed on the court’s website at www.cand.uscourts.gov.
Allen D. Payton contributed to this report.
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In Brentwood
By Alan Wang, Community/Media Relations, Contra Costa County Employment & Human Services Department
Free Nov. 5 event to help residents recognize scams and protect their identities
MARTINEZ, Calif. (November 3, 2026) – In the fight against fraud, knowledge is power. As scams become increasingly sophisticated and difficult to recognize, Contra Costa County Employment & Human Services Department (EHSD) invites residents to learn how to protect themselves at the Contra Costa County Scam Jam, a free, half-day fraud prevention event hosted in partnership with AARP California and EHSD’s Aging & Adult Services.
The event is Thursday, November 5, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Brentwood Senior Activity Center, 193 Griffith Lane, Brentwood.
Attendees will hear directly from experts who will share information about some of the most common scams that target local residents, plus warning signs and practical steps to safeguard personal information and prevent identity theft.
Expert speaker lineup for media availability:
Mary Blumberg, Assistant District Attorney, Contra Costa County
Kerry O’Brien, Regional Director, Federal Trade Commission
Bryce Avelos, California Privacy Protection Agency
Alfredo Cadenas, California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation
Preview video clip: https://vimeo.com/1243012933?share=copy&fl=sv&fe=ci
Whether it’s a suspicious phone call, a convincing email, an online impersonation or a financial scheme, scammers are constantly finding new ways to target unsuspecting victims. The Scam Jam will give residents the information and tools they need to recognize potential threats, make informed decisions and avoid becoming victims of fraud.
Light breakfast and refreshments will be provided. Space is limited, so residents are encouraged to register in advance.
LEARN MORE AND REGISTER at events.aarp.org/scamjam110426 or scan the QR code.
EVENT DETAILS
WHAT: Contra Costa County Scam Jam – Fraud Prevention Event
WHEN: Thursday, November 5, 2026 | 9 a.m. – 1 p.m.
WHERE: Brentwood Senior Activity Center, 193 Griffith Lane, Brentwood
WHY: To educate residents about emerging scams, identity theft prevention and ways to protect themselves from fraud.
About Contra Costa County Employment & Human Services Department
Contra Costa County Employment & Human Services Department (EHSD) provides a wide range of services and resources that support individuals, families and communities throughout the county. Guided by its commitment to Building Brighter Futures Together, EHSD works to improve the well-being of residents through education, assistance, advocacy and community partnerships.
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Says, “The election may be over, but the fight for accountability is not”
By Debora Allen
WALNUT CREEK, CA — Following the apparent passage of Measure RTM, former BART Board Director Debora Allen, a leading critic of the regional transit sales tax measure, issued the following statement:
I have never been afraid to be a minority voice, nor have I been afraid of losing while fighting for the right cause.
Nearly half a million Bay Area voters have already joined me in saying that fiscal responsibility and meaningful accountability for government spending of our tax dollars matter. With hundreds of thousands of ballots still to be counted, that number could grow substantially. That’s a powerful voice that deserves to be heard, regardless of the election outcome.
The apparent passage of Measure RTM is disappointing, but hardly surprising.
Source: Wikipedia
The transit industry and its corporate and labor allies raised almost $10 million in reported direct contributions to the Yes campaign, not including additional spending on member communications by labor unions and nonprofits. Meanwhile, the volunteers fighting this tax increase operated on roughly $20,000. That’s a spending advantage approaching 500 to 1. The corporate and labor interests had millions to sell their message. The people opposing this tax had volunteers, research, and determination.
Source: Wikipedia
The authors of Senate Bill 63, the enabling legislation for Measure RTM, had one overriding objective: secure billions in new funding for Bay Area transit agencies. Yet they acknowledged in the legislation that “financial efficiency and transparency are imperative to build public confidence and support for public transit.” SB 63 was their opportunity to deliver meaningful, independent oversight in exchange for asking voters to raise sales taxes in five counties. Instead, they created an oversight process that lacks meaningful independence and enforceable financial reforms. The Legislature had the opportunity to demand real accountability before committing billions in taxpayer dollars. It failed. That is why I opposed Measure RTM.
The Yes campaign was filled with misleading narratives about the spending habits of Bay Area transit agencies, promises of accountability measures that lack meaningful independence, and frightening predictions of traffic Armageddon if voters rejected the tax. These were carefully crafted public relations messages designed to convince voters that higher taxes were the only alternative to transit collapse.
Much of this effort was driven by three influential Bay Area nonprofits: the Bay Area Council, San Francisco Bay Area Planning and Urban Research (SPUR), and Seamless Bay Area. These well-funded organizations, backed by powerful corporate and labor interests, have spent years advancing a vision of a denser, more urbanized Bay Area, with transit-oriented housing and concentrated employment centers throughout the region.
These organizations aren’t simply advocating for transit funding. They are helping shape where and how millions of Bay Area residents will live, work, and travel. Voters deserve to understand whose interests are driving those plans, who finances them, and who ultimately benefits.
I’ve lost elections before. Losing is always disappointing, but winning an election isn’t the only measure of success.
Throughout this campaign, the volunteers of CABAT (Committee for Affordable Bay Area Transit), SHIFT (Sustainability in Housing, Infrastructure, Finance, Transportation), and Contra Costa Taxpayers’ Association did phenomenal work. They uncovered troubling facts, challenged questionable claims, and learned a great deal about how powerful corporate and labor interests use their financial resources and political influence to sell tax increases to the public.
Source: Wikipedia
Most importantly, together we exposed serious questions about transit agency spending, financial sustainability, and the lack of truly independent oversight. Those questions do not disappear because a tax measure passes.
This was meaningful work. It will continue, and it will expand. The passage of Measure RTM doesn’t relieve transit agencies of their responsibility to reform their operations, control spending, or deliver the accountability promised to voters. In fact, with billions of additional taxpayer dollars at stake, the need for independent scrutiny is greater than ever.
Last night, at an election gathering, someone approached me and said, “We are so thankful for you fighting for us. You have guts.”
That meant more to me than any election result.
Because if you want to change anything, you’ve got to have guts.
And we’re not finished.
About Debora Allen
Debora Allen served eight years as an elected BART Board Director and six years as a trustee of the Contra Costa County Employees’ Retirement Association. A business owner, CPA (inactive), and former CFO and Tax Manager, Debora is a longtime advocate for fiscal accountability. She continues to work on government oversight, financial transparency, and taxpayer protection throughout the Bay Area.
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Source: Walk ‘N Roll John Muir Elementary
By Walk ‘n Roll John Muir Elementary
MARTINEZ, Calif. — A group of John Muir Elementary families is calling on the Martinez City Council to reverse a decision that quietly downgraded a planned bike lane on Alhambra Avenue to a painted “sharrow” during recent repaving — a change parents say was made without public notice and contradicts the city’s own Safe Routes to School plan.
The issue comes before the City Council at its Wednesday, November 4 meeting, 7:00 PM, at Martinez City Hall, 525 Henrietta Street.
Alhambra Avenue was slated for a protected bike lane as part of a repaving project earlier this year. Instead, the city installed a sharrow — a shared-lane marking with no physical separation from traffic — a change advocates say was never brought to the community for input and leaves families with no safe way to bike or walk to John Muir Elementary
“We were told this street would have a real bike lane, and instead we got paint,” said Tom Gray, Co-Coordinator of Walk ‘n Roll at John Muir Elementary. “Every Friday, our kids walk and bike to school together because we want them to grow up knowing their neighborhood is safe to move through on their own. A sharrow on a street like Alhambra doesn’t protect anyone — it just puts the responsibility on an 8-year-old to not get hit by a car. Martinez has a Safe Routes to School plan on paper. Wednesday night, the Council gets to decide whether that plan means anything.”
Walk ‘n Roll JME, a parent-led group that organizes weekly walk-and-bike-to-school events at John Muir Elementary, is asking Martinez residents to attend Wednesday’s hearing or submit written comment to the mayor and city manager before the vote. The group has set up a simple online tool for residents to do either in under two minutes, at https://www.google.com/url?q=http://walknroll-action.delicate-flower-76f8.workers.dev&source=gmail&ust=1793681589718000&sa=E.
See meeting agenda Item 13.
About Walk ‘N Roll JME
Walk ‘n Roll is a parent-run program at John Muir Elementary in Martinez, CA that organizes weekly Friday walk-and-bike-to-school events and advocates for safer streets around the school. Follow the campaign at @walknrolljme on Instagram.
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By Karen Kerrigan
Small businesses are the engine of America’s economic and technological future, and the Trump administration knows it. Administration officials have repeatedly cited startup formation and entrepreneurship as key to addressing the nation’s most urgent policy challenges, from AI advancement and scientific leadership to job creation and reindustrialization.
To aid startup growth, administration officials have worked to expand government-backed financing for small firms, attract more private capital to startups, and help entrepreneurs commercialize emerging technologies and leverage domestic manufacturing.
Still, one of the most important ways to strengthen America’s startup ecosystem requires no new federal initiatives or additional funding at all. It simply requires policymakers to preserve a longstanding legal framework that has fueled American entrepreneurship for more than four decades.
Congress passed the bipartisan Bayh-Dole Act in 1980 to create a more effective pathway for federally funded research to become new technologies, products, and businesses — by letting universities, nonprofit research institutions, small businesses, and federal laboratories keep the patent rights to inventions they developed with federal support. That created incentives for universities to license those discoveries to small companies, which could then use the patents to attract capital and invest in further development.
Four and a half decades later, the Bayh-Dole framework remains indispensable to American small business growth.
New research shows that from 2021 through 2025, universities, hospitals, and nonprofit research institutes averaged more than 19,000 income-generating licenses each year — approximately twice the annual average from the early 2000s. Roughly 70% of university licensing agreements are with startups and small companies.
In many cases, those licensing agreements give rise to entirely new companies. Since 2001, the Bayh-Dole system has helped launch more than 19,000 startups.
As these businesses grow, they hire workers, do business with other local companies, and strengthen their regional economies. Since 1996, the Bayh-Dole system has contributed up to $1.7 trillion to U.S. GDP and supported up to 7.6 million years’ worth of jobs for Americans.
Unfortunately, in recent years, the Bayh-Dole system has faced growing uncertainty.
Some policymakers are debating changes that could reduce startups’ access to innovative, federally funded research. One proposed rule change would allow the government to cancel long-term research funding on a political whim. Meanwhile, one agency adopted guidelines that make industry licenses less secure by requiring ongoing product-access plans that can be used to revoke licenses even after products have been developed, which directly violates Bayh-Dole.
That uncertainty could have devastating consequences for startups and America’s innovation ecosystem. Startups often build their businesses around a single unproven invention, and they have fewer resources than larger companies to absorb the risks of developing a new product and bringing it to market.
If small companies cannot reliably protect their patent rights, it could become much harder for them to raise the investment needed to continue researching, testing, and manufacturing new technologies.
Instead of altering the Bayh-Dole system, policymakers must preserve it. Protecting this framework will help ensure that startups can continue turning federally supported discoveries into new companies, jobs, and technologies that strengthen American competitiveness.
Karen Kerrigan is president and CEO of the Small Business and Entrepreneurship Council in Washington. This column originally appeared at DCJournal.com.
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By Marcus Walton, Director, Communications & Special Projects, Contra Costa County Office of Education
PLEASANT HILL, Calif.— According to U.S. News & World Report, six Contra Costa County elementary and middle schools are among the top-ranked schools in California in its 2027 Best K-8 Schools rankings.
Wagner Ranch Elementary School in the Orinda Union School District (OUSD) ranked No. 36 among California elementary schools, followed by Happy Valley Elementary School in the Lafayette School District (LAFSD) at No. 37. Creekside Elementary School in San Ramon Valley Unified School District (SRVUSD) ranked No. 85 and Lafayette Elementary School in LAFSD ranked No. 92. Orinda Intermediate School in OUSD ranked No. 46 and Windemere Ranch Middle School in the SRVUSD ranked No. 61 among California middle schools.
“Congratulations to these school communities on this prestigious distinction.” Contra Costa County Superintendent of Schools Lynn Mackey said. “The rankings reflect the dedication of educators, administrators, staff, families, and community members who work together to create environments where students can learn and thrive academically. These schools are examples of what can be achieved when scholars are surrounded by strong resources, engaged families, and supportive communities.”
For the 2027 rankings, U.S. News & World Report analyzed more than 107,223 pre-K, elementary, and middle schools. 46,713 elementary schools and 24,756 middle schools across the country were evaluated as part of its 2027 Best K-8 Schools rankings.
The rankings were based on publicly available standardized test data from state education agencies and the U.S. Department of Education. Schools were evaluated on average student proficiency in reading/language arts and math. While considering the proficiency and performance in each subject, the report also accounts for socioeconomic context when interpreting test results. The methodology webpage of the report states, “The top-ranked schools are all high-achieving and have succeeded at educating all their students.”
Contra Costa County Schools in the Top 100 of the 2027 U.S. News Best K-8 Rankings
Elementary School Rankings
- No. 36: Wagner Ranch Elementary School — Orinda Union School District
- No. 37: Happy Valley Elementary School — Lafayette School District
- No. 85: Creekside Elementary School – San Ramon Valley Unified School District
- No. 92: Lafayette Elementary School – Lafayette School District
Middle School Rankings
- No. 46: Orinda Intermediate School — Orinda Union School District
- No. 61: Windemere Ranch Middle School – San Ramon Valley Unified School District
According to U.S. News & World Report, the top-ranked schools achieve strong academic results while effectively serving students across socioeconomic groups.
About Contra Costa County Office of Education
One of 58 counties in California, Contra Costa County has the 11th largest public-school student population in the state (approximately 169,225 students). Officially established in 1932, CCCOE has a long history of providing direct services to some of the county’s most vulnerable students, including young people who are incarcerated, homeless, or in foster care, as well as students who have severe physical or emotional challenges.
CCCOE also provides support services to schools and school districts in Contra Costa County; services that can be handled most effectively and economically on a regional basis rather than by each of the county’s 286 schools or 18 school districts. These services range from budget approval and fiscal support to technology infrastructure, communication support, and high-level professional development opportunities for educators. CCCOE maintains a website at www.cocoschools.org.
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Source: Herald file photo
Could affect outcomes in close races
By Allen D. Payton
As of Thursday afternoon, Nov. 5, 2026, the Contra Costa Elections office announced there are 184,200 unprocessed ballots remaining to be counted in the county from Tuesday’s election.
Also, they announced the next results update is expected to be provided Friday afternoon, Nov. 6 at 4:00 p.m.
The remaining ballots could affect the outcome of several close races in the county.
Following is the breakdown of the Estimated number of unprocessed ballots:
Ballots voted at a voting location – 200
Vote-by-mail ballots received on or before Election Day – 165,000
Vote-by-mail ballots received after Election Day – 12,000
Provisional ballots – 500
Conditional Voter Registration Provisional ballots – 4,000
Other (In Review, Damaged) – 2,000
Total – 184,200
Next Results Expected (date and time): Friday, 11/6/2026 – 4:00 PM.
As of Wednesday morning’s update at 12:12 AM, a total of 280,686 ballots had been counted, out of 733,037 registered voters in the county. The remaining ballots make up almost 40 percent of the total 464,886 estimated ballots cast. They don’t include ballots that can still arrive by next Tuesday at 5:00 p.m. that were mailed and postmarked this past Tuesday.
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Said at yesterday’s meeting amendments don’t go far enough to address costs of mandated appliance renovations
By Keegan Coleman, Director, Actum
SAN FRANCISCO – The California Rental Housing Association (CalRHA) issued a statement after the Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD) Board of Directors yesterday voted to adopt amendments to Rule 9-6, the district’s ban on the sale and installation of new natural gas water heaters.
According to a post on the Air District’s X account Wednesday afternoon, “The Air District Board approved updates to the zero-NOx water heater rule that delay implementation to January 2028 and allow exemptions for low-income homeowners, properties with electrical limitations and space-constrained homes.” (See meeting agenda and presentation, watch video and see related article)
CalRHA was joined by hundreds of Bay Area residents including housing and property organizations, such as Better Housing Policies, Business and Housing Network, Santa Clara Association of Realtors, San Mateo County Association of Realtors, East Bay Rental Housing Association, Berkeley Property Owners Association, South County Business Alliance, Silicon Valley Business Alliance, and Small Property Owners of San Francisco Institute, in opposing the gas appliance ban and testifying at the Air District’s September, October and November board meetings. CalRHA will continue to advocate for policies that protect residents, small rental property owners and the renters who depend on them.
“Today’s vote to delay implementation by one year happened despite concerns from Board members over costs, impact to seniors and families on fixed incomes, and electric grid blackouts,” said Adam Pearce, President, CalRHA. “We are grateful to every member, affiliate and coalition partner who spoke out at the September, October, and November Board meetings, and took time away from their families and businesses to make their voices heard. But a delay and set of unworkable exemptions don’t fix the core problem. A hard sales ban tied to replacement cycles still puts the financial and logistical burden on housing providers.
Under the amended rule, a gas water heater that fails after the compliance date must be replaced with an electric model, which in many Bay Area buildings constructed before 1980 means new circuits, upgraded electrical panels and often new service lines from the street. Upgrading panels and service lines alone can cost from $11,500 to more than $120,000 per building, according to a 2023 California Public Utilities Commission report.
“We have asked the Air District for a new cost analysis that reflects what conversion really costs in older buildings,” added Pearce. “We have also asked for alternative financial incentives, so mom-and-pop housing providers already dealing with rent control, rising insurance premiums and thinning margins aren’t left to absorb those costs on their own. We share the goal of clean air, and we will keep working with the Air District to reach it without making housing more expensive or pushing small housing providers out of the industry.”
For a small property owner with a duplex or fourplex, compliance could cost six figures across the property and wipe out years of net operating income, and where rent control applies, capital improvement pass-throughs are slow, contested and often capped far below actual costs.
About the California Rental Housing Association
The California Rental Housing Association represents 14,000+ members totaling more than 805,000+ units, made up of small, medium, and large rental housing owners throughout the State of California. Our purpose is to advocate for the best interests of the rental housing industry and collectively address industry needs.
Read MoreSource: BAAQMD
Directly address affordability concerns and installation barriers while maintaining public health benefits
One of Contra Costa’s three representatives, Gioia votes in favor, Carlson, Adams absent
By Bay Area Air Quality Management District Communications
SAN FRANCISCO – The Bay Area Air District Board of Directors voted on Wednesday, November 4, 2026, to amend Rule 9-6, delaying the zero-NOx residential water heater requirement by one year and establishing exemptions for low-income property owners and for properties where electrical or space constraints make the transition especially difficult. The motion passed 14-1 with eight directors absent.
The amendments delay the compliance date from January 2027 to January 2028. The standard applies only when a property owner replaces an existing water heater. It does not require any household to remove a working appliance, and it does not apply to stoves, dryers or fireplaces.
“Water heaters are a significant source of air pollution in the Bay Area, and cleaner alternatives can help people live longer, healthier lives,” said Dr. Philip Fine, executive officer of the Air District. “With these practical amendments, the Board focuses the rule on the properties that can most easily make the switch and gives relief to households that cannot afford the change without financial assistance.”
“The Board raised real questions about cost and implementation in May. Staff did the work, and the rule we adopted today reflects what we heard,” said Air District Board Chair Lynda Hopkins. “This decision protects public health and respects what households can manage. I thank the residents, contractors and local governments who took part in this process.”
Contra Costa County District 1 Supervisor John Gioia explains his vote in favor of the amendments to Rule 9-6 at the Bay Area Air District Board of Directors meeting on Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2026. Video screenshot
During the Board discussion, Contra Costa County District 1 Supervisor John Gioia, who is one of three representatives to the regional agency, along with District 4 Supervisor Ken Carlson and Pittsburg’s current Mayor Dionne Adams, said, “…when we started this rule, we said we’re going to check in and that’s what we’ve done. We’ve checked in a couple times. We’re actually delaying the rule so we can allow more time. That was a promise we made to the public and that’s what we’re doing.”
“If this was the previous version as last year I wouldn’t be voting for it,” he continued. “But I think it’s come to us in a way to make it possible to vote for it, continue to evaluate, get what changes that need to be made, and we’re moving this industry to making higher quality, cheaper heat-pump water heaters and…there’s going to be plenty of health benefits…and in time, we’re going to get a better piece of equipment.”
“I want to get us to the point where we help lower-income residents take advantage of the incentives, so they don’t have to be exempt. The exemption is voluntary,” Goia added before voting in favor of the motion to adopt.
Neither Adams nor Carlson attended the meeting. He was sick, according to his Supervisor’s Office staff.
The Air District Board of Directors voted on November 4 to amend Rule 9-6, delaying the zero-NOx residential water heater requirement by one year and establishing exemptions for low-income property owners and for properties where electrical or space constraints make the transition especially difficult.
The Air District published the draft amendments on July 14, 2026, a rule proposal package on October 2, 2026, and accepted public comment through the fall.
The amendments establish exemption categories:
- Low-income property owners, defined as those earning less than 80 percent of Area Median Income and including participants in programs such as Medi-Cal or CalFresh; or households paying more than 28 percent of their income toward their mortgage and property taxes.
- Space-constrained properties without enough room or ventilation to install a compliant unit.
- Properties with electrical limitations, such as panels below 100 amps, insufficient panel capacity or a need to run electrical lines more than 50 feet.
The adopted amendments also include allowances for temporary installations for emergency situations and a further delayed compliance date to January 1, 2033, for water heaters installed in multifamily buildings and deed restricted affordable housing as well as certain product categories such as hydronic units, specialized high heat uses, and large water heaters. Water heaters with capacity of 30 gallons or less and mobile home water heaters are not required to comply with the zero-NOx standard.
Rule 9-6 has been in place since 1992, limiting emissions of nitrogen oxides, or NOx, from natural gas-fired water heaters. The Air District amended the rule in 2023 to set a zero-NOx standard. NOx contributes to smog and fine particulate matter, and Air District analysis found that pollution from gas-fired water heaters and furnaces cause as many as 85 premature deaths and 15,000 asthma attacks in the Bay Area each year.
Property owners can find guidance on the compliance timeline, the exemption categories and available rebates on the Air District’s Building Appliances web page.
The Bay Area Air District is the regional agency responsible for protecting air quality in the nine-county Bay Area. Connect with the Air District via X, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.
Read MoreNight vision testing and operations. Photos by Matt Woods. Courtesy of CAL FIRE.
Expect helicopter activity around Rio Vista
By Linnea Edmeier, Aviation Communications Officer II, California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection
Sacramento, CA — CAL FIRE’s Aviation Program reaches a milestone as it conducts night operations training this week for crewmembers from three helitack bases—Kneeland and Bieber Helitack from Northern California, and San Diego Helitack from Southern California.
This training officially expands night firefighting capabilities to all 11 CAL FIRE Helitack crews statewide. Standardizing night operations across every base ensures that crews can seamlessly integrate during nighttime assignments anywhere in the state.
Context & Milestones
- 2020: CAL FIRE introduced the CAL FIRE HAWK (S-70i) into its aerial fleet, laying the groundwork for advanced night-vision operations.
- 2025: Virtual Reality Air Rescue Hoist Simulator introduced at the CAL FIRE Aviation Training Center (CATC). By year’s end, six simulators were operational: OV-10, S2T Airtanker, C130H Airtanker, S70i Helicopter, S70i Helicopter (NVG compatible), Hoist Air Rescue.
- May 2026: CAL FIRE achieved two major milestones—the addition of its 11th Helitack base, thereby completing a full Helitack transition from the UH-1H Huey to the CAL FIRE HAWK.
- November 2026: Night operations capability achieved across all 11 bases.
Importance of Night Operations Training
Nighttime operations are demanding and require advanced training that begins with classroom instruction on night vision, its limitations and crew coordination, followed by flight simulator exercises and nighttime flight training. While simulator hours reduce equipment wear and reduce operational risk, simulated environments cannot fully replicate the sensory inputs, spatial cues, and lighting of live nocturnal flight.
During night exercises, crews gain experience using Night Vision Goggles (NVG) for water drops and low-light navigation while building the coordination needed to operate safely and effectively after dark.
Community and Safety Notice
All training flights are conducted in accordance with Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulations and CAL FIRE safety protocols.
Residents in and around the McClellan and San Diego training areas can expect helicopter activity during evening hours, concluding by 11:00 PM, Wednesday, November 4 – Friday, November 6. Training areas near McClellan include Mammoth Bar and Folsom Lake along with regional airports including Placerville, Georgetown, Grass Valley, and Rio Vista.
Areas in and around Ramona Airport in Southern California, including San Vicente, El Capitan, Henshaw, and Sutherland Reservoirs will experience helicopter activity.
We prioritize safety and are committed to minimizing local disruptions. CAL FIRE appreciates the community’s support as we prepare our Helitack crews for night operations.
Learn more at CAL FIRE Aviation Program.
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By William Elwood, Public Affairs Officer, U.S. Attorney Northern District of California
OAKLAND – Carson Fries was sentenced today to 72 months in federal prison for drug trafficking. U.S. District Judge Haywood S. Gilliam, Jr. handed down the sentence.
Fries, 34, of Bay Point, California, was charged by Criminal Complaint on September 22, 2025, and charged by Information on May 12, 2026. Fries pleaded guilty on July 29, 2026, to Possession with Intent to Distribute 50 Grams or More of a Mixture or Substance Containing a Detectable Amount of Methamphetamine, in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1) and (b)(1)(B)(viii)). Fries was a significant drug supplier in Contra Costa County. According to the plea agreement, Fries admitted to selling large quantities of meth on at least three instances between August 29, 2025, and September 9, 2025, in Bay Point. On August 29, 2025, he sold approximately 478 gross grams of methamphetamine. On September 3, 2025, Fries sold approximately 518 gross grams of methamphetamine. And on September 9, 2025, Fries sold approximately 506 gross grams of methamphetamine. Additionally, 160 grams of methamphetamine and 33 firearms and a stockpile of ammunition were found at Fries’ residence during a search conducted pursuant to a search warrant.
United States Attorney Craig H. Missakian and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Special Agent in Charge Bob P. Beris made the announcement. In addition to the prison term, Judge Gilliam also sentenced the defendant to four years of supervised release.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Ivana Djak is prosecuting the case with the assistance of Jessie Chelsea and Amala James. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the DEA and the Concord Police Department.
According to localcrimenews.com, the six-foot, one-inch tall, 200-pound Fries is White and was previously arrested Jan. 11, 2014 by CHP – Contra Costa for evading a police officer.
Further Information:
Case No. 26-CR-231
Electronic court filings and further procedural and docket information are available at https://ecf.cand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. Judges’ calendars with schedules for upcoming court hearings can be viewed on the court’s website at www.cand.uscourts.gov.
Allen D. Payton contributed to this report.
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In Brentwood
By Alan Wang, Community/Media Relations, Contra Costa County Employment & Human Services Department
Free Nov. 5 event to help residents recognize scams and protect their identities
MARTINEZ, Calif. (November 3, 2026) – In the fight against fraud, knowledge is power. As scams become increasingly sophisticated and difficult to recognize, Contra Costa County Employment & Human Services Department (EHSD) invites residents to learn how to protect themselves at the Contra Costa County Scam Jam, a free, half-day fraud prevention event hosted in partnership with AARP California and EHSD’s Aging & Adult Services.
The event is Thursday, November 5, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Brentwood Senior Activity Center, 193 Griffith Lane, Brentwood.
Attendees will hear directly from experts who will share information about some of the most common scams that target local residents, plus warning signs and practical steps to safeguard personal information and prevent identity theft.
Expert speaker lineup for media availability:
Mary Blumberg, Assistant District Attorney, Contra Costa County
Kerry O’Brien, Regional Director, Federal Trade Commission
Bryce Avelos, California Privacy Protection Agency
Alfredo Cadenas, California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation
Preview video clip: https://vimeo.com/1243012933?share=copy&fl=sv&fe=ci
Whether it’s a suspicious phone call, a convincing email, an online impersonation or a financial scheme, scammers are constantly finding new ways to target unsuspecting victims. The Scam Jam will give residents the information and tools they need to recognize potential threats, make informed decisions and avoid becoming victims of fraud.
Light breakfast and refreshments will be provided. Space is limited, so residents are encouraged to register in advance.
LEARN MORE AND REGISTER at events.aarp.org/scamjam110426 or scan the QR code.
EVENT DETAILS
WHAT: Contra Costa County Scam Jam – Fraud Prevention Event
WHEN: Thursday, November 5, 2026 | 9 a.m. – 1 p.m.
WHERE: Brentwood Senior Activity Center, 193 Griffith Lane, Brentwood
WHY: To educate residents about emerging scams, identity theft prevention and ways to protect themselves from fraud.
About Contra Costa County Employment & Human Services Department
Contra Costa County Employment & Human Services Department (EHSD) provides a wide range of services and resources that support individuals, families and communities throughout the county. Guided by its commitment to Building Brighter Futures Together, EHSD works to improve the well-being of residents through education, assistance, advocacy and community partnerships.
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Says, “The election may be over, but the fight for accountability is not”
By Debora Allen
WALNUT CREEK, CA — Following the apparent passage of Measure RTM, former BART Board Director Debora Allen, a leading critic of the regional transit sales tax measure, issued the following statement:
I have never been afraid to be a minority voice, nor have I been afraid of losing while fighting for the right cause.
Nearly half a million Bay Area voters have already joined me in saying that fiscal responsibility and meaningful accountability for government spending of our tax dollars matter. With hundreds of thousands of ballots still to be counted, that number could grow substantially. That’s a powerful voice that deserves to be heard, regardless of the election outcome.
The apparent passage of Measure RTM is disappointing, but hardly surprising.
Source: Wikipedia
The transit industry and its corporate and labor allies raised almost $10 million in reported direct contributions to the Yes campaign, not including additional spending on member communications by labor unions and nonprofits. Meanwhile, the volunteers fighting this tax increase operated on roughly $20,000. That’s a spending advantage approaching 500 to 1. The corporate and labor interests had millions to sell their message. The people opposing this tax had volunteers, research, and determination.
Source: Wikipedia
The authors of Senate Bill 63, the enabling legislation for Measure RTM, had one overriding objective: secure billions in new funding for Bay Area transit agencies. Yet they acknowledged in the legislation that “financial efficiency and transparency are imperative to build public confidence and support for public transit.” SB 63 was their opportunity to deliver meaningful, independent oversight in exchange for asking voters to raise sales taxes in five counties. Instead, they created an oversight process that lacks meaningful independence and enforceable financial reforms. The Legislature had the opportunity to demand real accountability before committing billions in taxpayer dollars. It failed. That is why I opposed Measure RTM.
The Yes campaign was filled with misleading narratives about the spending habits of Bay Area transit agencies, promises of accountability measures that lack meaningful independence, and frightening predictions of traffic Armageddon if voters rejected the tax. These were carefully crafted public relations messages designed to convince voters that higher taxes were the only alternative to transit collapse.
Much of this effort was driven by three influential Bay Area nonprofits: the Bay Area Council, San Francisco Bay Area Planning and Urban Research (SPUR), and Seamless Bay Area. These well-funded organizations, backed by powerful corporate and labor interests, have spent years advancing a vision of a denser, more urbanized Bay Area, with transit-oriented housing and concentrated employment centers throughout the region.
These organizations aren’t simply advocating for transit funding. They are helping shape where and how millions of Bay Area residents will live, work, and travel. Voters deserve to understand whose interests are driving those plans, who finances them, and who ultimately benefits.
I’ve lost elections before. Losing is always disappointing, but winning an election isn’t the only measure of success.
Throughout this campaign, the volunteers of CABAT (Committee for Affordable Bay Area Transit), SHIFT (Sustainability in Housing, Infrastructure, Finance, Transportation), and Contra Costa Taxpayers’ Association did phenomenal work. They uncovered troubling facts, challenged questionable claims, and learned a great deal about how powerful corporate and labor interests use their financial resources and political influence to sell tax increases to the public.
Source: Wikipedia
Most importantly, together we exposed serious questions about transit agency spending, financial sustainability, and the lack of truly independent oversight. Those questions do not disappear because a tax measure passes.
This was meaningful work. It will continue, and it will expand. The passage of Measure RTM doesn’t relieve transit agencies of their responsibility to reform their operations, control spending, or deliver the accountability promised to voters. In fact, with billions of additional taxpayer dollars at stake, the need for independent scrutiny is greater than ever.
Last night, at an election gathering, someone approached me and said, “We are so thankful for you fighting for us. You have guts.”
That meant more to me than any election result.
Because if you want to change anything, you’ve got to have guts.
And we’re not finished.
About Debora Allen
Debora Allen served eight years as an elected BART Board Director and six years as a trustee of the Contra Costa County Employees’ Retirement Association. A business owner, CPA (inactive), and former CFO and Tax Manager, Debora is a longtime advocate for fiscal accountability. She continues to work on government oversight, financial transparency, and taxpayer protection throughout the Bay Area.
Read MoreSource: Walk ‘N Roll John Muir Elementary
By Walk ‘n Roll John Muir Elementary
MARTINEZ, Calif. — A group of John Muir Elementary families is calling on the Martinez City Council to reverse a decision that quietly downgraded a planned bike lane on Alhambra Avenue to a painted “sharrow” during recent repaving — a change parents say was made without public notice and contradicts the city’s own Safe Routes to School plan.
The issue comes before the City Council at its Wednesday, November 4 meeting, 7:00 PM, at Martinez City Hall, 525 Henrietta Street.
Alhambra Avenue was slated for a protected bike lane as part of a repaving project earlier this year. Instead, the city installed a sharrow — a shared-lane marking with no physical separation from traffic — a change advocates say was never brought to the community for input and leaves families with no safe way to bike or walk to John Muir Elementary
“We were told this street would have a real bike lane, and instead we got paint,” said Tom Gray, Co-Coordinator of Walk ‘n Roll at John Muir Elementary. “Every Friday, our kids walk and bike to school together because we want them to grow up knowing their neighborhood is safe to move through on their own. A sharrow on a street like Alhambra doesn’t protect anyone — it just puts the responsibility on an 8-year-old to not get hit by a car. Martinez has a Safe Routes to School plan on paper. Wednesday night, the Council gets to decide whether that plan means anything.”
Walk ‘n Roll JME, a parent-led group that organizes weekly walk-and-bike-to-school events at John Muir Elementary, is asking Martinez residents to attend Wednesday’s hearing or submit written comment to the mayor and city manager before the vote. The group has set up a simple online tool for residents to do either in under two minutes, at https://www.google.com/url?q=http://walknroll-action.delicate-flower-76f8.workers.dev&source=gmail&ust=1793681589718000&sa=E.
See meeting agenda Item 13.
About Walk ‘N Roll JME
Walk ‘n Roll is a parent-run program at John Muir Elementary in Martinez, CA that organizes weekly Friday walk-and-bike-to-school events and advocates for safer streets around the school. Follow the campaign at @walknrolljme on Instagram.
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By Karen Kerrigan
Small businesses are the engine of America’s economic and technological future, and the Trump administration knows it. Administration officials have repeatedly cited startup formation and entrepreneurship as key to addressing the nation’s most urgent policy challenges, from AI advancement and scientific leadership to job creation and reindustrialization.
To aid startup growth, administration officials have worked to expand government-backed financing for small firms, attract more private capital to startups, and help entrepreneurs commercialize emerging technologies and leverage domestic manufacturing.
Still, one of the most important ways to strengthen America’s startup ecosystem requires no new federal initiatives or additional funding at all. It simply requires policymakers to preserve a longstanding legal framework that has fueled American entrepreneurship for more than four decades.
Congress passed the bipartisan Bayh-Dole Act in 1980 to create a more effective pathway for federally funded research to become new technologies, products, and businesses — by letting universities, nonprofit research institutions, small businesses, and federal laboratories keep the patent rights to inventions they developed with federal support. That created incentives for universities to license those discoveries to small companies, which could then use the patents to attract capital and invest in further development.
Four and a half decades later, the Bayh-Dole framework remains indispensable to American small business growth.
New research shows that from 2021 through 2025, universities, hospitals, and nonprofit research institutes averaged more than 19,000 income-generating licenses each year — approximately twice the annual average from the early 2000s. Roughly 70% of university licensing agreements are with startups and small companies.
In many cases, those licensing agreements give rise to entirely new companies. Since 2001, the Bayh-Dole system has helped launch more than 19,000 startups.
As these businesses grow, they hire workers, do business with other local companies, and strengthen their regional economies. Since 1996, the Bayh-Dole system has contributed up to $1.7 trillion to U.S. GDP and supported up to 7.6 million years’ worth of jobs for Americans.
Unfortunately, in recent years, the Bayh-Dole system has faced growing uncertainty.
Some policymakers are debating changes that could reduce startups’ access to innovative, federally funded research. One proposed rule change would allow the government to cancel long-term research funding on a political whim. Meanwhile, one agency adopted guidelines that make industry licenses less secure by requiring ongoing product-access plans that can be used to revoke licenses even after products have been developed, which directly violates Bayh-Dole.
That uncertainty could have devastating consequences for startups and America’s innovation ecosystem. Startups often build their businesses around a single unproven invention, and they have fewer resources than larger companies to absorb the risks of developing a new product and bringing it to market.
If small companies cannot reliably protect their patent rights, it could become much harder for them to raise the investment needed to continue researching, testing, and manufacturing new technologies.
Instead of altering the Bayh-Dole system, policymakers must preserve it. Protecting this framework will help ensure that startups can continue turning federally supported discoveries into new companies, jobs, and technologies that strengthen American competitiveness.
Karen Kerrigan is president and CEO of the Small Business and Entrepreneurship Council in Washington. This column originally appeared at DCJournal.com.
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By Marcus Walton, Director, Communications & Special Projects, Contra Costa County Office of Education
PLEASANT HILL, Calif.— According to U.S. News & World Report, six Contra Costa County elementary and middle schools are among the top-ranked schools in California in its 2027 Best K-8 Schools rankings.
Wagner Ranch Elementary School in the Orinda Union School District (OUSD) ranked No. 36 among California elementary schools, followed by Happy Valley Elementary School in the Lafayette School District (LAFSD) at No. 37. Creekside Elementary School in San Ramon Valley Unified School District (SRVUSD) ranked No. 85 and Lafayette Elementary School in LAFSD ranked No. 92. Orinda Intermediate School in OUSD ranked No. 46 and Windemere Ranch Middle School in the SRVUSD ranked No. 61 among California middle schools.
“Congratulations to these school communities on this prestigious distinction.” Contra Costa County Superintendent of Schools Lynn Mackey said. “The rankings reflect the dedication of educators, administrators, staff, families, and community members who work together to create environments where students can learn and thrive academically. These schools are examples of what can be achieved when scholars are surrounded by strong resources, engaged families, and supportive communities.”
For the 2027 rankings, U.S. News & World Report analyzed more than 107,223 pre-K, elementary, and middle schools. 46,713 elementary schools and 24,756 middle schools across the country were evaluated as part of its 2027 Best K-8 Schools rankings.
The rankings were based on publicly available standardized test data from state education agencies and the U.S. Department of Education. Schools were evaluated on average student proficiency in reading/language arts and math. While considering the proficiency and performance in each subject, the report also accounts for socioeconomic context when interpreting test results. The methodology webpage of the report states, “The top-ranked schools are all high-achieving and have succeeded at educating all their students.”
Contra Costa County Schools in the Top 100 of the 2027 U.S. News Best K-8 Rankings
Elementary School Rankings
- No. 36: Wagner Ranch Elementary School — Orinda Union School District
- No. 37: Happy Valley Elementary School — Lafayette School District
- No. 85: Creekside Elementary School – San Ramon Valley Unified School District
- No. 92: Lafayette Elementary School – Lafayette School District
Middle School Rankings
- No. 46: Orinda Intermediate School — Orinda Union School District
- No. 61: Windemere Ranch Middle School – San Ramon Valley Unified School District
According to U.S. News & World Report, the top-ranked schools achieve strong academic results while effectively serving students across socioeconomic groups.
About Contra Costa County Office of Education
One of 58 counties in California, Contra Costa County has the 11th largest public-school student population in the state (approximately 169,225 students). Officially established in 1932, CCCOE has a long history of providing direct services to some of the county’s most vulnerable students, including young people who are incarcerated, homeless, or in foster care, as well as students who have severe physical or emotional challenges.
CCCOE also provides support services to schools and school districts in Contra Costa County; services that can be handled most effectively and economically on a regional basis rather than by each of the county’s 286 schools or 18 school districts. These services range from budget approval and fiscal support to technology infrastructure, communication support, and high-level professional development opportunities for educators. CCCOE maintains a website at www.cocoschools.org.
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