Valley Voice

Valley Voice posts new issue at midnight! Hanford has been ringing in the new year with lawsuits and resignations. Now Hanford Mayor Francisco Ramirez and former Councilmember Art Brieno have been accused in a complaint to the state department of justice of soliciting and accepting bribes from Hanford business owner Richard Aguilar. Mark Pratter gives the details of the complaint and lawsuits in his current article Hanford mayor, ex-councilman allegedly accepted cash bribes... Newly elected Tulare City Council Member Steve Harrell had to step down as a director on the Tulare Hospital Board. Read about why in Dave Adalian’s article Harrell Resigns from Tulare Hospital Board Dave Adalian also updates us on the CD21 and other congressional races in CD-22 race could see Nunes-Arballo rematch, if Nunes runs Martin Velasco-Ramos delves into Tulare County’s booming real estate market and why there are so few new listings. In other news, the Tulare County Health and Human Services is encouraging residents against Super Bowl parties, Moose Meals received a generous donation from Walmart to help the homeless feed their dogs, and the Tulare County Theater Company is offering a variety of virtual workshops for dance, acting, and monologues. The Theatre Company also announced registration for two spring online musicals, Our Father's Dragon and Dream Roles. Also, after a very contentious election, the Sierra View Hospital has sworn in its new board members and are getting back to work. For Black History month, Tulare County Library is hosting a county-wide reading and discussion of Allensworth: The Freedom Colony by Alice C. Royal featuring a virtual book discussion facilitated by our partners, The Friends of Allensworth, on Saturday February 27 at 2:00 PM over Zoom. Any one going stir crazy at home the Fresno Chaffee Zoo’s re-opened on Friday, January 29. Read about all this and more in the Valley Voice!

Newly elected Tulare City Councilman Steve Harrell resigned his secondary position as a director of the Tulare Local Health Care District (TLHCD) effective January 31. Resignation Avoids Possible Interest Conflict The date of Harrell’s resignation matches that of a letter protesting his service on two boards from a Visalia-based attorney, who alleges holding both offices concurrently presents possible illegal conflict of interest.... https://www.ourvalleyvoice.com//harrell-resigns-from-tula/

A Republican accountability project has called on a dozen congressional Republicans to resign for spreading falsehoods about the 2020 election. You lied about the election. The Capitol was attacked, The Republican group put out this video. https://www.youtube.com/watch

Citing a significant decline in the number of hospitalized COVID-19 patients in recent weeks, Kaweah Delta’s Chief Executive Officer announced today that the Visalia hospital is standing down its readiness to triage, limit or ration care. On Jan. 6, the State required that all California hospitals develop and publish a plan for triaging care if their community reached emergency status due to COVID-19.... https://www.ourvalleyvoice.com//citing-decline-in-covid-h/

Thirty-eight updates were filed beginning January 25 in the cases against former Tulare Local Health Care District (TLHCD) and Healthcare Conglomerate Associates (HCCA) CEO Dr. Yorai Benny Benzeevi, HCCA COO Alan Germany and attorney Bruce R.... https://www.ourvalleyvoice.com//da-amends-criminal-charge/

Back in the day, as the saying goes, when we were actually in print, my wife, The Chief, used to pen a column called "Political Fix." I remain convinced it was the best feature of the paper. She has abstained from that effort, largely because we have been shifted to an online presence, but I've been arguing for her to resurrect the column and return it to its former greatness. [ 501 more words ] https://www.ourvalleyvoice.com//10/28/this-is-not-an-arti/

The water issue is on everyone’s mind these days and we are at a critical crossroads in our area. As a farmer and Mid-Kaweah GSA water board member, I know firsthand the challenges and the need for strong leadership. We need an exceptional assemblymember with a solid grasp of the complexities of SGMA, storage and conveyance. After sit-down discussions with Drew Phelps, I am convinced he is the man to lead our area into the future. [ 91 more words ] https://www.ourvalleyvoice.com///27/i-support-drew-phelps/

I am a lifelong Republican but come November 3rd, I am casting my vote for Drew Phelps for State Assembly. I don't recall ever voting for a Democrat before, but this time it is an easy choice to make. Drew Phelps is bright and articulate, and he understands how to get legislation passed, legislation that will serve in the best interest of our District. [ 146 more words ] https://www.ourvalleyvoice.com//vote-for-drew-phelps-asse/

A Press Release from the City of Visalia How can Tulare County get to the next level of reopening safely during this COVID-19 pandemic? Tulare County Health & Human Services Agency shares that we can all do our part to get to the Red Tier and help reopen Tulare County. Currently, Tulare County is in the State's Purple Tier. Every county in California is assigned to a colored tier based on its test positivity and adjusted case rate for COVID-19. https://www.ourvalleyvoice.com//getting-tulare-county-to-/

Agriculture is all around us! Encourage students to get out their pencils and think creatively about an experience they have had that involves food, fiber, and/or any topic related to agriculture.

Sheriff Mike Boudreaux invites everyone to participate in the 19th annual South Valley Battle of the Badges Blood drive. For your convenience, a blood mobile will be at Headquarters from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2019. Blood is needed to save lives and the blood drive helps out with a friendly competition between local agencies. This blood drive saves the lives of those we don’t know and those we do know, Sheriff Boudreaux said. https://www.ourvalleyvoice.com//battle-of-the-badges-bloo/

Congratulations to Don Estes! Don Estes is celebrating 60 years in business! Don opened his first salon on his birthday, October 20, in 1960. That first salon was called Don’s Golden Comb and was located in Visalia on the oval. His career over the past sixty years has been fueled by a passion for learning and teaching in the beauty industry. Don and his wife Lydia have studied at many institutions such as Sections D’Art Paris, France and Vidal Sassoon London, England. ... His prestigious awards include the California State Champion Stylist and the United States Coiffures’ Championship. Don’s love for the cosmetology industry inspired him to open the Estes Institute of Cosmetology Art’s & Sciences to train future stylists. His students have won the West Coast Student Champions in artistic hair design & hair cutting. He has also served on an international level as the team trainer for the 1996 USA Hair Olympics Student Team. Cheers to a long and fulfilling career! See more

"Jones’ behavior was reported by his opponent for the District 3 seat, Steve Harrell, in an October 15 social media post. Harrell reported Jones--who has been at the center of several controversies during his tenure on the council, including removal from his position as the city’s first Black mayor--took the sign from a convenience store at Paige Avenue near Highway 99, tore it into pieces and discarded it. When another post regarding the matter appeared on a social media platform hosted by Harrell’s campaign manager, Xavier Avila, Jones was quick to admit his actions and defend them. Jones claimed the property owner asked him to remove Harrell’s sign, which had been placed near a sign for Jones’ campaign."

Saturday is National Drug Take Back Day Tulare County Sheriff's Office is inviting the public to discard unwanted prescription medications October 24 at the Bob Wiley Detention Facility and the South County Detention Facility from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Bring your pills for disposal to:... Bob Wiley Detention Facility, 36712 Road 112, Visalia South County Detention Facility, 1960 W. Scranton Ave., Porterville For more information, go to https://takebackday.dea.gov/ or call Teresa Douglass, PIO, at (559) 802-9412.

David Valadao and Rep. TJ Cox to Debate Tonight 7:00pm Tonight, the two candidates running to represent California's 21st Congressional District will face off in an hour-long debate on KGET. KGET 17's Jim Scott and KSEE 24's Alexan Balekian will moderate the debate. TJ Cox will face off challenger and former Representative David Valadao for the first time since 2018. ... Tune in tonight at 7 p.m. on KGET, KSEE24, and online at KGET.com. See more

Understanding budgets and crunching the numbers are important. If we are not getting our fair share of the State’s budget, we are going to drop farther and farther behind the rest of California. As a businessperson, Drew Phelps understands how to allocate our taxpayer dollars, so they are utilized wisely and come back to our area. He will fight to make sure we get our rightful piece of the State budget pie. [ 74 more words ] https://www.ourvalleyvoice.com//join-me-in-voting-for-dre/

Check out more recommendations on the Propositions on our website. Also read the 2019/2020 Tulare County Grand Jury Report by clicking on the link on our page.

Republican Presidential Strategist Stuart Stevens said today, I don’t think we have ever seen in American politics a complete collapse of a party the way the Republican Party has collapsed. If somebody held a gun to my head and said tell me what it is to be a conservative or a Republican in America I’d say just shoot me. I have no idea. "There is no coherent theory of government. There is no moral center to it. You know in the Reagan era we said that words could change the W...orld. It would help bring down the Berlin Wall. Now we say about President Trump well they are just words, it doesn’t mean anything. "The only thing I can compare it to is the collapse of communism in the Soviet Union where what the party said it was for, and what the party was actually for, was just so desperate that it collapsed. And that is what is happening to the Republican Party-it’s just collapsing.