Washington, DC - Several of the 2,798 new US Topo quadrangles for California now display public trails along with segments of the Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail. Also the new maps now show improved data layers such as public land survey information, map symbol redesign, enhanced railroad information and new road source data. Some of the data for the trails is provided to the USGS through a nationwide “crowdsourcing” project managed by the International Mountain Biking Association (IMBA).

Los Angeles, California - Attorney General Kamala D. Harris today announced that Kevin Christopher Bollaert, the operator of a cyber-exploitation website which posted nude photos of individuals with personal identifying information without their consent, was sentenced to 18 years in prison. This case is the first criminal prosecution of a cyber-exploitation website operator in the country.

San Francisco, California - A Northern California real estate investor has agreed to plead guilty for his role in bid rigging and fraud conspiracies at public real estate foreclosure auctions in Northern California, the Department of Justice announced.

Sacramento, California - As a second-generation Stanislaus County walnut grower, I can tell you that there are a few things I can count on and a whole lot of things I can’t. For example, I can count on the sun shining about 260 days a year here in the Central Valley. And I can still count on my 83-year-old father to put in a harder day’s work than I do most of the time. Both of those things help our trees grow and our business flourish. I just wish the rain was as reliable.

Sacramento, California - Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has announced that USDA has awarded $31.5 million in funding to local, state, and national organizations to support programs that help participants in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) increase their purchase of fruits and vegetables, including more than $4 million for California.

 

Sacramento, California - Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. today announced the following appointments.