Sacramento, California - Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. will join U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell tomorrow at a news conference in Sacramento to discuss actions that will bolster the ongoing federal-state response to the severe drought gripping the western United States.

Washington, DC - The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has designated 55 counties in California as primary natural disaster areas due to damages and losses caused by a recent drought.

Sacramento, California - Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. today issued a proclamation declaring February 2015, as Black History Month in the State of California.

Santa Ana, California - A San Jose woman who was convicted running a Ponzi scheme that bilked over 200 victims out of more than $24 million was sentenced today to serve 151 months in federal prison.

Sacramento, California - California’s urban water conservation rate reached 22 percent in December, exceeding the 20 percent conservation goal set by Governor Jerry Brown. Heavy rain led to reduced outdoor watering. But the State Water Board’s Katheryn Landau says nature isn’t the only explanation for the savings.

Los Angeles, California - The recent christening of a hydrogen fuel dispenser at the Hydrogen Research and Fueling Facility at Cal State Los Angeles (CSULA) represents a significant milestone in California’s ongoing efforts to counter climate change. The station is the first of its kind in California and the U.S. to pass a key test known as “type evaluation,” administered by CDFA’s Division of Measurement Standards as a legal prerequisite for new makes and models of commercial measuring devices.