Marin Firefighter News

 A plan to close California's cavernous $41 billion budget hole was approved early Thursday morning by the California Senate, after one lone holdout switched his vote from "no" to "yes. The budget plan mixes $15 billion in spending cuts with $13 billion in temporary tax hikes and a hefty round of borrowing to close the hole. Sen. Abel Maldonado (R-Santa Maria) made the switch after being promised a series of proposed constitutional amendments, including one that could aid his chances for statewide office. 

Find out more about CalPERS benefits, programs and services at a CalPERS Retirement Planning Fair. CalPERS is sponsoring 20 retirement planning fairs in 17 cities this year from March to September. For more details and a complete fair schedule, CLICK HERE. 

The California fire service -- management and labor -- have come together to reaffirm the core principles of fire and emergency response in the state's wildland-urban interface. FIRESCOPE and the California Blue Ribbon Task Force have issued a joint statement repudiating the Australian so-called "stay and defend" model. If you're in California, the advice is clear: Prepare, Leave Early, Follow Evacuation Orders.

As Australia's wildfires claimed the lives of over 180 people, new concerns are being raised about that country's highly controversial "Stay And Defend" fire policy. Scores of those who perished in the blazes were residents that stayed behind to protect their property or evacuated too late. Residents armed with garden hoses were ill-equipped to protect themselves against the ravaging blazes that tore through towns and were fanned by hot winds and drought conditions.