California NEWS INDEX

LOS ANGELES, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Today, Utelogy Corporation announces the hiring of Bob Sharp as Vice President, Global Business Development. Utelogy makes software for control, enterprise management, and analytics of audiovisual systems for business and education.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ Today, Calif. Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. signed a package of bills to enhance housing, school, workplace and civil protections for California's immigrants. "This action protects public safety and ensures hard-working people who contribute to our state are respected," said Governor Brown.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- A measure which will provide refugees with in-state tuition at California Community Colleges during their first year of residency was signed into law today by Governor Jerry Brown (D - California). Assembly Bill (AB) 343, part of the 'California Welcomes Refugees' legislative package, furthers the Golden State’s efforts to integrate refugee immigrants into our state.

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Geek Club Books, Inc., an autism nonprofit, today launched #Activate4Autism movement, a public awareness campaign as a part of National Bullying Prevention Month. The autistic are often misunderstood, marginalized, undervalued and 3 times more likely to be victims of bullying. The campaign brings together voice, stage and film actors, children's authors, comic artists and autistic advocates who activate their voices for autism, speaking out for acceptance and inclusion.

LA QUINTA, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Edupoint(R) Educational Systems, creator of the industry-leading Synergy Education Platform for K-12 student information, learning management, and assessment, has been selected by Desert Sands Unified School District to implement Edupoint's Synergy(R) Student Information System (SIS), replacing eSchoolPLUS(TM) (now owned by PowerSchool(R)).

SAN DIEGO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- The Mortgage Collaborative (TMC), the nation's only independent mortgage cooperative, announced a new preferred partner relationship with national credit information service provider, Certified Credit Reporting. As a result of this new partnership, lender members of The Mortgagee Collaborative will receive discounted pricing on Certified Credit's suite of credit and verification services.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- This week, Calif. Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. today announced that he has signed the following bills, including: AB 184 by Assemblymember Marc Berman (D-Menlo Park) – Sea level rise planning: database, and AB 333 by Assemblymember Bill Quirk (D-Hayward) – State Highway Route 185: relinquishment: County of Alameda.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Calif. Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. announced the following appointments on Thursday: First, Karin Caves, 62, of Carmichael, has been appointed deputy director of communications at the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Today, Calif. Governor Brown signed a package of housing bills that will provide a combined $4 billion in funding for affordable housing from bond sales, document recording fees and to red tape during the development project approval process. Included in the package is Assemblymember Raul Bocanegra’s (D-Pacoima) Assembly Bill 678.

SHERMAN OAKS, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Matic Insurance Services, a digital insurance agency that enables borrowers to purchase homeowner's insurance during the home-buying transaction, today announced a new partnership with LendingQB, a provider of "lean lending" loan origination technology. Matic announced the news as part of a live demonstration at San Francisco's Digital Mortgage Conference.

PASADENA, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Lender Price, the emerging leader in digital mortgage lending technology, announced today that it has named veteran mortgage industry executive Jerry Halbrook as its CEO and has opened a fresh round of equity funding to fuel its growth trajectory.

LOS ANGELES, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Switching to iPhone 8 / 8 Plus is not just getting a new device, it also comes along with the hard task of a plethora of vital data and files migration. Given that, iMobie introduces its robust data transfer program - AnyTrans, to completely brace for data migration between iPhone and iPhone, even from Android to iPhone comprehensively.

SAN DIEGO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- The Mortgage Collaborative (TMC), the nation's only independent mortgage cooperative, announced a new partnership with east-coast based CPA and advisory firm, ACS Accounting. The new relationship with ACS, adds another best-in-class tax and accounting firm to their preferred partner network.

LOS ANGELES, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Deja Vu LLC. Productions announces the release of "I Spit On Your Grave Deja Vu" to coincide with the 40th Anniversary of the original 1978 film "I Spit On Your Grave" aka "Day of the Women" in 2018. "I Spit On Your Grave Deja Vu" picks up with Jennifer Hills (Camille Keaton) as a best-selling author living in New York City with her famous model daughter, Christy Hills (Jamie Bernadette).

SAN DIEGO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- The Mortgage Collaborative (TMC), the nation's only independent mortgage cooperative, today announced it has promoted Rich Swerbinsky to the role of Chief Operating Officer. Having served as its executive vice president of national sales and strategic alliances since 2015, Rich Swerbinsky will now serve TMC as its COO.

SHERMAN OAKS, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Matic Insurance Services (Matic), a digital insurance agency that enables borrowers to purchase homeowner's insurance during the home-buying transaction, has forged a partnership with automated lending technology provider Roostify. The company announced the news Tuesday afternoon from the stage of TechCrunch's Startup Battlefield, part of the TechCrunch Disrupt SF conference held in San Francisco this week. Matic was one of just six elite startups chosen to advance to the final round of the competition.

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Sparkle Coin, Inc., designed to be the most transactable cryptocurrency available, is launching its initial coin offering (ICO) at 1 p.m. PDT September 20 and running through October 20, 2017 with coins beginning at $5. A LIVE STREAMING event will start at 12 p.m. PDT at TechCrunch SF.

LOS ANGELES, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Along with iOS 11 debut by Apple Inc., the difficult problem of data loss has hit fever pitch after this update. Worse still, those issues such as iOS update failure, stuck on Apple logo, iOS 11 sticking and more once again push users into miserable abyss. Given that, iMobie has introduced PhoneRescue to help iOS users recover their vital data & files including messages, contacts, photos and more, even without any backup, and all iOS crashes will be also solved in just 1 click, like no data loss happens ever.

SAN DIEGO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- The Mortgage Collaborative (TMC), the nation's only independent mortgage cooperative, announced a new preferred partnership with national correspondent investor and mortgage loan servicer, First Community Mortgage (FCM). The new relationship with FCM adds another best-in-class national correspondent investor to their preferred partner network.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- On Thursday, the California State Assembly sent to the Governor legislation by Assemblymember Raul Bocanegra (D-Pacoima) that will provide vital financial assistance to more than 284,000 classified school employees in California who live paycheck to paycheck. Assemblymember Bocanegra introduced the legislation to bridge the financial burden that classified employees face during the summer months, which often forces them to rely on food banks, max out credit cards, or collect cans on the side of the road.

WASHINGTON, D.C. and SACRAMENTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- In recognition of 2017 Hispanic Heritage Month, Congressman Tony Cárdenas (CA-29) introduced H.Res.524 in the U.S. House of Representatives. He was joined by 104 Members of Congress who signed on as original co-sponsors.

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Sparkle Coin, Inc., founders of Sparkle Coin, a new cryptocurrency that allows users to make purchases from popular online retailers - like Amazon and Walmart - and features a currency exchange for liquidity, will be hosting a "lunch and launch" event during TechCrunch Disrupt SF 2017.

BURBANK, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Springing forth following eight years of tours as "Narrator" with platinum selling rock band Trans-Siberian Orchestra to a feature role in the life story of Gospel legend BeBe Winans, "Born For This: The Musical," Los Angeles native singer-songwriter-actor Phillip Brandon now proudly unveils his debut CD, "The Story Begins," via a spectacular live launch performance Thursday, October 12 at The Colony Theatre in Burbank, California.

SAN DIEGO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Consumer Advocates for RCFE Reform (CARR) is pleased to announce it has received an AARP Community Challenge Grant. AARP announced its grant recipients on its website on September 7, 2017. CARR is one of only 4 AARP's Community Challenge Grant recipients in California.

LOS ANGELES, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- California Safe Schools Coalition (CSS) commends the pioneering achievement of Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD), the second largest school district in the nation, spanning 740 square miles, 28 cities and more than 1,000 sites, for early adoption of an Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Policy in 1999. CSS was formed in 1998, after its founder's child was accidentally sprayed by pesticides by a Los Angeles Unified gardener on his way into an LAUSD elementary school, a pivotal event for LAUSD's IPM Policy formation.

VLADIVOSTOK, Russia /California Newswire/ -- On Wednesday, Calif. Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. today joined leaders from Japan, South Korea, Russia, China and more than a dozen other countries at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, Russia where he pushed businesses and governments to join forces not just on trade and investment but also on the decarbonization of the economy.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Today, Calif. Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. announced that he has signed a tribal-state gaming compact between the State of California and the Morongo Band of Mission Indians. The compact affirms the Tribe's commitment to the residents of Riverside County and is intended to enable the tribal government to invest in worthy causes.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Calif. Senator Tony Mendoza (D-Artesia) today announced the passage of Senate Bill 45 (SB 45). The measure, which will ensure fairness in elections throughout California, passed the Senate Floor on the special consent calendar with bipartisan support and no opposition

WASHINGTON, D.C. and SACRAMENTO /California Newswire/ -- On Wednesday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 3388, the SELF DRIVE Act including language introduced by Rep. Cárdenas to establish an advisory council at the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration on autonomous vehicles.

ONTARIO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Every year millions of parents send their children off to college for the first time and what to pack for that child is top of mind, says MAG Instrument Inc. The days of making sure they have clean sheets, lots of socks and an umbrella are long gone. Kids these days have very different needs than in years past and College Magazine has put together a list of the Top Ten Safety and Security Items College Kids Must Have and a MAGLITE flashlight is top of the list.

PALO ALTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- VLP Law Group LLP is pleased to announce that David Jargiello has rejoined the firm as a partner in the Corporate Practice Group and the firm's General Counsel. Mr. Jargiello is a business transactional lawyer with more than 25 years' experience in San Francisco and Silicon Valley primarily representing venture capital funds, professional service firms and legal technology companies in complex corporate finance, corporate securities, fiduciary duty and risk management matters.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Calif. Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon (D-Lakewood) released the following statement after President Donald Trump exercised executive authority to rescind the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Cristóbal J. Alex, President of Latino Victory Project, issued the following statement after the Trump Administration announced it would terminate the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which protects certain undocumented youth from deportation.

LOS ANGELES, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Mia A. Irizarry, a successful music entrepreneur and the CEO of TrendCulprit, an online music business and support portal for independent artists, has gathered some of the industry's most brilliant minds to discuss their views, techniques and secrets to the business. Their insightful presentations will be revealed September 5 through September 25 as TrendCulprit hosts the innovative "Music as a Business Telesummit."

SACRAMENTO, Calif. and WASHINGTON, D.C. /California Newswire/ -- Today, U.S. Representative Tony Cárdenas released the following statement regarding the Trump Administration’s decision to eliminate the Deferred Action Childhood Arrivals (DACA) Program.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Today, California approved Assemblymember Raul Bocanegra’s (D-Pacoima) ACR 23, officially naming a portion of Interstate 5 between State Route 170 and State Route 118 in the northeast San Fernando Valley after rock and roll icon Ritchie Valens.

SAN JOSE, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- NEXT Future Transportation today announced the appointment of Oliver Hauck to its Board of Advisors. NEXT is commercializing the world's first patented autonomous mass-transportation and goods-movement solution based on swarms of modular self-driving vehicles.

LOS ANGELES, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- MostFit is excited and proud to announce the onboarding of three new Brand Ambassadors who have aligned with the brand and products to enhance the MostFit team. MostFit LLC provides unique, effective and efficient products to the fitness community to make optimum performance more accessible.

SAN DIEGO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Mortgage Capital Trading, Inc. (MCT), a leading mortgage hedge advisory and secondary marketing software firm, announced that it has again landed on the San Diego Business Journal's (SDBJ) 2017 Top 100 Fastest-Growing Private Companies list.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Calif. Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon (D-Lakewood) on Thursday announced that Dr. Joaquin Arambula (D-Fresno) and Dr. Jim Wood (D-Healdsburg), the chairs of the Assembly Select Committee on Health Care Delivery Systems and Universal Coverage, will hold ongoing hearings beginning in the legislative interim so the committee can develop plans for achieving universal health care in California.

LOS ANGELES, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- A coalition of Los Angeles community groups this week called on the area’s state legislators to support a package of bills designed to protect the region’s water and air from federal attempts to weaken environmental safeguards. The package is authored by area legislators Senate President pro Tem Kevin De León (D-Los Angeles), Senator Henry Stern (D-Canoga Park), Assemblymember Miguel Santiago (D-Los Angeles), Assemblymember Laura Friedman (D-Glendale), and Assemblymember Matt Dababneh (D-Woodland Hills).

LOS ANGELES, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- California State University, Los Angeles has been awarded a $16.6 million grant from the California Department of Health Care Services to promote dental health among underserved populations in Los Angeles.

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. /California Newswire -- Geek Club Books, a 501(c)(3) focused on autism education and empowerment, today announced that it has been selected to receive the J.L. Simmons Non-Profit PR Grant for 2017/18. The Grants, launched in 2000 by Neotrope helps worthy causes raise visibility to media and public for the charity's good works.

SAN JOSE, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- NEXT Future Transportation Inc., a company that is commercializing a patented autonomous mass-transportation and goods-movement solution, is adding a new member to its Advisory Board: Bill Russo will strengthen cross-border venture development initiatives to and from China.

SAN DIEGO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- The Mortgage Collaborative, the nation's only independent mortgage cooperative, announced a new partnership with Notarize, the nation's first entirely digital mortgage closing and remote notarization provider, adding them to the preferred partner network.

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- A ground-breaking work of art by the "Fear Google" artist XVALA is set to be debuted on August 19 during the March on Google in Mountain View, California. Dubbed "The Diversity Belt," XVALA plans to wear his latest work of art in public at the March On Google to publicly share his point of view regarding Americans' First Amendment rights.

WASHINGTON, D.C. and SACRAMENTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Cristóbal J. Alex, President of Latino Victory Project, issued the following statement on the fifth anniversary of the implementation of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), which protects certain undocumented youth from deportation. Nearly 800,000 young people have benefited from the program since it was implemented by President Barack Obama in 2012.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Sergeant Orrlando Mayes with the Sacramento County Sheriff's Department is the 2017 recipient of the Mark Dunakin Memorial Award for Extraordinary Achievement, the Union Institute & University announced today. The graduation was held Sunday, August 13 where the award was presented.

SAN DIEGO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- The Mortgage Collaborative, the nation's only independent mortgage cooperative, announced a new partnership with national compliance solutions provider, Strategic Compliance Partners. The new relationship with Strategic Compliance Partners adds another best-in-class mortgage compliance company to their preferred partner network.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- This week, Calif. Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. announced the following appointments: First, Robert Barton, 55, of Rancho Cordova, has been appointed to the Board of Parole Hearings. Barton has served as Inspector General of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation since 2011, where he was senior assistant inspector general from 2005 to 2011.