W e e k l y RIALTO RECORD
Vol 24, NO. 41
May 21, 2026
As Housing Compliance Lags Across San Bernardino County, New Trust Chair Joe Baca Sr. Seeks to Unlock Funding
IECN.com
San Bernardino Ward 2 Candidates Debate Homelessness, Tenant Protections and Surveillance Cameras Pg. 3 PHOTO CHRISTOPHER SALAZAR The Metro View apartment complex is an affordable housing development that Mayor Joe Baca Sr. aims to replicate across the city and San Bernardino County.
By Christopher Salazar
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SBVC Celebrates 100 Years of Opportunity as 1,500 Graduates Mark Largest Class in College History
ialto Mayor Joe Baca Sr. was appointed chair of the San Bernardino Regional Housing Trust, a body which oversees the support and creation of affordable housing in San Bernardino County, on Tuesday, May 12. The appointment comes at a critical juncture for the region, as state compliance mandates dictate which municipalities secure funding and which are penalized.
Rialto achieved compliance with California’s Housing Element earlier this year in March, aligning the city’s long-term housing plan with state law; likewise, the city of San Bernardino reached the same milestone in June 2024. However, much of San Bernardino County is lagging, leaving eligibility for critical state and federal funding streams locked, putting local budgets at risk with severe financial penalties — something Baca hopes to curtail by working with regional authorities to combat the housing crisis.
According to Baca, who spoke with Inland Empire Community News (IECN) Monday afternoon, neighboring Riverside County has far outpaced San Bernardino. “Riverside had 52 projects that were funded,” Baca said, "while San Bernardino County only had eight. So that tells us that we're really way behind the eight ball — we got to be more aggressive.” The San Bernardino Regional Housing Housing Compliance cont. on next pg.
From Classroom Teacher to Experienced Superintendent, Cali Binks Makes Countywide Bid By Manny Sandoval
Pg. 4
B
efore Cali Binks became a longtime superintendent, before she helped lead two San Bernardino County school districts, and before she began campaigning to become the County’s next Superintendent of Schools, she was a little girl sitting at a school desk her mother brought home from a garage sale.
Memorial Day is May 25: Honoring the Heroes Who Served and Sacrificed
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PHOTO MANNY SANDOVAL Cali Binks, a candidate for San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools, sits with her notes as she discusses her campaign centered on listening to families, supporting educators and strengthening partnerships across the county’s 33 school districts.
She had a lunch pail, a bell and a backyard classroom. She still has them. “I had a desk, a lunch pail, and a bell, and those are the three things I still have that remind me of those times,” Binks said. For Binks, now Superintendent of the YucaipaCalimesa Joint Unified School District and a candidate for San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools, those childhood memories are more than sentimental. They
are the beginning of a life shaped by education, service and a deep understanding that every child enters a classroom with different needs. Binks was born in Missouri after her parents temporarily left California to seek specialized medical care for her older brother, who was born prematurely, had cerebral palsy and could not see, talk or walk. Her family missed California so much that they named her Cali. “My brother didn’t look like what people would consider “normal,” Binks said. “He couldn’t really open his eyes. His hands and legs were bent. And so when friends would come over, they were shocked at what he looked like.” Those moments, she said, taught her compassion early. “It would really hurt my heart because I didn’t see it that way,” Binks said. “I saw the things that he gave to our family.” County Superintendent, cont. on next pg.