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Strawberries inspire Santa Maria festival
Is JP Morgan’s purchase of failed bank from FDIC a government bailout? By CASEY HARPER
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THE CENTER SQUARE
(The Center Square) – The FDIC took over the embattled San Francisco bank, First Republic, and auctioned it off, with JP Morgan taking over as regulators hope to fend off a domino effect in the banking sector. “Our government invited us and others to step up, and we did,” Jamie Dimon, chairman and CEO of JPMorgan Chase, said in a statement after the purchase. But critics point out that JP Morgan profits grew sizeably off the deal and argue it amounts to a government bailout. First Republic’s collapse is the biggest bank failure since the 2008 financial crisis, when the federal government bailed out banks with billions of taxpayer dollars. In this new deal, JP Morgan
Newsom praises regulators for bank takeover - A4 took on about $92 billion in First Republic’s deposits and another roughly $203 billion in assets. “JPM is paying about $10.6 billion, but is getting $13 billion from the FDIC, or in other words, we the taxpayer,” E.J. Antoni, an economic expert at the Heritage Foundation, said. “That means JPM already booked a profit on the deal. Another $50 billion is available from the FDIC to JPM if losses from First Republic’s assets continue to mount. To cover the existing and any future losses, the FDIC will levy a Please see BANK on A4
KENNETH SONG / NEWS-PRESS
JP Morgan is taking over Republic Bank, which has a branch at 1200 State St. in Santa Barbara.
Santa Barbara City Council to discuss police department audit
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By NEIL HARTSTEIN KENNETH SONG / NEWS-PRESS PHOTOS
he Expo Wheel is part of the fun during the final day of the Santa Maria Valley Strawberry Festival Sunday at Santa Maria Fairpark. The festive environment there varied from visitors enjoying a wild slide to art by Katherine A. Taylor of Poetry Frog Illustrations. Ms. Taylor’s art was part of a new addition to the festival — the Chalk Festival. In addition to the carnival rides and chalk art, the three-day event in Santa Maria featured strawberry tastings, a children’s coloring contest and local businesses that were showcased on the Center Stage. Coming up on May 20 and 21 is another berry-inspired event — the California Strawberry Festival, which has moved from its longtime home at College Park in Oxnard to the Ventura County Fairgrounds in Ventura. More about that festival will appear later in the News-Press. For now, you can see additional photos from the Santa Maria Valley Strawberry Festival on B2.
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The Santa Barbara City Council today will hear a presentation from staff on the findings and recommendations of an audit of Santa Barbara Police Department policies, procedures and practices that highlight strong leadership and community engagement, as well as a low use of force rate. The council will meet at 2 p.m. at the Santa Barbara City Hall, 735 Anacapa St. The council approved conducting an audit of the SBPD on June 6, 2022 as a key component of implementing a new civilian oversight system for law enforcement. It was a proactive effort to ensure transparency and demonstrate accountability to the highest of standards and best practices. The OIR Group, an independent team of police practices experts, was the firm selected to conduct the audit due to its more than two decades of experience in oversight.
The audit was directed by the City Administrator’s Office and primarily supported by Commander Kasi Corbett of the Police Department’s Community Accountability Team. The audit included a review of the police department’s complaint process; the need for executive development and leadership training; employee retention and recruiting; use of force training and review; and general policy compliance. It includes 31 recommendations, of which 19 already have been implemented and eight are in process of being implemented. Three recommendations have been noted for further review. The city said its review was not in response to a critical incident or a publicized case of police misconduct. Instead, the city said it took a proactive step to ensure transparency of the department’s policies, processes and practices as well as accountability to the highest of standards and best practices. Please see AUDIT on A4
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