In CA: Suing Trump for his fossil fuel 'gift', and two milestones you never want to hit

The U.S. topped 100,000 deaths from the coronavirus on Wednesday, as California's case total crossed the same threshold. The state sues the Trump administration, again, over environmental policy. And beaches and pools can be safe, if you follow these guidelines.

It's Arlene Martinez with news for Wednesday.

But first, Elon Musk's SpaceX historic space foray, as the first private company to launch humans into orbit, was delayed Wednesday because of weather. They'll try again Saturday.

Also: We had some technical issues Tuesday which led to some subscribers not getting yesterday's newsletter. My apologies. You can read it here.

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100,000 U.S. deaths; 100,000 cases in California

The number of people in the U.S. who died from the coronavirus surpassed 100,000 on Wednesday, the same day California topped 100,000 cases.

It took just 100 days to reach those staggering numbers — the first known coronavirus death is believed to have been in Santa Clara County on Feb. 6.

California is one of four states to have over 100,000 cases, and over 3,800 people have died here. The state reached these milestones as it moves to reopen houses of worship, barbershops, hair salons, dine-in restaurants, beaches and trails.

Even as cases grow, it doesn't mean increased outbreaks necessarily; public health officials point out there are dramatically more people getting tested. But Gov. Gavin Newsom said the threat is far from over.

“The reality is, this has just begun,” he said.

Also Wednesday, Newsom spoke to gym owners and others in the fitness industry about reopening guidelines that could possibly be released over the next week or so.

Santa Clara County's health officer and key architect of the Bay Area's early shelter-in-place rules worries the state is opening up too fast.

When it comes to the coronavirus, we're all potential victims and we're all potential killers (Opinion).

Tuesday Morning, Walt Disney World, FSAs and fleeing for the mountains

17 Tuesday Morning stores in California are among the 230 locations expected to close by summer's end across the country. See a partial list here.

Temperature checks, face coverings, no parades/fireworks and other ways Walt Disney World will be different when it opens July 11. In case you're wondering, it's probably going to be a while before Disneyland reopens.

Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs) are use-it-or-lose-it. But that could change, depending on your employer.

The Lake Tahoe region is seeing soaring demand from would-be permanent residents: “They all say the same thing, they want to get the hell out of where they’re at."

Amazon hired him in late March to work at its Irvine warehouse. Two weeks later, the Indonesian immigrant was dead from the coronavirus.

Beach and pool visits can be totally safe. Here's the how and why

A trip to the pool or beach can be done safely amid the coronavirus pandemic and in general, gathering outdoors is going to be better than collecting inside, public health experts say.

Joseph Khabbaza, a pulmonary and critical care physician at the Cleveland Clinic, told USA Today the same practices for going to the grocery store or to a restaurant can also apply at the pool or the beach: Stay in your group and maintain social distancing.

"Distancing in these settings is really the key to minimizing the transmission," he said.

Khabbaza, who treats coronavirus patients, said sustained, close contact with other people helps transmit the virus. Practices that limit such contact help slow its spread. Pools should limit how many people come in, he added, but the beach typically provides even more space.

What you need if you go: Face masks, hand sanitizer, sunscreen, snacks, water, toys, towels.

Who might want to stay home: Those over 65 and with people with underlying health conditions.

Can I get the virus from water? There's no evidence it can be spread through pools, hot tubs, spas or water play areas, the CDC says.

Anything else I should know? Leave if it feels too crowded or uncomfortable.

L.A. cops to get raises

As state employees take a 10% pay cut and California's unemployment tops 15%, the powerful L.A. police officers union is set to receive a 4.8% pay raise come July. They've also started receiving an extra $5,000 annually if they have an associate's degree and over $7,500 if they have a bachelor's degree, the L.A. Times reports.

The contract's total cost over the next year is expected to cost $123 million; the city's looking for $139 million in pay cuts and other cost-saving measures from its civilian workforce. Some groups argue the city should spend less on law enforcement and more on social services and housing.

Take a look at what L.A. city employees made in 2018.

States sue over the Trump administration's 'gift to the fossil fuel industry'

California is one of 23 states, plus Washington, D.C., and four cities, suing the Trump administration over its re-writing of rules allowing automakers to reduce fuel efficiency standards.

The Environmental Protection Agency in March announced it had rewritten an Obama-era rule that called for automakers to increase fuel efficiency by 5% annually. The new standards — the Safer Affordable Fuel Efficient Vehicles Rule, or SAFE rule — decrease that through model year 2020 to 1.5%.

"You really can’t describe this new rule as anything besides a gift to the fossil fuel industry," said Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel during a press call Wednesday announcing the lawsuit.

The administration also revoked California's ability to set its own more stringent standards, which had been followed by more than a dozen states.

California Attorney General Xavier Becerra estimated the state has filed as many as 80 lawsuits against Trump's administration, half of them for rolling back environmental laws and regulations.

On the sunnier side of enviro news, a new report shows Palm Springs trails only Honolulu when it comes to per-capita solar capacity.

There are 57 cities that have been surveyed in each iteration of the report, and nearly 90% of those more than doubled their solar photovoltaic — solar panels — capacity between 2013 and 2019.

Los Angeles and San Diego topped the list of cities with the highest amount of total installed solar photovoltaic capacity. Sacramento, San Francisco and Riverside also made the top 20.

See the full report here.

If you're interested in environmental issues and California, Desert Sun environmental reporter Mark Olalde's one to follow.

Reimagining criminal justice

Since the pandemic started, the criminal justice system has undergone fairly significant changes. Bail has been reduced or eliminated for some low-level offenders, police have arrested fewer people on misdemeanors and others held in jail have been released to reduce populations.

The changes have been made to curb the spread of the coronavirus, which is difficult to contain once it gets into places like jails and prisons.

It's got criminal justice reformists wondering whether this could be the start of what they see are long-needed reforms to reduce costs to operating and maintaining the system and steering more people toward mental health services or drug treatment.

The Sacramento Bee talked to experts about what an overhaul could look like ... and the challenges of making changes to an entrenched system whose inmates are disproportionately poor and powerless.

In California is a roundup of news from across USA TODAY Network newsrooms. Also contributing: Sacramento Bee, Sierra Sun, Los Angeles Times.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: California, EPA, Trump, gym, criminal justice, Disney SpaceX: Wed news