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Since the minimum wage for workers in the California fast-food industry increased to $20 an hour in April, fast-food menu prices have increased by an average of 3.7 percent across the board. But it hasn’t resulted in job losses for fast-food workers as many feared.

According to a study released by UC Berkeley, the wage increase for California fast-food workers has resulted in a pay raise for about 750,000 fast-food workers.

As of July, the number of jobs in the fast-food industry in California increased by 10,000 compared to before the minimum wage increase, so there were no layoffs due to wage increases.

Menu prices increased by 3.7 percent overall, but some chains, such as Chipotle and In-N-Out, saw even larger price increases.

A fierce legal battle is underway to block the Joe Biden administration’s new student loan forgiveness measure before it is even formalized. On the 2nd, a federal court in Georgia ruled to lift the injunction against the new student loan forgiveness measure. However, the next day, on the 3rd, a federal court in Missouri issued another injunction against the new student loan forgiveness measure, putting the brakes on the Biden administration’s new student loan forgiveness measure again in one day.

This lawsuit began on the 3rd of last month, when seven Republican-leaning states, including Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Arkansas, Missouri, North Dakota, and Ohio, filed a lawsuit to block the “federal government’s attempt to implement large-scale student loan forgiveness despite its lack of authority.”

Initially, the Georgia federal court issued a temporary injunction on the 5th of last month, but lifted it on the 3rd, about a month later. In addition, the Georgia federal court transferred the lawsuit to the Missouri federal court, saying that the state of Georgia was not qualified to file the lawsuit because it could not clearly prove the damage it would incur.

In response, Judge Matthew Schelf, who was presiding over the trial in the Missouri federal court, accepted the plaintiffs’ request and issued a new injunction. In April, the Biden administration proposed a new student loan forgiveness measure to replace the original student loan forgiveness plan that was blocked by the Supreme Court last year. The new debt forgiveness plan is centered on rescuing borrowers who owe more than the principal amount of their loans due to interest. Up to $20,000 of their debt inflated by unpaid interest will be forgiven, regardless of their income.

In addition, all interest will be forgiven for student loan borrowers who are enrolled in an income-based repayment plan such as SAVE and whose annual income is less than $120,000 for individuals or $240,000 for couples. The Biden administration began preparing for the new debt forgiveness plan in earnest on August 1, sending emails to tens of millions of student loan borrowers to inform them of the new debt forgiveness plan. However, even before the final implementation regulations for the new debt forgiveness plan were finalized, seven conservative states filed a lawsuit to block its implementation, making its future uncertain.

The Biden administration’s efforts to ease the burden of student loan debt have repeatedly been blocked by the courts. President Biden’s first debt forgiveness plan of up to $20,000 was blocked by the Supreme Court in June of last year, and in July, the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals temporarily blocked the Biden administration’s new income-based student loan repayment plan, SAVE, which began last fall.

A bill to strengthen penalties for pet accidents has been introduced in the New York State Assembly. The bill (S.9915/A10660, also known as the PAWS Act), recently introduced in the state Senate and Assembly by State Senator Andrew Gounares (Democrat) and State Assembly Member Tony Simon (Democrat), would impose a fine of up to $500 and up to 15 days in jail for drivers who hit and injure or kill pets or domestic and companion animals on the roadway.

Considering that the existing fine for injuring or killing a pet in a traffic accident is up to $50, this is a tenfold increase, and expectations are growing that the bill will further strengthen pet protection, especially with the addition of jail time.

According to these lawmakers, there are currently over 1.1 million pets in New York City, including dogs and cats, and various pet-related accidents are constantly occurring, making it urgent to enact a pet protection law. The bill also includes a provision that if a guide dog or assistance dog is hit and run, a fine of up to $550 for the first offense and up to $700 for the second offense is imposed.

The livestock and pets specified in the bill refer to all animals raised by humans, including dogs, cats, rabbits, sheep, cows, and goats.

The governor has the ‘power to dismiss’… dismissal is possible Mayor Eric Adams (64), the first incumbent mayor to be criminally charged, appeared in court on the 27th and denied all charges of receiving bribes and illegal campaign funds from Turkish officials.

Mayor Adams appeared at the arraignment held at the Southern District of New York Federal Court that day and pleaded not guilty when asked by Magistrate Judge Catherine Parker whether he admitted to five criminal charges, including bribery. His attorney, Alex Spiro, announced that he plans to file a motion to dismiss the charges within the next week.

Mayor Adams will be released without bail and will stand trial without detention on the condition that he not contact any witnesses or individuals named in the indictment. According to the indictment made public the previous day, Mayor Adams was brought to trial on five criminal charges, including electronic financial fraud, bribery, and illegal campaign fundraising.

Immediately after the indictment was made public, Mayor Adams held a press conference, asserting his innocence and expressing his intention not to resign from the mayoral position. However, voices within the party calling for Mayor Adams’ resignation are growing louder. Following progressive Congresswoman Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez (New York) who was the first to call for Mayor Adams’ resignation, Congressman Jerry Nadler (New York) joined the call for resignation on the 27th.

In addition, as Comptroller Brad Lander, who declared his candidacy for the New York City mayoral election next year, former Comptroller Scott Stringer, and State Senator Zellner Myrie have called for Mayor Adams to resign, the number of New York City Council members joining the call for his resignation is increasing. However, as of the 27th, Senator Charles Schumer (New York) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries have not joined the call for his resignation.

Meanwhile, as the pressure for his resignation grows, it has been confirmed that Mayor Adams can be removed if he does not resign. According to state law, the governor has the power to remove the mayor. However, there has never been a case in history where a governor has exercised this power to remove a mayor.

In response, New York Governor Cathy Hochul met with reporters the previous day and said, “I will review my options and obligations as governor.” Another way is to form an “Inability Committee” to remove the mayor according to the New York City Charter. The commission consists of five members: the city’s legal counsel (currently vacant), the city auditor (currently Brad Lander), the city council president (Adrian Adams), the vice mayor (chosen by Mayor Adams), and the borough president (the longest-serving borough president, currently Queens Borough President Donovan Richards).

The neutralization commission can declare the mayor’s dismissal by a two-thirds vote of the city council.

Hate and bias crimes targeting Asians continue to rise in New Jersey, with about 11 cases reported each month.

According to an analysis of hate and bias incident statistics from the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office, 136 hate and bias incidents targeting Asians were reported to law enforcement in 2023 alone.

This is about a 24% increase from the 110 cases reported in 2022. This figure is especially higher than the 129 cases reported in 2021, when the COVID-19 situation was at its peak. Asian racial discrimination incidents continue this year.

According to preliminary statistics from the State Attorney’s Office, a total of 90 Asian hate and bias incidents were reported to law enforcement agencies from January to August this year. That’s about 11 incidents per month. This is the same as the monthly average of about 11 incidents in 2023, suggesting that hate and bias incidents targeting Asians are continuing without a decrease in New Jersey. Meanwhile, according to the State Attorney’s Office’s hate and bias incident statistics for 2024, about 35% of all reported incidents were targeting blacks (1,101 incidents). Hate and bias incidents targeting Jews were the second most, accounting for 22% of the total, with 708 incidents. Hate and bias incidents targeting Asians accounted for about 4.2% of the total.

In addition, among the towns in Bergen County with the largest Korean population in New Jersey last year, Fort Lee recorded the highest number of incidents, with 55 incidents. In the case of Port Lee, it is a 48% increase from 37 cases in 2022.

It was followed by Teaneck with 52 cases, Hackensack with 36 cases, and Ridgewood with 23 cases.

Schools were cited as the most common location for hate and bias incidents. Last year, 603 hate and bias incidents were reported at New Jersey elementary, middle, and high schools, accounting for 22.3% of the total.

Ahead of the UN General Assembly High-Level Week, which will be attended by world leaders, the Secret Service (SS) and the New York Police Department (NYPD) counter-terrorism team have activated state-of-the-art security equipment and entered emergency security mode. As this is the first UN General Assembly High-Level Week since the outbreak of the Gaza War, with the leaders of Israel and Palestine visiting New York at the same time, and with the recent attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump, interest in security and security issues is higher than ever.

According to reports from the Associated Press and other news agencies, the Secret Service is setting up a “brain center” in the basement of the UN headquarters building in Manhattan, New York, to respond to security threats in real time in preparation for the UN General Assembly High-Level Week, which will be held for a week starting on the 24th.

The UN General Assembly General Debate is the annual highlight of the UN General Assembly, where the heads of state, prime ministers, ministers, and other representatives of each country from the 193 UN member states take turns to speak at the podium. According to the UN, this year, 87 heads of state, as well as 140 heads of state, including vice presidents, crown princes, and heads of government, are scheduled to visit the General Assembly to speak. The UN General Assembly High-Level Week is notorious for turning New York City into a “traffic hell” for a week every September and October. The main reason is that when heads of state move around, they provide road control and vehicle security, and block traffic on major roads around the UN headquarters.

This year, the security authorities plan to provide the same service to the 140 heads of state as they move between their accommodations, conference halls, and event venues. In addition to the roads, New York City Police Department helicopters will monitor the ground situation from the sky, and the Coast Guard will block access to ships near the UN headquarters. During High-Level Week, aircraft will also not be allowed to fly over the nearby airspace. This year’s UN General Assembly High-Level Week is attracting even more attention as it is the first high-level event to be held since the outbreak of the Gaza war, triggered by a surprise attack by the Palestinian armed group Hamas on October 7 last year.

The recent simultaneous explosions of radios and radios in Lebanon have heightened tensions in the international community, which is higher than ever, and this is also influencing the strengthening of security. In particular, the list of visiting leaders includes Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, which is heightening tensions among the U.S. Secret Service.

The series of incidents that embarrassed the Secret Service, such as former President Trump’s ear injury during an outdoor campaign rally in Pennsylvania in July and an assassination attempt on his head at a golf course in Florida on the 15th, are also factors that are adding to the burden on the Secret Service. “While the war is happening far away, the agencies in charge are thinking about what is happening in the home countries of the key figures and what can be expected in New York,” the New York Police Department’s Deputy Commissioner for Intelligence and Counterterrorism told the Associated Press.

The New Jersey Korean Association will be moving to Ridgefield next month. At the board meeting held on the 11th, the motion to move the association from its current building at 21 Grand in Palisades Park to the first floor of the building at 1061 Slocum Avenue in Ridgefield was approved.

The Ridgefield building where the New Jersey Korean Association will be newly built was previously used as the association building by the New Jersey Korean Evergreen Association. According to the association, the relocation of the association is scheduled to take place in early to mid-next month.

An official from the board of directors of the association said, “The executive board, including the chairman, requested the board of directors about the need to move the association, and we decided to move after considering accessibility and convenience of space.”

However, it is reported that there was no specific discussion at the board meeting that day regarding the use of the existing Palisades Park Korean Association building, which still has time left on its lease.

The number of bus-only lane camera enforcement routes in New York City is being significantly expanded.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) announced on the 16th that 20 bus routes will be added to the bus-only lane camera enforcement targets. The crackdown, which will be conducted using ‘ABLE cameras’ installed on operating buses, includes all vehicles that obstruct bus operation, such as illegal or double-parked vehicles at bus stops, in addition to existing bus-only lane violations such as encroaching on bus-only lanes, parking, and obstructing bus stop entry.

According to the MTA, the bus routes newly subject to camera enforcement starting on the 16th are Bx35, M101, Q43, B35, S46, B41, B42, S79-SBS, Bx28, and Bx38. Starting on the 30th, 10 bus routes will be subject to crackdowns, including B82 SBS, Q53 SBS, M86 SBS, M79 SBS, M60 SBS, B25, Q5, Q69, Bx6 SBS, and B26.

Each route issues warnings to violators for the first 60 days after the enforcement begins, but actual fines are issued after the grace period ends.

The MTA cautioned, “The fine is $50 for the first violation, but can be up to $250 for repeat offenders.” The MTA continued, “Securing bus priority through bus-only lanes is a very important factor in increasing bus speeds,” and “The average speed of city buses this year is 8.18 miles per hour, the slowest among major cities in the U.S. We expect this expansion of camera enforcement to further improve bus speeds.”

According to MTA research, when ‘ABLE’ camera enforcement is activated, bus speeds increase by an average of 5%.

The Democratic Party has decided to hold a hearing to question the Supreme Court’s decision broadly granting former President Donald Trump criminal immunity for his actions while in office. According to the political media outlet The Hill on the 9th, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin (D-Illinois) announced that he would hold a hearing on the 24th regarding the Supreme Court’s July 1 decision on the former president’s criminal immunity.

Chairman Durbin said, “Congress cannot turn a blind eye to the dangers posed by the Supreme Court’s decision to exempt Donald Trump from criminal liability,” and “We will emphasize the serious danger that this far-right ruling poses to the American people.” The Supreme Court ruled in a 6-3 vote that former presidents’ acts while in office “are absolutely immune from criminal prosecution if they are committed within the scope of their decisive and exclusive constitutional authority,” while other “official acts” are “presumed” to be immune, and that there is no immunity for “private (unofficial) acts.”

Former President Trump, who was criminally indicted four times on charges including attempting to overturn the 2020 presidential election results, leaking confidential information, and falsely stating company documents related to providing hush money to silence sexual harassment, has decisively reduced the “judicial risk” that has been cited as the biggest negative factor for the presidential election through this Supreme Court decision.

Above all, since it became necessary to determine whether the charges against former President Trump were related to “official acts,” it became virtually impossible for the trial on the charge of attempting to overturn the presidential election results to proceed before the presidential election on November 5. In addition, the court postponed the sentencing schedule for the case related to the hush money payment, which was scheduled to be sentenced in a New York state court on the 18th, to after the presidential election.

In addition, some argue that the Supreme Court’s decision could allow former President Trump to pursue controversial policies without fear of being punished after leaving office if he wins the election and returns to the White House in January.

On the 28th, the Supreme Court ruled to reject the Biden administration’s request to resume the implementation of the income-based student loan repayment plan ‘SAVE’. The SAVE plan was put on hold on the 18th of last month when the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals issued a temporary suspension order. (Reported on page A1 of the July 20th edition of this newspaper) After that, the Biden administration filed an emergency appeal to the Supreme Court against the temporary suspension order, but it was not accepted.

The Supreme Court’s position is that the main decision on whether to implement it should be made in the appeal. In August of last year, the Biden administration implemented the ‘SAVE’ plan, which significantly reduces the repayment burden on borrowers compared to the previous income-based repayment program. The SAVE plan expanded the target for exemption from monthly student loan repayment from the previous 150% of the federal poverty line (annual income of $24,000) to 225% (annual income of $32,805).

In addition, starting this February, a measure was launched to forgive the remaining debt of ‘SAVE’ subscribers with student loan principal of less than $12,000 if the debt is repaid for 10 years, and a plan was scheduled to be launched in July to reduce the borrower’s monthly payment by half from 10% of discretionary income (the amount of actual income minus living expenses) to 5%.

However, the future is uncertain as seven Republican-leaning states, including Missouri, filed an unconstitutional lawsuit and the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals issued an order temporarily and completely blocking the implementation of the SAVE program. According to the Biden administration, there are about 8 million student loan borrowers enrolled in the SAVE plan.