Community News Brief:

Pavley Mortgage Fraud Bill Passes Public Safety CommitteeLegislation by Senator Fran Pavley (D-23) that would give the state new tools to fight an epidemic of mortgage fraud passed the Senate Public Safety Committee Tuesday on a 6-0 vote. At the committee hearing, Jesus and Antonia Arreola spoke through an interpreter about how they lost their Morgan Hill home as the result of a mortgage fraud scam that victimized 130 homeowners, nearly all of them immigrants who spoke limited English. They were placed in mortgages they couldn’t possibly repay, and unknowingly sold second “hard money” mortgages with interest rates as high as 50 percent.SB 239, sponsored by the California District Attorneys Association, creates a specific provision for mortgage fraud in California law and specifies that it is punishable either as a felony or a misdemeanor. Currently, mortgage fraud has only misdemeanor status in California law, and prosecutors are forced to pursue serious cases such as grand theft under other statutes.* * * *Message from Department of Health: Swine Flu OutbreakOn Sunday, April 26, federal health officials declared a public health emergency in response to the recent international outbreak of swine flu.As of Monday April 27, there have been no confirmed cases of swine flu in the County of Los Angeles. There are eleven confirmed cases in the state of California: five in Imperial County, one in Sacramento County, and five in San Diego County. The Center for Disease Control reports at least forty cases nationwide, the majority in New York. Our County Department of Public Health is aggressively monitoring the situation. Although health officials do expect this particular strain of flu to spread, those who’ve contracted it so far in the U.S. have exhibited only mild to moderate symptoms, in contrast to Mexico, where preliminary data suggest that infected individuals may become more severely ill.To protect yourself and others from this and other types of flu, public health experts offer these easy, common sense suggestions: -Wash your hands often. -Cover your mouth when you cough or sneeze. If you do not have a tissue, use your sleeve, not your hands. -Avoid close contact with people who are sick. -If you’re ill, stay home and away from other people as much as possible. Get plenty of rest and check with your doctor. -Get an annual flu shot.To learn more, please see our Department of Public Health’s Frequently Asked Questions