1. The US Supreme Court voted 6-3 to uphold a key provision of Obamacare in a decision that likely means the president’s signature healthcare law is here to stay, the Chron reports. Opponents of the law had attempted to gut it by claiming that 34 states that did not set up their own insurance marketplaces should be stripped of federal subsidies. But the high court, with Chief Justice John Roberts writing the majority opinion, ruled that such a move would send Obamacare into a death spiral in those states, thus unfairly denying health insurance to millions of Americans.
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3. The Berkeley Police Department has joined the criminal investigation led by the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office into the collapsed balcony that killed six young people last week, the Chron reports. The investigation is expected to focus on whether criminal negligence caused the wooden balcony to rot and give way.
4. The Berkeley City Council greenlighted new regulations on Airbnb and similar-style short-term rentals in the city, the Trib$ reports. The proposed rules — which would require Berkeley homeowners who rent out their homes to pay taxes and carry insurance and would limit length of stays — now goes to the Planning Commission for review.
5. An Oakland police officer suffered severe cuts on his face after being hit by a broken bottle during an illegal sideshow event over the weekend in East Oakland, the Trib$ reports.
6. And BART is considering reopening station restrooms — fourteen years after the agency closed them following 9/11, the Chron reports.
