Six minutes of news from around the nation.

U.S. Marines mobilized to Los Angeles being sent home, Pentagon says; CA immigrants weigh health coverage against deportation risk; Federal changes create familiar funding dilemma for tribal nonprofits; and as dangerous temps grip NC, the need to address extreme heat rises.

TRANSCRIPT

The Public News Service daily newscast, July the 22nd, 2025.

I'm Mike Clifford.

Roughly 700 active duty U.S. Marines who were mobilized last month to respond to protests in Los Angeles are being sent home from the mission, the Pentagon said Monday.

That from CNN.

With stability returning to Los Angeles, the Secretary has directed the redeployment of the 700 Marines whose presence sent a clear message.

It was last week that Parnell announced Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth had released 2,000 California National Guard members with the 79th Infantry Combat Brigade Team from duty.

Meantime, many undocumented patients in California are canceling medical apartments and reconsidering whether to sign up for Medi-Cal in the wake of widespread immigration raids, according to reporting from KFF Health News.

People are worried after ICE officers recently pulled up at a mobile health clinic in Downey.

Cecilia Aquino with the Latino Coalition for a Healthy California says some of their clinic partners have seen it drop in visits because people are afraid to leave their homes.

We're basically facing what we're calling a fear pandemic where folks would much rather wait for something to be an acute emergency rather than prevent because they need to protect themselves and their families.

She notes that when people forgo preventive care, their conditions often go untreated until they end up in the emergency room.

Under the Biden administration, promotores who help people sign up for Medi-Cal were able to assure people that their address and immigration status would not be shared with ICE, but the new administration is doing just that.

So, Aquino says, patients now have to weigh whether signing up for Medi-Cal is worth the risk.

I'm Suzanne Potter.

This story produced with original reporting from Boyd Barnett for KFF Health News.

Next, tribal organizations trying to foster sustainable food production on reservations are in a holding pattern amid federal funding uncertainty.

The Pine Ridge Reservation is known for extremely high levels of unemployment and the ripple effects they create.

Makochi Agriculture Development is combating the problem with programs that promote locally grown and culturally appropriate foods.

The group's Bailey Hoyer says like other non-profits, they're waiting on funds previously awarded by the USDA to aid these efforts, but he says they can't wait forever.

We have to make a pivot.

If we don't make the pivot, that affects the community.

He says they're taking a fresh look at philanthropic support if the federal aid doesn't come through.

Hoyer says they're confident about certain liens while acknowledging it's on their minds that foundational grants can be very competitive.

We get a report from non-profit quarterly, some foundations are expanding their giving in light of federal moves, but there is reluctance among others as to avoid political pushback.

I'm Mike Moen.

This is Public News Service.

After another sweltering weekend and more dangerous temperatures in the forecast this week for North Carolina and other parts of the country, experts say the US cannot ignore the impacts of extreme heat.

Research has found extreme heat is becoming more deadly, with data from 2023 showing more than 2,300 people in the US dying from it.

Ashley Ward is the director of the Heat Policy Innovation Hub at Duke University's Nicholas Institute for Energy, Environment, and Sustainability.

She says there are health effects and also impacts on people's productiveness at work, especially if they labor outside.

Heat is impacting infrastructure as well, such as weakening bridges.

Ward notes that people's social and economic well-being is affected as well.

I often run into people who tell stories of rationing their energy use in the summer so they can afford to buy medicine or food.

So heat affects so much of our lives and it's important that we think about it holistically as part of our health but also well-being.

For North Carolina News Service, I'm Eric, Tegethoff.

Find our trust indicators at publicnewsservice.org.

Next to New York, where groups and lawmakers are coming together to oppose Con Edison's latest rate increase.

The proposal calls for an 11 percent increase for electricity and a 13 percent increase for gas, equaling about $2 billion over several years.

It'll fund infrastructure projects and address extreme weather.

Bill Ferris with AARP New York says the utility company should justify why it needs more money from New Yorkers when it received a rate increase just three years ago.

So what's the result of that rate increase and why is two billion this magical number that Con Ed needs?

Can it be lower?

Can it be spread out?

Where do they justify $500 million to deliver gas in New York City.

The Energy Information Administration, a governmental body, finds New York electricity costs are much higher than the national average.

Ferris notes seniors in the state mostly live on fixed incomes like Social Security, so their household budgets are tight.

Growing utility costs and inability to pay them could lead to more seniors having their service terminated.

I'm Edwin J. Vieira.

Finally, Ohio lawmakers are reigniting efforts to restrict public drag performances with new legislation that opponents say targets LGBTQ+ expression.

The bill would limit drag shows and similar performances to adult-only venues.

Republican representatives Angela King and Josh Williams have introduced House Bill 249, known as the Indecent Exposure Modernization Act.

It's a revised version of the 2023 proposal that stalled in committee.

Williams says the measure updates outdated language in Ohio's criminal statutes.

It's in the state of Ohio where in the indecent exposure statute, There's no definition for private part.

Farah Siddiqui reporting.

This story was produced with original reporting by Ivory Herman for Kent State News Lab in association with media in the public interest and funded in part by the George Gunn Foundation.

The bill remains in the House Criminal Justice Committee and could move forward when lawmakers return for recess.

This is Public News Service.