Central Valley Daily

Aug. 27: Litigation Continues Over Fresno’s Secretive Budget Process

By Soreath Hok,

Published August 27, 2025 at 4:45 AM PDT

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Two years ago, two civil rights groups sued the City of Fresno, alleging city leaders violated a public meeting law by negotiating the city’s budget behind closed doors. On today’s show, Fresnoland reporter Omar Rashad brings us an update to that investigation – including a batch of illuminating emails he obtained between city leaders.

Plus, the latest news headlines: A popular restaurant owner in Fresno was arrested by federal authorities, and a very expensive home is on sale by Central Valley farming billionaires.

Central Valley Daily

Soreath Hok

Soreath Hok is a multimedia journalist with experience in radio, television and digital production. She is a 2022 National Edward R. Murrow Award winner. At KVPR, she is currently the local host of NPR's All Things Considered.

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Kerry Klein

Kerry Klein is an award-winning reporter whose coverage of public health, air pollution, drinking water access and wildfires in the San Joaquin Valley has been featured on NPR, KQED, Science Friday and Kaiser Health News. Her work has earned numerous regional Edward R. Murrow and Golden Mike Awards and has been recognized by the Association of Health Care Journalists and Society of Environmental Journalists. Her podcast Escape From Mammoth Pool was named a podcast “listeners couldn’t get enough of in 2021” by the radio aggregator NPR One.

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Jonathan Linden

Jonathan Linden is a podcast producer at KVPR. Born and raised in Riverside, he's a Southern California native. Jonathan's passion for public radio began at a young age when his brother would play NPR while driving him home from middle school. He earned his B.A. in journalism from Biola University in 2019.

See stories by Jonathan Linden