Gov. Jerry Brown criticized a U.S. Senate bill that aims to simplify auto efficiency standards, warning the measure represents a step toward decimating requirements that manufacturers produce cleaner cars.

Through the first four months of 2017, our industry has completed an impressive 1,888 new home sales. Underscoring the uptick in the homebuilding industry’s economic fortunes, in March we sold more than 500 — 527 to be exact — homes in a single month for the first time in a decade.

Harvey Correia, a third-generation Delta resident, has one of the most diverse collections of the common fig in the world. Correia offers his perspective on this very particular industry. For more from Correia, check out “Gettin’ Figgy With It” in our June issue. Sign up for our newsletter and we’ll email you when it’s available online.

The Workplace Bullying Institute would like to see legislation put in place to protect employees from abusive coworkers or bosses. The California State Council for the Society for Human Resource Management says legislation would leave too much room for subjective analysis. What do you think?

It happens. You try your best and prepare your hardest for a big presentation, but something goes awry. Nothing deflates your self-esteem faster than a missed opportunity. Disappointing as it may it be, remember everyone has off days — look at Adele during the Grammy Awards. Adding resilience to the mixture of talent, opportunity and luck tends to separate success from failure. Here are five ways to bounce back higher from a rough outing:

Communities in the Capital Region are struggling with the increasing numbers of homeless in their streets and parks and have realized that the problem has to be addressed. Local programs help by providing meals and winter shelter. But the primary need is year-round, permanent supportive housing, because living in tents or on park benches is not a sustainable way of life.

The word is overused, and overuse leads to misuse. (Misuse leads to annoyance, and then we’re at a place where no one even understands or cares what you mean.)

But “empower” is not just another piece of jargon to be casually tossed around:

San Francisco, which in recent years had the biggest home-price gain in the U.S., was the country’s weakest market in the first quarter, with values falling for the first time since 2011.

Taxes. Whether you’re married or single, many people I talk to would rather put my feet to the fire than file taxes. Why? Well, there’s the time it’s takes to gather all the information and documents needed to file your taxes. Then there’s the process of preparing the return online or hiring someone to do it for you. There are better things to do — like watching water drip or paint dry.

With the increase in female representation across the homebuilding and homebuying spectrums, the building and real estate industries have an opportunity to target this growing market, which could shift the way homes are designed, built and sold.