good morning to you on this tuesday. i'm marcus washington. thanks for letting us be a part of your morning. >> i'm ginger conejero saab. laura garcia has the day off. a reminder to everyone watching, you can watch us live on roku, amazon fire, apple tv, and online. >> let's take a look across the bay area this morning for you, where we are seeing wet conditions out there. walnut creeks look like a blackout, no, the camera is just off. we're seeing wet roads. >> i like the san jose view, you can see the clouds and a little bit of the sunrise. we're going to see a mix throughout the day. we are starting out with wet conditions and they are going to see this quickly rolling out for the rest of today. storm ranger is tracking it all for us. we can see light showers coming back to mill valley, toward richmond and vallejo and san ramon this morning. you're also seeing rain moving through the east day and getting

ready to move into san jose. gilroy, light showers as you get the last little bits of it. this system is quickly moving through, and as we go toward late morning, it will be clearing out for a sunny afternoon. we have more rain in the forecast. we'll talk about that. mike, the rain impacting the commute. >> that's right. here's a live look from the hayward side of the san mateo bridge. slicker roadways, you can see no problems, but slicker roadways mean you should lower the speeds and allow yourself extra time. that's what b.a.r.t. is doing right now, a ten-minute delay for basically everywhere because they're slowing trains down. they want to make sure the braking works just fine. right now we are seeing brake lights happening for highway 4, 37 and over at the bay bridge. a milder commute, but slicker conditions, so allow that time. back to you. want to get a live look at sfo this morning. moving you forward, the mask mandate coming to an end for many travelers.

this comes as a federal judge in florida striking down the requirement on planes, trains and buses. the ruling claims that the government has no authority to require travelers to wear masks as a way of slowing down the spread of covid. both b.a.r.t. and amtrak telling us that they're also dropping the policy. "today in the bay's" cierra johnson is live at sfo this morning. she's going to be breaking down where you would need to wear that mask still. that is coming up in the next half hour. also happening today, we're learning more about the accused arsonist who is under arrest for the massive fire that destroyed a home depot store in san jose. now, that fire kept so many people in the neighborhood holed up in their homes for hours. "today in the bay's" kris sanchez joins us from the investigation site with what we know so far. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. the fencing is still surrounding the investigation site where that home depot burned nearly to the ground. we know this was a big investigation. not only san jose fire and police, but also the bureau of

alcohol, tobacco, firearms and explosives. ten days later, after the fire, we know there has been an arrest in this case. the fire happened at the home depot on blossom hill in san jose, sending up so much smoke that people say they saw it in santa cruz and even a nasa satellite picked up the image. it took 12 hours for firefighters to knock the fire down. no one was hurt. the witnesses on that day told us the fire alarms and the sprinklers did not go off until nearly everyone was out of the store. we now know that the san jose bureau of fire prevention had to ask the store for proof of inspection of its alarm system and sprinkler system and for the store to keep the area clear in front of all electric panels. records show that store management did make those fixes right away. coming up at 11:00 this morning, the santa clara county district attorney and mayor will announce details about the person who is now under arrest.

we are going to stream that news conference for you. you can watch it if you're on the go on the nbc bay area app. otherwise, we'll see you at 11:00 in our midday news. in san jose, kris sanchez, "today in the bay." >> we'll be watching for those updates. thank you very much. 6:03 this morning, and right now russia is issuing a new deadline for troops on the ground in ukraine. russia's defense ministry has given a deadline of between 4:00 and 6:00 this morning west coast time for those troops at a plant in mariupol to surrender. mariupol city council says russian forces were heavily bombing the plant there, where at least 1,000 civilians are in underground shelters, many of whom are women and children. ukraine is demanding a humanitarian corridor to get them out. this comes as russian forces are launching a new offensive in eastern ukraine. "today in the bay's" brie jackson is in washington this morning. brie, this is a long feared and really significant new phase here. >> reporter: that's right,

marcus. well, after failing to capture kyiv, capturing donbas is now russia's main focus. russian forces have been building up in that region, which is known as ukraine's industrial heartland. russia's assault on eastern ukraine is now under way, with heavy fighting reported in the donbas region, a much anticipated fight. president zelenskyy says his country will defend itself against russian forces, building up for a new offensive. >> the russians are clearly trying to continue to shape the environment, set the conditions so that they can conduct longer-term military offensive operations in the donbas. >> reporter: this latest phase of attacks comes after russia bombarded the western city of lviv, increasing the death toll. >> a campaign of terror, a campaign of brutality, a campaign of despicable aggression. >> reporter: the u.s. is sending more military supplies to

ukraine, and financial punishments against russia could escalate this week. >> it's been an ongoing process, but right now you will see us continue to expand our sanctions targets. >> reporter: vladimir putin insists sanctions are failing, claiming russia has withstood the unprecedented financial pressure. >> reporter: as his relentless attacks continue, some ukrainians are still holding out hope for peace. >> we will celebrate our victory when this all ends, and we will win, i know that. >> reporter: in mariupol a desperate battle rages on, as ukrainian forces vow to fight to the end. the pentagon says the u.s. will begin training ukrainians on artillery systems. that is expected to begin soon and will take place outside of ukraine. marcus? >> we will be watching that closely. brie jackson in washington,

thank you. 6:06 this morning, and a former oakland priest is behind bars after allegedly killing a pedestrian while driving drunk over the weekend. police say 75-year-old stephen keisle was under the influence when he drove onto a sidewalk killing a man. he is a former priest who was defrocked in 1987. over the years he has been accused of molesting dozens of children earning him the oakland diocese. he served six years in federal released in 2010. you can watch our eye unit's full report on hundreds of alleged sexual abuse victims following lawsuits against the diocese. head to nbcbayarea.com and click on our investigations tab. in just a few hours testimony resumes in the criminal fraud trial for former theranos executive sunny balwani. let's take a live look at the courthouse in san jose, where

last week a former employee testified he was aware balwani worked hand-in-hand with founder elizabeth holmes to run the company. but he said he had no idea they were in a personal relationship. balwani faces similar charges to holmes, who is now awaiting sentencing after being convicted in january. our climate in crisis will be the focus of our visit by governor gavin newsom this morning, expected to highlight the impacts of the statewide drought. you might recall last month governor newsom issued an executive order calling for stricter water conservation rules. last week the drought monitor predicted 90% of the state is in the middle of a severe drought. this friday is earth day and all this week the "today" show and us right here at "today in the bay," we're focusing on our climate in crisis and ways that we can all help our planet. you can find out more information on nbcbayarea.com, and of course when we talk about what's going on right now, we

have to talk about the drought conditions. meteorologist kari hall has been monitoring that. although we've been getting some rain, certainly not enough to make an impact on the drought. >> no, and take a look at how widespread it is all across the west, not just california. we are well below what we should be getting in terms of rain, and of course with these systems moving through the only thing we can do right now is conserve water by turning down the irrigation system with the landscaping. we see some scattered showers moving through. right now some light rain between vallejo and richmond, also light rain toward discovery bay, heading toward the east bay livermore is seeing rain return, and also around milpitas. this is all moving through so quickly, it only brings us maybe 0.1 to 0.25 of rain. we'll talk about another storm system headed our way. mike gives us a look at where we can find some cheaper gas prices. >> around the bay, cheaper prices, we'll start in sunnyvale

with $5.19 a gallon at the arco on saratoga road. the east day, valero in dublin, that costs $4.75 a gallon. and $5.29 in the north bay at san rafael at the arco on 2nd street. some ways to spend the gas, we're looking at highway 37, the bay bridge where the metering lights are on. highway 4, we've had a considerable amount of slowing that's built over the last ten minutes or so. we see pretty standard patterns for most of the bay. a little unusual slowing for south 680 as you travel through pleasanton. as we bring on kari's radar, there's active rain happening on dublin and livermore, so as the rain comes through folks will tap their brakes, as you should. watch those speeds. back to you. >> thanks, mike. now, flight delays, cancellations, and much more airport chaos.

we're seeing more and more travel nightmares these days. still ahead at 6:25. our consumer team helps a bay area family that got stuck on vacation and some crucial advice if you plan to hit the skies soon. >> and the biden administration has already delayed student repayment on loans four separate times. the fifth could be a doozy. let's take you out to the futures this morning and see what's ahead on wall street. it looks like kind of a quiet day. netflix to report profits after the bell. >> and up next, scott, this is a question for you, too, could you eat the same candy for the rest of your life? i'm going to say no because i like too much. now is your chance to do just that. a candy bar making it happen for a special romantic holiday. we've got that and so much more this morning on "today in the bay." 6:11.

right now at 6:14, as you're heading out in the south bay, take a live look at san jose. we can see clouds rolling by and some breaks in the clouds as we approach sunrise. we'll start out mostly cloudy, the rain clearing out and we'll see a lot more sunshine later today as our temperatures head for the mid to upper 60s. the rain returns tomorrow. we'll talk about that coming up in a few minutes. >> and a live look at the oakland coliseum area. 880 right by the coliseum where the a's will play tonight. damp roadways right now but will not impact the game. good morning, very happy tuesday to you. tesla shareholders are asking a

judge to order elon musk to stop talking about the securities and exchange commission. last week in a ted talk musk said the san francisco staff at the s.e.c. were a bunch of bad words. at the time i explained it to you this way, we can't say the bad name he called them on television. the only time i can use this word is when i'm naming the title of a quentin tarantino film about the second world war. so that word. the reason those shareholders want musk to stop talking about the s.e.c. that way is because musk is going to be in court with the s.e.c. next month and the shareholders are saying, let's not tweak government agents just weeks before you're supposed to go to court against them. the former chairman of the s.e.c. said in an interview, it's childish, immature, narcissistic. musk is obviously a man of great imagination, but he needs to stop acting like a child and

start acting like an adult. netflix in los gatos will open its financial books to investors and reporters this afternoon. that company's stock is down about 20% since january on slowing subscriptions. netflix says price hikes are keeping some people away. the white house press secretary jan psaki says the biden administration may delay the repayment of student loans again or forgive them altogether. the biden white house has already delayed the resumption of repayments four times. the new due date is at the end of august. but psaki tells the podcast they may be delayed in perp put. "new york times" points out one downside to letting people save $600 a month is that gives them extra money to spend. it's the fact that there's so much money that we have inflation. americans are fairly flush with cashes these days. you may not feel it every month,

but we really are doing pretty well, not making people pay back could make inflation worse. and you can see how hard it is to be the president of the united states, hey, i can do this good thing over here, but then this is going to cause this problem over here. my son pays student loans, about $600 a month, he doesn't now because of the delay. so he's spending that $600, right? he's supposed to be saving. >> right. >> come on, he's spending, right. so he's out there in the economy spending it. but if he has to pay it, he won't spend it, which actually might help inflation draw back a bit. but then golf galaxy is going to miss him [ laughter ] >> what happened? >> you're in here all the time. but you were saying there was a way that you can actually check and balance. >> you could, by continuing to increase interest rates, which we do expect next month, you can physically take money out of the economy, which is what that is, too, and that has to be done and

it will be. we're looking at at least a half a point next month. >> thanks for that, scott. new for you this morning, delta airlines testing a starlink wireless internet service from spacex. the company run by elon musk. wall street journal reporting that delta has run exploratory tests but didn't give any details. spacex has been building out starlink for several years by launching satellite and selling broadband service to consumers and businesses. analysts forecast growing demand for wi-fi service on jets, despite complaints about reception and speed. what happened to the time we could just sit on the plane and kind of chill? >> these days i don't really sit on the plane if the kids are there, anyway. i'm just kidding. i know, but that quiet is something different. we don't see it every day. here's another story we want to talk about, in recognition of national lovers day, later this

month hershey is offering a chance for reese's chance to win free reese's peanut butter cups for one year or even for the rest of your life. >> my goodness, i think that's something my husband is going to look into. people can look for specially marked packages of reese's cups as part of the reese's love you back promotion. now, the special packages have a qr code that allows you to see if you've won. other prizes include $5,000 in visa reward cards. national lovers day is april 23rd. so, marcus, could you eat peanut butter cups every day for a whole year? >> no, i would have to share it with my family here. but i could eat some white chip macadamia cookies every day. if they did that contest, we can talk. >> where is the qr code for that? >> i don't know if you're going to be finding the peanut butter cups today in the rain.

>> i have a lot of chocolate at home because of the easter egg hunt on sunday. we are going to see some great weather starting to clear out after some early-morning showers. take a look at how much rain we've measured, if you can believe it. mount tam had over 1 inch of rain, napa 3/10 of an inch and in san francisco it was 1/10 of an inch. most of the rest of the bay area had totals, about 0.05 of an inch. we have a chance of adding more but it's starting to break up and taper off. storm ranger, we have it parked on san bruno mountain and it gives us a view of the light, spotty sprinkles moving through mill valley, toward parts of southern sonoma county as well as concord. it's really not raining very much as you head down the peninsula and it's starting to taper off for the south bay.

this is a quick one-and-done system, but there is another one right behind that and that's going to be moving in heading into late tomorrow afternoon. so let's go through this timeline. today clearing out for this afternoon, as we reach into the upper 50s and low 60s. tomorrow afternoon we start to see that rain again approaching the north bay, moving in before the evening commute, and then we see it spreading into much of the rest of the bay area, late tomorrow night. so if you are going to be going out to the park today, even though the slides and the playground equipment may be a little wet for the start of the day, we'll see it clearing out. there is more rain ahead going into wednesday into thursday. once again, more widespread rain tapering off for friday. it's clear for the weekend. next week, unfortunately, with the storm track heading farther to the north, we may see the end of rain for a while and temperatures going up. in the meantime, we have the

chance of measuring anywhere from 0.25 to over 1 inch of rain for the coast while the sierra gets close to 1 foot, maybe 2 near kirkwood. our temperatures stay very cool and seasonable for this time of year, but notice how it warms up as it dries out next week. mike, you're seeing changes at the bay bridge. >> first of all, the volume is building, right on schedule here. but also you'll notice that the skies above the bay bridge are clear, but we have clouds. b.a.r.t. continues to run trains a little slower for wet tracks in the area. in contra costa county we may have wetter tracks. we have slower drives right now as rain just passed through, vasco slows down to about 40 minutes now down toward 580. a couple of smaller incidents clearing to the shoulder in livermore. we're looking at a typical slower driving, 680 recovering through pleasanton, back to you. >> thanks, mike. next on "today in the bay," nbc bay area responds.

>> the airline changed his flights, leaving his family about an unexpectedly long layover. i'm consumer investigator chris chmura. nbc bay area responds to help shorten their time stuck at the airport.

emmanuel in sunnyvale wrote us because singapore airlines added a 13-hour layover to his family's trip to thailand. singapore airport is swanky. it wins awards for features like

a swimming pool and a garden, but emmanuel's family didn't plan on spending 13 hours in the airport. usually when airlines change their schedules, you gain the advantage to request different flights for free and emmanuel did that. he says singapore wanted to charge him thousands of dollars more because only premium economy class was available on the flights with the shorter layovers. so he asked us for help. we emailed singapore air who offered him a refun, which they have the right to do. he declined and held firm, which he has the right to do. singapore then upgraded his tickets to premium economy, with shorter layovers. singapore told us it was a goodwill gesture, and emmanuel thanked us and he said essentially you guys saved us over $5,300 and got us seats that have significantly more leg room and comfort for our 16-hour flight. if an airline changes your flight schedule, you don't necessarily have to just accept an inconvenient flight.

we made a video walking you through how to rebook when an airline changes your itinerary. you can watch us on our website, streaming channels and youtube page. just look for the how do playlist. >> thanks, chris. next, top stories we're following today, including a wet commute across the bay area. meteorologist kari hall is tracking how long it will last and how you'll need to keep your umbrella handy. >> reporter: plus, get ready to take those masks off. the federal mask mandate has ended but there's still a bit of confusion. coming up we'll break down where you may still need to wear your masks and what folks here at the airport are doing. you're watching "today in the bay."

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i would hope that people would respect those around them, and if there are people around you who are wearing masks that you put yours on. it's not a big thing to do. >> right now at 6:30, mixed feelings on how the overturned mask mandate has turned out for travelers. but there's a lot of confusion as to where you still need to wear one. we'll walk you through the latest guidelines ahead in a live report. >> plus, surviving inflation. we speak with a financial expert about the steps you can take now as recession fears rise. >> and meteorologist kari hall is tracking which neighborhoods will get soaked and how long it will last. this is "today in the bay."

tuesday morning. i'm ginger conejero saab in for laura garcia. >> and i'm marcus washington. don't forget, we're not only broadcasting on television, but we're also live on roku, amazon fire, apple tv, and online. >> and as he mentioned in those headlines, parts of the bare got hit with a lot of rain overnight. first things first, kari, what's ahead for today? >> it's mostly the north bay that got some of the more measurable rain and it's already starting to taper off. as you get ready to head off, if you're in the east bay, south bay, you didn't see as much as we saw in the north bay. still some green on storm ranger right now, showing some spotty showers. also raining around hayward and that's going to also extend over across the bay. we're seeing some of these showers quickly rolling on out of here and the sky will be clear going into the afternoon. we do have another storm system that will be coming in tomorrow afternoon. so i'll time it out all for you in the forecast coming up in a few minutes. >> thanks, kari.

moving you forward this morning, as the mask mandate for travelers is changing. >> this comes after a federal judge in florida struck down the mask mandate on planes, trains and buses. >> now bay area agencies are following suit. both b.a.r.t. and amtrak telling us they're dropping the policy. "today in the bay's" cierra johnson live this morning from sfo to help us sort this out. it could be very challenging for a lot of people to follow what's going on. >> reporter: good morning, yeah, there is still a little bit of confusion. we did come inside of the airport just to give you another perspective of what's going on. i decided to keep my mask on, just out of a sense of security. here in the airport something interesting has happened. despite the ruling coming out of florida overturning what the cdc has decided, the signs are still illuminated saying facial covers must be worn and every ten minutes or so we're still hearing the overhead p.a. announcement urging folks to wear masks. almost all of the employees here

at sfo still wearing their masks, and based on what i've seen from the early morning travelers here in the international terminal, a majority of them are still wearing their masks. but let's contrast this with what the actual airlines are saying. now, masks are officially optional on the following airlines, alaska, united, delta, jet blue, american and southwest. now, my colleague, bob redell, saw firsthand this morning the passenger and crew response to this ruling on his early-morning flight from florida back to the bay area. now, he tells me it was about 60/40 unmasked versus masked, and he said all three flight attendants decided to remove their masks. what about those deciding to travel by public transportation? well, that's where it gets a little more complicated. take a look at your screen. you can see there's two categories. first, masks recommended, agencies, amtrak, san jose airport, b.a.r.t., sfo and the

oakland airport are saying masks are recommended. vta, muni and ac transit are telling riders masks are still required. the former cdc director weighed in on the issue this morning on the "today" show. take a listen. >> the air flow in airplanes is much better than you'll see in other transit situations. on an airplane the greatest risk is from those people right next to you or maybe the row in front or behind you. on a subway in new york, i ride the subway a lot, you're often in a car with people very, very close to you without that same kind of air flow. >> reporter: and also this morning, uber has announced it, too, will allow riders, as well as drivers, to go maskless following that ruling. if you wake up in this new era of the pandemic, it's probably best to keep your mask with you. again, you don't know if some folks are immunocompromised. some folks will decide to still

continue wearing their mask. as the morning goes on, i'm sure we will continue to see updates from sfo. we did speak with an individual who says she believes, an employee believes she will hear more guidance from her superiors here at sfo later this morning as more folks make their way in. the announcement yesterday coming in after many of the airport offices were closed. so a story we will definitely continue to follow. we're live at sfo. cierra johnson for "today in the bay." >> i think it's best right now as we try to sort all of this out. keep the mask handy just in case. thank you. let's take a live look at the san francisco skyline, where later today city supervisors are taking up the issue of dna from rape kits being used in criminal cases. it comes after the victim of a sexual crime was recently arrested in connection to a property crime in san francisco based on her rape kit dna. today supervisors will consider a new ordinance protect victims

of sexual assault by limiting how rape kit dna is stored and handled. state lawmakers introduced a similar bill last month. as we count down to earth day on friday, we are shining a light on one local city working to make a difference for our climate in crisis. a live look this morning at dublin. the city is moving forward with its climate action plan to have 100% renewable energy sources by the year 2030, including renewable and carbon-free electricity. nbc bay area spoke with dublin mayor, melissa hernandez, about how those changes might look for those living in the tri-valley. >> we've actually already started some of those changes, in early january 2022 we adopted to bring all of our residents to a 100% renewable through east bay community energy, our electricity company here and throughout the entire alameda county. and it's just being able to get clean electricity into our

homes. >> dublin also wants to further develop its existing building electrification plan. another focus, sustaining mobility and land use while reducing the amount of food waste. several other bay area cities have made similar climate commitments in recent years. now, again, want to remind you friday is earth day and all this week the "today" show and us here at "today in the bay" are focusing on our climate in crisis and ways we can all help our planet. find out more information at nbcbayarea.com. taking a live look right now at emeryville. the sky looks pretty clear. maybe not what we experienced overnight, but meteorologist kari hall is here to tell us what we can expect later on today. >> yeah, we are seeing the rain clearing from a lot of spots after some quick-moving early-morning showers, as we take a look at the radar we can see the activity starting to move away. our hour-by-hour forecast shows us by 10:00, most of us can leave the umbrellas at home.

the sky will clear as we go into today and we are going to take a break from the wet weather until tomorrow when we start to see it returning to the north bay. going into tomorrow afternoon into the evening, our next storm system will be arriving and it's going to hang out a lot longer than we are seeing this storm system do this morning. we'll talk more about that in a few minutes. mike, you should mind your speed out there. >> yeah, because marcus showed us a few second ago, this dublin spot, gray skies, denser clouds and rain, as we saw the radar. we see a little slowing and some active rain having just passed through. so keep that in mind. overall the rain not so much of an impact. b.a.r.t. has slowed the trains for slick tracks, but we have recovery for pleasanton, coming past stone ridge. outside of that, a typical build right now this morning. this evening you'll have another a's game, so mind that, between

98th we'll have slowing. there's a midday game on thursday. no warriors game today, but the sharks play at s.a.p. center. back to you. >> thanks, mike. 6:38 this morning. dealing with rising inflation. >> consumers are going to have to keep a budget. i mean really try to stick with that budget every month. >> we ask an economic expert about the possibility of the u.s. hitting a recession and how you should start to prepare now. >> president biden says he is giving the full support of california's dianne feinstein. i'll explain why that was necessary to say. let's take you out to the big boards this morning. the dow mildly higher, about 0.3 of a percent. >> and the ambitious new goal for the bay area that's up next. >> first, let's check in with our digital correspondent, abby fernandez, with the headlines she's tracking.

>> marcus and ginger, on our latest episode of synced in, we're talking about the six men arrested in connection with the smash-and-grab robberies we saw earlier this year in san jose. you can watch the episode on our instagram page at nbc bay area.

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the time is 6:42. good tuesday morning to you. we're seeing some wet weather moving quickly through the bay area. in brentwood it's all going to be clearing out as we go late

morning into the afternoon. temperatures going from the mid-50s to upper 60s. a beautiful sunny afternoon. we're not completely done with the rain. we'll talk about when it returns coming up in a few minutes. >> a much clearer view of the santa matt bridge from the hayward side. we have slicker roads on 92, which is moving smoothly across the water. we'll show you where things are bogging down a bit coming up. the white house is defending california senator dianne feinstein this morning. >> scott mcgrew, there are allegations senator feinstein has become too old for the job. >> very serious allegations about her mental abilities. our senior senator is 88 years old. that is the oldest sitting u.s. senator. white house press secretary jan psaki said yesterday president biden still has full faith in feinstein. this after a bombshell san francisco chronicle article quoted unnamed colleagues and even some of her own staff as questioning her mental

faculties. in one case saying the senator had to be reintroduced to people she was already in a meeting with. one lawmaker saying, quote, she was an intellectual and political force not that long ago and that's why my encounter with her was so jarring, because there was just no trace of that. vice president harris was at california's vandenberg space force base where she announced a new u.s. policy. we will not test anti-satellite weapons launched from earth. other countries have fired off weapons recently. we're not going to do the same. a lot of that is safety. when you destroy a satellite in orbit, you're creating a cloud of debris that threatens other satellites and even astronauts. so the space force is banned from launching weapons from earth and treaties already ban weapons in space for the moon. so no weapons really anywhere. former first lady of san francisco kimberly guilfoyle testified before the house select committee on the january 6th attack for nearly nine

hours, actually a little more than nine hours yesterday. so it was closed door. we don't know what they discussed. the committee chair says guilfoyle may have played a key role in organizing and raising funds for the event that came before the january 6th riot. a judge says an effort to block california -- or rather georgia congresswoman marjorie taylor greene off the next ballot can move forward. u.s. law says those who took up rebellion against the united states can't run for office. that targeted former members of the confederacy originally. the decision means the court case move forward, but no decision on her eligibility has been made. whatever happens, they need to hurry. her primary is in may. absentee ballots need to be mailed out by early next week. let's end on something happier. the easter egg roll is back, after two years because of covid, the white house easter egg roll under way yesterday. the president, the first lady

were there. the tradition dates back to 1878. we'll be watching what's happening at the capitol and in the courts these days as well. talking about it on social media. on twitter you'll find me @scott mcgrew. >> thanks a lot, scott. now we are all spending hundreds of dollars more every month due to inflation. consumer prices jumped 8.5% in march from a year ago. now, that includes food, which is also up 8.8% from a year ago. and gasoline, i think we're feeling it at the pumps, which rose 48% from last march. with i spoke to the bank of the west's chief economist, scott anderson, about the rising costs and growing recession concerns. >> it's quite concerning. we're seeing the worst inflation in 41 years right now. it's already impacting consumer confidence and consumer spending power, and it's also causing the federal reserve to signal faster and more aggressive interest

rate hikes, which means higher interest rates for all consumers on credit cards, on mortgages, and this is going to weigh further on the housing market. it is already starting to affect consumer discretionary spending, as well as durable goods spending, things like cars, we're starting to see sales starting to soften already. consumers right now are having to focus on necessities of food and shelter and gasoline to get to work every day. >> scott, that's what a lot of people are feeling these days. what is the likelihood that we could see a recession this time next year? >> well, the chance is rising significantly. i would place the risk of recession over the next 12 to 18 months right now at a not immaterial one in three. that's pretty high. usually the probabilities are around 10% or 12% in that sort of timeframe. so this is a sign and it could go higher as the fed continues to raise rates.

so it's important to start planning for the possibility. >> what are some tips that you have to help people keep their spending down and keep up with rising prices? >> consumers are going to have to keep a budget, i mean really try to stick with that budget every month and start to factor in the fact that their grocery bill may be going up every week a little bit. so trying to factor in a little bit of room for a higher budget in the months ahead. this is something we haven't had to deal with, like i said, in about 40 years, so i don't think a lot of consumers are used to the fact. the other thing is a lot of people are used to being able to hold off on spending because they think prices are going to drop in the future. but in an inflationary environment, prices just keep going up. so if you're planning on making a big purchase, it might make sense to make that purchase earlier rather than holding off, because it will only get more expensive down the road.

>> i talked to the chief economist about a lot more. you can see the whole interview on our nbc bay area app. download it for roku, apple tv or amazon fire. this morning a push is underway to bring 110 park projects to the bay area. 67 bay area nonprofit and public agencies are issuing the wish list as part of a 30 by 30 initiative. the price tag here, $700 million. supporters say the list could become a reality once federal and state funding is released. >> that's a very admirable goal. >> great day to be outside today, even though it's starting out wet, as we get a look at where the rain is falling.

we're seeing a lot clearing out, but notice the north bay is getting another round of spotty, light showers, moving on through. but we are also seeing some of that rain over parts of the east bay. so san ramon, still some showers as you're looking out the window. it's also raining in dublin, and then as you head down to fremont, light showers passing by. this is just enough to turn off the sprinklers. really not going to help us out much with the drought. we are not done with the rain because behind that is another storm system and this is going to be rolling in tomorrow afternoon. let's time it out. we're seeing the sky clearing out today and by tomorrow we're starting out early in the morning with a few more clouds moving in as we go toward 5:00 to 6:00, rain starts to fill in on the radar for the north bay and then starts to head down to san francisco. parts of the east bay getting off and on rain tomorrow evening, and then it continues throughout the day on thursday. as far as our temperatures, it's

going to be nice and seasonable. this is what it's supposed to be like in the middle to end of april, with upper 60s out there. oakland reaching 64 degrees. and san francisco up to 60. we see the more widespread rain with us throughout the day on friday. a lot of this will be tapering off as we go toward the weekend. it's looking dry. and then next week, unfortunately, it does seem like our storm system heads farther to the north and we are not going to see much more rain ahead of the next couple of days. so in the meantime, it looks like we could see anywhere from about 0.5 to maybe over 1 inch of rain near the coast and parts of the north bay. we're hoping these rainfall totals pan out as far as the sierra snow where it could reach up to 15 inches for south lake tahoe. and this is pretty late in the season to get a significant storm like this, so it's really great to see that happening. as we take a look at the weekend forecast, if you're making plans to get out, we have low 70s on saturday and it starts to feel more like summer for sunday.

that's the kind of weather we'll see early next week, while san francisco, upper 50s and low 60s, also will warm up as we dry out. mike, the south bay is starting to build. >> that's right. as expected for 101, not just from 680 north, but also back here starting just as you're heading past capitol expressway. this is a tuesday, so we'll see a little heavier volume around the bay. also creeping in for 85 as you head past union. there are your usual suspects. no major problems, we've had a little more slowing through pleasanton, started with the rain and stuck around as the volume builds. the rest of contra costa county to the north, pretty standard build, including 680 south through walnut creek and 24 into ma rag ga. back to you. >> thanks, mike. speaking of traffic, slowing down traffic on san francisco streets. today transit leaders will consider a plan to lower the speed limit on some key

corridors, which includes balboa, stockton, market, castro, mission, third and more. it's all part of the push to eliminate pedestrian deaths in san francisco. if approved, the new city speed limits would go into effect this summer. >> and a quick look at the top stories this morning, including no more masks if you're hitting the skies. we're breaking down what you need to know this morning. plus -- >> reporter: ten days after this home depot store in san jose nearly burned to the ground, there is a person under arrest. we're going to tell you what we know about the investigation coming up. >> and make sure you join me this morning on facebook live. we're on right now giving you a behind-the-scenes look of what's happening here on "today in the bay." ginger here with us this morning. do you have any questions? jump online, ask away. we're going to talk about it in the break. but stick around, we've got much more news ahead this morning. you're watching "today in the bay."

good morning. it is 6:56. welcome back. here are the top stories we're working on on "today in the bay." today we'll learn about the accused arsonist arrested for the massive fire that destroyed a home depot store in san jose. >> the fire kept so many people in the neighborhood holed up in their homes for hours. "today in the bay's" kris sanchez joins us from the investigation site with what we know so far.

good morning, kris. >> reporter: good morning. we know that person is accused, as you said, of setting the fire here at this home depot store on blossom hill in san jose, deliberately. but there could be other charges as well. we know that san jose fire and police have been investigating, but also investigating is the bureau of alcohol, tobacco, firearms and explosives. it's been ten days since the five-alarm fire at the home depot store. firefighters battled the flames for 12 hours and much of that time neighbors did have to shelter in their homes. no one was hurt, though witnesses told us the fire alarms and sprinklers didn't go off until nearly everyone was out of the store. as i mentioned, all of the investigators will be at the press conference at 11:00 this morning. we will be there asking questions. but if you want to watch it for yourself, you can find it on our streaming app at nbc bay area, and we will stream that live so you can watch it. we'll have analysis later today. kris sanchez, "today in the

bay." >> thank you. and this morning a former oakland priest is behind bars after allegedly killing a pd while driving drunk in rosemore over the weekend. stephen kiesle was under the influence when he drove onto a sidewalk killing a man. our investigative unit has reported on kiesle, a former priest who was defrocked in 1987. he's been accused of molesting dozens of children, earning him the nickname the pied piper of the oakland diocese. he serves time in prison and was released in 2010. let's take a live look at sfo as the mask mandate is coming to an end for many travelers. this comes as a federal judge in florida is striking down the requirement on planes, trains and buses. while on board on an early morning flight from florida to the bay area, "today in the bay's" bob redell says about 60% of the passengers on that plane were maskless. face coverings are officially

optional on alaska, united, delta, jet blue, american and southwest airlines, but they are recommended on board amtrak and b.a.r.t., and all three major bay area airports. however, you still must keep them on you when you take money, vta and ac transit. i know that can all be a little confusing, so go onto the app and make sure you have your mask handy and you're wearing it where you need to. >> the former director of the cdc will weigh in on this issue on the "today" show coming up right after us here on "today in the bay." we want to take a live look at the bay area this morning. meteorologist kari hall has been monitoring some of the rain. >> it's starting to taper off and some roads may still be wet. the cars in front of you kicking up water. temperatures head for the upper 60s today as we get more sunshine for the afternoon. >> a live camera in dublin does show some of the wet road. be careful, it may be slick. the roadways are manageable as

far as the volume goes, but allow extra time just in case you have to ease onto the brakes. >> good advice. >> and that's what's happening on "today in the bay." we're back at 7:25 with a live local news update. >> don't forget to join us for our midday newscast. the "today" show starts now with changes with the mask mandates. ♪♪ good morning. a federal judge overturns the cdc's mask mandate for travel. as masks come off on planes, trains, airports. >> oh, man, it was like christmas. >> and just this morning uber following suit. straight ahead, how to stay safe with covid cases on the rise again. snow more. the cold returns up to a foot of snow in parts of the northeast. heavy rain and damaging winds causing power outages and travel trouble. the winter storm that has millions asking has spring