Officials in California are working to remove a racist term towards Native American women in more than 30 locations in California, according to the state Natural Resources Agency.

The removal of the term “squaw,” which was deemed “derogatory” by the Secretary of the Interior in 2021, is part of AB 2022, a bill signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in 2022. The law asks that the term be removed “all geographic features and place names in the state” by Jan. 1, 2025.

“The term is recognized as a racial, ethnic, and gender-based slur, particularly aimed at Native American women. Its removal is a crucial step in recognizing the ongoing trauma and oppression that Native communities have faced,” officials said in a news release.

In a statement on social media, the agency described the move as a “bold new step towards healing for past injustices.”

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The full list of new California names is not currently available but has been selected with the help of California’s Native American tribes and will be released shortly, the natural resources agency told The Associated Press in an email.

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Three California delegates from the Indian Rights Association meet with Representative Harry Shepard of California to put their claims before Congress. The delegates are Julia Ross Gardner form the Piute, Celestine Pico Von Bulow from the Pachanga, and Thomas Largo from the Cahuilla. (Getty Images)

Deputy Secretary for Tribal Affairs at the Natural Resource Agency Geneva Thompson said this is an extremely important step for Indigenous people.

“Acknowledging those historical wrongs that were committed against Native Americans is extremely important, but we need to take the next step toward healing,” Thompson said. “While there are differences among folks, we can build communities that reflect and honor and celebrate those differences instead of alienating and perpetuating historical wrongs.”

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The California Advisory Committee on Geographic Names says they will implement approved replacement names by Jan. 1.

Fox News Digital has reached out to the California Natural Resources Agency for comment.

A woman has been arrested for allegedly impersonating a nurse and working in multiple California hospitals without a license.

The Burbank Police Department arrested Amanda Leeann Porter on Nov. 7 after hospital staff at the city’s Saint Joseph Medical Center reported she was impersonating a nurse while caring for patients, police said in a statement.

Police alleged that Porter, originally from Virginia, fraudulently applied for a job at the hospital and was hired. She cared for around 60 patients, per the statement, between April 8 and May 8, before staff realized she was impersonating a real registered nurse who did not live in California.

“By the time Porter was terminated, she received two paychecks for the time she was fraudulently employed,” police added.

Porter, 44 — who police said does not hold a nursing license — is also accused of committing a similar crime at the Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital in Santa Clarita, north of Los Angeles.

“During this investigation, detectives learned that Porter continued to obtain employment with various local hospitals using a variety of false identities,” the police statement said.

Porter had bonded out of custody from the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department after being arrested in Santa Clarita, according to police.

Porter faces charges of felony identity theft, felony false impersonation and felony grand theft. According to the L.A. County District Attorney’s Office, Porter pleaded not guilty to all of the charges on Wednesday, Nov. 13.

“Ms. Porter’s alleged actions are deeply troubling and egregious as she deceived patients and medical professionals alike, betraying the trust of those who rely on our medical community in their most vulnerable time of need,” district attorney George Gascón said in a statement.

“We acknowledge the profound distress that this situation may have caused those who were treated by the defendant,” the statement continued. “Our office will work relentlessly to hold this individual accountable and ensure that justice is served.”

The Los Angeles Times reported that Porter is also on federal probation for a fraud violation in Virginia, and that a woman named Amanda Porter-Eley pleaded guilty to impersonating a nurse and committing bank fraud in the state.

The outlet reported that Burbank police would not confirm whether Amanda Leeann Porter and Amanda Porter-Eley were the same person, but that their ages match and prior court filings have used both names.

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Porter-Eley was found guilty of impersonating a nurse in Virginia and worked for six months as a nursing supervisor without a license, the U.S. Department of Justice said, per the Times. The woman was accused of using the nurse’s identity from September 2015 to 2016 to open bank accounts and take out loans for cash, services and goods worth around $450,000.

Burbank police said that Porter is being held without bail at the L.A. County Central Regional Detention Facility in Lynwood.

Authorities are now seeking more information about Porters’ case, with Burbank police alleging that she “may have committed additional similar offenses in the Southern California area during the past year.”

Anyone with further information is asked to contact local law enforcement or Burbank detectives at (818) 238-3210.

Republicans in a majority-Latino district in California that includes Indio and Coachella are on course to flip a Democratic state Assembly seat red.

Jeff Gonzalez, an Iraq and Afghanistan war veteran, is set to beat out Democrat Joey Acuña, a school board member, for the 36th Assembly District.

Gonzalez is ahead by an insurmountable 4,362 votes, or 3.1%, as of Friday, per official count numbers. 

If Gonzalez gets over the line, it will be the first time since 1992 that Republicans in California have picked up a seat in the state legislature during a presidential cycle, according to California state Assembly member Bill Essayli.

Republican Ken Calvert wins re-election to US House in California’s 41st Congressional District

If elected, Gonzalez will replace longtime Democratic legislator Eduardo Garcia as the next state assembly member in a sprawling district. Garcia, from Coachella, decided not to seek re-election this year and instead endorsed Acuña, the Coachella Valley Unified School District board president, per the Desert Sun.

The soon-to-be stunning seat win is underlined by the fact that Democrats make up about 42.3% of the 245,500 people registered to vote in the district, while Republicans account for 28.7%. Voters with no party affiliation were 21.6% of the total, according to the Desert Sun.

In the March primary, Gonzalez received about 21,000 votes compared to about 12,000 for Acuña. However, Democratic candidates overall earned about 4,500 more votes than Republicans.

California, a deep blue state, was easily won by Vice President Harris, who is currently leading President-elect Trump by 58.8% to 38% with 92.85% of the votes counted. 

Gonzalez is a 21-year veteran of the Marine Corps who also served on embassy protection missions in Honduras and the Czech Republic, working closely with former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, according to his campaign website.

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Jeff Gonzalez speaks with voters during an election fair and voter registration drive at College of the Desert in Palm Desert, Calif., Oct. 21, 2024. (Jay Calderon/The Desert Sun / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

He is also a pastor and the owner of three small businesses, per his website. He is married with four sons, one of whom is physically and mentally challenged and lives with he and his wife for caregiver support.

Gonzalez ran on a platform of cutting red tape, lowering taxes and fees on groceries and gas and “reviving the California Dream.”

He also wants to address inflation by passing “the largest middle-class tax cut in California history.”

Gonzalez is also vowing to improve education, saying he is concerned about falling test scores and graduation rates. He wants to hire more teachers and more school security to create a safer learning environment as well as promote bipartisanship by supporting good ideas from both parties.

Acuña ran on tackling affordability, housing and public safety.

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California, a deep blue state, was easily won by Vice President Harris, who is currently leading President-elect Trump by 58.8% to 38% with 92.85% of the votes counted.  (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)

“I want to make sure the kids who grow up in our district have access to good-paying jobs, safe neighborhoods, world-class schools, and clean air and water,” he states on his website. 

Acuña is serving his fifth term on the Coachella Valley Unified School District Board of Trustees. In this role, he said he has worked to improve graduation rates, enhance after-school programs, and expand the district’s college and career pathway programs, according to his website.

He works professionally as development manager for health clinics and a grant writer for a local tribe.