June 24, 2019

California lawmakers have approved more than $2 billion in new state spending on housing and homelessness. But while lawmakers and the governor have agreed to cut big checks, they're still fighting over who will actually receive the money—and with what strings attached.

Dani Carrillo, UC San Francisco: Undocumented workers comprise 9% of California labor force and contribute $3 billion in state and local taxes each year. They do some of the most arduous work, including landscaping, construction, restaurant work, and taking care of children and seniors. But if their health is compromised, they have few places to go.

Newsom eyes package to address wildfires crisis. Mental health services vary widely by county. Legislation focuses on school records for transgender alumi.

When the U.S. Supreme Court ordered California to disgorge tens of thousands of inmates from its overcrowded prison system in 2011, Justice Antonin Scalia warned in his dissent of "the terrible things sure to happen as a consequence" including the "inevitable murders, robberies, and rapes to be committed by the released inmates." But researchers who've looked at how how often those released from the state's prisons and jails in the ruling's aftermath say such fears have not come to pass.

California politicians dislike Donald Trump's federal; tax overhaul but are adopting portions of it to raise revenue.