Reader Reactions
California schools that ban cellphones make students want them more
Punishing all for the noncompliance of a few breeds resentment. Schools should confiscate phones from students who repeatedly offend.
Fighting LA wildfires broke my heart but prepared me for life outside prison
During the LA-area fires, Jose Angel Amezcua, an inmate firefighter, was where he was supposed to be — helping save the communities he had harmed.
Mayor Bass got some of LA’s homeless people indoors. Will it matter to voters?
Homelessness numbers in Los Angeles are down but not enough for many voters to notice. It's also no longer the main issue of Karen Bass's reelection bid.
California’s very odd election year starts with Republicans possibly leading the governor’s race
So many Democratic candidates are running — none with high poll numbers — that two Republicans could end up winning the primary.
California’s solution for senior health care hides in plain sight
PACE lets seniors stay out of nursing homes and still receive a variety of health and home services. Too few people know about it.
Yousef Baig
California Voices Editor
Denise Amos
California Voices Deputy Editor
Dan Walters
Columnist
Jim Newton
Contributor
Pedro Rios
Contributor
Robert Greene
Contributor
Commentary
Here’s how Newsom’s spending binge outstripped revenues, creating California’s chronic deficit
Obscure charts show how California's spending exploded under Newsom, far outstripping its stagnant population growth, inflation and a hefty increase in revenues.
Reader Reactions
Good behavior musn’t determine if a California prison inmate lives in a safe environment
An incarcerated person's constitutional right to a safe and healthy environment in a single occupancy cell cannot be withheld on the condition that she or he be good.
Commentary
Candidate comment: Insurers’ blockbuster profits enrich shareholders and CEOs, not customers
Guest Commentary written by Jane Kim Jane Kim is a civil rights attorney, consumer advocate and a former San Francisco Supervisor With the first anniversary of the devastating Southern California wildfires approaching, CalMatters asked candidates for the 2026 state Insurance Commissioner race to share thoughts on what the state can do to help victims and […]
Commentary
Could taxing multinational corporations erase California’s budget deficits? Not likely
As Gov. Gavin Newsom gears up for a presidential run, other California Democrats are weighing tax hikes to counter budget deficits and federal cutbacks.
Commentary
California promised accountability for inmate deaths in jails. A year later, no results.
Lawmakers passed a law creating a state department to review inmate deaths, but it hasn’t completed a single death review in its first year.
Commentary
Two ads during Super Bowl hint at a high-dollar ballot battle in California next fall
Uber's ballot measure would limit the ability of injured passengers to sue. Three lawyer-back measures would hold rideshare companies responsible.
Commentary
Hospitals’ opaque pricing is crushing California’s small businesses
Hospitals often charge California’s small businesses more than Medicare for the same treatments and tack on hidden “facilities fees.”
Commentary
Troubled LA Mayor Karen Bass faces a re-election challenge from the city’s left wing
City Councilwoman Nithya Raman declared her candidacy with a few hours to spare. A left leaning progressive, she'd previously endorsed Bass.
Commentary
California dirt bikers battled against desert preservation, spawning anti-environmental wars
Today’s anti-environmentalists follow tracks laid by the ‘Phantom Duck’ and the Barstow-to-Vegas Race, where thousands of bikers sped across open desert.