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Emily Hoeven

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Emily Hoeven wrote the daily WhatMatters newsletter for three years at CalMatters . Her reporting, essays, and opinion columns have been published in San Francisco Weekly, the Deseret News, the San Francisco Business Times, the Flathead Beacon, the Daily Pennsylvanian, and the Mercury News. Emily graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a BA in English and French and studied English at the University of Cambridge, England as a Thouron Summer Prize fellow. She speaks French fluently and spent a year teaching English in Châteauroux, France.

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Latest Stories

The River Fire destroyed nearly 3,000 acres and threatened 1,500 structures in Salinas, Calif., on Aug. 16, 2020 after an early morning lightning storm. Photo by David Rodriguez, The Salinas Californian
WhatMatters
Fire risk amid a housing crisis — California’s challenging new reality
California has a lot of moratoriums it needs to worry about. Even as Gov. Gavin Newsom and state lawmakers rush to extend California’s eviction moratorium before it expires next week, another big deadline looms on the horizon. In November, the state’s moratorium on insurance companies dropping coverage for Californians living in wildfire-prone areas is set […]
By • June 22, 2021
A pedestrian with a suitcase walks past a vacant store front on Powell Street in the Union Square shopping district in San Francisco on June 14, 2021. Photo by Anne Wernikoff, CalMatters
WhatMatters
Why California’s unemployment picture is muddled
How you interpret California’s latest unemployment numbers may have a lot to do with whether you’re a glass half-full or glass half-empty kind of person. If you’re the former, Friday’s report from the Employment Development Department is cause to celebrate: It shows that California’s unemployment rate dropped to 7.9% in May, down from April’s revised […]
By • June 21, 2021
For the past year and a half, Newsom has dominated the pandemic headlines, whether receiving adulation or harsh criticism. But what has his life been like behind the scenes? Photo by Anne Wernikoff, CalMatters
WhatMatters
Newsom spills on his pandemic life
Good morning, California. It’s Friday, June 18. Behind-the-scenes look Gov. Gavin Newsom is peeling back COVID-19 restrictions and handing out prizes, but as California tries to regain its balance, much of the fallout is landing at his feet. Cal/OSHA, the state’s workplace safety agency, voted Thursday to allow most fully vaccinated workers to forgo face […]
By • June 18, 2021
Gov. Gavin Newsom celebrated California's milestone with a lottery-style selection of 10 winners who will be endorsed $1.5 million each for being fully vaccinated, making it the nation's largest incentive for the coronavirus vaccine. After the news conference, Newsom juggled the lottery balls Photo by Pablo Unzueta for CalMatters
WhatMatters
Could Newsom’s fun and games backfire?
The images coming out of Gov. Gavin Newsom’s recent public events have been, to say the least, surreal — and could pose a political liability for the governor, who must balance buoying Californians’ spirits with acknowledging the ongoing harm of the pandemic as he fends off an almost-certain recall election. On Wednesday, Newsom rode a […]
By • June 17, 2021
Joshua Rayburn, with a mask on, and Blake Whytock, without a mask, prepare drinks for customers inside The Good Bar in Long Beach, on June 15, 2021. Rayburn has decided he wants to wait before being maskless inside public spaces. Pablo Unzueta for CalMatters
WhatMatters
California’s not-so-big reopening
Good morning, California. It’s Wednesday, June 16. For many, masks here to stay Rome wasn’t built in a day — and neither did California reopen in one. Flanked by minions, Smurfs and Transformers at Universal Studios Hollywood, a maskless Gov. Gavin Newsom drew $15 million worth of prizes in the state’s vaccine lottery and declared […]
By • June 16, 2021
People ride the rollercoaster at Santa Monica Pier on May 29, 2021. Photo by Damian Dovarganes, AP Photo
WhatMatters
After 453 days, California reopens
Good morning, California. It’s Tuesday, June 15. State tries to boost travel Today’s the day — at last. A staggering 453 days after Gov. Gavin Newsom issued the nation’s first stay-at-home order, shutting the state down overnight, most businesses will be able to reopen at full capacity. Fully vaccinated Californians will be able to ditch […]
By • June 15, 2021
Signage at a car dealership in Oregon City says that masks are not required with proof of vaccination on June 3, 2021. California health authorities have said businesses may use a similar system. Image via iStock
WhatMatters
Newsom: Vaccine verification system in works
One key component of California’s reopening may come down to semantics. What’s the difference between a “vaccine verification system” and a “vaccine passport”? Hard to say — but Gov. Gavin Newsom distinguished between the two during a Friday press conference, suggesting the state is working on an electronic system that businesses can use to check […]
By • June 14, 2021
California lawmakers now want Newsom's recall election to happen sooner rather than later. Illustration by Anne Wernikoff, CalMatters; iStock
WhatMatters
In switch, lawmakers accelerate Newsom recall election
Democratic lawmakers are taking steps to move up the date of the all-but-certain election to recall Gov. Gavin Newsom — a sign they may be listening to arguments that doing so could help him stay in office. Thursday morning, the state Department of Finance released estimates showing it would cost California’s 58 counties at least […]
By • June 11, 2021
Alex Armstrong, 51 and his wife, Paula Armstrong, 45, prepare pick up orders during lunch hour at their Long Beach restaurant, VBurger, on June 8, 2021. "It's been very challenging for us, but we couldn't back out," said Armstrong of opening mid-pandemic last year. Photo by Pablo Unzueta for CalMatters
WhatMatters
Masks at work? California can’t decide
Good morning, California. It’s Thursday, June 10. School: Yes. Work: Maybe. Masks at school, but not at the store. Well, unless you work at the store. But store employees may only have to wear masks until June 28. As long as they’re fully vaccinated. But it’s up to businesses to figure out how to verify […]
By • June 10, 2021

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