Nonprofit & Nonpartisan News
Avatar photo

Emily Hoeven

Contact Latest Stories

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.

Contact

Email X

Latest Stories

Young pigs feed in a pen during a hog farm tour in Ryan, Iowa, U.S., May 18, 2019. Photo by Ben Brewer, Reuters
WhatMatters
California pig law exposes a divided America
Although it deals primarily with pigs, the California case that had oral arguments before the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday could potentially result in a decision as far-reaching as those striking down federal abortion protections and expanding gun rights. At issue is Proposition 12, the ballot measure California voters approved in 2018 requiring bigger cages […]
By • October 12, 2022
Los Angeles City Council President Nury Martinez speaks at Los Angeles City Hall in Los Angeles on April 1, 2022. Photo by Damian Dovarganes, AP Photo
WhatMatters
Will LA City Council fiasco lead to redistricting reform?
Racism, redistricting and resignation. Those were the three R-words that rocked the California political world on Monday, as everyone from Gov. Gavin Newsom to U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla to statewide candidates in the Nov. 8 election weighed in on a leaked 2021 recording obtained by the Los Angeles Times in which three Los Angeles City […]
By • October 11, 2022
WhatMatters
What San Diego says about California
“It’s hard for any legislator to admit that a policy they championed, and put a lot of money behind, is going to make things worse.” That comment, from San Diego City Councilmember Raul Campillo, came during a Saturday panel on child care at Politifest, an annual series of debates and discussions hosted by the nonprofit […]
By • October 10, 2022
A view of the Phillips 66 Company's Los Angeles Refinery, which processes domestic and imported crude oil into gasoline, aviation and diesel fuels at the Kinder Morgan Carson Terminal in Carson, on Mar. 11, 2022. Photo by Bing Guan, Reuters
WhatMatters
Will Californians get even more gas rebates?
As California gas prices approach record highs — though costs could soon drop by as much as $1 per gallon — there’s “9.5 billion reasons I think people should be appreciative that the state’s recognizing the stress and strain that families are going through,” Gov. Gavin Newsom said Thursday. The governor’s comments — made during […]
By • October 7, 2022
A tiny home village in Sacramento on Sep. 29, 2022. Photo by Rahul Lal, CalMatters
WhatMatters
California’s homeless population increased — again
It’s the white whale of California politicians and policymakers, the problem that only seems to intensify no matter how much attention and money are devoted to it: homelessness. About six in 10 Californians said the homeless population has grown in their community over the past year, according to a recent Public Policy Institute of California […]
By • October 6, 2022
Betting odds for Super Bowl LV are displayed on monitors at the Circa resort and casino sports book in Las Vegas on Feb. 3, 2021. Photo by John Locher, AP Photo
WhatMatters
After $440 million, both sports betting ballot measures are underwater
They say money can’t buy you happiness — and that was likely true Tuesday for the proponents of two dueling initiatives on California’s Nov. 8 ballot to legalize sports betting. After all the money raised by the four campaigns on both sides of Propositions 26 and 27 — nearly $441 million so far, nearly double […]
By • October 5, 2022
An array of GOP memorabilia for sale at the Republican Party booth at California State Fair in Sacramento on Friday, July 15, 2022. Photo by Rahul Lal, CalMatters
WhatMatters
California stuck in Dem-GOP binary
“If people just vote for an R or D then all of our conversations are a waste of time.” Robert Howell, the Republican candidate for California insurance commissioner, shared that somewhat fatalistic sentiment — that voters cast ballots for candidates simply based on the letter designating their party affiliation — in a Los Angeles Times […]
By • October 4, 2022
The Salesforce Tower and skyline behind a gasoline price board at a station in San Francisco on July 20, 2022. Photo by Jeff Chiu, AP Photo
WhatMatters
Fight escalates between Newsom, oil industry
Gov. Gavin Newsom hadn’t even finished dispensing with all of the bills on his desk ahead of Friday’s midnight deadline before he issued a call for new legislation. “We’re not going to stand by while greedy oil companies fleece Californians,” the governor said in a stern Twitter video, citing a lopsided surge in gas prices […]
By • October 3, 2022
A sign displaying the price of gas at Valero gas station in central Fresno on Sept. 29, 2022. Photo by Larry Valenzuela, CalMatters/CatchLight Local
WhatMatters
As gas prices soar, state on brink of sending rebates
Remember when Gov. Gavin Newsom and state lawmakers struck a deal a couple of months ago to send millions of California taxpayers between $200 and $1,050 to help cover the rising cost of living? Well, a week from today, the state is set to begin depositing the first round of payments in Californians’ bank accounts. […]
By • September 30, 2022
Supporters of United Farmworkers of America march to the state Capitol in Sacramento on Aug. 26, 2022, urging Gov. Gavin Newsom to sign AB 2183. Photo by Rahul Lal, CalMatters
WhatMatters
A day of surprises at the Capitol
With a midnight Friday deadline to determine the fate of hundreds of bills on his desk, Gov. Gavin Newsom has been a busy man. On Wednesday, Newsom unexpectedly showed up at the vigil that members of the United Farm Workers union have been holding outside the state Capitol since late August, when they completed a […]
By • September 29, 2022

Gift this article