Guest Commentary

Raphael J. Sonenshein, Cal State L.A.: Sheriffs are an anomaly in the system of checks and balances that is a hallmark of American government at federal, state, and local levels. Assembly Bill 1185 by Assemblyman Kevin McCarty, a Sacramento Democrat, would authorize county governments to create an inspector general and a civilian oversight commission and vest either or both with subpoena authority.

Re: “A law intended to create more transparency misleads voters. This bill will fix it,” Sept. 5, 2019: Sen. Scott Wiener and Assemblyman Mark Stone claim their bill will increase transparency for local bonds and parcel taxes. But the opposite is true. Their bill would relegate important taxpayer information to being buried deep in the […]

Jared Martin, California Association of Realtors: If our state is to continue leading the nation, we must address the housing shortage with policies that will actually lead to more housing. Simply put, a rent cap would be a bandage on a festering wound and would nothing to solve the root cause of higher rents.

Joseph Sanberg, Working Hero Action: Poverty is a threat to our economy, security, and human potential, and it’s an issue politicians on stages large and small have avoided. That needs to end. Poverty must take center stage at the Houston debate Sept. 12 because it is a challenge our next President must not ignore.

Re: “What happens to Uber and Lyft drivers once AB 5 passes?” Sept. 5, 2019 Unions don’t need collective bargaining to negotiate with employers of independent contractors. They can negotiate agreements that are very much like the ones employers have signed with social justice nonprofits in which employers agree to certain behavior. The agreement establishes […]

Liz Helms, California Chronic Care Coalition: California congressional delegation needs to act in unison to protect patients against surprise medical bills.

Dan Jaffe, Association of National Advertisers: California’s new Consumer Privacy Act could lead to an invasion of your privacy. The Legislature can still fix this issue and others before the die is cast and fundamental changes are made. We urge that lawmakers not to let this opportunity slip away.

Sen. Scott Wiener and Assemblyman Mark Stone: A law intended to create more transparency misleads voters and makes it harder to pass bond and parcel tax measures. Senate Bill 268 would fix it.

Sen. Connie Leyva and Nancy E. O'Malley, Alameda County District Attorney: Promptly testing DNA evidence in sexual assault kits will prevent backlogs of forensic evidence in laboratories or evidence rooms and can identify an unknown assailant, link crimes together, identify serial perpetrators, and exonerate the wrongly convicted.

By JB Tengco and Kathryn Phillips, BlueGreen Alliance: There’s a hidden environmental threat from Uber and Lyft, and they need to confront it by assuming their responsibility to provide core employment protections to drivers and assume their lawful responsibility to pay for employee equipment. With that assurance in place, California can move forward in its mission to clean the air and mitigate the climate crisis by reducing tailpipe emissions.