Guest Commentary

The late Sen. Dianne Feinstein relentlessly fought to preserve California's natural splendor, especially its desert parks and water. All of the candidates running for her Senate seat have big hiking boots to fill.

California has a lot of work to do to build a representative physician workforce. Latinos account for just 6% of physicians, despite making up 39% of the state's population.

The California Department of Food and Agriculture recently issued a quarantine order for Ventura County after Huanlongbing, a devastating citrus disease, was discovered. To overcome the threat, government and growers of all sizes have a key role to play.

The head of a network of community clinics in Los Angeles says a $25 minimum wage has improved patient care and staff retention, and wants Gov. Gavin Newsom to sign legislation that would make it a requirement statewide.

Struggling community hospitals across California are ill-prepared for the creation of a $25 minimum wage for health care workers, should Gov. Newsom decide to sign the legislation.

In neglected areas such as South Los Angeles, the freeways that crisscross neighborhoods are choking residents with harmful pollution. A bill on Gov. Gavin Newsom's desk would extend a clean transportation program that can aid these communities.

Before decriminalizing psychedelic substances for personal use, California should allow them for therapeutic use, argues the founder of a community clinic in San Francisco.

California courts give low-income jurors $15 per day. As a result, people with financial hardships are excused, leading to juries that often fail to reflect local demographics. A bill on the governor's desk would expand a San Francisco pilot program and up the rate to $100 in four new counties.

Dianne Feinstein's greatest political achievements on gun safety, water issues and exposing CIA torture are well-known. Her lasting accomplishments, however, might be the generations of staffers she molded who use the lessons she instilled on a daily basis.

U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, who died on Thursday, was a true force of nature and the greatest senator in California history, a former staffer says. If there were more people like her in Washington D.C., America could find more common ground.