Dan Walters

Commentary

Newsom, legislators opt for gimmicks and wishful thinking to close California’s budget deficit

California faces a multibillion-dollar budget deficit that could last for years. Rather than treat it as a serious fiscal crisis, Gov. Gavin Newsom and legislative leaders are using gimmicks to close the gap.

By

Dan Walters

• March 26, 2024

An empty hallway at St. HOPE’s Public School 7 Elementary in Sacramento on May 11, 2022. Photo by Miguel Gutierrez Jr., CalMatters

Commentary

Fewer students and higher absenteeism plague California’s public school financing

California's public schools depend on state aid for the lion's share of their operational income. Two trends – declining enrollment and high absenteeism – are creating financial headaches.

By

Dan Walters

• March 8, 2024

Commentary

Southern California’s huge logistics industry faces a backlash over wages and pollution

In recent decades, the logistics industry has flourished in Southern California, but there's a backlash over the industry's low wages and the pollution it creates.

By

Dan Walters

• March 7, 2024

Adam Schiff addresses his supporters during an election night watch party in Los Angeles on March 5, 2024. Photo by Ted Soqui for CalMatters

Commentary

California’s political flash in U.S. Senate will fade when two journeymen occupy its seats

California has typically had U.S. senators with different personalities, one being flashy and the other quietly diligent. That phenomenon may be ending when two journeyman politicians, Adam Schiff and Alex Padilla, occupy the state's two Senate seats.

By

Dan Walters

• March 6, 2024

Commentary

Orange County feud shows how school boards became a key front for culture wars

A long-running feud between Orange County's elected schools superintendent and its school board exemplifies how public education has become a major venue for culture war clashes.

By

Dan Walters

• March 5, 2024

Gov. Gavin Newsom marches with a group of ticketed supporters towards the state Capitol on Jan. 6, 2023. The governor's campaign touted the event as a “March for Democracy”, as it's being held on the two-year anniversary of when supporters of former President Donald Trump stormed the U.S. Capitol. Photo by Miguel Gutierrez Jr., CalMatters

Commentary

Gavin Newsom is unpopular, but a second recall drive is doomed for failure

Five years into his governorship, fewer than half of Californian adults approve of Gavin Newsom's performance. Still, a second recall drive is doomed for failure.

By

Dan Walters

• March 1, 2024

Commentary

California made primary elections boring. Voter participation reflects that

Changes to California's primary election system were meant to be an improvement but have instead made the elections boring, which in turn has reduced voter participation.

By

Dan Walters

• February 29, 2024

Commentary

California spends billions on homelessness yet the crisis keeps getting worse

California has the nation's largest population of homeless people and has spent billions of dollars to lower the number yet it keeps growing.

By

Dan Walters

• February 28, 2024

Stone Corral Creek, shown here on on Feb. 14, 2023, will be about 200 feet underwater when the Sites Reservoir is built in the western Sacramento Valley. Photo by Julie A. Hotz, for CalMatters

Commentary

California needs reliable water supply, but climate change brings more uncertainty

As California's precipitation becomes more erratic due to climate change, the state needs more tools, including more storage capacity, to make the water supply reliable.

By

Dan Walters

• February 27, 2024

Commentary

California court ruling could crack down on tactics to slow or block construction

The California Environmental Quality Act has often been used, or misused, to block housing construction and other projects. A new state appellate court decision could reduce that practice.

By

Dan Walters

• February 23, 2024