California Divide

Motel row along Parkway Drive in Fresno between Belmont and Olive avenues, Jan. 14, 2020. Photo by John Walker, Fresno Bee

California Divide

Inside one city’s multimillion-dollar effort to convert motels into affordable housing

Lea este artículo en español. State-funding efforts to shelter unhoused residents in converted motels could be a game-changer for Motel Drive, an area of Fresno that city leaders say has long been overrun by drugs, human trafficking, and prostitution. Local city leaders say Project Homekey has been a success in Fresno, providing shelter for about 1,500 people over […]

By

Melissa Montalvo

• July 7, 2021

Graciela Gomez looks out the window from her boyfriend's home in South Gate. "One Sunday I'm home and I get served," Gomez said. "One of the credit card companies had sued me." Photo by Pablo Unzueta for CalMatters

California Divide

California may move to regulate booming debt settlement industry

A bill aims to create new rules for California's mostly unregulated debt settlement industry. AB 1405, expected to pass through Senate committees, comes at a time when the industry expects to see a 75% increase in account enrollment.

By

Erika Paz

• July 6, 2021

Housing

Where are tenants falling through the cracks of California eviction ban?

California has one of the nation’s longest-running eviction bans, but an exclusive CalMatters analysis finds that local decisions carved a divide for tenants. Landlords and sheriffs are evicting renters at higher rates in the Central Valley, while some Bay Area counties added protections for tenants.

By

Manuela Tobias

,

Nigel Duara

and

John Osborn D'Agostino

• July 1, 2021

California Divide

Look up your Golden State Stimulus amount

Lea este artículo en español. California is expanding its Golden State Stimulus program for low-income households to middle-class families. Under a new budget that Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Monday night, state lawmakers agreed to spend $8.1 billion to help out millions of working families. That comes on top of $3.8 billion sent out earlier this year to low-income […]

By

Erica Yee

,

Frida Qi

and

Jackie Botts

• July 1, 2021

California Divide

Food banks say people are still in need, but aid is waning

By

Genesis Chavez-Caro

• June 30, 2021

California Divide

How COVID-19 swept California’s mariachis

As work dried up for mariachi bands, many musicians put themselves at risk for coronavirus transmission. Even when demand picked up last fall, many mariachis were asked to perform at funerals to help families mourn lost loved ones.

By

Jacqueline Garcia

• June 29, 2021

California Divide

An entire California town is without running water — in a heat wave

A rural Central Valley community is without running water during a heat wave, prompting authorities to haul in bottles and jugs of water to more than 700 people in Teviston.

By

Melissa Montalvo

• June 28, 2021

California Divide

Silicon Valley Pain Index: Tech wealth grows as Black household income falls

By

Jesse Bedayn

• June 25, 2021

California Divide

Legislature looks to halt child support debt collections — only for some

Lawmakers propose to stop collecting child support debt owed to the government in cases where a parent’s only source of income comes from certain cash assistance programs. But advocates had asked the Legislature to go farther by forgiving old, uncollectible debt and to stop imposing a 10% interest.

By

Nigel Duara

and

Kate Cimini

• June 25, 2021

California Divide

Some disabled Californians feel abandoned by Newsom’s Golden State Stimulus

Gov. Gavin Newsom sent $600 Golden State Stimulus checks to some Californians with disabilities, but passed over others. As the Legislature negotiates with Newsom over his proposal to expand the program, Californians who receive Social Security Disability Insurance say they’re fed up with being overlooked during the pandemic.

By

Jackie Botts

• June 24, 2021

California Divide

Covering income inequality across the state