Economy

INSIGHT WITH BETH RUYAK | Exploring The Pension Crisis In California

When California lawmakers cut a deal to increase public employee pensions, the state had a very different economic climate. We’ll talk with LA Times reporter Jack Dolan about the pension gap and what he’s learned about it.

By

CalMatters Staff

• September 19, 2016

Economy

Why The Dot-Com Bubble Is Key To Understanding California’s Growing Public Employee Pension Debt

To figure out how California got in this situation, it’s helpful to rewind the clock to the late 1990s, back to the days of the dot-com bubble. That’s when the state and local governments chose to make pension benefits a lot more generous. It’s a decision that turned out to have lasting implications.

By

CalMatters Staff

• September 19, 2016

Economy

How the state put itself into a vise over pensions

By

CalMatters Staff

• September 18, 2016

Economy

The Pension Crisis: About this project

We are excited to launch a new project about California’s pension debt crisis that is a collaboration between CALmatters, the Los Angeles Times and Capital Public Radio. In print, online and over the airwaves, this series will explore the consequences of a historic expansion of retirement benefits for California public employees. A series of […]

By

David Lesher

• September 18, 2016

Politics

Will state ban property seizure from people who aren’t criminals?

In civil liberties circles, she is known by the pseudonym of Elizabeth James—a retiree from the phone company who was contemplating a cross-country trip with her machinist husband. The two had worked for decades, raising two children and caring for her developmentally disabled sister, who lived in a home the couple had bought and remodeled […]

By

Glen Martin

• September 1, 2016

Economy

Timeline: California policies of inclusion for the undocumented

Review state measures granting rights, opportunities and protections to undocumented immigrants. Highlights of state measures granting unauthorized immigrants rights, protections and opportunities. 1996 Prenatal care available for all low-income residents, regardless of legal status. 2001 In-state tuition at public universities approved for undocumented students who attend high school in California for three or more […]

By

Pauline Bartolone

• July 12, 2016

Economy

Where the Capitol meets the streets

In Sacramento, right outside California’s gleaming state Capitol, dozens of homeless people live on the streets. Here is Debbie Bartley, a grandmother who was one of them until last year. She now ekes by selling a street publication, helping others who still live on the edge. Read more about Debbie’s story here. At the corner […]

By

Laurel Rosenhall

• June 28, 2016

Economy

At the corner of power and poverty

The Capitol dome looms over downtown Sacramento, a magnet for money and power. Shiny-shoed politicians and well-dressed lobbyists hustle toward the building where billion-dollar decisions are made. Nearby shops sell fine cigars and custom suits. A bar serves $16 martinis. But the streets that surround this regal building also are home to some of Sacramento’s […]

By

Laurel Rosenhall

• June 28, 2016

Economy

Voices of the undocumented

Students speak on how their lives have changed since an executive order by President Obama and policies by California lawmakers. Efrain Carrillo

By

Pauline Bartolone

• June 12, 2016

Economy

Hello, White House, how about Obamacare for California’s undocumented?

As the presidential election generates a heated national debate about immigration, California is ploughing ahead with policies to integrate undocumented immigrants, most recently, by expanding healthcare access. “It’s one of the most dramatic turnarounds in California political history,” said Daniel Zingale, senior vice president of the California Endowment, a nonprofit health foundation, about undocumented kids […]

By

Pauline Bartolone

• May 4, 2016