WhatMatters

A lack of snowfall this past winter has California fire officials bracing for a potentially intense fire season, reports CalMatters’ Rachel Becker. State engineers conducted the annual April 1 snowpack measurement Wednesday, at Phillips Station south of Lake Tahoe. They reported that California’s snowpack at the end of the season was just 18% of average […]

Scheduling note: WhatMatters is honoring Farmworkers Day and will be back in your inboxes Thursday. Of all the states, California is home to the most small businesses, and has the largest immigrant population. But a recent rule change from the Small Business Administration could mean that the number of would-be owners of California restaurants, child […]

Big Tech spent $39 million to influence state politics last year, making 2025 a blockbuster year of spending for Meta, Google and other technology companies that want to push their agenda to California officials. As CalMatters’ Jeremia Kimelman explains, the upcoming election, disputes over artificial intelligence regulation and the growth of the cryptocurrency industry have […]

Last year, Assemblymember Blanca Pacheco successfully pushed two pieces of legislation limiting state transparency. Now the Downey Democrat has another bill that would make obtaining government records harder for the public. As CalMatters’ Yue Stella Yu explains, Pacheco’s latest proposal would allow public agencies to charge an unspecified, uncapped fee to fulfill a public records […]

A California jury directed Google and Meta to cough up a total of $3 million Wednesday in a landmark verdict in favor of a young plaintiff whose family claimed that the companies knowingly made their social media platforms addictive to teens. As CalMatters’ Colin Lecher explains, the case is one of a spate of lawsuits that […]

From CalMatters Capitol reporter Jeanne Kuang: Ten weeks before the primary election, California Democrats still haven’t narrowed down the field of candidates enough to reduce the chances of splitting the vote so much that two Republicans make it to the ballot in November.  That’s what polling released by the Democratic Party on Tuesday showed, with […]

The U.S. Supreme Court is hearing arguments this week in a lawsuit that could affect elections for more than a dozen states, including California, requiring voters to send their mail-in ballots early. The dispute is over a Mississippi law that allows election officials there to count such ballots when they are postmarked by Election Day […]

From CalMatters politics and campaign reporter Yue Stella Yu: California’s campaign ethics watchdog has opened two investigations into Dana Williamson, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s former chief of staff indicted last November on bank and wire fraud charges, and her co-conspirators in the criminal probe. To catch you up: Federal prosecutors last year accused Williamson of falsifying […]

I’m CalMatters reporter Ryan Sabalow, and I’m pinch hitting for Lynn today.  No more César Chávez Day, California. Democratic leaders said Thursday they’re going to fast-track legislation to rename the March 31 holiday “Farmworkers Day.” The move came a day after the New York Times published a bombshell investigation into allegations that the once-beloved farmworker’s […]

I’m CalMatters reporter Adam Echelman and I’m subbing in for Lynn today. Multiple women, including Dolores Huerta, said they endured sexual abuse at the hands of California icon César Chávez. The abuse detailed by these women came out in a New York Times investigation published Wednesday. Two of the women were children at the time […]