WhatMatters

Billionaires really don’t want voters to pass Proposition 40. Not only have they poured more than $187 million so far to try and defeat the measure, they’ve also placed two other measures — Prop. 41 and Prop. 42 — on the November ballot. If either of the two pass with more votes than Prop. 40, […]

If you want to build a housing project somewhere in California like Los Angeles, you’ll have to wade through an ocean of red tape to secure the right permits. The process isn’t for the faint of heart — some projects, for example, require special permits to have dirt taken away. So for those who don’t […]

The Northern California County that often seems to be at the center of election drama is bracing for another potentially bumpy one. As CalMatters’ Ryan Sabalow explains, Shasta County residents in June ousted Registrar of Voters Clint Curtis. But the longtime conspiracy theorist and election denier still has the remainder of his term to oversee […]

Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a spate of bills Saturday that aim to safeguard California elections and preemptively address potential actions by President Donald Trump to interfere with election results or limit how Californians can vote. Trump avows that his administration is attempting to stop widespread election fraud, which is exceedingly rare, and prevent noncitizens from […]

For years, California has struggled to address a mounting backlog of workers claiming labor law violations, even as it collected millions of dollars from employers each year for enforcement. Now, a judge’s order may force the state to solve the problem.  The state’s Labor Commissioner’s Office faces a lawsuit this year from workers who say […]

Two years ago, proponents of Proposition 36 pledged the measure would curb crime, substance abuse and homelessness in California. So after voters overwhelmingly passed it, how well is the law working? We’re publishing a special report today looking at how the law is affecting lives on the ground in courts and in jails. CalMatters’ Marisa […]

Likely voters in California narrowly support Proposition 40, the hotly contested billionaire tax proposal — but slim majorities also support two billionaire-backed countermeasures that would nullify the big wealth tax.  That’s according to a new poll of over 1,100 likely voters released last night by the Public Policy Institute of California with two months to […]

Lawmakers this year allocated $400,000 to a mime troupe in San Francisco, $250,000 to a San Luis Obispo nonprofit advocating for beavers and $500,000 to a nonprofit benefitting Los Angeles youth interested in filmmaking. It’s all part of an opaque budgeting process, known as pork-barrel spending, that’s shielded from public scrutiny, writes CalMatters’ Yue Stella […]

President Donald Trump’s efforts to limit mail-in voting could encourage something that election officials and voting advocates have struggled to do for years: Get people to vote earlier. As more than 20 states and the Trump administration continue their legal battle over whether Trump can force the U.S. Postal Service to restrict vote-by-mail ballots in […]

Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law Thursday more than a dozen bills strengthening online protections for kids. One of the more controversial measures requires social media companies to make their platforms less addictive and another reins in artificial intelligence chatbots, writes CalMatters’ Colin Lecher. Assembly Bill 1709 requires companies to either omit addictive features on […]