Environment

Gov. Gavin Newsom presents his proposed $209 billion budget on January 10, 2019, in Sacramento. Photo for CALmatters by Laurel Rosenhall

Capitol

10 takeaways from Gov. Gavin Newsom’s $209 billion budget

A huge surprise surplus, a big push on affordable housing, help for college students, working poor tax credits, credit cards at the DMV, kindergarten potties.

By

Laurel Rosenhall

and

Judy Lin

• January 10, 2019

Climate Change

Big polluters get help from the state, renewing doubts about California’s climate goals

The state may not be able to cut enough greenhouse gases by 2030, says Mary Nichols, who chairs California's Air Resources Board.

By

Julie Cart

• December 14, 2018

View of theView of the Tuolumne River as it approaches the confluence with the San Joaquin. Dos Rios Ranch, with more than six miles of river frontage, is among sites in which floodplains are being restored. Photo via River Partners River as it approaches the confluence with the San Joaquin. Dos Rios Ranch has more than six miles of river frontage. Photo via River Partners

Environment

Let it flow: In about-face, state breaks and shifts levees to restore natural floodplains

A growing emphasis on reconnecting California floodplains to rivers so they can absorb floodwaters is a U-turn from past reliance on levees to protect cities and towns.

By

Alastair Bland

• December 4, 2018

PARADISE, CA - NOVEMBER 10: PG&E crews remove power lines damaged by fire off Bille Road in Paradise, Calif., on Saturday, Nov. 10, 2018. The Camp Fire is so far the most destructive wildfire in California history. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)

Environment

What happens if PG&E goes bankrupt?

What could happen if PG&E, which provides natural gas and electricity to 16 million people in northern and central California, goes bankrupt in the aftermath of the deadliest blaze in state history.

By

Judy Lin

• November 29, 2018

Environment

Wildfire preparedness

Lindy Rice, Sacramento While fire-preparedness is important, something also needs to be done about power lines, which are causing a lot of our fires. They are outdated technology, like land-line telephones. We have transitioned from land-line phones to wireless mobile phones in this century, so why not do the same with energy transmission? We need […]

By

Reader Reactions

• November 27, 2018

Photo of Assemblyman Jim Wood surveying fire damage in Paradise, CA.

Politics

“I don’t want to see any more of them die”: No legislator has confronted the effects of wildfire like this forensic dentist

Jim Wood is tackling two enormous, heart-wrenching puzzles: identifying the people who perished this month in California’s deadliest wildfire and figuring out what state policies could prevent such catastrophes in the future.

By

Laurel Rosenhall

• November 20, 2018

Sacramento Metropolitan firefighters battle the Camp Fire. Photo by Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group

Environment

California isn’t built for 21st century wildfires—here’s what the state could do about that

As California grapples with an increasing possibility that once-in-a-century wildfires are becoming once-a-year occurrences, larger swaths of the state’s population will find themselves living in the crimson high-risk regions of state maps now being revised. Which presents lawmakers with a dilemma: impose costly and politically unpalatable regulations on homeowners and rip up existing infrastructure—or simply accept the risk.

By

Ben Christopher

• November 19, 2018