CalMatters Impact

Journalism that makes a difference

A person with a beard speaks at a podium holding a photograph, with others standing nearby, flags behind them, and several printed photos displayed in the foreground.

‘It’s time’: California leaders unveil biggest crackdown on drunk drivers in decades

A bipartisan coalition of state lawmakers has introduced 10 bills, an unprecedented package designed to stop deadly drivers.

Robert Lewis

and

Lauren Hepler

On the steps of a building at night, two people hug beside a microphone, while rows of small orange traffic cones and string lights line the stairs, each cone paired with a photo of a person, creating a memorial-like display.

Lawmaker targets repeat drunk drivers as part of larger push to fix problems exposed by CalMatters

The DUI bill is intended to be the “tip of the spear” in a movement to address how California allows dangerous drivers to stay on the roads.

Lauren Hepler

and

Robert Lewis

Graphic of 9 images from the featured impact stories of 2025, alternating in a golden or blue overlay

How CalMatters kept our government transparent and our leaders accountable in 2025

In 2025, CalMatters’ and The Markup’s reporting prompted lawmakers to introduce eight new bills, agencies to take action, companies to change their practices and constituents to contact their representatives.

Sisi Wei

Rural California gets a lifeline in school funding as Congress restores money it cut

A century-old program pays for schools, roads and other services in 39 California counties.

Carolyn Jones

Technology

House lawmakers demand answers from Covered California on sending data to LinkedIn

The lawmakers cite a Markup and CalMatters investigation that first revealed Covered California’s data practices in April.

Colin Lecher

and

Tomas Apodaca

• June 23, 2025

Technology

We caught 4 more states sharing personal health data with Big Tech

Health care exchanges in Nevada, Maine, Massachusetts and Rhode Island shared users’ sensitive health data with companies like Google and LinkedIn.

Colin Lecher

and

Tomas Apodaca

• June 17, 2025

Health

After CalMatters investigation, LinkedIn and Google face lawsuit alleging improper access to health data

The suit accuses the companies of receiving personal information through California’s state health insurance exchange.

Colin Lecher

and

Tomas Apodaca

• May 2, 2025

A person wearing a red sweatshirt and glasses sits on a sidewalk, leaning against a building with their reflection visible in the window beside them. Trees and traffic are blurred in the background.

Homelessness

They found their homeless loved ones after years apart. But that was just the beginning

After reading a CalMatters article, two people were able to reconnect with their homeless relatives. Here’s what happened next.

Marisa Kendall

• May 1, 2025

A group of people stand in a line near a white Border Patrol truck in a desert area, with a Border Patrol agent addressing them. In the background, portable toilets, fencing, and a hilly landscape are visible under a clear blue sky.

Justice

Judge restricts Border Patrol in California: ‘You just can’t walk up to people with brown skin’

'You just can’t walk up to people with brown skin and say give me your papers,' a federal judge told Border Patrol attorneys at a hearing challenging recent immigration sweeps.

Sergio Olmos

and

Wendy Fry

• April 29, 2025

Exterior of a building with large capital letters spelling “U.S. Department of Education.” The building features vertical windows and concrete panels, with sunlight casting deep shadows across the facade.

Higher Education

Fraud in California community colleges triggers call for Trump investigation

Following CalMatters reporting, California’s Republican representatives are calling for the U.S. Department of Education and Attorney General Pam Bondi to investigate how California’s community colleges are handling financial aid fraud.

Adam Echelman

• April 25, 2025

Students on campus at the University of California, Davis in Davis on Feb. 2, 2022. Miguel Gutierrez Jr., CalMatters

Higher Education

Trump administration restores dementia research it gutted as part of its DEI purge

The National Institutes of Health restored a leading University of California researcher’s $36 million grant studying dementia on Friday after terminating it three weeks ago as part of the Trump administration’s DEI purge. The UC says others were restored, too.

Mikhail Zinshteyn

• April 14, 2025

Justice

Border Patrol to retrain hundreds of California agents on how to comply with the Constitution

After controversial sweeps in Kern County and a CalMatters investigation, the federal government will train agents on when they can stop and arrest people.

Wendy Fry

and

Sergio Olmos

• April 10, 2025

A glimpse of a person wearing a black suit with a blue and white polka dot tie amongst other people standing nearby.

Politics

Alec Baldwin, a $227,000 payment and a San Jose fundraiser at heart of allegations against former lawmaker

California’s political watchdog is fining former Assemblymember Evan Low $106,000 for campaign finance violations after he admitted trying to conceal payments to actor Alec Baldwin, who appeared at a 2020 fundraiser for Low.

Yue Stella Yu

• March 29, 2025

A "No Stopping at Any Time" sign, partially covered in graffiti, stands in the foreground of a landscaped area with spiky green and yellow plants. Behind it, a blue and gray industrial-style building with a metal roof is enclosed by a black fence. A concrete walkway with a railing leads toward the entrance. The sky is bright blue with scattered clouds, and a power transmission tower is visible in the distance.

Homelessness

California considers more homeless shelter oversight after CalMatters investigation

State lawmakers will debate a bill to require annual inspections, new complaint processes and harsher penalties for local governments that don’t file mandatory reports.

Lauren Hepler

• March 24, 2025