In summary
Highlighting all of CALmatters’ work over the past week
Recent Articles
5 takeaways from Newsom’s revised budget plan
By Judy Lin
Buoyed by California’s strong economy, Gov. Gavin Newsom sent state lawmakers a revised budget on Thursday that boosts his already-hefty January proposal to $213.6 billion. Ka-ching! Public schools will reap most of the gains if the Democratic-controlled Legislature rolls with him. Newsom also upped his ante on the housing crisis with a proposed $1 billion more to combat homelessness.
‘Governor Dad’ Newsom budgets tax breaks for diapers, focuses on families
By Laurel Rosenhall
From family leave to tax-free diapers to expanded preschool, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s revised budget proposal aims to support kids and parents—and to contrast with Jerry Brown’s policies.
A Capitol Crime: How a 16-year-old murder reached California’s highest offices
By Dan Morain
Gov. Jerry Brown’s grant of clemency to the brother-in-law of Speaker Anthony Rendon underscores not just Brown’s thinking but also California’s evolution on crime and punishment.
Hot off the grille: Is California ready to legalize roadkill cuisine?
By Ben Christopher
A bill in California would legalize the “salvaging” of roadkill. Proponents promise safer roads, protected animals and less food waste. But will Californians stomach it?
Listen to Force of Law, Episode Two: Split
By Laurel Rosenhall
Lobbying is under way in California for two vastly different approaches to reduce police shootings. Victims’ families and civil-rights advocates are pushing a tougher standard for police to use deadly force, while law enforcement officers promote a plan to increase training.
Can they do that? California Dems again try to force Trump to show his taxes
By Ben Christopher
California Democrats are advancing a bill that would require any presidential candidate (see: Donald Trump) to disclose his tax returns if they want to make it onto the state primary ballot next year. Good blue-state politics—but is it legal?
Coming wave of seniors will strain a caregiver network already stretched thin
By Elizabeth Aguilera
In a decade, roughly one in five people will be 65 or older—a group more racially and ethnically diverse and more likely to be single and childless. The growing need: professional and culturally sensitive caregivers.
Cal Grant expansion tops list of college affordability bills: Track them here
By Felicia Mello
California’s financial aid system could get its biggest overhaul in 20 years if a proposal backed by key Assembly Democrats becomes law.
Commentary
USC’s George Tyndall is gone, but sexual abuse survivors still deserve a choice
By Vanessa Carlisle
Dr. George Tyndall was the only gynecologist available to women such as Vanessa Carlisle at USC. Now, survivors finally do have a choice: Accept a settlement offered by USC or, if the Legislature approves a bill by Assemblywoman Eloise Reyes, file a separate suit. Legislators should approve the bill.
Gig economy workers deserve basic protections that come with employee status
By Art Pulaski
IPOs are bringing rideshare companies tens of billions of dollars in investment. But the companies mistreat drivers who are the backbone of their businesses. Thousands of Uber and Lyft drivers went on strike across California on May 8 to call for basic rights and protections like those afforded through Assembly Bill 5.
Californians must pitch in to make drinking water safe for everyone
By Emily Rooney and Jennifer Clary
Groundwater basins drawn down by years of drought contain dangerously high levels of nitrates, arsenic and other contaminants. One million Californians don’t have safe drinking water, and nearly 2 million more are not served by a regulated public water system and may not know if their water is contaminated. The Legislature must step in.
Newsom is shrinking Brown’s pet projects
By Dan Walters
Gov. Gavin Newsom is scaling back a statewide bullet train and twin water tunnels beneath the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. But both still face high hurdles.
California must reform charter schools. Here’s how
By Emma Turner
California has more charter schools than any state in the union. Yet our haphazard charter laws force school boards to grapple with loopholes and unintended consequences, too often creating havoc in our state.
Stop this insidious form of corporate welfare
By Steve Glazer
Online retailers have leveraged their power to extract subsidies from cities desperate for tax revenue. Those cities have agreed to give the retailers half or more of the sales tax paid through the retailer not just by their own residents but by people in every city in the state. Online retailers are reaping as much as $1 billion a year in taxpayer dollars through these kickbacks.
California’s vexing poverty puzzle
By Dan Walters
California has not only the nation’s highest rate of poverty, thanks to high housing costs, but also its highest level of income disparity, and raising the state’s minimum wage may be reducing job creation.
How better wastewater management can help California adapt to climate change
By Caitrin Chappelle and Henry McCann
Climate change is worsening water scarcity and flood risks. Advancements in engineering and technology can help prepare wastewater agencies for a changing climate. But significant shifts in policy and planning are needed to address these challenges.
Excluding hydropower makes no sense
By Dan Walters
Excluding hydroelectric power from the state’s renewable portfolio to reduce greenhouse gases makes no sense. A pending bill would bring some rationality to the situation.