The state’s boom-and-bust economy leads to budget volatility. Prop. 2 would double the state’s rainy day fund, lessening the need to chop costs.
Posted inPolitics
Thousands mark Indigenous Peoples Day on Alcatraz as tribes decry Newsom’s vetoes of tribal bills
Organizers and attendees at the twice-yearly sunrise ceremony criticized the governor’s vetoes of bills on water, sacred sites and missing and murdered Indigenous people.
Posted inHigher Education
ICE arrests alarm California’s community colleges. How much can campus officials do?
California community colleges are trying to discourage immigration enforcement on campuses, but they can’t do much to bar ICE agents from public spaces.
Posted inElections
How would Xavier Becerra and Steve Hilton manage California’s most precious resource, water?
We asked California governor candidates Xavier Becerra and Steve Hilton how they’d manage conflicts over water. The Republican endorsed more spending on dams.
Posted inPolitics
High-speed rail board limits CEO contract authority after $600,000 travel scandal
The CEO of California’s $126 billion high-speed rail project is on the hot seat after inspectors found $600,000 in spending on improper travel perks.
Posted inPolitics
Gavin Newsom backs measure to kill the billionaire tax and ban future wealth taxes
The governor announced his positions on most of the 14 propositions on the November ballot.
Posted inJustice
Sudden surge in ICE arrests empties streets in California’s San Joaquin Valley
The San Joaquin Valley is California’s agricultural heartland. Suddenly, it’s the focus of an immigration enforcement campaign that has communities on edge.
Posted inPolitics
Prop. 43 would make special taxes harder to pass. That’s the point, say anti-tax advocates
The measure would require two-thirds of voters to approve any local special taxes, instead of the simple majority for citizen-led initiatives. Anti-tax advocates say it should be that hard for governments to tax Californians, but local officials say it could constrain funding for essential services.
Posted inCommentary
Public financing of California’s electoral campaigns could curb power of money in politics
California’s political system makes it difficult to get elected without personal wealth or wealthy donors. A psychology professor says a public financing system could empower better candidates.
Posted inEconomy
How California insurance commissioner candidates Jane Kim and Ben Allen measure up
Two Democrats with differing approaches vie to regulate one of the biggest insurance markets in the world.