California Budget

The election of the first woman of color to lead the chamber came after weeks of speculation about challenges to Senate President Pro Tem Mike McGuire’s leadership. But the pair promised an amicable transition.

Gov. Gavin Newsom proposed major cuts to Medi-Cal and other social programs to close a $12 billion deficit. Democrats in the state Legislature are pushing back, proposing more borrowing.

California's spending has tripled in 25 years under Democratic leadership, while such problems as homelessness, water shortages and poverty grew.

Highly publicized immigration raids have rattled the community and prompted lawmakers to push for more laws protecting immigrants.

Gov. Gavin Newsom estimated there's a nearly $20 billion hole in the budget, but if lawmakers restore his Medi-Cal cuts the hole could grow $10 billion larger.

Health advocates say the proposal to reinstate the Medi-Cal asset limit would keep people in poverty while Gov. Newsom says it's essential to cut rising costs.

California's experiment with increasing pay for jury duty would come to an early end under the new budget Gov. Gavin Newsom is asking lawmakers to approve.

Tax credits for the parents of young children. A state-funded scientific research institute. Exempting service workers’ tips from state income tax. Those are among the hundreds of proposals California lawmakers swiftly rejected Friday under the banner of cost savings, as they cited the state’s $12 billion budget deficit — a worsening figure due to the […]

Wrong revenue projections a few years ago led California to overspend, creating structural deficits. Now underestimated Medi-Cal costs are blowing holes in the latest proposed budget.

Both Democrat and Republican lawmakers representing the Delta say Newsom is trying to upend existing water rights and land acquisition laws, while the governor says "we're done with barriers."