Guns

The Legislature is approving lots of significant bills in the final days of the session. But the final call is up to the governor, and he isn’t shy about using his veto pen.

With adjournment edging ever closer next Thursday, legislators are continuing to push through bills to beat the deadline.  On Thursday:  Gun tax: After years of failed efforts, the Legislature sent Gov. Gavin Newsom a measure to tax firearms and ammunition to fund gun violence prevention in California, CalMatters’ Alexei Koseff reports. Assembly Bill 28 by […]

From Justo Robles of CalMatters’ California Divide team:  Dozens of domestic workers laid banners on the state Capitol grounds Tuesday that spelled out the words “racist” and “injustice.” Then they cleaned them up.  It was all part of a rally of several hundred domestic laborers to urge state lawmakers to pass more workplace protections. Aminta […]

From CalMatters investigative reporter Robert Lewis: State lawmakers held a joint oversight committee hearing Wednesday to question officials from California’s Department of Toxic Substances Control about how it’s going with various reform efforts. (It was definitely more of an annual teeth cleaning than a root canal.) Among the topics of discussion was an ongoing CalMatters […]

How can California make sure the electric vehicle revolution isn’t just for the wealthy few? That was the big question in a CalMatters panel discussion Tuesday. While bringing down the cost of EVs is crucial, so is the availability of chargers. And that is something of a chicken-and-egg proposition. Some on the panel — moderated […]

Loaded and unlocked firearms are one of the primary causes of unintentional shooting deaths involving children. Given their effectiveness, the father of a victim says the state should invest federal money for prevention in public education campaigns for safe gun storage and red flag laws.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom's feud with the Republican governors of Florida and Texas continues. Meanwhile, taxpayers from the three states are paying for their stunts.

From CalMatters politics intern Rya Jetha:  In the aftermath of the police killings of Stephon Clark in Sacramento and George Floyd in Minneapolis, California passed a law requiring the Attorney General’s office to investigate every fatal use of force by police officers against unarmed people. The 2021 law was meant to take power away from […]

Gov. Gavin Newsom declared Thursday he will crusade for a 28th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution on gun control — and if he wanted more national attention, he certainly got it as  supporters praised and critics slammed his bold ambition. As CalMatters colleagues Ben Christopher and Alexei Koseff explain, the amendment is pretty straightforward: It […]

Gavin Newsom’s proposed US constitutional amendment includes four popular gun control policies, but it faces an extraordinarily difficult path to succeeding.