Legislator Card

Public agencies are funding private security guards in homeless shelters and on the street, opening a new front in the state’s housing crisis — one ripe for violence and civil rights issues, but thin on oversight.

There’s so little data available, it’s impossible to even tell if several of California’s largest homelessness programs are working, according to a statewide audit released Tuesday.

Democrats in California’s Assembly and Senate rarely vote against bills, yet few seem willing to discuss their voting records, as well as the controversial practice of declining to vote instead of saying “no.”

Democratic lawmakers are debating how a bill to reduce retail theft would affect Black and Brown Californians. While some say it would unfairly target shoppers, others say jobs are at stake.

Gov. Gavin Newsom made mental health a priority since he took office five years ago. The ballot initiative voters approved this week will provide billions of dollars to fund housing and treatment facilities for mentally ill Californians.

An emergency trip to the hospital turned disastrous for a Los Angeles-area family when Joshua Saeta’s condition deteriorated, leaving him permanently incapacitated. In a lawsuit, the family says nurses later told them the hospital was dangerously understaffed.

After a legislative victory last year, pro-housing legislators and advocates want to strip the California Coastal Commission of more authority in order to spur housing development.

Republicans want to scrap the law, accusing Gov. Gavin Newsom of corruption in dealings with a Panera Bread franchisee who is a major campaign donor. McDonald’s franchisees are funding a committee that is attacking Democrats who supported the law and are seeking local office in the primary.

At some rural schools construction projects are left undone, teaching jobs are unfilled and students who need specialized services don’t get them.

The Campus Opioid Safety Act required colleges and universities to put the power of reversing fentanyl overdoses directly into the hands of students. Some campuses are giving out the life-saving nasal spray Narcan, while others are not.