Monterey County

Commentary

‘Give me another solution.’ Counties resist mental health centers, betraying patients and families

Monterey County recently halted development of a mental health center, leaving struggling patients and families in a lurch.

By

George B. Sánchez-Tello

• March 31, 2026

A view of two open prison cells doors inside viewed from the hallway looking in as a prison guard looks around inside the cell on the right. The guard is backlight by light shinning in from a small window towards the back of the cell.

Justice

Newsom closed 5 California prisons. Why lawmakers might want to shut one more

California is incarcerating 70,000 fewer people than in 2010, enabling the Newsom administration to close five state prisons. It has capacity to shut one more, according to a new analysis.

By

Adam Ashton

• March 18, 2026

Farmworkers harvest strawberries in Salinas on Aug. 9, 2023. Photo by Semantha Norris, CalMatters

Commentary

When this California Spanish-language TV station closed, a news desert opened for Latino viewers

The loss of KMUV 23, a Telemundo affiliate in Salinas, adds to the atrophy of local journalism. It also harms civic engagement and public advocacy.

By

George B. Sánchez-Tello

• October 29, 2025

Pipes weave through the newly completed Carlsbad Desalination plant in Carlsbad on Dec. 14, 2015. Photo by Earnie Grafton, Reuters

Environment

Another California desalination plant approved — the most contentious one yet

The California Coastal Commission voted 8-to-2 despite the ecological risks to the Monterey Bay coast, high costs of the water and a divide between affluent and lower-income communities.

By

Rachel Becker

• November 17, 2022

People walk near boat docks as they sit on dry land at the Browns Ravine Cove area of drought-stricken Folsom Lake, currently at 37% of its normal capacity, in Folsom on May 22, 2021. California Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a drought emergency for most of the state. Photo by Josh Edelson, AP Photo

CalMatters en Español

Newsom insta a todos los californianos a reducir el uso de agua en un 15%

En resumen La sequía extrema ahora afecta al 85% de California, por lo que el gobernador está buscando una acción voluntaria. Newsom expandió la emergencia por sequía a nueve condados más, principalmente a lo largo de la Costa Central y en el Área de la Bahía. Read this article in English. A medida que la sequía extrema […]

By

Rachel Becker

• July 13, 2021

Environment

Newsom urges all Californians to cut water use by 15%

Extreme drought now grips 85% of California so the governor is seeking voluntary action. Newsom expanded the drought emergency to nine more counties, mostly along the Central Coast and in the Bay Area.

By

Rachel Becker

• July 8, 2021

The River Fire destroyed nearly 3,000 acres and threatened 1,500 structures in Salinas, Calif., on Aug. 16, 2020 after an early morning lightning storm. Photo by David Rodriguez, The Salinas Californian

WhatMatters

Fire risk amid a housing crisis — California’s challenging new reality

California has a lot of moratoriums it needs to worry about. Even as Gov. Gavin Newsom and state lawmakers rush to extend California’s eviction moratorium before it expires next week, another big deadline looms on the horizon. In November, the state’s moratorium on insurance companies dropping coverage for Californians living in wildfire-prone areas is set […]

By

Emily Hoeven

• June 22, 2021

In late January, thousands of vaccine appointments were cancelled at an OptumServe clinic in the Rohnert Park Community Center in Sonoma County due to a scheduling glitch. Photo by Christopher Chung, The Press Democrat

Coronavirus

A dozen counties criticized OptumServe for vaccine clinic problems, documents show

California authorized paying OptumServe up to $221 million. But the company has helped with only 1% of the state’s vaccinations since January.

By

Caitlin Antonios

and

Bianca Fortis

• May 25, 2021

Rodolfo Reyes, receives the first dose of the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine during the first distribution clinic intended for farmworkers in Monterey County on Feb. 25, 2021. Photo by David Rodriguez, The Salinas Californian

Coronavirus

How growers had to sidestep county and state programs to vaccinate farmworkers

As harvest season approached, growers begged county officials to vaccinate their workers. But the state and counties didn’t prioritize vaccine doses for farmworkers in February. So the growers and doctors stepped in and set up their own clinics.

By

Caitlin Antonios

• May 5, 2021

Alameda County Fire Department employee Max Shih, left, administers the second dose of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine to Julia Jackson, a volunteer at a Berkeley needle exchange program, at St. Rose hospital in Hayward on Jan. 27, 2021. Photo by Anne Wernikoff, CalMatters

Coronavirus

Who’s getting vaccinated in California? A county-by-county look at racial data

Although data is incomplete, in nearly all counties, white people received the largest percentage of vaccine doses — even in counties with large Latino populations. Latinos are the biggest group vaccinated in Los Angeles and two other counties.

By

CalMatters Staff

• February 19, 2021