Poverty

California scored high on the economy, mental health and children and families, but low on its labor force, inequality and the environment in a research project comparing states.

The California constitution requires lawmakers adopt a new budget by June 15, leaving little time for state leaders to resolve billions of dollars in budget differences.

Gov. Newsom often brags about California's productivity and Nobel winners but omits its recent tech layoffs, shrinking jobs base and growing gaps between rich and poor.

California understands the pathway into homelessness. What the state still lacks is a coordinated system designed to interrupt it before families lose housing.

About a third of homeless people are renters, but since California's 58 county superior courts don’t all report on evictions, it’s hard to know what happened to those leases.

The 340B Drug Pricing Program cuts prescription drug costs for safety-net hospitals, which often invest the savings in patient care.

CalFresh helps only a fourth of students who qualify for it because it’s too unwieldy to apply for and stay on. It’s like having another job.

A California lawmaker wants to bring more families into the state's formal child support system, a move that advocates say could reduce child poverty.

Drug discounts aimed at rural hospitals serving uninsured or low-income patients actually profit hospitals that don’t serve those patients.

Only 3% of the state’s homeless beds are reserved for youth, which feeds a pipeline to chronic homelessness. Most vulnerable: foster kids.