Ricardo Lara

Health

A scaled-back bid to care for undocumented Californians

A Democratic bid to extend government health coverage to all undocumented, low-income adults in California has been put on hold. Lawmakers now hope to cover at least the seniors and the disabled.

By David Gorn • May 25, 2018

Newsletters

Billionaires’ money helps a most unlikely candidate

By Dan Morain • May 23, 2018

Newsletters

Weed is mainstream, politically speaking

Good morning, California. House Speaker Paul Ryan may not care about California potholes and doesn’t have to pay the new gas tax for road repairs. But the Wisconsin Republican has given $50,000 to a proposed initiative to repeal the new 12-cent-per-gallon gasoline tax, evidently believing it will draw Republicans to the polls in November and […]

By Dan Morain • May 3, 2018

Politics

Cultivating clout: Marijuana money flows into California politics

Cannabis companies are hiring well-heeled lobbyists and donating money to politicians.

By Laurel Rosenhall • May 2, 2018

Newsletters

Prescriptions for California’s housing crisis

Good Monday morning, California. Santa Barbara County has nearly 300 wineries, and has granted 730 cannabis cultivation permits, more than anywhere in the state. “The cannabis situation in Lompoc has created a challenge for many wineries,” said Peter Work of Ampelos Cellars. — Santa Barbara Independent. Housing: What would candidates do? CALmatters asked the major […]

By Dan Morain • April 30, 2018

Climate Change

California’s a winner at the U.N. conference

California climate policies earn an international award at the U.N conference in Bonn.

By Julie Cart • November 12, 2017

Justice

New look at how local jails lock up deportable immigrants

Update: On Oct 5, Gov. Jerry Brown signed a scaled-down version of SB 29— placing a moratorium on local governments entering into new immigration detention contracts with federal immigration authorities or private corporations.  Trash-strewn cells, moldy showers, broken telephones, excessive use of solitary confinement, and “slimy, foul-smelling lunch meat.” These are the conditions that detainees […]

By Ben Christopher • March 28, 2017