Dan Walters, CalMatters Commentary, Author at GV Wire

Walters: School Reformers Win Major Skirmish

August 6, 2020

The huge Los Angeles Unified School District is ground zero in California’s perpetual political war over educating millions of children on the short end of the state’s chronic “achievement gap.” LA Unified, ...

Walters: Should California Borrow More or Tax More?

Dan Walters, CalMatters Commentary

August 5, 2020

The state budget that Gov. Gavin Newsom signed earlier this summer had been hastily adjusted to cope with projections that state revenues would plummet by tens of billions of dollars due to the COVID-19 pandemi...

Walters: Two Mayors Seek More Authority

Dan Walters, CalMatters Commentary

August 3, 2020

California has 482 incorporated cities but just five of them — Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, Oakland and Fresno — have what are called “strong mayors” with executive authority. Others, except for a ...

Photo of a man walking past a closed store

Walters: California Economy Faces Tough Slog

Dan Walters, CalMatters Commentary

August 2, 2020

It now seems like ancient history, but only a few months ago, California’s economy was roaring. “By any standard measure, by nearly every recognizable metric, the state of California is not just thriving but...

Walters: Legislators Want to Pile on Debt

Dan Walters, CalMatters Commentary

July 30, 2020

When legislators passed and Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a 2020-21 state budget in June, they described it as “balanced.” Not by a long shot. Dan Walters Opinion As detailed in this space earlie...

Walters: Reading Test Bill Should Be Shelved

Dan Walters, CalMatters Commentary

July 29, 2020

The pandemic-truncated 2020 legislative session, which resumed this week, has no shortage of business to conduct and just a month to do it — unless Gov. Gavin Newsom grants an extension. Legislative leaders ...

Photo of California Attorney General Xavier Becerra

Walters: Becerra Slants Two Ballot Measure Titles

Dan Walters, CalMatters Commentary

July 27, 2020

California’s attorneys general, the state’s top legal officers, have developed a bad habit in recent years — skewing the official titles of ballot measures. Since all have been Democrats for the past two dec...

Walters: State Pressures Locals on Housing Crisis

Dan Walters, CalMatters Commentary

July 26, 2020

For the last half-century, the state government has attempted — without much success — to steer housing development in California via periodic calculation of local “needs.” About once every eight years, the ...

Walters: Appeals Court Makes Tax Increases Easier

Dan Walters, CalMatters Commentary

July 23, 2020

The March primary election was rough on advocates of new taxes. Hundreds of tax hikes — sales and parcel taxes, mostly — were placed on the ballot by cities, counties and school districts whose finances were...

Walters: California Tests At-Home Schooling

Dan Walters, CalMatters Commentary

July 20, 2020

After weeks of uncertainty, it’s now obvious that the vast majority of California’s six million public school students will be staying, and presumably studying, at home this fall, rather than returning to the c...

Fresno Releases List of Businesses Fined During COVID-19 Pandemic

Job Losses, Fear of Virus Complicate Latino Voter Hopes

Saint Agnes’ ‘Pledge to Protect’ Campaign Needs Your Photos

Send Us Help, Vohra Says, As Feds Tag Valley COVID Hot Spot

Pandemic, Water Costs, Consumer Behavior Lead to $2 Billion in Ag Losses Thus Far

Saint Agnes’ ‘Pledge to Protect’ Campaign Needs Your Photos

Send Us Help, Vohra Says, As Feds Tag Valley COVID Hot Spot

Donations Help Local Hospital Workers With Childcare, Other Urgent Needs

It’s Official: Buffalo Wings Are No Longer a Meal in California

8 Simple Strategies to Fuel Your Body During a Pandemic

COVID Knocks Out Joe Rogan Experience in Fresno. Vegas, Anyone?

A’s Coach Apologizes for Apparent Nazi Salute

Most White Parents Don't Talk About Racism With Their Kids

8 Simple Strategies to Fuel Your Body During a Pandemic

Hit Hard by COVID-19, Where Do We Go From Here?

Legislature Should Support Climate-Change Goals, Not Gut a Tool Helping Ag & Our Planet

Eid al-Fitr Marks End of Ramadan, but COVID-19 Curtails Big Events

LIVE: Daily Briefing from Gov. Gavin Newsom

COVID-19 Brings a New Kind of Ramadan for Muslim Community

Trump Rally Highlights Vulnerabilities Heading Into Election

No Mask Required to Vote This November in California

Playing Electoral Defense, Trump Claims Biden Opposes God

Joe Biden Suggests African American Community Not as Diverse as Latino Community

Walters: School Reformers Win Major Skirmish

Walters: Should California Borrow More or Tax More?

Walters: Two Mayors Seek More Authority

Walters: California Economy Faces Tough Slog

Walters: Legislators Want to Pile on Debt

Walters: Reading Test Bill Should Be Shelved

Walters: Becerra Slants Two Ballot Measure Titles

Walters: State Pressures Locals on Housing Crisis

Walters: Appeals Court Makes Tax Increases Easier

Walters: California Tests At-Home Schooling