This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters. California lawmakers are on the cusp of striking a last-minute deal to tie one of the year’s most ambitious and controversial housing bills to a new set of minimum wages for housing construction workers — a proposal that...
4 Million Acres of California Forests Could Lose Protection. What Trump’s ‘Roadless Rule’ Repeal Could Do
This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters. The Trump administration’s plan to repeal a rule prohibiting logging and road construction in undeveloped parts of national forests would strip protection from more than 4 million acres within California’s borders. U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins announced...
Dying Honey Bees Threaten CA Economy. Can Central Valley Lawmakers Save Them?
This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters. Honey bees across the country are under attack from tiny, eight-legged parasitic mites. These mites burrow between the segments of the bees’ adult bodies or invade their larvae and infect them with viruses — deforming their wings and...
PG&E Is Hiring an Executive Bodyguard. Combat Shooting Experience Required
This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters. For the second time in three months, a little-known team within Pacific Gas & Electric has hired someone to watch the CEO’s back. Responsibilities include proactively monitoring for threats, helping executives map out business and personal travel, coordinating with...
Police, DA Refuse to Release Records on Latina Senator’s DUI Arrest Near Capitol
This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters. A Democratic California senator is now considering suing Sacramento police for what she alleges was a "politically motivated" false DUI arrest intended to "silence" an LGBTQ Latina lawmaker, her attorney tells CalMatters. Officers have insisted that they acted...
Hunger Strike Begins as California Prisons Hand Down Biggest Restrictions Since COVID
This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters. Nearly two dozen state prisons last week imposed sweeping restrictions on their incarcerated population — including shutting off all outside communication. Now, hundreds of prisoners are reported to be on a hunger strike to protest the system's largest...
CA Prison Union Strikes $600 Million Contract With Newsom That Includes Furloughs
This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters. The union representing 25,000 California prison guards struck a deal for a new contract that gives Gov. Gavin Newsom some financial relief in the short term but includes a mix of bonuses and raises that would kick in...
History Suggests the GOP Will Pay a Political Price for Its Immigration Tactics in California
This commentary was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters. A classic confrontation over immigration enforcement continues to intensify in California. Despite strong objections from Gov. Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, President Donald Trump mobilized the California National Guard and Marines to Los Angeles to...
Newsom Gave Political Rival a $380K Job. See the Special Interests Who Paid for It
This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters. At the request of Gov. Gavin Newsom, a nonprofit paid former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa more than $380,000 to advise the governor for about 10 months on how to overhaul California’s approach to major infrastructure projects. Touting his new infrastructure...
Gov. Newsom Lambasts Trump for Giving Immigrants’ Health Data to Deportation Officials
This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters. Calling the move “legally dubious” and an “abuse,” Gov. Gavin Newsom Friday heavily criticized the Trump administration after reports surfaced that personal medical information — including immigration status — is being shared with deportation officials. The governor’s comments...