We are in a crisis. Not just a health crisis, but a kid crisis. The COVID-19 pandemic is wreaking havoc on nearly every aspect of our daily lives, the economy and our health system. But the most overlooked and forgotten are our kids, who have sadly been the collateral damage...
Going Underground: California Business Operates in Secret Amid Pandemic Restrictions
When the COVID-19 pandemic shut down his Bay Area region massage business, John went 93 days without income. In March, John and his business partner, Dee, packed away their massage tables and locked up their office. (Both John and Dee are going by pseudonyms for fear of legal repercussions.) But...
Small Businesses Need Support Through COVID-19 Pandemic
Alicia Villanueva started making 100 tamales at night and sold them door-to-door before finally realizing her dream of opening her own restaurant. Eventually, she was selling tens of thousands of her tamales, serving the likes of Google and Facebook, and expected 2020 to be her most profitable year. Then the...
How to Realize the Promise of California’s Youth Justice Transformation
Gov. Gavin Newsom’s approval of Senate Bill 823 last September comes after decades of work by directly impacted leaders, advocates, young people and communities throughout the state. Soon, the Division of Juvenile Justice with its long history of abuse and violence against Black and Brown youth will be gone. Now, county leaders...
Water Partnerships Between Cities and Farms Would Help Prepare for a Changing Climate
San Joaquin Valley farms and Southern California cities are facing different but equally daunting water challenges. For Valley farmers, the requirement to achieve groundwater sustainability in coming years has heightened interest in expanding water supplies to reduce the need to fallow irrigated farmland. For Southern California, falling demands since the...
California’s Bill for Fighting Trump in Court? $41 Million So Far
California has spent $41 million over the past four years fighting the Trump administration over its regulations and rollbacks involving climate change, immigration, consumer rights and more. During Donald Trump’s presidency, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra filed lawsuit after lawsuit, challenging the various federal agencies that set new national policies....
State Activates MyTurn Vaccine Clearinghouse Website
Facing criticism for its chaotic COVID-19 vaccine rollout, California has quietly launched a long-promised statewide website to help residents learn when they are eligible to receive the vaccine and schedule appointments. Called MyTurn (myturn.ca.gov), the online registry has not yet been widely promoted and still is a work in progress. Gov. Gavin...
Home State Advantage: What a Vice President Kamala Harris Means for California
Goodbye, state of resistance. Hello, state of influence. California’s status has shifted dramatically with the inauguration of Joe Biden as the next president. The reasons are both political — deep blue California will have more inroads to a White House controlled by Democrats — and personal: For just the second...
Newsom’s $2 Billion School Reopening Fund Could Actually Cost Districts Money
In his bid to get California school campuses back open, Gov. Gavin Newsom proposed giving extra money to schools that managed to open by a certain date. But the $2 billion in grant money would come attached with strings that some districts say would mean paying more than if they...
Day 1: New Sen. Alex Padilla Wants Trump’s ‘Enablers’ Out of U.S. Senate
Today’s presidential inauguration of Joe Biden sets off a spate of historic firsts that are reshaping Democratic politics in California. Kamala Harris, California’s former senator, was sworn in as the first female vice president. Hours later, she administered the oath of office to her replacement, Alex Padilla, the outgoing secretary of...