By Byrhonda Lyons, CalMatters In 2020, California will make health insurance mandatory — and charge a tax people to people without. For people who lack it now, there’s an upside: The state also will began giving subsidies to those who don’t qualify for assistance through the federal Obamacare program. In 2018,...
Walters: New Year, Old Confounding Issues for California
California has always been a basket of contradictions, and as we begin a new year and a new decade, they seem destined to become even more confounding. As 2019 closed, we learned from the state Department of Finance that California, whose population boomed into the nation’s largest thanks to waves...
With Births Down, U.S. Had Slowest Growth Rate in a Century
ORLANDO, Fla. — The past year’s population growth rate in the United States was the slowest in a century due to declining births, increasing deaths and the slowdown of international migration, according to figures released Monday by the U.S. Census Bureau. The U.S. grew from 2018 to 2019 by almost...
Judge Blocks California Law on Dialysis Clinics
SANTA ANA — A federal judge on Monday blocked enforcement of a California law aimed at preventing increased billing costs at dialysis clinics. There is “a dire public interest" in granting a preliminary injunction that would bar enforcement for months while a lawsuit against it proceeds through the courts, Judge...
New California Laws Help Animals, Fire Victims, Immigrants
SACRAMENTO — Hundreds of new California laws take effect with the start of the new year, including measures stemming from the devastating wildfires that have swept the state. Others address animal rights, criminal justice, businesses and health care. Among them: Wildfires — In a step to curb greenhouse gas emissions, California becomes...
Gov. Newsom Had 'Baptism by Fire' in 1st Year
SACRAMENTO — During his inaugural address last January, Gov. Gavin Newsom made only a passing reference to wildfires and never mentioned the state's largest utility, Pacific Gas & Electric. Both soon became inescapable topics. PG&E filed for bankruptcy barely three weeks after the Democratic governor was sworn in, triggering a series of...
Latest Southern California Storm Fades, Gusty Winds Expected
LOS ANGELES — The center of Southern California’s latest winter storm was staying well out to sea Monday and forecasters greatly scaled back the amount of rain and snow it could produce. Only light snowfall or flurries were seen in the high mountain passes north and east of Los Angeles,...
CA’s Gun Sentencing Laws Aren’t Tough Enough, so Feds Are Stepping In
On paper, William Carl Adkins is a perfect candidate for prosecution under California’s tough gun control laws. At 34, he has a rap sheet that dates to 2007 and includes possession of drugs with intent to sell, vehicle theft, burglary, drugs again, and, in 2014, being a felon in possession...
Battle Lines Are Drawn Over Oil Drilling in California
Two announcements with implications for California’s oil industry whizzed past each other in recent weeks, revealing starkly conflicting visions for energy development. After a five-year hiatus on auctions for oil-drilling rights on federal land, Washington finalized a plan to allow them on more than 700,000 acres in 11 Central California counties. A more...
LA Times' Steve Lopez Is All Wet. Finish High-Speed Rail in Valley.
A recent Steve Lopez column titled “Let’s shift stalled bullet train funds to L.A. and San Francisco, where they’ll do some good” in the Los Angeles Times is once again a narrowminded view that perpetuates the decades-old problem of overlooking, and underestimating the value of California’s Central Valley. Even with...