Legislature could vote soon on major housing bills

The first major votes on a raft of bills meant to address California’s housing crisis could come up for a vote Friday, with the Democrats who control the Legislature eager to demonstrate they know how much extreme housing costs are

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Criminal justice reform push losing momentum

Not only has it been a disappointing year for the lawmakers and civic leaders behind the recent push for sweeping reforms of California’s criminal justice system, their achievements are under harsh fire in Los Angeles County. Last December, Assemblyman Rob

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Democrats force recall backers to fight another court battle

SACRAMENTO – Most recall elections are primarily about electoral politics, as both sides duke it out with the usual broadcast ads and ground campaigns. But the burgeoning Republican effort to recall Orange County’s Democratic Sen. Josh Newman has turned into

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Will other GOPers who backed ‘cap and trade’ face fallout?

Chad Mayes of Yucca Valley is out as Assembly Republican leader, replaced last week by Assemblyman Brian Dahle of Bieber. But the fallout may continue over the decision of Mayes and six other GOP Assembly members to provide Gov. Jerry

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Legislature is back and focused on housing, recall and bail

  SACRAMENTO – California’s Legislature is back from its recess and legislators kicked off the session by focusing on two highly partisan matters. Assembly Republicans first voted to keep Chad Mayes as Republican leader, despite pressure from activists to oust

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Assembly GOP leader survives ouster bid, but other challenges expected

Assembly Republican Leader Chad Mayes, R-Yucca Valley, survived a bid to oust him on Monday night at a caucus of the 25 GOP Assembly members in Sacramento. Ten Republicans voted for his removal, three short of a majority. Nevertheless, anger

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Wells Fargo board shake-up shows failure of damage-control push

Events of the past week show Wells Fargo’s attempts to put a huge scandal behind it by paying a $185 million penalty and settling a class-action lawsuit for $142 million have failed because of fresh evidence of corporate malfeasance – grim news

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Water war’s new front: Where to add major storage projects

After a 35-year stalemate stalled new California water storage projects, Gov. Jerry Brown and legislative leaders agreed in 2014 to include $2.7 billion for such needs as part of Proposition 1, a $7.5 billion water bond approved in a landslide

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San Diego mayor offers suggestions for future of state GOP

SACRAMENTO – Even Republicans admit the state GOP is something of a rudderless ship these days. The party doesn’t control any constitutional offices. Democrats have supermajorities in both houses of the Legislature. Assembly Republican Leader Chad Mayes of Yucca Valley,

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Housing crisis drives teacher shortage in Bay Area

With the academic year already under way in some Bay Area school districts, teacher shortages linked to the extreme cost of housing in the region are more prevalent than ever. In San Jose, where classes began last week, dozens of

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