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Proposal to put new state fee on water returns
A proposal to add new fees to water bills to help pay for improvements to water systems in rural areas with tainted supplies is back before the Legislature, and this time it has the support of the Brown administration. Last
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California gubernatorial race may hold key to boosting Republican turnout in 2018
With Republican gubernatorial candidate John Cox polling neck-and-neck with Antonio Villaraigosa for second place in the race for governor, the prospect of a Republican being on the ballot in November appears to be increasing – a development that could be instrumental
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Poor test scores raise new doubts about landmark 2013 school finance law
Five years after Gov. Jerry Brown and the Legislature passed a sweeping new school finance law meant to provide extra help to struggling students in poor, minority communities, new federal test scores raise difficult questions about the effectiveness of the
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CalChamber publishes “job killer” list for 2018
The California Chamber of Commerce added three more pieces of legislation last week to its “job killer” list for 2018. In total, the group has identified 24 bills – 18 new and 6 carried over from last year. Except for
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Scandal-plagued Wells Fargo could face new $1 billion fine
Wells Fargo, the iconic San Francisco-based financial services giant, already faces unprecedented government punishment for major scandals revealed in recent years. In February, in the final action by departing Fed Chair Janet Yellen, the Federal Reserve announced that the company
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New California bill would put state in charge of setting health care prices
Assemblyman Ash Kalra, D-San Jose, has introduced a new bill that would put California in charge of setting prices for hospital visits, trips to the doctor and other medical services. Under the legislative proposal, the state would create an independent
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Gov. Jerry Brown agrees to send National Guard troops to border – but not for immigration enforcement
California Gov. Jerry Brown on Wednesday authorized the deployment of 400 troops to the U.S.-Mexico border at the request of the Trump administration. But it came with one caveat – that the guards would not be used for federal immigration enforcement.
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With brutal fire season expected, fight over how to respond has never stopped
California’s perilous experiences with massive wildfires reached an all-time peak in 2017, as the state suffered through its worst blaze in recorded history – the Thomas Fire – and five of its 17 worst fires ever. State officials estimated that about 9,000 wildfires from
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Cupertino project may test power of ballyhooed housing law SB35
Senate Bill 35 – the 2017 measure authored by state Sen. Scott Weiner, D-San Francisco, that was billed as the most far-reaching response to California’s housing crisis – could be about to get its first major test in Silicon Valley, the region
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New Assembly bill would increase rights of student athletes
March Madness may be receding into memory, but college athletics figures to be on the California Legislature’s radar this month with the introduction last week of a bill to reclassify college athletes. Chief among the provisions in Assembly Bill 2747,
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