Los Angeles Times
Sacramento bureau chief for the Los Angeles Times; former senior editor of the Politics and Government Desk, and former Sacramento bureau chief and political reporter, for KQED's The California Report; former political editor at KXTV, the ABC affiliate in Sacramento
What are some of California’s most important new laws? Governor Jerry Brown has signed more than 1000 new bills into California law. The bulk of them take effect at the start of next year. They include the nation’s toughest net neutrality law, stricter gun control measures, and a few bills inspired by the #MeToo movement.
When you vote, is it really yours? Twelve Russian military intelligence officers hacked into the Clinton presidential campaign and Democratic Party and released tens of thousands of private communications in a sweeping conspiracy by the Kremlin to meddle in the 2016 U.S. election. That is according to an indictment announced days before President Donald Trump's summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin. All of this comes on the same day that California's top election official certified the results of last month's election.
Gavin Newsom will face Republican John Cox in the Calif. governor's race Democrat Gavin Newsom and Republican John Cox won the most votes in Tuesday’s primary election. Now they face off in November to be California’s next governor. The big loser in that race was former LA Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who ended up third.
California politicians meet with President Trump to talk 'sanctuary state' law at the White House Wednesday to discuss California’s “sanctuary state” law. Republicans in the state are viewing the topic as an opportunity to encourage their base to show up for the June primary. On the flip side, with voters split over the sanctuary issue, this could dash Democrats’ hopes of taking back the House.
Will California end Daylight Saving Time? California’s cap-and-trade program sets limits for emissions, and businesses must buy permits if they exceed them.
Brown withholds funding for UC in revised budget Governor Jerry Brown says the state legislature should keep a tight lid on money headed to the University of California system until it makes some major changes. A scathing audit found the U.C. failed to disclose a $175 million reserve fund and – at the same time – raised tuition for its students. It's a small part of the overall $183 billion budget, but could bring about some fireworks at next week's Board of Regents meeting.
How Calif. props could reverse the effects of tough-on-crime laws Prop 57 would allow early parole for inmates who’ve committed nonviolent crimes. Prop 64 would legalize marijuana and release some people who are serving time for marijuana-related offenses. Both measures play into a broader narrative that California has had over the past few year that “tough on crime” may be too tough.
California lawmakers consider major voting overhaul The State Assembly votes on a measure Tuesday that would overhaul the voting process, and that could mean the days of scrambling to get to a random garage, school, or storefront on election day may be ending in California . If the proposal passes, many traditional polling places would go away starting in 2018.
CA Gun Control: What Governor Brown Signed and What He Vetoed The California state legislature handed Governor Brown a package of gun control bills. As of Friday morning, the Governor signed some and vetoed others. What does that mean for the gun control initiative that Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom has put on the ballot?
Jerry Brown: From Governor ‘Moonbeam’ to the ‘Adult in the Room’ In 1975, Jerry Brown’s first year in office as the Governor of California, ABC News reported that many Californians didn’t know what to make of the state’s youngest-ever governor. Forty-one years later, as the state’s oldest-ever governor, that may still be the case.
The Accidental Popularity of the American Independent Party In 1964, Governor George Wallace ran for president as a Democrat. He planned to run again in 1968, but Democrats rejected his segregationist platform; and so a new, ultra-conservative party was created in California to put him on the ballot. It was called the American Independent Party and it still exists.
If You Raise It, What Will Happen? Governor Jerry Brown is expected to sign an increase in the California minimum wage on Monday here in LA, just days after the Assembly and House both approved a proposal to raise that wage to $15 by the year 2022. Once he puts his John Hancock on that bill, it’ll the highest statewide minimum wage in the nation. Cities – including Los Angeles, Seattle, and DC – have raised their minimum wages too…
State of the State Since Gov. Jerry Brown took office, he’s been focused on fiscal discipline And that continues to be the name of the game, though the state has seen revenue of $6 billion above expectations. But the state also has some liabilities to pay off – almost $220 billion of it in retirement and pensions.
What to Expect from the California Legislature in 2016 It being the the holidays the state legislature is out for recess until next year, when lawmakers and Governor Jerry Brown will take up some major initiatives.
In Sacramento, Saving the Biggest for Last With the state legislature's current session is scheduled to end tomorrow, it's time to invoke a long-standing maxim: "the hardest, most controversial proposals are almost always left until the very end." That's according to John Myers, who reports from Sacramento for KQED , public radio and television in San Francisco.
California's Gone from Bad Times to Good Times… or Has It? State Senators and Assembly members are prepared to pass a budget by midnight tonight. If it gets any later, they won't get paid . But that won't mean the process is over. What's in store for disabled people, the poor and others who suffered from program cuts during the Great Recession?
Broken Family Reunited on Museum Walls Edward Goldman talks about the passing of the legendary Sister Wendy, and the moral responsibility of museums to reunite divided artworks.
Rethinking public school funding in California LAUSD teachers are striking for the second day. Many people are questioning the state’s model for funding schools. California spends around $10,800 per pupil, which is less than the national average. But maybe that money could be better spent if the district itself were smaller and more manageable.
Documentary challenges how black life is portrayed on screen In his directorial debut, RaMell Ross ruminates on how black life has been portrayed. “Hale County This Morning, This Evening” focuses on the lives of people trying to eke out a living in Alabama’s catfish industry. It’s shortlisted for an Oscar.