By basing funding on enrollment, not attendance numbers, California schools would lose the incentive to get students to show up every day, a new report finds.
CalMatters
California tax revenue getting a boost from AI boom — but for how long?
As talk of a possible artificial intelligence bubble grows, so does uncertainty around an important source of California tax money.
Gavin Newsom’s legacy: Can he deliver on unmet promises in his final year as governor?
Under Gavin Newsom’s tenure, health care has been expanded, but his housing goals and homelessness pledges remain unfinished. Can he deliver before eyeing the White House?
California should tax million-dollar, part-time homes to help first-gen students get to college
First-generation students lack the extra help with exams and college applications that rich kids’ families can buy. A new program and tax could change that, writes Alondra Martinez, a Stanford University senior.
A new California law requires tortillas to include an extra ingredient. Here’s why
Starting in 2026, California tortillas will contain folic acid to help prevent birth defects — a change aimed at closing a gap for Latina mothers.
Millions of Californians gain access to in vitro fertilization under new law
In vitro fertilization costs thousands of dollars and is often too expensive for many people struggling to conceive. A new California law aims to help change that.
In an era of ICE raids, a Latino Christmas tradition proceeds with caution
San Marcos residents celebrated the holiday tradition of posadas together while navigating fear and tension caused by increased ICE enforcement.
California’s water partnerships are effective and in danger
Federal cuts imperil government and private water partnerships and hobble disaster planning, writes Letitia Grenier and Jeff Mount of the PPIC Water Policy Center. California must maintain its water expertise.
New California law bans federal agents from wearing masks in showdown over immigration raids
The Trump administration is suing to block a new California that would ban federal law enforcement officers from wearing masks on duty. It was shaped by concerns over masked immigration agents in Los Angeles.
‘We may be deporting the wrong people’: Poll shows public doubt about immigration crackdown
A poll shared exclusively with CalMatters adds to a slate of recent surveys suggesting Californians’ support is waning for President Donald Trump’s harshest immigration enforcement policies.

