After 2024 losses, Democrats are split on strategy: move to the middle or embrace economic populism. A Central Valley congressional race encapsulates the divide.
CalMatters
Posted inPolitics & Policy
California sues as Trump cuts $600M in public health grants to four states
The Trump administration has targeted grants aimed at helping fund public health workforce and disease monitoring in California, Colorado, Illinois and Minnesota. Ending these grants could result in layoffs and worse health outcomes, according to a lawsuit filed by California Attorney General Rob Bonta.
Posted inHousing & Development
Housing advocates still waiting for state-ordered stair report
California’s fire safety regulators were asked to study whether mid-rise apartments can go with a single staircase. They’re more than a month late.
Posted inLatest News
‘Little death bombs’: Illegal cannabis farms poison California’s forests. Who’s cleaning them up?
Even after legalization, illicit cannabis grows continue to pollute California’s public lands. And the contamination, new research shows, lingers.
Posted inLatest News
California spends billions based on this pollution tracker. Who benefits from its latest update?
California is updating CalEnviroScreen, the influential pollution tracker that helps determine which communities get environmental grants. Advocates say the state should improve the tool and use it more frequently to cut pollution.
Posted inEducation
California wants colleges to count work experience for credit. How’s it going?
California’s community colleges are now giving college credit for students’ previous work experiences. The state has a goal of rapidly expanding access to these credits, though tracking progress on that goal has been difficult so far.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Republican Steve Hilton leads California governor fundraising as large pool of Democrats lags
It takes tens of millions of dollars to run a statewide campaign for governor. Strategists say the many Democratic candidates aren’t raising money quickly enough.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Child care in California was already hard to find; the immigration crackdown has made it worse
In California, almost 40% of the workforce is foreign-born and more than a million parents — immigrant and otherwise — rely on child care providers so they can go to work.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Immigration arrests quietly surge by 1,500% in San Diego: ‘I feel the temperature rising’
San Diego doesn’t feel like a city under siege by Border Patrol, but it’s the scene of a dramatic increase in immigration arrests during President Donald Trump’s crackdown.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Tom Steyer vows to cut electricity bills by 25%, but experts say the details fall short
California has the second-highest electricity bills in the nation, and no candidate for governor has homed in as much as climate investor Tom Steyer. But is his promise to cut bills 25% realistic?