Aside from giving housing and homelessness its own box atop Gov. Gavin Newsom’s organizational chart, the reorg is supposed to simplify the state’s snarled affordable housing financing system.
StateWatch
Posted inPolitics & Policy
California Democrats push to block ICE from schools, hospitals and shelters
Highly publicized immigration raids in the early months of Donald Trump’s second term have rattled California communities and prompted lawmakers to push for more laws protecting immigrants.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Newsom picks more housing over CEQA in backing two bills meant to speed construction
The California environmental law known as CEQA can be used to block construction in developed areas. Gov. Gavin Newsom is supporting changes to encourage more housing.
Posted inLatest News
Newsom proposes to freeze Medi-Cal enrollment for undocumented immigrants
To save more than $5 billion, California Gov. Gavin Newsom wants to shut down new enrollment for adults who lack legal status and to charge premiums for health care. The Legislature has resisted such changes.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
A Fox News host? A sheriff? Is there a Republican who can finally win statewide in California again?
Steve Hilton, a former Fox News host, and Chad Bianco, Riverside County sheriff, lead the field of Republicans who hope to snap a long GOP losing streak in next year’s California governor’s race.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
No more calling ‘shotgun’? California could ban teens from riding in the front seat
A bill making its way through the California Assembly would require children up to 16 years old to ride in the back seat if they’re not tall enough. Middle schoolers up to age 13 would need to use booster seats if they’re tiny.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Xavier Becerra jumps into crowded race for California governor
In a short video Wednesday announcing his candidacy, former California attorney general Xavier Becerra noted that he had experience fighting Donald Trump after suing his first administration more than 100 times.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Democracy in the dark: How California lawmakers are trying to shield themselves from public view
State lawmakers have introduced at least a dozen proposals that would make it harder to confront local officials at public meetings, shield more information from the public and relax rules on financial reports.
Posted inEducation
Parents can’t figure out how California schools are doing. Newsom’s plan to fix that stalls
In 2019, his first year in office, California Gov. Gavin Newsom launched the Cradle-to-Career Data System, a new state entity that aims to track students’ progress from preschool through employment. The data system was supposed to release its first public dashboard last spring.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Newsom’s MAGA-curious podcast mystifies listeners — and sets Dem lawmakers on edge
Gavin Newsom’s podcast launch baffles allies and critics alike as the California governor disappears from public events, raising questions about his leadership priorities and political future.