Cal Matters - SMDP (Page 2)

California’s budget is so convoluted that even experts are perplexed at what it contains

There was a time, not too many years ago, when drafting and enacting California’s budgets was a fairly transparent and straightforward process. The governor and legislators would agree on

By Cal Matters

/ 1 Sep 2026

Governor Gavin Newsom speaking at a podium during a budget press conference at the California Capitol in Sacramento

California lawmakers strike wildfire deal that leaves out most of Newsom’s big demands

Gov. Gavin Newsom on Saturday backed off his proposal to reduce costs for electrical utilities after their equipment sparks wildfires, agreeing instead to a narrower deal after homeowners, insurers and

By Cal Matters

/ 1 Sep 2026

Eaton Fire survivors protesting outside California Governor's Mansion in Sacramento during wildfire liability negotiations, August 2026

Reducing drug penalties likely increased homelessness in California, new report says

When Californians voted to reduce drug penalties in 2014, it likely had the unintended consequence of also increasing homelessness in the state, according to a new report. The report, released

By Cal Matters

/ 31 Aug 2026

Homeless encampment with tents lining the street in Skid Row, Los Angeles, California

California’s political battle over key environmental law brews on two fronts

Business as usual in California politics always includes at least one squabble over the California Environmental Quality Act, a law signed 56 years ago by then-Gov. Ronald Reagan. As

By Cal Matters

/ 28 Aug 2026

Multi-story apartment and retail building under construction at Wilshire Boulevard and 6th Street in Santa Monica, California

California’s local governments rush to ask for tax increases before voters get the chance to curb them

November’s ballot is dominated by measures that would alter how California levies taxes, including one that would make it more difficult for local governments to gain voter approval of

By Cal Matters

/ 26 Aug 2026

Voter filling out ballot at polling location in Chico, California during 2026 election

Counting votes quickly and accurately are not mutually exclusive. Here’s how California can do it

California is the home of the artificial intelligence boom, smartphones and some of the most valuable technology companies on earth. We have built systems that process billions of transactions in

By Cal Matters

/ 26 Aug 2026

Election workers sorting and organizing ballots at Fresno County Elections Warehouse in Fresno, California

California must grow ‘connective tissue’ to better link employers to young people seeking careers

Ask a Los Angeles employer whether they’d give a young person their first real shot at a career and most would say yes. Ask them to pull it off

By Cal Matters

/ 25 Aug 2026

Vocational training instructor demonstrating pipe cutting techniques to pre-apprenticeship students in Fresno, California

As California demands less plastic in packaging, manufacturers say you’ll pay more for stuff

More than two dozen California Assembly Democrats and one state senator sent a letter Wednesday to legislative leaders asking them to delay fees under SB 54, the state’s landmark

By Cal Matters

/ 21 Aug 2026

Plastic bottles and waste materials sorted in a blue recycling bin at a residential home in Sacramento, California

Newsom’s wildfire recovery proposal will make sure Californians get paid first

Six years ago, the Creek Fire tore through the Sierra National Forest. Tens of thousands of people were forced to flee with almost no warning, leaving their homes with only

By Cal Matters

/ 18 Aug 2026

Firefighter spraying water on burning house during Eaton Fire in Pasadena, California, January 2025

Which version of Gavin Newsom will voters see if he runs for president?

All politicians are, to some extent, chameleons who align their personas with the prevailing moods of the voting public. That can be tricky in an era of extreme political volatility,

By Cal Matters

/ 12 Aug 2026

Governor Gavin Newsom speaking at a press conference in Hayward, California on March 2, 2026

California lets teens pre-register to vote before they’re 18. It doesn’t teach them how

Americans recently marked the nation’s semiquincentennial — 250 years since a band of revolutionaries staked everything on the idea that a people could govern themselves. Anniversaries invite us to look

By Cal Matters

/ 11 Aug 2026

Student filling out voter registration form at Sacramento State University in Sacramento, California

California nearly achieved universal healthcare. Now, millions are losing coverage

Two years ago, California hit a milestone decades in the making: Nearly every person in the state qualified for health insurance, regardless of immigration status and income, pushing the state’

By Cal Matters

/ 5 Aug 2026