California Policy Pulse

• Worker conditions: Proposal mandates 1:3 employee-kiosk ratio and open staffed lanes to ease overload and safety risks for staff, backed by UFCW...

AB 2222 would provide tax credits of up to $20,000 per full-time journalist to help local outlets hire and retain staff amid widespread...

After vetoing stricter legislation in 2024, Gov. Newsom now directs state agencies via executive order to recommend kill switches, external...

Health Access California backs Proposition 3 to make the high-income earner tax permanent, citing its role in funding Medi-Cal and other services.

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Supporters project $100 billion from the 5% one-time wealth tax to backfill Medi-Cal and CalFresh after federal cuts.

• Opponents cite billionaire...

A new four-year contract ends the San Francisco Opera orchestra strike, restoring performances with Verdi’s Simon Boccanegra next Tuesday while delivering fair pay, stability, and structural changes for musicians and management.

• Funding focus: Raises projected $100 billion over five years, with 90% earmarked for Medi-Cal healthcare to offset federal cuts and 10% for food aid...

Governor Newsom’s appointment of Holly Pearson as Chief Counsel at the California Department of Technology underscores the administration’s focus on...

San Diego County charged the second-highest number of drug felonies under Proposition 36, yet fewer than a third of those referred for treatment...

Bay Area voters face a sales tax increase to 11.25 percent in Alameda, Contra Costa, San Mateo, and Santa Clara counties through 2041, raising nearly...

• Newsom launched a "Take it Back" tour through Alabama, North Carolina, and South Carolina to court Southern Democrats ahead of the DNC's shifted...

After repeated failures tied to civil-liberties objections, near-unanimous passage of AB 1267 shows a broadening consensus that minors require stronger safeguards against coercion. The bill now awaits Gov. Newsom’s decision by Sept. 30.

First responders rallied for AB 1383 to lower retirement age from 57 to 55 and expand pension bargaining to 3% per year of service.

The bill would...

Recent PPIC publications map ongoing debates around safety-net policies and homelessness.

• Criminal justice reforms are examined for links to rising...

California is advancing AI use while grappling with oversight gaps.

• State adoption: Newsom's Anthropic partnership lets agencies access Claude at a...

Los Angeles must now prove it can deliver results as it assumes LAHSA's core functions—federal funding coordination, HMIS administration, the annual...

An inspector general audit flagged more than $600,000 in unallowable consultant travel expenses—including private aircraft, tiki bars, cigar lounges,...

SB 1274 creates California's first statutory definition of an "industrial city," recognizing that population alone fails to capture these...

The race to succeed Gov. Newsom is already underway, with a Republican facing off against a Democrat.

• Regulatory maze: Farmers navigate over 65 agencies and hundreds of rules, hitting small operations hardest.
• Farmland decline: 14,000 fewer farmers...