By Dan Walters Stay up-to-date with free briefings on topics that matter to all Californians. Subscribe to CalMatters today for nonprofit news in your inbox. When California’s voters 46 years ago passed Proposition 13, its iconic property tax limit, they ignited a perpetual conflict over how much tax money state and local governments need and […]
Posted inYouth
Paris Hilton Joins California Lawmakers to Push for Better Protections in Youth Residential Care
By Sara Tiano California state Sen. Shannon Grove, second from left, listens as Paris Hilton speaks at an April press conference in support of SB 1043, the Accountability in Children’s Treatment Act. Photo by Kevin Ostajewski. California has spent years developing some of the nation’s strictest rules for residential treatment of foster children. The state […]
Posted inBay Area, Opinion
Ritchie: The personality of ownership
By Mark Ritchie As we see the first distressed office building sale transactions of what is romantically called The Great Reset — also known as the greatest single asset class value extinction event in commercial real estate history — a few observations about the leasing of these battered towers come to mind. Selling for pennies […]
Posted inCalifornia, State
Will California voters decide tax limits in November? It’s up to the Supreme Court
By Alexei Koseff Stay up-to-date with free briefings on topics that matter to all Californians. Subscribe to CalMatters today for nonprofit news in your inbox. The California Supreme Court will decide in the coming weeks whether to remove a sweeping anti-tax measure from the November ballot, blocking an effort to increase the requirements for implementing […]
Posted inBay Area, Economy
Santa Clara County closes deficit but can’t escape budget cuts
By Brandon Pho Santa Clara County officials are bridging a massive deficit through an infusion of new revenue and realigned costs to balance the upcoming fiscal year’s $12.4 billion budget. But it will still require painful cuts. The county’s May 1 budget proposal manages to close half of its $250 million gap through several tactics. […]
Posted inBay Area, Education
East San Jose teachers demand raises to meet cost of living
By Annalise Freimarck Teachers in one San Jose high school district are calling for higher wages to keep up with the increasing cost of living — as the district struggles with an anticipated multimillion-dollar budget deficit. The East Side Union High School District, which serves more than 24,000 students, is offering its teachers a 1.1% […]
Posted inCalifornia
When will there be relief on CA gas prices?
By Lynn La Stay up-to-date with free briefings on topics that matter to all Californians. Subscribe to CalMatters today for nonprofit news in your inbox. Pump prices at a gas station in west Fresno on May 7, 2024. Photo by Larry Valenzuela, CalMatters/CatchLight Local Californians pay more at the pump than residents of any other […]
Posted inCalifornia, Housing, Opinion, State
Politicians keep shifting blame as California’s homelessness crisis worsens
By Dan Walters Stay up-to-date with free briefings on topics that matter to all Californians. Subscribe to CalMatters today for nonprofit news in your inbox. Over the last half-decade, state government has spent about $24 billion to ameliorate California’s worst-in-the-nation homelessness crisis. Local governments and private charities have spent countless billions more. Despite those immense […]
Posted inYouth
Michigan’s Highest Court Hears Challenge to Terminations of Parental Rights
Groups across the ideological spectrum are backing parents who claim the family courts fail to consider less-punitive alternatives to being legally severed from their children’s lives. By Michael Fitzgerald A case that challenges the severity of termination of parental rights practices in Michigan has made it to the state Supreme Court. Illustration by Christine Ongjoco. […]
Posted inCalifornia, Economy, State
Will Californians get any relief on gas prices?
By Lynn La Stay up-to-date with free briefings on topics that matter to all Californians. Subscribe to CalMatters today for nonprofit news in your inbox. Californians pay more at the pump than residents of any other state — an average of $5.34 a gallon for regular unleaded, compared to the national average of $3.64, according […]
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