Even as the coronavirus pandemic finally appears to be receding, Californians are in a funk. They are nearly evenly split on whether the state is headed in the right direction, according to a survey released last month by the Public Policy Institute of California, and gave poor marks to Gov. Gavin Newsom on almost every […]
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Millions of Californians At Risk of Losing Health Coverage When Federal COVID Programs End
Millions of Californians could lose or transition into new health coverage as two federal programs that helped many keep or afford insurance are set to expire this year. Two to three million Californians could lose their Medi-Cal coverage, some as soon as this summer, after the federal government’s COVID-19 public health emergency ends, now scheduled […]
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State of the State: Will Gov. Newsom do More to Reduce California Inequality?
Gov. Gavin Newsom is an unlikely champion of California’s down and out. Yet the wine entrepreneur, who built his political career and fortune with help from the state’s wealthy elite, campaigned on a promise to address California’s disparities – and do so boldly. From his first day in office in January 2019, Newsom called the […]
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California is Heavily in Debt from Unemployment Payments: How to Get Out of a $20 Billion Hole?
You may have heard how fake pandemic unemployment claims flooded California, or how desperate callers clogged phone lines with questions the state employment agency struggled to answer. But there’s another problem with the Golden State’s unemployment system that has been quietly brewing during the pandemic: California now has the unfortunate distinction of having as much […]
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Local Agencies Warn of Email Hacking Throughout Region
Multiple agencies including the Humboldt County Office of Emergency Services this past week have been warning residents of multiple phishing scams and email hacking incidents attempting to access or damage a computer or network system. In a Facebook post on Monday, Humboldt County OES said they had received numerous reports of cybersecurity-related incidents targeting local government agencies […]
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Auditor-Controller Working to Meet State’s Hard March 16 Deadline for Delinquent Report
The State Controller’s Office has clarified that the final demand letter sent from the Attorney General’s Office to Humboldt County Auditor-Controller Karen Paz Dominguez threatening to fine her $5,000 if she failed to turn in a long-overdue 2019-2020 financial report was not, in fact, a mistake, as Paz Dominguez suggested at the March 1 meeting […]
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Newsom Unveils ‘Completely New Strategy’ for California’s Mental Health Crisis
Gov. Gavin Newsom today unveiled a much anticipated proposal to address a mental health crisis increasingly visible on trash-strewn sidewalks and in cramped jail cells around California. The proposal, known as the Community Assistance, Recovery and Empowerment (or CARE) Court, would provide a framework for courts to compel people with serious mental illnesses and substance […]
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How Long are Californians Waiting for Rent Relief?
Only 16 percent of nearly half a million renters who applied for rent relief from the state of California have been paid, according to a new analysis released today. And the clock is ticking: Under state law, landlords will be able to evict tenants who failed to pay rent by April 1. Of more than […]
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California Counted Its Homeless Population, but Can It Track the Money?
As she headed to her car after two hours of counting and surveying Sacramento’s homeless population, the state’s top housing official acknowledged there is a long road ahead. “We’re building the system, building the capacity, building the data, and communities are rising to the occasion. I know people are really frustrated because they feel like […]
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As California Expands Medi-Cal, Hundreds of Thousands of Immigrants Will Still Be Left Behind
Lucia Marroquin knows what it’s like to wait out pain in hopes that it will go away on its own. She is suffering from kidney stones and may need surgery. But because she lacks health coverage, her first question when she falls ill is always “how much will that cost me?” So when California officials […]
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California Senate to Introduce Bill Divesting Funds from Russia
A broad, bipartisan coalition of California senators and assemblymembers, including Senate Majority Leader and North Coast state Sen. Mike McGuire and North Coast Assemblymember Jim Wood, is introducing a bill that will divest public funds from Russia and Russian-state entities following the country’s attack against Ukraine. “The world is watching the atrocities taking place in […]
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California School Mask Mandate to End March 12
All students and staff, regardless of vaccination status, will no longer be required to wear a mask indoors at schools and child care facilities starting March 12. Gov. Gavin Newsom and California state health officials issued the order on Monday, nearly a month after they lifted the mandate for vaccinated people gathering in restaurants and other […]