This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters. Three years ago, California built a first-in-the-nation system aimed at protecting drivers when oil markets turn calamitous. The Legislature passed it. Gov. Gavin Newsom signed it. He proclaimed “California took on Big Oil and won.” Its author, then-Sen. Nancy Skinner called it a “landmark law” that […]
Legislation
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Senate Rejects Bid to End Barred Owl Management Plan
The U.S. Senate on Wednesday blocked legislation aimed at ending the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s controversial plan to stave off the northern spotted owls’ extinction by killing thousands of non-native owls in designated areas, including parts of the North Coast. The Joint Resolution of Disapproval brought forward by Louisiana Sen. John Kennedy under the […]
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What’s Behind Newsom’s Safe Injection Sites Veto?
Read between the lines of Gov. Gavin Newsom’s Monday veto of a controversial bill that would have allowed San Francisco, Oakland and Los Angeles to launch trial supervised drug injection sites in a bid to curb California’s epidemic of fatal overdoses, and you might catch a glimpse of the political tightrope he’s walking. Although the […]
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Huffman Introduces Bill to Return Land to the Yurok Tribe
North Coast Congressmember Jared Huffman on Tuesday introduced legislation known as the “Yurok Lands Act,” a bill that seeks clear the way for the transfer of more than 1,000 acres of ancestral lands back to the tribe from the U.S. Forest Service and redraws the reservation boundary line to encompass that area and others acquired […]
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Newsom is Running Out of Time to Sign Bills
T-minus three days. That’s how much time Gov. Gavin Newsom has left to decide the fate of the remaining bills on his desk — and as the deadline draws nearer, the buildup for big-ticket and contentious proposals is getting more intense. The direct impact of Newsom’s decisions was particularly apparent Wednesday, when he signed a […]
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Huffman Looks to Abolish U.S. Space Force
North Coast Rep. Jared Huffman has introduced a bill that would abolish the “unnecessary” Space Force created by the Trump administration. “The long-standing neutrality of space has fostered a competitive, non-militarized age of exploration every nation and generation has valued since the first days of space travel. But since its creation under the former Trump […]
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McGuire Warns of ‘Toxic Coal Train’ Plan
An anonymous company out of Wyoming is looking to ship millions of tons of coal from several midwest states through Northern California counties including Humboldt, state Sen. Mike McGuire warned in a press release this morning. “This toxic coal train would run through the heart of so many thriving communities and along the Russian and […]
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Could Racially Motivated 911 Calls Become Hate Crimes?
Barbecuing at Lake Merritt in Oakland. Selling water without a permit. Both instances in which a Black person was doing something deemed criminal by a white person. Both instances in which a white person called the police. Now, as racial tensions continue to flare as the nation protests the death of George Floyd and others, […]
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Should Stores be Required to Accept Cash?
A small, but growing number of businesses are no longer accepting cash. Owners say that accepting only credit cards, debit cards or digital wallets like Apple Pay is more efficient and lowers the risk of being robbed. Electronic forms of payments are gaining popularity with consumers. But the cash-free trend has raised concerns that such […]
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Charter Schools, Unions Call a Truce in an Epic Battle as Newsom Brokers a Deal
Gov. Gavin Newsom brokered an agreement Wednesday on a high-profile charter-school regulation proposal at the center of this year’s contentious battle between teachers unions and charter advocates, removing a key hurdle for its passage this session. The compromise on Assembly Bill 1505 comes after months of lobbying by the state’s two most influential education interest […]
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How Powerful Lawmakers Kill California Bills Without a Peep
Gun control, school spending, curbs on greenhouse gases: With Democrats holding more power at the Capitol than they’ve had since the 19th century, California’s legislative pipeline is full this year with big, blue-state ideas. In theory, no Democrat’s bill should be left behind. But that’s not what’s happening, and the reason is roiling both sides […]
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McGuire Looks to Make ‘Transparency Great Again’
As members of the Electoral College set about casting their votes today, two state senators — including the North Coast’s Mike McGuire — announced they would introduce legislation requiring presidential candidates to release their tax returns to appear on the California ballot. The legislation, slated to be introduced in January, is the second to be […]