California’s signature climate effort is up for renewal — and it’s a fight
LAT, HAYLEY SMITH: "As California pushes toward its ambitious goals for addressing climate change, the fate of its signature program is hanging in the balance. For months, lawmakers, industry groups and environmental advocates have been mired in negotiations over whether and how to extend the cap-and-trade program, which limits planet-warming emissions, beyond its 2030 expiration date.
The cap-and-trade program was nation-leading when it was authorized by state law in 2006. It requires major polluters such as power plants, oil refineries and other industrial facilities to purchase allowances, or credits, for each ton of carbon dioxide they emit, and lets those companies buy or sell their unused allowances at quarterly auctions. Each year fewer credits are created, lowering the total annual climate pollution in the state."
POLITICO, MELANIE MASON: "California Gov. Gavin Newsom faces a major hurdle in his quest to revamp his state’s congressional lines, according to a new poll: Californians’ deep support for its current independent redistricting commission.
By nearly a two-to-one margin, voters prefer keeping an independent line-drawing panel to determine the state’s House seats, the latest POLITICO-Citrin Center-Possibility Lab survey found. Just 36 percent of respondents back returning congressional redistricting authority to state lawmakers."
An atmospheric river is approaching. Here’s when rain could hit the drought-plagued West
The Chronicle, ANTHONY EDWARDS: "Two separate weather patterns are forecast to bring substantial rainfall to parts of the West the next few days, alleviating drought and drenching wildfires from Seattle to Phoenix.
An early-season atmospheric river could drop nearly a month’s worth of precipitation across drought-plagued Washington state, Oregon and British Columbia from Thursday night through Saturday. The same storm will bring showers to Western Oregon on Friday and thunderstorms to far Northern California on Saturday and Sunday."
Trial on National Guard deployment in LA ends. What lawyers for Newsom, Trump said
SacBee, STEPHEN HOBBS: "President Donald Trump and his administration have illegally used soldiers in Los Angeles and must be reined in to prevent future abuses, an attorney representing Gov. Gavin Newsom, and the state of California, argued this week during a three-day trial.
“The federal government is not concerned with abiding by the law,” said Meghan Strong, a lawyer for the California Department of Justice. “They are concerned only with finding a loophole that allows them to dispatch the military to do their will.”"
Lawmakers and the hot ICE summer
Capitol Weekly, EMILY HAMILL: "The California Legislature has been on its annual summer recess, but the ongoing feud with President Donald Trump has not taken any time off. And while redistricting has taken center stage for the moment, when lawmakers return next week they will also have a full package of bills addressing interactions with the federal Immigrations and Customs Enforcement agency (ICE) to consider forwarding to Gov. Gavin Newsom.
The bills range from blocking ICE agents’ access to nonpublic areas of schools, hospitals, homeless shelters and domestic violence centers without a warrant; to prohibiting healthcare providers, cities and counties from sharing the immigration status information of patients and street vendors with federal authorities; to prohibiting law enforcement from wearing masks or face coverings."
This Republican lawmaker has served CA for decades. Newsom’s plan could end his dominance.
CALMatters, DEBORAH BRENNAN: "Last year Republican Rep. Ken Calvert, the longest-serving Republican of California’s delegation, narrowly held his seat against a former federal prosecutor, Democrat Will Rollins.
This year he faces eight challengers, and the possibility that his area, California District 41, could be redrawn to give Democratic candidates the advantage."
California grocery prices could rise if this self-checkout bill passes, grocers argue
CALMatters, MAYA C. MILLER: "It’s been a long day at work, and you still need to stop by the store on your way home.
To spare yourself more social interaction, you make a beeline for the self-checkout station, praying for a quick and painless transaction."
Sen. Schiff tours San Diego Food Bank, predicts ‘more hunger’ due to Trump cuts
Times of San Diego, CHRIS STONE: "Sen. Adam Schiff toured the Jacobs and Cushman San Diego Food Bank warehouse Wednesday to emphasize the “painful” consequences of the recently signed budget bill.
The California Democrat emphasized the pressure that food banks may be under with “dramatic” cuts to SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) and other food aid."
Is Putin laying a trap in Alaska, or is Trump?
LAT, MICHAEL WILNER: "The first presidential summit in years between Russia and the United States is on, setting nerves in Europe and Ukraine on a knife’s edge. But President Trump may have a surprise in store for Vladimir Putin.
Efforts to scuttle the high-stakes meeting have not been subtle. European officials issued statements in recent days on the futility of Trump negotiating with Putin over Ukraine without Ukraine, urging the U.S. president on Wednesday to not cut a unilateral deal. Kyiv warned that Moscow’s proposals for peace — rewarding its war of conquest with territorial concessions — are a nonstarter. Many Russia experts are hoping one side simply decides to call it off."
Trump to host ‘non-woke’ 2025 Kennedy Center Honors with Kiss, Stallone and Gloria Gaynor
The Chronicle, AIDIN VAZIRI: "President Donald Trump has named the 2025 recipients of the Kennedy Center Honors, marking the first class selected under his leadership since assuming control of the institution earlier this year.
The honorees — country singer George Strait, Broadway actor Michael Crawford, disco legend Gloria Gaynor, rock band Kiss and actor Sylvester Stallone — reflect what Trump described as a move away from “woke” culture toward a more “mainstream” American celebration."
Homeless people in detention camps? Fears grow about Trump and the Olympics
LAT, ANDREW KHOURI: "Local officials and advocates for the homeless are fearful that President Trump will take draconian action against homeless people, including pushing them into detention camps, when Los Angeles hosts the Olympic Games in 2028.
In recent weeks, Trump has appointed himself head of an Olympics task force and has seized control of local policing in Washington, D.C., declaring that homeless people will be given places to stay “FAR from the Capital.”"
What LA immigration raids left behind: Empty spaces and a city on edge
CALMatters, NIGEL DUARA: "There’s a certain beauty in the notes not played. An entire symphony, if you’re listening.
The cars not backfiring. The sirens not wailing. The fireworks not erupting in sonic booms that bounce off hills and peal across valleys."
SB 357 would make a broken juvenile justice system worse (OP-ED)
Capitol Weekly, STACY FORD/REGGIE TORRES/KATHERYN BEIGH: "L.A. County’s juvenile justice system is in crisis. For years, the Supervisors have refused to confront the very failures they created – chronic understaffing, politicized management, and a total collapse of operational accountability. With the system buckling under its own weight, Attorney General Rob Bonta has taken the historically unprecedented step of asking the courts to place the juvenile division into receivership.
The conditions inside the County’s juvenile facilities are the result of deliberate, long-term policy choices that gutted staffing, diverted funding, and undermined the workforce tasked with protecting and rehabilitating youth. The AG stepped in not because probation officers failed – but because County leadership did."
Can homegrown teens replace immigrant farm labor? In 1965, the U.S. tried (VOICES)
LAT, GUSTAVO ARELLANO: "I sank into Randy Carter’s comfy couch, excited to see the Hollywood veteran’s magnum opus.
Around the first floor of his Glendale home were framed photos and posters of films the 77-year-old had worked on during his career. “Apocalypse Now.” “The Godfather II.” “The Conversation.”"
As lawsuit costs spiral, California schools are forced to seek insurance overseas
The Chronicle, SOPHIA BOLLAG: "A state law that made it easier to sue over child sexual assault is driving up litigation costs so dramatically that schools and local governments have been forced to seek insurance coverage overseas.
When it took effect in 2020, the law resulted in a flood of claims with harrowing stories about the abuse people say they suffered as children and institutions charged with protecting them that looked the other way."
California’s newest invaders are beautiful swans. Should hunters kill them?
CALMatters, RYAN SABALOW: "On an early August morning, it didn’t take long to spot the first pair of huge white swans with orange and black bills and graceful, curving necks as they swam in the marsh along the side of a Solano County levee road.
They dabbled in the vegetation as a pickup drove through the Grizzly Island Wildlife Area. A short drive later, past a herd of a dozen tule elk, two more swans appeared in the marsh alongside the dirt road. Then four more. A few hundred yards down the road, out in the distance past a thicket of swaying reeds, dozens of swans swam in the water."
California wine region’s leading industry group is shutting down
The Chronicle, ESTHER MOBLEY: "The leading trade organization in one of California’s most prominent wine regions is dissolving, a distressing sign for the area’s already struggling wineries and vineyards.
The nonprofit Monterey County Vintners & Growers Association announced the news this week in a letter to its members. “To be completely honest, it’s financial,” former board president Scott Caraccioli told the Chronicle, speaking on behalf of the current board. A few significant members are no longer able to pay their dues to the association, he said, which “changes our ability to deliver value to our members.”"
Reps expect tariffs to cost San Diego households $2,400 this year
Times of San Diego, JENNIFER VIGIL: "Two members of the San Diego congressional delegation said in a press conference Wednesday that President Donald Trump’s tariffs will impact the average San Diego household – and not in a big, beautiful way.
Representatives Scott Peters and Sara Jacobs said local households can expect to absorb a nearly $2,400 hit this year due to higher costs as tariffs are assessed on foreign goods."
Is new housing being built in your California neighborhood? Search this map to find out
The Chronicle, HARSHA DEVULAPALLI/CHRISTIAN LEONARD: "The map below contains information on housing developments in all stages of construction in 2024, as reported to California’s Department of Housing and Community Development. The department publishes self-reported figures from cities and counties without additional data cleaning, so some incorrect or unusual locations may appear. Still, the map generally gives a strong sense of where building is happening or may happen in an area.
This is the first time this data has been made publicly accessible in a way that allows people to explore the state of housing development in their neighborhoods. The full dataset for 2024 was not available until mid-2025."
Sacramento slated for $16 million in homeless funding. How will it be used?
SacBee, MATHEW MIRANDA: "Decreased state money for homeless services could lead Sacramento to spend less on prevention services even as more residents in the region enter homelessness than exit it.
The funding reduction, which is tied to the county’s Point-in-Time Count, comes from the latest installment of state Homeless Housing, Assistance and Prevention grants. Sacramento is expected to receive about $16 million from the grant — 40% less than the year before."
California high-speed rail may lose $4 billion. Should it continue?
SacBee, TINA LI: "Moe than a month after the Trump administration moved to rescind $4 billion in expected funding, the future of California’s high-speed rail project remains uncertain. The money hasn’t been reallocated yet, and California is challenging the decision. But the attempted funding cut has reignited long-standing doubts about whether the nation’s most ambitious rail project can still deliver on its promise.
The project has always carried outsized ambitions. When voters approved a $10 billion bond for the project in 2008, the plan was to connect Los Angeles and San Francisco in under 3 hours via fully electric-powered high-speed rail by 2020, at a cost of $33 billion. Then, in a second phase, the system would be expanded up to Sacramento and down to San Diego."
BART riders will soon be able to pay by tapping a credit card. Here’s when
The Chronicle, RACHEL SWAN: "After a long wait, BART commuters can finally pay for rides the same way they pay for literally everything else: by tapping a debit or credit card at the gate.
Next week, the regional rail system will introduce a new “contactless” payment method that policymakers have discussed for years. The open payments that launch at BART Wednesday morning which will eventually spread to all Bay Area transit systems that use Clipper."