Controversial climate rule, which could raise gas prices, about to go into effect
CALMATTERS, ALEJANDRO LAZO: "California’s revamped Low Carbon Fuel Standard takes effect on Tuesday, despite fierce Republican criticism and increasing Democratic trepidation over its potential to raise gas prices.
The new rules — which expand a program to reduce climate-warming gases and clean the air — ratchet up requirements for cleaner fuels and broaden a $2 billion credit market aimed at cutting emissions from cars, trucks and freight."
California’s entire budget rests on a must-pass housing bill
SACRAMENTO BEE, KATE WOLFFE: "On Monday, the state Senate and Assembly are set to discuss the one proposal to rule them all: Senate Bill 131.
No one is to be blamed for not knowing anything about this bill — official language for it just came out Friday morning. But it has become a very important bill, because it has a very important ally in Gov. Gavin Newsom."
How Newsom’s new labor deals save money now by taking a break from a big debt payment
CALMATTERS, ADAM ASHTON: "Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office is making benefit deals with public employee unions that save money today in part by putting off payments that were meant to bring down costs tomorrow.
His office this month negotiated seven agreements with unions that pause state spending for two years toward one of California’s largest long-term debts: the health care benefits civil servants receive in retirement."
The Micheli Minute for June 30, 2025
CAPITOL WEEKLY, STAFF: "Lobbyist and author Chris Micheli offers a quick look at what’s coming up this week in Sacramento."
Marines are now stationed on the California border. Newsom’s office calls it ‘mission creep’
CALMATTERS, WENDY FRY: "Dozens of Marines are now stationed at a Border Patrol station in eastern San Diego County, a new development that points to the Trump administration’s military buildup on the southern border.
Some Marines there told CalMatters on Wednesday that they are out in Campo patrolling the border twice a day."
Undocumented workers power L.A.’s restaurants. Will the industry protect them?
LAT, KARLA MARIE SANFORD: "Tucked into a Chinatown shopping plaza, the modern Filipino restaurant Lasita is typically bursting with energy. Orbs of yellow light wash over plates of juicy chicken inasal; longtime friends catch up over handpicked wines as music thumps in the background.
That all changed on the evening of Friday, June 6, when more than 10 Immigration and Customs Enforcement vans filled the parking lot across from the restaurant, leaving guests and staff “spooked,” said co-owner Chase Valencia."
‘Rights are under attack’: S.F. Pride parade as zany as ever, but infused with resistance
THE CHRONICLE, CONNOR LETOURNEAU/MEGAN CASSIDY/SAM WHITING: "As San Francisco’s month-long LGBTQ+ Pride celebration culminated Sunday in a massive rainbow-laden party packing city streets, event leaders made one thing clear: These were no ordinary festivities.
President Donald Trump’s recent assault on queer and transgender protections prompted some of San Francisco Pride’s biggest corporate sponsors to flee, raising important questions about the iconic event’s future. Should it become more of a protest than a party? And, present political climate aside, could a budget shortfall force organizers to scale things back?"
Why managing early memory loss should actually start with your heart
THE CHRONICLE, CATHERINE HO: "Yesterday, we published a story about the importance of getting a medical evaluation if you’re experiencing any symptoms of cognitive decline. Today, we focus on how you can live with cognitive decline if you’re among the roughly one-third of U.S. adults 65 and older experiencing some form of cognitive impairment.
We spoke to Sharon Lukert, a former longtime Bay Area nurse and chaplain who in 2021 was diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) due to Alzheimer’s disease. Lukert, who now lives in Wisconsin, recently wrote a book documenting her experience, “Until My Memory Fails Me,” which offers guidance on meditation and spiritual practices that have helped her on her journey. (Disclosure: Lukert’s son previously worked as a reporter at the Chronicle.)"
Plan to sell public land knocked out of the ‘Big Beautiful Bill’
SACRAMENTO BEE, DAVID LIGHTMAN: "A last-ditch effort to allow sales of federal land – sales that could affect millions of California acres – was finally struck from the “Big, Beautiful Bill” this weekend.
The plan had drawn opposition from members of both parties, and the Senate parliamentarian last week had ruled a more ambitious plan didn’t belong in the budget bill."
Can’t afford an average home in S.F.? Try a mansion in Sacramento instead
THE CHRONICLE, CHRISTIAN LEONARD: "A mid-priced home in San Francisco and San Mateo County costs nearly as much as a luxury home in the Sacramento area.
It’s not just that homes in the San Francisco metro area are far more expensive than they are in the Sacramento region — though they certainly are. The estimated price of a mid-tier home that sold in the San Francisco area from March to May was nearly $1.5 million, according to online real estate brokerage Redfin, almost three times the typical $589,000 price tag in the Sacramento area."
Tesla’s primitive robotaxis are driving in Texas. Will they come to San Francisco next?
THE CHRONICLE, RACHEL SWAN: "When Tesla rolled out a primitive robotaxi service Sunday in Austin, Texas, it took the reverse approach of its competitors.
While other companies, such as Waymo, highlight their time-intensive engineering and heavy investments in safety and reliability, experts have marveled at Tesla’s more radical philosophy: Scrap the sophisticated hardware, put full faith in AI, deploy in places that don’t have a lot of rules."
The case against Sean Combs might not be a slam-dunk for prosecutors. Here’s why
LAT, RICHARD WINTON: "One of the most sensational celebrity trials in decades is expected early this week to go to jurors, who must decide whether music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs is responsible for a shocking series of alleged sex crimes and conspiracies dating back years.
The trial in New York has been marked by graphic testimony from inside Combs’ music empire, alleging a pattern of violence, threats and cover-ups that prosecutors have likened to a mob-like criminal enterprise."
Vatican launches American-style campaign to help erase a $58-million deficit
LAT, NICOLE WINFIELD: "Pope Leo XIV on Sunday celebrated a special feast day traditionally used by the Roman Catholic Church to drum up donations from the faithful, with the Vatican under the first American pope rolling out a new campaign to urge ordinary Catholics to help bail out the deficit-ridden Holy See.
Leo celebrated Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica, marking the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul, during which he gave the pallium woolen stole to 54 new archbishops. He thanked donors who have contributed to the church, using the language of the publicity campaign to say their financial support was a sign of union with his young pontificate."