The eleventh-hour negotiations about the spending plan, which takes effect July 1, speak to the political challenge of overhauling longstanding environmental regulations to speed up housing construction in a state controlled by Democrats.
The party has been loath to do more than tweak the California Environmental Quality Act, or approve one-off exemptions, despite pressure from the governor and national criticism of a law that reform advocates say has hamstrung California’s ability to build."
Under the budget proposal, the financial aid program “faces severe eligibility cuts that would significantly and negatively impact hundreds of thousands of California residents and students,” says the letter written jointly by the heads of all four state higher education systems: Michael Drake, president of the Univerity of California; Mildred Garcia, chancellor of California State University; Sonya Christian, chancellor of California Community Colleges, and Kristen Soares, president of the Association of Independent California Colleges and Universities."
Democrats are taking aim at one of California’s signature climate policies
Politico, ALEX NIEVES, DEBRA KAHN and CAMILLE VON KAENEL: "President Donald Trump is threatening California’s marquee carbon-trading program. But it’s in-state Democrats who are taking aim at the state’s other emissions market for transportation fuels.
Credit prices in California’s low-carbon fuels market dropped $4 per ton Tuesday morning on the recognition of a credible threat in SB 237, a bill introduced overnight that would cap prices instead of letting them rise as planned in service of encouraging refiners to sell more biofuels, electricity and other non-fossil fuels."
A Republican plan to sell off millions of acres of public lands is no more — for now
LA Times, LILA SEIDMAN: "A controversial proposal to sell off millions of acres of public lands across Western states — including large swaths of California — was stripped Monday from Republican’s tax and spending bill for violating Senate rules.
Senator Mike Lee (R–Utah) had advanced a mandate to sell up to 3.3 million acres of public land managed by the U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management for the stated purpose of addressing housing needs — an intent that opponents didn’t believe was guaranteed by the language in the provision."
Most nabbed in L.A. raids were men with no criminal conviction, picked up off the street
LA Times, RACHEL URANGA: "As Los Angeles became the epicenter of President Trump’s crackdown on undocumented immigrants, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem flew to the city and held a news conference, saying the government’s objective was to “bring in criminals that have been out on our street far too long.”
But data from the days leading up to that June 12 appearance suggest a majority of those who were arrested were not convicted criminals. Most were working-age men, nearly half Mexican."
Sacramento may ban homeless from sleeping at City Hall at mayor’s request
SacBee, MATHEW MIRANDA: "Sacramento Mayor Kevin McCarty is spearheading a policy that would prohibit homeless people from sleeping outside City Hall overnight — a reversal of the city’s approach to homelessness under his predecessor.
Under proposed change, people will be prohibited from sitting or laying down on the ground outside City Hall except in limited circumstances. The amendment comes six years after the Sacramento council voted to allow people to sleep on the property overnight but not during the day."
Fearing action by Trump, Golden Gate Bridge operator considers removing DEI references
Chornicle, TOM LI: "The latest Bay Area entity to consider backing away from diversity, equity and inclusion language amid President Donald Trump’s attacks on DEI is the district that runs San Francisco’s most famous asset: the Golden Gate Bridge.
Denis Mulligan, general manager of the Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District, noted in a Friday memo, first reported by the San Francisco Standard, that federal grant recipients found to be promoting DEI initiatives may face penalties or be forced to return their federal funding."
Trump cancelled millions in California research grants. Judges want to restore them
CalMatters, MIKHAIL ZINSHTEYN: "Federal judges handed California researchers temporary victories in their quest to retrieve what’s likely tens of millions of dollars in federal grants the Trump administration cancelled this year.
The judges issued the rulings in three cases Monday. In one case, more than 800 science research grants, including about 430 in California, need to be restored after a federal Massachusetts judge ruled the Trump administration’s cancellation of the grants was “illegal” as well as “arbitrary and capricious.” The list could grow as the trial advances. The judge said last week that he had “never seen a record where racial discrimination was so palpable” in his 40 years on the bench."
Chronicle, AIDIN VAZIRI, JESSICA FLORES and ANNA BAUMAN: "The
eight people killed in a sudden storm while boating on Lake Tahoe over the weekend were a close-knit group of friends and family members who had gathered for a birthday celebration, according to a spokesperson representing some of the victims.
The boating trip was a part of the 71st birthday celebration for Paula Bozinovich, one of the people who perished in the lake, when their 27-foot powerboat capsized during a sudden, violent storm on Saturday."
How to help kids cope with ongoing ICE raids, deportations | Quick Guide
EdSource, VANA SANGANERIA: "With school out for the summer, some students may no longer have access to crucial support and services available during the academic school year, as fear and anxiety rise in their communities from ongoing immigration raids.
California schools are still safe havens for students attending summer school, meaning federal immigration officers are prohibited from entering them and child care facilities without proper legal authorization. But fears remain unabated for both children of immigrants and their friends, as federal immigration agents in California continue to detain, arrest and deport residents, in what community members say has become an indefinite fixture of the Trump administration."
LAPD allowed to use drones as ‘first responders’ under new program
LA Times, LIBOR JANY: "Citing successes other police departments across the country have seen using drones, the Los Angeles Police Commission said it would allow the LAPD to deploy unmanned aircraft on routine emergency calls.
The civilian oversight body approved an updated policy Tuesday allowing drones to be used in more situations, including “calls for service.” The new guidelines listed other scenarios for future drone use — “high-risk incident, investigative purpose, large-scale event, natural disaster” — and transferred their command from the Air Support Division to the Office of Special Operations."
$30 Minimum Wage Has L.A. Hotel Owners in Revolt
Wall Street Journal, KATE KING: "Hotel owners are in open revolt against Los Angeles’s new $30-an-hour minimum wage, the latest blow to one of the country’s poorest-performing lodging markets.
This was supposed to be a great time to own a hotel in L.A. The area will soon be at the center of the globe’s premier sporting events, first as a host city for eight World Cup soccer games next year, and then the Super Bowl the following year. In 2028, L.A. hosts the summer Olympics."
Stanford Medicine halts gender-affirming surgeries for youths
Chronicle, CATHERINE HO: "Stanford Medicine has stopped providing gender-affirming surgeries for patients under 19 years old — becoming the second major health care provider in California to scale back transgender care for youths amid efforts by the Trump administration to restrict access to the specialized care.
“After careful review of the latest actions and directives from the federal government and following consultations with clinical leadership, including our multidisciplinary LGBTQ+ program and its providers, Stanford Medicine paused providing gender-related surgical procedures as part of our comprehensive range of medical services for LGBTQ+ patients under the age of 19, effective June 2, 2025,” Stanford said Tuesday in a statement to the Chronicle."
Robert Garcia picked for top congressional post, part of a new Democratic generation
SacBee, DAVID LIGHTMAN: "Rep. Robert Garcia emerged Tuesday as a major player in a new generation of California congressional leaders as he was elected as top Democrat on the House committee charged with investigating White House actions.
The California Democrat, a former Long Beach mayor, is in his second House term. He was chosen for the top committee job over Reps. Stephen Lynch, D-Mass., Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas and Kweisi Mfume, D-Md. Garcia got a strong push from the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. Garcia, 47, is part of an emerging group of younger Democrats replacing the veterans who slowly have been leaving."