Tribes waste no time suing to block ‘California Blackjack,’ other Vegas-style games in cardrooms
BRIAN JOSEPH in Capitol Weekly: "On the first day they were permitted to do so, several of California’s largest gaming tribes filed a suit on Thursday alleging that the arcane system cardrooms and related businesses employ to offer “California Blackjack” and other Las Vegas-style games is in violation of state law.
Under Proposition 1A, approved by California voters in March 2000, tribal casinos have the exclusive right to operate card games using house money in California. These are so-called “banked” games like Blackjack and Baccarat, which pit gamblers against the house."
READ MORE -- Are California’s card rooms legal? A court will decide after several tribes sue under a new law -- Sac Bee's ANDREW SHEELER; As California tribes sue their gambling rivals, cities could be the losers -- CALMatters' RYAN SABALOW
California almost legalized psychedelics. Now, supporters are looking for a good test case
CALMatters' ANA B. IBARRA: "Last year was supposed to mark a milestone in the psychedelic movement. Lawmakers and advocates were set to make California the next frontier in allowing the use of “magic mushrooms.”
They were hopeful because Gov. Gavin Newsom in 2023 — after vetoing a bill that would have decriminalized the possession of psychedelics — asked legislators for a bill that would prioritize the therapeutic promise of these drugs."
Newsom aims to limit unhealthy food in California, getting ahead of Trump administration and RFK Jr.
LAT's JULIA WICK, TARYN LUNA: "Gov. Gavin Newsom issued an executive order on Friday attempting to limit access to ultra-processed foods, a directive he cast as a continuation of California’s “nation leading” nutrition and health standards.
“The food we eat shouldn’t make us sick with disease or lead to lifelong consequences,” Newsom said in a statement. “California has been a leader for years in creating healthy and delicious school meals, and removing harmful ingredients and chemicals from food. We’re going to work with the industry, consumers and experts to crack down on ultra-processed foods, and create a healthier future for every Californian.”"
READ MORE -- Gavin Newsom takes aim at ultraprocessed foods in executive order -- The Chronicle's SOPHIA BOLLAG; Gov. Gavin Newsom orders probe of food dyes, targets junk food for stricter rules in California -- Sac Bee's LIA RUSSELL
Experts Expound: We Resolve
Capitol Weekly STAFF: "New Year’s resolutions are a staple for many folks, a way to establish goals for themselves they believe will make their lives better. With that in mind, we posed this question to our panel of Capitol observers:
What one resolution would you suggest to lawmakers for 2025?
“The realization that piling on mandates have real impacts to both costs and the agencies that are already stretched thin with years of previous mandates.”"
Commission on California governorship and order of precedence
CHRIS MICHELI in Capitol Weekly: "First, have you heard of the Commission on the Governorship? In the California Constitution, Section 10, there are provisions related to what happens when a vacancy occurs in the office of the Governor. This includes the “order of precedence” for succession to the office of the Governor. Additionally, Section 10 specifies that:
- The Supreme Court has exclusive jurisdiction to determine all questions arising under this section; and
- Standing to raise questions of vacancy or temporary disability is vested exclusively in a body provided by statute.
We turn, then, to Government Code Title 2 (Government of the State of California), Division 3 (Executive Department), Part 2 (Constitutional Officers), Chapter 1 (Governor), Article 7 (Commission on the Governorship). Article 7, which contains Sections 12070 – 12076, was added in 1966."
Sacramento City Council set to appoint interim city manager as nationwide search is conducted
Sac Bee's ROSALIO AHUMADA: "The Sacramento City Council on Tuesday will appoint an interim city manager while a nationwide search is conducted to replace Howard Chan, whose contract extension was rejected following months of criticism over his high salary and decision-making.
Newly elected Sacramento Mayor Kevin McCarty will present an update on the recruitment to replace Chan, who worked his last day as city manager on Jan. 31. The mayor’s presentation at Tuesday night’s City Council meeting was, as of Thursday evening, the only discussion item listed on the agenda."
Alcohol’s cancer risks should be included on warning labels, surgeon general says
LAT's AMANDA SEITZ: "Alcohol is a leading cause of cancer, a risk that should be clearly labeled on drinks Americans consume, U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy proposed Friday.
Murthy‘s advisory comes as research and evidence mounts about the bad effects that alcohol has on human health."
Treating brain injuries remains difficult. S.F. neurosurgeon’s trial may spot drugs that help
The Chronicle's CATHERINE HO: "Matt Vann can’t recall much about the moment, four years ago, that changed the trajectory of his life.
Vann, a San Francisco firefighter, was outside a building on Spear Street near the Embarcadero, responding to a high-rise fire. He was walking near a firehose when a Muni bus ran over the hose and kept driving, with the line still stuck around its tires. It knocked Vann off his feet and he hit the back of his head on the street — hard."
Can California keep ICE away from schools? Lawmakers want to try as crackdowns loom
CALMatters' CAROLYN JONES: "California lawmakers are proposing steps to protect K-12 students and families from mass deportations — although the real value of those proposals may be symbolic.
A pair of bills in the Legislature — AB 49 and SB 48 — aim to keep federal agents from detaining undocumented students or their families on or near school property without a warrant. The bills are a response to President-elect Donald Trump’s threat to deport undocumented immigrants, a move which could have major consequences for schools in California, which funds its schools based on attendance and where 12% of students have at least one undocumented parent."
California Lottery generates $2.25 billion for public schools
EdSource's DIANA LAMBERT: "The California Lottery raised more than $2.25 billion for the state’s public schools in 2024, bringing to $46 billion the total the lottery has generated for education since its inception in 1985.
This is the third year in a row that the lottery has generated more than $2 billion for education, according to lottery officials. Sales from the recent Mega Millions jackpot alone resulted in an estimated $78.8 million for public schools."
How Cal State’s first Black woman trustee influenced the university system
EdSource's AMY DIPIERRO: "It was the photo of a Black woman dressed in university regalia that caught Donna J. Nicol’s eye.
“Trustee Claudia Hampton,” the caption read, “appointed by Reagan.”"
Near-complete ban on agricultural burning finally takes effect in San Joaquin Valley
LAT's REBECCA PLEVIN: "Starting this week, San Joaquin Valley farmers are banned from burning agricultural waste in the field, a legislative mandate aimed at improving air quality that has been decades in the making.
The near-complete prohibition on mass burns of agricultural prunings and field crops, as well as orchards and vineyards removed from production, marks a major shift for the San Joaquin Valley, an agricultural powerhouse that is home to some of the worst ozone and particulate pollution in the nation. The state has pushed for years to curtail open burns, citing the region’s high rates of respiratory illness and other health concerns associated with poor air quality."
California’s sustainable energy leadership: past, present – and future? (OP-ED)
KURT SCHUPARRA in Capitol Weekly: "Its long-held “green” reputation notwithstanding, California was not destined to be the catalyst for the sustainable energy boom at the beginning of the 21st century, despite Gov. Jerry Brown’s embrace of renewable resources and energy efficiency in the latter half of the 1970s and early 1980s.
Indeed, in 1996 Republican Gov. Pete Wilson and the state legislature rejected an effort to add a Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) to major “deregulation” legislation for the state’s investor-owned utilities (IOUs), which would’ve required the IOUs to annually increase the percentage of renewable energy in their portfolios. Unlike California in 1996, Massachusetts enacted the first “modern” RPS as part of its electricity deregulation effort in 1997, and Texas followed suit in 1999."
How much rain Bay Area could get before weather shifts for foreseeable future
The Chronicle's ANTHONY EDWARDS: "Soak up the rain, Bay Area, because Friday might be the only wet day for the next two weeks.
A disorganized cold front is expected to move across the region Friday morning through the afternoon. Widespread precipitation should end by nightfall, with just a few scattered showers remaining."
Newsom touts ‘major boost’ to paid leave for Californians. How will it help workers?
Sac Bee's LIA RUSSELL: "A new expanded paid family leave law that took effect Jan. 1 will “improve the lives of millions of Californians” and provide a “major boost” for workers taking time off to care for a loved one, according to Gov. Gavin Newsom.
But it will also mean a tax increase to help pay for the program."
Apple settles Siri privacy lawsuit for $95 million — and you may get a cut of the payout
The Chronicle's AIDIN VAZIRI: "If your iPhone ever served you ads for things based on what you thought were private conversations, you weren’t just paranoid. Siri may have been eavesdropping.
On Tuesday, Apple agreed to a $95 million settlement in Oakland to resolve a class action lawsuit accusing its Siri voice assistant of violating user privacy by recording personal conversations without consent."
3 million photos a day: Inside SFPD’s huge surveillance tech expansion this year
The Chronicle's MEGAN CASSIDY: "The suspects were fleeing from car break-ins, store robberies and other crime scenes, slipping into the perceived anonymity of San Francisco’s streets.
So far they’ve been apparently oblivious when a police drone begins tailing them from the sky. Some cruised stolen cars past the city’s new army of license plate cameras. A few shoplifters unwittingly swiped a GPS tracker."
California homeowner sues Liberty Mutual, claims insurance dropped over ‘demonstrably false’ photo
The Chronicle's BOB EGELKO: "As home insurance becomes increasingly unaffordable or unavailable for millions of Californians, a homeowner has filed a proposed class-action lawsuit accusing Liberty Mutual Insurance of canceling her policy and others for nonexistent defects based on unreliable aerial photography.
“Driven by a desire to maximize profits, property casualty insurance companies, including (Liberty Mutual), have engaged in a troubling trend of dropping California homeowners’ insurance policies like flies,” lawyers for Maria Badin, a 31-year homeowner in the San Diego County community of Poway, said in the lawsuit, filed in the county’s Superior Court."
LAPD stats showed an uptick in robberies. Was it really just shoplifting?
LAT's LIBOR JANY: "At the Los Angeles Police Department’s weekly crime briefings this fall, its leaders tracked what seemed to be a troubling rise in robberies in police divisions such as Southwest and Rampart. The numbers showed an increase in stickups — if only on paper.
Upon closer inspection, department records obtained by The Times indicate that most of the incidents may have started as shoplifting."
Stretch of California railroad tracks at center of bitter legal battle: ‘Once it’s gone, it’s gone’
The Chronicle's ST. JOHN BARNED-SMITH: "Three years ago, handcars started running on train tracks that had lain dormant for decades. Rides at the Museum of Handcar Technology took passengers on a scenic 3-mile track along the coast of Monterey Bay as their railcars clacked on the line beneath them.
Since 2021, Mason and Todd Clark’s small and flourishing business has served tens of thousands of visitors with a unique, human-powered ride in custom-made handcars along the Monterey Branch Line."
Why some Bay Area blind people say Waymos are changing their lives
The Chronicle's MALIYA ELLIS: "Jerry Kuns, 83, takes public transit as much as he can, but like many San Franciscans, he’ll opt for an Uber or a Lyft if he’s running late.
But for Kuns, who is fully blind, taking a rideshare is like flipping a coin: at least half the time, Kuns says, his Uber or Lyft drivers won’t identify themselves clearly, even though he messages ahead of time asking them to. The car might be sitting across the street for minutes, but he wouldn’t know it."
2025 is a ‘perfect square’ year. Here’s what that means
The Chronicle's CHRISTIAN LEONARD: "This year is a big one for the math nerds out there — and for many, a once-in-a-lifetime occasion.
That’s because 2025 is a “perfect square,” a number that’s the product of a squared integer — 45 times 45, in this case. These integral instances don’t happen often. The next one isn’t until 2116, meaning someone born this year would have to see their 90s to witness another perfect square year."
