California bill would let insurers, policyholders sue Big Oil for climate disasters
The Chronicle, CHRISTIAN LEONARD: "State Sen. Scott Wiener has introduced a bill that would create a pathway for Californians affected by fires, floods and other climate disasters to sue fossil fuel companies for damages. The bill would also let insurers do the same to recover costs.
Senate Bill 222, introduced Monday by the San Francisco Democrat and state Sen. Sasha Renée Pérez, D-Pasadena, accuses gas and oil companies of deceiving the public about the impact of their products on climate change. Supporters argue it would provide relief from California’s home insurance crisis by explicitly allowing insurers to recoup costs from fossil fuel companies, rather than solely by raising their rates."
Trump orders more Central Valley water deliveries — claiming it would help LA fires
CALMatters, ALASTAIR BLAND: "President Donald Trump signed a sweeping executive order Sunday that told federal agencies to “immediately take action” to deliver more Central Valley water and eliminate rules that stand in the way, including endangered species protections.
In the new order, Trump cited the Los Angeles fires, even though the actions he is ordering — delivering more water from the federal Central Valley Project — would primarily serve farms. About 75% of Central Valley Project water is used for agriculture, while much of the rest goes to cities and towns in the San Joaquin Valley, including Sacramento and Fresno."
Palisades fire victims vent frustration as town hall on debris removal becomes a free-for-all
LAT, DAKOTA SMITH: "The town hall was billed as way for Pacific Palisades residents to learn about clearing debris from their charred lots.
But Sunday’s event in Santa Monica quickly turned into a free-for-all as frustrated residents pressed officials on an array of issues."
Why Trump’s conditions on LA fire aid put California Republicans in a tough spot
CALMatters, YUE STELLA YU: "As swaths of Southern California burn, the state’s Republican members of Congress find themselves facing a dilemma.
Blaming the fires on California’s liberal policies, President Donald Trump and GOP congressional leaders have proposed attaching assorted conditions to federal disaster aid— a move that, if taken seriously, threatens to delay recovery efforts."
It’s been a week. Here’s how Trump’s actions so far could impact your money in California
The Chronicle, JESSICA ROY: "President Donald Trump spent the first week of his second term signing executive orders and making other statements that signaled his agenda for the next four years. High on the list are topics close to many Californians’ hearts — and wallets.
His orders touch on everything from tariffs, immigration, gas and energy, taxes, health care and federal employment, all of which could have significant financial impacts in California."
Is Xavier Becerra’s next move running for governor? He’s not saying. Yet.
LAT, SEEMA MEHTA: "He’s served in the California Legislature, in Congress and, most recently, in the Cabinet as President Biden’s secretary of Health and Human Services.
And don’t forget his time as California’s attorney general, a post also once held by Vice President Kamala Harris and a springboard for higher office."
California senator reappointed as insurance chair despite questions over corruption probe
CALMatters, RYAN SABALOW/JULIE WATTS: "The leader of the California Senate has reappointed the former chair of the chamber’s insurance committee, despite uncertainty over her possible involvement in a federal corruption probe.
On Friday, Senate President Pro Tempore Mike McGuire announced he was reappointing Democratic Sen. Susan Rubio of West Covina to chair the committee after the seat had been vacant for three weeks."
From Hope to the Secretary of State’s office: Dr. Shirley Weber
Capitol Weekly, STAFF: "
We’re joined today by Dr. Shirley Weber, California’s Secretary of State. Governor Newsom appointed the four-term Assembly member as Secretary of State in 2020 to fill the remainder of Alex Padilla’s term when Padilla went to the US Senate. Voters elected her to a full term on November 8, 2022.
Serving as the state’s chief elections officer is a natural fit for Weber, whose family left Arkansas during the Jim Crow era after her father was threatened for agitating in favor of voting rights. The family settled in southern California, where her mother became a longtime poll worker, with the family home often serving as a polling place."
Who is Sacramento County’s newest supervisor? Meet Rosario Rodriguez, former Folsom mayor
Sac Bee, EMMA HALL: "On Jan. 7, four generations of Rosario Rodriguez’s family stood in the Sacramento County’s chambers as she began her first day on the Board of Supervisors.
The love for her family was clear as her son read the oath of office in English and her mother, reading it aloud in Spanish."
The Micheli Minute for January 27, 2025
Capitol Weekly, STAFF: "Lobbyist and author Chris Micheli offers a quick look at what’s coming up this week in Sacramento."
Immigration made homeless numbers worse than they actually were in 2024
LAT, DOUG SMITH: "A surge in immigration that peaked just as last year’s homeless count was taken accounted for the bulk of its historic rise reported in December, grossly inflating the picture of homelessness in America.
Because the local agencies taking the count across the country do not ask for immigration status, homeless numbers ballooned in a handful of states that took in tens of thousands of immigrants, and those states, in turn, pushed the national number to an unprecedented high of nearly 772,000."
The struggle of incarcerated workers (OP-ED)
Capitol Weekly, FANTA NGOM: "California’s refusal to fairly compensate prison labor is an affront to our most basic principles of human dignity – one that now has direct consequences on hundreds of incarcerated firefighters.
As wildfires continue to wreak havoc on Southern California, over 1,000 incarcerated firefighters have bravely risen to the occasion to contain the devastation. Their work on the front lines has garnered widespread attention, raising awareness of the systemic inequality that incarcerated workers face."
Bay Area weather: How cold will it get this week, and when will storms return?
The Chronicle, ANTHONY EDWARDS: "The final week of January is shaping up to mirror how the rest of the month unfolded across the Bay Area: dry.
No rain is in the forecast until at least Friday, which means January is almost guaranteed to finish as one of the driest on record in much of the Bay Area."
This ultra-wealthy California town is an anomaly for just how much energy its residents consume
The Chronicle, EMMA STIEFEL: "The Silicon Valley town of Atherton contains not just the most expensive homes in California but also some of the state’s biggest electricity users.
The Chronicle analyzed monthly residential electricity usage data from PG&E and found that the 94027 ZIP code, which is almost entirely made up of the town of Atherton, had the second-highest electricity consumption per customer in 2024."
This California metro already has the nation’s most expensive homes — and prices keep skyrocketing
The Chronicle, CHRISTIAN LEONARD: "The San Jose metropolitan area has for years had the highest home values in the United States. That seems unlikely to change anytime soon, with the area’s typical value reaching another record high at the end of 2024.
The San Jose metro area, which consists of Santa Clara and San Benito counties, had a typical home value of $1.59 million in December 2024, according to estimates from real estate brokerage Zillow. That was by far the highest of any metro area in Zillow’s data, which includes values of single-family homes, condominiums and small multifamily buildings."
