CEQA, Explained: The Law That Shapes Almost Every California Building Project
A 1970 environmental review law decides how — and how fast — housing, transit and energy projects get approved across the state.
California Culture Chronicle — CALIFORNIA CULTURE · POLITICS · GOLDEN STATE LIFE
How to Track California Governor Vetoes and Override Attempts
Every year the governor rejects roughly one bill in seven or more. The Legislature almost never fights back.
Escrow in California: What It Does and How Long It Takes
Sacramento's Council Voted to Keep Its Sanctuary Status
After hundreds of residents filled chambers through the summer, the council unanimously preserved the city's sanctuary position amid a funding dispute at the Capitol.
How California's Film and TV Tax Credits Shape Production Decisions
A base credit of 35% to 40% now competes with rival states, but the money only reaches productions that clear specific spending thresholds.
Mid-July Signings Put the Climate Bond Into Motion
Legislation signed July 16 included components of the water, wildfire, drought, and clean air bond, moving voter-approved money toward projects.
Culture
More to read →How California's Film and TV Tax Credits Shape Production Decisions
A base credit of 35% to 40% now competes with rival states, but the money only reaches productions that clear specific spending thresholds.
Sep 10, 2026
Silicon Valley Built Remote Work, Then Spent Five Years Undoing It
The tools that made telecommuting possible came from Bay Area companies, and those same companies now enforce some of the strictest return-to-office rules in American business.
Jul 22, 2026
How San Diego Brewed a Neighborhood Industry Worth Billions
San Diego County counts roughly 150 craft breweries, and the hoppy style invented here reshaped the American palate while filling industrial parks and tasting rooms with local payroll.
Jun 29, 2026
How to Track California Governor Vetoes and Override Attempts
Every year the governor rejects roughly one bill in seven or more. The Legislature almost never fights back.
Sep 8, 2026
California's $350 Billion Budget: Where the Money Comes From
The 2026-27 budget closed a small deficit and claimed to end the structural one. The mechanics matter more than the headline.
Jul 30, 2026
Escrow in California: What It Does and How Long It Takes
A neutral third party holds the money and the deed until every contract term is met. Here is what happens inside those 30 to 60 days.
Sep 13, 2026
How California Recalls a Governor: The Rules Behind the State's Rareest Election
A gubernatorial recall needs signatures from 12 percent of the last election's voters within 160 days, and California has held just one successful statewide recall, in 2003.
Jul 27, 2026
Five Years After Prop 22, What a Gig Driver Actually Gets Paid
California's app-based driver law survived court challenge. Here is how its earnings guarantee works, and where it falls short.
Jul 7, 2026
How Wildfire Risk Maps Became California's Insurance Price Tag
Cal Fire's hazard zones, catastrophe modeling and probable-maximum-loss scores now decide who can buy coverage — and at what premium.
Aug 2, 2026
California's Minimum Wage Rose to $16.90 in January. Here Is How the Rules Work
The statewide floor climbed from $16.50 to $16.90 on January 1, 2026 under an automatic inflation formula, while fast food workers hold at $20 and healthcare workers continue stepping toward $24.
Jul 3, 2026
Milk Moves West to the World: The Economics of California Dairy
America's largest dairy state runs on fewer, bigger farms — and on export markets from Tijuana to Jakarta.
Jun 14, 2026
A 3.5 Percent Vacancy Rate Is the Number Behind California's Rent
The state's rental market runs half-empty relative to the nation's — and every reading of rents, concessions and stability follows from it.
Jul 11, 2026
California News
More to read →CEQA, Explained: The Law That Shapes Almost Every California Building Project
A 1970 environmental review law decides how — and how fast — housing, transit and energy projects get approved across the state.
Sep 14, 2026
Mid-July Signings Put the Climate Bond Into Motion
Legislation signed July 16 included components of the water, wildfire, drought, and clean air bond, moving voter-approved money toward projects.
Aug 6, 2026
Cap-and-Invest Overhaul Reaches Its Final Regulatory Step
CARB submitted the finished rulemaking package to the Office of Administrative Law on July 14, with a decision due by August 25 under the statutory clock.
Jul 15, 2026
Becerra and Hilton Advance to California's Governor Race
The June 2 top-two primary sent a Democrat and a Republican to the November ballot from a field of 61 candidates, with counting still finishing weeks later.
Jun 22, 2026
Local News
More to read →
Sacramento's Council Voted to Keep Its Sanctuary Status
After hundreds of residents filled chambers through the summer, the council unanimously preserved the city's sanctuary position amid a funding dispute at the Capitol.
Aug 10, 2026
BART's FY27 Budget Avoids Service Cuts by Borrowing $88.5 Million
The board's June 11 adoption pairs $18 million in internal cuts with bridge borrowing, betting on the November regional funding measure to repay the difference.
Jul 18, 2026
Fresno Made It Easier to Build Affordable Housing
The City Council passed its streamlining package 6 to 1 on June 25, cutting review steps for qualifying projects in the state's fifth-largest city.
Jun 26, 2026
Bass Signed the Budget. Now the Real Work Starts
The mayor put her signature on the FY 2026-27 spending plan days after the council adopted it May 27, closing one budget year and opening the delivery test.
Jun 3, 2026