Four years ago, then-Gov. Jerry Brown announced the end of California’s historically severe drought by lifting various emergency restrictions. “This drought emergency is over, but the next drought could be around the corner,” the governor intoned. “Conservation must remain a way of life.” Brown was right...
A cosmic policy convergence is brewing a nasty storm that will hit California hard in a few years. With deadlines for an all-renewable electricity grid as well as the end of sales of new gasoline-powered cars bearing down on the state, we’re facing a future...
Part of President Biden’s Build Back Better initiative promises to “create good-paying union jobs and train Americans for jobs of the future.” The unspoken theory behind this initiative is that green jobs will offer a pay premium to workers compared to jobs in the fossil fuel industry....
After handing unions a brightly wrapped gift in 2019 with Assembly Bill 5, Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez is putting the bow on another present, Assembly Bill 314, which would allow legislative staffers to organize. Had she first asked a legendary labor leader what he thought about...
Often the value of a plan or project can best be judged by its opposition. In the case of the proposed Poseidon desalination plant in Huntington Beach, the forces lined up against it are clear indicators that it’s a worthwhile enterprise.
The Sierra Club calls the...
California’s bullet train has become a nearly forgotten source of trouble, eclipsed in the public eye by Covid-19, a gubernatorial recall, and out-migration from the Golden State. But it’s still out there, sucking up time and money, and as empty as it ever was.
The California...
More than one in five U.S. adults has a Twitter account, but one doesn’t have to be active on social media to know that the company went on a suspending spree after the election, canceling more than 70,000 users the company considered to be undesirables,...
With Californian Kamala Harris as vice president, it’s clear the new Biden administration is taking its cues from the once-Golden State on labor policy.
In one of its first acts in office, the Biden Administration placed a regulatory freeze on a Department of Labor regulation enacted in the...
Tomorrow, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra will appear before the Senate for his confirmation hearing as President Biden's pick to lead the Department of Health and Human Services.
If Becerra's career in public office is any indication, he'll do everything in his power to exert greater...
A group of Californians who've had enough of Gov. Gavin Newsom say they have the 1.5 million signatures needed to force a recall election, and believe they will eventually have 2 million. But, we probably won't know until after the March 17 submission deadline if...
Facing Down Fear of a Mega-Drought
Four years ago, then-Gov. Jerry Brown announced the end of California’s historically severe drought by lifting various emergency restrictions. “This drought emergency is over, but the next drought could be around the corner,” the governor intoned. “Conservation must remain a way of life.” Brown was right...
California’s Energy Policy Risks Tilting at Windmills as Electric Car Sales Grow
A cosmic policy convergence is brewing a nasty storm that will hit California hard in a few years. With deadlines for an all-renewable electricity grid as well as the end of sales of new gasoline-powered cars bearing down on the state, we’re facing a future...
Green Jobs Demonstrate The Perils Of Government-Directed Economic Growth
Part of President Biden’s Build Back Better initiative promises to “create good-paying union jobs and train Americans for jobs of the future.” The unspoken theory behind this initiative is that green jobs will offer a pay premium to workers compared to jobs in the fossil fuel industry....
Legislative Staff Right To Unionize: What Could Go Wrong?
After handing unions a brightly wrapped gift in 2019 with Assembly Bill 5, Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez is putting the bow on another present, Assembly Bill 314, which would allow legislative staffers to organize. Had she first asked a legendary labor leader what he thought about...
San Diego’s Successful Desal Plant Should Be a Model for California Water Policy
Often the value of a plan or project can best be judged by its opposition. In the case of the proposed Poseidon desalination plant in Huntington Beach, the forces lined up against it are clear indicators that it’s a worthwhile enterprise. The Sierra Club calls the...
The Low Spark of High-Speed Rail
California’s bullet train has become a nearly forgotten source of trouble, eclipsed in the public eye by Covid-19, a gubernatorial recall, and out-migration from the Golden State. But it’s still out there, sucking up time and money, and as empty as it ever was. The California...
As social media giants purge users, it’s time to create alternatives
More than one in five U.S. adults has a Twitter account, but one doesn’t have to be active on social media to know that the company went on a suspending spree after the election, canceling more than 70,000 users the company considered to be undesirables,...
The future is now for gig-based entrepreneurship
With Californian Kamala Harris as vice president, it’s clear the new Biden administration is taking its cues from the once-Golden State on labor policy. In one of its first acts in office, the Biden Administration placed a regulatory freeze on a Department of Labor regulation enacted in the...
Xavier Becerra confirmation would be a dream come true for single-payer advocates
Tomorrow, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra will appear before the Senate for his confirmation hearing as President Biden's pick to lead the Department of Health and Human Services. If Becerra's career in public office is any indication, he'll do everything in his power to exert greater...
Gavin Newsom’s Worst Month
A group of Californians who've had enough of Gov. Gavin Newsom say they have the 1.5 million signatures needed to force a recall election, and believe they will eventually have 2 million. But, we probably won't know until after the March 17 submission deadline if...