California
Blog
The Train To Nowhere Goes Somewhere – Maybe
The promise of a bullet train connecting Los Angeles and San Francisco, and maybe even extending to San Diego to the south and Sacramento to the north, was broken longer before ground was broken in 2015 for the project. The route has been shortened, the construction timeline endlessly extended, and ...
Kerry Jackson
September 3, 2025
Blog
Jury Still Deliberating On California’s Push To Build More Homes
This year’s devastating wildfires decimated upwards of 13,000 homes. In response, California has passed two new laws that seek to streamline the process of housing development. Will they have the desired effect? That remains to be seen. Under AB130, new housing developments that meet certain size, density, location, and use requirements ...
Nikhil Agarwal
September 2, 2025
California
A Conversation with Assemblyman Joe Patterson
We wrap up our series of podcasts on the hot issues being debated in the final weeks of the 2025 legislative session with a conversation with Assemblyman Joe Patterson, R-Rocklin. They discuss the Gavin Newsom redistricting proposal, the bills that aren’t getting the attention they should be at the end ...
Pacific Research Institute
September 1, 2025
Blog
Bed, Bath & Bye-Bye
Does Vegas have a betting line on which company will next abandon California? Maybe it should. But then the field of possibilities is just too large to fit them all on a casino board. Following a business plan that has worked for so many others, Bed, Bad & Beyond is ...
Kerry Jackson
August 29, 2025
Blog
Get the inside scoop on what's going on under the Capitol dome
Three Big Issues to Watch as 2025 Legislative Session Draws to Close
Assembly Bill 84: Yet Another Attack on California Charter Schools Ever since charter school supporter Gov. Jerry Brown left office in 2019, charter schools have been under attack in Sacramento. The latest attack is Assembly Bill 84 (Muratsuchi), which would – if enacted – would impose huge new restrictions that ...
Tim Anaya
August 25, 2025
California
Matt Rexroad – On the Gavin Newsom Redistricting Scheme
Continuing our series of podcasts on hot issues being debated during the final weeks of the 2025 legislative session, longtime political strategist, redistricting consultant, and former elected official Matt Rexroad joins us to break down Gov. Gavin Newsom’s redistricting scheme and what it will mean for fair elections in California. ...
Pacific Research Institute
August 25, 2025
Blog
Never Gonna Give You Up: Will High-Speed Rail Ever Be Scrapped?
Critics say the troubled project should be abandoned. They correctly point out that incurring sunk costs is a better outcome than continuing to spend tens of billions on a dream that is unlikely to be completed, and if it is, won’t be anything like the modern system promised to voters ...
Kerry Jackson
August 20, 2025
Blog
California’s Counterproductive Approach to Reducing GHG Emissions
California’s Counterproductive Approach to Reducing GHG Emissions by Wayne Winegarden | August 19, 2025 The state of California, along with a host of other cities and municipalities, is suing American energy companies. The lawsuit alleges that these private U.S. companies misled the public about greenhouse gases’ impact on the climate ...
Wayne H Winegarden
August 19, 2025
Blog
SpaceX Vs. California – Again
It took Elon Musk’s rocket company about a week to challenge the commission in court, arguing in its October filing that it was “egregiously and unlawfully overreaching its authority.” “First, the commission has engaged in naked political discrimination against” SpaceX, reads the complaint, and, second, the agency “is trying to ...
Kerry Jackson
August 13, 2025
Blog
The Most-Regulated State In The Union
When the Mercatus Center last compiled its Snapshots of State Regulations, California was far ahead, or actually far behind, the next closest state, burdening residents with a combined 420,000 regulations, compared with about 300,000 for New York. Idaho, the least regulated state, imposed around 31,000 on residents. “Jurisdictions that allow regulations to consistently pile ...
Kerry Jackson
August 11, 2025
The Train To Nowhere Goes Somewhere – Maybe
The promise of a bullet train connecting Los Angeles and San Francisco, and maybe even extending to San Diego to the south and Sacramento to the north, was broken longer before ground was broken in 2015 for the project. The route has been shortened, the construction timeline endlessly extended, and ...
Jury Still Deliberating On California’s Push To Build More Homes
This year’s devastating wildfires decimated upwards of 13,000 homes. In response, California has passed two new laws that seek to streamline the process of housing development. Will they have the desired effect? That remains to be seen. Under AB130, new housing developments that meet certain size, density, location, and use requirements ...
A Conversation with Assemblyman Joe Patterson
We wrap up our series of podcasts on the hot issues being debated in the final weeks of the 2025 legislative session with a conversation with Assemblyman Joe Patterson, R-Rocklin. They discuss the Gavin Newsom redistricting proposal, the bills that aren’t getting the attention they should be at the end ...
Bed, Bath & Bye-Bye
Does Vegas have a betting line on which company will next abandon California? Maybe it should. But then the field of possibilities is just too large to fit them all on a casino board. Following a business plan that has worked for so many others, Bed, Bad & Beyond is ...
Get the inside scoop on what's going on under the Capitol dome
Three Big Issues to Watch as 2025 Legislative Session Draws to Close
Assembly Bill 84: Yet Another Attack on California Charter Schools Ever since charter school supporter Gov. Jerry Brown left office in 2019, charter schools have been under attack in Sacramento. The latest attack is Assembly Bill 84 (Muratsuchi), which would – if enacted – would impose huge new restrictions that ...
Matt Rexroad – On the Gavin Newsom Redistricting Scheme
Continuing our series of podcasts on hot issues being debated during the final weeks of the 2025 legislative session, longtime political strategist, redistricting consultant, and former elected official Matt Rexroad joins us to break down Gov. Gavin Newsom’s redistricting scheme and what it will mean for fair elections in California. ...
Never Gonna Give You Up: Will High-Speed Rail Ever Be Scrapped?
Critics say the troubled project should be abandoned. They correctly point out that incurring sunk costs is a better outcome than continuing to spend tens of billions on a dream that is unlikely to be completed, and if it is, won’t be anything like the modern system promised to voters ...
California’s Counterproductive Approach to Reducing GHG Emissions
California’s Counterproductive Approach to Reducing GHG Emissions by Wayne Winegarden | August 19, 2025 The state of California, along with a host of other cities and municipalities, is suing American energy companies. The lawsuit alleges that these private U.S. companies misled the public about greenhouse gases’ impact on the climate ...
SpaceX Vs. California – Again
It took Elon Musk’s rocket company about a week to challenge the commission in court, arguing in its October filing that it was “egregiously and unlawfully overreaching its authority.” “First, the commission has engaged in naked political discrimination against” SpaceX, reads the complaint, and, second, the agency “is trying to ...
The Most-Regulated State In The Union
When the Mercatus Center last compiled its Snapshots of State Regulations, California was far ahead, or actually far behind, the next closest state, burdening residents with a combined 420,000 regulations, compared with about 300,000 for New York. Idaho, the least regulated state, imposed around 31,000 on residents. “Jurisdictions that allow regulations to consistently pile ...