Blog
Blog
Senate Strikes a Blow to California’s Smallest Businesses by Mandating Family Leave
As if small businesses weren’t hurting enough, California’s senate voted last week to pass Gov. Newsom’s proposal to mandate job-protected family leave for businesses with as few as five workers. If SB 1383 becomes law, very small business would be forced to hold open a job for up to three ...
Blog
American Political Divide Enters Social Media
Political partisanship can be found in every part of society. What you say, or even what you do not say, is ripe for political criticism these days. It is no surprise then that social media, where a majority of the world devotes multiple hours each day, would be impacted, too. ...
Blog
CAPITAL IDEAS: Defund AB5 Enforcement
DOWNLOAD THE PDF One of the several responses to the death of George Floyd has been activists’ demand to defund police departments. Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti was one of the first mayors to surrender to the mob and pledge that he would move a portion of funding from law ...
Blog
What We’re Watching – Independence Day Edition
Tim Anaya – Celebrate America with 4th of July Fireworks Since most fireworks displays have been cancelled this year (outside people in my neighborhood illegally setting them off every night), I thought we would all enjoy watching some virtual fireworks. Here’s the display from a few years back at Walt ...
Blog
Budget Trailer Bills Prove Once Again the “Devil is in the Details”
On Monday, Gov. Newsom announced via press release that he had signed the 2020-21 state budget. Naturally, much of the budget press coverage typically focuses on the debate between the Governor and the Legislature and the total state spending picture. Often overlooked are the budget “trailer bills” – the policy ...
Blog
SB 1410 Would Give Renters a Decade to Pay Rent
When Tim Anaya first told me about a California senate bill that would give renters who lost their jobs during the coronavirus shutdown until 2034 to pay back their rent, I thought I didn’t hear him right: “Did you say 2024?” (I thought four years was plenty.) But yes, dear readers, he said 2034. It’s no typo either. SB 1410 would force landlords to enter into a “rent stabilization agreement” with the tenant, and prohibits the landlord ...
Blog
A Successful Program to Reclaim the Lives of High School Dropouts
Recently, I attended the graduation ceremony for the Discovery ChalleNGe Academy, which targets high school dropouts and produces quality-educated young people with strong values, life skills, and self-discipline. With so many children falling through the cracks of conventional education, DCA and its sister schools across the country offer these young ...
Blog
California Gas Prices Are Rising Again Thanks to Another Gas Tax Increase
Californians who are struggling to make ends meet during these tough economic times are going to be in for sticker shock come July 1: gas prices will rise yet again. What’s behind the increase, you ask? It’s not due to rising demand as people begin to slowly return to normalcy ...
Blog
What We’re Watching – June 26
Rowena Itchon – “Project Home: 3D Printing the Future” I ran across this teaser on the upcoming documentary “Project Home: 3D Printing the Future” by the Moving Picture Institute. The first 3D printed homes are located in a neighborhood in southern Mexico. A way to solve California’s homeless problem? Ben Smithwick ...
Agriculture
Think July 1 Gas Tax Increase Will Fund Better Roads? Think Again.
On July 1, three days before we celebrate our American freedom, and while we’re still feeling the effects of a three-month loss of that liberty, the state tax on gasoline will increase by 3.2 cents per gallon. It should be enough to ensure California keeps its position as the state ...
Senate Strikes a Blow to California’s Smallest Businesses by Mandating Family Leave
As if small businesses weren’t hurting enough, California’s senate voted last week to pass Gov. Newsom’s proposal to mandate job-protected family leave for businesses with as few as five workers. If SB 1383 becomes law, very small business would be forced to hold open a job for up to three ...
American Political Divide Enters Social Media
Political partisanship can be found in every part of society. What you say, or even what you do not say, is ripe for political criticism these days. It is no surprise then that social media, where a majority of the world devotes multiple hours each day, would be impacted, too. ...
CAPITAL IDEAS: Defund AB5 Enforcement
DOWNLOAD THE PDF One of the several responses to the death of George Floyd has been activists’ demand to defund police departments. Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti was one of the first mayors to surrender to the mob and pledge that he would move a portion of funding from law ...
What We’re Watching – Independence Day Edition
Tim Anaya – Celebrate America with 4th of July Fireworks Since most fireworks displays have been cancelled this year (outside people in my neighborhood illegally setting them off every night), I thought we would all enjoy watching some virtual fireworks. Here’s the display from a few years back at Walt ...
Budget Trailer Bills Prove Once Again the “Devil is in the Details”
On Monday, Gov. Newsom announced via press release that he had signed the 2020-21 state budget. Naturally, much of the budget press coverage typically focuses on the debate between the Governor and the Legislature and the total state spending picture. Often overlooked are the budget “trailer bills” – the policy ...
SB 1410 Would Give Renters a Decade to Pay Rent
When Tim Anaya first told me about a California senate bill that would give renters who lost their jobs during the coronavirus shutdown until 2034 to pay back their rent, I thought I didn’t hear him right: “Did you say 2024?” (I thought four years was plenty.) But yes, dear readers, he said 2034. It’s no typo either. SB 1410 would force landlords to enter into a “rent stabilization agreement” with the tenant, and prohibits the landlord ...
A Successful Program to Reclaim the Lives of High School Dropouts
Recently, I attended the graduation ceremony for the Discovery ChalleNGe Academy, which targets high school dropouts and produces quality-educated young people with strong values, life skills, and self-discipline. With so many children falling through the cracks of conventional education, DCA and its sister schools across the country offer these young ...
California Gas Prices Are Rising Again Thanks to Another Gas Tax Increase
Californians who are struggling to make ends meet during these tough economic times are going to be in for sticker shock come July 1: gas prices will rise yet again. What’s behind the increase, you ask? It’s not due to rising demand as people begin to slowly return to normalcy ...
What We’re Watching – June 26
Rowena Itchon – “Project Home: 3D Printing the Future” I ran across this teaser on the upcoming documentary “Project Home: 3D Printing the Future” by the Moving Picture Institute. The first 3D printed homes are located in a neighborhood in southern Mexico. A way to solve California’s homeless problem? Ben Smithwick ...
Think July 1 Gas Tax Increase Will Fund Better Roads? Think Again.
On July 1, three days before we celebrate our American freedom, and while we’re still feeling the effects of a three-month loss of that liberty, the state tax on gasoline will increase by 3.2 cents per gallon. It should be enough to ensure California keeps its position as the state ...
