California is about to repeat its worst pension mistake | Opinion
The Sacramento Bee – California has a habit of forgetting its own fiscal history. Assembly Bill 1383, currently moving through the Legislature, is the latest proof.
California defends using Medicaid money for housing and food, as GOP cries fraud
San Francisco Chronicle – Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana is taking aim at California’s Medicaid program for providing housing assistance, food and other social services to high-need, low-income patients who tend to rack up big healthcare costs and, he argued, strain taxpayer funds.
Instead of uniting the left, California’s billionaire tax measure has split Democratic allies
Los Angeles Times – For all the media attention California’s proposed billionaire tax has generated nationally — with some blasting it as a foolish Left Coast assault on American enterprise — the November ballot item has actually triggered a rift among progressive labor unions and Democrats, groups critical to the measure’s success.
A $10B Medi-Cal question looms over California’s race for governor
San Francisco Chronicle – For decades, Californians have generally said that immigrants, who make up more than a quarter of the state’s population and a third of its labor force, are beneficial to the state and its economy. But budget instability and concerns about rising costs are spilling into a debate over the controversial and […]
Californians Get Stingier at the Ballot Box as Costs Rise
The New York Times – Californians say they can’t afford housing. They find gas prices too high. And when they were asked at the polls this month to pay higher taxes, fewer voters than usual were willing to do so in the liberal state.
America’s Economic Anxiety Is Rising Up the Income Ladder
The Wall Street Journal – America’s economic anxiety is rising up the income ladder. A new Wall Street Journal poll finds that even those who consider themselves among the wealthiest classes in America carry high levels of concern about their current finances, the years ahead and the prospects for their children.
California billionaire tax qualifies for November ballot
San Francisco Chronicle – A wildly controversial measure to tax California’s billionaires has qualified for the November ballot, Secretary of State Shirley Weber said in a memo to California election officials Wednesday evening, ensuring a brutal and expensive campaign that will take place as voters also decide which party will control Congress and the governorship.
Southern California inflation hits 5-month high as gas prices jump 27%
Orange County Register – Balancing a household budget became trickier this spring as rising gasoline prices boosted Southern California inflation to its 2026 high. My trusty spreadsheet reviewed May’s Consumer Price Index report, averaging results for local regions – Los Angeles and Orange counties, the Inland Empire and San Diego – and comparing local cost-of-living […]
Medi-Cal cuts, tax increases loom as Capitol lawmakers dicker over the budget
CalMatters – The primary election has come and gone. Votes are still being counted and the eventual results in close contests might not be known for weeks. However, it’s back to work for those already in office, including Gov. Gavin Newsom, and the biggest issue on their agenda is writing a budget for the 2026-27 fiscal […]
Boston Seizes on California Billionaire Tax to Lure AI Jobs
Bloomberg – The talent at some of America’s hottest artificial intelligence companies often passes through Boston-area universities before heading west to build billion-dollar businesses in Silicon Valley. Massachusetts business and political leaders say California’s proposed tax on billionaires is an opportunity to change that.