Senator Scott Wiener: California and AI

Submission guidelines for op-eds

Image by Fokusiert.

by CAPITOL WEEKLY STAFF posted 07.10.2025

Capitol Weekly welcomes Opinion pieces and Commentaries on California public policy or politics. Please note that we receive many submissions, often on the same topic, and not all submissions will be published.  Acceptance for publication is at the discretion of the editor.

Lobbyist, professor, and author Chris Micheli offers a quick look at what’s coming up this week in Sacramento.

Why California must reject AB 931

US 100 dollar bill as a bait. Image by Velishchuk.

by MARK SEKTNAN posted 07.14.2025

OPINION – Predatory lawsuit lenders exploit financial vulnerability, charging triple-digit interest while operating in the shadows of our civil justice system. These puppeteers pull the strings and call it “third-party litigation funding.” Victims call it a trap.

George Steffes: 1935-2025

Sacramento lobbyist George Steffes.

by CAPITOL WEEKLY STAFF posted 07.07.2025

Longtime Capitol lobbyist and Reagan aide George Steffes has passed. He died at UCD Med Center after weeks of hospitalization after suffering a fall. He was 90.

Capitol Briefs: Weed taxes, algorithm collusion and the fate of Democracy

California's historic Capitol dome. Image by :Wallentine

by CAPITOL WEEKLY STAFF posted 07.11.2025

We are marching quickly toward the Capitol’s summer recess, but we’re not there yet. This week’s Capitol Briefs are here.

California and AI: Capitol Weekly conference recap

Senator Scott Wiener delivers the Keynote at the California and AI conference on July 8, 2025. Photo by Joha Harrison, Capitol Weekly

by CAPITOL WEEKLY STAFF posted 07.10.2025

At the latest Capitol Weekly-University of California Student and Policy Center conference this week, “California and AI,” panelists explored the policy implications of the transformative technology sweeping the globe and embraced by fields as diverse as medicine and hospitality.

Compliance offsets add real value to California

Image by ANAN YOSSINGKUM.

by JON COSTANTINO posted 07.11.2025

OPINION – The Verified Emissions Reduction Association, or VERA, is a coalition of members with vast experience in achieving real, quantifiable, permanent, enforceable and addition emissions reductions in a cost-effective manner.

Additional California drafting notes

Image by hapabapa

by CHRIS MICHELI posted 07.11.2025

As I make my way through bills in the second house policy committee, I continue to run across interesting provisions contained in these bills. Here is a short explanation of some recent examples from 2025 bills that the “legislative geek” in me finds interesting.