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

Capitol Spotlight: Susannah Delano, Close the Gap California

Susannah Delano Close the Gap California. Photo by Joha Harrison, Capitol Weekly

by LISA RENNER posted 12.10.2024

Activism is something Susannah Delano was exposed to from birth. “It’s kind of the family business in some ways,” she said. Now, she heads Close the Gap California, a statewide campaign to close the gender gap in the California Legislature by 2028.

Overview of the California rulemaking process

Image by Vitalii Vodolazskyi

by CHRIS MICHELI posted 12.13.2024

California has over 200 State agencies, departments, boards, and commissions that make public policy through their authority to adopt regulations.

Special Episode: Health Care in CA, Panel 3 – Impact of Budget Cuts

Kristen Hwang, Calmatters; Jess Bartholow, SEIU California; Scott Graves, California Budget and Policy Center; Beth Capell, Health Access California; Michelle Cabrera, County Behavioral Health Directors Association of California. Photo by Joha Harrison, Capitol Weekly.

by CAPITOL WEEKLY STAFF posted 12.09.2024

CAPITOL WEEKLY PODCAST: This Special Episode of the Capitol Weekly Podcast was recorded live at Capitol Weekly’s conference HEALTH CARE IN CALIFORNIA, which was held in Sacramento on Thursday, October 3, 2024. This is PANEL 3 – IMPACT OF BUDGET CUTS. Panelists are: Jess Bartholow, SEIU California; Michelle Cabrera, County Behavioral Health Directors Association of California; Beth Capell, Health Access California; Scott Graves, California Budget and Policy Center. Moderated by Kristen Hwang of Calmatters.

Kudos, criticism mark California stem cell agency as it turns 20

Scientist performing stem cell research for cancer therapy. Image by Manjurul

by DAVID JENSEN posted 12.05.2024

California’s $12 billion stem cell experiment turned 20 years old this fall, winning kudos from some patients and scientists but failing to fulfill the expectations of voters who thought they had created an enterprise that would lead quickly to revolutionary cures for cancer, heart disease, stroke and much more.

Lobbyist and McGeorge law professor Chris Micheli offers a quick look at what’s coming up this week under the Capitol Dome.

Overview of local and state open meetings laws in California

California State Capitol dome at dusk. Image by Wallentine

by CHRIS MICHELI posted 12.06.2024

California has three types of open meetings laws that apply to local and state governmental entities. These laws, adopted over the years, apply to state agencies and departments, the Legislature, and local entities (including city councils and boards of supervisors).

Capitol Briefs: And they’re off.

Assembly swearing-in, photo by Rich Ehisen, Capitol Weekly

by CAPITOL WEEKLY STAFF posted 12.03.2024

The 2025-2026 legislative session kicked off on Monday with the swearing in of lawmakers old and new. Both chambers then adjourned until Jan. 6, 2025. In this edition of Capitol Briefs we share a few tidbits from Monday’s festivities.

Rising Stars: Katie Van Deynze of Health Access

Katie Van Deynze. Image by Joha Harrison, Capitol Weekly.

by MOLLY JACOBY posted 12.03.2024

When Katie Van Deynze talks about healthcare policy, people listen. At 29 years old, she serves as Senior Legislative Advocate at Health Access California, where she has established herself as a trusted voice in the Capitol community.

The Latina Vote, with Sonja Diaz

Sonja Diaz is a practicing civil rights attorney and policy advisor. As Founding Director of UCLA Latino Policy & Politics Initiative (LPPI), Diaz co-founded the first multi-issue policy think tank focused on Latinos in the University of California. Photographed in Atwater Village at a Vote Mural

by CAPITOL WEEKLY STAFF posted 12.02.2024

CAPITOL WEEKLY PODCAST: While a majority of Latino men favored Trump in November, three in five Latina voters supported Vice President Kamala Harris, rejecting Trump for the third time. Why the disparity between Latinas/Latinos, and could the Democrats have done more outreach to this crucial constituency? Our guest today is Sonja Diaz, a civil rights attorney and former policy advisor to California Attorney General Kamala Harris, and Co-Founder of the Latina Futures 2050 Lab.