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

Spending on lobbying firms tops $66M through first quarter of 2025

Image by DesignRage

by BRIAN JOSEPH posted 05.02.2025

Special interests, or as the California Secretary of State calls them “lobbyist employers,” paid lobbying firms more than $66 million to lobby state government in the first quarter of 2025, according to a Capitol Weekly analysis of lobbying firm reports.

Capitol Spotlight: Erica Costa, Senate Fellows Program

Erica Costa. Photo by Ellie Appleby, Capitol Weekly.

by LEAH LENTZ posted 04.30.2025

The Capitol’s Fellows programs are considered some of the toughest to break into, and Erica Costa is no stranger to that challenge. A graduate of the Assembly Fellows Program, followed by over 15 years of public service experience, she was recently named director of the Senate Fellows Program at the Center for California Studies at Sacramento State University.

Guidance for drafting a California criminal or penal statute

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by CHRIS MICHELI posted 05.02.2025

Drafting criminal or penal code statutes is an important undertaking for any bill drafter because of the consequences for those who violate such statutes and because courts strictly construe these types of statutes. As a result, those who draft criminal laws must have taken a number of issues under consideration.

Shirley Weber on the SAVE Act; and Trans rights activist Ebony Harper

Activist Ebony Harper

by CAPITOL WEEKLY STAFF posted 04.28.2025

CAPITOL WEEKLY PODCAST: First up, we chat with California Secretary of State Shirley Weber about The Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act, proposed federal legislation that would require all Americans to reregister to vote, in person, with either a birth certificate or passport. We also spoke with Trans activist Ebony Harper, founding executive director of California TRANScends, and the author of The Trans Manifesto.

Tribal clash stalls CEQA consultation reform bill

Sky Rock Petroglyphs in Bishop California. Image by Bakstad.

by BRIAN JOSEPH & RICH EHISEN posted 04.27.2025

An intense dispute between federally- and non-federally recognized California Native American tribes over a bill intended to give tribal governments more control over development that encroaches on their sacred lands has convinced the author to pause the measure.

Bill to suspend marijuana tax advances

Business in cannabis. Image by Yarphoto.

by BRIAN JOSEPH posted 04.29.2025

California’s legal cannabis industry has struggled under heavy regulation and taxation while the black market has thrived. In an attempt to turn the tide, Assemblyman Matt Haney, D-San Francisco, has authored legislation to take some of the pressure off of California’s legal cannabis operators.

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

Capitol Briefs: The week that was

California State Capitol building. Image by rschlie

by CAPITOL WEEKLY STAFF posted 04.25.2025

Lawmakers returned from their spring break bills in hand and loaded for bear. This week’s edition of Capitol Briefs takes a look at some of those measures.

Jeff Pearlman brings “The Truth” to Orange County

by CAPITOL WEEKLY STAFF posted 04.21.2025

CAPITOL WEEKLY PODCAST: Jeff Pearlman has been a sportswriter for three decades, and is the best-selling author of ten books on sports, including ‘Showtime: Magic, Kareem, Riley, and the Los Angeles Lakers Dynasty of the 1980s,’ which was adapted as the HBO series ‘Winning Time.’ In February 2025 he turned his attention to the ultimate contact sport: politics.