News
California has another election coming up this fall, but it is not your usual political campaign free-for-all. Instead, it involves the leadership of the $12 billion state stem cell agency, which is trying mightily to develop “miraculous” treatments and cures for diseases that afflict — according to its backers — half of the families in California.
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As Sala Burton lay dying in a hospital bed in 1987, she picked her successor to represent San Francisco in the U.S. House of Representatives. “I saw her gritting her teeth, you know, in pain,” her brother-in law, John Burton, recalled in an Open California oral history. “And she says… I want you, talking to us, to support Nancy for my seat.”
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In 2020, the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, California’s greenhouse gas emissions dropped by almost 9%, and the state’s smoggy skies briefly cleared. This was particularly true during the pandemic’s first months, when schools closed, offices went remote, and statewide shelter-in-place orders kept millions of Californians at home. That spring, clogged freeways went vacant. Fewer semis rattled down roads.
Podcast
On Thursday, November 10, Capitol Weekly presented the 7th edition of our Election Post-Mortem. Held just two days after the election, our panelists offered an exciting, unique and informative review of the November 8 election, providing analysis, opinions and insight. What happened? Why? What happens next?
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Under our outlook, the Legislature would face a budget problem of $25 billion in 2023‑24. (A budget problem—also called a deficit—occurs when resources for the upcoming fiscal year are insufficient to cover the costs of currently authorized services.) The budget problem is mainly attributable to lower revenue estimates, which are lower than budget act projections from 2021‑22 through 2023‑24 by $41 billion.
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The impacts of California’s interminable drought are well-known. But one aspect has drawn little relatively attention — its relationship with environmental laws. Last year was the second-driest water year on record, with all 58 California counties placed under a drought emergency proclamation, according to California’s official drought website.
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Voters like taxing the rich, as a rule, but Proposition 30, which would take from millionaires and give to electric cars, headed into election night with nearly as much opposition as support – making it appear to be one of the few cliffhangers on the statewide ballot. But that was short lived: By Wednesday morning, Proposition 30 was soundly rejected by about an 18-point margin
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California voters — those who hadn’t already voted by mail, anyway — headed to the polls Tuesday on a rainy, blustery election day marked by close attention to key Congressional races and high-stakes ballot propositions, while California’s statewide contenders almost got lost in the shuffle.
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It was a $137 million day for the Golden State’s stem cell agency — no small event even for an enterprise that is backed by billions. The scientific scope covered by the $137 million was impressive. It ranged from bolstering the vaunted Alpha Clinic Network initiated around the state by the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM), as the agency is legally known, to raising the number of CIRM’s clinical trials to 83.
Podcast
CAPITOL WEEKLY PODCAST: With the 2022 election just days away, we asked longtime political party animals Jim Brulte and Garry South to weigh in on what they expect to see on Tuesday and make their predictions. Brulte, the former head of the California Republican Party, sees a good night for Republicans nationally and expects tight CA congressional districts to swing the GOP’s way. Garry South, a high profile Democratic strategist, suggests that it will be very difficult for Dems to retain control of the House, but expects good news in California races.
A photo illustration of bacteria as seen through a research microscope. (Photo: Per Bengtsson, via Shutterstock)
