A man in a bicycle repair shop uses a laptop computer to run his business. (Photo: Mintimages, via Shutterstock)OPINION: It’s like pulling a life raft away from a struggling swimmer. Congress wouldn’t look at what it’s doing to small businesses that way, but that is what it will do if it carries through on some harmful proposals being considered.
Metal scrap awaiting recycling. (Photo: TonelsonProductions, via Shutterstock)OPINION: The state is at it again. This time, the Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) is attempting, in an end-run around the normal regulatory process, to impose “emergency” harsh and unjustified new rules on the metal-recycling industry — the one aspect of California’s troubled recycling sector that is still going strong. Why? Because they believe they can, I guess.
Pre-pandemic customers at a restaurant in LA's Famers Market. (Photo: Alex Millauer, via Shutterstock)OPINION: On June 3, the so-called “FAST Recovery Act” failed to secure enough votes to move forward in the California Legislature. Even though it was proposed by the chair of the Appropriations Committee and was a priority for labor interests, lawmakers recognized the damage that would have been caused by this bill.
Recycle bins behind a supermarket in Scotts Valley, Calif. (Photo: Michael Barajas, via Shutterstock)OPINION: Every year during the end-of-session debates in the Legislature, bills that had previously stalled suddenly get new life. Sometimes, it’s the result of a grand bargain struck to advance long-held policy objectives. Other times, it’s the result of public pressure created by an emerging crisis.
An owner of a laundry in her shop. (Photo: Sirtravelsalot, via Shutterstock)OPINION: We are in an extraordinary time — one that has exposed significant structural inequities throughout society. But times of crisis provide opportunities for reimagining “norms” and initiating large-scale change. As many as 7.5 million small businesses are in danger of closing during the next five months as a result of the pandemic according to a survey by Main Street America.
Photo illustration of a voter's reminder for the Nov. 3, 2020 general election. (Image: Prostock-studio, via Shutterstock)Qualifying a proposition for the ballot – much less convincing millions of voters to support it – is always a Herculean task. In the best of times, it requires a near limitless supply of money, talent and luck. Nobody right now thinks we are in the best of times. Many months now into the COVID-19 pandemic, a lot of people instead feel trapped inside a George Orwell novel.
A lonely road in Inyo County near Lone Pine, Calif., with the Sierra Nevada in the background. (Photo: Nella, via Shutterstock)California’s most heavily populated counties are drawing the most attention as COVID-19 spikes and spreads, with Los Angeles reporting more than 140,000 cases and nearly 3,900 deaths since March. But California’s rural counties also face immense challenges. And while their populations are less dense and the infection levels lower overall than the larger counties, the available health services often are scant.
Jim Wunderman, photo by Margo MoritzJim Wunderman, CEO of the Bay Area Council, joins the Capitol Weekly Podcast to talk about the impact of the coronavirus on his association’s members, and what to expect as California reopens. What you can’t expect is for things to be the same as they were before COVID-19.
An angler at Lake George in the Mammoth Lakes recreation area. (Photo: Justin Mair, via Shutterstock)OPINION: Recreational fishing has always been the greatest form of social distancing, long before the coronavirus pandemic mandated it. Gov. Gavin Newsom faces the immediate challenge of protecting the health and welfare of our state’s citizenry, it is not too early for his administration to give careful consideration to how to rebuild California’s outdoor tourism industry.
Barbara Ferrer, Los Angeles County’s top health official, is in the hot seat as the COVID-19 pandemic exacts its rising toll. With over 10 million residents, the county is by far California’s largest, and it has the most confirmed coronavirus cases.