San Francisco Marriott hotel employees picketing in October in support of better wages, benefits. (Photo: 1000Photography, via Shutterstock)California labor confronted major challenges last year but responded with frenetic organizing and a newfound aggressiveness—momentum unions hope to maintain in 2019. As 2018 opened, California had 2.49 million union members, roughly 15.5 percent of the state’s official working population
State Capitol, Sacramento. (Photo: Wikimedia)ANALYSIS: When we think of “special interests,” we most often associate them with lobbying legislators. However, interest groups not only actively lobby in the legislative arena, but also they are active in efforts to influence state agencies and their regulatory activities. These interest groups vary depending on the role and function of the particular state agency.
ANALYSIS: The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) community in California, fresh off of achieving marriage equality, now appears to be coming into its own, not only as an activist and lobbying driven group, but a group that is increasing its numbers in elected office.