San Benito County Business, Economy & Jobs Digest

Applications are open for the San Benito Leadership Institute program, designed to cultivate emerging community leaders.

A coalition of timber businesses filed a lawsuit on Wednesday against the embattled Pacific Gas & Electric Co., alleging $225 million in damages caused by the 2021 Dixie Fire.

A California Republican’s bill would exempt low and middle income wildfire victims from solar panels requirements on rebuilt homes that didn’t have them when they burned down.

San Benito Health Care District intends to appeal.

Anti-tax groups in California have qualified a measure for the November ballot that would make raising state and local taxes much more difficult. It’s a showdown that’s been building for nearly five decades.

Not filling open positions in state government, cutting a school facilities program and several climate initiatives, delaying funding for public transit — these are some of the first steps that California officials plan to take to deal with a looming multibillion-dollar budget deficit.

The union representing Hazel Hawkins nurses organized a rally, calling for hospital management to drop its bankruptcy appeal and focus on services.

The San Juan Bautista City Council considered a draft ordinance reducing restrictions on food trucks operating in the city.

Captains of fishing boats on the California coast are bracing for salmon fishing to be severely restricted — or possibly canceled for a second year.

According to emails obtained by CalMatters Capitol reporter Jeanne Kuang in response to a public records request, a range of employers have been trying to figure out if they must pay $20 ever since the law was signed late last September.

Local activist Andy Hsia-Coron announced he is preparing to start the signature gathering phase for a new slow-growth initiative titled "Empower Voters to Make Land Use Decisions Initiative."

The developer of the Lands of Lee project to develop housing on Fairview Road has sued San Benito County for denial a permit to proceed, citing process violations of various laws.

The petition for bankruptcy filed by the San Benito Health Care District was dismissed with the finding that Hazel Hawkins Memorial Hospital was unable to prove insolvency.

The reaction from the California Nurses Association to the ruling of Judge Stephen Johnson of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Northern California District of California that the hospital did not satisfy one of the statutory requirements to remain in Chapter 9 Bankruptcy.

The Uplift Central Coast Coalition which works to attract investment and expand opportunities for Central Coast residents has been awarded $14 million from the California Regional Investment Initiative of the California Jobs First program.

Planned Highway 101/25 interchange sound wall will cut off access to popular destination.

The consumer price index shows services are mostly responsible for persistent inflation, but prices for food and other goods in California remain high.

The Business Council takes over management of the Monterey and San Benito Small Business Administration Centers from previous contract holder Cal Coastal on April 1.

Republicans want to scrap the law, accusing Gov. Gavin Newsom of corruption in dealings with a Panera Bread franchisee who is a major campaign donor. McDonald’s franchisees are funding a committee that is attacking Democrats who supported the law and are seeking local office in the primary.

On March 1, the California Public Utilities Commission gave approval for driverless taxi company Waymo to expand service into Los Angeles and San Mateo counties.

The San Juan Bautista City Council debated possible changes to the city’s business district regulations and whether to reopen discussion on instituting a parking plan.

A sizable number of crew members are working to recast locations near the Mission Plaza as a “Southwestern Town” for the “DL Project,” an as-yet-named film by Paul Thomas Anderson, starring Leonardo DiCaprio.

Logistics has been an economic lifeline for the Inland Empire for decades. Now that the industry is hitting a downturn, the region is feeling the pain.

The Legislative Analyst’s Office projects the 2024-25 shortfall at $73 billion, putting more pressure on legislators and the governor to find savings.

One of the biggest properties on Cannery Row has a new identity, after several years dark. Tipsy Putt soft opened in the former Cannery Row Brewing Company.

California’s latest Master Plan for Aging underscores the need for policies to address the challenges aging populations face. But it fails to portray the realities for older adults in rural areas, who are at greater risk of poverty.

Members of the California Faculty Association approve a two-year agreement that the union and administration hammered out after a strike last month that lasted one day.

When and if California legalizes sports gambling, the policy should honor the laws established in partnership with tribes decades ago, says Assemblyman James Ramos.

For the first time in decades, California is tightening its rules on workplace exposure to lead, a poisonous metal that can wreak havoc throughout the body.

Coalitions on opposite sides put out competing studies on the little-known Private Attorneys General Act, which allows employees to file class-action lawsuits over some labor law violations.

The San Pedro ports had a busy January as they rebounded from last year’s labor troubles and picked up cargo redirected because of Suez and Panama canal troubles.

The new downtown Santa Cruz restaurant from Sugo partners Marco Paoletti and Andrea Loporcaro has opened in the space that used to be Café Mare.