Santa Cruz County Business, Economy & Jobs Digest

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.

As agents hunt for business in Southern California's slow real estate market, some are trying out new ways of tracking down leads. Others are quitting the industry.

Nearly 2 million Medi-Cal enrollees can now accumulate savings and property without limitations and still qualify for the state's health insurance program for low-income residents.

Officials want to prepare more Californians for good jobs, and the state has spent roughly $370 million on workforce programs. But the results are mixed.

When Gov. Gavin Newsom launched his landmark effort to shelter homeless residents in hotels during COVID, the state and local governments were relying on FEMA to foot much of the bill.

The closure of Madera Community Hospital created a new health care desert in a community that already had fewer doctors per capita than other parts of the state. UCSF and Adventist have a plan to reopen it.

The funds would help California ports expand to handle giant wind turbines and other equipment. California’s first offshore wind farms are on a fast track off Humboldt County and Morro Bay.

A state tax agency wants to use generative AI to give business owners tax advice. The state of California calls it an opportunity. Risk assessments are forthcoming.

State lawmakers grill Cal/OSHA officials, with allegations that employers get tipped off to inspections. The chairperson of the Assembly Labor Committee is seeking an audit.

California Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta announced consumer tools to help tenants and landlords understand how much rent can rise under a state law.

History has a way of repeating itself. Not this time around. On the docks of Moss Landing, history has a real chance of reinventing itself.

The term “unsubsidized 100% affordable project” was once an oxymoron. Under Mayor Karen Bass, Los Angeles is now approving them by the hundreds.

California’s utility regulators are exploring energy bill reforms that would structure charges based on household income. If done correctly, the change shift the cost for maintaining the grid to higher earners who can afford it.

California voters this spring are considering a $6.4 billion bond to house people with serious mental health conditions. A similar 2018 ballot measure offers lessons about the obstacles that stand in the way of construction.

If educator candidates are paid a living wage and receive plenty of support, they are more likely to remain in the profession.

Downtown Sacramento faces many challenges, but the growing number of small businesses, hotels, homes and other major developments signal its transformation, says the city’s mayor.

States are plowing billions of dollars into a high-stakes health care experiment that’s exploding around the country: using scarce public health insurance money to provide housing for the poorest and sickest Americans.

The financial aid expansion is aimed at making good on a pledge last fall when trustees approve a tuition hike.

About 20,000 student assistants at all 23 California State University campuses are coming together for a vote that would create the largest undergraduate student worker union in U.S. history.

San Francisco is coping with a “doom loop” of declining employment and business activity in its downtown core, but a new study suggests Sacramento may be in worse shape.

Five former California superintendents shared potential solutions for reducing the increasing turnover rate in their profession.

California is removing degree requirements from jobs, but state leaders differ about the right approach.

State Sen. Scott Wiener wants to allow California cities and counties to designate “entertainment zones” where bars and restaurants could serve alcoholic drinks that people can consume on public streets and sidewalks.

A first-in-the-nation council will set work rules in the state’s fast food industry, but can labor and business agree?

Disneyland’s plan to reimagine the theme park into a more “immersive” experience may require up to $2.5 billion and a plan to privatize some Anaheim streets.

A combination of tax credits, revenue sharing and coupons could bring stability, writes Steven Waldman, president of Rebuild Local News.

Families have a lot of questions right now about how much help they’ll get paying for college—questions that financial aid offices can’t yet answer.

For months, the California Department of Food and Agriculture has been waging war on the oriental fruit fly, a voracious pest that can attack hundreds of types of fruits and vegetables.