All California Local Articles


Image caption: Inadvertently, the beloved Muppet Elmo called attention to the mental health dangers of being too heavily online.
Lawmakers Now Calling for Regulation of Social Media

Lawmakers in California and other states are now making attempts to prevent the reported harms to children caused by social media platforms. The U.S. Senate got into the act as well, at a dramatic Jan. 31 hearing.

Image caption: The celebrated sci-fi author and futurist Octavia E. Butler said we are changed when we work for positive change.
Feb. 5, 2024: Black History and Black Futurism

Meet the organizations working to win social justice for African Americans in California and beyond. And: Welcome Yolo County to CALocal.

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Bending the Arc of History

Here’s a short list of just some of the organizations working to build better futures for African Americans in California.

Image caption: A new law seeks to prevent cars from speeding, which causes about one of every three traffic fatalities.
If Drivers Won’t Slow Down, Proposed Law Requires Cars Do It for Them

“Intelligent” speed-limiting technology will be required in all new California cars starting in 2027, if a new law authored by San Francisco Senator Scott Wiener passes.

Image caption: Under a new law, homeless people in San Mateo County can be criminally charged for refusing to move to a shelter.
Should Homelessness be a Crime? New San Mateo County Law Allows Charges

In San Mateo County, a new law allows police to charge homeless people with criminal offenses if they don’t accept shelter. SCOTUS will soon weigh in with a potential landmark decision in an Oregon case.

Image caption: A group of  powerful, ambitious and confident people are hoping to ease California’s housing crisis by building an urban Utopia in the middle of nowhere.
01/29/2024: California Exodus and ‘California Forever’

While millions of Californians seek affordable housing elsewhere, an ambitious man backed by billionaires dreams of building an urban Utopia in Central Valley farm country.

Image caption: New neighbors might be moving to Solano County soon. A whole lot of them.
Building a City From the Ground Up

We’re getting ready to track the progress of California Forever’s plans to build a city of 400,000 in what is now Solano County farm country.

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Silicon Valley Billionaires vs. Bay Area’s Housing Crisis?

In NYT’s “The Farmers Had What the Billionaires Wanted,” we meet a man who wants to build a city in the middle of nowhere, and folks who are slowing him down.

Image caption: Former baseball star Steve Garvey, a Republican, will take a political debate stage for the first time Monday night, squaring off against three seasoned Democrats.
Schiff, Garvey Lead Senate Race Ahead of Monday's Big Debate

Former Major League Baseball star Steve Garvey, a political rookie, faces off against veteran U.S. House members Adam Schiff, Katie Porter and Barbara Lee in the first 2024 California Senate race debate Monday evening in Los Angeles.

Image caption: Highway 1 near Elk stays scenic partly due to the efforts of the California Coastal Conservancy.
Jan. 22, 2024: Reasons to Take a Road Trip

Ten state agencies are dedicated to keeping California scenic. And while you’re out exploring, check out some of our state’s most venerable eateries.

Image caption: Though Pea Soup Anderson’s signs may be a bit worn, the restaurant exterior retains its homey charm.
Century Club: A Tour of Classic California Eateries

Pea Soup Anderson’s closed before its 100th birthday. Here are 24 restaurants 100 years or older that you can still visit.

Image caption: Next month marks one year since Hanna Nakano took over as publisher of The Dirt, a monthly in the city of Davis.
Publisher Q&A: Digging Into ‘The Dirt’ in Davis

Hanna Nakano says her monthly newspaper raises the voices of local residents through “the power of documentation and the power of publishing.”

Image caption: The Baldwin Hills area in South Los Angeles is one region where a state conservancy would keep open land accessible to the public.
California’s 10 State Conservancies: How They Protect Parks and Open Land

How California’s 10 state conservancies buy up open land and shield it from developers to preserve the natural environment for public use.

Image caption: The roundabout joining Highway 12 and State Route 113 in Rio Vista, just south of the site for a proposed new city of 400,000 people.
Solano County May Get to Vote on New City in November

California Forever, the company behind a proposed new city in Solano County, will submit a ballot measure seeking an exemption from local laws to allow development on the massive project to proceed.

Image caption: Los Angeles voters can take a step toward reducing traffic violence with a measure on the March ballot.
Can Traffic Deaths in Los Angeles be Reduced With a Ballot Measure?

With traffic deaths now regularly topping 300 per year, Measure HLA on the March 5 ballot gives Los Angeles voters the opportunity to force their reluctant city to implement new traffic safety measures.

Image caption: Hey, Mickey—please pay attention to your driving!
Jan. 15, 2024: Killer Cars, Covid & Copyright

Two causes of unnecessary death: “traffic violence” and COVID-19. Plus: Mickey Mouse is finally free!

Image caption: As I post this, the tiny pipe-mark beneath the T on this COVID test card, indicating that I am still infected, feels like it’s lodged in my stinging left eyeball.
COVID Still Sucks

A new book, ‘The Wisdom of Plagues,’ makes me feel angry that I contracted the disease in what should be the post-COVID era.

Image caption: California traffic deaths dropped by 12 percent in the first three months of 2023, but road fatalities remain at crisis levels.
Death on the Roads: Traffic Fatality Crisis Far From Over

As the COVID pandemic eased, so did the epidemic of death on the road. Somewhat. But the ongoing crisis of traffic fatalities remains at high levels with early numbers form 2023 appearing to top 4,000 in California.

Image caption: Former Los Angeles Dodgers great Steve Garvey could become California' first Republican Senator elected since 1988.
Republican MLB Star Steve Garvey Rises in US Senate Race Poll

Retired Los Angeles Dodgers All-Star Steve Garvey is running for Senate as a "moderate" Republican and could be the first GOP U.S. Senator from California in 35 years, if a new poll is any indication.

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Teen Parents Helped by Hanford Program

High school students who become parents have around a 50% chance of dropping out. The HOPE program helps change this paradigm.

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