Implementation of the Affordable Care Act will significantly augment this state’s ability to provide mental health benefits for millions of people, a new study by the nonprofit California HealthCare Foundation suggests. (Los Angeles Times) According to details presented in the... (Continue reading)
A bill providing the Coastal Commission with authority to issue fines for the first time in its 37-year history is moving through the state legislature. The 1976 law that set up the commission permits the agency only tocollect money from... (Continue reading)
California school officials have largely disregarded the Obama Administration’s direction for education, marking a rare state departure from adherence to federal policy. (Los Angeles Times) At issue is the practice of grading performances of teachers, and rewarding or punishing individuals... (Continue reading)
Plans to curtail commercial recreational vendors in Yosemite National Park, proposed as a possible solution to federal environmental mandates, are being reconsidered by parks officials after a huge public outcry. (San Jose Mercury News) Parks Director Jon Jarvis said his... (Continue reading)
By DANIEL BLACKBURN One of the nation’s most controversial and wealthiest farm operators has quietly acquired a sprawling 742-acre parcel of prime ranch and agricultural property adjacent to the southeast edge of the Paso Robles city limits — causing some... (Continue reading)
Janet Napolitano, the U.S. secretary of Homeland Security and former governor of Arizona, has been selected as the next president of the University of California system. [LATimes] Napolitano’s appointment is the first time in its 145-year history the 10-campus system... (Continue reading)
Home solar systems were installed by California homeowners at a record rate last year, with the equipment generating a total of 391 megawatts of electricity, according to data released by the government. (San Francisco Chronicle) A rebate program for solar... (Continue reading)
Inmates at the California Men’s Colony have joined a statewide hunger strike over the treatment of prisoners, just as state officials are trying to convince the U.S. Supreme Court that prison conditions have improved. The California Department of Corrections and... (Continue reading)
In a few more days, California’s gargantuan public retirement system will be an open book — or database — when CalPERS unveils information on individual retirees’ pensions and benefits. (Sacramento Bee) Elements considered public information includes pensioners’ names; their monthly... (Continue reading)
A federal appeals court on Friday invalidated a California law that eliminated coverage of some healthcare services for the poor including adult dental and optometry. [Reuters] A three-judge panel of the 9th Circuit Court Appeals said the federal Medicaid program... (Continue reading)