KQED's The California Report

Brown pelicans are starving up and down the California coast. The Monterey Bay is a particular hot spot. A wildlife rescue center there has taken in more than a hundred sickened birds over the past month. Reporter: Alix Soliman, KQED Advocates for a large, self-governed homeless encampment in Sacramento are trying to stop the city from closing it. Reporter: Chris Nichols, CapRadio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Proposition 47, California's landmark critical justice reform measure, has received plenty of recent criticism. Many blame Prop 47 for shoplifting, drug use and homelessness in the state -- and are trying to roll it back with a new initiative this fall. But Prop 47 has also resulted in $800 million in state savings, because fewer people are being sent to prison and jail for drug and low-level property crimes under the law. Reporter: Marisa Lagos, KQED Sonoma State University President Mike Lee has been placed on indefinite leave by Cal State University's Chancellor. It comes a day after Lee reached a divestment agreement with pro-Palestinian student protesters on campus. Reporter: Noah Abrams, KRCB Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hospitals across the state were hit hard during the pandemic, which disrupted their operations and chipped away at their finances. Maybe the most glaring example is Madera Community Hospital, which shuttered its doors over financial challenges and filed for bankruptcy in 2022. But one nearby hospital saw record profits, financial investments and executive compensation. Reporter: Omar Sheikh Rashad, Reporter Fresnoland Good news for visitors and residents of Big Sur. Caltrans has completed temporary repairs on Highway 1 over a week ahead of schedule. Storms in late March caused one lane of the highway to fall into the ocean. Reporter: Jerimiah Oetting, KAZU Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

California has some of the toughest gun control laws in the nation, but a Democratic state lawmaker says there’s a big loophole for some people deemed mentally ill by a state court - and he wants to fix it. The loophole - while California law prohibits someone from possessing a gun if a court finds them mentally incompetent to face a felony charge, it doesn’t apply to people being prosecuted for a misdemeanor. Reporter: Marisa Lagos, KQED The nonpartisan Legislative Analyst’s Office says the state could save up to a billion dollars a year by closing more prisons. This as California faces a budget deficit in the tens of billions. But Governor Gavin Newsom is taking a more cautious approach to trimming prison beds. Reporter: Nigel Duara, CalMatters Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A multi-billion dollar budget deficit in California is putting organizations across the state at risk. One program facing an uncertain future is Market Match. It works with EBT, or food stamps, to give recipients vouchers they can use at local farmers markets. Reporter: Ava Norgrove, North State Public Radio Governor Gavin Newsom says he has a plan to deal with a staggering $27 billion state deficit next year --without cutting core services or raising taxes. Newsom says California is facing a $56 billion shortfall over the next two years. He wants lawmakers to approve a spending plan that spans those two years. Reporter: Marisa Lagos, KQED An encampment to protest the war in Gaza was set up at the University of California Merced on Sunday. It came after the school held its commencement ceremony over the weekend. Reporter: Rachel Livinal, KVPR Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

State regulators have approved a controversial proposal that will add a monthly charge of $24 to many Californian's electricity bills. But in exchange, utility customers should see reductions in charges per kilowatt hour of electricity used. As college campus protests continue over Israel's War in Gaza, students at UC Merced are asking the university to refrain from what they say is over-policing. Reporter: Rachel Livinal, KVPR It’s finally warming up in California. As more bugs come out in the heat, so do bats to feed on them. And one bat species is emerging from hibernation with a new distinction -- the pallid bat is now the official state bat of California. Reporter: Alix Soliman, KQED Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As the conflict between Israel and Hamas rages on, American protesters are accusing Silicon Valley companies like Intel and Google of complicity in the violence, and urging them to divest. But US tech has been deeply involved with Israeli tech for half a century. Reporter: Rachael Myrow, KQED The California Public Utilities Commission votes Thursday on a controversial flat electricity rate. Regulators say the change would lower bills for many, but critics argue it could do the opposite. Reporter: Alix Soliman, KQED Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Two years ago, the northern Imperial County town of Niland lost its only post office in a fire. It was supposed to be a temporary closure. But residents are still fighting to get it back. Reporter: Kori Suzuki, KPBS California prison officials say it will cost billions of dollars to enforce new indoor heat regulations that the state’s proposed for workers. But they have declined to share exact cost estimates. Reporter: Jeanne Kuang, CalMatters Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s been over a month since California started requiring most fast food employers in the state to pay a minimum wage of $20 dollars an hour -- a big jump from the state’s general minimum wage of $16 dollars. Reporter: Farida Jhabvala Romero, KQED News San Francisco State University’s top administrator is promising to provide more transparency about financial ties to Israel … and to explore school divestment. That’s in a public meeting Monday with pro-Palestinian student protesters... who’ve camped out on campus for the past week. Reporter: Joe Fitzgerald Rodriguez, KQED News The Shasta County Board of Supervisors is set to meet today to discuss next steps now that the longstanding County Registrar of Voters has retired, but it’s unclear exactly how her position will be filled. Reporter: Alec Stutson, North State Public Radio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Can solutions to California's housing crisis be found in how we used to design and build homes in the past, namely smaller multifamily dwellings in neighborhoods and cities with fewer zoning restrictions. That topic is explored by Los Angeles urban planner Max Podemski. In his new book, A Paradise of Small Houses. I met up with Podemski in the L.A. neighborhood of Eagle Rock. In California, tens of thousands of immigrants with Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals will soon be able to get health insurance. That’s after President Joe Biden on Friday announced that those with DACA can enroll in Affordable Care Act coverage. The union representing some 48 thousand academic workers in the UC system is planning to hold a strike authorization vote as early as this week over what they say is the university’s crackdown on pro-Palestinian protests. The decision to consider striking gained momentum after police action at UCLA that led to more than 200 arrests early last week. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As pro-Palestinian student movements persist on college campuses up and down the state, the movement at UC Berkeley has drawn cross-generational support. Reporter: Laura Fitzgerald The Cal Poly Humboldt campus remains closed, even after the arrests of 30 Pro-Palestinian protesters, who took over two university buildings last week. But the student-run radio station is still up and running, thanks to some quick thinking. Reporter: Keith Mizuguchi, The California Report Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hundreds of law enforcement officers descended on the UCLA campus on Wednesday night, eventually breaking up a large Pro-Palestinian encampment. Dozens of people were taken into custody. Guests: Saul Gonzalez, The California Report and Sergio Olmos, Investigative Reporter, CalMatters While we've been reporting this week about some of the chaotic scenes at UCLA, USC and Cal Poly Humboldt, for the most part, protests on campuses across the state have been peaceful. That includes at UC Santa Cruz, where hundreds of students and faculty gathered on Wednesday, Reporter: Erin Malsbury, KAZU Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A large group of counter-protesters tried to tear down barricades that had been surrounding a pro-Palestinian encampment at UCLA on Tuesday night. That led to several fights breaking out. The FAIR plan is known as California's home insurance of last resort. But the plan is now the only option for many homeowners, especially in rural communities. Reporter: Scott Rodd, KPBS Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Protests over the war in Gaza have increased at college campuses across the state. Encampments have now been set up at Sacramento State, San Francisco State, UC Irvine and UC Riverside, along with Occidental College, a liberal arts school in Los Angeles. Student journalists have been covering the events as they unfold on campus. Guests: Dezmond Remington, Reporter, The Lumberjack, Catherine Hamilton, Editor, The Daily Bruin, Aarya Mukherjee, Reporter, The Daily Californian Members of congress have launched an investigation into a San Diego County-based credit union. This after a KPBS investigation revealed the credit union collects millions of dollars in overdraft fees from young marines every year. Reporter: Scott Rodd, KPBS A federal program that has helped millions of Californians afford internet expires on Tuesday. The end of the Affordable Connectivity Program will affect a wide swath of Californians. Reporter: Khari Johnson, CalMatters Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As the climate crisis changes California’s landscape, the ecosystems in state parks are threatened. At one point, the people in charge of those parks were just preserving the land. But now they’re trying to save the land from climate-driven collapse. Reporter: Caleigh Wells, KCRW Worker advocates are applauding a new federal rule that will make millions more people eligible for overtime pay. But in California, those protections are already stronger. Reporter: Farida Jhabvala Romero, KQED Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Israel’s attacks on Gaza have lasted over 200 days and the devastation can be seen around the world. As the war continues, families in the U.S. with Palestinian roots are having to watch the destruction from afar. Many are leaning into their traditions. Reporter: Esther Quintanilla, KVPR A controversial California housing law is unconstitutional, according to a superior court judge who made the ruling this week. Senate Bill 9 lets homeowners in single family neighborhoods split their lot and build two new homes on each. Reporter: Erin Baldassari, KQED Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Battle lines are being drawn in what could be a huge fight over taxes in California this November. Those fights are playing out on the ballot and in court. The state could be headed for another “tax revolt” like the one that ushered in Proposition 13. Reporter: Nicole Nixon, CapRadio California lawmakers have reintroduced a bill that would make workers on strike for more than two weeks eligible for unemployment insurance benefits. Reporter: Farida Jhabvala Romero, KQED Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For many Californians, the idea of High Speed Rail becoming a reality, is well just an idea. But in Fresno, where one of the first stations will be built, some residents see the rail system as a lifeline. Reporter: Madi Bolanos, The California Report Cal Poly Humboldt has shut down its campus, after students occupied a building on campus. And a protest encampment continues to grow at UC Berkeley, as students voice their concerns about the war in Gaza, and universities investing in companies that benefit Israel. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For many young parents in Los Angeles, buying a home with enough space for kids is out of reach, and so is renting a family-sized apartment. The makes life challenging for those young couples. Reporter: David Wagner, LAist On Monday, a case about homelessness from Grants Pass in Southern Oregon was argued before the U.S. Supreme Court. The Court is expected to rule before the term ends in June. Reporter: Jane Vaughan, Jefferson Public Radio A San Francisco lawmaker's bill to allow police to ticket scofflaw robotaxis has passed its first test in the state Legislature. Reporter: Dan Brekke, KQED Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Supreme Court is hearing arguments Monday in a case that could have major implications for how cities across the country approach homelessness. This case is called City of Grants Pass, Oregon versus Gloria Johnson. It hinges on whether a local government can issue fines and jail people for camping on public property when there isn't enough shelter available. Reporter: Vanessa Rancano, KQED A proposed state ballot measure to require schools to notify parents if their child is transgender will continue to go by a title supporters say is inaccurate and biased. Reporter: Madison Aument, KVCR State prison officials are increasing pay for tens of thousands of incarcerated workers. But most will still be earning less than one dollar an hour. Reporter: Farida Jhabvala Romero, KQED Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices