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CalMatters
calmatters.org > digital-democracy > 2026 > 02 > veterans-claims-consulting-law

Newsom takes aim at veterans 'claim sharks' as he signs law banning fees for help with VA

Newsom takes aim at veterans 'claim sharks' as he signs law banning fees for help with VA1+ hour, 33+ min ago   (937+ words) Many veterans turn to private companies for help filing disability claims at the Department of Veterans Affairs and then face bills that run well into the thousands of dollars. A booming industry that charges veterans for help in obtaining the…...

CalMatters
calmatters.org > commentary > 2026 > 02 > hospitals-california-small-business-pricing

Opinion | Hospitals’ opaque pricing is crushing California’s small businesses

Opinion | Hospitals’ opaque pricing is crushing California’s small businesses9+ hour, 46+ min ago   (553+ words) Bianca Blomquist is the California director for the Small Business Majority Small business owners are working hard to keep their doors open while offering employees quality benefits, but rising healthcare costs are making that harder every year." One major driver…...

CalMatters
calmatters.org > education > 2026 > 02 > uc-san-diego-homeland-security-border-patrol

Why this California university helps with border patrol

Why this California university helps with border patrol9+ hour, 46+ min ago   (1166+ words) Local police forces get money every year from the Department of Homeland Security to assist with border patrol operations. This includes the UC San Diego Police Department, which helps monitor for smuggling along the coastline. For 20 nights every year, police…...

CalMatters
calmatters.org > commentary > 2026 > 02 > la-mayor-bass-election-challenge

Opinion | Troubled LA Mayor Karen Bass faces a re-election challenge from the city's left wing

Opinion | Troubled LA Mayor Karen Bass faces a re-election challenge from the city's left wing10+ hour, 15+ min ago   (563+ words) The ever-changing array of political figures seeking to become California's next governor'has a doppelganger in the game of musical political chairs being played in Los Angeles over electing a mayor. In a sense, that should not be surprising because Los…...

CalMatters
calmatters.org > newsletter > operation-stonegarden

CA’s local police still collaborating with Border Patrol

CA’s local police still collaborating with Border Patrol14+ hour, 16+ min ago   (863+ words) California Democratic officials often tout California as a sanctuary state, but some local police departments " including police at UC San Diego " have been participating in a federal program that provides agencies millions of dollars to collaborate with Border Patrol, writes…...

CalMatters
calmatters.org > housing > 2026 > 02 > single-stair-study-late

Housing advocates still waiting for state-ordered stair report

Housing advocates still waiting for state-ordered stair report14+ hour, 46+ min ago   (493+ words) California's fire safety regulators were asked to study whether mid-rise apartments can go with a single staircase. They're more than a month late. In the fall of 2023, the California Legislature tasked the state's fire safety regulators with writing a report…...

CalMatters
calmatters.org > environment > water > 2026 > 02 > marijuana-cannabis-california-public-land

Illegal cannabis farms poison California's forests. Who's cleaning them up?

Illegal cannabis farms poison California's forests. Who's cleaning them up?1+ day, 9+ hour ago   (1781+ words) Even after legalization, illicit cannabis grows continue to pollute California's public lands. And the contamination, new research shows, lingers. Law enforcement raided the illegal cannabis operation in Shasta-Trinity National Forest months before, but rotting potatoes still sat on the growers…...

CalMatters
calmatters.org > environment > 2026 > 02 > tijuana-river-clean-up

EPA touts bipartisan efforts to clean up Tijuana River

EPA touts bipartisan efforts to clean up Tijuana River1+ day, 14+ hour ago   (790+ words) EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin met with local and congressional leaders in San Diego on Thursday to tout the U.S. and Mexico's progress in cleaning up the polluted Tijuana River. The U.S. and Mexico are speeding up plans to clean the Tijuana River…...

CalMatters
calmatters.org > commentary > 2026 > 02 > sexual-abuse-schools-promise-california

Opinion | Will California lawmakers break their promise to child sexual abuse survivors?

Opinion | Will California lawmakers break their promise to child sexual abuse survivors?1+ day, 14+ hour ago   (635+ words) California's Legislature is considering revising a state law that has enabled more victims of child sexual abuse to sue public schools. This column argues against reforming the law. This accompanying column argues for it. John Manly is an attorney representing…...

CalMatters
calmatters.org > justice > 2026 > 02 > 3d-printer-ghost-gun-lawsuit

California sues websites that publish blueprints for 3D printer ghost guns

California sues websites that publish blueprints for 3D printer ghost guns3+ day, 9+ hour ago   (586+ words) California law enforcement agencies seize about 11,000 ghost guns every year. The state now is suing websites that help people manufacture untraceable firearms. Two websites that distribute instructions for how to manufacture ghost guns are facing a new lawsuit from the…...