The election of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris to the presidency and vice-presidency left several roles for Gov. Gavin Newsom to fill, and politicians from around the state, including San Francisco Mayor London Breed, have weighed in on Newsom’s choice of Secretary of State Alex Padilla to fill Harris’ seat in the U.S. Senate. San Francisco State University politics professor Jason McDaniel joined “Civic” to analyze Newsom’s choice, and the decision he has yet to make about filling state Attorney General Xavier Becerra’s position.
Category: California
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, California, Immigration, Law & Justice
S.F. Immigration Defense Unit Represents Immigrants Statewide Through Pandemic
San Francisco’s office of the public defender has a unit dedicated to defending immigrants in court. In most states, they often have no representation because there is no right to counsel in immigration cases. Francisco Ugarte, managing attorney of this unit, talked with “Civic” about how handoffs between agencies work and what happens to someone who is arrested by immigration enforcement in San Francisco, as well as a class action suit the unit helped litigate over COVID-19 outbreaks in detention facilities.
Posted inCalifornia, Coronavirus, Health
S.F. Will Reverse Re-Opening Amid Statewide COVID-19 Case Surge
San Francisco’s COVID-19 risk level as assessed by the state will move from “minimal” to “substantial” on Tuesday, Mayor London Breed announced Monday. As a result, she said, non-essential offices will have to close and gym occupancy will need to be reduced from a maximum of 25% to a maximum of 10% of capacity.
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, California, Elections
Insider Opposes $5.5 Billion State Bond to Fund Stem Cell Research
Proposition 14 asks California voters to approve a $5.5 billion bond to allow the institute to continue to provide grants for stem cell research, with the goal of creating new treatments for some of medicine’s most intractable problems. Jeff Sheehy has been a lonely voice on the board of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine, where he stands in opposition to the state ballot measure that would fund the organization for years to come.
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, California, Elections, Government & Politics
‘The First Angry Man’ Chronicles Rise of Tax Revolt, Legacy of Howard Jarvis
The documentary “The First Angry Man” turns its lens back on the moment when Proposition 13 was passed and examines the social and political context of the time. The filmmakers, Camille Servan-Schreiber and Jason Andrew Cohn, make the case that Howard Jarvis, the public face of Proposition 13, helped usher in an era of nationwide tax revolt and distrust in government that persists more than 40 years later.
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, California, Climate Change
Smoke-Darkened Skies a Stark Reminder of Climate Crisis
Some two dozen wildfires are burning around the state, and Bay Area residents woke up Wednesday to an eerie artificial smoky twilight. A major factor in the ever-increasing severity of these wildfires is climate change — while fires are a natural occurrence in California, fire season has been steadily expanding, and the fires are getting more ferocious over the years.
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, California, Elections
What to Expect in California’s Vote-by-Mail November Election
All registered California voters will have the option of voting by mail this year, with mail-in ballots expected to reach voters by Oct. 5. To accommodate the anticipated high volume of mail that will be handled by an already strained postal service, elections officials will be able to accept ballots up to 17 days after Election Day, so long as they were postmarked by Nov. 3. Voters still have options, however, if for some reason they are unable to or not interested in sending their ballot by mail, but individual counties will determine whether to offer as many polling places as last year.
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, California, Economy & Business, Technology, Transportation
Taxi Workers Wait Out Fate of Uber and Lyft in California
On Aug. 20, a state appeals court gave Uber and Lyft more time to argue their case that they shouldn’t have to abide by a California law that requires them to classify their drivers as employees, who would be entitled to unemployment, sick leave and other benefits mandated in California.
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, California, Utilities
Regulation Activist: Grid Mismanagement Led to Blackouts
Californians were hit with power shut-offs last weekend and were told to conserve energy by minimizing use as power needs could exceed availability. But some energy experts are doubtful that unusually high demand led to the shutdowns, alleging mismanagement on the part of the state’s energy grid operator.
Posted inCalifornia, Coronavirus, Government & Politics, Law & Justice
California Courts Vote to Rescind Moratorium on Evictions, Foreclosures
The Judicial Council of California, the rulemaking body for the nation’s largest court system, voted Thursday to end a temporary reprieve for California residents in danger of losing their homes. The move would lift the protections in less than three weeks, at midnight on Sept. 1, opening the door to evictions and foreclosures.