Mariel Garza and the Golden State Report

Voters could fund what Trump and California lawmakers will not

Image by Alexandru Nia via Shutterstock.

by DAVID JENSEN posted 09.02.2026

Reason exists for some optimism among California’s clinical researchers – a $12 billion ballot initiative actually on the fall ballot. It is Proposition 38, which would provide $8.4 billion for immunology research involving a wide range of afflictions, including cancer, heart disease and Alzheimer’s disease.

Lobbyist, author and McGeorge law professor Chris Micheli offers a quick look at what’s coming up this week under the Capitol Dome.

Gaming the system: Paul Mitchell on the impact of prediction markets and bad polls

Image created by Andrii Yalanskyi, iStock Images.

by CAPITOL WEEKLY PODCAST posted 08.31.2026

CAPITOL WEEKLY PODCAST: A poll from Median Strategies roiled the Los Angeles mayoral race earlier this month, showing Mayor Karen Bass with an 11 point lead over challenger Nithya Raman. The results were cited by several media outlets, and were touted by the Bass campaign before the poll was exposed as fake. Political data expert Paul Mitchell joined us to talk about how junk polls, paid influencers and strategic gaming of prediction markets can distort perceptions about a campaign.

Governor could grant clemency in 565 death penalty cases. Or not

California Death Row. Photo by the Associated Press.

by DAN MORAIN posted 08.23.2026

As his time as governor comes to an end, Gov. Gavin Newsom is facing a life-or-death decision: whether to commute the sentences of the 547 men and 18 women in state prison who have been condemned to death. There is good reason to believe Newsom will take that step, and there is reason to believe he won’t. Neither he nor his aides are telegraphing his plan.

Examples of great legislative drafting in California

California State Capitol Building in Sacramento, California.

by CHRIS MICHELI posted 09.03.2026

In reviewing legislation during the last month of the 2026 California Legislative Session, I have come across a number of examples of excellent bill drafting and wanted to draw attention to them to serve as guides in the upcoming 2027 Legislative Session.

California bill would stop insurers from blocking rare disease care

Image by Mohamad Faizal Bin Ramli.

by JOE LANG posted 09.04.2026

When a specialist prescribes an FDA-approved treatment for the rare disease it was built for, let the patient have it.

Rural California will power the future if we invest in it

Image by Kara Gebhardt.

by LISA DUGHI AND CYNTHIA GARCIA BROWN posted 09.03.2026

Rural students need more pathways to connect what they learn in school with careers available in their communities and across the state.

Driving data bill stalls…again

Image by Thanakorn Lappattaranan.

by CORY JAYNES posted 08.26.2026

A bill that would have allowed drivers to opt in to usage-based insurance was held under submission by the Senate Appropriations Committee earlier this month, leaving California as the only state not to allow car insurance rates based on driving data