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California Policy and Politics Friday

In bid to make a deal, billionaire tax backers offer to slash tax in exchange for Newsom’s support -- Backers of a plan to tax California’s billionaires signaled Thursday they’re ready to make a deal to remove the measure from the ballot if they can secure support for a more modest proposal. Joe Garofoli in the San Francisco Chronicle$ Paul Kiernan and Laura J. Nelson in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 6/19/26

Uber, attorneys reach compromise to avoid California ballot fight -- Uber and trial attorneys have reached a deal to avoid an expensive California ballot measure fight, agreeing to instead pursue legislation aimed at assisting auto collision victims. Tyler Katzenberger Politico -- 6/19/26

 

Newsom’s feud with Trump enters riskier territory -- Federal scrutiny of Gavin Newsom and his wife has unsettled allies, prompted some associates to consider legal representation and opened a new front in the governor’s battle with the White House. Melanie Mason and Jeremy B. White Politico -- 6/19/26

 

This lawmaker’s proposal could make California ‘the most secretive state in the country’ -- Pacheco’s legislation would allow public agencies to delay records requests it deems “improperly” filed, sue for “malicious” requests and charge up to $66 an hour to produce government records. One good governance advocate calls it a “virtual horror show of governmental non-transparency.” Yue Stella Yu Calmatters -- 6/19/26

California is getting ready to increase a health insurance tax. Will it affect your premium? -- Legislators approved a redesigned health tax that shifts more cost onto privately insured Californians to help preserve billions in federal Medi-Cal funding. A family of four could pay $400 more a year in premiums — but the tax still needs federal approval from the Trump administration to take effect. Ana B. Ibarra Calmatters -- 6/19/26

San Jose opposes statewide tax measure as mayor warns 2,000 people could be pushed back onto streets -- The proposed November ballot measure could threaten more than $100 million a year now tied to homelessness programs, libraries, parks and fire facilities. Ryan Macasero in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 6/19/26

Walters: California turns to minimum wage hikes to offset high living costs. There’s a downside -- There are three immutable aspects of economic life in California today. Dan Walters Calmatters -- 6/19/26

A California city voted to recall its leaders. They’re refusing to leave office -- Three council members in the San Joaquin Valley city of Avenal are refusing to leave office after a recall by voters, pitting the ousted officials of the former oil boomtown against many of its residents on social media, in heated public meetings and in court. Delilah Brumer in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 6/19/26

Workplace

Cal State faculty push to prevent AI tools from replacing them as schools and staff experiment -- The union representing California State University professors is contesting the system’s use of artificial intelligence tools and backing legislation that would protect their jobs from the technology. Mikhail Zinshteyn Calmatters -- 6/19/26

High Speed Rail

Merced advocates want high-speed rail downtown. Project CEO says moving station is best -- In recent months, bullet train supporters from Merced have made it clear they oppose the California High-Speed Rail Authority’s plan to pursue building a station outside the city’s downtown area. Erik Galicia in the Fresno Bee -- 6/19/26

Transit

The Bay Area’s trains and buses are filling up again. Even experts aren’t sure why -- Now the rush hour crowds are back, boosting BART to record ridership in the first third of this year. Although the rail agency still only carries half as many riders as it did in 2019, the period from January through April marked its most successful four-month chunk since COVID shutdowns. Rachel Swan, Danielle Echeverria in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 6/19/26

L.A. poised to lose $100 million in state grants to fund transportation projects -- The grant money would have funded projects in Boyle Heights, the Skid Row area of downtown Los Angeles and Wilmington. The city struggled to meet completion deadlines because of staffing shortages at key departments, officials said. Melissa Gomez in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 6/19/26

Street

Overdoses in L.A. jails fueled by long waits for drug addiction treatment, staffers say -- Despite a push to expand the use of medication-assisted treatment for drug addiction, people in L.A. County custody often wait weeks — sometimes several months — to receive it, according to jail staffers and inmate advocates. Gavin J. Quinton in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 6/19/26

Also

A traveler with measles passed through LAX. Officials urge caution amid World Cup crowds -- A person infected with measles flew on a transpacific flight and passed through Los Angeles International Airport last week, potentially exposing other passengers to the highly contagious disease. Rong-Gong Lin II in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 6/19/26

‘Justice for Jameson’: LAPD killing of family dog amid Knicks win sparks outrage -- The New York Knicks had just won the NBA championship Saturday night when Los Angeles police were called to an apartment complex in Canoga Park amid reports of a person screaming. Minutes later, an officer opened fire on a pet Saint Bernard doodle that was wearing a Knicks shirt. Ruben Vives, Richard Winton and Summer Lin in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 6/19/26

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Republicans fear Trump is hurting their chances. He can’t understand why -- President Donald Trump believes he handed Republicans a winning playbook for the midterms — if only they’d follow it. Gerrymander everywhere possible, get rid of the filibuster, fire the Senate parliamentarian and pass the SAVE America Act. Megan Messerly, Alex Gangitano and Myah Ward Politico -- 6/19/26

‘I’m the President and You’re Not’: Trump Tests His Power and Frustrates the GOP -- President Trump is increasingly relying on his own instincts, making decisions that frustrate Republicans and test his party control. Brian Schwartz, Natalie Andrews and Alexander Ward in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 6/19/26

Vance’s Defense of Iran Deal Rests on Vague and Misleading Claims -- The vice president said the United States had leverage to dictate the outcome of the next round of negotiations. But he claimed incorrectly that Iran got no new benefit from the lifting of oil sanctions. Zolan Kanno-Youngs, Rebecca F. Elliott and Erica L. Green in the New York Times$ -- 6/19/26

Trump condemned Obama’s Iran deal. Here’s how his own compares. -- The current agreement is still an early outline, with key questions yet to be addressed. Sammy Westfall in the New York Times$ -- 6/19/26

First steps in peace deal demand far more from U.S. than Iran -- The memorandum of understanding — which President Donald Trump signed to applause that echoed faintly at the Palace of Versailles on Wednesday night — puts the onus on the United States to deliver early concessions including lifting sanctions, freeing billions in frozen assets and dismantling a U.S. naval blockade of Iran’s ports. Greg Miller in the Washington Post$ -- 6/19/26

President Trump Has a Pool Problem. The Nation Has Thoughts -- The Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, which President Trump had resurfaced with a blue coating, has developed algae blooms. The Interior Department contracted to spend $14.7 million on the renovation, which a nonprofit sued over for sidestepping required reviews. Lydia Wheeler in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 6/19/26

The Costs of the Iran War: Thousands of Lives and Billions of Dollars -- The war against Iran lasted just over 15 weeks before a preliminary U.S.-Iranian peace deal was reached this week. But the human and economic toll mounted rapidly, with consequences far beyond the region. Edward Wong and Aruni Soni in the New York Times$ -- 6/19/26

 

California Policy and Politics Thursday

California billionaire tax qualifies for November ballot -- A wildly controversial measure to tax California’s billionaires has qualified for the November ballot, Secretary of State Shirley Weber said in a memo to California election officials Wednesday evening, ensuring a brutal and expensive campaign that will take place as voters also decide which party will control Congress and the governorship. Sara Libby in the San Francisco Chronicle$ Soumya Karlamangla in the New York Times$ Kristen Hwang Calmatters -- 6/18/26

Uber, trial attorney liability measures qualify for California ballot -- Both sides are armed for a grueling campaign, but a last-minute deal could avert a November showdown between the two measures. Tyler Katzenberger Politico -- 6/18/26

World Cup gives Los Angeles an Olympics test run -- Traffic jams, transit and security operations are providing an early look at challenges awaiting the city in 2028. Daniel Miller Politico -- 6/18/26

Inside the FBI’s battle to keep drones out of World Cup sites amid heightened terrorism fears -- As World Cup soccer fans cheer for their teams in Los Angeles and stadiums across the nation, FBI agents are working in command centers, watching out for unauthorized flying objects. Richard Winton in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 6/18/26

Silicon Valley’s 2028 playbook: Don’t talk about tech -- Silicon Valley is testing a more disciplined approach to 2028, according to interviews with more than two dozen tech executives, fundraising consultants and political operatives. Dustin Gardiner and Christine Mui Politico -- 6/18/26

California’s high-speed rail may be laying the way for a ‘valley of data centers -- High speed rail’s plan could lead to leasing land or providing energy for data centers that could be built in California’s Central Valley, fueling a massive tech boom up north. Rachel Swan in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 6/18/26

 

2 California universities made the world’s top 10. Here’s where they ranked -- Stanford University held firm to its spot as the third-best university on Earth after Harvard and MIT, while UC Berkeley slipped one notch to seventh place on U.S. News’ 2026-27 Best Global Universities ranking. Nanette Asimov in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 6/18/26

Student Cheating Is Becoming Impossible to Detect in an A.I. Era -- Big tech companies and small start-ups are using social media to hype new tools that allow students to trick teachers and A.I. detectors. Dana Goldstein in the New York Times$ -- 6/18/26

 

Trump’s DOJ has a credibility problem. Newsom is testing how far it goes -- The Justice Department has spent the last 18 months chasing President Donald Trump’s political adversaries in investigations that have more often than not crumbled under scrutiny. Now, California Gov. Gavin Newsom is adamant that he’s the next in a long line of vendetta cases brought at Trump’s direction. Kyle Cheney and Josh Gerstein Politico -- 6/18/26

Trump administration pays $765M to kill more offshore wind projects, including one off California -- The Trump administration will reimburse energy developer Invenergy $765 million to abandon four offshore wind leases, including one off Morro Bay, and redirect investments to natural gas and geothermal. Hayley Smith in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 6/18/26

California fires back at AT&T’s bid to get feds to let it stop providing landline service -- The utility giant last month filed a federal court complaint against California regulators and submitted two petitions to the Federal Communications Commission, seeking to escape a long-standing obligation to provide landline service where alternative phone options don’t exist. Ethan Baron in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 6/18/26

Mayor Barbara Lee used a rare power. Now Oakland voters may decide whether to give her more -- Oakland voters will decide in November whether to give Mayor Barbara Lee more power, after she cast a rare tiebreaking vote Tuesday to place a major overhaul of the City Charter on the ballot. Kate Talerico in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 6/18/26

L.A. City Council agrees to put noncitizen voting, police oversight measures on Nov. 3 ballot -- L.A. voters will be asked to give the City Council the power to approve a law allowing noncitizens to vote in city elections. The measure was part of a package of proposed changes to the City Charter, including a move to give the council more authority over the LAPD. Melissa Gomez, Noah Goldberg and David Zahniser in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 6/18/26

Workplace

No robot or AI instructors: Bill would mandate CSU courses be taught by humans -- A new bill seeks to restrict who can and cannot teach a course at the California State University’s 22 campuses. The criterion, though, is pretty simple: to be a professor, you must be human. Tarini Mehta in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 6/18/26

Newsom promised to help Californians build new careers. Now, the money is running out -- Gov Gavin Newsom made job training and the creation of a master plan for career education part of his agenda. Now, key workforce initiatives may get no new funding. Adam Echelman Calmatters -- 6/18/26

Rivian lays off hundreds of workers days after new vehicle deliveries begin -- The electric vehicle maker Rivian cut about 2% of its workforce following the first deliveries of the R2 SUV, a key new model with a lower price tag. Caroline Petrow-Cohen in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 6/18/26

Climate

Trump Administration Backs Off Plan to End Ocean Monitoring -- The Trump administration is abandoning its plan to dismantle a $368 million ocean monitoring system critical to understanding climate change and marine ecosystems, bowing to a bipartisan backlash on Capitol Hill, according to documents reviewed by The New York Times. Maxine Joselow in the New York Times$ -- 6/18/26

AI

The $13 Billion AI Startup Betting on Cheaper Alternatives to OpenAI, Anthropic -- Baseten, part of a growing Silicon Valley ecosystem offering services to enable low-cost AI models, is raising $1.5 billion in a new round. Angel Au-Yeung in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 6/18/26

The White House said Anthropic’s powerful AI was ‘jailbroken.’ Here’s what that means -- It’s surprisingly simple to trick chatbots into breaking their own rules and spilling forbidden knowledge. Even poems and bedtime stories can work. Kevin Schaul and Nitasha Tiku in the Washington Post$ -- 6/18/26

Street

Bill to limit prison off-ramp for the mentally ill could soon head to Newsom -- California’s 2018 mental health diversion law was meant to give defendants suffering from serious mental illnesses a path to treatment rather than prison. Prosecutors across the state have cited examples of cases where defendants qualified for diversion but went on to commit serious crimes. James Queally in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 6/18/26

Also

The woman who championed Big Bear’s celebrity eagles leaves behind a $10-million mission -- Friends, colleagues and eagle enthusiasts gathered in Big Bear to celebrate the life of Sandy Steers, the late conservation advocate behind the Jackie and Shadow nest cam. Friends of Big Bear Valley, the nonprofit she led, is racing to raise millions to stop a housing development in what it says is the eagles’ hunting and feeding area. Meanwhile, Jackie and Shadow’s two chicks — one named after Steers — are preparing to take their first flight. Lila Seidman in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 6/18/26

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Trump Demanded Iran’s ‘Unconditional Surrender.’ He Got a Surprise Instead -- While the Iranians suffered substantial losses in the war, they emerged from a confrontation with the world’s most powerful military having proved they can use economic chaos as a weapon. David E. Sanger in the New York Times$ -- 6/18/26

Iran Gets Major Economic Lifeline for Minimal Concessions in Initial Deal -- The agreement delays the most difficult steps for Iran for later talks, while granting it crucial benefits. Yeganeh Torbati in the New York Times$ -- 6/18/26

An Annotated Analysis of Trump’s Iran Deal -- The Wall Street Journal reviewed the memorandum of understanding to wind down the war. Read the text in full, alongside the Journal’s analysis. Laurence Norman, Alexander Ward, Summer Said and Vera Bergengruen in the Wall Street Journal$ also in the New York Times$ -- 6/18/26

Deal Gives Iran Chance to Turbocharge Its Oil Revenue -- The U.S.-Iran peace agreement includes a huge boost to Tehran’s oil industry, potentially restoring the regime’s economic lifeblood while generating more than $60 billion a year of revenue. Rebecca Feng, Summer Said and Laurence Norman in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 6/18/26

Budget office redirects $352M in Secret Service funds to White House security -- The unusually large shift comes amid revelations that the president’s ballroom project will rely more on taxpayer money than the administration acknowledged. Jonathan O'Connell, Riley Beggin, Jarrell Dillard and Sarah Blaskey in the Washington Post$ -- 6/18/26