California Policy and Politics Thursday

Labor organizers spearheading California billionaire tax measure rebuffed by parent union -- One of California’s most powerful labor unions declined to endorse a proposed state billionaires tax, a blow to its backers and a sign of simmering divisions on the left over the controversial ballot measure. Nicole Nixon in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/30/26

Appeals court rejects the Trump administration’s expansion of mandatory detention for immigrants -- The Trump administration cannot deny immigrants detained inside the United States a chance for release on bond, a federal appeals court ruled Thursday. The 2-1 decision by the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, with a judge appointed by President Donald Trump in the majority, deepened a split between federal appeals courts over the administration’s mandatory detention policy. Sudhin Thanawala Associated Press -- 7/30/26

California fire season has been quiet. A heat wave could change that fast -- A fast-moving blaze near Yosemite is testing California’s quiet fire season. New research shows heat waves drive nearly half of summer wildfire acreage — here’s why. Rachel Becker Calmatters -- 7/30/26

Schools are set to reopen with rotting food, fly swarms and rats still causing havoc in Boyle Heights -- With school set to reopen Aug. 12, Boyle Heights families express concerns about conditions at campuses near the Lineage warehouse fire. District officials say classrooms are safe, touting intensive cleaning, air and dust testing, new high-grade filters and the possibility of indoor-only schedules. Howard Blume and Francesca Pinney in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/30/26

 

DHS agent testifies that Border Patrol raid outside Gavin Newsom event was ‘purely political’ -- A federal immigration agent said in newly publicized court documents that an immigration raid outside a political rally hosted by Gov. Gavin Newsom last year was a “stunt,” bolstering claims Newsom has made that the raid was politically motivated. Sophia Bollag, Bob Egelko in the San Francisco Chronicle$ Lia Russell in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 7/30/26

More than 24,000 immigrant children could lose legal representation as a federal contract expires -- More than 24,000 immigrant children who arrived in the U.S. without a parent or guardian and are facing deportation could lose access to legal representation this week when a federal contract funding nonprofit legal services expires, leaving some organizations to scale back or end assistance altogether. Ruben Vives in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/30/26

8 children deported after detainment at Sacramento ICE facility, data shows -- Of the nine minors that have been initially detained at a Sacramento facility by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement during President Donald Trump’s second term, eight had been deported and only one had been released, according to data released earlier this week. Chaewon Chung in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 7/30/26

ICE arrests of Indian nationals surge in Sacramento region. Advocates say Sikhs targeted -- The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Sacramento suboffice was responsible for the arrests of almost 150 Indian nationals from January 2025 through March 10, 2026, up from just five arrests of Indian nationals in the preceding 15 months, according to data obtained through Freedom of Information Act requests by the Deportation Data Project at UC Berkeley and UCLA. Phillip Reese KVIE Abridged -- 07/30/26

 

LA fire survivors say Newsom is trying to help utilities reduce their wildfire costs again -- Survivors, insurance industry slam purported last-minute bills to shift wildfire costs away from utilities. Levi Sumagaysay Calmatters -- 7/30/26

L.A. Warehouse Fire Leaves Behind Rats, Flies and an Unending Stench -- The Boyle Heights neighborhood of Los Angeles is still dealing with the smell of rotting food and fears over possible toxins after a cold-storage facility burst into flames in June. Orlando Mayorquín and Ana Facio-Krajcer in the New York Times$ -- 7/30/26

Workplace

Visa and other California companies announce almost another 3,000 layoffs -- Visa will cut 2,600 jobs, nearly 7% of its workforce, as the San Francisco payments giant pursues AI-driven efficiency despite reporting double-digit revenue growth. Intel, Uber and Patreon together announced more than 200 Bay Area layoffs, from Santa Clara engineering hubs to San Francisco offices, citing restructurings, automation and shifting business priorities. Lily Wright in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/30/26

The Rise of Million-Dollar Companies With Just One Employee -- Broca relishes his ability to make whatever decisions he wants on his own, often from his sun-drenched Sausalito, Calif., living room. “I think compromises make lukewarm results,” he said. Once upon a time, running a business of a certain size required a team. AI is turning that assumption upside down, and more aspiring entrepreneurs are going it alone. Te-Ping Chen in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 7/30/26

Kaiser used an algorithm — not clinicians — to triage mental health patients, a union alleges -- A healthcare workers’ union alleges Kaiser’s e-visit tool screens mental health patients without real-time clinician review, violating state law. Kaiser skipped a public hearing on the allegations for the second time in as many years — so what exactly is behind the tool, and why won’t the company say? Ana B. Ibarra Calmatters -- 7/30/26

Marketplace

Sales Are So Low, California Wineries Are Burning Their Vineyards -- The rise and fall of pinot noir symbolizes the larger struggles of the wine industry as younger generations turn to other beverages. Soumya Karlamangla in the New York Times$ -- 7/30/26

Barabak: O, Canada! Caught in crossfire, California wineries despair over Trump tariffs -- Exports have plummeted because of a prohibition on U.S. wine and liquor sales. California lawmakers asked Quebec to lift the ban, sidestep Trump and promote free trade. The response: Non! Mark Z. Barabak in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/30/26

As prices rise at the pump, so do oil company’s profits -- Soaring prices for oil and gas triggered by the war in Iran are generating a surge of corporate profits for multinational energy companies, with Shell disclosing early Thursday morning it saw a $9.8 billion windfall between April and June. Evan Halper in the Washington Post$ -- 7/30/26

AI

Why confide in AI? Teens open up on why they trust chatbots -- Why turn to artificial intelligence rather than a friend? For young people, it often comes down to not having to worry about what a peer or a parent thinks. Lynn La Calmatters -- 7/30/26

Pollution

State regulators crack down on polluted runoff from L.A. shopping centers, warehouses -- In a requirement that is the first of its kind in the country, some 600 commercial and industrial properties in the Los Angeles area will have to clean up the water that runs off their parking lots or pay to have it cleaned up. Ian James in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/30/26

Street

San Francisco floods Market Street with police after 3 shootings in 3 days -- San Francisco is deploying around-the-clock police patrols along a prominent downtown corridor after three shootings in three days threatened to undercut the city’s effort to shed its national reputation for street disorder and revive its struggling urban core. Aidin Vaziri in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 7/30/26

CA’s privatized public defense leads to caseloads 3x the most basic standards, report finds -- In 2025, a single lawyer in Kings County represented almost 600 poor people accused of crimes. That figure, which rivals some of the worst public defense caseloads in the nation, does not include the attorney’s private personal injury clients. Anat Rubin Calmatters -- 7/30/26

Also

Sweeping FBI raids in San Bernardino, Beverly Hills tied to larger foreign influence probes, sources say -- A series of FBI raids this week involving San Bernardino County elected officials and a Chinese-language media company are part of growing probes into public corruption and foreign influence in Southern California, law enforcement sources say. Richard Winton in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/30/26

How a sandwich bag of booze became a beloved San Francisco tradition -- San Francisco has taken credit for many iconic culinary treats, including the Mission burrito, cioppino, fortune cookies and, yes, even Rice-a-Roni. But does a makeshift cocktail sold in ziplock bags from nondescript markets belong on the list? Jill Tucker, Sriharsha Devulapalli in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 7/30/26

POTUS 47

Trump Encounters a More Determined Iran as War Widens -- Experts said that at this stage in the war, which the United States launched with Israel five months ago, Iran wants to demonstrate the military adage that the enemy always gets a vote. Julian E. Barnes, Helene Cooper and Eric Schmitt in the New York Times$ -- 7/30/26

With Blanche Nomination at Stake, Payouts to Trump Allies Continue -- As senators delayed a crucial vote on Todd Blanche’s nomination to be attorney general over the so-called weaponization fund, a million-dollar payment the Justice Department made to an anti-abortion activist underscored how it could still funnel taxpayer money to people who claim to be victims of government persecution. Devlin Barrett and Alan Feuer in the New York Times$ -- 7/30/26

U.S. Economy Slows as Inflation Bites -- The American economy slowed in the second quarter of the year, expanding at an annual rate of 1.5 percent as the war with Iran upended prices, supply chains and energy markets. Talmon Joseph Smith in the New York Times$ Harriet Torry in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 7/30/26

Fed Holds Rates Steady but Three Officials Back Increase -- The Federal Reserve on Wednesday kept interest rates unchanged despite growing divisions among policymakers to more directly tackle inflation after five years of overshooting the central bank’s 2 percent target. Colby Smith in the New York Times$ Andrew Ackerman and Riley Beggin in the Washington Post$ -- 7/30/26