Capitol Weekly Podcast CAPITOLWEEKLY

This Special Episode of the Capitol Weekly Podcast was recorded live at Capitol Weekly’s conference COVERING CALIFORNIA: The Future of Journalism in the Golden State, which was held in Sacramento on Thursday, May 30, 2024. This is Panel 1: A Crisis in Local News

Panelists: Danielle Bergstrom, Fresnoland; Larry Lee, The Sacramento Observer; Colleen McCain Nelson, Sacramento Bee; Christa Scharfenberg, California Local News Fellowship Program UC Berkeley;

Moderated by Pamela Wu, University of California

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Capitol Weekly Podcast theme is "Pickin' My Way" by Eddie Lang

This Special Episode of the Capitol Weekly Podcast was recorded live at Capitol Weekly’s conference COVERING CALIFORNIA: The Future of Journalism in the Golden State, which was held in Sacramento on Thursday, May 30, 2024. This is PANEL 2 – THE BUSINESS OF JOURNALISM, REDEFINING THE MODEL

Panelists: Senator Nancy Skinner; Chris Argentieri, Los Angeles Times; Neil Chase, Calmatters; Steve Stuck, Urban Edge Consulting. Moderated by Edie Lambert, KCRA 3

Want to support the Capitol Weekly Podcast? Make your tax deductible donation here: capitolweekly.net/donations/

Capitol Weekly Podcast theme is "Pickin' My Way" by Eddie Lang

This Special Episode of the Capitol Weekly Podcast was recorded live at Capitol Weekly’s conference COVERING CALIFORNIA: The Future of Journalism in the Golden State, which was held in Sacramento on Thursday, May 30, 2024. This is PANEL 3 – COVERING THE CAPITOL.

Panelists: Lara Korte, Politico; Greg Lucas, California State Librarian; Cynthia Moreno, Press Secretary for Speaker Robert Rivas; John Myers, CalPERS; Ashley Zavala, KCRA 3. Moderated by Laurel Rosenhall, Los Angeles Times.

Want to support the Capitol Weekly Podcast? Make your tax deductible donation here: capitolweekly.net/donations/

Capitol Weekly Podcast theme is "Pickin' My Way" by Eddie Lang

While California is often seen as being on the forefront of Progressive legislation, the state's main anti-trust law, The Cartwright Act, dates back to the Roosevelt era - the TEDDY Roosevelt era, that is - 1907, to be exact. The Cartwright Act is often invoked in tandem with the federal anti-trust statute, The Sherman Act of 1890, but in fact, the federal law has stricter proscriptions against monopolies than the California legislation. That may be about to change.

In 2022, the legislature passed a resolution tasking the California Law Revision Commission (CLRC) with providing recommendations on how to update The Cartwright Act. The CLRC set up a series of working groups to prepare in depth reports on a set of seven specific issues - the working groups have published their reports, which are now being discussed at a series of public meetings. After these meetings, the CLRC will prepare a final report with recommendations for the legislature, teeing up new legislation to update The Cartwright Act in 2025.

We're joined today by Teri Olle, Director of Economic Security California. She walks us through the specifics of what The Cartwright Act does, how it differs from the Sherman Act, and why updating it for the 21st Century matters.

Crime has been a big issue in California in recent years, and we have seen a significant number of high profile bills dealing with issues like fentanyl, human trafficking and organized retail theft in recent years. While legislation out of Sacramento may help with some Public Safetly issues, recruitment and retention problems plague many Law enforcement agencies in the state. And, no wonder - despite competitive salaries and benefits, many officers still can't afford to live in the communities they serve.

We’re joined today by Brian Marvel, President of the Police Officers Research Association of California, which represents about 80,000 public safety personnel in this state – PORAC is the largest law enforcement organization in the state and the largest statewide association in the country. Marvel has been wearing a badge for a quarter century and spoke with us about what's changed during his time in uniform, PORAC's goals for diversifying departments and what legislation he and his organization are watching this year.

Plus, as always, Who Had the Worst Week in California Politics

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Capitol Weekly Podcast theme is "Pickin' My Way" by Eddie Lang

"#WorstWeekCA" Beat provided by freebeats.io

Robb Korinke is a Long Beach, California-based political consultant, specializing in candidate and ballot measure campaigns. He is also the co-founder (with Mike Madrid) of GrassrootsLab, and co-publisher of several local politics-focused publications, including CaliforniaCityNews.org, CaliforniaCountyNews.org. He has also recently joined the California Target Book as a co-editor. With those bonafides he's one of our first calls whenever we want to talk local politics.

And, with the Taxpayer Protection and Government Accountability Act on the November 2024 ballot - or not - it was time to call Robb. The measure, backed by the California Business Roundtable, would dramatically change California governments' ability to levy taxes and assign fees, and - of paramount importance for locals - would raise the margin for local tax measures from a simple majority to two thirds. But, will it stay on the ballot?

The Newsom administration, the Legislature and others have challenged the legality of the measure, arguing that the sweeping changes it outlines would amount to a revision of the constitution, not a simple amendment. The California Supreme Court heard arguments in the case last week, and now local officials are left to wait and see if the measure that they are calling "an existential threat" will be removed from the ballot or face voters in November. We discuss that and much more.