It's Wednesday. The governor has until Sunday to approve or veto a number of contentious proposals. Plus, the trial of two men accused of paying to get their children into U.S.C. is coming to a close. |
 | | The University of California, Berkeley, in August. Gov. Gavin Newsom must decide whether to sign a bill that expands Cal Grant, the state's chief financial aid program.Jim Wilson/The New York Times |
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You may have noticed over the past few weeks a flurry of new laws entering the books in California. |
To understand why all these changes are happening at once, here's a quick civics refresher: |
For the state to adopt a new law, both houses of the Legislature must pass the measure, and then Gov. Gavin Newsom needs to give final approval. |
The last day for California lawmakers to approve legislation this term was Sept. 10, at which point they sent hundreds of bills to Newsom's desk. The governor has until Sunday to take action. |
Newsom still has many more decisions to make by the end of the week, including about some measures that were hotly-debated in the Legislature. Here's a snapshot: |
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AB 101: Making ethnic studies a graduation requirement |
Under this proposal, public school students would be required to complete an ethnic studies course to graduate from high school starting in the fall of 2024. This is the third attempt by Assemblyman Jose Medina, Democrat of Riverside, to pass such a mandate, CalMatters reports. |
Newsom vetoed this idea last year amid pushback from some parents as well as members of the state's Jewish community, which said the curriculum had bias toward Palestine. |
AB 1238: Decriminalizing jaywalking |
This bill would remove fines for crossing the street outside of a crosswalk — unless there's imminent danger. There would be no more tickets for running across the road when cars are nowhere to be seen. |
Supporters of the law say the police enforce jaywalking laws in unequal ways or use them as pretext to detain people for no good reason. Police officers in California are five times as likely to stop a Black person for a walking infraction as a white person, Bloomberg CityLab reports. |
AB 1456: Expanding college financial aid |
This measure would significantly loosen eligibility requirements for college financial aid so that tens of thousands of additional students could receive assistance. |
The proposal, expected to cost between $85 million to $175 million a year, is the latest attempt by lawmakers who have long wanted to provide more financial help to students, CalMatters reports. |
The governor's finance department opposes the bill, but supporters hope that the state's budget surplus will persuade Newsom to sign it anyway. |
AB 928: Making it easier to transfer to four-year colleges |
This bill could be another with big consequences for the state's college system, as it would smooth the path for community college students to transfer to a California State University or University of California campus. |
Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis and student groups endorse the measure, while the U.C. Office of the President and Newsom's finance department are against it, CalMatters reports. |
 | | Officers patrolling United Nations Plaza in San Francisco.Jim Wilson/The New York Times |
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SB 110: Paying drug users not to use |
California could become the first state to begin treatment that pays people not to use methamphetamines and cocaine. This bill would allow the state's Medicaid program to fund these novel efforts. |
Studies have found that positive reinforcement — in this case, paying people not to use drugs — is the most effective treatment for meth or cocaine addiction, particularly when combined with behavioral therapy, KQED reports. |
SB 98: Protecting rights for journalists |
After recent injuries and arrests of journalists covering protests, this measure aims to limit how much the police can interfere with the news media at public events. |
The bill would prevent police officers from blocking journalists covering demonstrations and stop them from citing journalists for failure to disperse or for obstruction for being where they need to be to do their jobs. |
Newsom vetoed a version of this bill last year. |
If you read one story, make it this |
 | | The New York Times |
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- Oil spill: See the extent of the damage from the pipeline failure off the Southern California coast with these maps.The spill has also emboldened activists who are calling on President Biden to declare a climate emergency and block all new fossil fuel projects, The Washington Post reports.
- Covid-19 surge: California's National Guard has been deployed to four hospitals struggling to handle an influx of coronavirus patients.
- Private jails: A federal appeals court ruled on Tuesday that a state law aimed at phasing out private detention facilities in the state cannot be enforced, Politico reports.
- Tech fix: It's time to stop paying for a VPN.
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- Real estate: A Silver Lake rental gets a minimalist update.
- Sex, drugs and roller skates: A new book pays tribute to Flipper's, a storied 1970s skate palace in Los Angeles.
- Air quality: A new report ranks Southern California's air quality as the worst in the country, The Press-Enterprise reports.
- Toxic cleanup: Four companies will pay nearly $78 million to clean up contaminated groundwater at two Los Angeles-area toxic waste sites, The Associated Press reports.
- Massive shipping bottleneck: As many as half a million shipping containers may be waiting to be offloaded from cargo ships off the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, Sacramento CBS Local reports.
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 | | Francesco Tonelli for The New York Times |
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 | | Lianne Milton for The New York Times |
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Today's travel tip comes from Evy Journey, a reader who lives in Berkeley. Evy recommends Bodega Bay in Sonoma County: |
The light in Bodega Bay amazes. While it can display its full intense spectrum, casting a rainbow of shadows on everything it floods, it's never harsh. It caresses the ocean with shimmering silver or imbues it with dark impenetrable blue. Beaches and undulating paths with breathtaking coastal panoramas beckon for afternoon walks. |
Tell us about your favorite places to visit in California. Email your suggestions to CAtoday@nytimes.com. We'll be sharing more in upcoming editions of the newsletter. |
And before you go, some good news |
Shing Yin Khor, an artist based in Los Angeles, was recognized in the young people's literature category for the graphic novel "The Legend of Auntie Po," which retells the story of Paul Bunyan from the perspective of an elderly Chinese matriarch. |
Thanks for reading. I'll be back tomorrow. — Soumya |
Steven Moity and Briana Scalia contributed to California Today. You can reach the team at CAtoday@nytimes.com. |
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