Category: California

By PBS / Nov. 13, 2025

The Justice Department on Thursday sued to block new congressional district boundaries approved by California voters last week, joining a court battle that could help determine which party wins control of the U.S. House in 2026.

The complaint filed in California federal court targets the new congressional map pushed by Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom in response to a similar Republican-led effort in Texas backed by President Donald Trump. It sets the stage for a high-stakes legal and political fight between the Republican administration and the Democratic governor, who’s seen as a likely 2028 presidential contender.

“California’s redistricting scheme is a brazen power grab that tramples on civil rights and mocks the democratic process,” Attorney General Pam Bondi said in an emailed statement. “Governor Newsom’s attempt to entrench one-party rule and silence millions of Californians will not stand.”

California voters overwhelmingly approved Proposition 50, a constitutional amendment changing the congressional boundaries to give Democrats a shot at winning five seats now held by Republicans in next year’s midterm elections.

Rents are declining across the country according to the Zumper National Rent Index. In fact, it’s the fourth straight month of declining rental prices across the United States.

Yet, what does that mean for renters in San Diego?

The national average price for a one-bedroom rental apartment is $1,650, according to both Zumper and Apartments.com—a price that Californians are hard-pressed to match, with a median rent price of $2,059.

At the top of the rental market in California, sits San Francisco with an average rental price of $3,110 per month, which is 91% higher than the national rent price.

Yet, in Southern California, the rental market “is facing a surge in supply, giving renters a bit more leeway, according to Zumper. Both Los Angeles and Orange County are seeing declining rents. This is due to “massive rental developments have been built and are opening along the I-15 and I-215 freeways in Riverside and San Bernardino counties.”

The Federal Aviation Administration is forcing airlines to cut 10% of their flights at 40 of the busiest airports across the nation to reduce pressure on air traffic controllers during the ongoing government shutdown and ensure that flying remains safe. The airports have been ordered to cut 4% starting Friday, Nov.7 with the remaining cuts to come next week.

Travelers should check with their airlines to see if their flight has been cut. Here is a partial list of airports affected, mostly local West Coast ones — :

West Coast Airports

California

• San Diego International
• Los Angeles International
• Oakland International
• Ontario International in California
• San Francisco International

Other West Coast

By Shelby Huffaker, MPH / San Diego Americans for Safe Access / November 2025

California Assembly Bills

AB-8 Industrial hemp.

Expands the definition of cannabis to include all products containing natural and synthetic cannabinoids (excluding CBD isolate and FDA-approved cannabinoid products), subjecting such products to the same regulatory requirements as cannabis (including — but not limited to — laboratory testing, taxes, track-and-trace requirements, etc.). Inhalable hemp products, including hemp pre-rolls and hemp flower intended for consumption, are prohibited. While cannabis retailers are permitted to sell manufactured cannabinoid products that meet state requirements, tobacco/cigarette retailers are prohibited from selling any form of cannabis or cannabinoid product, except for CBD isolate.

The proposal comes as the city’s cannabis tax revenue continues to slump.

By David Garrick / San Diego U-T / November 4, 2025

A new proposal would give San Diego more tools to crack down on illegal cannabis delivery services, which officials blame for worsening budget deficits by hurting legal dispensaries’ business and costing the city tax revenue.

The proposed policy changes would make enforcement more rigorous by raising the penalties for any illegal cannabis activity in San Diego and strengthen the ability of legal dispensaries to sue illegal operators and recover damages.

San Diego would also seek more aggressively to regulate delivery services from outside the city by requiring them to get a new kind of permit and disclose detailed information about their operations in San Diego.

While the new permit wouldn’t affect delivery services operating completely outside the law, industry officials say a big part of the problem is legal delivery services from areas outside the area operating in San Diego but declining to pay local taxes.

By Bruce Wolpe / The AlterNet -The Conversation / November 05, 2025 

One year and a day after Donald Trump won a second term as president – and on the 35th day of the US government shutdown, which has tied a record for the longest in history – the Democrats swept to victory in key races across the county.

Democratic candidates won the governorships in the states of Virginia and New Jersey, while Zohran Mamdani became New York City’s next mayor.

The Democrats may have just become the winners of the fight to reopen the government, too.

Trump’s ratings dropping sharply
Sixteen years ago, then-President Barack Obama was staggered by Republicans winning the governorships in Virginia and New Jersey in the 2009 elections.

The message was indelible: voters wanted to put a check on Obama and his wide-ranging agenda, from health care to global warming. Many Americans wanted him to cool his jets, including on what would become his signature achievement, Obamacare.

The following year, in the 2010 midterm elections, the Democrats lost more than 60 seats and their majority in the House. For the next six years, Republicans had a veto over whatever bills Obama wanted Congress to enact.

With Democrats now winning the governorships in those two states, Trump and his Republican allies in Congress have just been sent the same message: you need to be checked, too.

By Ian Rodney Lazarus / SFGate / Nov 3, 2025 

Few structures evoke such varied emotions as the sight of a weathered lighthouse standing firm against an incoming tide. Without these tall, circular towers set along the shore, California wouldn’t be what it is today.

But these iconic coastal features have lost almost all their original function, replaced by modern technology, and simultaneously face threats from age and environmental degradation. They’re some of the oldest structures still standing, largely due to their sentimental value, even as they come under increasing financial strain. For all the pride and pleasure we get from seeing these monuments up close, many visitors remain unaware of the challenges they face today.

Part of California’s history

As a staff officer for the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary in San Diego, I’ve been lucky enough to explore California’s lighthouses in ways others aren’t able to. Walking on grounds that retain original structures approaching two centuries old, it feels like walking right out of a time machine. Very little has changed, even inside the homes that were occupied by the original keepers and officers more than 150 years ago.

This is another post as part of the Rag’s response to a U-T commentary by Harry Bobbins about lifting the coastal 30 foot height limit.

By Frances Zimmerman

Like Union-Tribune commenter Harry Bobbins, whom I don’t know, I too have done time on the La Jolla Community Planning Association (LJCPA.)

I have lived here since 1970, first as a renter and then as a homeowner, in the flats, with no ocean-view, but near Windansea Beach. I don’t recognize Bobbins’ description of my neighborhood as “job-rich” and “well-connected.” I do know there are more and more home rentals and the beach is jammed and street parking is tough in the summer. But it’s easier off-season, and there’s no Miami-wall of high-rises between me and the water’s edge, for which I am grateful every day of my life.

LJCPA is like other “planning” groups throughout our City, comprised of a mix of well-meaning and opportunistic elected locals with zero policy clout over the physical configuration of their communities. Notably, LJCPA has been toothless to prevent villa-fication and mansion-ization of single-family neighborhoods. Smaller homes and lots regularly are sold and rebuilt bigger in every way, as new flat-roofed concrete behemoths that resemble either prisons or VRBO hotels loom over their neighbors.

By Richard Allyn / CBS8 / October 22, 2025

With less than two weeks until California’s special election on Prop 50 [on November 4], a new CBS News poll released on Wednesday reveals that 62% of likely voters support the ballot measure, which would redraw the state’s congressional lines in ways that would make it easier for Democrats to win five districts currently held by Republicans.

The poll, which surveyed more than 1,500 registered California voters, shows a significant jump in support compared to earlier polls that put backing in the low 50s. However, according to Governor Gavin Newsom, the ultimate outcome depends on voter participation.

“Polls don’t vote, people vote. And this is a special election. I’m not naive, it is about turn-out, period, full-stop,” said Newsom.

The CBS News poll reveals starkly different motivations between supporters and opponents of the measure. Among those voting yes, 75% say it is a way to oppose President Donald Trump, and 70% cite opposition to national Republicans.

US Reps Vargas, Peters, Padilla, Jacobs and Levin Refused Entry

by City News Service – Times of San Diego / Oct. 27, 2025

A delegation of legislators representing San Diego County was once again refused entry to the Edward J. Schwartz United States Courthouse on Monday as they attempted to conduct oversight on an Immigrations and Customs Enforcement detention center.

Reps. Juan Vargas and Scott Peters, both San Diego Democrats, were refused entry a week ago. On Monday, they were joined by fellow Democratic Sen. Alex Padilla,, Rep. Sara Jacobs, and Rep. Mike Levin, and were again refused entry, the lawmakers said.

“As members of Congress, we have the right and the responsibility to enter detention sites in order to conduct oversight without prior authorization,” Vargas said.

“Today, we were again blocked from entering. If nothing is wrong here, why are we not allowed in? What is ICE hiding? We came here to confirm that the law is being followed.

By Lawrynce Cecio

A new grant proposal, approved by the County Board of Supervisors, seeks a $100 million state grant to construct a “behavioral health wellness campus.” The facility would be built on county-owned land in Point Loma next to the San Diego County Psychiatric Hospital, replacing a vacant complex on Rosecrans Street, with the capacity to serve approximately 20,000 people per year.

This proposal addresses an extreme and growing need. In the San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos Metro area, 323,000 people (11.6 percent of those aged 12 or older) were classified as having a substance use disorder in the past year; a rate higher than both California (9.6%) and the national average (9%).

The campus is designed to alleviate intense strain on local systems, where psychiatric units are consistently full and emergency departments are overcrowded. By offering integrated care for mental health and substance abuse, the facility aims to reduce hospital bed usage and dependence on law enforcement for crisis response.