California News

California Judge Weighing in on Legality of Women Board Member Law

When then-California Gov. Jerry Brown signed the nation’s first law requiring women on boards of publicly traded companies, he suggested it might not survive legal challenges. Three years later, a judge will begin hearing evidence this week in Los Angeles …

California Turning Down Most Fracking Permits Ahead of 2024 Ban

California regulators haven’t approved permits for the controversial oil and gas extraction process known as fracking since February, effectively phasing out the process ahead of Gov. Gavin Newsom’s 2024 deadline to end it. The state’s Geologic Energy Management Division, known …

$8.5M in Citations Issued to Owner of 6 California Residential Care Facilities Upheld

A hearing officer has upheld the California Labor Commissioner’s wage theft citations issued to Adat Shalom Board & Care Inc. and owner Angelica Reingold in 2018. The citations were to compensate 148 workers who reportedly cared for elderly residents 24 …

Temporary Total Disability Rates in California for 2022 to Remain Unchanged

The Division of Workers’ Compensation in California announced that the 2022 minimum and maximum temporary total disability rates will not change. The minimum TTD will remain $203.44 and the maximum TTD rate will remain $1,356.31 per week. Labor code requires …

Viewpoint: Is California Serious About Addressing the Wildfire Risk? Not So Much.

Recent state budget actions by California Gov. Gavin Newsom and the state Legislature make a strong argument that the state is not serious about addressing the state’s immense wildfire risk. Unquestionably, California’s wildfire risk is the second biggest problem facing …

California Pension Fund Agrees to $2.7B Lawsuit Deal

The nation’s largest public pension fund has agreed to pay up to $2.7 billion to refund policyholders hit with huge hikes in their premiums, it was announced Tuesday. The California Public Employees’ Retirement System, or CalPERS, has agreed to settle …

California Doctors’ Lobby Scores ‘Major Victory’ on Bill to Hold Physicians Accountable

The board that licenses and disciplines doctors in California is failing to hold bad actors accountable, endangering patients in the process. That’s the verdict of state lawmakers and patient advocates who have been working for years to reform the Medical …

Severe Drought in Western U.S. Raises July 4 Fireworks Fears

Many Americans aching for normalcy as pandemic restrictions end are looking forward to traditional Fourth of July fireworks. But with a historic drought in the U.S. West and fears of another devastating wildfire season, officials are canceling displays, passing bans …

Severe Water Crisis on Oregon-California Border to Impact Agriculture

The water crisis along the California-Oregon border went from dire to catastrophic this week as federal regulators shut off irrigation water to farmers from a critical reservoir and said they would not send extra water to dying salmon downstream or …

Report: California Workers’ Comp Written Premium Down in 2020

Written premium for 2020 was 13% below the previous year, and was at the lowest since 2012, a new report out on Thursday shows. The Workers’ Compensation Rating Bureau of California Quarterly Experience Report, which is as of Dec. 31, …