Julie Watts

An "Aye" vote on a legislator's desk on the Assembly floor at the State Capitol in Sacramento on Aug. 17, 2023. Photo by Semantha Norris, CalMatters

Power is never having to say ‘no.’ How California Democrats kill bills without voting against them

April 9, 2024 at 12:42 p.m.

Mike Fong has cast more than 6,000 votes since he joined the state Assembly in 2022 and never once voted “no.” Pilar Schiavo is newer to the Assembly, but she has yet to...

Illustration by Miguel Gutierrez Jr./ CalMatters; iStock

Agency battling wage theft in California is too short-staffed to do its job

October 17, 2022 at 10:49 a.m.

The state is a national leader in labor law, experts say, but its agency enforcing wage theft rules in California still struggles to staff up.

Christopher Carter, 22, a fifth-year communications student at Cal State Northridge, stands for a portrait on Aug. 19, 2022. “I want the world to know that as a young Black man, you can achieve big things in life,” Carter said. “Through all the trials and tribulations, don’t quit.” (Photo: Pablo Unzueta/for CalMatters)

Why Cal State struggles to graduate Black students — and what could be done

August 22, 2022 at 10:41 a.m.

The Cal State system graduates Black students at lower rates than other groups. Students, scholars and advocates say the reasons are myriad.

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