California Supreme Court denies attempts to overturn Newsom school closures
By Mackenzie Mays 09/10/2020 06:36 PM EDT SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The California Supreme Court has thrown out two attempts to halt Gov. Gavin Newsom’s school closure orders in response to the coronavirus. Petitions from the Orange County Board of Education and a slew of private and religious schools to overturn Newsom’s mandate to keep schools […]
California State University to start spring 2021 semester online
By Mackenzie Mays 09/10/2020 08:03 PM EDT California State University announced Thursday it will remain largely online next semester, after closing off most of its 23 campus facilities to students for the entirety of the fall semester. The announcement: In a letter to students and staff, CSU Chancellor Timothy White called the decision to continue with primarily virtual […]
Khalilzad hopeful ahead of ‘momentous’ Afghan peace negotiations
By Lara Seligman 09/11/2020 12:40 PM EDT Zalmay Khalilzad, the U.S. representative for Afghanistan reconciliation, said he is cautiously optimistic a day ahead of the start of long-anticipated peace talks between the Taliban and the Afghan government. “Tomorrow is a momentous day for Afghanistan,” Khalilzad told reporters Friday, noting that the discussions in Qatar will […]
Unemployment claims fell slightly to 1M last week
By Rebecca Rainey for POLITICO 08/27/2020 08:41 AM EDT New unemployment applications dropped slightly to 1 million last week, the Labor Department reported Thursday. The labor market has now weathered more than five consecutive months of historic layoffs. An additional 608,000 laid-off workers sought jobless aid through the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program, created for those […]
Trump calls out FDA chief, suggests agency is slow-walking Covid clinical trials
By Dan Goldberg for POLITICO 08/22/2020 10:01 AM EDT Updated: 08/22/2020 01:10 PM EDT President Donald Trump on Saturday suggested that his own FDA is making it difficult for drug companies to enroll people in clinical trials for vaccines and therapies to treat Covid-19, part of a “deep state” plot to hinder his re-election prospects. […]
Newsom: Counties must be off watch list for 2 weeks before opening more sectors
By Victoria Colliver 08/24/2020 05:42 PM EDT Gov. Gavin Newsom said Monday that counties must be off California’s Covid-19 watch list for two weeks before they can reopen any new business sectors — offering the first glimpse into guidelines he plans to release later this week. “There has to be a 14-day period between the […]
DOJ: Not all railroad communications exempt from antitrust scrutiny
By Leah Nylen for POLITICO08/26/2020 04:56 PM EDT Congress only gave railroads a “limited and narrow” protection against antitrust suits to protect their ability to offer cross-country traffic, the Justice Department told a D.C. federal court Wednesday as part of a suit brought by shippers against the four major U.S. freight railroads. That exemption doesn’t […]
California regulators approve rules to cut pollution from ships, trucks
By Debra Kahn for POLITICO 08/27/2020 09:31 PM EDT California officials approved two major new rules Thursday to reduce emissions from trucks and ships, billing them as essential steps toward complying with federal air pollution standards. The rules address both conventional and greenhouse gas emissions but are particularly aimed at reducing diesel pollution at ports […]
California lawmakers will delay tax-voucher stimulus package
By Katy Murphy for POLITICO 08/24/2020 09:03 PM EDT California lawmakers for now will delay an economic stimulus package that would have raised billions of dollars through tax vouchers. The news: CA SB815 (19R), which surfaced over the weekend, turns the tax voucher proposal into a study, with an implementation plan from the Franchise Tax Board due March […]
California creates limited path for on-campus instruction — even in hard-hit counties
By Mackenzie Mays for POLITICO 08/25/2020 07:05 PM EDT SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Schools are not allowed to operate in the vast majority of the state, but California issued guidelines Tuesday that would enable some programs in any county to open — including special education and learning hubs — with small cohorts in person. The California […]
