Alexei Koseff
State Capitol Reporter | CalMattersAlexei Koseff is a statehouse and politics reporter for CalMatters, a nonprofit, nonpartisan media venture explaining California policies and politics, and a JPR news partner.
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Newsom wants the new Legislature to ‘protect’ California from Donald Trump on civil rights, reproductive freedom, climate action, and immigrant families. The session will start Dec. 2.
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Expect four more years of combative showdowns between California’s Democratic leadership and a second Trump White House.
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The Assembly approves Gov. Newsom’s bill on oil refineries on a 44-17 vote. But the state Senate will have its say when it convenes next week.
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Some California communities are resisting progressive policies from Sacramento. Democrats in the Legislature say they are going too far and are responding with bills to shut them down.
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Unable to jam through bills he says will lower California gas prices, Gov. Newsom calls the Legislature back into session.
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Fresno County is about to appoint a library review committee that critics say will censor children’s books. But a bill before the Legislature would outlaw such groups in California.
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With President Joe Biden announcing he won’t seek reelection and endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris, some California Democratic delegates quickly went along. The Democratic National Convention will decide the new nominee.
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Gov. Newsom and legislative leaders announce an agreement to bridge the state budget deficit by dipping into reserves and reducing some spending. The deal also calls for a bill in August to set aside more money and a 2026 constitutional amendment to grow the state’s rainy day fund.
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The state Supreme Court takes a business-backed initiative to make it more difficult to raise taxes off the Nov. 5 ballot. Gov. Newsom and legislative leaders sued to kick it off.
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The Legislature passes a placeholder state budget, but must still negotiate with Gov. Newsom on the final deal. How the state spends taxpayer money is largely being decided out of public view.
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Since Gov. Newsom proposed a 28th Amendment one year ago, there has been far more progress on online petitions than in other state legislatures. His team says the effort will pick up speed in 2025.
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The state’s multibillion-dollar shortfall shapes which spending bills survived the ‘suspense file’ hearings by the Assembly and Senate appropriations committees.