California
A Man Died of COVID at This California Detention Center. A Judge Just Ordered Sweeping Improvements There.
A federal judge ordered sweeping improvements to conditions at the Adelanto ICE Processing Center in California. Families say their loved ones died of neglect inside.
California's Local Governments Want State Taxpayers To Pay More, More, More
California local governments of every size are crying poor as they struggle with budget shortfalls.
Debate: What Actually Happened to Rep. Ro Khanna in the West Bank?
Robby Soave and Amber Duke discuss the strange turn of events in the congressman's trip.
Taking the W
Developers rush to use California's new apartments-near-transit law, North Carolina eliminates parking requirements, and the federal housing bill finally becomes law.
If You Get Drunk and Brandish a Fake Gun in a Waymo, Don't Blame the Cameras
Firing a toy gun out of a camera-covered robotaxi while underage drinking was never going to end well.
Europe, A.C., and the Housing Exception to America's Economic Success Story
Plus: L.A. criminally charges contractors offering to build an ADU in the Palisades, South Carolina streamlines squatter removal, and a Florida city uses eminent domain to thwart state housing law.
The DOJ Challenges Virginia's 'Assault Firearm' Law and California's Glock Ban
Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon argues that both laws are unconstitutional because they prohibit arms in common use for lawful purposes.
Reason Earns 7 Southern California Journalism Awards
First-place wins include work on America's gerontocracy, an interview with anti–death penalty activist Helen Prejean, and some Star Wars comedy.
Nancy Pelosi Is the Wrong Namesake for Berkeley's 'Institute for Representative Democracy'
If you want to devote an institute to "strengthening America's democratic institutions," you shouldn't name it for someone who degraded the public's trust in those institutions.
Gavin Newsom Is Totally Wrong About Taxes
Robby Soave and Amber Duke discuss Gavin Newsom's turn toward socialism.
L.A. Delays Its $30 Hotel 'Olympic Wage' Until After the Olympics
It's a temporary reprieve for a sector that has been struggling for years. But the fight is just getting started.
Even a Global Wealth Tax Can't Solve This Problem
Raise the price of an activity and people do less of it or restructure how they report it. Mobility was never the sole issue.
Secret Emails Reveal Sketchy Tactics in California Public Health's Tobacco Ban 'Endgame'
Here are the sketchy tactics California’s public health agency is using to convince towns and cities to ban tobacco sales.
Did California's Gubernatorial Race Reveal the Limits of 'Abundance' Politics on the Left?
Matt Mahon tried to chart a reform-minded path, but too often he came across as a mushy moderate in an election that will be determined by partisans.
Your Uber Driver May Soon Be Unionized. At What Cost?
It is in part an attempt to treat gig workers as full-scale employees rather than independent contractors. Drivers and riders will pay the price.
J.D. Vance and Mike Johnson Slam L.A. Mayoral Primary Outcome
Robby Soave and Amber Duke discuss renewed Republican criticism of California's slow election results.
Do Democrats Still Have a Big-City Crime Problem?
Plus: What California's election results tell us, the economic costs of war with Iran, and the push to nationalize AI
More Than 1,000 University of California Professors Want Standardized Tests Back
The letter, penned by U.C. Berkeley professors, claims STEM students are arriving to college severely underprepared.
California Conservatives Champion 'Local Control' Until They Dislike the Results
Conservatives want local control over housing policy, but they're happy to let the state restrict when local governments can raise taxes.
California Elections, Graham Platner, Recalling COVID Insanity
Robby Soave and Christian Britschgi are hoping socialism doesn’t make the leap from New York City to Los Angeles to D.C.
Google Aims to Debug California and Florida by Releasing 64 Million Mosquitoes
An earlier project already led to a 95 percent drop in biting females of one disease-carrying species in Fresno.
After 40 Years, No One Has Produced a Workable Single-Payer Health Care Plan
Vermont passed single-payer legislation in 2011 and abandoned the plan after three years of failure. Why?
California Public Sector Union Threatens Environmental Lawsuit Over Gavin Newsom's Return-to-Office Policy
Unionized state workers say agencies need to study the additional emissions that would be caused by requiring employees to come into the office four days a week.
How the Billionaire Tax Could Make California Poorer
One upcoming ballot measure would expand the state's taxing power. A lesser-known measure would limit it. Which will win?
Does Anyone Know What's Happening in Iran?
Plus: Spencer Pratt’s mayoral campaign rattles Los Angeles, Trump’s “Anti-Weaponization Fund" sparks backlash, and the editors revisit Project 2025
Adam Carolla on the California Exodus, Gavin Newsom, and Mainstream Media
"You can't ask tough questions or follow-up questions because then that person would never come back," the comedian tells Reason's Nick Gillespie.
In Gerrymandering Fight, Democracy Is Losing
In this recent round, Republicans are entirely to blame. In the new MAGA-fied GOP, winning is everything, and there's no quarter given for concepts such as fairness.
How Tom Steyer Used His Money To Fuel Climate Hysteria
Researcher Roger Pielke Jr. was targeted for cautioning that global warming is real but "not the apocalypse."
What I Learned Shadowing California's Katana-Wielding Anti-Squatter Enforcers
California's failure to eject squatters from the properties they've seized undermines the state's new housing laws.
Samurai vs. Squatters: On the Street With the Hired Swords Reclaiming California Property Owners' Stolen Homes
California has failed to protect private property from squatters. Desperate owners are turning to katana-wielding enforcers to reclaim their homes.
San Francisco's Outdoor Smoking Ban Won't Improve Public Health, but It Will Hurt the City's Bars and Taverns
Bar owners warn that the proposed smoking ban could force closures, threaten jobs, and damage San Francisco’s nightlife.
The Need for Prick-Proof Housing Laws
Plus: the damage done by inclusionary zoning, total YIMBY victory at California gubernatorial forum, and Trump's reversion of build-to-rent
Gavin Newsom's Free Diaper Disaster
Plus: AOC attacks billionaires, Trump heads into Xi talks weakened by the Iran conflict, and redistricting battles escalate nationwide
California Spent $450 Million on a Failed 911 System. Now, the State Is Restarting the Project.
The state’s attempt to overhaul its antiquated 911 system resulted in delays and lost calls.
Is the California Coastal Commission Finally Losing Some of Its Regulatory Powers?
The commission has tormented property owners and localities ever since it was created in 1976. Finally, legislative and legal efforts are undoing some of its abuses.
The People vs. CEQA
An initiative that would streamline California's development-killing environmental review law appears to be headed to the ballot.
California Says It Detected a Disease-Carrying Bug. So it Destroyed 32,000 Trees, 5 Miles Away.
How heavy-handed state regulations led to one farmer suing the state for $3 million in damages
Self-Checkout Is Under Fire Across the Country. Is Theft Really the Reason?
The restrictions are often framed as a crime prevention measure. But the fine print points to a different motivation: adding union jobs.
California Lawmakers Are Ignoring History by Boosting Pension Benefits as the State's Economy Teeters
After California made this same mistake in 1999, it took 12 years to dig out of the hole. Taxpayers footed the bill.
California Can't Define 'Hate Speech' But May Mandate Workplace Training Anyway
The term “hate speech” gets thrown around a lot, but it’s legally protected in the U.S.
Even Laws That Haven't Passed Can Have Unintended Consequences
Mere proposals can change the risk calculus for business and investors. Politicians, and the public, should be wary.
Historic Taking
The owners of the house that Marilyn Monroe died in claim in a lawsuit that the city took their property when it landmarked it.
