A 'Mansion Tax' in Los Angeles Is Worsening the City's Housing Crisis
A transfer tax on high-value real estate transactions is reducing the number of homes on the market and limiting new construction.
California
War With Iran?
Plus: the same ole hawkish lies, a familial connection to Barry Goldwater's nomination, and the future of media is prediction markets on Substack.
The Heavy Pot Taxes Favored by The New York Times Would Undermine Legalization
The newspaper’s plan to address marijuana abuse would compound the disadvantages that state-licensed suppliers face in competing with the black market.
San Francisco Public Schoolteachers Make $79,468 for 184 Days of Work. Now They're Striking for Even More.
All of San Francisco's public schools were shut down Monday thanks to the United Educators strike.
Wealth Taxes Are Proven Failures. Will California Take Note?
Across advanced economies, they have repeatedly been narrowed or even repealed after delivering disappointing revenue, tax avoidance, capital flight, and costly administrative battles.
This California Family Is Suing for the Right To Drill for Oil on Their Own Property
“We’re standing up not just for ourselves, but for the principle that government must respect property rights.”
Housing Policy Can Be Win-Win
Allowing more homes to be built on existing residential land would be good for homeowners, homebuyers, and homebuilders.
'Billionaire' Tax is a Bait-and-Switch To Gouge the Middle Class
Proposals sold as targeting extreme wealth would fundamentally change how Americans are taxed—turning any ownership into a recurring liability for the middle class.
Landmark Social Media Addiction Trial Starts Today in California
In the first social media addiction case to reach a jury, K.G.M. claims TikTok, YouTube, and other platforms are responsible for her depression, anxiety, and poor self esteem.
California's 'Billionaire Tax' Could Bite Harder Than Advertised
The proposed tax is already driving people and businesses to flee the state.
Video Shows Feds Shooting ICE Protester With Nonlethal Round at Point-Blank Range, Blinding Him in One Eye
The incident raises more questions about federal agents' use-of-force policies and training.
Fix the AI Electricity 'Crisis' by Unleashing Market Forces
The AI boom is showing the limits of our regulated monopoly model for generating electricity.
Brett Kavanaugh Is Rightly Skeptical of a Nationwide Ruling on Trans Athletes
State lawmakers should be more skeptical of overly broad laws, too.
California Billionaires Are Leaving the State in Response to Proposed Wealth Tax
The wealth tax would discourage investment and likely lower tax revenue for California.
The L.A. Sheriff's Office Is Mad at Starbucks—Over a Pig Doodle
Starbucks says the employee was fired but that the drawing was not intended as a slight against the officer.
Culture War Politics Have Been Costly for This California Town
Huntington Beach's elected officials are pursuing performative MAGA policymaking and keep losing in the courts.
California's Ban on Openly Carrying Guns Is Unconstitutional, 9th Circuit Says
The ruling, which emphasizes the lack of historical support for such a law, is unlikely to survive en banc review.
Thoughts on the Supreme Court Ruling Against Trump in the Illinois National Guard Case
The decision is a preliminary "shadow docket" ruling. But it strongly suggests the majority believes Trump's use of the Guard is illegal.
LA Metro Is a Dangerous, Costly Mess. What Would Fix It?
Almost half of riders dodge the fares.
Switzerland Just Overwhelmingly Rejected a New Wealth Tax. Will California Lawmakers Learn?
The hammer of heavy wealth and inheritance taxes falls hardest on those still climbing the economic ladder.
Self-Driving Cars Will Make the World Safer for Cats—and Humans Too
The accidental death of one cat in San Francisco is triggering calls for banning Waymo. That would be a huge mistake.
California Clears Path for Gig Unions
Even after the Prop 22 rebuke, California is pushing a system that could standardize schedules and undermine gig work.
Cigarette Taxes Are Costing States Billions in Lost Revenue
Punitive levies drive black markets, fuel criminal enterprises, and—perhaps counterintuitively—help people evade the tax man.
The 50-Year Mortgage: Completely Fine or a Total Flop?
Mortgage experts are divided on the wisdom of a 50-year mortgage. No one seems to think it's the key to making homeownership affordable.
Will SCOTUS Resolve the Circuit Split on a Law That Disarms People With Nonviolent Criminal Records?
Steven Duarte is one of several petitioners who are asking the justices to address the constitutionality of that absurdly broad gun ban.
California's Fast-Food Minimum Wage Hike Is Killing Jobs
You can’t legislate your way to prosperity.
California's Aggressive Regulations Put Burgeoning AI Industry at Risk
Overly strict or poorly designed rules could slow beneficial uses of AI in healthcare, education, infrastructure, and public safety.
They Face $1 Million in Fines—for Someone Else's Code Violations
Humboldt County, California's sketchy code enforcement scheme piles ruinous fines on innocent people and sets them up to lose.
Don't Panic Over Federal Cuts for Homeless Programs
The federal cuts amount to little more than a rounding error in most state or big city budgets.
Seventh Circuit Rules Against Trump's Use of National Guard in Chicago
The Court of Appeals unanimously refused to stay a trial court ruling against Trump, signaling the judges believe his use of the Guard is illegal.
How Josh Hawley Is Empowering Unions in New York and California
Some blue states are trying to set up their own versions of the NLRB, and Hawley is inadvertently (or deliberately) helping the cause.
How Trump Triggered California's Redistricting Fight
Don't believe the GOP's 'principled' opposition to Prop. 50
California's Latest Dumb Gun Law is a Ban on Glocks
According to California lawmakers, Kamala Harris’s pistol is a potential machinegun.
Deference Due? Trump, the National Guard, and the Misuse of Martin v. Mott
A guest post by Joshua Braver and John Dehn.
The Zoning Theory of Everything: Abortion Edition
Every political issue ultimately becomes a zoning issue.
California Wants To Punish Social Platforms for Aiding and Abetting the First Amendment
Another entry into the "algorithms are magic" school of imposing liability on tech companies.
California's Fast Food Minimum Wage Hike Cost the State 18,000 Jobs. That Shouldn't Surprise Anyone.
Lawmakers made an exception for smaller restaurant chains, implicitly acknowledging that the law would come with costs.
