Blog
Blog
Why California’s ‘affordable’ housing costs $1 million a unit
Why California’s ‘affordable’ housing costs $1 million a unit By John Seiler | February 10, 2023 A friend of mine is an executive in the construction industry. His company sometimes works on government projects, especially in Los Angeles. As a non-union shop, his company works under the rules of Project ...
Blog
California Chooses Flashy Projects Over Quality Transit
(Image Courtesy California High-Speed Rail Authority) Do California government officials want more public transit riders? If the decades-long decline of even local public transit ridership or the state’s continued funding of its infamous $113 billion and counting fantasy train from Los Angeles to San Francisco is any indication, the answer ...
Blog
San Diego Fires Latest Salvo in Government’s War on Cars
Not too long ago, San Diego was, if not a haven of conservatism with a libertarian flavor, at least a break from the stifling progressivism of Los Angeles. It’s becoming increasingly more difficult to tell the differences between, though. The latest shift to the left: San Diego is at war ...
Blog
They’re Baaack! Sacramento Liberals Once Again Propose a ‘Wealth Tax’
Last week, San Jose Democratic Assemblymember Alex Lee once again proposed a “tax on extreme wealth in California.” Under Assembly Bill 293, “extreme wealth” is defined as “households with net worths of more than $50 million.” If enacted, a 1 percent tax would be applied to wealth over $50 million, ...
Agriculture
Despite recent rains and record snowpack, California’s drought is far from over
The Department of Water Resources announced an increase in allocations from 5 percent to 30 percent of requested water. For agriculture, the increased allocations mean approximately 10 million acre feet of water for the nearly 10 million acres of irrigated farmland in the state or enough water to cover every ...
Blog
Are Los Angeles’ world-renowned hospitals price transparent?
In 2021, the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) rolled out new rules requiring every licensed hospital to display costs for services. All hospitals have been required to list prices (whether that’s cash, gross charges, or negotiated) and display estimates in a consumer-friendly manner. Unsurprisingly, many hospitals refused ...
Blog
Northwest cities struggle to loosen their housing regulations
Northwest cities struggle to loosen their housing regulations By Sal Rodriguez February 3, 2023 Northwest cities struggle to loosen their housing regulations By Sal Rodriguez February 3, 2023 Across the country, local governments make it much harder than it ought to be to build housing. Some impose rigid land-use policies ...
Blog
Are Western cities ready for renewable skyscrapers?
Every so often a product comes along that presents itself as a “sustainable” innovation, yet has compelling appeal even if sustainability isn’t someone’s top priority. Of course, sustainability has become something of an overused buzzword, but it generally refers to a production process that doesn’t deplete natural resources or damage the environment. ...
Blog
Latest Reasons Why Residents Continue to Flee San Francisco
“Budget shortfalls pose an existential threat” to the “long-term viability” of transit services across the state. “Bay Area operators,” says a group of six state senators and seven assembly members, “face significant annual shortfalls,” leaving agencies such as BART no choice but “to cut multiple lines of service as early ...
Agriculture
Pork producers await the SCOTUS decision on Prop 12
The law, approved by California voters back in 2018, would require pork producers to give hogs in commercial settings 24-square-feet of housing space in which they would not come in contact with another pig. It also bans gestation crates and requires any pork coming into the state to follow the ...
Why California’s ‘affordable’ housing costs $1 million a unit
Why California’s ‘affordable’ housing costs $1 million a unit By John Seiler | February 10, 2023 A friend of mine is an executive in the construction industry. His company sometimes works on government projects, especially in Los Angeles. As a non-union shop, his company works under the rules of Project ...
California Chooses Flashy Projects Over Quality Transit
(Image Courtesy California High-Speed Rail Authority) Do California government officials want more public transit riders? If the decades-long decline of even local public transit ridership or the state’s continued funding of its infamous $113 billion and counting fantasy train from Los Angeles to San Francisco is any indication, the answer ...
San Diego Fires Latest Salvo in Government’s War on Cars
Not too long ago, San Diego was, if not a haven of conservatism with a libertarian flavor, at least a break from the stifling progressivism of Los Angeles. It’s becoming increasingly more difficult to tell the differences between, though. The latest shift to the left: San Diego is at war ...
They’re Baaack! Sacramento Liberals Once Again Propose a ‘Wealth Tax’
Last week, San Jose Democratic Assemblymember Alex Lee once again proposed a “tax on extreme wealth in California.” Under Assembly Bill 293, “extreme wealth” is defined as “households with net worths of more than $50 million.” If enacted, a 1 percent tax would be applied to wealth over $50 million, ...
Despite recent rains and record snowpack, California’s drought is far from over
The Department of Water Resources announced an increase in allocations from 5 percent to 30 percent of requested water. For agriculture, the increased allocations mean approximately 10 million acre feet of water for the nearly 10 million acres of irrigated farmland in the state or enough water to cover every ...
Are Los Angeles’ world-renowned hospitals price transparent?
In 2021, the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) rolled out new rules requiring every licensed hospital to display costs for services. All hospitals have been required to list prices (whether that’s cash, gross charges, or negotiated) and display estimates in a consumer-friendly manner. Unsurprisingly, many hospitals refused ...
Northwest cities struggle to loosen their housing regulations
Northwest cities struggle to loosen their housing regulations By Sal Rodriguez February 3, 2023 Northwest cities struggle to loosen their housing regulations By Sal Rodriguez February 3, 2023 Across the country, local governments make it much harder than it ought to be to build housing. Some impose rigid land-use policies ...
Are Western cities ready for renewable skyscrapers?
Every so often a product comes along that presents itself as a “sustainable” innovation, yet has compelling appeal even if sustainability isn’t someone’s top priority. Of course, sustainability has become something of an overused buzzword, but it generally refers to a production process that doesn’t deplete natural resources or damage the environment. ...
Latest Reasons Why Residents Continue to Flee San Francisco
“Budget shortfalls pose an existential threat” to the “long-term viability” of transit services across the state. “Bay Area operators,” says a group of six state senators and seven assembly members, “face significant annual shortfalls,” leaving agencies such as BART no choice but “to cut multiple lines of service as early ...
Pork producers await the SCOTUS decision on Prop 12
The law, approved by California voters back in 2018, would require pork producers to give hogs in commercial settings 24-square-feet of housing space in which they would not come in contact with another pig. It also bans gestation crates and requires any pork coming into the state to follow the ...
