With budget talks on Capitol Hill at an impasse, the nation braces itself for automatic federal spending cuts, also known as "the sequester," that will affect major programs from education to the military. How hard and where will California be hit?

Bay Area real estate prices are on the rise. In almost every corner of the region, home-price appreciation is outpacing projected national growth. Whether low-end, high-end or somewhere in the middle, some analysts say there are too few houses for sale to meet buyer appetite.

The Obama administration urged the U.S. Supreme Court to strike down Proposition 8, California's ban on same-sex marriage. Silicon Valley companies, prominent Republicans and several state attorneys general have filed similar briefs in the past weeks as the high court prepares to consider the constitutionality of Prop. 8 and the Defense of Marriage Act later this month.