Los Angeles Votes to Increase Minimum Wage to $15
In a 14-1 vote, Los Angeles became the nation's largest city to raise the minimum wage. It'll go from $9 an hour to $15 over the next five years. By one account, the move will give about half of L.A.'s workforce a raise.
Report: Little Increase in Crime in Wake of Prison Realignment
A new report looks at the effects a major criminal justice reform known as realignment has had on crime. In 2011, realignment shifted responsibility for non-violent offenders from state prisons and parole agents to county jails and probation officers. The new report, from the Public Policy Institute of California, found a slight increase in property theft. It found no increase in violent crime.
Details Hidden on Legislative Lawyers Drafting Bills for Influential Groups
There are thousands of bills introduced in the California Legislature every year. Each one has been officially vetted by the Legislature's own lawyers. But there's something almost no one outside of Sacramento knows: those lawyers also unofficially draft legislation for powerful interest groups at taxpayer expense.